Good music from both sides of the pond

I’ve been going through a Brit band phase lately. Brit rock, Brit pop, Brit bibbity-bop – whatever you want to call it.

But the reason is because Muse just released their new album, “The Resistance,” on Sept. 14. I’ve also been listening to the Scottish indie-band, We Were Promised Jetpacks.

The Jetpacks hail from Glasgow and their latest album titled, “These Four Walls,” is easy to love right at first listen … mostly. They have a sense of urgency and a youthful rebel sound. Lead singer Adam Thompson’s thick Scottish brogue is pleasant and kind of epic. It lacks the sometimes nasally tones of its southern counterpart. The best track by far is “It’s Thunder and It’s Lightning.” It’s definitely worth a download on iTunes.

As for Muse, “The Resistance” is both catchy and operatic. It’s tight – the musicianship, the production, the composition; frankly it’s my favorite album from the band so far. It’s typical Muse: It has a touch of European synthesizers; it’s guitar-driven and high energy. But it sounds a bit more commercial and some tracks are definitely mainstream. It’s not a dealbreaker, though.

Usually I balance out my phases by listening to something in a genre that is diametrically opposite.

So what’s the opposite of Brit rock?

Merle Haggard. Outlaw country.

Rolling Stone did an article on him in their latest issue, and there’s a photo essay on their Web site titled, “Merle Haggard: The Life and Times of a Badass Legend.” I think it sums him up pretty well.

I skimmed the article in The Bookie (I only pay for newspapers, because they need it more) and I have to say – Merle was money.

He said he had been incarcerated 17 times all together. Why?

“I don’t like being told what to do,” he said.

His song “Mama Tried” is about that topic. In it he sings, “I turned 21 in prison, doin’ life without parole. No one could steer me right, but Mama tried, Mama tried.” It’s a good drinking song. “Pancho and Lefty,” a song Haggard recorded with Willie Nelson, is about a Mexican bandit and his sidekick Lefty running from the Federales. It’s my favorite out of his catalog, and it’s in the top 25 most played on my iPod.

So that’s some of what I’ve been listening to lately. One album I’m really looking forward to is The Black Keys’ coming hip-hop reinvention record titled “Blakroc.” It’s going to have Mos Def on it, and it’s going to be awesome.