Stream Two Album Of The Year Candidates, Taste Two Distinct Flavours Of Badass

With one of the year's most exciting Tuesdays just five days away, this week I was reminded again of just how much times have changed.  Rather than painfully wiling the days away and pining for that release date to come so I could listen to the albums I wanted most badly, and rather than deal with the impatience and guilt of pirating said albums when they leak, the internet has given us a most happy medium in the way of streams.

Long a practice reserved for fringe artists, the advance album stream has become increasingly common.  And this week, we've been given the chance to sink our teeth into not one but two fantastic records that see official releases next week.

Even with all of his well-documented non-White Stripes extracurricular activity over the years, anticipation was high for the first album to ever be released simply as a Jack White solo album.  Blunderbuss doesn't disappoint; its success is measured in equal parts White Blood Cells muscle, Get Behind Me Satan eccentricity, and Consolers of the Lonely groove.  iTunes is hosting the stream here; it's annoying in its presentation as a single 44-minute file, but it's not like you'll care since the album flows so well you'll gladly take it all in one go. 

If you've seen my previous posts, you'll know that I'm also excited to get my hands on Harmonicraft, the third album from Torche (and first since 2008's stellar sludgefest Meanderthal).  Well, thanks to Spin, you can give Harmonicraft a... er, spin, right this way.  As you submit to the awesomeness that's evident all over this platter, you can check out what bassman Jonathan Nunez has to say via track-by-track commentary.

Whether or not Torche have topped Meanderthal is not for me to say without giving it a few more good, thorough listens through headphones once I own the album.  But, judging from the quality of the tracks they've whipped up, I can safely say that if it doesn't top their last album it still stands a chance to top a list or two come December.

Both albums are in stores* Tuesday.

*(good luck finding Torche at Wal-Mart)