Owner: RegnYouth Archives URL:http://www.regnyouth.com Join Date: Sat, 03 Nov 2007 15:06:44 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: The RegnYouth Archives provides the reading audience with music related selections, reviews, and interviews, introducing new and upcoming artists and bring older, extraordinary artists back into the spotlight. Site statistics:Click here
Buck 65 - Situation 2007-11-03 09:23:51 So let’s talk about Buck 65, who, for reasons unfathomable, is not one of the biggest names in hip-hop. OK, it probably doesn’t help that he’s a clean-cut white boy from Canada, but he can rap with the best of them, and nowhere is his talent more evident that on his latest album, ‘Situation’, perhaps his best outing yet. It’s an hour’s worth of ferocious hip-hop, where Mr. 65 (making him a $1.15 better than 50 Cent) holds forth on myriad topics, squeezing so many ideas with his gravelly voice into his funky beats and sounds one will wonder how he manages to catch his breath. And the music never overwhelms; he adds just the right touch, whether it’s a piano riff (”1957″) or the driving rhythms of “Bang”. This record will get the party started. That many mediocrities in hip-hop make millions while this prodigious talent wallows in obscurity is a true injustice in the musical world. Start listening to Buck 65 – now.
1. Intro
2. 1957
Subtle - Yell & Ice 2007-11-03 09:20:45 Subtle
are a band who seem to be able to overcome adversity, no matter what life throws at them. Just look at their history: Dax Pierson left quadriplegic after a tragic tour-bus accident, being shamefully jacked for $15,000 in Barcelona and continuously suffering “also-ran” status as their releases repeatedly get critical acclaim. They carry on regardless though, recording and releasing exceptional albums. ‘Yell & Ice’, despite not even being a “proper album”, is their latest stellar effort and features some quite jaw dropping collaborations. Joined by Dan Boeckner from Wolf Parade, Tunde Adabimpe of TV on the Radio, Markus Acher of The Notwist, Chris Adams of Hood/Bracken and Yoni Wolf aka Why?, formerly of cLOUDDEAD, Subtle has quite a gaggle of friendly talent. On ‘Yell & Ice’, these artist re-imagine tracks from the recent ‘For Hero: For Fool’ album and create new ones altogether, keeping an eye towards genre ben
Letters Letters - Letters Letters 2007-11-03 09:18:19 Combining the sounds of broken drum machines and fizzing analogue synthesizers with catchy vocals and hooks, Letters
Letters takes listeners to a time when punk music was just about ready to embrace new technology. On first listen, this self-titled debut sounds like it could have come from a a gritty, early-80s No Wave pop group. Yet, Letters Letters offers so much more upon a full inspection. This group approaches pop music on the most basic of levels to produce a twist of their own, creating challenging music that stays accessible. On “Favorite Hands”, analog synths emerge and the spirit of Sonic Youth can be heard. There’s melody, there’s no melody, there’s a steady beat, there’s broken beats. Elsewhere, “Everyone’s Afraid Of Fear” is a lengthy instrumental gem, and “We’ll Make It Home” is a bayou ballad reminiscent of Stars. The rest of the album entertains too, with high-pitched synths buzzing in the jungles
Don Caballero - For Respect 2007-11-03 09:15:21 As an obvious Don Caballero junkie, it’s always nice to see an album re-appear on vinyl (originally released in 1993) and ‘For Respect’ is even more than an album - it’s an experience. With a lineup that sees Battles-man Ian Williams alongside frontman (and drummer) Damon Che, this really is a meeting of some of the best musicians in the genre, teaming up and rocking out. Maybe math-rock has always had a bad name, but it is difficult to think of anything better than extremely talented musicians at the top of their game making loud, aggressive and super technical music for music fans who probably collect records by catalogue number. Listening to ‘For Respect’ is a religious experience for these type of enthusiasts: the drumming, as always, takes centre stage, as Ian Williams’ insane axe-wielding talents are simply unbelievable. Williams contributes to some of Caballero’s finest ever moments on ‘For Respect’, a classic album of
Dan Deacon - Acorn Master EP 2007-11-03 09:13:17 ‘Acorn Master
’, the first EP from Baltimore’s Dan Deacon
is a kiddy-pool of compu-tunes, perhaps just as likely inspired by a mediocre mushroom experience as by Raffi’s children’s classics. One can’t help but imagine twin kids giggling and clapping along with Dan to at least four of the six clownish, almost juvenile-with-a-whiff-of-self-awareness tracks. While Deacon adeptly layers samples from pop tv and video games, the product of his efforts is a grating, irritating aural mash, complete with Butthead’s “huh huh huh” dollop’d on top. Make no mistake though, Deacon is more than entertaining here, as he playfully bounces from jilted lover neo-ballads to classic cover songs on acid. Wrapping up the album with an electro lullaby for Nintendo/roleplaying gamers to cull their damsels with is a soothing touch… perfect to put those twins to bed to.
