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== ISSUE 184 ==== CONSUMABLE ONLINE ======== [August 11, 1999]
Editor: Bob Gajarsky
E-mail: editor@consumableonline.com
Managing Editor: Lang Whitaker
Sr. Correspondents: Daniel Aloi, Joann Ball, Bill Holmes, Tim
Kennedy, Al Muzer, Joe Silva
Correspondents: Michelle Aguilar, Christina Apeles, Niles J.
Baranowski, Mike Bederka, Tracey Bleile, Jason
Cahill, Matthew Carlin, Patrick Carmosino, John
Davidson, Andrew Duncan, Krisjanis Gale,
Chris Hill, Eric Hsu, Franklin Johnson, Steve
Kandell, Reto Koradi, Robin Lapid, Karen
Mulhern, Linda Scott, Don Share, Scott Slonaker,
Kerwin So, Chelsea Spear, Jon Steltenpohl, Michael
Van Gorden, Simon West
Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, David Landgren, Dave Pirmann
Address all comments to staff@consumableonline.com ; subscription
information is given at the end of this issue.
==================================================================
All articles in Consumable remain (C) copyright their author(s).
Permission for re-publication in any form must be obtained from the
editor.
==================================================================
.------------.
| Contents |
`------------'
INTERVIEW: Speech - Lang Whitaker
REVIEW: Guided By Voices, _Do the Collapse_ - Steve Kandell
REVIEW: Pretenders, _Viva El Amor_ - Joann D. Ball
REVIEW: Freedy Johnston, _Blue Days, Black Nights_ - Michael Van Gorden
REVIEW: Superchunk, _Come Pick Me Up_ - Steve Kandell
REVIEW: Los Lobos, _This Time_ - Tracey Bleile
REVIEW: The Verve Pipe, _The Verve Pipe_ - Karen Mulhern
REVIEW: Various, _No Boundaries - A Benefit for the Kosovar
Refugees_ - Mike Bederka
REVIEW: Len, _Can't Stop the Bum Rush_ - Michelle Aguilar
REVIEW: Kristin Hersh, _Sky Motel_ - Chelsea Spear
REVIEW: Verbena, _Into The Pink_ - Tracey Bleile
REVIEW: Various, _Surf Monsters_ - Michelle Aguilar
NEWS: Caroline Distribution, Shalamar / Midnight Star, Rhino Records
21st annual Retrofest
TOUR DATES: Atari Teenage Riot, Black Sabbath / Godsmack, Blondie /
Reel Big Fish, Duran Duran, Julian Lennon, Alanis Morissette / Tori
Amos, Pietasters, Pretenders, Sevendust / Skunk Anansie / Powerman
5000, Splender, Mike Viola And The Candy Butchers, Ween, Weird Al
Yankovic
Back Issues of Consumable
---
INTERVIEW: Speech
- Lang Whitaker
I knew I was going way out in the country when the directions
to Todd "Speech" Thomas's house included "after you get on the two-lane
road, turn down the dirt road with eight mailboxes mounted in a cluster
on the corner." But country living suits Todd "Speech" Thomas just fine;
Lord knows Speech is relishing his peace and quiet these days, after
living the hard knock life the last few years. After the dissolvement
of his pioneering hip-hop group Arrested Development, Speech ran into a
spate of legal hurdles that arrested his artistic development. Now, with
a solo record about to drop through TVT Records, Speech is still thirsty.
CONSUMABLE ONLINE: Tell me exactly how it went down with Arrested
Development breaking up.
SPEECH: Basically, Arrested Development started having problems
even during the touring of our first album (1992's _3 Years, 5 Months & 2
Days In The Life Of..._). We were having problems with egos, and people
being jealous of each other, money and greed -- all of those things
started really taking effect. We basically were not getting along, but
we were really holding it together for the sake of the group, because we
were really taking off. Here was a band that had been broke, and all of a
sudden we had a chance, and we didn't want to mess that up because of
some personality differences.
CO: So then why didn't you stay together?
SPEECH: We would have stayed at it, but the tension continued to
grow. So, by the time we did the second album, _Zingalamaduni_, that was
really like pulling teeth to even do that album, because the dissension had
gotten so bad. After _Zingalamaduni_ came out, we did a lot of touring. The
last tour was did in Asia, and when we came back from Atlanta there were
offers for other tours and offers to get back in the studio, and none of
us answered; nobody was willing to do anything. We didn't really decide
that we should break up, it was just that no one said anything. It was
something that was uncommunicated, but known. We just couldn't do it
anymore.
CO: Then you released your first solo album, _Speech_, right?
SPEECH: Yeah. I'm a musician, so I continued to write music. EMI
had heard it, but we didn't know what to do with it, but we both wanted to
release it. So, we did a solo album and entitled it _Speech_, and it was
just a bunch of songs that I had written.
CO: And then your label, EMI Records, collapsed...
SPEECH: Yeah, they just totally fell apart. I don't know what
happened to them.
CO: So you were kind of stuck, right?
SPEECH: What happened was, once EMI closed down, I couldn't release
records, as Arrested Development, which wasn't even an issue at that time,
or as Speech. At that time, I was about to release some of songs, so I was
basically stuck.
So, EMI in Japan had had huge success with _Speech_. It sold very
well, and the single "Like Marvin Gaye Said..." was number one on the
charts there for nine weeks. They called me and said, "Hey, we heard you
did some new stuff. Can we release it?" I wasn't sure, so we got with all
the business guys and the lawyers and stuff and found out that I could
actually release music overseas. But I couldn't do anything in the
states, because even though the label wasn't capable of releasing
records, I was still signed as an artist.
