OUR WEEKLY COLLECTION OF SHORTER REVIEWS | |
The Terrifying Experience,
The Orange Peels,
Sam Lowry,
Cameron,
The Nasty,
DMS,
Retina,
Drums & Tuba,
The And/Ors,
Abscess,
Kid Dakota,
Pottiffer's Penny,
Dear Nora,
Matthew Goodheart,
Paul Manchin,
Zikzak,
The Twisties,
Claire Voyant,
Preoccupied,
All Time Present,
Jesse Perkins,
Gotohells,
S Hotel,
Strike Anywhere
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The Terrifying Experience / Magnetic Breakthrough / Mental Telemetry
(CD)
Mental Telemetry's last Terrifying Experience release revealed a more
subdued side to the band. As I listened to that 7", I wondered if the
Experience had decided to go soft on me, throwing in their abrasive licks
for a more refined pop approach. As the feedback on Magnetic Breakthrough's
opening track squeals uncontrollably, it's quite clear
that the Experience has plenty of muscle left in their Marshall stacks. As
a matter of fact, the band's latest release falls somewhere in between
feral psychedelic punk and overdriven rock, crossing back and forth between
each genre regularly. Several tunes remind me of Cleveland's The Pagans,
without that legendary band's over-the-top vocals, as gritty guitar licks
brusquely drive home the point that distortion is still king. Piano,
acoustic guitar and even a drum machine-inspired techno number follow, giving you a brief break from the band's deafening sound. Overall, though, The Terrifying Experience has dispensed another round of raucous vocals, amps cranked up to 10 and staggering riffs that'll make eardrums bleed and have
you smashing up your parents' furniture in a fit of rock-fueled rage. -- am
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The Orange Peels / So Far /
spinART (CD)
The Orange Peels stayed home sick with a tongue infection the day
detached irony was covered in Rock Band School. They stayed late the
next day to make it up, but the regular teacher was at an in-service,
and the substitute only knew how to do poppy and earnest, so they got a
double dose. The day after that they attended a special seminar called
"The Shining Path to Mellow and Groovy Sounding Pop Records", at which
they earned extra badges of merit for astute observation and not
sucking. While the band seems to have rejected the school's new-fangled
notion that rock and roll lyrics don't always have to rhyme, they have
embraced the concept that rock and roll lyrics don't always have to be
really stupid and can even be clever and charming once in awhile.
Overall the band did very well in Rock Band School, as anyone who has
grooved to their pleasant sound, catchy songs and clever lyrics will
attest. -- ib
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Sam Lowry / Down Songs from the Exile Suite / Higher
Step (CD)
"Has anybody seen Sam Lowry?" Sorry, had to slip a
Brazil reference in there somewhere. Mind you, this
Sam Lowry isn't fighting samurai robots or toppling
oppressive governments; he seems content with the far less
strenuous task of unburdening his soul. Alternating between
sparse and moody alt-folk and densely layered, beat driven
jangle, he delivers a record full of unexpected and mostly
pleasant surprises. Because Lowry has a deep, expressive
voice -- think Leonard Cohen with a bit of Warren Zevon
thrown in -- he comes across best on the simplest tunes,
which place his vocals front and center. When there's more
going on in the mix, Lowry succeeds in surprising the ear
with interesting sonic juxtapositions; if Beck produced a
Cohen record, it might sound like this. Unfortunately, when
the mix is "busy", as on "Unintentional", Lowry's vocals tend to get lost in the
midrange. Down Songs... is a very strong debut, but
I hope that on future releases, Sam Lowry gives himself more
breathing room. -- gz
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Cameron / Pictures Never Taken / Self-Released (CD)
The opening riff of Cameron's "Argument" sounds like the opening riff of
Jimmie's Chicken Shack's "High". Not only the opening riff, in fact, but much
of Pictures Never Taken sounds like JCS, though Cameron's post-grunge,
angst-laden metal/rock really lacks a sense of humour. Given the
current taste for angry, Limp Bizkit-style rock, humour's probably not
essential, and the lyrics from "Perfect Myth" ("I swear I'm mean like
death"), "Reference Point -- Turnaround" (Because all I know is I was wrong /
It always seems like I'm wrong") and all the rest prove that they've got the
anger bit down pat. It's just that the singer sounds like he's had a bad
breakup with a girlfriend or boyfriend -- maybe his first -- and he expresses
it in a less-than-unique way. The anger's not even expressed
harshly; he sounds angry, but it's not terrifying. The guitar changes are
good, but other than that I can't find much to say about these guys. They're a good
bar band, but it's doubtful that they'll rip up the radio. -- js
