Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews

STEPHIN MERRITT – Obscurities

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For the uninitiated, Stephin Merritt is one of New York’s best songwriters.  His combination of wry wit and baritone voice makes him the Stateside equivalent of Neil Hannon and his Divine Comedy.

Despite years of hard work, it was only with The Magnetic Fields’ 2001’s sprawling triple set he gained a wider press, and while that album has little quality control, half the joy with regard to that release comes from discovering the sparkly diamonds among the trash.

‘Obscurities’ pulls together fourteen rarities (a bunch of stuff from 7”s and other oddities, but most importantly five previously unreleased cuts) from Merritt’s pre-2001 breakthrough; tracks from various projects, but each one essentially containing the sparks of genius you’ve come to love from Merritt’s musical theatre, alternating between sneering, wistful and occasionally high camp.

An early Magnetic Fields number ‘Beach-a-Boop-Boop’ combines a lo-fi guitar and youthful sounding vocal with a tune that sounds rather a lot like Cat Stevens’s ‘Here Comes My Baby’ and as such, it’s easy to see why it’s languished in obscurity.  As is often the case with Merritt, though, it still has charm…and an annoying tendency to wedge itself inside your head. Further back in the time capsule, Buffalo Rome’s ‘Plant White Roses’ is a simple acoustic based country-folk hybrid, made more whimsical by Shirley Simms’s vocal.  So much more mature than ‘Beach’, but perhaps more importantly, easier to digest than the futurist electronica of a couple of the featured numbers. It’s testament to Merritt’s gift from writing songs in different styles, if nothing else.

‘Riot In The Sun’ (credited to The 6ths) is one of the collection’s clear standouts, even though the aggressive programmed electronic elements, at first, sound as if they’re going to be impenetrable.  After a few bars, they prove otherwise and once Merritt’s deep croon finds a home among the noises, everything works well.  The track is a short tribute to the man’s perverse genius and ability to blend styles that really shouldn’t be blended. [Other previously released works by The 6ths feature a host of guest vocalists, including Lou Barlow, Bob Mould, Gary Numan and Marc Almond].

‘When I’m Not Looking, You’re Not There’ is an unreleased cut from The Magnetic Fields, and unusually, it’s one of the tracks here which ought to have stayed buried.  Yes, Merritt’s baritone oozes its usual self-assured charm, but the music…the music is a collection of disjointed electronic bleeps which frustrate more than they entertain.  Similarly, an alternate cut of that band’s ‘I Don’t Believe You’ is comprised of electronic nothingness, spoiling what is one of Merritt’s best ever songs.  Thankfully, he later went back to the drawing board and came up with a gorgeous folk-pop arrangement for this number (as heard on the finished version, released on ‘i’ a few years later).

Utilising dark synths and a liberal dose of oddball song writing, The Gothic Archies’ ‘You Are Not My Mother and I Want To Go Home’ is an unreleased track written for an audiobook of Neil Gaiman’s ‘Coraline’.  It is somewhat unsettling.  The synth loop is one which doesn’t break from its initial pattern and this becomes rather threatening, especially after a minute or so.  Over the drones, Merritt muses “…you want me to be your garden gnome…”  Okay then.  Occasionally, though, the electronic edges are used brilliantly. ‘Rats In The Garbage of the Western World’ is such a moment, where Merritt takes on a very new wave mantle.  Musically, it transports the listener back to 1981 and the works of bands like Visage and Landscape, all the while dressed in Merritt’s own vision.  The sneer is present and at first it sounds scathing, but there’s a typically twisted pay-off line: “We’re rats in the garbage of the western world…so let’s dance!”.    Bubbling synths and an Art Of Noise-esque sampled voice provide the base of ‘Song of Venus’, a song from an unfinished musical by Merritt and Lemony Snickett.  As expected, a throwaway lyric means it’s not got the charisma of some of Merritt’s better works, but as is so oft the case, his vocal has a huge confidence and that alone pulls the listener in.  Very few people bring such charm to the absurd.

