Easton Corbin – Easton Corbin
(Mercury Nashville)
4.5
Easton Corbin makes his debut into the world of country
music with a strong self-titled album, which features the single “A Little More
Country Than That.”
The album
opens with “Roll With It,” a laid back love song about falling more in love
with someone through the simplicities of life.
It’s hard to make a love song that isn’t so sappy you think your ears
might actually bleed if you listen to much more, but Corbin seems to accomplish
the task of a listenable love song not just once, but again with “The Way Love
Looks.” The latter song is full of
cutesy lyrics and an upbeat tune, and as Corbin personifies love in the line “I like the way love looks/The way he looks
on you,” you can’t help but enjoy it.
Corbin’s
strongest song is “A Little More Country Than That” in which Corbin paints us a
picture of the country life that’ll bring a smile to our faces and a chuckle to
our lips: “Picture a small town/With an
old hound/Laying out front/Of the courthouse/While the old men chew the fat/I’m
a little more country than that.”
“I Can’t
Love You Back” is his forgivable love song.
Although the song is cheesy enough to make anyone picture a couple dancing to it, the chorus has a kick to it with an
increased melody and louder pitch; so just when you’re about to fall asleep
listening to the verse, he kicks you in the head with a change in the
frequency, and you’re released from your boredom.
Corbin does not disappoint with his first album as he sings
us country fans into a reverie with his deep, country-twanged voice and catchy
tunes. In this case, simpler is
better.
-- Kristina Kercher
Nitzer Ebb – Industrial Complex
(Artists
Addiction/Alfa Matrix)
3
In the roughly 15 years since the last new Ebb material,
Nitzer Ebb's instrumentalist Bon Harris has spent time programming for bands
like Smashing Pumpkins and Marilyn Manson, while vocalist Douglas McCarthy has
worked with Ebb-inspired dance
producer Terrence Fixmer, as well as Alan Wilder's electro-blues project,
Recoil. But these influential English electro-dance-punks
reunite with the impressively strong "Industrial Complex", and they
do a right good job reclaiming the harsh sequencer-driven sound of their
earliest work (a la "That Total Age"), especially on the energetic
opener, "Promises" (which made it's debut on the "NCIS"
soundtrack). The sloganeering and authoritarian ranting of their old days is
gone, though, replaced by more developed songwriting and production. There are
also softer electro ballads like "Going Away", which reminds of (old
friends, tourmates, and collaborators) Depeche Mode. No coincidence that
Depeche's Martin Gore himself guests on "Once You Say", which bears a
similarity to Mode's "I Feel You" a wee bit. But that's not to say
this is a mope-fest by any means. Cuts like "Hit You Back" are more
rock-oriented, echoing their later work on albums like "Ebbhead". And
the thunderous "Payroll", originally heard on the "Saw IV"
soundtrack, is a welcomed injection of aggressive electronics and McCarthy's
half-rap-shouted vocals. "I Don't Know You" is a retro-edged bit of
synth-driven hypnoticism that shows Ebb's DAF-meets-Die Krupps roots more than
amicably. "My Door Is Open" continues this trend, and is easily among
the duo's more intense offerings since 1991's "Godhead". "Kiss
Kiss Bang Bang" is another stomper that could be wicked on a dancefloor, but probably rocks too hard for most
club-goers. It all ends on a lighter note with "Traveling", which is
a more song-based piece that's as close to a pop song as this lot goes.
Surprisingly good, sturdy, and potent work from a group that has successfully
resurrected itself from the ashes.
--Todd Zachritz
Corinne Bailey Rae – The Sea
(EMI)
3.5
This one’s been out
for about a month, but it’s a decent follow-up to her debut album. I don’t have
much to say, other than that it’s worth a listen but maybe not a full-on
purchase. As with most albums these days, I advise checking out the iTunes
samples or tracking down the full cuts on YouTube before buying.
-- Doug Messel
Shrinebuilder – Shrinebuilder
(Neurot Recordings)
4
Heavy and and melodic psychedelic metal here, from a new
project from prominent members of Om, Melvins, and Neurosis, with Wino (from
the Obsessed) on vocals. "Shrinebuilder" draws on everything from
stoner rock to classic metal to drone/tribal hybrids to lysergic improv, and to
good effect. "Solar Benediction" evolves from heavy groove to mellow
psychedelia in it's almost 9-minute duration, while "Pyramid To The Moon"
is a huge and head-nodding slab of post-Sabbath groove, albeit with added
space-out textures. "Blind For All To See" is a slow, churning
drone-stone wanderer, sounding like a massive epic jam from another time and
space. If big, monstrously heavy and monolothic doom metal is your thing,
Shrinebuilder are certainly a must-hear.
--Todd Zachritz
Josh Turner – Haywire
(MCA Nashville)
2.5
After Josh Turner’s last album Everything is Fine went gold, Turner set the bar high for his
following release; sorry fans, but Haywire
falls way below that bar.
