Author: Jeff Giles (Page 31 of 41)

Elvin Bishop: The Blues Rolls On

October 17, 2008 /

The blues are about nothing if they aren’t about overcoming adversity, and Elvin Bishop has surmounted more obstacles than most – he is, after all, an Okie cracker whose biggest hit came packaged with a lead vocal from future Starship captain and professional sucktard Mickey Thomas. That hasn’t stopped Bishop from acquiring something like god status in the blues pantheon, however – or from enjoying a critical and commercial renaissance over the last 20 years, churning out a series of solid sides for Alligator and Blind Pig. The Blues Rolls On finds Bishop on a new label, Delta Groove, but he’s surrounded himself with some old friends, including B.B. King, Tommy Castro, James Cotton, George Thorogood, Kim Wilson of the Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks of the Allman Brothers Band. Yep, it’s one of those albums – a kinda-sorta tribute to a living legend, heavy on the special guests – and as you might expect, The Blues Rolls On is a decidedly uneven affair. Bishop is in strong form throughout, and all of his guests acquit themselves admirably (particularly the Homemade Jamz Band and their nine-year-old drummer), but the record is drawn from a wide array of sessions, with some guests laying down parts in completely different studios, and as a result, it’s lacking the live feel and cohesion it really needs. Still, it’s a fun listen, and some of these tracks (like “Struttin’ My Stuff,” recorded with Haynes and Trucks, or the solo “Oklahoma”) are among the best of Bishop’s late-period work. (Delta Groove Music 2008)

Elvin Bishop MySpace page

Blues, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews

Whitley: The Submarine

September 26, 2008 /

Whitley (a.k.a. Melbourne singer/songwriter Lawrence Greenwood) lies at the junction of Nick Drake, Paul Simon, and bedroom-electronic pop acts like the Postal Service and Cassettes Won’t Listen, and his debut effort, The Submarine, is filled with husky-voiced, mostly acoustic goodness for lovers of any of the above named artists. It’s an uncommonly assured debut, one that resists showiness in favor of gently catchy melodies and thinly layered arrangements. At first listen, The Submarine might sound like just another album of wispy navel-gazing from just another indie-pop songwriter, but give it time to sink in – there’s more going on here than may initially meet the ear. Greenwood has a gift for production, and a knack for grafting small, subtle bits onto his deceptively simple songs; plug in your favorite pair of earbuds, and you can easily get lost in the soundscapes he paints here. Toss in a cover of Jeff Buckley’s “Mojo Pin,” and you’ve got an undeniable magnet for the hoodies-‘n’-iPods set, but something with crossover appeal for fans of good old-fashioned singer/songwriter stuff. Whitley won’t kick your doors in, but if you sit still long enough, he just may end up becoming one of your favorite musical discoveries of the year. (Dew Process 2008)

Whitley MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Folk, Pop

The Wanteds: Failure Looks So Good

September 19, 2008 /

Emo has become so pervasive (and so mall-friendly) that it’s developed a bad rap over the last five years or so, but anyone who weathered the bored detachment and smirking irony of the ‘90s could tell you that a little impassioned screaming isn’t such a bad thing once in a while. The best of the emo bands understand what Springsteen always has: Even if rock & roll can’t really save your life, sometimes it really feels like it can, and that’s enough to get you through a few dark nights of the soul. Tommy Harrington, frontman for Portland’s Wanteds, gets it, and even if he isn’t the greatest singer in the world – or whichever city block he happens to be standing on at any given moment – and his songwriting isn’t always up to par, he’s got the blood-curdling intensity thing down pat, and that – along with the band’s penchant for playing loud, live, and just long enough to keep from wearing out its welcome – rescues Failure Looks So Good from the Vans rock ash heap. Harrington says the record makes him feel the way he did when he heard Appetite for Destruction and Nevermind, which is a hell of a lot more than it’ll do for you, but you can’t fault him for his chutzpah, and he’s got the right idea. Lord only knows what he’ll write about if Harrington ever finds what he’s looking for, but in the meantime, this is a record well worth turning up. (Ultra Mookie 2008)

The Wanteds MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Lee “Scratch” Perry: Repentance

September 19, 2008 /

In which the most influential reggae producer of all time – a man who shepherded sessions for Bob Marley and the Congos (not to mention the Clash) – celebrates his 54th release by hooking up with Andrew W.K., the volume-craving lunatic behind such modern frat-rock classics as “Party Hard” and “We Want Fun.” As the late, great Frank Zappa might say: Great googly moogly. The end result doesn’t alter Perry’s sound as much as you might fear (or hope); the production edges him toward machine-made grooves and away from live ones, but when you get right down to it, Lee “Scratch” Perry is always Lee “Scratch” Perry, and Repentance doesn’t change that. Your mileage will vary based on your tolerance for the non-musical (and the skeevy – “Baby Sucker” is easily one of the creepiest songs to come out in 2008), but only the grumpiest of listeners will be able to make it through all dozen tracks without smiling at least once at Perry’s deranged antics; after all, how can you argue with a 72-year-old man who begs Jesus to give him more pussy? It won’t change the prevailing opinion that Perry’s work has been in decline for the last 30 years, but if you’ve got an itch for some off-the-beaten-path riddims, this’ll cure what ails you. (Narnack 2008)

Lee “Scratch” Perry MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dub, Reggae

Mother Mother: O My Heart

September 19, 2008 /

They’ve been called the Canadian Shins and compared, somewhat inexplicably, to Hunter S. Thompson, but the best and easiest point of reference for anyone who hasn’t heard Mother Mother is the Pixies – the five-piece combo takes that band’s sweetly shrill male/female vocal dynamic, boils off all the aggro noise surrounding it, swaps it out for layers of smart, pleasantly unexpected pop production, and emerges with one of the nicest indie surprises of 2008. O My Heart follows Mother Mother’s debut, Touch Up, which earned frothy raves from the hip-crit elite – but don’t let that keep you from experiencing this record’s deliciously catchy pleasures. They’re boundary pushers, but mainly because they have such a rare gift for combining an eclectic spirit with an unerring sense of songcraft; in the space of a dozen tracks, they manage to run the gamut from the classic pop of “Flaming Pile” and “Wisdom” to the stuttering, angular “Hayloft” without stopping to catch their breath. And here’s the best part: O My Heart actually gets better as it goes along, instead of running out of steam after a few great tracks; the eight-nine punch of “Hayloft” and “Wrecking Ball” – the latter of which finds the band sounding like Rilo Kiley’s estranged younger cousins – is as good, if not better, than anything else on the record. And they’re just getting started – we can’t wait to hear what comes next. (Last Gang 2008)

Mother Mother MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop

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