Other high points include the unreleased  ‘When You’re Young and In Love’, which showcases Merritt’s semi-acoustic side, which revels in its relatively simple arrangement and ‘Take Ecstasy With Me’, another Magnetic Fields rarity, which cleverly blends heavy world music style drumming with some keyboard vibes which would befit Vince Clarke.  The drums drown out the vocal on occasion, but overall it’s a number which works, even if to provide the most obvious respite from the dominant synths on a few of the other tracks.

Usually, such a ragbag collection of leftovers would be purely for longtime fans (see Tom Waits’s ‘Orphans’ for the best/worst example ever), but Merritt’s work is often of a very varied style; that alone makes this feel more coherent than perhaps it should.  No matter whom he collaborates with – be it The Magnetic Fields, The Gothic Archies or any of his other projects – it’s always Merritt’s distinctive song writing at the fore.   His many fans will welcome the release of ‘Obscurities’ for sure; those yet to take the plunge into Merritt’s world, meanwhile, should still glean some enjoyment from the album’s fourteen leftovers.  It may be inconsistent, but Merritt’s hit and miss approach is what often fuels his brilliance.

August 2011

ILIUM – Genetic Memory

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Although the roots of Ilium date back to the early 90s, as a recording outfit this largely Auatralian power metal band released their first EP in 2002.  Other releases followed, but perhaps the band’s largest change in fortunes came in the late 00’s when vocalist Lord Tim quit the band and was replaced by ex-Riot/Masterpan mouthpiece Mike DiMeo.  With DiMeo on board, Ilium recorded ‘Ageless Decay’ (their fourth album overall, but first for the Escape Music Label), which gained the band accolades from various specialist rock websites.

2011’s ‘Genetic Memory’ picks up where the previous release left off – and with DiMeo still occupying the vocalists slot – the band brings eleven more slabs of power metal with a strong element of fantasy within the lyrics.  From the off, the music smacks the listener in a rather gung-ho fashion as the guitars tear into some big riffs, which when coupled with DiMeo’s rather gravelly vocal delivered at full-on belt means that any kind of subtlety is rarely on the agenda. Within the first half of the number, although the bands intentions are plainly obvious, Martin Kronlund’s mix is lacking anything resembling bottom end.  Sure, DiMeo’s vocals have a huge presence (whether you like his style or not) and the twin lead guitars are where they should be in the end mix, but there’s not enough focus on Adam Smith’s bass and Tim Yatras’s drums sound like plastic tubs.

By ‘Grey Stains The Rainbow’ – track three – things sound a little better in the production department (or maybe it’s a case of tuning in and expecting less) and thankfully Ilium have slowed down a little. The guitars are melodic throughout (with some decent lead work) and the accompanying keyboards bring an extra dimension, often lost elsewhere.  DiMeo reigns in his vocal, especially on the verses, where he’s also accompanied by a few harmonies.  Also better is ‘Fevered Tongue’, a track which comes equipped with a musical structure that Dio may have enjoyed.  That said, although Ilium do their absolute best musically, DiMeo’s end performance lacks absolutely all of the class the legendary Ronnie James would have bought with him, particularly to such a ridiculous set of lyrics… Since the track provides guitar highlights with a great mix of choppy rhythms, twin leads and reasonable solos, it still shows Ilium in a far better light than most of this release.

For the title cut, it initially seems that Ilium are about to take the listener on a journey into something more atmospheric, as twin guitars lay down a gentle melody, but this soon breaks into an old school metal riff, which in turn breaks into a world of double bass drum pedals with the guitars riffing as fast as possible.  The instrumental breaks are better – particularly a slightly Iron Maiden-esque twin lead – but once again Ilium insist on playing everything with maximum speed.  ‘Hostile Sky’ – a mid-paced rocker – has elements of great sounding metal: a fantastic twin lead guitar, a decent song-structure with something resembling a chorus and pleasing keyboard work (low in the mix, mind).  In principle, Ilium would have a far better album on their hands if they could throw in a few more numbers like this one (and ‘Grey Stains The Rainbow) – numbers which give the listener more time to breathe.  DiMeo – as usual – powers through his vocal, sounding as if he’s about to burst on occasion, but that’s hardly a great surprise.