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The Nasty / Doin' Things We Shouldn't Do / TDA
(CD)
This trio is a version of Hanson for those who prefer their music with a
dash of pop-rock bluster. Young and snarky, the boys dispense with Hanson's
underage saccharine and inform their guitar/keys/bass format with the
dirtier elements of music. At moments, such as on the jazzy workout "Role
Model", the group really shines. In particular, keyboardist Pat Droppleman
deserves recognition for his highly impressive soloing. At other times, however,
the lyrics and structures seem a bit, well, juvenile. This is especially
true during the opening track, "Kathy II: The Awakening", which combines
the lyrics of Ween with the angry blast of Adam Sandler's "Somebody Kill
Me" from The Wedding Singer. Still, there is a lot of promise here.
Given time and perspective, great things could arise from The Nasty. For
now, however, only pretty good things are forthcoming. -- rd
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If you're looking for an act that successfully melds classical jazz, and
some dance elements into a nice swirl, DMS's new six-track
set will please. Starting off with "In a Silent Way", he shows a possibly
unconscious respect to Joe Jackson's later work. The programmed keyboards
keep you in the field of pop while the trumpet, drums and utterly odd song
structure keeps the mind on its toes. It's not as beautiful as the standouts
from Night and Day 2, but it's easily among the best "indie jazz"
I've heard. The disc's second song, "Laughing With Me/At Me", ends with
some nice trumpet but is weighed down by the keyboards, which proceed at a
fast, almost disorienting clip. A pretty girl could sing over it and maybe
turn it into a nice dance video, but the pretty girl isn't present here. The
song, in short, sucks -- but you are only tempted to laugh at DMS here. All
the other tracks go from very good (like "The Den of Metal Arts", in which the
keyboards are used to much greater effect) to astounding. My definite
favorite is "Shirts and Pants", which is not only the funkiest tune in the set,
but one of the most fasinating instrumental dance workouts I've heard. The
CD has a lovely closer, too: "SOS (mytambourines are my machines)" employs
the same jazzy mood used in "In a Silent Way", but it also incorporates a
cheery new wave vibe into the mix. If you ever wondered what would happen if
Miles Davis met A-Ha, DMS gives a strong and tasty clue. -- td
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Retina / Volcano Waves 1-8 / Hefty
(CD)
Opening with tones that had the neighborhood dogs clapping their paws
to their ears, Retina's Volcano Waves 1-8 brings the
noise from the Italian electronic underground. Lino Monaco and Nicola
Buono have been making music together since 1994, and although this
Pompeii-based duo (no volcano jokes, please) can coax quite an array of
ambient-style experimental sounds from the ether, the album ultimately
fails to hold attention. The lead track, "Agni", provides a blueprint
for the album: The above-mentioned high notes last nearly two and a half
minutes, with minimal additions, before a looped beat urges the tempo
along to a slow lope. Then that rhythm remains essentially
constant for the track’s three remaining minutes. Unfortunately, this
pattern is repeated on most of the eight tracks presented here. Retina produce
some interesting sounds along the way, but they’ll need a little more
inventiveness to (oh, ok, one volcano joke) produce a musical
eruption. -- rt
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Drums & Tuba / Officer Pieper +2 / Grey Flat
(7")
You can't do a whole lot better for four bucks than this
mildly schizophonic single. Starting off as a
goofy narrative about a run-in with some University of Texas
campus cops, who hassle the narrator for
public tuba-playing on Christmas Eve, "Officer Pieper"
unexpectedly cuts loose with a mess of sixties-style
cop theme aggro before winding down its spoken-word narrative. Oddly,
there's not much tuba-playing on this track, which makes
for a more angular, punkish sound than we're used to hearing
from D&T. "Borscht" seeks to compensate, dishing up a
brief dose of oompah-punk jocularity. "Noise Song" finishes
in high style with a densely-knit, percussive piece of
agitfunk; it sounds like something from Snatch, only
a bit more organic. All three tracks are winners. -- gz
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The And/Ors / Will Self Destruct / Better Looking (CD)
If you were at all a fan of the early '90s shoegazer scene or classic
power-pop in the vein of Big Star, The And/Ors are a band for you. On
their debut album, this brazen four piece (which
includes former members of Thee Psychic Hearts and Interstate Ten) churns
out one hazy, fuzz-encrusted pop nugget after another. "Candy Takes the Cake" and "The Black Diamond" are slathered in layers of galactic-by-way-of-the-garage guitars and kinetic backbeats.
