Although it's not billed as such, Pizzicato Five's stateside debut, Made in USA, is actually a compilation of tracks from their 15 or so albums. You need a taste for irreverent sampling and ironic deconstruction of lightweight pop idioms to dig this. But within that narrow field, Pizzicato Five are as good as it gets. They devise fare that's both funky and funny, made more human than most such projects by Maki Nomiya's fetching vocals. Source: [AMG]
Pizzicato Five - Magic Carpet Ride
Track Listing 1. I 2. Sweet Soul Revue 3. Magic Carpet Ride 4. Readymade FM 5. Baby Love Child 6. Twiggy Twiggy/Twiggy Vs. James Bond [mix] 7. This Year's Girl #2 8. I Wanna Be Like You 9. Go Go Dancer 10. Catchy 11. Peace Music
Soundgarden's finest hour, Superunknown is a sprawling, 70-minute magnum opus that pushes beyond any previous boundaries. Soundgarden had always loved replicating Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath riffs, but Superunknown's debt is more to mid-period Zep's layered arrangements and sweeping epics. Their earlier punk influences are rarely detectable, replaced by surprisingly effective appropriations of pop and psychedelia. Badmotorfinger boasted more than its fair share of indelible riffs, but here the main hooks reside mostly in Chris Cornell's vocals; accordingly, he's mixed right up front, floating over the band instead of cutting through it. The rest of the production is just as crisp, with the band achieving a huge, robust sound that makes even the heaviest songs sound deceptively bright. But the most important reason Superunknown is such a rich listen is twofold: the band's embrace of psychedelia, and their rapidly progressing mastery of songcraft. Soundgarden had always been a little mind-bending, but the full-on experiments with psychedelia give them a much wider sonic palette, paving the way for less metallic sounds and instruments, more detailed arrangements, and a bridge into pop (which made the eerie ballad "Black Hole Sun" an inescapable hit). That blossoming melodic skill is apparent on most of the record, not just the poppier songs and Cornell-penned hits; though a couple of drummer Matt Cameron's contributions are pretty undistinguished, they're easy to overlook, given the overall consistency. The focused songwriting allows the band to stretch material out for grander effect, without sinking into the pointlessly drawn-out muck that cluttered their early records. The dissonance and odd time signatures are still in force, though not as jarring or immediately obvious, which means that the album reveals more subtleties with each listen. It's obvious that Superunknown was consciously styled as a masterwork, and it fulfills every ambition. Source: [AMG]
Soundgarden - Black Hole Sun
Track Listing 1. Let Me Drown 2. My Wave 3. Fell on Black Days 4. Mailman 5. Superunknown 6. Head Down 7. Black Hole Sun 8. Spoonman 9. Limo Wreck 10. The Day I Tried to Live 11. Kickstand 12. Fresh Tendrils 13. 4th of July 14. Half 15. Like Suicide 16. She Likes Surprises
Not long after the release of A Northern Soul, the Verve imploded due to friction between vocalist Richard Ashcroft and guitarist Nick McCabe. It looked like the band had ended before reaching its full potential, which is part of the reason why their third album, Urban Hymns -- recorded after the pair patched things up in late 1996 -- is so remarkable. Much of the record consists of songs Ashcroft had intended for a solo project or a new group, yet Urban Hymns unmistakably sounds like the work of a full band, with its sweeping, grandiose soundscapes and sense of purpose. The Verve have toned down their trancy, psychedelic excursions, yet haven't abandoned them -- if anything, they sound more muscular than before, whether it's the trippy "Catching the Butterfly" or the pounding "Come On." These powerful, guitar-drenched rockers provide the context for Ashcroft's affecting, string-laden ballads, which give Urban Hymns its hurt. The majestic "Bitter Sweet Symphony" and the heartbreaking, country-tinged "The Drugs Don't Work" are an astonishing pair, two anthemic ballads that make the personal universal, thereby sounding like instant classics. They just are the tip of the iceberg -- "Sonnet" is a lovely, surprisingly understated ballad, "The Rolling People" has a measured, electric power, and many others match their quality. Although it may run a bit too long for some tastes, Urban Hymns is a rich album that revitalizes rock traditions without ever seeming less than contemporary. It is the album the Verve have been striving to make since their formation, and it turns out to be worth all the wait. Source: [AMG]
The Verve - Lucky Man
Track Listing 1. Bittersweet Symphony 2. Sonnet 3. The Rolling People 4. The Drugs Don't Work 5. Catching the Butterfly 6. Neon Wilderness 7. Space and Time 8. Weeping Willow 9. Lucky Man 10. One Day 11. This Time 12. Velvet Morning 13. Come On/Deep Freeze
The Posies let their true power pop colors fly but with a tougher edge by steeping the songs on their fourth album in punk rock and '70s metal. "Throwaway" is a big guitar rocker with a harmonious chorus — the kind that became the band's calling card. The band invited Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander to sing along on "Hate Song." Unfortunately, the elder pair's charms were lost in the mix, though "Daily Mutilation" would be a good choice of cover for their own band. "Everybody Is a Fucking Liar" takes a trip back in time with its histrionic guitar parts. Naturally, "Grant Hart" and "Broken Record" are punk rock. "Song #1" and "Will You Ever Ease Your Mind?" are the kind of gorgeous pop songs on which the band grew their reputation. Whether they tackle punk, hard rock, or soft rock, the Posies' brand of songcraft is extraordinary, though, sadly, it would appear this was their swan song. Source: [AMG]
The Posies - Daily Mutilation
Track Listing 1. Daily Mutilation 2. Ontario 3. Throwaway 4. Please Return It 5. Hate Song 6. Precious Moments 7. Fight It (If You Want) 8. Everybody Is a Fucking Liar 9. World 10. Grant Hart 11. Broken Record 12. The Certainity 13. Song #1 14. ¿Will You Ever Ease Your Mind? 15. Terrorized
Having fully made their case with Venus Luxure, Girls Against Boys kept on course with the equally fine Cruise Yourself. The hints of lounge and Vegas were even more explicit here -- the cocktail artwork on the CD, the fact that one particularly bitter number is called "My Martini." Again, though, these weren't the gauche clichés of characters like Combustible Edison, but signposts of a vicious, cutting quality in lyrics and music. McCloud's purring rasp again serves as one of the band's chief qualities, perfectly suited to the sassy, snarling burn of songs like "Cruise Your New Baby Fly Self" and "The Royal Lowdown." Though backing vocals aren't specifically credited, it's Janney adding the high parts here and there, such as the effectively creepy chorus of "Explicitly Yours." Ted Niceley and Janney once again handle the production/engineering combination, and, unsurprisingly, the whole album is a tightly wound effort that sounds like it's going to explode every second. In an interesting switch, and a demonstration of the band's increasing reach, Temple took over the duties with the sampler, while Janney concentrated not only on his own bass work, but organ and vibes as well. "Kill the Sexplayer" was the arguable standout, and while again many critics saw McCloud's slurring sneer as being the new incarnation of Mark E. Smith, that's a lazy connection. McCloud's singing oozes its own attitude, while the band isn't reinventing art/rockabilly as much as finding its own fast, bass-led charge. Certainly, though, the German motorik touches both bands share have their place on Cruise Yourself -- half the time on "Psychic Know-How," Fleisig is laying down a smart Krautrock chug and both Temple and Janney are right there with him, especially with Janney's keyboard glaze. And at one point -- "From Now On" -- McCloud's distorted rasp does for once sound exactly like the Mancunian master. Source: [AMG]