The eleven minute epic is another of Ilium’s better numbers, with plenty of hard rhythm guitar work driving the lengthy piece along, but despite some good elements, it could have been pulled in at half the length without losing any of the impact.  The performances are all solid enough, but in the power metal stakes, it’s incredibly weak up against the best moments of Symphony X, for example.  The didgeridoos are a nice touch though; just enough to remind the listener that Ilium are from Newcastle, Australia and are not as German as they sound 97% of the time!

There are a couple of numbers where Ilium show promise with regard to their chosen subgenre of metal, but it’s always on the slower numbers.  Those aside, ‘Genetic Memory’ is too bombastic by half. If you didn’t like power metal before, this album isn’t ever going to win you over.  If you’re not a fan of Mike DiMeo’s vocal style, he’ll do nothing to change your views here either; those things combined could lead to a musical headache.  A bigger budget and a better gift for song writing would certainly help here, but with ‘Genetic Memory’, Ilium are preaching to the converted at almost every step of the way.

August 2011

STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS – Mirror Traffic

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Stephen Malkmus’s first solo album is potentially the best album his band Pavement never made. That’s hardly surprising since some of the songs were being worked on for a Pavement record prior to their break-up. His follow up release ‘Pig Lib’ – delivered a couple of years later – is angular and wilfully difficult in places, as if he wished to take a step back from the (relatively) commercial edges his music had moved towards. His next few releases have their moments, sometimes moving towards psychedelia and even farther away from Pavement-esque sounds.

In 2010, Pavement reformed for a bunch of live shows, though rather unsurprisingly, no new material was recorded. His first work since that brief reunion, Malkmus’s 2011 release ‘Mirror Traffic’ could be his most consistent release for a decade; with well crafted tunes and often oblique lyrical slant, most of its fifteen numbers are on a par with those from Malkmus’s solo debut. Whether or not it was a direct influence from those live shows, this album has more in common with Malkmus’s former band than his previous couple of releases. Fans may choose to debate the amount of Pavement-ness at the heart of ‘Mirror Traffic’, but whatever, SM and his band sound really inspired throughout; the songs themselves are given an extra lift by a great production, courtesy of one of their closest peers – the legendary Beck.

The lead single ‘Tigers’ is a brilliant, brilliant piece of slacker-pop. A ringing guitar lead, soft harmony filled chorus and slight country edge are all topped off with SM’s Lou Reed-esque vocal wandering. It’s an almost perfect marriage of alternative rock and radio friendly pop chorus. The lead guitar works a riff which is almost a hook in itself, while a steel guitar lurking in the background lends that air of country rock which pulls everything together. The fuzzy rock and roll of ‘Tune Grief’ showcases a far more throwaway rock n roll side to the band, with SM’s semi-distorted vocals counterbalanced by some sharp male woo-woo’s and some female harmonies. This, too, is enjoyable (albeit in a completely different way), but it’s with the slacker-rock of ‘Forever 28’ the band excels once again. The track combines an ELO style rumpty-tumpty strut, combined with Pavement-esque changes in pace (almost as if the band are winding down like clockwork) and a few interesting guitar leads. There may be imitators, but this number represents the kind of thing that only Malkmus manages to such exceptional levels.