1. Two Friends
2. Big Big Big Big Big
3. Moses Vs. Predator
4. It
Devastations - Yes, U 2007-11-03 09:09:52 It takes a few songs into ‘Yes, U’ for Australian born and now Berlin/London relocated trio Devastations to get to the foreboding, funereal dirges for which they were lauded on their breakout album ‘Coal’. But before singer and bass guitarist Conrad Standish gets to the squalls and moans of “Rosa”, very strange things happen. On ‘Yes, U’, Devastations have brought in Nigel Yang on piano, synths and drum machines and Andrea Lee on synth and violin. It’s evident from the very beginning. While they retain their creeping sense of dread and gothic melodrama, “Black Ice” sounds like Giorgio Moroder scoring a sex scene from an ’80s psychological thriller. It slithers like a shameful fantasy into another surprise - the hypnotic distorted synth plod of “Oh Me Oh My”. Devastations have managed to step out into a strange new universe, not unlike the more cosmic and cheery Midnight Juggernauts of Dystopia. The band
Picastro - Whore Luck 2007-11-03 09:07:18 Toronto-based Picastro offers a unique mix of low-key tracks borrowing from elements of classical, folk and rock music on their 2007 effort ‘Whore
Luck’ Straying away from typical rock instrumentation, Picastro employs cello and violin in addition to guitar, piano and drums to provide their odd comfort to melancholy. Picastro’s sound is so uniquely theirs, that they pull off covers of both Roky Erickson and the Fall seamlessly, almost as if they weren’t covers at all. Attempts at comparisons will always fail, because there really is no good fit. While this may not make them a hit, they have the potential to appeal to anyone willing to either take the time to pay close attention or abandon themselves to Picastro’s sad beauty. The album’s controlled noise is the soundtrack to being centered in a wobbly world. And while ‘Whore Luck’ won’t be a record played in heavy rotation, it is the perfect listen for those sad, lonely figures, as
Tulsa - I Was Submerged EP 2007-11-03 09:04:16 Thanks in large part to Carter Tanton’s chilling vocals and the band’s modern, outlaw sound, Tulsa
’s debut is a darkly enchanting spine-crawler. The disconnection in Tanton’s echoed twang gives off a Wild West vibe while the stark, rambling rhythms behind him are so tight, it’s as if they came from underneath a single hat. With both intimacy and apathy in its guitars, ‘I Was Submerged’ exudes a beautifully lonesome introspection throughout. As a slow-churning acoustic guitar lays most of the foundation on ‘I Was Submerged’, steely riffs and Tanton’s distant voice define its sound. On the EP’s opener, “Breath Thin”, a sharp electric guitar snakes around a pattern above the acoustic chug, as Tanton sings with a powerfully sour strain. Ominous drums complete the track with an occasionally desperate rolls like the heartbeat of a fugitive. On the standout track, “Shaker”, the elements are similar
Revival - Horses of War 2007-11-03 08:41:35 Revival’s 2007 debut, ‘Horses
of War’, is a collection of neo-classic rock/dusty folk/amped country songs, creating a distinct My Morning Crazy Horse vibe. Specifically, “Fog Rolling In” gives this feeling, as this whisper/shriek waltz suggests MMJ with Neil Young at the helm. “Daybreak” could be a Jack White and Jeff Tweedy tribute to the Band, while “Hollywood” channels the Shins in visceral alt-country mode. But it is the sadness, darkness and desperation on ‘Horses of War’ that makes for some moving music, as heard on “Dizzy” and “Following You”. And while Revival’s psychedelicized folk-rock would never be mistaken for world music, singer/songwriter Josh Read finds parallels between his process and the synthesized works of Joe Strummer and Paul Simon. Wherever his influence comes from, the combination of alt-country meditations and freewheelin’, Wild West roots rock with frequent touches of ps
