TOP PICK
Björk: Voltaic
(Nonesuch)
The latest project by everyone’s favorite swan-wearing Icelandic elf
is available in five different packages. The best (and one of the
cheapest) is the set that combines a live CD from a London studio with
a concert DVD from the tour in support of 2007’s Volta. Cool,
trippy and sublime — just like Björk!
VIDEOGAME
The Conduit
(Sega)
The controls for this Wii shooting game can be somewhat wobbly. But
once you master the point-and-shoot, it’s a pretty fun ride. The
single-player campaign includes a sizeable arsenal of weapons, but
The Conduit really comes alive in multiplayer mode. There aren’t
many good first-person shooters for the Wii. You can add this one to
that short list.
VIDEOGAME
Guitar Hero Smash Hits
(Activision)
It’s basically a greatest-hits set culled from other Guitar
Hero games (including Encore and Legends of Rock),
but why sit through snoozers when you can go straight to “More Than a
Feeling,” “Barracuda” and “Free Bird”? Best of all, you can play all 48
songs with a full band (yes, even tracks from the original game). For
the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii.
DVD
The Mighty Boosh
(BBC)
All three seasons of this new-school British comedy group’s
same-named TV show come to DVD in extras-stuffed two-disc sets. And
unlike the episodes that air on Adult Swim, these are the original
uncut U.K. versions. That means even more totally effed-up adventures
with luggage-packing gorillas, poem-reciting moons and vain Yetis.
CD
The Woodstock Experience
(Legacy/Columbia/Epic/RCA)
Just in time for the 40th anniversary of the dirty-hippie fest,
these five sets pair vintage studio albums by Woodstock artists with
their entire festival shows. Now you can compare classics by Jefferson
Airplane, Janis Joplin, Santana, Sly & the Family Stone and Johnny
Winter (all released in 1969, mere months before Woodstock) with their
sloppy live versions.
This article appears in Jul 22-28, 2009.