MUSIC REVIEWS
Dean's List= Highest Achievers
A= Excellent
B= There may be hope for you yet!
C= Pathetically average
D= Probation: One more like this and. . .
F= Pack your shit bro, the party's over.
B. Love, John Davidson, DeMarco Williams, John B. Moore, Matt Goldberg & Jon Latham
On the Dean's List
 Sigur Ros – Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust (XL Recordings)
Icelandic quartet’s new sonic epic.
JL How can you describe a band like Sigur Ros? Their otherworldly arrangements can’t be compared to any other pop group. The bulk of their lyrics are sung in the"Hopelandic tongue, a nonsensical language that crosses somewhere between English and Icelandic. The enigma that surrounds them is only further warranted by their unwavering uniqueness. On their latest offering, title of which translates to"With a buzz in our ears we play endlessly, Sigur Ros rediscovers the elements that have made their draw so emotionally driven, while exploring new territories on the path that they continue to carve out along the landscape that they invented themselves.
The trance-like beat of the album opener,"Gobbledigook, is new for a band that tends to take their time with tempo. The celebratory theme carries into"Inní mér syngur vitleysingur, a lush march that spotlights the compositional excellence that Sigur Ros brings to every album."Góðan daginn, or"good day, stands out as one of the band’s most beautiful songs to date, thanks in part to the subtle acoustic guitar of frontman, Jón Þór Birgisson. The album’s closer,"All Alright, features the band’s first foray into singing English lyrics, though the difference seems to go without much notice. The music speaks volumes by itself.
David Bowie once said that in the future, people would simply touch a piece of wood to feel something organic in a society now driven by technology. Sigur Ros seem to do just that with this album. The atmospheric synth sounds are there, but replacing the bombastic layering of albums past, they let the sound grow naturally with acoustic guitars, handclaps, glockenspiel, horns, and voices. Out of this organic musical process, the Icelandic quartet has managed to maintain their eccentric mystery while making a very accessible album that is sure to tug at your heart with it’s feelings of hope, joy, sadness, and wonder. Oh, the glorious humanity.
 Nas- Self-Titled (Columbia)
Black in America: The Street Version.
DW Nasir Jones is no different than you. The man is a husband and a father. He makes mistakes. He falls victim to the same pleasures of the world. He’s human. But like everyone else, he’s got another side, a side that promotes right and exposes fallacies of the world. It’s a funny duality, but it’s one we should all be familiar with. Still, for some reason, his rap peers and critics take this all-too human quality more intimately with Nas. How can"Oochie Wally and"One Mic come from the same voice box? The same way you can feel sorry for a homeless dog but look right past a drifter asking for change.
On this highly controversial release, Nas points the finger right back at you. And you know what happens when you’re called out. You get fidgety. You try to deflect. Well, Nas, say what you will about racism and uplifting the hood. Your beats are still just aiight. Aaah, but that’s where this self-titled masterstroke goes left."Breathe and"America have strong words for the oppressor but the percussions may have even more muscle."Sly Fox is a four-minute quotable uniting agitated drums and even-more agitated words about Bill O’Reilly’s biased network.
Black America, you aren’t off the hook though. To be taken seriously, Nas needed to address both sides of the coin. On"N.I.*.*.E.R., he’s that proverbial Timbo in the ass of people thatdon’t understand just how powerful it is."Fried Chicken, which features a thought-provoking verse from Busta Rhymes, goes extra hard on the problematic African-American diet. Frankly, this whole CD is food for thought. You’ll digest some things. You’ll want to spit some other bitter truths out. But hey, that’s what humans do. Thank Nas’ brave opus for exposing us all for who we truly are.
COLLECTIVE EFFORTS- Time For Hope (1320)
Excellent indie hip-hop.
BL Nearly a decade ago, it seemed like the Atlanta scene would change hip-hop for the better. Outkast and Goodie Mob had established themselves as trailblazers, and acts such as El Pus, Live On Arrival, Jax and Minamina Goodsong appeared poised to follow their left-leaning path to the limelight. Unfortunately, the dumbed-down-for-mass-consumption sound of acts like Lil Jon, Dem Franchise Boys and Ying Yang Twins came to define the Dirty South.