So for about two years I was releasing stuff in Asia. I released
an album called _Disciples of a Lyrical Rebellion_, and I released _1998
Hoopla_. I also released records from two groups I represent, Nadirah
and El Pus. So, I released four records in Asia over a two year period,
and all of them did pretty well. I was also touring consistently over
there, which was great.
All of that was sort of just biding me time. Finally I was able to
get off the label here. So, we started shopping some stuff, and I talked
to a couple of labels, and TVT was one of the labels we talked to and
decided to go with, ultimately.
CO: Why did you pick TVT to do your album?
SPEECH: I like independent labels, in general. I've been with a
major before, and generally their philosophy is to throw an album up
against the wall, and if radio or video bites at it, to go ahead. But,
there are too many games with majors. To me, they're not really great
at working a record. They're great at making a really good record become
huger than life. Like, I've never seen anything like what happened to
AD. We lost track of why people were likin' our record so much because
of the machinery of a major label. They just have this power to be take
something from here (gestures down by his waist), to way beyond anything
you could imagine. But on the other hand, if your record doesn't get
radio play and video play, they have no clue what to do with it.
CO: What kind of stuff is AD going to do? Are you going to be
writing most of the stuff, or will it be a collaboration?
SPEECH: Oh, definitely, it will be a collaboration. I have about
six or seven tunes I'd like to put on the record, but we'll have to wait
and see what ends up making the record, because I'm sure we'll end up
writing a bunch of tunes. But I'm really excited about working with AD
again.
CO: I heard that until recently, you didn't own a suit.
SPEECH: (incredulously) Yeah, I just got one.
CO: You went down to Saks Fifth Avenue at Phipps Plaza to get it,
right?
SPEECH: Yeah! How did you...how do you know about that?
CO: I can't tell you that, man, but I heard you were picking it
up for some kind of big shindig.
SPEECH: Yeah, it was for Puffy's restaurant opening, Justin's,
just recently. I heard it was a suit and tie affair, so I bought a suit.
I had suit coat jackets and stuff from vintage stores, but I never had a
full suit, you know...
CO: ...that matches.
SPEECH: (Laughs) Right. With parts that were meant for each other.
I mean, my mom used to buy me suits when I was in high school. So, it was
my first suit purchase.
CO: Have you worn it again, since then?
SPEECH: Yeah. I've worn it for shows. I liked it actually. I sort
of freaked it out, meaning I untucked my shirt and didn't wear the tie.
But it's just cool; it's an Armani suit. It fits really well. I never was
into designer clothing, until I tried it. For some reason, it actually
does make you feel a little cooler. (laughs) Once you get it on, you sort
of get the point.
---
REVIEW: Guided By Voices, _Do the Collapse_ (TVT)
- Steve Kandell
After years of threatening to record an album that doesn't
sound like it was recorded in a small bathroom, Dayton's frighteningly
prolific lo-fi hero Robert Pollard has finally followed through with the
brand new _Do the Collapse_. A few tips for those fans disenchanted
with this decision:
1. Listen to _Do the Collapse_ in a small bathroom.
2. Unplug at least one of your speakers while listening to _Do
the Collapse_.
3. Turn your stereo up as loud as it can go, then listen to _Do
the Collapse_ from your next door neighbor's house. Guaranteed decline
in fidelity.
4. Make a cassette copy of _Do the Collapse_ and only listen to
it on one of those mono tape recorders from 1979.
As ludicrous as these suggestions may sound, all are preferable
to dismissing the new Guided By Voices (GBV) album outright, as tempting
as that may seem to the hardcore faithful. While Ric Ocasek's production
undoubtedly gives the music a sheen it has never had, this is still at its
core a GBV album, complete with willfully obscure lyrics and faux-British
Invasion intonations. Nowhere is the former Cars leader's stamp more
evident than on the album's opening track, "Teenage FBI," which boasts
synth bass and enough keyboard flourishes to make it sound like a refugee
from _Candy-O_, or maybe the first Rentals album.
_Do the Collapse_'s most obvious departure is the lighter-waving,
arm-swaying, strings-enhanced arena rock ballad "Hold On Hope," a bid for
Top 40 glory that couldn't be more blatant if it came with a box of
chocolates for your local radio programmer. But it's hard to knock
Pollard for this. He's written and released about three thousand songs
in the past eight years; he's allowed to want a hit, and he's certainly
worked hard enough for it. Anyway, the idea of Guided By Voices actually
gaining mainstream acceptance, of "Hold On Hope" becoming a prom theme
standard or popping up on the soundtrack of a very special episode of
Dawson's Creek, is too brilliant to resist. Fans can take great solace
in the fact that this will never, ever happen.
Less a band than a brand, Pollard has changed GBV members so
frequently that Andy Warhol's legendary aphorism might be amended to
"In the future, everyone will be in Guided By Voices for fifteen
minutes." It is becoming increasingly hard to discern what makes an
album a Robert Pollard solo effort (he's released two) or a Guided By
Voices project (counts range from 13 to 16, depending on what you're
calling an "album.") It seems as if Pollard himself isn't sure either;
the low-fi fragments that used to comprise GBV albums are now saved for
his solo records as he tries push Guided By Voices towards greater pop
legitimacy. This time around, former Breeder/Amp Jim MacPherson plays
drums, part-time GBV associate and full-time Dayton attorney Greg Demos
plays bass, and guitarist Doug Gilliard is the sole survivor from the
Mag Earwhig band of two years ago. (Just to keep things confusing, the
album photos show no less than six current GBV'ers, including touring
bassist Tim Tobias and touring rhythm guitarist Nate Farley, also late
of the Breeders and the Amps.)
