Category: CD Reviews (Page 36 of 399)

Black Sabbath: Paranoid Classic Albums DVD

November 19, 2010 / Mike Farley

It’s been said that Black Sabbath’s landmark Paranoid album spawned the genre of heavy metal, and if you watch this awesome video from Eagle Rock Entertainment, you can see why. The four members of Black Sabbath – Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward -created music their own way, and it was a powerful sound that appealed to stoners and those craving stuff equal to or heavier than Led Zeppelin. The band also appealed to the masses who were protesting the Vietnam War in 1970, because making music that went against the grain was something these folks could relate to. But this DVD is just outstanding in that every member of Black Sabbath is interviewed, as well as folks like sound engineer Tom Allom and long-time fan and recording artist Henry Rollins. There is awesome archived footage of the band playing live, and detailed descriptions of how each song on Paranoid was written or how it began. Fans of Black Sabbath, or anyone who is too young to remember them but curious, should all grab this DVD, because not only is it a history lesson, it’s a lesson on how music should be made – with the artist driving the proverbial bus. (Eagle Vision 2010)

DVD Quicktakes, Metal

Bill Ward Black Sabbath classic albums Eagle Rock Geezer Butler Hard Rock heavy metal Henry Rollins Ozzy Osbourne Paranoid Tony Iommi

The Macrodots: The Other Side

November 19, 2010 / R. David Smola

RIYL: Tears for Fears, Scandal, Matthew Sweet

When was the last time you heard a really good power pop record? When the last time recorded music compulsively dictated your feet to tap from the beginning of track one to the end of the last song? When was the last time you heard a disk that sounded fun, nearly flawless and still had enough of a left hook to knock you out? Boys and girls, that record has arrived and it is the brainchild of two music vets who absolutely and unapologetically have made a tremendous pop record.

Zack Smith is the founder of Scandal, which launched several tracks into the collective consciousness of the ’80s, including “Goodbye to You,” “Love’s Got a Line on You” and “The Warrior.” Cathy Richardson has released five studio discs, including the masterpieces Road To Bliss (2003), Delusions of Grandeur (2006) and Jefferson’s Tree of Liberty (2008) as part of Jefferson Starship. The collaboration here is nothing short of magically delicious (well, it may not be Lucky Charms but it is one hell of a record). Vocally, Richardson has always shifted in and out of styles gracefully with tremendous command and presence. The Other Side features her staying in the power pop realm from beginning to end. This is demanding material and she is up for the challenge. This statement is one that is difficult to make considering her tremendous reputation, but it needs to be said; this is her best vocal performance to date.

“Beautiful Girl” mixes two parts Beach Boys with two parts late-period Beatles with just a splash of Tears for Fears to create a powerful ambiance and a brilliant canvass for Richardson to blast out the dreamy lyrics. Much like the rest of the record, Smith and Richardson create arrangements that are devoured by the ear. “Everything” begins with a dreamy effects laced introduction before building into an arena-sized chorus and features some very clever guitar work. It is such a perfectly crafted song that it begs to be placed on permanent repeat status. The power ballad “If I Could” caresses your heart and kicks you in the gut at the same time. Studio vets Michael Lockwood and Jude Gold, along with Smith and Richardson, create enough guitar crunch to give the record the kick that provide the perfect complement to Richardson’s monstrous vocal talent. I am hoping that this is not a onetime project. This is a record that begs for a sequel. (Cash Rich 2010)

The Macrodots Website

CD Reviews, Pop, Power Pop, Rock

Cathy Richardson The Macrodots The Macrodots CD review The Other Side CD review Zack Smith

Dane Cook: I Did My Best: Greatest Hits

November 19, 2010 / David Medsker

From the king of MySpace to “Step Brothers” punch line in the space of three years – there isn’t a comic in recent memory that has suffered a backlash as quick, and as malicious, as the one Dane Cook endured. Granted, some of the barbs pointed at Cook were not unfounded; his taste in movie scripts has been atrocious (his best film: “Dan in Real Life,” because he’s second fiddle to Steve Carell), and the quality of his stand-up material dropped precipitously once he had become a star. But let’s not forget something important: Cook found an audience because he could make people laugh. Fellow comics might deride his methods – Ron White once told us, a good two years before the backlash had gained momentum, that Cook’s act is “smoke and mirrors” – but he could make people laugh.

Listen to I Did My Best: Greatest Hits, though, and you start to see what White meant by smoke and mirrors. Cook’s best weapons are his sound effects and his voice. They are what make bits like “Heist/Monkey” and “The BK Lounge” so amusing (“Large fry, motherfucker!”), and without that unexpected chicken sound he does in the “Operation” bit, that whole routine is a tenth as funny. White mentioned one weakness in particular about Cook’s act, and listening to this, it becomes clear: there are no punch lines. Cook is also a lover of words, and sometimes he swishes them around a few times just because he likes the sound of something, when he would be better off moving forward with the routine. Lastly, there is the decision to make this set a double-disc affair. Cook may have released a lot of material in the last eight years, but very little after his first two albums is what one would call essential, and besides, this violates one of the cardinal rules of comedy: always leave them wanting more. The bonus tracks do not save the day, either. Heck, one of them is Cook announcing that he’s played in every state in the US. That’s not material – that’s just talking.