"Terror Eyes" has the melodic splendor of Galaxie 500 written
all over it while "Screams Nicole"'s swirling guitars and male/female
vocals are more than a tad reminiscent of Curve. But for all its
instrumental ingenuity, Will Self Destruct’s secret weapon is the
vocal and lyrical talents of lead singer/songwriter Daniel Black.
In the end, it's Black's smooth croon and witty lyrical abstractions
on everyday life that really entitle Will Self Destruct to that place of honor,
next to Marquee Moon in your record collection. -- jj
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Abscess / Tormented / Necropolis (CD)
A spine-chilling showcase of disparaging death metal, Abscess is a
throbbing boil of
pus-covered anguish on the body of metal. It's sick, it's deformed and it's
definitely tender to
the touch. That's exactly what the band wants you to perceive as guttural
growling and
turbulent guitars dig you a grave of sweaty, speed driven numbers that harp
on the
characteristic death metal topics of disease, death and disembowelment. The
majority of
tracks here avoid a speedy overkill, instead opting for mid-tempo bruising
that's slow enough
to penetrate your insides, yet still fiendish enough to get your adrenalin
pumping and your
heart racing. Sounds unpleasant, doesn't it? For metal fans, this aluminum
disc of recorded
torment should satisfy the sicker side of your personality -- the side that some people
really shouldn't
know about. For you others, it's best that you avoid any contact with
Abscess, as its
devilish influences may send you over to the other side for good. -- am
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Kid Dakota / So Pretty / Tiny Telephone (CD)
Kid Dakota has apparently just signed to Tiny Telephone, but I think that
happened after we received this CD. No mention of a label appears on my
copy; it's just a CD-R with a cover photo showing a guy with a bloody
face. I wasn't exactly excited by its prospects. However, now that I've finally put
the disc in my player, it's made me lonesome for the days when I
could sit back and listen to a single CD for a month straight. Darren Jackson's
vocals and guitar work are more accomplished than all the early work by
indie icons like Doug Martsch and Steve Malkmus, and his songs convey
an astounding range. Rather than one great song repeated five times over,
we get a stunning, lyrically beautiful ballad ("Spring is finally coming
on, the geese are pairin' off") and rockers blending classic sixties pop
with Archer of Loaf. There's "Coalminer", a song that conveys the same dirt
and sweat with which Joe Grushecky stuffs his songs, but still makes me think
of The Kinks, and you also get a "Summer Cold" that sweeps you, like So Pretty,
"up into the atmosphere, where the sky is blue and clear". This is a
must-have EP, and one which gives the fabulous Tiny Telephone catalog yet another gold
star. -- td
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Pottiffer's Penny / S/T /
Self-Released
(CD)
Pottiffer's Penny is a hard rock threesome from Yorkville, Illinois. The
sound on this disc is pretty bad, but it's good enough to convince me that
these guys would be fun to see live. Their songs are dynamic and
energized, with lots rapid fire drum licks and stop-start guitar
jerkiness. The singer has an interesting voice, although sometimes it
sounds like he's trying a bit hard to be fancy instead of just wailing,
which is what this music seems to call for. He does wail occasionally,
though -- for instance, on the opening track, The Hang -- and that's when he
sounds the best. Some of the playing is a bit sloppy, which really kills
the buzz when the band is trying to do intricate, heavy shredding. I guess
that's why this seems like the type of band that's best seen live; it's
more about the energy they're putting into the performance than about getting
all the notes right. -- ib
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Dear Nora / Dreaming Out Loud EP / Magic
Marker (7")
Of the batch of Dear Nora releases I've reviewed over the
last three weeks, Dreaming Out Loud is probably my
favorite. That's not to say that there's anything wrong
with the other two -- indeed, I'm more and more impressed
with Katy Davidson and crew each time I hear the band.
