Category: CD QuickTakes (Page 82 of 149)

The Hours: See the Light

May 8, 2009 / David Medsker

They would surely bristle at the idea that their songs are of the throwback variety, but the simple fact is that there aren’t many, if any, bands writing the kind of music that propels See the Light, the magnificent new album by UK duo (or is it septet?) the Hours. Singer Antony Genn’s phrasing recalls Wonder Stuff frontman Miles Hunt (though Genn is a much better singer), and the songs are flat-out skyscrapers, gorgeous piano-driven epics that put the ‘wide’ in widescreen. “Come On” uses seven words to create one of the catchiest choruses you’ll hear this year, while the seven-minute title track is a brilliant, two-chord slow burner, like a mid-tempo version of Pulp’s “Common People” (which is fitting, since Genn is a Pulp alumnus). There is a lyrical gaffe here and there – “The Girl Who Had the World at Her Feet” opens with the line “The cash cow is heading for the slaughterhouse,” ugh – but such bits come with the territory, and their damage is minimal. Don’t be surprised if these guys become a very big deal in a very short amount of time. (IsGoodLtd 2009)

The Hours MySpace page
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Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Melodramatic, Pop, Rock, Widescreen

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Ed Harcourt: Russian Roulette

May 8, 2009 / Lee Zimmerman

After effectively hopscotching from label to label – four in approximately the past ten years – Ed Harcourt seems to have found a comfortable home with Dovecote, a company that presumably grants him the ability to follow his creative whims without regard to commercial consequences. Still, Russian Roulette doesn’t divert all that much from his usual template, a reliable mix of stirring, angst-ridden ballads and soaring anthemic outpours that capture the heart while seizing on more cerebral possibilities. Being more of a modest affair – six songs recorded rather quickly as in deference to the original demos – it also serves as a stopgap prior to the unveiling of his next full-length opus, due sometime next year. Regardless, its certain to satiate fans unable to wait that long, courtesy of such enticing offerings as the title track – an opening volley of over-arched emotion – and “Sour Milk, Motheaten Silk,” a song which, despite its curious title, proves both elusive and alluring. However, the EP’s true highlight emerges in the form of “Caterpillar,” a purposeful and effusive number written about his newborn daughter that also ranks among the most stirring songs he’s ever written. Dovecote

Ed Harcourt MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Emo, Melodramatic, Rock

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M Shanghai String Band: The Mapmaker’s Daughter

May 8, 2009 / Jeff Giles

Fiddles and banjos in Brooklyn? Well, yes, apparently – as that’s the M Shanghai String Band’s home turf, no matter how much they sound like they hail from some backwoods holler south of the Mason-Dixon line. The freewheeling collective, which takes its name from the Chinese restaurant where they first performed together, returns here with its third disc of rootsy tunes, dominated – as you might imagine – by the various stringed things its 11 members play. The titles are often cooler than the songs themselves (particularly “Angel Full of Bourbon,” which, let’s face it, is a title most songs could never live up to), but even if the band’s material isn’t outstanding, it’s good enough to do set a suitably back-porch mood – and Mapmaker’s best moments, like the sawdust-covered stomp “Gallows Bird,” sound like they were distilled in a greasy mason jar just a couple shelves down from Americana standard-bearers like Ollabelle and the Felice Brothers. If it isn’t quite as high-proofed a vintage as either of those other bands, it still packs enough of a punch that it should be able to take the edge off for discerning fans of the genre – and prove a sufficiently intriguing invitation to one of the M Shanghai String Band’s tremendously entertaining live shows. (Red Parlor 2009)

M Shanghai String Band MySpace page

Adult Contemporary, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Folk

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Spain Colored Orange: Sneaky Like a Villain

May 8, 2009 / Jeff Giles

They hail from Houston, but there’s nothing about Spain Colored Orange’s sound that will make you think of oilmen and longhorns; instead, their debut full-length effort, Sneaky Like a Villain, suggests a rainbow-colored collision between 10cc and late-period Tears for Fears, with perhaps a dash of Jellyfish thrown in. Pop fans, in other words, will find this album seriously addictive; from the moment you hear the bright, brassy overtones and sugary sweet melody of “Who Am I?” you’ll know you’re in for a treat. The set’s biggest flaw, really, is that the band isn’t content to stick with those sounds — Sneaky falters when it drifts into more ambitious territory, such as songs like “I Remember It Was Christmas Time,” whose compositional depth, though admirable, comes as something of an annoyance after the glorious melodic highs of songs like “Hide” and “Cheap Thrills.” Both sides of the band’s personality mesh perfectly, though, on “Uh Oh, Trouble,” a sprawling, vaguely “Tusk”-like epic that offers five minutes of twists and turns without forgetting the hooks. It’s clearly just an opening statement from the band, but it’s a strong one; by the time the record struts off your speakers with the kids’ chorus and trumpets that close out “The Birds and the Bees,” you’ll be ready to start it up all over again. (Shout It Out Loud 2009)

Spain Colored Orange MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop

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Pink Mountaintops: Outside Love

May 1, 2009 / Lee Zimmerman

Considering the disparity of his previous projects and a musical palate that’s run the gamut from punk to pensive, grunge to psychedelia, it ought to come as no surprise to find Stephen McBean again falling prey to wanderlust. Outside Love provides the latest chapter in his extended sojourn away from his day job with critical faves Black Mountain, while also offering a retreat to the slightly more refined environs of Pink Mountaintops. This, their third album, finds them keeping their connections to the home team via the occasional cosmic excursion, while boosting their accessibility regimen overall. Veering from the emphatic (“Axis: Thrones of Love,” ”Execution”) to the ethereal (the descriptively-titled “While We Were Dreaming” and “Closer to Heaven”), the music employs swelling choruses and atmospheric enhancements to stunning effect. McBean shows a fondness for languid Neil Young-like intonations – “Vampire” and “And I Thank You” are similarly somber in that regard – but Pink Mountaintops prove themselves a compelling bunch even in deliberation mode. Its telling too that their album cover attempts to replicate the jacket of a Danielle Steele novel, because Outside Love shows an aptitude for being both torrid and tenacious. (Jagjaguwar)

Pink Mountaintops MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Psychedelic, Rock

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