Big Star - In Space 2007-11-03 08:39:41 When the ultimate cult band, generally regarded as having invented power pop, puts out their first batch of new recordings in over 30 years, it’s obvious that the record has got a lot to live up to. Such is the dilemma of Big Star’s 2005 “comeback” album, ‘In Space
’, doomed never to be judged entirely on its own merits. For one thing, hard-liners who cavil about there being only two members of the original lineup should be reminded that the band’s masterly third album was basically Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens plus session musicians. Supported here by the Posies members who’ve been backing the pair since their ’90s reunion, Chilton and Stephens successfully reignite memories of ‘Radio City’-era power-pop glory. Of course, it wouldn’t be an Alex Chilton project if everything followed a predictable pattern. In keeping with the notoriously mercurial frontman’s modus operandi, the passel of gorgeous pop gems at
Tacks, the Boy Disaster - Oh, Beatrice EP 2007-11-08 15:47:04 Fronted by Evan Jacobs, a founding member of Midlake, this Austin, Texas, quartet arrive with a debut that is both as light as a feather and as complex as a tapestry. ‘Oh, Beatrice
’ may call to mind the definitive expression of highbrow cultural absurdity – when Martin Creed’s switching lights won the Turner prize, an art critic, invited to respond to the accusation that the work was insubstantial, replied that that may be so, but it was “substantially insubstantial” – yet it contains detailing of such richness and subtlety, the songs continue to reveal themselves even after multiple listening. This could, of course, be simply so much nerdishness, but Tacks
, the Boy Disaster
manage, on Blue Nile/Beach Boys/Wilco-leaning tracks such as “Forget Me Not” and “Paris”, to build from bare bones – circular guitar figures, piano parts either sonorous or Glassian, Hammond organ, minimal percussion, massed harmonies – something lightweight, certai
Holy Fuck - Holy Fuck 2007-11-08 15:44:05 This lo-fi experimental act, surely named after the initial reaction 92% of people have when they hear their music, create some of the most interesting and engaging electronic music that has graced listeners ears in some time. Holy Fuck comes off as the bastard offspring of Neu and !!! (or maybe Ratatat) and what a frantic, sample-free electronic masterpiece they’ve created, culminating in the sublime “Lovely Allen,” a song that should be a staple at sports events for years to come. Elsewhere, tracks like “The Pulse”, “Frenchy’s” and “Royal Gregory” are instantly catchy danceable numbers, while the more obscure tracks, like “Echo Sam” and “Choppers” create their own rhythm out of background noise and layers upon layers of dueling instruments. Mixing Krautrock rhythms, electronic beats and indie guitars, Holy Fuck have given listeners one of the true high-octane LPs of the year.
(more…)
Share This
White Williams - Smoke 2007-11-08 15:40:44 The “It” boy of the 2007 SxSW festival, WhiteWilliams
is a laptop balladeer who mimics the minimalist sounds of ’80s synth-wavers like Pylon and New Order. These bubbly songs are long on melody, suiting Williams’s sonorous croon, and his recording technique seems more about preserving the feel of the original post-punk era rather than making any great production strides: the beats are simple, dotted with Casio bleats and airy chord structures that foreground the vocals and synth hooks. Just 23 years old when he recorded this 2007 debut, Williams accurately appropriates the aesthetics of his birth era, and if it isn’t wildly inventive, it is at least a faithful distillation of all that rocked about the ’80s underground.