What Ocasek seems to have done is rein in Pollard's tendency to
leave songs half-finished, as _Do the Collapse_ boasts sixteen full-blown
pop songs -- no fragments -- many of which are more than three minutes
long. A few, such as the mid-tempo "Things I Will Keep" and "Liquid
Indian" hold up against any in the stunningly large GBV catalogue, and
"In Stitches" is the best one-chord GBV tune since "Postal Blowfish."
And for those who simply cannot abide by this new trend towards more
conventional pop composition, a new Pollard solo album or one of his
collections under the pseudonym Lexo and the Leapers is due to be
released in about twenty minutes.
---
REVIEW: Pretenders, _Viva El Amor_ (Warner Bros.)
- Joann D. Ball
"They don't make 'em like they used to!"
That's the message the Pretenders convincingly deliver on
the new release _Viva El Amor_ . The memorable line, taken from
the CD's lead track and current UK single "Popstar," is a sharp
response to a strayed lover who should have realized that he never
had it so good. But the sentiment also neatly sums up the Pretenders
incredible staying power.
Exploding onto the post-punk scene twenty years ago, the
Pretenders took the musical path less taken by combining punk attitude
with rock stylings and pop sensibilities. The Pretenders forged a
distinctive sound with singer/songwriter Chrissie Hynde's trademark
tough and tender vocals framed by a guitar-driven melodic approach.
And as the Pretenders prove on _Viva El Amor_, the winning combination
is timeless and still irresistable.
On the band's seventh studio effort, Hynde, original drummer
Martin Chambers, guitarist Adam Seymour and bassist Andy Hobson are
as fresh and energized as ever. Kicking off with the catchy buzz of
"Popstar," _Viva El Amor_ showcases the full range of the Pretenders'
musical essence. "Who's Who" and "Baby's Breath" overflow with the
chiming guitars and magical moments one expects from the band, while
"From the Heart Down," which features the Duke Quartet, captures the
stripped down beauty displayed on 1995's unplugged _Isle of View_.
Tender moments can also be found on the sensual "Samurai" and on the
cover of the Spanish-language song "Rabo Du Nube."
The Pretenders balance the soft and hard on the emotion-filled
"Dragway 42," and display their characteristic edge on the raucuous
rocker "Legalise Me." Complete with a count-off from Chambers and
guest guitar work from Jeff Beck, "Legalise Me" recalls the full-on
aggression last heard on 1994's _Last of the Independents_.
The first UK single "Human" (also the theme for the short-lived
American television show "Cupid"), however, has to be the best
Pretenders song the band never wrote. With Jules Shear on board to
further sweeten the backing vocals, the Pretenders infuse the
Divinyls' original with their definitive brand of shimmering pop.
And Hynde gives the song's lyrics and especially the "I'm only human
on the inside" chorus such a personal touch that "Human" actually
seems autobiographical.
The revealing "Biker," for which the release was originally to
be named, closes the 45-minute _Viva El Amor_. Demonstrating that
wisdom comes with age, the twelve tracks on the record skillfully
explore the familiar subjects of love and the human condition. And
packaged with a striking cover photo of Chrissie Hynde in a
propagandist revolutionary pose (taken by the late Linda McCartney),
_Viva El Amor_ delivers exactly what it promises. Long Live Love,
indeed!
For Pretenders information online, visit the official Pretenders
Archives website http://members.tripod.com/~PretendersArchives and the
related site http://www.pretenders.org
---
REVIEW: Freedy Johnston, _Blue Days, Black Nights_ (Elektra)
- Michael Van Gorden
With the opening line of "I sail alone in a homemade boat,"
Freedy Johnston perfectly sets the mood for his latest and most
emotionally moving album to date. Ever the master storyteller, on _Blue
Days, Black Nights_, Freedy uses his simple melodies, well-chosen words
and a very spare sounding record to tug at our heart strings, bring up
old, long forgotten memories and just plain get under our emotional skin.
"Underwater Life" opens the CD with the above line, and proceeds
to paint a picture of a lonely man who uses his homemade boat to haul
trash, all the while enduring the jeers and jokes of his peers, until
one night he realizes that he would be willing to "trade his own today,
for the underwater life." The characters in Freedy's songs have always
been fleshed out by the well chosen words and the haunting, rolling
melodies that are so subtle, yet seem to ingrain themselves in your
mind.
Freedy again takes the simple approach to these songs, much
like he did on "Western Sky" from his previous CD _Never Home_. In
fact, if songs like "Western Sky" and "Evie's Tears" are some of your
favorites, then this CD is tailor made for you. There are no loud
crunching guitar sounds (ala _On the Way Out_), but Freedy has
constructed a very intimate setting for his stories of loneliness
hurt, alienation and emotional pain.
For those that already think moving can be a sad, somber
experience, try "Moving on a Holiday," with lines like "old address
book in my hand/How'd I lose my place again/The only thing not packed
away/moving on a holiday," which evoke memories of the finality of
moving away from something dear. In another sad tale, "The Farthest
Lights," an astronomer wonders whether all the time he spent gazing
at the stars has caused the light to go out in his wife's eyes. Again
using imagery so vivid and alive, the astronomer asks himself "I will
ask but you won't say/Do I watch the sky too much/familiar and so far
away." The central character of "Pretend It's Summer" remembers when
he met the love of his life, and how "a summer storm wasn't over yet /
We discovered our initials matched." When things don't work out he
longs for the old days so much he begins to pretend it's summer, going
out in the winter and "picks flowers in the snow all day." As the
story comes to an end, the music also begins to fade, and you hope
that the pain and the memory fade along with it.