However, there's a warmth and immediacy to this acoustic EP
that I found particularly enjoyable. All eight of these
songs were written and recorded in a single 24-hour period.
As you might expect, they're simple affairs -- mostly just
vocals and acoustic guitars. That'd be a pretty restrictive
set of conditions for just about any band, but Dear Nora
work capably with their limitations, crafting simple,
hook-laden tunes that are cheerful and, after a few listens,
memorable. My admiration for this group increases with every new song I hear. -- gz
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Matthew Goodheart / Songs From The Time Of Great Questioning / Meniscus (CD)
Everybody needs to listen to some improvisational music now and then, and it always helps when you're listening to a player who knows what
he or she is doing. Matthew Goodheart knows what he's doing. Sure, it sometimes
sounds like he's just pounding on the piano keys, but his compositions
are always appealing in some cool, unspoken way. He presents a great
deal of variation, both within his songs and across the album's five tracks, which
run just over fifty-two minutes. Sometimes his fingers freak out
and traverse the keyboard like attacking sharks; at other times, he lets
things slow to a gentle lilt and takes a free jazz ethic to some accessible
places. "Variations On A Theme by Alvin Curran" shows all sides of
the themes of the live album. "Shaker Melody" is a disturbing
piece in which Goodheart seems to lay into his pianos in unimaginable ways.
Goodheart is an accomplished player who paints sometimes touching, sometimes creepy
piano art works. Songs From the Time of Great Questioning is a powerful, dark work -- some sort of
minor masterpiece, even. -- tnd
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Paul Manchin / Natural / B-Group (CD)
Natural bears only a surface resemblance to
Jamiroquai's Travelling Without Moving. Like Jamiroquai, Paul Manchin
makes funky R&B/soul-flavoured music that sounds a bit like the greats
(Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Sly Stone, Prince). However,
Manchin maintains far more personal style than the more obviously-derived Jamiroquai; sometimes Jamiroquai sounds like they are trying to
be Stevie Wonder, whereas Manchin always sounds like himself.
Furthermore, Manchin's sound is interesting because it doesn't sound quite
as slickly produced as some R&B does. The music just doesn't have the
background ear candy that some of the current young girl acts seem to have.