The up-beat
opening song “Why Don’t We Just Dance” gave me hopes for a great album as I
made the chorus my ringtone, but my
hopes and dreams were shot as the music carried on. The whole album sounds like a soundtrack to a
bad romance film; if you want nothing but sappy love songs, look no further
than here.
“As Fast as
I Could” is a potential hit-radio
song, but as for the concept, I think it’s been done. The song reminds me of a happier-tuned Rascal
Flats’ God Bless The Broken Road with
lyrics like “I
ran full speed ahead/ Without stopping to rest/ Not knowing where I was headed
to/Now that I’m here/It is perfectly clear/That I was making my way to you.”
The album continues with a promise that each song
will sound just like the one before it, and that each song will be full of
lousy rhymes. The song “I’ll Be There”
is a great example, and with lyrics like “I’ll
be a tear dryer/A paper airplane flyer/A monster runner-offer when you get
scared/I’ll be a sap/I’ll be a sucker/A story maker-upper” what kid
wouldn’t want a song like this to take them to, as Turner says, “sleepy town?”
Other songs
like “Friday Paycheck” and “The Answer” show Turner’s lack of originality. “Friday Paycheck” teased me with its title,
as I was sure that this song would be cheesy-romance free, but I was yet again
disappointed as Turner croons about needing his Friday paycheck because he has
“a little hunny” depending on him, and how he needs the money to take her out
on the weekend.
The album’s
final song “The Answer” begins with the same piano chords and organ sounds as
Garth Brooks’ “We Shall Be Free,” just lacking the choir in the
background. After that beginning, I
couldn’t get into the song knowing that a legend had been ripped off. (Also included on this album: an unworthy
version of Don Williams’ 1987 Top 10 hit “I Wouldn’t Be A Man.”)
Haywire also comes in a deluxe version that
includes a live version of Turner’s previously released songs “Long Black
Train” and “Your Man,” but I wouldn’t say that’s a selling point.
-- Kristina Kercher
Incognito - Tribes, Vibes, & Scribes
(Verve)
5
Incognito released its first recording in 1981 with Jazz Funk. By the time the band released its third
effort in 1993, Tribes, Vibes, &
Scribes, the band was becoming a force on the acid jazz scene. In the UK,
this form of music was originally called “jazz funk.” There was a house music movement that
combined the DJs and bands that morphed into what was called the “acid house
movement.” Bands like Incognito, Brand New Heavies, and Jamiroquai where
playing at these gigs. When the music
was playing it was said that people got “high” on the dance
floor. So was coined the term “acid jazz.”
The release also ushered the band’s rise as a global phenomenon. The band's frontman is composer, record
producer, guitarist and singer Jean-Paul 'Bluey' Maunick. In the over 30 years
since the band’s first effort, Maunick has hosted some of the most impressive
players and vocalists in the world of jazz, acid jazz, and jazz funk (over 1500
musicians in 31 years).
Incognito’s
third album, Tribes, Vibes & Scribes
(Talking Loud Records, 1993), gives creedence to the fact that this band is
solidly grounded in jazz, funk, and soul. The 11-member band adds a Latin feel
to the snazzy cover of Stevie Wonder's "Don't You Worry 'Bout a
Thing," while "Magnetic Ocean" has a Weather Report ballad-like
vibe. "Change" combines Maysa Leak's channeling Chaka Khan with a
great backwash of strings. And "Need to Know" gives props to Roy
Ayers and Rick James. The band is at its best showcasing Leak and/or featuring
soloists, as on "Colibri" and the Mandrill-sounding "Closer to
the Feeling." And while "L'Arc en Ciel de Miles" sounds more
like Chuck Mangione than Prince of Darkness, it shows the band’s versatility. This
cut also put an early mark on the fledgling smooth jazz scene.
The band
flows with a soulful horn section, ready to get up and jump at any moment and
still take the listener back with an original Motown groove. There is a lot of
programming and synthesizer on this album.
The audiophile of today takes that for granted. Over twenty years ago,
Incognito was in the forefront of using this to produce the club and dance scene for public consumption.
The release
features so many great muscians that I can’t spend space to individually credit
and congratulate each of them. However, I must give credit and a great deal of
love to Maysa Leak. After graduating
from college, Maysa headed to California to perform with Stevie Wonder’s female
backup group Wonderlove. While with
Wonder, Maysa was a vocalist on the Jungle
Fever soundtrack and performed on numerous television shows including
Arsenio Hall, Oprah, and The Tonight Show. Maysa got the Incognito gig during
an over-the-telephone audition. She then
relocated to London and was feature on Tribes,
Vibes, & Scribes for the first time. Since that time, she has appeared
on seven of the band’s recordings.