As sad as this CD may sound, the melodies and Freedy's singing
seem to give the character's hope. No matter how bad off they may
sound, you find yourself pulling for them, buoyed by the melodies and
the exceptional playing of Freedy's band. With Cameron Grieder on
guitar, Jim Keltner on drums, and Andy Hess on bass, the music is
subdued yet powerful. This album is perfect for those "3 a.m."
moments, when you're trying to sort through the cobwebs in your
mind. This album ranks right up there with Jules Shear's _Between
Us_, on which Freedy guests. With the growth this CD shows, I look
forward to Freedy's next album, while I wallow in the beauty of this
one.
---
REVIEW: Superchunk, _Come Pick Me Up_ (Merge)
- Steve Kandell
Rare is the band that remains intact after a decade. Rarer still
is one that remains valid after this long a stretch. But a band that
manages to put out a ninth album that not only stands with its best,
builds on the advances made on previous releases to push the songs in
interesting new directions without sacrificing an iota of what made the
band work in the first place? that's beyond rare. It's a statistical
anomaly. And it is, I am delighted and relieved to report, Superchunk.
With nothing left to prove musically and requisite talk of
commercial breakthrough long since dismissed as fantasy, it would be
easy for Chapel Hill's venerable Superchunk to go the way of so many
of their contemporaries and simply fade into the indie rock woodwork.
They should be broken up by now, or sounding tired at best. Most of the
bands who started out the decade as their peers are either long gone or
in trouble. Rumors abound that Pavement may not last the month, and
Sonic Youth desperately needs new gear and a better padlock. But the
songs on _Come Pick Me Up_ go far beyond complacent, and are hardly the
work of a band on its last legs. Superchunk frontman Mac MacCaughan puts
it best himself in "1000 Pounds" when he sings "You came through/When no
one expected you to."
From Jon Wurster's synthy metallic drums that start off the
album's spirited opening track "So Convinced," it is clear that the
band intends to show off some new tricks. With Chicago post-rock
impresario Jim O'Rourke manning the boards, Superchunk's pogo-happy
punk pop tunes now boast such adornments as keyboards, strings and
horns, but are used with restraint and never overwhelm the songs. The
organs got a workout on the last record, 1997's _Indoor Living_, but
nothing Superchunk has ever put out hints at the Clarence Clemons-like
sax solo at the end of "Pink Clouds."
1994's _Foolish_, still their strongest album, was actually
criticized when it came out for daring to slow things down and stress
melody over crunching power chords. Each subsequent album has managed
to take the songwriting advances of the one before it and add new
flourishes, all without taking away from the elements that make Superchunk
so simple but distinctive. _Come Pick Me Up_ is actually a logical
progression from _Indoor Living_, which itself was the next step from
1995's _Here's Where the Strings Come In_.
Lest the skeptical faithful lament that this is all just the
further watering down of a once furious punk band, the new album
actually rocks harder than _Indoor Living_, and is more consistently
innovative than any band whose music publishing company is called "All
the Songs Sound the Same" has a right to be.
And for all the talk about new sounds and new directions, the
album's best song actually would have sounded right at home on _No Pocky
for Kitty_. "Good Dreams" is as raucous and infectious as anything the
band has ever done, from "Seed Toss" to "Without Blinking" to "Precision
Auto." And they are not bringing a brass section out on the road; live,
even the most ornate songs are stripped to their punk cores while Mac
and bassist Laura Balance bounce around so much they make Angus Young
look as sedentary as John Popper.
On any given night in any given city, countless rock bands with
two guitars, bass, and drums get together somewhere and play frenzied
punk pop songs about frustrations romantic or otherwise. It is not
unique, and it is not brain surgery. But for some reason, and I can't
even put my finger on why, Superchunk is simply better at it than any
of them. See them before they break up or get tired.
---
REVIEW: Los Lobos, _This Time_ (Hollywood)
- Tracey Bleile
The members of Los Lobos are closing in on a major anniversary,
somewhere in the neighborhood of twenty-five years as a group. And like
any long-term relationship, the Lobos have learned the secret lesson of
making it work - over the past year and a half, the various members have
taken the time to do their "own thing". Sometimes that is the ultimate
key to how you approach the original relationship, and infuse it with
new life - don't be afraid to have separate interests. The added change
of a new label for the first time in a very long time may also have
something to do with this.
_This Time_ takes this cue beautifully, exploring all the
different avenues the various members have ventured recently. The
Lobos have always been way ahead of the curve when it comes to defying
genres (or is it defining their own?). The more traditional R&B and
blues foray by Cesar Rosas (who released his first ever solo record
this year) lends a new aggressive touch to the proceedings. "That's
Why We Wish" has that same dance party feel that some of the great
tracks featured on the Rosas release.
So take your good ol' R&B groove. Now link it in a jaw-dropping
seamless fashion to the percussive, experimental twists of the Latin
Playboys (David Hidalgo and Louie Perez, joined by their longtime
producer friend, Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake, who are on board with
this release as producers as well). This end result with this record
melds into some of the most buzzy, funky blues these guys have slung
yet. The wah-wah's turned up high on "Viking", and "High Places"
smokes just right with that sharp plucked guitar punctuating every beat.
Toss in the spice of many of Los Lobos' members participating
in the Cali-Texas Latin supergroup Los Super Seven, and it makes the
traditional Latin/Nortena stripe of Los Lobos' nature a little more
tigerish. The mariachi snap of "Cumbia Raza" is pure summer pleasure,
and "La Playa" has a punchy, loping beat that will indeed have you
dreaming of sun, sand and dancing outside. Even the ballad this time
(no pun intended) 'round, "Corazon" gives you visions of torrid tangos,
not longing or bereft lovers.
