First things first – aDawgg would like to offer his sincerest apologies for having to skip this week’s edition of Those Zany Charts… He told me to tell you all something, but I’ve completely forgotten what it was. In any case, Those Zany Charts… will be back in its regularly scheduled slot in two weeks’ time.

So, I’m here instead today, bringing you the first in a new feature here at 100b. We’ve been hoping to do something that focuses on new releases for some time now, since they get a bit neglected around here, so we’ll be writing up a quick run-down of the stuff we’ve had a chance to hear over the previous month (more detailed reviews will be done in separate posts should we feel the need or, you know, get around to it). In The Merry Merry Month may cover albums, singles, movies, or anything else music-related that grabs our attention. Please keep in mind that we are not high profile bloggers that get promotional copies of releases and that we do actually pay for these albums. We may not be able to pick up every single good release every single month, but we are always open to suggestions, so speak up in the comments if you think we’re missing out on something great.

So, what came out in May? The Ting Tings’ We Started Nothing has been all over the place lately. There’s a lot of criticism of The Ting Tings going around, but I don’t get it. We Started Nothing is a good pop record – it’s catchy as hell, fun, danceable. What exactly is wrong with that? Another duo that had a lot of early blog buzz was John & Jehn. Their Velvet Underground-y debut is a little bottom-heavy and doesn’t bring any major surprises in their sound, so steer clear if you hated “20 L 07″. Personally, I love “20 L 07″ and I’ve really enjoyed the album so far; “1,2,3″ and “Lady Spider” were the tracks that stood out to me on the first couple of listens. And yet another twosome, dan le sac vs. Scroobius Pip, made their debut in May with Angles, which feels less like a cohesive album than a very enjoyable (if slightly random) collection of cool beats and cleverly-made observations on modern society.

My most anticipated release in May was definitely The Futureheads’ This Is Not The World and it doesn’t disappoint. This album brings back the magical combination of harmony and fire that their debut did so well (and that News & Tributes lacked in places). My biggest surprise of the month was Johnny Flynn & The Sussex Wit’s stunning debut, A Larum, which I’ve completely fallen in love with. A glorious mix of assorted folk influences, A Larum is one of the best releases I’ve heard all year.

Check out standout tracks from my favorite May 2008 releases below.

   The Futureheads – Broke Up The Time
   Johnny Flynn & The Sussex Wit – Cold Bread