(more…)
Share This
Read more:Smoke
Arp - In Light 2007-11-08 15:37:59 Multi instrumentalist Alexis Georgopolous reportedly left post-punk hypno-groove merchants Tussle under less than amicable circumstances after the group’s ‘Telescope Mind’. However, if the fallout from that unfortunate split is his Arp project, maybe it’s for the best. ‘In Light’, Georgopolous’ radiant solo debut, is his righteous stab at Terry Riley-esque minimalism and the kosmische music that made Germany the coolest place on earth in the ’70s. That a young musician from San Francisco made this record in 2007 doesn’t diminish its abundant, profound pleasures. Arp’s no-overdub/analog-gear approach to electronic music and his solemn devotion to less-is-more composition ensure that In Light emits a sun-dappled warmth, evoking an eternal dawn of optimism, especially on “St Tropez” and “The Rising Sun.” Elsewhere, a throbbing, hypnotic intensity prevails, as each wave of Arp’s subtly tweaked analog-keyboard textures burrow into listeners like
To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie - The Patron 2007-11-08 15:25:58 ‘The Patron’ is the debut album from the gorgeously named duo To Kill a Petty
Bourgeoisie. Comprised of guitarist and vocalist Jehna Wilhelm and electronics man Mark McGee, this duo clearly share a love of post rock and, on ‘The Patron’, even manage to move the genre on into territories as yet uncharted. Filling their skewed pop songs with noise and electrical excesses, they make pop music sound like skeletons from the hydra’s teeth, and manage to sit themselves somewhere in-between the glorious library-lounge music of Broadcast, the percussive jazz of Tortoise and the mysterious beauty of Portishead. Take the eight minute “Long Arms” for example, which begins with sub-aquatic drones and electronic manipulations, while dusty, reverb-drenched vocals are flawlessly layered into the background. And while these compositions might be synthesizer-assisted, lie back and let the electronics do the work. This is devilishly complex and forged by the hand
Alaska in Winter - Dance in the Balkans 2007-11-08 15:21:44 A contributing member of the glorious Flying Club Cup (the musicians that make up Beirut helmed by musical mastermind Zach Condon), Brandon Bethancourt is in charge of where he winters. He takes the sounds inspired by those of Beirut, but mixes in a lot of vocoder voice effects and electronic elements to make this beautiful, somber, old world Europe-flavored album that has hints of the future. ‘Dance
in the Balkans’ is for listeners into that old world sound, but want a little more updated effects added. It’s not happy music (as the title suggests) but music that forces listeners to slow their pace, look at their lives and the world around them. “The Homeless And The Hummingbirds” kicks things off on the right foot. Slow, almost haunting piano and country/mariachi horns underscoring soft vocals. The mostly instrumental “Balkan Low Rider Anthem” is a brooding highlight on this wonderful album. The rolling piano and creepy violin mix makes for a Read more:Alaska
Extra Golden - Hear Ma Nono 2007-11-08 15:19:05 In a world both globalized and rife with xenophobia, some musicians need a visa just to rehearse. Such is the case with ExtraGolden
, the musical handshake between a few D.C. indie rockers and Kenyan benga musicians that was nearly buried with singer and co-founder Otieno Jagwasi’s death in 2005. But Extra Golden’s concept was, perhaps, too perfect to end: Kenyan dance rhythms injected with indie-guitar sensibilities. Hera Ma Nono proves they were right to soldier on. On “I Miss You,” for example, the weeping steel guitar meshes seamlessly with its sparkling hi-life counterparts. ‘Hera Ma Nono’ (”Love in Vain”) is as culturally appreciative and exciting a cross of two cultures one will hear this year.