Saying too much more seems almost excessive. This is a tough,
cool, tight record by a bunch of guys who know what the hell they are
doing, and make it easy to buy what they're selling. After the
stylized beauty of _Kiko_ and the over-the-top smeary mess of _Colossal
Head_, Los Lobos shows once again their knack for death-defying twists
and turns musically. They know each other well, and here's hoping the
honeymoon never ends for this relationship.
---
REVIEW: The Verve Pipe, _The Verve Pipe_ (RCA)
- Karen Mulhern
The self titled, _The Verve Pipe_, is a study in the redefinition
of a band. Where _Villains_ had a consistent, if somewhat overproduced
sound, The Verve Pipe_ does not. Each song varies in styling, tempo,
and poetic appeal, yet all share a central theme of lessons learned
the hard way. Nowhere is this more evident than in "F-word", an
examination of post-"Freshmen" self doubt and the difficulty in moving
on. Brian Vander Ark's description of moshing (assault diguised as
dancing) and the metaphor that follows (so part the wave and drop the
dead as driftwood surfer) make for powerful imagery. In a similar but
more upbeat way, "Hero" is a self deprecating look at reconciling who
we are with who we think we are. The hard-driving "Supergig" is an
expose of fear and the fences thrown up to keep it at bay. "We used
to care, we don't anymore," and the repetitiive "there's not a
missing link" are said defensively, not as statements of fact.
And what of love and relationships? In "Headlines" they're
strictly physical but the narrator is taken to task for being
superficial. In the end he realizes "my all was just medium."
"Television" explores the sadistic way we wallow in pity when we
know we should move past the pain. "Turn it up, turn it down, tune
me in, tune me out" clearly shows the quandry. But sometimes
relationships are sheer perfection, as seen in the beautifully poetic
"Kiss Me Idol." With angelic vocals and a dreamlike melody, Vander
Ark sings ,"so close your eyes and catch your breath and I will wait
right here." He describes a love so perfect, even a casual listener
would be impressed.
The band has described _The Verve Pipe_ as the "record of our
lives." With candor, emotion and incredible songwriting, the band has
shared with us their growth not only as musicians but as people. In
"She Loves Everybody" Donny wrote, "flashing lights, the music's loud,
I'm questioning if this is destiny." Without question, this eclectic
mix of songs is certainly that and more.
---
REVIEW: Various, _No Boundaries - A Benefit for the Kosovar
Refugees_ (Epic)
- Mike Bederka
With an album such as this, you almost feel guilty criticizing
it. What kind of heartless person would disrespect these artists? The
Kosovar refugees have lost everything and now a bunch of bands donated
some tracks to help them out. What's not to like? Well, how about a
third of the album?
But for the most part, "No Boundaries" is quality mix of rare,
live and unreleased tracks from old-timers and some fairly fresh meat.
Neil Young provides a riveting live version of "War of Man" from the
"Harvest Moon" album. When he utters, "No one wins / It's a war of man,"
it's hard to ignore the relevance. And when his grandchildren, Pearl Jam,
bookend the album with a pair of covers, the band's dipping popularity
should stop dead its track. "Last Kiss," the 1964 hit by J. Frank Wilson
and the Cavaliers, has been gracing radios for the past few months. And
their rocking version of Arthur Alexander's "Soldier of Love" should
also do the same. Rage Against the Machine equally deserves some
recognition for the turn-the-stereo-up cover of Bruce Springsteen's
"The Ghost of Tom Joad." Honorary mention goes to The Wallflowers and
Oasis for playing some actually decent, non-whiny numbers.
As for the flip side, Bush and Jamiroquai get the yesterday's
news honors. Bush does the acoustic (!) thing on "Come Down." Great, all
we need, a bland version of an already bland song. C'mon guys, you pump
out singles like they are going out of style. I'm sure you have something
new and tasty in your collection. And that guy with the big hat offers
the pointless, instrumental number "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing." Hey
Jamiroquai, just stick to making slick videos okay. Korn and Ben Folds
Five also do nothing for themselves with their disappointing additions
to "No Boundaries." Korn's remix of "Freak on a Leash" is mediocre, and
Ben Folds' ditty "Leather Jacket" meanders nowhere and lacks the band's
usual fire.
Of course the cause is greater than the music, but at the very
least you wished some of the artists would have put up more of a fight.
---
REVIEW: Len, _Can't Stop the Bum Rush_ (Sony / WORK Group)
- Michelle Aguilar
Do you remember the first time they started running ads for
mail-order '80s music compilations a few years ago? You know, where
they always put some poor-bastard aging bit actor or ex-Mtv veejay
into a suede vest and jeans and had him read excitedly off a cue card,
"The '80s are back!"
Well, when I first starting noticing these commercials, I was
soon struck by the utter diversity of the titles scrolling down my
television screen -- ranging from forgotten singles by bands like
Haircut 100 to hits from the "Dirty Dancing" soundtrack to Young MC.
There was no regard to genres, to levels of success, or any kinds of
musical signposts; really, a remarkably democratic view of music of
the decade.
I guess the diversity makes sense, once you sit down and think
about it. The fly-by-night record labels who put together these
compilations aren't exactly aesthetes or even '80s devotees, out to
further a certain genre of '80s music. They're guys in their forties,
in ill-fitting suits barking over phones from offices in East Rutherford,
N.J. that have fake wood panelling on the walls. ("Flock of what? What
the hell kinda name is that??? Well if they come cheap, I guess...Ahhh,
who gives a damn?")