Collective Efforts’ latest EP, a preface to the forthcoming album featuring their backing musicians as full-fledged members, could help change that. MCs Ben Hameen, J-Mil and Bambu de Asiatic come out swinging for the fences on the furiously funky"Crazy Things, dropping rapid-fire rhymes such as,"Yo, I’m hungry like a lion in the Serengeti/Fire burnin’ in my stomach got me cocked and ready/Words cuttin’ through the brush like a sharp machete/Clearin’ the path when I come through rockin’ steady. The excellent"Fightin Time features minor-key strings, subterranean basslines and synth accents layered over off-kilter beats, creating a hypnotic backdrop for dazzling displays of intelligent lyricism. The soulful"Where It Began offers up a loving reminiscence of hip-hop’s golden era, referencing everyone from Grandmaster Flash and Run-DMC to Doug E Fresh and LL, with the MCs pledging their unconditional love despite the genre’s many flaws.
And that, more than anything, sums up Collective Efforts’ appeal: The group has a deep knowledge of (and reverence for) hip-hop history, but they’re not mired in the past. Instead, they offer up an inspired, positive vision for the genre’s future that leaves you anxious to find out where they’ll head next.
 JUDI CHICAGO- Judi Chicago X 1,000,000 (Self Released)
Making dance music fun again.
BL If, as this deranged duo of electro-punks posits on the opening"Jack Your Box,"drum machines are the future of art, you can expect multi-instrumentalists Travis Thatcher and Ben Coleman to start blowing up like Andy Warhol during his Factory heyday any minute now.
Coming across like Daft Punk with an ironic sneer in place of the Gallic laissez faire, Judi Chicago starts with a classic house music platform assembled from retro synth squiggles and live instrumentation, then builds it up with elements of funk, dub, drum & bass and post-punk, topping it off with a gleefully charismatic 21st century strut that sounds like the missing link connecting Sly Stone, Johnny Rotten, the Happy Mondays and Art Brut.
"Good For Your Neighborhood begins with a simple Casio beat, adds fuzzed-out subterranean bass and squelching guitar, then whips them all into a sweaty frenzy as the cheeky lyrics playfully poke fun at computer nerds and multi-pierced punks, insisting"it’s nice to be nice to your neighbors."Chick Filler is a dubbed-out dancefloor epic whose goofy lyrics make absolutely no sense at all, but which somehow manages to be a maddeningly infectious party track nonetheless, while the martial drumbeats and crunchy guitar of"Mad Ape could almost be a punk-rock track were it not for the tripped out synth sounds and a rhythm that downright demands you to get off your ass and jam.
Judi Chicago’s incessant irreverence will undoubtedly make them a target for the novelty act tag, but such criticisms miss the point by a mile. Coleman and Thatcher are out to accomplish the seemingly impossible by making dance music deliriously fun again. And in that mission, they’re more successful than any act I’ve heard in years. |
16 Horsepower– Live March 2001 (Alternative Tentacles)
Another live record?!?!
JM It seems a bit odd that a band that has been together just over a decade already has two live albums to its name. California-by-way-of-Colorado alt-country band 16 Horsepower has always been more of a word-of-mouth band for trendy indie kids, despite its one-time residency on the roster at A&M Records. So chances are good that followers of the group already own a copy of their first live record, the 2001 release Hoarse. The sound quality on this 10-track release is stellar, but there’s little to differentiate the songs from their original studio recordings, aside from some tame audience applause after each track. ©
SUGARLAND- Love On The Inside (Mercury Nashville)
Mainstream country that doesn’t suck? Who’d-a thunk it…
BL On its third album, Sugarland sounds bigger, brighter and bolder than ever, still seamlessly blending elements of country, folk, pop and rock with a refined appeal that, at its best, recalls legends such as John Mellencamp.
This is slice of life Americana at its most organic, with Jennifer Nettles singing in her distinctive twang over Kristian Bush’s acoustic guitar on the fiery"It Happens, building to a dynamic crescendo full of sing-along choruses and blistering guitar solos. The stripped-down"We Run showcases rootsy bluegrass influences, with acoustic guitar, mandolin, accordion and immaculate vocal harmonies that recall the underappreciated Eastmountainsouth, while"Love is an epic rock anthem that wouldn’t sound remotely out of place on a U2 album.
But my favorite songs are the last two on the album."Steve Earle is a downright hilarious barn-burner pledging Nettles’ devotion to the maverick country outlaw, which shows an irresistibly adorable charm and charisma. Then, on"Very Last Country Song, she turns around and sings a heartbreaking ballad about a melancholy older woman celebrating her birthday by digging through a box of pictures and reminiscing about the ghosts of her past."If life stayed the way it was/and lovers never fell out of love/If memories didn’t last so long/If nobody did nobody wrong/If we knew what we had before it was gone/If every road led back home/This would be the very last country song, she sings, with the bittersweet soulfulness of a woman who has lived every word.
