On The Shelf: Tomorrow’s New Releases Revealed Today

noah | January 29, 2007 2:13 am
norahcover.jpg

Welcome to On The Shelf, Idolator’s weekly look at the new releases landing on store shelves every Tuesday. Tomorrow’s a big day for the record industry, as the cute-as-a-button Norah Jones–whose last two albums have totaled 14 million copies sold in the U.S. alone–releases her latest album, Not Too Late. We’ll spare you the “is it too late for Norah Jones to continue being a sales juggernaut?” jokes, and instead go right into this week’s installment of On The Shelf, which wraps up new releases by Jones, Katharine McPhee, and Young Love, as well as a compilation honoring The Band.

Norah Jones, Not Too Late The artist: The music industry’s last, great hope. The sound: Pretty, delicate, slightly soporific. (What, no Peeping Tom bonus track?) The first in line: A harried mom who was planning on just getting a latte before she headed into work.

Katharine McPhee The artist: Season-six American Idol runner-up who fancies herself a hybrid of Christina Aguilera and Judy Garland. The sound: More Xtina than Judy, with a healthy dose of How Will I Know-era Whitney Houston. The first in line: Foot fetishists, thanks to the strappy-shoe ode “Open Toes.”

Young Love, Too Young To Fight It The artist: Model-pretty scenester with a knack for aping the last three years’ biggest disco-emo gestures. The sound: Frothy, overproduced electro that wears thin after half a listen. The first in line: The MisShapes of Peoria.

Various Artists, Endless Highway: Music Of The Band The artists: It’s like a Bonnaroo lineup: Jack Johnson, Guster, Widespread Panic, Bruce Hornsby. And Death Cab. The sound: Painstaking reworks that border on the overly reverent. The first in line: Rock writers in training.

On The CD Front [Pause & Play]