Toronto's Len, whose major label debut album, _You Can't Stop
the Bum Rush_, is a bit like one of those compilations. The group,
which is made up of brother and sister co-founders Marc and Sharon
Costanza, along with D Rock and DJ Moves (of the Toronto-Vancouver-Halifax
hip hop project The Cryptik Souls Crew) leisurely and unconcernedly
strut all over the musical map, from hip-hop, to New Wave, to urban
dance. The one thing these songs do seem to have in common is the
1980s, in just about all its permutations. Meaning that the album is
a postmodern patchwork of incongruous influences, mixed together by
Dust Brother John King, and name-checked by a few industry legends
along the way.
Len delights in working with the now-dusty cliches of the 1980s.
For example, Kraftwerk is recalled in the song, "The Hard Disk," which
even features German vocals. Glam metal gets its moment in the sun with
"Feelin' Alright," and even gets a quintessinal solo by Poison guitarist
C.C. DeVille. Even the '80s invention Smooth Jazz is evoked in
"Junebug," featuring utterly appropriate trumpet and sax and cheesy
Casio beats.
The inimitable Biz Markie lends his atonal vocals to the choruses
on "Beautiful Day," easily outclassing host mc, D-Rock, whose phrasing
style at times hints at a hopeless yearning to have grown up below the
Canadian border in south central Los Angeles. D-Rock's hour-by-hour
description of the events of his day recalls thematically the songs of
N.W.A. and Snoop Dogg, except D-Rock's days are filled with Monty Python
movies, phone calls from his friends at Yale and bailing his friends out
of the city jail for miscellaneous mischief.
Overall, there's enough empty cliche mining fun here. There's a
certain amount of appeal to hearing songs that are bound to make your
grin despite yourself, and I would feel uncomfortable recommending
against it unequivocally. This album is bound to call up a smile if
you're the right age to know the reference points. But this aspect is
also a potential Achilles heel for "You Can't Stop the Bum Rush": After
all, if someone wants to hear a collection of parodies of well-known
artists, there is always the danger they'll just go out and buy Weird
Al Yankovic records.
The problem becomes even uglier when you start to realize that
Len (perhaps themselves even unwittingly) has called in supposed heroes
like Blow, Markie, and DeVille to participate in creating cliches of
their former glories, cliches that were innovative when the artists
first thought of them.
To me, it comes as no surprise that this album's stand-out
single is the mellow, gently catchy boy-girl duet "Steal My Sunshine,"
which was featured on the "Go" soundtrack in March. The trippy single,
with its undeniable sample of the Andrea True Connection's, "More,
More, More," is striking for its originality in comparison to the rest
of the album, perhaps because songwriter Marc Costanza wrote it after
getting seriously messed up at a rave.
"Sunshine" is the only song on the album that doesn't overtly
sound like something else. It is the only song that almost sounds
spontaneous, which automatically raises it exuberantly above the rest
of the material. It's as if for a brief moment, Costanza's carefully
constructed defenses against showing his real self were momentarily
broken down, even though he claims he was only trying to write a Human
League song.
At times, listening to this album feels like eating cotton
candy: Its musical texture is a sweet novelty at first, but the
pastiche aspects of these songs threaten to undermine their staying
power, like the fluffy sweetness that eventually turns into a pile of
sugar in your mouth, utterly lacking in redeeming nourishment. But then
again, a pile of sugar can sometimes be just what you're craving...
Ahh, who gives a damn?
---
REVIEW: Kristin Hersh, _Sky Motel_ (4AD)
- Chelsea Spear
Ignore the gauzy photography and beautiful packaging of _Sky
Motel_, the photos of singer/songwriter Kristin Hersh looking all
twinkly and happy. Disregard the enveloping, SurroundSound production
and the chirpy-sweet first single and leadoff track, "Echo." Within the
pits on this CD, Hersh has documented the long, dark night of the soul
that has engulfed her in the three years since she was forced to dissolve
her internationally renowned first band, Throwing Muses.
The songs on _Sky Motel_ revel in strange, minor-chord tunings
(such as "San Francisco"), rarely used time signatures and odd rhythmic
patterns (the haunting "Costa Rica"), as well as melodies that both swoon
and dirge ("Clay Feet"). As usual, Hersh's lyrics are usually cryptic and
rife with disturbing imagery, as on the effectively molasses-paced
"Caffeine," though even at their most direct they can unsettle listeners
with nerves of steel, as with the album closer "Faith": "Was it me or the
heat?/Made you not believe/Made you lose your faith in the afterlife,"
Hersh pleads with listeners. Even the joyous bossa nova skip of "Echo"
cloaks a less-than-innocuous lyric ("I'm scaring everybody, I'm wearing
everybody down") that seems to warn of tumult to come. Anyone buying
this record in search of the cherubic joy of _Strange Angels_ or even
parts of _Hips and Makers_ will find this jarring, to say the least.
That said, Hersh's first album with a band is an exhilarating,
emotionally involving listen from beginning to end. The contrast between
the at times wrist slashingly depressing lyrics and music and the
brightly-coloured production serves to remind listeners of a popular
theme within Hersh's lyrics, and, indeed, her life: the fact that
happiness and misery can co-exist. Even at its bleakest, the music
retains a playful side, demonstrated through the bongos that dance
through "Costa Rica" or the Ravellian snare drum that keeps "Faith"
moving forward.
Hersh's new-found songwriting ability also adds a new dimension
to the songs that grace _Sky Motel_. In years previous, Hersh didn't
write songs so much as channel them, as they came through her walls and
entered her cerebral cortex. Her muse, the muse that gave her band a
name, abandoned her before she had the chance to write this album.
Hearing the songs she writes from scratch is another testament to her
ability as a songwriter - the all-out rocker "A Cleaner Light" and
glidingly melodic "San Francisco" - are as affecting as "Juno" and
"Devil's Roof" were a decade ago. The one song she wrote with the aid
of a muse, "Cathedral Heat," is one of the most affecting things ever
committed to recording device, a moody environment that engulfs the
listener and refuses to let go.