If you have a keen ear, you'll detect some borrowed trance techniques, which give Natural's tracks a very mellow feel. Urban, stylish and clean in sound, I'd recommend Natural to anyone interested in hearing some new R&B that isn't dominated by a sixteen
year old in a leather halter (sorry, guys). The only complaint I'd have with
Manchin isn't a musical one: he calls his style SPREHD (soul, pop, R&B,
electronica, hip-hop and dance). Lord knows we don't need another acronym. -- js
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Zikzak / S/T / Bitter (7")
Zikzak's latest 7" is kind of like a mini-sampler. You'll find
that "I Lose the Tiny Man" is a bizarre concoction of the vocal and lyrical
eccentricities of They Might Be Giants and the off-kilter musical melodies
of The Pogues in their heyday. The duo offers a nod to the pop genius of
Elvis Costello on "Anna Li" as the tune develops mature lyrics and enticing
guitar lines, growing into a happy, Morrissey-flavored track. This handful of
influences gets caught up in a turbulent Brit-Pop whirlwind that
lands somewhere in between quirky '80s guitar melodies and boisterous,
contemporary-sounding harmonies. The first tune hints at what's to come on
the band's upcoming CD, so stay tuned for details. -- am
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The Twisties / S/T / Self-Released (CD)
The choruses fueling "Just For You" ("My love as big as the sky / My love as deep
as the ocean / My love, just for you") and "Forever" ("We've been together for
so long / It's not enough to write this song") indicate that the Twisties make
music for their ladies, or for a chance to score with someone in the
audience. That seems to be their reason for existence. It's all of the other,
much harder rock songs on their debut that suggest that their goals have been
realized. Tracks like "No Time" and "Long Hair Books" have the Twisties
recalling a bunch of happy kids inspired by the Heartbreakers, the Stooges
and the New York Dolls. The rock is raw, dirty as a bike path and a good
bit of fun. It's only when they slow things down and act like that
"Seinfeld" character who worshipped "Desperado", that you'll have pity for
the women they have at their side. -- td
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Claire Voyant / Time
Again -- A Collection of Remixes / Metropolis (CD)
It's a bit weird for me to review Time Again, as it's a collection
of remixes of a band that I've never heard. Apparently Claire Voyant is an
electronic trio that specializes in dreamy, female vocals backed by
keyboards. This album features remixes by such luminaries as Front 242, VNV
Nation and Covenant. The music is good enough to make me want to track
down the original versions of these tracks. If what's here is any
indication, then Claire Voyant might easily make it on my next mix tape,
along with Olive, St. Etienne and Hooverphonic. My favorite remix here is
"Majesty (Premonition)" by Assemblage 23 -- a deep, house-y affair with
shimmering arpeggiation and seductive, low vocals. Other standout remixes
include the surprisingly understated "Eventide (Riptide)" by Front 242, the
trancy "lolite (Trancelite)" by Francis A. Preve and the ethereal "Majesty"
by VNV Nation. -- nw
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Preoccupied / BS (demo) / Self-Released (CASS)
With all due respect to the putative members of Preoccupied,
I wouldn't be entirely surprised to find out that this
was sent in by someone taking the piss. A single,
less-than-three-minute song on a ninety-minute cassette,
"BS" is at best a modest undertaking. It's a jangly pop
instrumental (or wants to be one, anyway), seemingly
recorded on a boombox, and the band admits this is a
"sketchy" version. Structure-wise, it's not particularly
complex, but it works...in a "jam-band" sort of way.
However, Preoccupied seems a little
weak on the concept of rhythm, so rather than a cohesive
song we get several instruments attempting to race each
other to the end of each measure. When, on occasion,
everyone synchs up, it sounds...well, like a bunch of kids
playing instruments in a garage. And that's okay, but it's
certainly not enough to justify booking paying gigs or
putting out a 7". The song itself seems workable, but the
players need to tighten things up. -- gz
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All Time Present / Good Vibrations/No Expectations / Evolving Ear (CD)
You know how Medeski, Martin, and Wood do that improvisational
free jazz jam thing? It's generally quite appealing, as the trio uses
each other for inspiration as they play their own little ditties.
All Time Present try to do the same kind of thing on Good Vibrations/
No Expectations. The title is half right. Yes, you should
go into the CD with no expectations, but the vibrations are a fair bit below
average. At times, one gets the impression that these are high
school band members warming up their instruments. The liner notes credit
three electric guitars... three quite tame electric guitars. The eight
untitled tracks don't really go anywhere and they're not really sonically
appealing. Maybe it works for the band, and maybe it was fun to record, but
it's not for a home audience. This sort of thing, when it's so abstract that
it almost sounds amateurish, really works better live. It's all just random
notes for the sake of random notes, and there's little art in that these
days. There's nothing grating here, but there's not much to latch onto either. It would
take absurdly masterful musicians to pull off music with so few points
of entry. Everybody wants to be Cage, but it's all been done before, and
better. -- tnd
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Jesse Perkins / S/T / Self-Released
(CD)
The key to the "singer-songwriter" style is connecting to the listener
through a story as opposed to the direct impact of the instruments.