(more…)
Share This
Odd Nosdam - Level Live Wires 2007-11-08 15:16:05 In the space of a mere two records, cLOUDDEAD achieved way more than most bands achieve in a lifetime, as their releases stand as milestones in the abstract hip hop genre. And while the group called it quits in 2004, Odd Nosdam has continued on, releasing a variety of solo works. His latest effort, 2007’s ‘Level Live Wires
’, may owe more to shoegazing and electronica than hip-hop. While the crumbling tape recorded sounds, downsampled beats and occasional rapping is still clearly present, Odd Nosdam has added ever-growing drones and waves of noise, not unlike those of Ben Frost. The humorously titled “Fat Hook” builds up from fizzing pads into a cacophony of noise and fuzzy synthesis. One could almost replace it with guitars and end up with something out of the My Bloody Valentine catalog. “The Kill Tone Two” samples a busted-up break-beat that is clearly hip-hop, yet adds live violin and vocals that create a rolling pastoral epic (TV On The Ra
Pram - The Moving Frontier 2007-11-08 15:13:26 With “The MovingFrontier
”, dream pop outfit Pram have delivered their most engaging and confident work to date. The thirteen tracks of their ninth long-player heave with the kind of hazy bliss that fans of Iceland’s Mum or Birmingham’s Broadcast will hugely enjoy. Lifting off with “The Empty Quarter”, one of The Moving Frontier’s four instrumental pieces, the scene is perfectly set with gritty, tremolo drenched guitars that shift behind a wandering Rhodes organ and muted trumpet. The track embodies Pram’s individual skill as composers and their ability to simultaneously evoke urbanity with more industrial archetypes. Singer Rosie Cuckson is a key component in this formula, her Nico-intoned, metallic voice draping itself over the fuzzy, reverberating backdrop. In “Blind Tiger”, Pram flirt with the Portishead aesthetic, a fairground organ cutting through the ominous backdrop of horns and cymbals to unnerving effect. Elsewhere,
Red Krayola & Art and Language - Sighs Trapped by Liars 2007-11-08 15:11:05 A terrific new album from the Red Krayola camp, following on from a glut of activity on their part after recent issues of ‘Soldier Talk’ and last year’s ‘Introduction’ LP and ‘Red Gold’ EP. For ‘Sighs Trapped By Liars
’, Mayo Thompson hooks up with Art & Language, and a cast of players including Jim O’Rourke, John McEntire, Tom Watson and vocalists Elisa Randazzo and Sandy Yang. Unusually, Thompson refrains from taking any lead vocal on the album, making the project a female-fronted affair. The lyrics weave a tangled web, fitting with the ornate musical arrangements perfectly, which strike up a perfect balance between contemporary Chicago post-rock sophistication and retro psych authenticity. Ace.