In short, Kristin Hersh has created a masterpiece with her
first solo-album-with-band, _Sky Motel_. Adventurous listeners not shy
to things that go bump in the night will greatly appreciate such an
intuitive, stunningly beautiful album. On my short list for Record of
the Year.
---
REVIEW: Verbena, _Into The Pink_ (Capitol)
- Tracey Bleile
This band's major label debut also marks off a new production
credit for Foo Fighters' mastermind Dave Grohl (who previously scored
the film Touch). The end result is a snarly, wound-tight, percussion
heavy power pop punk effort. Word has it that their label, Capitol
was the winner in what turned out to be a battle royale to sign this
Birmingham, AL trio.
Grohl's discovery of the band's Merge full-length _Souls For
Sale_ started them down the road to a shared tour in the U.S. and
overseas, and when the time came for Verbena to begin _Into The
Pink_, the mutual respect led them to working with Grohl in this
capacity. The results are surprising - the harmonizing on many
tracks of guitarist Scott Bondy and bassist Anne Marie Griffin is
reminiscent of L.A. punk heroes X ("Baby Got Shot"), the splashy
drums and feedback recall, yes, no getting around it, Nirvana ("John
Beverly") and the last traces of grunge. Let there be no hue and
cry of recycling - this is what you get with smart musicians and
an equally smart producer.
The only drawback to this kind of album is tendency for the
songs to begin to blur a bit together - the sound is highly consistent
without a lot of variance. But if you dig drony and thunderous with
a touch of that punk attitude (check "Submissionary" for line,
chapter, and verse), you won't be sent awry here.
One of the great misleading things about this record is the
gentle piano and quiet vocals of the opening track "Lovely Isn't
Love" and the single guitar/voices of the closer "Big Skies, Black
Rainbows". Beautiful bookends that hold up all the volumes (and
volume) _Into The Pink_ possesses in its catalog of talent.
---
REVIEW: Various, _Surf Monsters_ (Del-Fi)
- Michelle Aguilar
The runaway success of Quentin Tarantino's film "Pulp Fiction"
in 1994 was perhaps both the best and worst thing to happen to surf
music in the last thirty years. On the one hand, it elevated a whole
archive of excellent surf instrumentalists from subculture status
straight into the mainstream. On the other hand, this meteoric revival
ensured that within a year surf would be dead on arrival for your
average twentysomething, who was already casting it aside for the more
fertile ground of gym shirts and bell bottoms. Before long, surf was a
suspect fad.
The genre deserves better than that. The lengths to which '60s
surf musicians went trying to recreate the sound of a surfer caught
inside his perfect wave are still as impressive today as they were in
1964. Guitarists may have gotten speedier these days and may be able to
play more notes at once (though Dick Dale's dexterity is still a force
to be reckoned with). Yet, for the most part, the sonic atmospheres of
'60s surf bands (like the Tornadoes, etc.) have remained elusive to many
musicians in the past decade who discovered their parents' surf records
and began trying to emulate them.
The problem is this: Instrumental Surf was a fairly short-lived,
indie label phenomenon, meaning that the techniques of its artists were
poorly documented. For the most part, the answers to the mysteries of
the elusive surf sound remain only in the cheap, rushed recordings that
small, singles-oriented labels could produce.
And even today, Dick Dale knows better than to give up any of
his secrets.
While the Tarantino surf craze may be over, there is still a
goodly number of bands out there playing around with the surf mythology,
as there were several years before Amanda Plummer ever uttered the words
"I love you, pumpkin" on celluloid. Seventeen of those bands, old and
new, appear on _Surf Monsters_, a summer compilation by Del-Fi Records.
A handful of the more interesting new surf artists out today are featured
here, although none owned by Del-Fi, the grandaddy of '60s surf which
was recently resurrected by its 76-year-old original owner, Bob Keane.
Whoever put together _Surf Monsters_ was wise to open the disc
with Man or Astro Man? Their "Flotation Devices For Frequencies Yet To
Be Detected" is a contender for the most innovative of the modern tracks
on this album. Computer effects, odd uses of keyboards (like the Moog,
the Arp, and God knows what other wonderful gadgetry) get very equal
time with vintage sounding surf guitar and '60s production values. The
result is an almost unclassifiable hybrid that uses the surf genre as a
touchstone, rather than getting bogged down in exact mimicry. Another
modern surf band, The Tiki-Tones, take a similar approach to the genre
with their lounge-exotica inspired "The Island of Lost Soul." The band
uses authentic-sounding surf guitar, in combination with sampled bongos,
bird noises and keyboard loops, to create what is essentially a dance
track.
Of course, the compilation has its share of exact mimicry as
well, such as the second-generation surf bands The Bomboras ("Plant of
the Apehangers"), Satan's Pilgrims ("Harem Nocturne") and The Space
Cossacks ("The Apes of Wrath"). These bands all do a fine job of
figuring out the elusive alchemy of cavernous reverb, distorted
instruments and vaguely Middle Eastern-sounding tonality that defines the
surf sound. (Satan's Pilgrims are virtually indistinguishable from the
real thing, in fact. They sound quite at home alongside the next track,
by an actual '60s surf band, The Original Surfaris, who contribute their
seminal "Bombora.")
However, the problem with going down the mimicry road is that
only a select few bands today can manage to get out of a modern studio
the je ne sais quois that makes a traditional surf record sound authentic
instead of stilted and postmodern. With a whopping 20 tracks, _Surf
Monsters_ goes against the odds and loses on three or four occasions.