I Did My Best offers a more candid look at Cook’s rise and fall than Cook himself may have intended. He clearly has the innate ability to make people laugh, but a few actual punch lines would do him a world of good. Still, complaints aside, we’d be remiss if we didn’t tell him: thanks for the candy. (Comedy Central 2010)

Shakespears Sister MySpace page
Click to buy Songs from the Red Room from Amazon

Artists, CD Reviews, Stand-Up Comics

Dane Cook Dane Cook's Greatest Hits CD review Headlines I Did My Best CD review Ron White

Bachman & Turner: Bachman & Turner

November 18, 2010 / Mike Farley

RIYL: Bachman Turner Overdrive, The Guess Who, Aerosmith

If you dig classic rock, but are sick of hearing the same Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Steve Miller Band tunes, sometimes it’s nice when one of these acts releases something new after all these years. Sometimes it’s not nice, but that’s a comment for another review. In this case, we have Bachman & Turner’s debut album, but it’s not really a debut. They were the two front guys for ‘70’s rock institution Bachman Turner Overdrive, a band that created some of the greatest, well, classic rock tunes in history – “Takin’ Care of Business” and “Ya Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet” being among the biggest. So after a few decades, Randy Bachman was working on a solo album and asked Fred Turner to sing a few songs, and the rest is history. But here’s the thing: aside from more strained vocals, this stuff is almost as good as the stuff they released in the ‘70s. It’s not a band trying to sound current; it’s Bachman and Turner being Bachman & Turner. The album is a complete set of 12 songs, but a few stand out: the rocking “I’ve Seen the Light” and gang-vocal driven “Rock and Roll is the Only Way Out,” as well as “That’s What It Is,” which sounds a bit like Bachman backed by Steely Dan and Todd Rundgren; and “Moonlight Rider,” which has a Clapton-esque feel and could have easily been a hit in 1976. These songs are timeless, the duo’s playing is timeless, and this just may give classic rock radio a few new songs to add to the format. (RBE Music/Fontana 2010)

Bachman & Turner website

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Aerosmith Bachman & Turner Bachman Turner Overdrive classic rock classic rock radio Eric Clapton Steve Miller Band.The Guess Who

Shakespears Sister: Songs from the Red Room

November 18, 2010 / David Medsker

RIYL: early Roxy Music, Blondie, Goldfrapp

It had to sting Siobhan Fahey a little that the band that she began as a solo project only saw commercial success when someone else was singing lead. She was Dave Stewart’s wife. She was in Bananarama, goddamnit. Why was it that the world only paid attention to her when some high-pitched American was on the mic?

Because that high-pitched American (Marcella Detroit, for those keeping score at home) had a dynamic voice, and when it crawled out of the speakers begging listeners to staaaaaaaay wiiiiiiith her, you stayed. Fahey, on the other hand, had to settle for playing the supporting role once again, even though it was her own band, and she was the lead singer. Ow.

Having said that, Fahey kind of forced the label’s hand in some regards. After playing the role of tarted-up hottie for years, Fahey was understandably bored with being a slice of cheesecake and adopted a look that resembled thrift store Gothic. Combine that with the fact that she had the second-best voice in her own band – or at least the second most striking voice – and it’s easy to see why the label chose to promote them as a duo, rather than as a Fahey solo project. You can imagine the label’s horror when Detroit left the band in 1993; now we just have the low-voiced Goth girl? What the hell do we do with her?

Bury her, it appears. Fahey made one more album in 1996 under the Shakespears Sister name, but it took eight years and some nasty dealings with her label to get it released. Plans for a Fahey solo album were scrapped…twice. So Fahey resurrects Shakespears Sister for the sake of artistic collateral in order to get her solo material out, 18 years removed from her biggest (and in the US, only) hit. How has time treated her?

Pretty well, actually. Songs from the Red Room is an odd blend of glam, dance beats and sass. There isn’t anything here that will tear up the charts, but the whole album is strangely compelling, begging repeat spins despite the lack of a killer hook. She ropes in Terry Hall to duet with her again (the two sang “It Ain’t What You Do” together with Bananarama and Fun Boy Three in 1982) on “Was It Worth It?,” and taunts Marc Bolan on opening track “Pulsatron,” a song that Bolan would have killed for solely for the title. It will shock the daylights out of anyone who’s only familiar with the the band’s chart successes, but that appears to be the point. At long last, Fahey sounds like she’s making the music she meant to make all along. Better late than never, we suppose. (SF Records 2010)

Shakespears Sister MySpace page
Click to buy Songs from the Red Room from Amazon

Artists, CD Reviews, Dance, Electronica, Pop

Bananarama Headlines Marcella Detroit Shakespears Sister Siobhan Fahey Songs from the Red Room CD review Stay