Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III

Label: Young Money
Year: 2008
Genre: Rap
Recommending Person: Francesca Pickle

I've never understood why "A Milli" gets universal praise. Tha Carter III is even beloved by Pitchfork of all places. 

That said the record is good. Lil Wayne is bit odd himself, like trying to play the guitar, but he is skilled at his craft and should stay in his lane.  

The biggest hit off this album is definitely "Lollipop", but it is probably one of my least favorite. I love "Mrs. Officer" and "Dr. Carter" the most. "Dr. Carter" should be more popular because it's a fun story and reminds me of the story telling method that Dr. Dre often implements in "Guilty Conscience", "Still Dre", and "Forgot About Dre". It's still a song that's straight bravado, but it has a layer of fun that can be lacking when rappers display their machismo.

The Gaslight Anthem - The '59 Sound

Label: SideOneDummy
Year: 2008
Genre: Indie Folk, Punk Rock, Indie Rock, Heartland Rock
Recommending Person: Chris Neseman

Let's just sit and examine how many genre's Wikipedia claims this album to be in. Couldn't we just stop at Rock and Roll? That's pretty much all that this album is, and that is not demeaning in anyway. I've had a good run of albums starting with Danger Mouse, to Parliament, and now The Gaslight Anthem. The '59 Sound reminded me of Social Distortion with a more conventional singer. I love Social Distortion, so I loved this album. Gaslight Anthem was always that band that people said they liked and I just agreed without having listened to any of their music. I'm glad I finally did, it was enjoyable all the way through.