But that's still a pretty good ratio, when you consider the nine
vintage tracks that are on this album. A few are repeats from the "Pulp
Fiction" soundtrack/Rhino _Legends of Surf Guitar_ compilation. But there
are plenty of other nuggets to enjoy, especially if you're a relative
newcomer to the surf catalog; check out the two excellent tunes each by
Dave Myers and the Surftones and The Sentinals. For those of you in the
past who have relied solely on Quentin Tarantino and your local oldies
station for your surf music needs, it may interest you to hear what other
'60s bands like The Lively Ones and The Impacts were doing with "Miserlou"
and "Wipe Out."
Then, shuffle the disc player and find out what the next
generation is up to.
---
NEWS: > Happy birthday to Caroline Distribution! The
distributors who provide music for labels including Astralwerks,
and have helped in the success of bands including Smashing Pumpkins,
Offspring, Green Day, Fatboy Slim, Ben Folds Five, Chemical Brothers,
Nirvana and Hole will be turning 16 this month.
> EMI / The Right Stuff have recently released greatest
hits albums for two top R&B acts of the 80s, Shalamar and Midnight Star.
> Rhino Records will be celebrating its 21st anniversary
with their first annual RetroFest. The pop culture festival will
take place both indoors and outdoors at the Santa Monica Civic
Auditorium in Santa Monica, Calif. on Friday, August 13; Saturday,
August 14; and Sunday, August 15. The all-day $15 ticket admission
will include admission to all concerts, events, and exhibits for
that day.
Although there are numerous events during the weekend,
concerts from Berlin, Missing Persons, Sam Moore, Sugarhill Gang,
Ohio Players, Dick Dale and more are the highlight of the fun.
For more information, check out http://www.rhino.com/retrofest
---
TOUR DATES:
Atari Teenage Riot
Aug. 11 Kansas City, MO Memorial Hall
Aug. 13 Denver, CO Fillmore
Aug. 14 Oklahoma City, OK Boars Head
Aug. 15 Austin, TX Emo's
Aug. 17 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade
Black Sabbath / Godsmack
Aug. 12 Hershey, PA Hershey Stadium
Aug. 14 Columbia, MD Merriweather Post Pavilion
Aug. 16 Cincinnati, OH River Bend
Aug. 18 Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena
Aug. 20 Cleveland, OH Blossom
Blondie / Reel Big Fish
Aug. 11 Boston, MA BankBoston Pavilion
Aug. 12 Cleveland, OH The State Theatre
Aug. 14 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre
Aug. 15 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theatre
Aug. 16 Minneapolis, MN Guthrie Theatre
Aug. 18 Salt Lake City, UT ECenter Theatre
Aug. 20 Concord, CA Concord Pavilion
Duran Duran
Aug. 12 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
Aug. 14 Boston, MA Bank Boston Pavilion
Aug. 15 Lawrence, NY Jones Beach Ampitheatre
Aug. 19 Tunica, MS Horsehoe Casino
Aug. 20-21 Biloxi, MS Grand Casino
Julian Lennon
Aug. 12 Los Angeles, CA House of Blues
Aug. 13 San Diego, CA Viejas Casino
Aug. 14 Las Vegas, NV House of Blues
Aug. 16 Scottsdale, AZ Cajun House
Aug. 17 Tucson, AZ Gotham/New West
Aug. 19 Boulder, CO Fox Theatre
Aug. 20 Denver, CO Soiled Dove
Alanis Morissette / Tori Amos
Aug. 18 Ft. Lauderdale, FL NCR Arena
Aug. 20 Orlando, FL Orlando Arena
Pietasters
Aug. 11 Cleveland, OH Euclid Tavern
Aug. 12 Lancaster, PA The Chameleon Club
Aug. 13 New York, NY Irving Plaza
Aug. 14 Washington DC The Black Cat
Aug. 19 Ljublana, SLOVENIA Hala Tivoli
Aug. 20 Vienna, AUSTRIA Arena
Pretenders
Aug. 12 Cleveland, OH Nautica Stage
Aug. 14-15, Atlantic City, NJ Hilton Casino Resort
Aug. 21 Oporto, Portugal Villa De Mouros Festival
Sevendust / Skunk Anansie / Powerman 5000
Aug. 16 Los Angeles, CA The Palace
Aug. 19 Denver, CO Odgen Theater
Splender
Aug. 11 Dallas, TX Bronco Bowl
Aug. 12 Austin, TX Paradox
Aug. 14 Wichita, KS Kansas Coliseum
Aug. 15 Lawrence, KS Granada Theater
Aug. 19 Shreveport, LA Malibu Alley
Aug. 20 Lafayette, LA Shanahan's
Mike Viola And The Candy Butchers
Aug. 18 New York, NY Torch
Ween
Aug. 11 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theatre
Aug. 13 Austin, TX Stubbs Bbq
Aug. 14 Dallas, TX Deep Ellum Live
Aug. 15 Oklahoma City, OK Will Rogers Theater
Aug. 16 Lawrence, KS Liberty Hall
Aug. 18 Memphis, TN Apocalypse
Aug. 19 Birmingham, AL Sloss Furnances
Aug. 20 New Orleans, LA House Of Blues
Weird Al Yankovic
Aug. 12 North Tonawanda, NY Majestic Theatre
Aug. 13 Rochester Hills, MI Meadowbrook Music Festival
Aug. 14 Eureka, MO Six Flags, St. Louis
Aug. 15 Cleveland, OH Nautica Stage
Aug. 18 Cincinnati, OH Music Hall
Aug. 19 Chicago, IL Navy Pier
Aug. 20 Columbus, OH Metrostage
---
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