Here a quick recap of some of the new albums I’ve checked out in my quest to listen to 50 new albums this year.

Album #12 – Simple Plan’s Get Your Heart On!
I’ve been a Simple Plan fan since day one. This album really shows a lot of musical growth that I haven’t heard in previous albums. That excites me a lot! Lyrically, it’s about the same as their previous efforts. No real growth there, but they never really struggled in the lyric department anyway. I enjoyed it a lot overall, but I think you I have to like this kind of light punk rock in order to appreciate it. If you are a Plan fan, you’ll love it. Download: “Can’t Keep My Hands Off You” because it’s the best track on the album (IMO), and “Anywhere Else But Here” if  you liked “Addicted” from their first record.

Album #13 – LMFAO’s Sorry For Party Rocking

I hate to say it, but I’m losing patience for this kind of electro-pop. I loved it before EVERYONE started doing it. I used to be a GoGo dancer, so I pride myself on having sharp robot ears (meaning that I can separate the good electronic music from the stuff that’s just shit). LMFAO’s “Sorry for Party Rocking” has good and bad moments. The good moments certainly make up for the bad ones though. And even the bad ones aren’t that bad. For a commercialize dance record, it’s pretty tight. Download: “Sorry for Party Rocking” if you like dubstep. “Sexy and I Know It” if you liked “Party Rock”.

Album #14 – Matt Nathanson’s Modern Love

It’s a little poppier than Jack Johnson, but not quite as pop as Maroon 5 or OneRepublic. It’s a happy medium somewhere in the middle, and it’s good. Some of the lyrics are kind of juvenile, but you get that with just about any pop album. I’d recommend it if you like pop music. If not, skip it. Download: “Room at the End of the World” if you like pop ballads. “Queen of (K)nots” because it’s the best song on the album, with “Kept” finishing in a close second place.

Album #15 – Hugh Laurie’s Let Them Talk

I think I had the same reaction as the rest of the planet when I heard the Hugh Laurie had put out a blues record. Really? I decided to give it a whirl though because I love blues music and I love Hugh Laurie. It’s not a bad first record. Musically, I think it gets kind of messy and boring in places, but it’s a good album overall. I still can’t wrap my head around the idea that it’s him singing because it sounds NOTHING like his speaking voice. Not that everyone’s singing voice sounds the same as their speaking voice. It’s still weird though. Download: “After You’ve Gone” and “Let Them Talk” because they’re the two best songs on the record. Don’t think that the rest of the album will be as good though. These are huge peaks in an album of highs and lows.

Album #16 – Blink 182′s Neighborhoods

Man, I couldn’t have been more excited to listen to this album. I’ve been a huge Blink fan since I was a teenager. Look at the site name for crying out loud! Jenrose182 has been my username for everything for years. Anywhoodles, this album is a career best for them IMO opinion. Their earlier albums were more musical than lyrical. The albums falling in the middle of their career were more lyrically grand. Their last album before going on hiatus was a great mix of the two. Neighborhoods is an even more perfect mix of musical genius and great lyrics. I have a great appreciation for any album that I can put on, completely ignore the lyrics, and still have a great time listening to it. This is one of those records. GOD I’m glad to have them back on the scene! Wanna hear my only complaint? They get a little F-word happy throughout the album, but that’s just my opinion. I don’t like stuff like that when it’s in excess. Download: “Ghost on the Dancefloor”, “After Midnight”, and “Snake Charmer” just to entice yourself to buy the album because the whole thing is great!

Album #17 – Jay-Z and Kanye West’s Watch the Throne

I’m a fan of both of these artists, but I think they lose a little bit of their magic when they’re together. Don’t get me wrong. This is a great album, and some of the tracks are career bests for the both of them. I just feel like their styles are so different that I just spend the whole album thinking about which of them is the better rapper. However I realize that this is just my opinion. I recognize that it’s a great album. Download: “Welcome to the Jungle”, and my favorite track “Niggas in Paris”.