With its harsher vocals and almost constantly shifting time signature, the offensively (and unnecessarily) named ‘Spazz’ is the closest ‘Mirror Traffic gets to ‘Slanted and Enchanted’ or ‘Crooked Rain’ territory, and even then, there’s a degree of sophistication here that’s lacking on those earlier Pavement records (probably the lack of Bob Nastanovich’s shouting!). The verses combine a quick pace and an offbeat to superb effect, but it’s the slower tempos creeping in which are most reminiscent of Pavement. The track’s best moments are during the slow, mostly instrumental mid-section where the guitars have a hint of the Grateful Dead and the vocals pull together for a wordless harmony. The slow, brooding ‘Share The Red’ is a rather ordinary indie-rock/slacker number, with a touch of Pavement numbers like ‘Transport Is Arranged’ present. The noodling guitars provide some enjoyment, but long time fans are likely to sense some déjà vu here.

‘Jumblegloss’ acts as a brief interlude, but it’s minute and a quarter is great in its own right, with SM’s reverbed guitar lines laying down something which sounds like a movie score, set against Jake Morris’s slightly jazzy drum part. ‘Asking Price’ is understated; Malkmus’s almost spoken delivery finds a great place atop of clean guitars, a solid bassline and some electric piano. In terms of overall feel, it’s not too far removed from the gentler end of Pavement’s ‘Terror Twilight’, but the addition of the electric piano is definitely a plus, even if it could have been used a little more. ‘Stick Figures In Love’ ups the pace and isn’t anywhere near as good, despite the inclusion of a breezy guitar riff providing an instant hook while, once again, Morris’s occasionally offbeat drumming is allocated plenty of room in the mix. It’s not a bad track by any means, but since the quality threshold of this album is so high, this feels like more like filler than perhaps it would have done, had it appeared on any of SM’s other records.

‘No One Is (As I Are Be)’ is an acoustic workout, with finger-picked guitar lines and buzzing strings. Rather uncharacteristic for SM, this number has a sixties vibe and shows the band in a great light when tackling something relatively simple. The instrumental break – where you’d probably expect a slightly distorted guitar – appears to feature a slightly distorted trumpet (or maybe a French horn), which eventually gets complimented by a piano and tinkling glockenspiel. It’s lovely stuff indeed, which brings maturity without sounding tired or stale. ‘Fall Away’ is also soft, but with a bigger focus on vocal arrangements, as the whole band sing harmonies against an otherwise ordinary number.

With Stephen Malkmus’s off-centre approach to song writing and musical structures, there’s always a strong possibility of any of his albums missing the mark, but ‘Mirror Traffic’ is great, with no obvious skippers. It’s one which, in the main, fans will certainly enjoy, but it’s also a reasonable entry point to the works of Steven Malkmus for the uninitiated.

August 2011

MICHAELA RAE – Blues With A Backbone

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Every musician has an influence. In the case of blues musician Michaela Rae (aka Michaela Rae Knox), her love for Stevie Ray Vaughan couldn’t be any more obvious. However, for all she lacks in originality, she makes up for with passionate playing. And while you’d hope all musicians would bring such qualities to their work, the professionalism on display throughout Rae’s debut is made all the more remarkable by the fact that it was recorded when she was just thirteen years old. ‘Blues With a Backbone’ sounds surprisingly proficient for someone so young.

Throughout the Santana inspired slow burner ‘Sin Nombre’, Rae’s guitar lines are smooth and full of emotion. The accompanying bass and drums are nice and high in the end mix, giving a “live in the studio” vibe – each element of this soulful number works excellently. A Texan blues groove is the driving force behind ‘Big Easy Blues’ where Rae’s band pulls out all the stops – Matt Henderson’s drum shuffles driving the piece are energetic and Michael Olson’s bass lines are rock solid. Rae, meanwhile, lays down some confident but unfussy guitar on a number with a great all-round feel.