Girls Against Boys - (I) Don't Got A Place
Track Listing 1. Tucked-In 2. Cruise Your New Baby Fly Self 3. Kill the Sexplayer 4. (I) Don't Got a Place 5. Psychic Know-How 6. Explicitly Yours 7. From Now On 8. Raindrop 9. The Royal Lowdown 10. My Martini 11. Glazed-Eye
Track Listing 1. Tad - Jinx 2. Six Finger Satellite - Weapon 3. Rein Sanction - Creel 4. Beat Happening - Revolution Come and Gone 5. Thw Walkabouts - Maggie's Farm 6. Truly - Heart and Lungs 7. Mudhoney - The Money Will Roll Right In 8. Supersuckers - Caliente 9. Reverend Horton Heat - Marijuana 10. The Dwarves - Fuck Em All 11. Bullet Lavolta - Rails 12. Green Magnet School - Throb 13. Hole - Dicknail 14. Steven Jesse Bernstein - No No Man Pt. 2 15. Seaweed - Baggage 16. The Monkeywrench - Call My Body Home 17. Afghan Whigs - Miles Iz Ded 18. Love Battery - Foot 19. Codeine - Cracked in Two 20. Mark Lanegan - Woe 21. Earth - A Bureaucratic Desire for Revenge, Pt. 1
Buffalo Tom proved that their palate was a lot broader and their reach a lot farther than anyone might have expected on Let Me Come Over, and while the following year's Big Red Letter Day didn't show the same sort of growth, it also proved the band hadn't forgotten any of their tricks along the way. Big Red Letter Day sounds a bit poppier than it's immediate predecessor, though that seems largely a function of the production by the Robb Brothers, which features a bit more body and a significant amount more gloss than the leaner, cleaner tone of Let Me Come Over, and to these ears the strong, infectious melodies of the songs (and the tight ensemble playing by the group) hold up well to such treatment. And while the palpable angst of Let Me Come Over was obviously sincere but a wee bit samey by the end of that album, Big Red Letter Day cuts back on the rueful self-examination just a bit, and the hopefulness of "Dry Land" and "Anything That Way" was a welcome touch from a band that often had a hard time embracing their happiness. Unlike their last two albums, Big Red Letter Day didn't display much in the way of unexpected new sides to Buffalo Tom -- it just found them doing what they do very well indeed, and anyone who loves the band will enjoy this record. Souce: [AMG]
Buffalo Tom - I'm Allowed
Track Listing 1. Soda Jerk 2. I'm Allowed 3. Tree House 4. Would Not Be Denied 5. Latest Monkey 6. My Responsibility 7. Dry Land 8. Torch Singer 9. Late at Night 10. Suppose 11. Anything That Way
J Mascis fired longtime drummer Murph before the recording of Without a Sound, which came as a surprise to Murph. Naturally, the change in personnel hasn't changed Dinosaur Jr.'s sound much; the only difference between Without a Sound and Where You Been is a more pronounced country leaning (particularly on the album's high point, the rollicking "I Don't Think So") and shorter, more concise performances. What hasn't changed are the overpowering fuzz tones of Mascis' guitar, which tend to hide his more expressive vocals; it also makes digging out the gems on this album a little more difficult than necessary. Source: [AMG]
Dinosaur Jr. - Feel The Pain
Track Listing 1. Feel the Pain 2. I Don't Think So 3. Yeah Right 4. Outta Hand 5. Grab It 6. Even You 7. Mind Glow 8. Get Out of This 9. On the Brink 10. Seemed Like the Thing to Do 11. Over Your Shoulder
Sugar's Beaster is actually outtakes from their previous dynamite album, Copper Blue. It comes off as some kind of deranged, ugly sister of that sparking album, a yin to Copper's yang, a violent, angry, and seething wall of aggression with (this time) little concession to Bob Mould's pop prowess. Perhaps the most densely recorded, heavy trip the man has produced since Hüsker Dü's Metal Circus in 1983, Beaster is what you might get if Mould had been in the mood to construct a full album of songs like "Slick"'s insanity instead of "Helpless" and "Changes"'s monster hooks. Not that it doesn't still make for great listening once one gets used to the change in focus. "Feeling Better" could have made