New Milkshake Album Will Arrive. Once They Start Working On It.

It's been awhile since the 2007 release of Play! the last full-length from Baltimore band Milkshake. Which isn't to say they haven't been keeping busy doing various things (I, for one, was amused by the Milkshake comic book they put out), but, y'know, living on the other side of the country as I do, I tend to be less interested in the live shows.

But in their latest newsletter the band says they've been "hard at work writing and rehearsing as we prepare to record our fourth CD next month." They say that the CD will focus on and by "inspired by all kinds of things 6 - 9 year-old kids might find themselves thinking about." Most intriguingly is the news that the CD will be produced by music veteran Tor Hyams. The selection of Hyams, who we recently noted was working on producing the Paul Green School of Rock album promises to give the release a little bit of an edge. Although the band has many charms, few would accuse them of being particularly far along the "edgy" spectrum.

For those of you interested in one of their songs for the under-6 crowd, here's what might be my favorite video off their Screen Play DVD:
Milkshake - "Bluebird"

Review: Play! - Milkshake

Over the course of its two previous albums, the Baltimore-based band Milkshake has been content to mine a poppier seam of kids' music. While I wouldn't call them sentimental, their songs are usually sunny and optimistic -- there's little mischieviousness in their songs (at least lyrically.

On their third album Play!, released this week, Milkshake doesn't veer much from the approach on their previous albums, but does simultaneously broaden their musical palette while narrowing the topical scope a little bit. Play! is, loosely defined, a concept album about the different ways kids play. From the opening track "We've Got a Band" (playing musical instruments) to the '80s power-poppy title track, Mikel Gehl and Lisa Matthews sing about the fun of play. There are songs about make-believe play (the Beatlesque "Imagination Nation," "Pirates," "Home on the Rang") to go along with songs about playing sports ("Bowling with You," or "Baseball," with a Cal Ripkin cameo). What saves the lyrics from being cloying to adult ears is the specificity -- it's one thing to sing about how much fun it is to spend time with your family, it's another thing entirely to make that song about bowling. It grounds the song in a reality that, while it might not apply to your family, is certainly relatable.

Musically, Milkshake adds a few nice touches to their pop-rock approach. The Bacharach horns on "Okay to be Different," for example, or the sea chanty of "Pirates." While Milkshake's version of going wild ("Go Wild") is, well, more mild than wild, they don't completely abandon the rock -- the closing cut "My Best Friend," is a snappy slice of power-pop that starts at about 60 miles an hour, never lets up, and wraps up in less than 2 minutes. (In fact, I really like the last 5 tracks.)

I think the album's geared right at kids ages 4 through 8. You can hear samples of the tracks at the album's CD Baby page or hear full tracks at the band's homepage.

Milkshake is not everyone's cup of tea -- they're writing happy pop songs for happy kids. But they do this better than most of the kids' bands out there and Play! is their best album yet. Recommended, especially if you've enjoyed their other CDs.

Please Release Me: November (and December) 2006 Releases

As we slide into November and December, the number of new releases is typically scaled back because there's, like, a bajillion different things going on. Setting aside the daylight-to-task ratio, which is at its lowest point of the year, who wants to compete against the hundreds, nay, thousands of Christmas-related CDs flooding the market? ("On the first day of Christmas / My auntie gave to me / A Christmas album from Kenny G.")

Having said that, there are a few releases coming out here over the next couple months:

Nov. 7: All Together Now - V/A (a Beatles covers album with a kids' chorus)
Nov. 14: Play! - Milkshake
Nov. 14: We Wanna Rock - Thaddeus Rex
Nov. ??: Hey You Kids! - The Jellydots
Dec. 5: Asian Dreamland - V/A (Putumayo)
Dec. ??: Ernie & Neal - Rock the House

Which of these should be on your gift list for the winter-based gift-giving holiday of your choice (or on the purchase list of your favorite local library)? Tune in... find out...

Laboring To Finish This Post...

It's late, and thanks to a monsoon thunderstorm wreaking havoc with the internet connection, it's later than I wanted this to be, so I'll be brief...

First, I have two posts coming up early this week that I'm very excited about. One involves virtually no work on my part (no, that's not why I'm excited about it) and is a sequel of sorts to a prior post. The other involves quite a bit of work on my part and, well, I don't want to spoil it. Just don't miss it.

Second, I wanted to make sure I highlighted some stuff around the web I've been meaning to link to...
1. Reader Gwyneth has started a Kids in Atlanta website highlighting kids-related musical events in Atlanta. It's very thorough, and I think it's a great example of what people can do to make it easy for the public to find out about kids' musicians.
2. Reader Suzanne (I thiiiiink) Gwyneth also is now operating a "Live365" radio station entitled "Gooney Bird Radio" , playing some artists familiar to this website, along with the occasional foreign language and poetry.
3. Thanks to The Lovely Mrs. Davis, who mentioned this site to Christopher Noxon, author of Rejuvenile and its associated blog, and thanks to Noxon for noticing. (Go back to the old site, and you can find the reviews for Gwendolyn and the Good Time Gang and Captain Bogg and Salty, both of which draw mention in Noxon's book. They'll get posted here soon, too. Really.) You can read Mrs. Davis' review of the book here.

And finally, thanks to both Charity and the JAMband and Joe McDermott, who both linked here recently. McDermott, incidentally, just won the Children's section of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest for "Great Big World" (no, not the Hoodwinked version) and will have a new album coming out soon.

OK, and really finally, Milkshake and Rebecca Frezza videos for PBS Kids here.

There. That oughta hold ya. Come back soon, though, I promise it'll be worth it.

I'm Not Talking To You, Jamarama Live

Go ahead, Jamarama Live. Tour the East Coast. See if I care. Tour with Buck Howdy, Ralph's World, Milkshake. (Oh, and LazyTown and a whole of bunch weird characters that I'm sure I would recognize if we had cable.) Ignore us fine folks in Phoenix. Fifth Largest City in America. Hmph.