Soledad Brothers
Voice of Treason (Sanctuary)
One of the true greats coming out of Detroit, Soledad Brothers are unbeatable on this blues-ridden stomper. It seems the Brothers learned well from the Fall, the Gun Club and the Make Up, but their take on punk blues has them knocking down doors and steering the genre into uncharted waters, while keeping a foot firmly placed in tradition. They grind gears easily, shifting from the Nuggets-flavoured "Cage That Tiger" to the Southern dirt roads of "Boogie With Viner" to a quick exile on Main Street on "Sights Unseen." The trick that these bros nicked from blues was honing the hypnotic boogie, keeping things as primitive as possible, but more importantly, laying their hearts on the line. 9/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Laibach
Anthems (Mute)
Laibach
DVD (Mute)
The '90s were a quiet stretch for controversial Slovenian industrial-music art pranksters Laibach. With the collapse of Soviet communism, their faux-totalitarian troublemaking lost some bite. But now that fascism (theocratic, Baathist, corporate - take your pick) is centre stage again, Laibach are back. Rammstein, run and hide. Prep for their show this week with this pair - a double CD of their most notable tunes, plus remixes by Richie Hawtin, Juno Reactor and more, and a DVD collecting their freaky videos. Their cover versions of pop hits have always stood out - scary ("Sympathy for the Devil"), hilarious (tunes by Queen, Opus and Europe) and at times uncharacteristically beautiful ("Across the Universe"). Anthems 8.5/10, DVD 7.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg) With Bonfire Madigan at Café Campus, Mon., Nov. 8, 8:30 p.m., $23.50
Million Dollar Marxists
Give It a Name (Gearhead/FAB)
Straight outta O-town, these capital city rockers get down and dirty with their stripped-down New Bomb Turks/Rocket From the Crypt/Turbonegro style, guaranteed to get your little sister wet. The secret of all the greats - Motörhead, Ramones, AC/DC - lies in their utter ugliness, and these guys are so butt ugly that you could wipe a pork chop on their mugs and still couldn't find a mutt to lick 'em. Singer Luke kicks at the skeleton of Stiv Bators but keeps things on track, injecting a sense of melody instead of just getting way up in the grill with punk 'tude. The guitars are kicked up in the mix and the band is tight but never to the extent of wasting any spastic energy - and that's really what these guys are all about. 7.5/10 (Johnson Cummins) With Nitrosonique at l'Escogriffe tonight, Thurs., Nov. 4, 9 p.m., $6
The Donnas
Gold Medal (Atlantic/Warner)
"Is that all you got for me? Just a copy of a copy? I wanna let you have it for free." Thanks, Donnas, but I can't recommend this disc to paying customers. It's not just that the band has been paired with one of Avril Lavigne's producers - a trend in rock that's got to stop - but their weak metal poses and lifeless vocals are just tiresome. "So what were you expecting? Every song has a perfect ending, but that's not good enough for you." No, but at least the ladies drop the rock-chick-on-valium formula long enough for a decent title track. A bronze at best. 5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Porn
Wine, Women and Song (Small Stone)
Holy fuck, this is heavy! Pseudo-supergroup Porn is Dale Crover (the Melvins), heaviosity producer extraordinaire Billy Anderson and head heavy Tim Moss (Ritual Device). Porn continue the sludge delivery here, but this time the lows are even more bowel-emptying, the dynamics more dramatic, the noise that much more inventive and Crover is... well, he's Dale Crover from the Melvins. Lead-off track "Succulento" is 12 minutes of dizzying, death-defying high-wire stunts ending in a five-minute noise jam. True, Moss can't carry a tune in a bucket, but he plays for keeps and when the riffs are loaded with this much heaviosity, who the hell cares about the singing? 8.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Kid & Khan
Bad English (Transsolar)
Former Gun Club/Cramps guitarist Kid Congo Powers and electro prankster Can "Khan" Oral get it on with some loose, warped robo-funk, the kind of sleazebag music that oily Europeans with bad moustaches might rub up against you on a dancefloor to. Hot beats and bloops, pelvic riffs and lecherous vocals hump and pump away while loopy lyrics create dance music mantras on every track. Neither of these guys are capable singers, but they make their gruff, talky stylings work - aside from the unbearable stupidity of "Wooly Baby" - occasionally recalling Lux Interior's leathery rock 'n' roller-isms. 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Quebec Connection
Bonjour Expo (Protomusik)
Former CISM EBM/industrial DJ Nathaniel Hebert has always loved electro. But to dismiss the Montreal producer's debut album as mere '80s throwback schlock would be unfair. Sure, the tracks may feature the familiar deep Italo-disco and analog electro beats, frosty synth arpeggios, Kraftwerkian vocodered melodies and the monotone, robo-female, electro-punk, anti-corporate diatribe. But you can hear that it's done with passion by someone who's loved spacey electronic sounds ever since his parents introduced him to prog music as a child. Add to that the Lowfish and DJ Mana remixes and you've got a debut release that is something to be proud of and well worth a listen. 7/10 (Raf Katigbak)
Various
Super Discount 2 (Solid/Select)