(more…)
Share This
Amy Winehouse - I Told You I Was Trouble 2007-11-12 19:16:11 As her universally acclaimed album ‘Back to Black’ is approaching five times platinum, Amy Winehouse
returns with a DVD entitled ‘I Told You I Was Trouble
’. Capturing highlights from her live performances at Shepherd’s Bush Empire (in West London, England), listening to this audio easily proves that the vocal soul power displayed on ‘Back to Black’ isn’t achieved through studio wizardry; yes, her voice and singing really are that good. Nearly all the songs performed on ‘I Told You I Was Trouble’ are from ‘Back to Black’, with highlights including her rendition of the album’s first single, the defiant “Rehab” and the ska-tinged “Just Friends”. Add in the almost unbearably hip-swinging “Me & Mr Jones” and the gloriously confident “My Tears Dry On Their Own”, both delivered with a sass and attitude that sets Winehouse apart live, and ‘I Told You I Was Tr Read more:Amy Winehouse
RZA - Instrumental Experience 2007-11-12 19:08:15 When talking about cutting-edge hip hop producers, it’s impossible not to mention New Yorker Robert Diggs, better known to the world simply as RZA. Sure, Dr. Dre has made the headlines with his innovative take on P-Funk, but RZA captured the critical acclaim with his diverse and hugely original production style which revolutionized the genre spawning hundreds of imitations. Diggs made his name producing for the Wu-Tang Clan, most notably re-defining the whole hip hop genre with 1993’s ‘Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)’ which with its blend of lo-fi, off-time beats, discordant piano samples and wavering strings made people think differently about the entire sound. RZA’s encyclopedic knowledge of cinema has helped him to pioneer this dark, mysterious sound but it was a sound which for many has never been bettered and, although it has been copies plenty of times, nobody can quite do it like the RZA himself. This collection of instrumentals is the perfect examp Read more:Instrumental
Disrupt - Foundation Bit 2007-11-12 19:03:43 Probably the most talked about bass transmission of recent months (bar the recent releases from Burial and Pinch), the long awaited debut album from Disrupt does things to listeners’ woofers they didn’t think quite possible. Make no mistake, this is just about the best appropriation of Jamaican dub and 8-bit dancehall one is likely hear this year: with a slow paced skank and a filthy, uber-bassy production style, ‘Foundation
Bit’ has more in common with king Tubby, Black Art and, for that matter, black magic than with wobble presets and lazy dub plates. Once inside Disrupt’s rugged echo-chamber, listeners find themselves immersed in a heady, narcotic cloud of smoke, moved by staggered delays, endless reverberations and a tranquilizing cluster of distant instruments and digital detritus. This is music designed for complete and utter sensory intoxication, and is quit simply one of the most heavy, chemically enhanced albums one will hear this year.
(more&he
James Yorkston - Roaring with Gospel 2007-11-12 19:01:02 It hasn’t be very long since James
Yorkston’s ‘The Year Of The Leopard’ saw its release, yet here comes another full length from the seasoned singer/songwriter. Of course, between albums Yorkston underwent the remix treatment at the hands of Kode9 (among others) for the “Woozy With Cider” single, but ‘Roaring The Gospel
’ finds him back in more familiar waters, turning out the kind of lavish arrangements not ordinarily associated with an artist so steeped in the traditions of folk. It’s often the more pared-down recordings that yield the most effective results however, with tracks like “Seven Streams” (with its ukulele and woodwind arrangement) are understated just enough to not detract from Yorkston’s central vocal performance. Tim Buckley’s “Song To The Siren” gets covered halfway through the album, with a haunting fiddle drone sharing the focus alongside Yorkston’s voice. Another high poin
Keren Ann - Keren Ann 2007-11-12 18:58:51 Prior to her 2007 self-titled effort, Paris-based singer-songwriter Keren Ann released several albums that found her refining a mixture of French chanson, rock, folk-pop, and dreamy ambience. That mixture was perfected on ‘Keren Ann’, an enchanting collection of nine elegant tunes that drift over listeners like a fine sea breeze. At the center of the album is Ann’s voice, which is that of a breathy chanteuse and begs comparisons to Feist, Bebel Gilberto, and Mazzy Star’s Hope Sandoval. But while Ann’s vocals are undeniably lovely, it’s the subtle sophistication of the songs (which meld genres seamlessly) and the production (which is simple, yet beautifully textured) that makes this album a delight.