On this level, Jesse Perkins simultaneously succeeds and fails. Preferring
to let hazy images suggest the tales behind his songs rather than taking a more
direct approach, Perkins allows listeners to impose their own lives onto
these slightly sorrow-filled tunes. Unfortunately, while his technique has its merits,
an entire album with this approach works against him. The songs' low-key instrumentation makes them feel as abstract as the lyrics, leaving the listener a bit too much room to roam. Thus, rather than feeling
as if I'm being told a story, I find myself wandering off into internal
territory in which Perkins merely provides background music. This isn't to
say he isn't skilled at what he does –- he is. Rather, the impression the
disc leaves is as fleeting and momentary as the visions the lyrics
represent, which makes this self-titled debut pleasant, but not likely to
stand out. -- rd
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Gotohells / Rock-n-Roll America / Vagrant
(CD)
The first words uttered on Rock-n-Roll America are "Come on!", a
statement of purpose that’s hard to argue with. The nine year old band
(Andrew, Hunter, Edo, and Timmy -— no last names, please) cites AC/DC as a
formative influence, and the stamp of that straight-ahead juggernaut can
be heard all over the album. The Gotohells swagger through 40 minutes
of 4/4 rock with titles like "Wasted", "Hell Yeah" and "Sin Baby" with
the kind of good-time attitude that isn't seen much in these days of
angst-ridden nu-metal. "I’ve come to save your soul with rock-n-roll...so
you gotta take me home, girl, you gotta take me home", says Andrew
on "Lock Up Your Daughters". Rock-n-Roll America’s pleasures are simple, but they’re
worthy of a head-bang or two. -- rt
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S Hotel / Still, Always / Milque (CD)
If the music of Still, Always was as inventive and breathtaking as its
packaging, we would find ourselves looking squarely into the eyes of the
new royalt of the indie-pop kingdom. Unfortunately, this is not
the case. As it stands, Still, Always certainly isn't "bad". It simply
lacks the driving spirit of inventiveness that seems to be an essential
component of any great record. While the breezy vocals and
pared-down backbeat of "In My Life" or the meandering
percussive uprisings and gentle strum of "Tea Above Rapollo" sound nice wafting from your
stereo, they do little in the way of taking up residence
in your head for any extended period of time. Call it "cocktail pop" if
you will -- songs that work well as background music but never manage to
completely engross the listener. This is a pleasant
record for an afternoon get together, but hardly one that you’ll be
running out to tell all your friends about. -- jj
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Strike Anywhere / Chorus of One / Jade Tree (CD)
Jade Tree’s signing of this Richmond, Virginia quintet probably didn't come as too much of a shock to that many people (compared to their signing of Milmarker, anyway). Shortly after
their arrival on the scene, Strike Anywhere had already received the respect and
praise that it takes many bands a lifetime to garner. After its initial
release last year on Red Leader, a re-formatted Chorus of One takes its
bow on Jade Tree. Vaguely
reminiscent of a clutch of well-known bands, Strike Anywhere’s potent
brand of catchy-as-hell sing-along punk will certainly turn more than
its share of heads. From the title track’s opening sample of Martin
Luther King Jr. through the final biting power-chords of "Cassandratic
Equation", the record spits blood, sweat and vitriol into the listener's
unsuspecting face. A clear standout in this powerful pack is
"Question the Answer"; its breakneck rhythms and gangland choruses
effortlessly burn their way into your memory banks. Chorus of One
is proof that at some point in the not-too-distant future, Strike
Anywhere are going to be one of those bands everyone is talking about. -- jj
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gz - george zahora | nw - noah wane | am - andrew magilow | ib - irving bellemead | jj - jason jackowiak
td - theodore defosse | rd - ron davies | js - jenn sikes | rg - rodney gibbs | tnd - tim digravina | rt - ryan tranquilla
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