In 1997, Etienne de Crécy's first SD comp was central in detonating the new wave of French house, the pressure-valve disco of Daft Punk, Cassius, Bob Sinclar and so on. This belated follow-up, entirely by de Crécy or de Crécy and friends (Alex Gopher, Philippe Zdar, DJ Medhi etc.), aims to update and restate the case. Sagely, the millennial electro-punk and danger disco of NYC has been taken into account, notably on "Fast Track." Elsewhere, the legacy of Vangelis and Moroder remains intact ("Bit Torrent"). Altogether leaner and tougher than the first, Super Discount 2 delivers engaging dance traxx full of twists and treats. 8/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
Mix Master Mike
Bangzilla (Scratch)
In the continuing struggle to unearth and destroy all human perception and understanding of the limits of turntablism, Mix Master Mike strikes hard with Bangzilla. This cinematic blueprint, which sounds like a full-out battle between invading robotic automatons and some well-meaning but ultimately powerless earthlings, either marks Mike as a conceptual crazy or a true turntable genius experiencing moments of insanity. "Full Range Earmuff," for instance, betrays its playful title with a sinister plot to infiltrate your puny brain, while "Extra Beast" sounds like a calculated assault on your nerve centre, complete with epileptic results. Why there's no DVD with this LP, I don't understand. 8/10 (Scott C) With the Beastie Boys and Talib Kweli at the Bell Centre, Sun., Nov. 7, 8 p.m., $45–$55, after-party at Jet, 10 p.m., $12
Gift of Gab
4th Dimensional Rocketships Going Up (Quannum/FAB)
While my favourite part of Blackalicious has always been producer/ DJ Chief Xcel, Gift of Gab has always approached MCing with a notable flair and fervour that certainly warrants a solo outing. With no Xcel in sight, Gift organizes a stocky, short stack of super-solid production in the form of Jake One and Vitamin D, with impressive results. While GOG's verbal gymnastics are routinely feats of breath control, it's line-for-line tracks like "To Know You" that separate this from Blackalicious fare. Other songs like "Real MCs," "Moonshine" and "Stardust" strengthen this surprisingly lucid and well organized album that stands up to multiple plays. 8.5/10 (Scott C)
Raphael Saadiq
Ray Ray (Pookie)
Saadiq was the driving force behind two prolific urban groups, Tony! Toni! Tone! and Lucy Pearl, and has successfully produced artists like D'Angelo and the Roots. His '02 solo debut Instant Vintage was an ambitious if inconsistent introduction to his one-man show. Saadiq's latest is a more uniform effort that's three parts romance, one part social consciousness. He's always benefited from a group dynamic, so not surprisingly, a triumvirate of songs that feature guests - Dawn Robinson and Dwayne Wiggins on "Rifle Love," the superb Teedra Moses on "Chic" and "I Want You" - are the set's strongest tracks. Seems that even Saadiq's solo efforts are best enjoyed with company. 8/10 (Gerard Dee)
Capleton
Reign of Fire (VP/EMI)
After the albums More Fire and Still Blazin', combined with tremendous controversy over his fundamentalist Bobo Ashanti lyrics, Capleton's back with Reign of Fire. He's still burning down Babylon and deserving of his "Fire Man" moniker, but his flames of righteousness are a little tempered here. Capleton is clever, conscious and as political as ever, but if you're into hardcore dancehall, you might be disappointed - though "Who Yuh Callin' Nigga" is crazy as all hell and there's also the intense "In Her Heart." Tunes like "Remember the Days" and "Sunshine Girl" (with Stephen Marley) present the softer, gentler side of King Shango. 8/10 (Erin MacLeod)
John Lewis Orchestra
U.S.A. (Lonehill Jazz/Trend)
Back in 1962, John Lewis, in collaboration with Gunther Schuller, formed this N.Y.-based orchestra. This is its debut release (both mono and stereo versions are here) and an excellent example of what Gunther coined "third stream music." The composing, including "Three Little Feelings" and "Milesign," is split between Lewis and Gary McFarland and there are outstanding soloists as well. These include both Eric Dolphy and Phil Woods, Herb Pomeroy, Jim Hall and Lewis. Two string quartets are utilized, as are a pair of French horns, piccolo, bassoon, bassett horn, oboe and instruments usually associated with jazz. Schuller conducts and John Lewis acts as musical director. A welcome reissue! 9/10 (Len Dobbin)
Mini CD Reviews
Various Out on a Funky Trip: Funk, Soul, and Reggae from Randy's 1970-75 (Motion) Reggae musicians play funk and soul. Very well. Suffice it to say, I hope there's a second chapter. 9 (EM)
Danny Barrett Indian Summer (DB) Mostly standards by a fine singer - includes a loving tribute to baseball and Jackie Robinson. 8.5 (LD)
Edgar Breau Canadian Primitive (Songhammer/Sonic Unyon) Simply Saucer dude dazzles on this mainly acoustic outing. 8 (JC)
EDO. G "Boston/Stop Dat" 12" (Fat Beats) Ed and Pete Rock get together for some real hip hop bizness. Two-sided heat... 8 (SC)
Luna Rendezvous (Jetset) Dean Wareham and co. make a strong final statement (their best LP in years) with strum-happy rockers and wistful backroad ballads. 8 (LC)
Nikki Sudden Treasure Island (Secretly Canadian) Ex-Jacobite proves that after all of these years, he's still full of venom. 8 (JC)
Sons & Daughters Love the Cup (Domino/Outside) Murder-ballad rock with a lot of roll, a little folk and faint traces of blues and Celtic, though maybe that's just the Scottish brogue. 7.5 (LC)
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