Category: CD QuickTakes (Page 72 of 149)

The Hooters: Both Sides Live

July 31, 2009 /

Unless you’re a diehard fan, or unless you’re talking about landmark albums like Frampton Comes Alive, live albums are usually disappointing across the board. As for the Hooters’ latest, Both Sides Live, their songs are so catchy that it’s near impossible to disappoint. There are two different experiences on this double set—one electric and one acoustic—that just manages to show why this band has such a cult following well beyond their Philadelphia home. The first set, recorded at the Electric Factory in Philly, has hits like “All you Zombies,” “And We Danced” and “Johnny B,” as well as tracks from 2007’s Time Stand Still (“I’m Alive,” the title track, and their cover of Don Henley’s “Boys of Summer” to name a few). But it’s the acoustic set, performed live for “friends and associates,” that really showcases the songwriting prowess of Eric Bazilian and Rob Hyman. Most of the songs are same on both sides, but that makes it easy to compare each version of them. If you were into this band in the ‘80’s, Both Sides Liveis a must-have. (Hooters Music 2009)

The Hooters MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Power Pop, Rock

Herclues And Love Affair: Sidetracked

July 31, 2009 /

Hercules and Love Affair are the dominant force in the drive to bring disco back to the dance floors in America. First with their insanely great self-titled debut and now with Sidetracked, a DJ mix arranged by Hercules’ creative force Andy Butler. Not surprisingly, Sidetracked is predominately a disco record, either with classic disco-era tracks like Todd Terry and Class Action’s
“Weekend” or with retro-sounding tracks such as the new Hercules & Love Affair track “I Can’t Wait.” Acid house and straight-up old-school house also make cameos on Sidetracked early on with tracks by Dubwise and WestBam, but by the halfway point they’re gone, making the way for vintage disco extravaganzas such as Studio X, Ray Martinez and the Rainbow Team. This isn’t Nu-Disco, this is straight up ’70s and early ’80s old-school disco, and that’s not a sound that has aged well for some, no matter how much they like modern dance music. If you were around back then or just want to hear what your parents did coke to back in the day, then you’ll probably eat this up. But for those of you more interested in dance-punk, DnB, or other more 21st century dancefloor sounds, you probably won’t find much of note on Sidetracked. (Renaissance Recordings 2009)

Hercules And Love Affair MySpace Page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dance, Electronica

INF: The Go Round

July 31, 2009 /

Breaks records are usually intended for DJs, when they can be mixed and sampled with other tracks for DJ sets or remixes. Once in a while, though, one can break through to more mainstream audiences. DJ Food did it with their Jazz Brakes series, and now it looks like INF might with The Go Round, an infectious collection of ’60s-influenced loops, grooves and beats. The Go Round sounds like some magical out-of-place artifact from 1960s London, combining groovy instrumentals with modern beats to create a soundtrack to the best crime movie Michael Caine never made. One can imagine Mini Coopers tearing through the streets to the pulse-pounding beats of the title track, a romantic interlude to the gentle guitar strums and eastern drum beats of “The Boogie Man” and the final fight scene to the awesomely named “Power Move, Baby.” The Go Round is brief, clocking it at just over half an hour, so it’s not a lot of bang for your buck. But it’s still a fun listen that would serve as great background music for a party, dinner, or car chase. (Beats Broke 2009)

INF’s MySpace Page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dance, Electronica, Instrumental

Bad Boy Bill: The Album

July 24, 2009 /

Bad Boy Bill has been a DJ for what seems like forever, starting in the late ’80s and churning out amazing mix after mix ever since. His Bangin’ the Box series and House Connection albums (with Richard ‘Humpty’ Vission) are legendary collections of Hi-NRG house that never let up, sometimes mixing over 40 tracks in the course of an hour. It’s amazing that it has taken him this long to create an artist album comprised entirely of original material. It’s even more amazing that it’s not all together that good. Instead of focusing on the frantic house that made Bill a standard in dance clubs worldwide, Bill’s decided to embrace standard dance-pop for The Album. Some of it is great, like the throbbing “Headlock” or the single “Fast Life,” but the rest of the songs are too derivative, annoying or just plain boring. Even worse is his pointless cover of Herbie Hancock’s “Rockit,” which takes the song’s classic hook and buries it with annoying fader effects, giving you a maddening taste of it before cutting it away. The best tracks on The Album will probably show up in a Bad Boy Bill mix eventually, and will probably sound even better, so there’ s no point in picking up this very unfortunate misfire. (Nettwerk Records 2009)

Bad Boy Bill MySpace Page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dance, Electronica, Pop

Jace Everett: Red Revelations

July 24, 2009 /

Jace Everett is billed as a singer/songwriter, and he is one, yes. But since singer/songwriter has become a genre that usually implies a single person with a guitar or piano, it’s probably more accurate to just call Everett a rocker in the Americana vein. Everett is best known for being the dude behind the song “Bad Things,” which is the opening theme for HBO’s “True Blood” (and this album’s closing track), so the guy already had somewhat of a launching pad for his career. Which brings us to Everett’s new (and third) album, Red Revelations, a serviceable collection of tube amplifier- and Fender guitar-charged rock songs. At various times, Everett channels Elvis and Johnny Cash and Mellencamp and Springsteen, but most closely resembles Chris Isaak, and while the songs are rocking and entertaining enough, it’s not likely that you’re going to be humming most of them a few minutes later. And Everett also drops into that Elvis “Thank you, thank you very much” lower register a bit too often than he needs to. Regardless, there are a few standouts, like the upbeat “More to Life (Cmon, Cmon),” which has gang harmonies that give the track a Huey Lewis & the News feel, and “Little Black Dress,” which features some pretty slick guitar work. (Weston Boys 2009)

Jace Everett MySpace Page

Americana, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Country, Rock

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