Jean Paul
‘Bluey’ Maunick interest in music started in
his childhood years while he was growing up on Mauritius Island near
Madagascar. His musical desires were fueled by the sailors who'd visit the
island, spinning exciting, harrowing tales of the Amazon, Bail, and the Nile
along with the various beach musicians jamming throughout the seasons. Around 1967, Maunick and his mother moved to
London when he was about ten years old. Becoming a part of the vibrant music
scene, the guitarist formed the R&B/jazz band Light of the World in 1978. A
pre-stardom Sade was featured on the cover of the band's debut LP, entitled Light of the World. Light of the World
then evolved into Incognito. The two original members were Maunick and a 16
year old bass player named Paul “Tubs” Williams. Since 1979, Maunick has led
Incognito, releasing thirteen studio albums, three albums of remixes and two
other albums by bands largely made up of previous members of Incognito.
I am now a
featured DJ on WUEV 91.5 FM with an “Afternoon Jazzflight” shift on Mondays
(4-6 p.m.) and the “Jazz Café” on Fridays (3-6 p.m.). However, I spent a good
part of my worklife on the railroad, traveling over the highways and by-ways in
pursuit of the almighty dollar. During one stint of traveling, my work partner,
a brother of a different color named Ralph, turned me on to this jam. It has
since become one of my favorites. If you want to drive, dance,
or… whatever you like to do, this is all-purpose love for your soul.
-- Paul Mattingly
Megasus – Megasus
(20 Buck Spin)
4
Dense, large, and rumbling aggro-doom-metal from some Rhode
Islanders who collect their paychecks from ("Rock Band" and
"Guitar Hero" video game developers) Harmonix, and a drummer who
plays bass in Lightning Bolt. This is their debut, and it whacks handily with
mighty riffage and pummeling drumming, akin to some of the better stoner-metal
acts around. "Swords" is a massive, primal mountain of droning riffs
and thunderous drums, laying waste to the modern world. It's not for the
faint-hearted, for sure. "Hexes/Szaadek" is another behemoth of loud,
bonecrushing aggression, like if Slayer teamed up with the Melvins, got high
together, and then got into a raging fist-fight. "Red Lottery" is
another speedy assault of dangerous
noise and fury. This is some evil and engrossing metal of remarkable acumen.
Fully worthy.
--Todd Zachritz
The Bird and the
Bee – Guiltless Pleasures Vol. I: A
Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates
(Blue Note)
4.5
When I first picked
this up, I figured I’d hate it. I mean, I really dig The Bird and the Bee, and
their song “F*cking Boyfriend” is one of my favorite tracks, but an entire
album full of Hall and Oates? Really? I
skipped straight to “Maneater” as a matter of pure curiosity and was
underwhelmed. Surely that can’t bode well for the entire thing, right?
God,
was I wrong. This whole thing (after much
repeated listening) is great. A lot of the songs benefit from what feels like a
stripped-down treatment, and Inara George’s vocals are pleasantly surprising.
It’s an album full of covers, but a lot of these songs feel new and fresh in
the group’s capable hands. When this thing comes out on March 23, go buy it.
Immediately. I’ve been listening to it on repeat as much as possible.
-- Doug Messel
Wesley Willis's Joy Rides – DVD
(Eyeosaur
Productions/MVD Visual)
4
Chicago-born artist and musician Wesley Willis passed away a
few years back, but not before he found a receptive and enthusiastic
international audience through his music and drawings. The unlikely (and
self-proclaimed) rock star, who was tormented by chronic schizophrenia (and
some tumultuous inner "demons"), brought a larger-than-life spirit
and over-the-top personality to whoever would lend an ear. This touching
documentary succeeds in capturing the essence of what made his life so unusual
and so inspiring. It's a non-stop joyride, to use one of Wesley's favorite
expressions. Seeing him hawking his CDs on the streets, or reveling in the
audience's applause (or chatting with the barbers during a simple haircut)
proves to be a funny, entertaining, and charming experience. His simplistic,
sometimes-childlike songs were based around his day-to-day experiences, and he
wrote songs for nearly everyone he befriended. Directors Bagley and
Shively have compiled footage of Wesley in his later years, and it's a fitting
tribute to the man and his legend, and includes interviews with Wesley's
family, as well as his closest friends. It's evident the filmmakers were close
to Wesley, as this loving portrait of an artist who, in his own way, changed
the world for the better. He had a larger-than-life joviality and sense of
wonder about the world that made him an icon and a character like no other.
This DVD is a harmony joy bus ride.
--Todd Zachritz
A Hero En Route – therefore, I fled
(The Room Studio)
3.5
A Hero En Route’s therefore,
I fled isn’t a bad album. It’s not great, either. The title names seem to follow the trend
started by bands like Fall Out Boy and Panic at the Disco, wherein we have to
use full sentences, but that’s not my only real gripe.
Most of the
tracks on this EP seem derivative and really out of place, and by that I mean
the whole thing should have been released about 7 years ago. It reminded me
instantly of bands like Brand New, Thrice, and Finch—which wouldn’t be bad, if
you ignore the fact that these bands reached their heyday in 2003 or 2004.
If I had to
pick a favorite track, it’d be “Thick as thieves,” and that’s really just
because I dig the opening bars.
-- Doug Messel