Truth is, you don’t have to be a country music fan to love Sugarland. In fact, if Love On The Inside proves anything, it’s that Nettles and Bush can tackle any musical genre they want and still deliver potent, powerful songs that hit you square in the head, heart and gut simultaneously. (B+)
KeAnthony- A Hustlaz Story (Warner Bros./Reprise)
A guided tour down soul street.
DW Warner Bros. sees something special in this young man. The label is pulling out all the stops with the Nashville crooner’s promo budget, sending out booklet-style CD samplers and even doing a mini movie to coincide with his album’s release this month. Were the guy not so talented, we’d be inclined to call it all frivolous spending. But after listening to the refined, meticulously produced album, it’s clear that A Hustlaz Story is a tale you will want to hear.
Reflections on bad choices made and girls a guy should have laid are nothing new. Jaheim and Lyfe Jennings have made careers off them."Meddlin’,"It’s Okay and the first single on Hustlaz,"I Ain’t Tryna, will sound like something either guy could have recorded. That’s more of a testament to the former gospel singer’s thorough pen and Carl Thomas-like sound than it is a slight. Like Lyfe, KeAnthony served jail time, eight years, in fact. He’s got a song about the whole ordeal,"Forever My Homie (Done Snitched on Me), and its earnest words will have the hardest hustla and working mother taking equal pause and agreeing that Warner Bros. may have something special in KeAnthony. And it doesn’t take any elaborate sales job to make that point obvious. (B+) –DeMarco Williams
Cry Me A River – Self-Titled EP (Self Released)
Former Treephort members reunite with new sound.
JL Back a few years ago, a band called Treephort became the first band to be kicked off the Vans’ Warped Tour. Such notoriety lent itself well to a ska band that brought a twinkle-eyed charm to songs like"Why Do Fat Kids Like Metallica? and"My Penis Is Small. Out of the ashes comes Cry Me A River, a tight-knit band that sounds less like the adrenalized antics of Treephort and more like a punk-infused Chicago Transit Authority..
At the helm is Lee Satterfield, displaying his unique sense of humor with lyrics that border between dry wit and unabashed sincerity. Compared to some of the grade-school humor of Treephort, Satterfield shows a new maturity and an ear for poppy melodies."Sorry I throw my caution out to the wind, he sings in the leadoff track. Rounding out the line-up is fellow Treephort alumni Sonny Harding (drums) and Kirk Stroud (trombone), along with newcomer J.J. Mercurio (bass). Harding and Mercurio, along with Lee’s guitar make up a simple, yet effective rhythm section that further highlights the horn arrangements of Kirk Stroud. The ingredients mix terrifically on"Find You, a statement about a love gone wrong."Gorilla is a catchy, memorable tune that humorously personifies the shit jobs of America in a saxophone-playing gorilla.
The beauty of this EP is two-fold. On one hand, the tracks pass with such quickness and catchiness that it is tough to tell when the band’s tongues are in cheek. On the other, if you happen to take it too seriously, they take no time to apologize. Of course, the real downside is the brief length, or lack thereof, which leaves you hanging. It feels in some ways like a neighbor kicks your door in, sprays you with silly string, then bolts without leaving you any time to fully react. After the mess is cleaned up, you still can’t help but laugh. (B-)
Sloan– Parallel Play (Yep Roc) & The Silent Years– The Globe (First Date)
Passing on the indie-rock torch.
JM When they first emerged in the ‘90s, Sloan were hailed by many critics as the second coming of power-pop greats like Big Star. The Canadians did have some great songs, but could never really live up to the media-created hype. Unlike the 30-song album that preceded it a few years ago, Parallel Play is a far less tedious effort, with a couple of strong tracks that could have made it on their already-released greatest hits record (“Burn For It is part Big Star, part ELO). With their latest, the band is still writing decent enough sunny power-pop ditties that will please longtime fans, but they’re unlikely to win over anyone who was able to resist their earlier efforts.
Like Sloan a decade ago, The Silent Years have started collecting a lot of love from the critics. Their sophomore record, The Globe, offers a dozen spectacular tracks of indie rock without a hint of pretentiousness. Fronted by Josh Epstein, who sounds more than a little bit like Jeff Buckley, the band’s sound is reminiscent of Bends-era Radiohead, before keyboards and experimentalism took over the group. Songs like"Climb on My Back and"Pay it Back are pretty damn close to flawless. Sloan= (B); The Silent Years= (A)
AMY RAY- Didn’t It Feel Kinder (Daemon)
Veteran stretching her sound.
