Category: Rock (Page 76 of 241)

Grant-Lee Phillips: Little Moon

October 9, 2009 /


RIYL: Grant Lee Buffalo, Robyn Hitchcock, Eels

Grant-Lee Phillips flirted with commercial relevancy during his years fronting the critically beloved Grant Lee Buffalo, but his solo records haven’t reached as many ears – which is a damn shame, because they’ve contained some of his strongest work. His sixth solo effort, Little Moon, follows precedent, collecting a dozen songs that run the gamut from spare ballads (“Violet,” “Buried Treasure”) to more up-tempo, finely layered numbers (“Strangest Thing,” “Seal It with a Kiss,” “It Ain’t the Same Old Cold War Harry”). Tying them all together is Phillips’ voice, which remains an instrument of uncommon warmth and strength, as well as the empathetic, tight-knit playing of a small combo that included drummer Jay Bellerose, bassist Paul Bryan (who also produced), and keyboardist Jamie Edwards. The bulk of the album was recorded live in the studio over a single four-day span, a refreshingly simple approach that lets the arrangements breathe and keeps the focus where it belongs – on the songs. It’s a bright little gem of an album, one whose flaws somehow add to its beauty. If you’re in the mood for an album of smart, subtle pop/rock for adults, look no further. And spread the word – his days as a major label star-in-the-making are long behind him, but Phillips’ Moon deserves an audience many times its size. (Yep Roc 2009)

Grant-Lee Phillips MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Folk, Pop, Rock

Duran Duran: Rio (Collector’s Edition)

October 9, 2009 /


RIYL: The Killers, Roxy Music, Spandau Ballet

Finally. Ask an American Duran Duran collector, and they will tell you that every CD pressing of the band’s seminal 1982 album Rio up to now has been horribly flawed, because Capitol had the nerve to use the original mixes of the songs on “Side I,” instead of the David Kershenbaum remixes of those songs that we Yanks grew up with. Some of the Kershenbaum mixes popped up on later CD singles and compilations, but two of them, namely “Rio” and “Lonely in Your Nightmare,” remained in the vaults…until now. This two-disc set features a remastered Rio plus the Kershenbaum remixes on Disc One, and a veritable treasure trove of demos, B-sides, Night Versions and remixes from the various Carnival EPs on Disc Two. If a specific mix or B-side has eluded you up to this point, odds are it is included here.

Duran_Duran_06

As for the difference between the 2009 remaster of Rio and the 2001 remaster, well, if you can spot a difference, let us know. We’ve played several tracks back to back, and they sound identical. (The version of “Hold Back the Rain,” though, is a different mix entirely.) And why shouldn’t they? Colin Thurston’s original production was so crisp and well balanced – not to mention recorded in the pre-digital, compress-the-shit-out-of-everything era – that there is little point in tweaking Rio for the sake of tweaking it. Those long-dormant Kershenbaum mixes, however, could have used a tune-up, specifically in the upper frequencies, so if you had designs of assembling a playlist equivalent of your original Rio cassette, prepare for a few shifts in audio quality. Still, the ability to finally make that playlist, with enough remixes left over to make your own personal Carnival, makes this set a no-brainer. They even tagged a Christmas greeting from Simon LeBon onto the final track on Disc Two. Awwww. (Capitol 2009)

Duran Duran MySpace page
Click to buy Rio Collector’s Edition from Amazon

Alternative, Artists, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dance, Pop, Rock

Ace Frehley: Anomaly

October 8, 2009 /


RIYL: Kiss, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix

Former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley delivers his first solo album in 20 years, and it’s a big winner. Frehley’s work with Kiss in the 1970s inspired a legion of youngsters to pick up the guitar, including many of those who would gain fame in the alt-grunge explosion of the early ’90s, making Frehley one of the most important influences in rock history. The source of this influence is all over Anomaly.

“Foxy and Free” starts up with a hard rocker where Ace’s voice sounds like it could still be 1978, the year his first solo LP came out. “Outer Space” rocks just as hard in a tale about how Ace came from outer space and “is sick and tried of the human race.” A cover of Sweet’s “Fox on the Run” fits like the proverbial glove. Ace’s vocals are spot-on and the track has a fun vibe. Things really open up on the epic “Genghis Kahn,” a mostly instrumental tune that features a dynamic acoustic intro before giving way to a big jam featuring pulsing bass, Bonham-like drums, and heavy chord changes. The face-melting guitar solo is straight-up sick. It gets even better on “Space Bear,” another monster instrumental featuring a hybrid of classic riffage recalling Zeppelin, Hendrix and early Kiss on one of the best jams Ace has ever laid down.