‘Trust In You’ opens with a fluid lead and a groove which would befit BB King’s latter day work. The music has drive and enough punch to grab the attention and then the album’s weak link presents itself. As Ms Rae begins to sing, it becomes painfully obvious she’s only fourteen. Her voice is high pitched and incredibly childlike and it’s certainly not meant to sing the blues. And when used to deliver lyrics like ‘I learnt about the planet / Learnt about the stars / Learnt about pollution that comes from cars’, it gives the air of a sophisticated blues workout performed for Sesame Street. Her vocal isn’t any better on the pounding Stevie Ray number ‘Phonebook Song’, but some scorching lead guitar soon leaves any vocal shortcomings in the shade. Throughout most of this six minute number, Rae’s guitar leads are amazing, full of reverb and vibrato and carrying enough feeling to make you realise she means business.
A cover of ‘Green Onions’ is workmanlike – not quite having the soul of Booker T’s organ-filled original cut, naturally – but Rae and band give it their best shot. The bass pumps things along and the drums come equipped with the required amount of swing. Rae doesn’t sound as comfortable here as she does on her own material; for the first half of the number, her playing is a little jagged, with a few notes having too much of a staccato quality.

Naturally, given her style, Rae sounds far more at home on a run-through of Buddy Guy’s ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’. Hearing Rae and co work their way through the number, it sounds effortless, almost like they’ve been playing it forever. Once again, most of Rae’s lead work is commendable and her band tight, even if the words sound rather trite when delivered in a young teen’s voice. ‘Backbone Blues’, another instrumental, brings nothing new to the table, but is certainly a highlight with regard to guitar playing. Here, Rae performs complex blues runs and solos with ease, during a performance which ought to entertain all but the most stubborn blues fan.

‘Blues With a Backbone’ features some great tunes and often superb guitar work. These elements should be enough for a blues/blues-rock fan to check out the album. Sadly, Rae’s vocal style really lets the side down. Her child-like vocal is completely at odds with such muscular, mature musical performances. I know a vocal maturity shouldn’t really be expected from a thirteen year old, but a it isn’t completely out of the question: one of her closest musical peers, Shannon Curfman, recorded her debut at a similar age (she was only fourteen), and her vocal is chock-full of grit and certainly a match enough for the likes of Bonnie Raitt.

It’s such a shame Rae wasn’t content with putting out a fantastic disc of blues guitar instrumentals, or hiring a more experienced vocalist for her recorded work. ‘Blues With a Backbone’ more hints at Michaela Rae’s potential…but shows she’s not quite ready just yet.

January 2011

VARIOUS ARTISTS – The Green Album

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Tribute albums come in all shapes and sizes. You have the good-but-shouldn’t-be (‘Dragon Attack’ – a metal tribute to Queen, worth hearing for Lemmy rasping his way through ‘Tie Your Mother Down’); the brilliant (‘Working Class Hero’ – a tribute to John Lennon, containing rare and unreleased tracks by Blues Traveler and Screaming Trees, among others); and sometimes you’re faced with the unashamedly awful (‘Sin-atra’). Occasionally, you get one that screams novelty (as was the case with ‘Saturday Morning’, featuring punk and alternative bands performing cartoon themes; and even that contains some real genius – everybody should hear Sublime giving ‘Hong Kong Phooey’ the reggae treatment).

As an alternative rock tribute to songs associated with The Muppets, ‘The Green Album’ should fall squarely into the novelty category, but most of this release holds up on its own merits. Let’s face it, the songs featured in The Muppet Show (and the various Muppet films) are well written pieces of pop, and even with an alternative kick up the arse, they still sound like well written songs.