(more…)
Share This
Serj Tankian - Elect the Dead 2007-11-12 18:56:01 Frontman of Armenian-American metal agitators System of a Down, Serj Tankian has released his first solo effort and uses the musical forum to promote his political ideology. And, like many other great artists both past and present, what makes it work is the aesthetic is not ignored for the sake of shock value. Tankian comes across as an improbable hybrid of Frank Zappa, Jello Biafra, Sepultura’s Max Cavalera, a Balkan protest singer and someone on a street corner with a megaphone and a placard announcing the end times. At its most urgent, on “Empty Walls” or “The Unthinking Majority”, ‘Elect
the Dead’ resembles a demented heavy-metal musical about the last days of the American empire. There are a several other tracks that deserve attention as well, including “Saving Us”, “Lie Lie Lie”, and what may be the gem of the album, “Money”. And while there is never a dull moment, it is safe to say this solo project sh
Burnt Friedman - First Night Forever 2007-11-12 18:53:47 Veteran producer and master of electronic kraut-funk, Burnt Friedman
returns for another solo album after his acclaimed collaboration with David Sylvian, Stina Nordentsam and Arve Henriksson on the Nine Horses project. ‘NightForever
’ finds Friedman recruiting a number of vocal contributors, including Australian singer Steve Spacek, Funkstorung collaborator Enik, Berliner Barbara Panther and Daniel Dodd-Ellis. The productions themselves are the real stars here though, Friedman’s multi-layered studio excursions sewing together detailed drum edits, misty horn sections and even the odd burst of strings when needed. There are some very peculiar moments on the album, most of which come on tracks lent vocals by Theo Altenberg, an artist whose roots lie in the Berlin commune scene of the ’70s. He makes a number of appearances on the album, seemingly styling he’s hollered, gruff vocals on a hybrid of Tom Waits and James Brown, resulting in the screeching electro-g Read more:First
, First Night
Alberta Cross - The Thief & The Heartbreaker 2007-11-12 18:51:13 Alberta Cross
is east Londoner Terry Wolfers and Swede Petter Ericson Stakee. Both are enraptured by US country blues/soul, gospel and ’70s folk rock, as proven on their seven track EP of strong songs called ‘The Thief
& The Heartbreaker
’. However, faithful reproduction is not their way and although the title track leans heavily on Neil Young’s ‘Down By The River’, My Morning Jacket and The White Stripes loom as large in their record collections as Gram Parsons and The Band. For proof, listen to “I’ve Known for Long”, although the soulful opener title track is an undeniably effective introduction to the band. Several years ago, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club made a similar album of excellence with ‘Howl’. With ‘The Thief & The Heartbreaker’, decades seem to blur away and the music has a feel that belongs to listeners both young and old. Alberta Cross and their intro EP splash big, rewarding promise to music fans everywhere. Enjoy Read more:Alberta
The Slits - Return of the Giant Slits 2007-11-12 18:16:03 Originally released in 1981, ‘Return
of the Giant Slits’ was the long out of print second album by the London post-punk outfit. It wouldn’t be until 2006, an incredible twenty-five years, before the Slits would release another proper collection of studio recordings (’Revenge of the Killer Skits’). This album finds the band pursuing with their early dub influenced sound only to add more experimental elements, particularly with regard to percussion and rhythm. Opening with “Earthbeat”, the band sound some distance from their punk origins laying down low rumbling bass and heavily layered multi-tracked vocals. Things take a turn towards the bizarre with “Or What Is It?” and the harmonic chaos of “Face Place”, which fuses squealing vocals with meandering brass and chopped up, ambitious structuring. It’s wildly inventive stuff, but as the album shifts into its second half, “Difficult Fun” comes across as a re
The Undertones - Dig Yourself Deep 2007-11-12 18:11:54 The Undertones have been around for nearly 30 years, but are still producing fast-paced, melodic pop punk. On 2007’s ‘Dig Yourself
Deep’, their infectious guitar riffs sound as great as they did back in 1979 (a few tracks here could even fit on their self-titled debut) and are matched by lyrics that reveal a band aging well. The title track and “Here Comes The Rain” stand out among 14 songs that last just over 30 minutes: not long enough. There are a few changes: the Irishmen are now fronted by Paul McLoone, who replaced Feargal Sharkey when they reformed in 1999. And while he is not Sharkey, his efforts come a very close second. Their high energy is still there, but definitely more refined and matured. And if ‘Dig Yourself Deep’ proves only one thing, it’s that the O’Neill brothers are alive and kicking, producing quality new material, and not just regurgitating their past glories, unlike the re-formed Sex Pistols.
(more…)
Recommend Site To A Friend