Copper, with its hooky base (more so than the others here), and the best song, "Titled," is ferocious, fast, furious, and a total knockout, the most aurally exciting post-Hüsker Dü track yet. Again, David Barbe and Malcolm Travis are such a superior rhythm section to Grant Hart and Greg Norton, Sugar is a better update rather than nostalgic reinvention, and bits of Zen Arcade and Black Sheets of Rain aside, Mould has never come off so twisted and out of his gourd. "Come Around"'s "vocals" are all but demonic, and "Judas Cradle" matches metal pounding with MBV/Sonic Youth brutal tones slashing out of the guitars, which gives way to "JC Auto"'s meld of "The Act We Act"-style pounding into a thundering, insane, heavy chorus. When Bob starts seething "I'm your Jesus Christ, I know, I know, I know," you wonder what exactly inspired these straitjacket fits! Man, that's something. Now, there is one major flaw: all the songs need an editor, as with excessive length they approach overkill from too much repetition. Never mind. This is a pretty killer experience more than a record. Whereas Copper Blue made you want to sing along, Beaster makes you hide under the bed. Can't say they didn't warn you; Beaster is well-titled. Source: [AMG]
Sugar - Tilted
Track Listing 1. Come Around 2. Tilted 3. Judas Cradle 4. JC Auto 5. Feeling Better 6. Walking Away
Part of the reason the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion is so distasteful to the legions of blues purists is that Spencer cherishes not the mythology of the blues or the songcraft, but the groove, the actual sound of classic blues records. He could care less about songwriting or technique; what's important is the feel and the grit of the performance, whether it's on-stage or on record. Often, that means that the Blues Explosion's records are better when they're playing than they are in memory, but there's no question that ever since Extra Width, the New York trio was exceptionally shrewd in crafting albums that pack real sonic force. They also were sharp enough to subtly explore new territory with each album, gradually moving from the Stonesy blooze of Extra Width through the funky Orange and gutbucket Now I Got Worry to Acme, where pure sound matters more than ever. Like the Stones, the Blues Explosion never abandon their signature sound, even when they're branching into new territory. No matter how many electronic bleeps, hip-hop loops, or cut-and-paste arrangements rear their heads on Acme, or how many producers or remixers are employed (including Calvin Johnson, Steve Albini, Suzanne Dyer, Alec Empire, Jim Dickinson, and the Automator), the primal, two-guitar racket remains at the center of the Blues Explosion's sound. But the electronica and hip-hop flourishes aren't folly, either -- they confirm Spencer's ultimate goal of sound over structure, force over sense. And while there are only a handful of songs to latch onto -- the slow, sexy "Magical Colors," the gonzoid rant "Talk About the Blues," the Jill Cunniff duet "Blue Green Olga" -- the dynamic explosions of sounds guarantee that Acme is a captivating listen, at least the first time through. While frequently exciting, the sonic experimentations sound cerebral instead of primal. Source: [AMG]
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - High Gear/Talk About The Blues
Track Listing 1. Calvin 2. Magical Colors (31 Flavors) 3. Do You Wanna Get Heavy? 4. High Gear 5. Talk About the Blues 6. I Wanna Make It All Right 7. Lovin' Machine 8. Bernie 9. Blue Green Olga 10. Give Me a Chance 11. Desperate 12. Torture 13. Attack
Although it's not billed as such, Pizzicato Five's stateside debut, Made in USA, is actually a compilation of tracks from their 15 or so albums. You need a taste for irreverent sampling and ironic deconstruction of lightweight pop idioms to dig this. But within that narrow field, Pizzicato Five are as good as it gets. They devise fare that's both funky and funny, made more human than most such projects by Maki Nomiya's fetching vocals. Source: [AMG]
