Bishop Allen's "The Broken String" -- Simply A Great Album

I know this was released in 2007, but Bishop Allen's "The Broken String" deserves a great deal of credit for being one of the best albums of the last two to three years. It's like taking Wilco's album "Being There" and the self-titled debut album from Ben Folds, mixing the two into a blender, and producing a unique album that plays more like a greatest-hits album, rather than your typical album with ecstatic highs and inexplicable, disappointing lows. Bishop Allen's debut album in 2003 was impressive, but this one takes their melodic abilities to new heights.

Each of the twelve songs, from the pop glory of "Click Click Click Click" to "Rain," which makes you want to get up and dance due to its quick, frenetic beat, will not leave you disappointed.

Maybe the biggest influence on Bishop Allen's second album has been Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy," a song of which I retain mixed feelings. After all, any song whose lyrics begin with "I remember when I lost my mind, and there was something so special about that day," brings up a plethora of emotions for myself, and for most of us. Even two years after its release, "Crazy" is probably the defining song of the decade, proving that you can combine hip-hop beats with a bittersweet melody about falling in love and not being able to control your emotions and feelings, whether you want to or not.

Bishop Allen's strength is much like Barkley's "Crazy," taking each song and applying a sense of universal appeal to it. The eclectic mix available on this sophomore album is all the more impressive, since so many bands crash and burn from the pressure of releasing a second album.

I highly suggest you pick up this album and recommend it to every one of your friends. You won't be sorry.