“Change the World” finds Ace moving in a socially conscious direction that Gene & Paul would never abide on a Kiss album. It’s a catchy number that feels totally natural and features another stellar solo. “A Little Below the Angels” has a similar spiritual vibe, as Ace sings another melodic tune about leaving his wild ways behind so he can move forward. “It’s a Great Life” continues in that vein with a dynamic rocker that starts with a funky groove somewhat recalling David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance,” before some rocking changes come in as Ace continues to dispel his hard-earned wisdom. “Fractured Quantum” closes the album with a soaring instrumental rocker, the fourth song in the “Fractured” series that started on his 1978 LP. The playing and production work are both superb as Ace demonstrates his musical depth.

It’s that musical depth and the lyrical maturity demonstrated in tunes like “Change the World” that puts Ace light years beyond the current version of Kiss, which currently dresses up former Black and Blue guitarist Tommy Thayer as the Space Ace. It may help sell tickets, but it’s a fraudulent maneuver that Gene Simmons should be ashamed of, if he knew the meaning of the word. (Bronx Born Records 2009)

Ace Frehley MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Talking Heads: Stop Making Sense

October 8, 2009 /

One of the best concert films of all time gets its hi-def due with this lovingly curated reissue “Stop Making Sense.” Directed by Jonathan Demme, “Sense” captures the Talking Heads at their squirrelly best, spasmodically jumping between new wave, funk, and arty Afro-pop with a crack band of ace sidemen that included Bernie Worrell, Alex Weir, and Lynn Mabry. The Talking Heads found their footing slowly, evolving from willfully experimental Rhode Island hipsters to a merry band of world music vagabonds, and Demme frames their journey with a stage setup that opens slowly; for the opening number, “Psycho Killer,” David Byrne comes out with nothing but his guitar and a boombox. He’s joined by bassist Tina Weymouth on the next number, they’re joined by Chris Frantz next, Jerry Harrison follows Frantz, and so on and so forth, until the whole entourage is under the lights, making the most joyously paranoid racket of the ‘80s.

The Blu-ray transfer doesn’t scrub every last scratch or speck of dust from the frame, but knowing the Talking Heads, that may very well have been intentional; in any case, it makes for fine viewing at 1080p, despite periodic minor problems with the picture, and the sound – presented here in a pair of DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mixes that let the viewer choose between the equivalent of audience and soundboard recordings – more than makes up for any visual flaws. The special features include audio commentary from the band and director (everyone’s tracks separately recorded, natch), along with other bonus content ported over from the DVD version (bonus tracks, storyboards, a few minutes of Byrne interviewing himself), plus Blu-ray exclusive footage of the 1999 press conference that reunited the band for “Stop Making Sense’s” 15th anniversary screening. There’s a short list of concert films whose contents justify a $34.99 list price, regardless of format. This is one of them. (UMVD)

Click here to buy “Stop Making Sense”

Alternative, Concert DVDs, Concerts, DVD Quicktakes, Pop, Rock

The Avett Brothers: I and Love and You

October 7, 2009 /


RIYL: Hem, The Weepies, Rilo Kiley

It’s that rare album that can be listened to repeatedly and each time offer a new experience, opening the door to discovery on each successive hearing. Likewise, there’s a hint of something significant when an album provides its listeners with a stunning display of prowess and ingenuity that not only elevates the artist’s profile but also marks a new benchmark in their career trajectory. It’s telling that if, in attempting to evaluate it, adjectives alone don’t do it justice.

That, then, is the best way to sum up I and Love and You, the remarkable major label debut from the Avett Brothers, the North Carolina trio whose indie career crested with Emotionalism two years ago. A disc that brought them full circle, Emotionalism earned the right to be labeled 2007’s indie album of the year. Like its predecessor, I and Love and You, is rich in gut-level appeal, a concept album revolving around simple truths that revel in honesty, heartbreak and humanity. The mission statement that adorns the back cover offers their insights into the essential three words – and the sentiments that express them – betraying so many intentions and such special significance.

One of the things that distinguish the Avetts from their like-minded peers is their ability to combine a wistful and plaintive approach with the irresistible urgency of cascading choruses that seep into the consciousness and steadfastly maintain their grasp. The tender yet impassioned pleas of “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise,” the title track and “The Perfect Space” illuminate that premise succinctly. “I want to have friends that I can trust / For the man I’ve become and not the man I was,” they convincingly croon in the latter. Producer Rick Rubin, clearly no slouch when it comes to illuminating the dark recesses of his clients’ souls, maintains the Avetts’ unfettered style, but subtlety fleshes it out along the way, adding jaunty piano interludes, the occasional fiddle, and sudden shifts in rhythm that add distinction to the effort overall. Consequently, a stunner of a song like the sprightly “Kick Drum Heart” or the heart-wrenching “Laundry Room” morph into a tour de force, exceptional examples of the band’s duality to shift the dynamic and alter the mood accordingly.

Suffice it to say that I and Love and You is not only a contender for album of the year, but also an album for the ages. And like those three words in the title, it resonates long and hard. (Sony 2009)

Avett Brothers MySpace page

Americana, CD Reviews, Emo, Folk, Melodramatic, Power Pop, Progressive, Rock

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