BL Seeing the Indigo Girls live at a tiny coffeehouse back in ‘86, there was little indication that they’d become the world-famous folk-rockers they are today. All I knew was that songs like"Blood & Fire spoke to my lovelorn teenage soul with a raw passion I’d never experienced, opening my eyes to the limitless potential of harmonized voices and acoustic guitars. Within a year, I’d started a folk duo of my own.
The band has grown and evolved a lot since then, and Amy Ray has emerged as a guiding light on the Atlanta music scene, founding Daemon Records and releasing excellent albums by artists ranging from James Hall and Michelle Malone to Rock*A*Teens and Athens Boy Choir. But her most impressive achievement may be her third solo album, which comes along 23 years into her career and still somehow manages to be surprising.
"I wanted to explore new territory, she explains, and that she does, incorporating influences ranging from Al Green and The Pretenders to Violent Femmes and Outkast to create a richly diverse sound that defies easy categorization. With assistance from producer Greg Griffith (le Tigre) and a backing band that includes members of The Butchies, songs like the sultry"She’s Got To Be, the funky/punky"Bus Bus and the snarling girl-group pop of"Who Sold The Gun sound like nothing else in Ray’s extensive catalogue. She hasn’t left her folk-rock roots behind completely, as evidenced by her collaboration with rising star singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile on the anthemic"Stand and Deliver. But as the lonesome country of the hymn-like closing track,"Rabbit Foot, shows, she’s clearly expanded her palette of expression. And her sound is all the more colorful for it. (B)
VARIOUS ARTISTS- Unwrapped Vol. 5.0: The Collipark Café Sessions (Hidden Beach)
The Dirty South Sound, with a dash of jazz.
DW Collipark is the drawled-out way of saying College Park, as in the south Atlanta suburb. You hook up with Collipark Studios when you need a hit record, and Lil Jon, Hurricane Chris and the Ying Yang Twins have all birthed smashes there. Though its connection with the jazzy, soulful Hidden Beach imprint rings odd, the final product makes all the sense in the world.
At the club,"Get Low,"Walk It Out and"Salt Shaker were good for one thing-covering the dancefloor in sweat. Here, those same tunes are scrapped of their lyrics and given Mike Philips’ sax treatment or touched up by Fred Wesley’s trombone, morphing into mellowed-out soundscapes tailor-made for the bedroom. Soulja Boy’s"Crank That was a tad busy in its original state, but after it’s given the Hidden Beach treatment, it turns downright seductive. Soulja Boy, seductive? Collipark really is an amazing place... (B)
The Unemployed Misfortune– Fuck Work (High Electric)
The band that will help save power-pop from extinction.
JM You’ve got to hand it to the Japanese: They always tend to be a couple of steps ahead of America when it comes to power-pop. The brilliant debut full length from Chicago power-poppers The Unemployed Misfortune, for example, had already found a distributor in the land of the rising sun long before a U.S. label finally wised up and decided to release it here.
The album is almost worth buying just for the cover of"Love is Strange alone, but the 13 other tracks are almost as brilliant. The lyrics are a tad juvenile, sure, but fun nonetheless. Thanks to younger bands like The Unemployed Misfortune and a handful of others (see: The Tattletales and Motion City Soundtrack), power-pop will thankfully be around for at least another generation. (A)
Grupo Fantasma- Sonidos Gold (High Wire Music)
Latin rock fusion= muy caliente!
BL Stylistically speaking, Grupo Fantasma is a tough band to pin down. Formed in 2000 and comprised of musicians hailing from all across Latin America, this Austin-based band quickly established a reputation for incendiary live shows. Listening to their third studio LP, it’s easy to understand why, as their unique blend of cumbia, salsa, Latin jazz, funk, reggae and soul proves immensely infectious.
The opening "El Sabio Soy Yo starts the party off in typical genre-bending fashion, with syncopated Latin percussion, blaring horns and chunky wah guitar riding atop a laconic reggae beat, with rousing vocals that reverberate with a dub-style production influence."Arroz Con Frijoles is one of those funky call-and-response jams designed to whip audiences into a frenzy, recalling Latin rock legends such as Santana at their most engaging, while the distorted guitars and retro organs of the furiously funky"(Naci De La) Rumba Y Guaganco could easily be mistaken for Sly & the Family Stone were it not for the Spanish lyrics.
Ozomatli is the only band in recent memory that came anywhere close to creating such an accessible brand of multicultural party music. But with all due respect, Grupo Fantasma does it much, much better. (A-)
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