The gorgeous ‘Rainbow Connection’ (written by Paul Williams and Kenny Ascher) is given a suitably respectful airing. Played in a duet between Weezer and Paramore’s Hayley Williams, the arrangement is soft at first, with acoustic guitars, keyboard strings and occasional tinkling harps. River’s Cuomo’s vocal performance captures the right level of innocence, but he’s no match for Williams who takes the song and pulls the best from every note. Eventually, she almost drowns out Cuomo’s voice in the process, especially once the drums kick in. Since Weezer’s post 2001 output is often so half-baked, you’ll be so thankful they didn’t screw this up. In contrast comes Evenescence vocalist Amy Lee’s reimagining of ‘Halfway Up The Stairs’. The vocal melody remains firmly intact – and Lee’s voice is strong – but musically, it’s a bit of a clanger. This once nursery rhyme has been deconstructed and rebuilt as a collection of semi-industrial beats and loops. You can see what she was aiming for here, but it could have been handled much better. Also filling out the quota for “edgy” is a metal version of ‘Night Life’ (from The Great Muppet Caper), performed by Atreyu’s Brandon Saller and Billy Martin of Good Charlotte. The guitars come with plenty of crunch and Saller hams it up slightly, which only adds to the fun. Throw in some rather loud drums and you have a winning combination.

As one of the key songs in The Muppet Movie, the original ‘Movin’ Right Along’ is a banjo and piano affair – distinctly the work of Paul Williams, not too dissimilar to something from Bugsy Malone. That jaunty nature is tailor-made for Alkaline Trio’s punk-pop rendition, featuring strong vocals and playing throughout. The band makes it their own, while never losing sight of the original musical blueprint (Amy Lee, take note). There’s even a hint of rinky-dinky piano left in on occasion to tip the hat further to the original 1979 Muppet take. With a sparse arrangement, Andrew Bird’s ‘Being Green’ is lovely, pitching his soft vocal against plucked and bowed violin, brushed drums and acoustic guitar. There’s little else to say, but if you were a fan of Bird’s work before, chances are you’ll find this to be an essential collection filler, even though it’s still not quite up there with Van Morrison’s 1973 cover [that version likely recorded as a statement on Irish troubles, as opposed to being a frog].

Not one of the better Muppet songs, ‘Our World’ (featured in the lesser known 1977 special Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas) was originally too twee for its own good. In the hands of My Morning Jacket it gets improved no end, with choirs of voices and extensive use of banjo. The original twee style is still there in part, but its gentle nature is perfectly suited to Jim James’s vocal range. Norwegian singer-songwriter Sondre Lerche puts his mark on the 1963 composition ‘Mr Bassman’ (featured in a 1976 episode of The Muppet Show). It’s likely you’ve heard other versions of this number, and Lerche’s version doesn’t differ too much, aside from the addition of some guitar reverb. It’s an annoying song at best, and is one of ‘The Green Album’s more likely to get skipped.

The only tracks featured on ‘The Green Album’ which come across as novelty are the two pieces which were rather more disposable to begin with. OK Go’s reimagining of ‘The Muppet Show Theme’ comes fully equipped with an electronic groove. Hearing the choir of voices sing the oh-so familiar theme against some hefty beats at first can be slightly unnerving, but once you settle into the style, it’s quite fun. The best moments are provided by a carny style keyboard and fuzzy guitar solo. That brings us onto the other throwaway number: ‘Mahna Mahna’. Of course, like ‘Mr Bassman’, this isn’t strictly speaking a Muppet song, but most people think of it as such, so it belongs here. Compared to the likes of ‘Rainbow Connection’, ‘Being Green’ and ‘Movin’ Right Along’, ‘Mahna Mahna’ certainly represents the short straw in terms of song writing brilliance. Despite the fact they know it’s silly, The Fray turn in a more than creditable performance of this 1968 Piero Umilani number, complete with tack piano, harmony voices and – most importantly – growling vocals which would make Jim Henson smile.

Although it has a relatively short playing time at just over 36 minutes, ‘The Green Album’ is often an exercise in quality over quantity, since against the odds, most of these cover versions work rather well. More surprisingly, the re-workings of these songs stand up to repeated listens. With so many great artists featured and some enjoyable takes on a few old Muppet favourites (with Weezer/Williams and Andrew Bird making gold standard) ‘The Green Album’ is a very worthwhile purchase. Wocka wocka wocka!

August 2011