Kem
Album II (Motown/Universal)
On his '03 debut Kemistry, Kem revealed his musical potential via the sensuous "Love Calls," a brilliant love jam that easily outshone everything else on the album. This time around, that potential is evenly distributed throughout this solid sophomore set. Like his female counterpart, Sade lead singer Helen Adu, Kem easily straddles the line between subtle soul and smooth jazz, alternately bending his four-octave range from a whisper ("Set You Free") to a holler ("I Get Lifted"). Stevie Wonder lends his signature harmonica skills to "You Might Win," but clearly this capable singer/songwriter/producer/musician doesn't really need help getting his musical message across. 8.5/10 (Gerard Dee)
Sons and Daughters
The Repulsion Box (Domino/Outside)
Skiffle-punk? No, let's not get carried away. This Scottish quartet keep their campfire rock rollin' with minor chords and bold inflections of Spaghetti Western soundtracks and murder ballads, not to mention the thick Glaswegian accents of singers Adele Bethel and Scott Paterson. Not surprisingly, this sophomore release, the follow-up to last year's mini-album Love the Cup, was produced by Victor Van Vugt (PJ Harvey, Nick Cave), who provides a suitably dark, lo-fi bass for the band's jangly urgency. Solid despite a few shambolic and shrill moments, the record peaks with "Royally Used," a treasure for handclap-lovers. 8/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
The Farrell Bros.
This Is a Riot (Stumble/DEP/ Universal)
The Farrell Bros. deliver psychobilly with all the right tools from Cochrane to Thunders. The Bros. prove to be more than just sky-high pompadours in a pair of zebra skin creepers with blasters like the title track and "R.E.B.E.L." Production is a bit sketchy at times, with the reverb sometimes stealing the song, but the whiskey-soaked larynx of Shawn Farrell really rescues this one. It would have been nice to quote a bit more from their rockabilly roots but pop stompers like "Let's Face It" and "Wink" show them at the top of the current crop of long-gone daddies. 6.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)
The Narrator
Such Triumph (Flameshovel)
They're Pitchfork-approved and actually don't suck - who woulda thunk it? Hailing from Chicago (where bands are forced to play post-rock at gun point), the Narrator manage to slip in some brilliant pop moments à la Archers of Loaf and Pavement and keep the groove rocking with self indulgence kept at bay. The post-rock production techniques of lush room sounds getting crushed on a dime by urgency noise is slightly cliché, but for the most part the Narrator manage to keep their heads above water. Fans of Unwound may dig this. 7/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Fruit Bats
Spelled in Bones (Sub Pop)
Chicago singer-songwriter Eric Johnson has made three albums as Fruit Bats, with a revolving supporting cast lending each release its own distinct tone. Many a fan latched on to the genteel, honey-coated pop of 2003's Mouthfuls, widely compared as it was to indie pop heroes Califone and the Shins, but aside from its lead track "Lives of Crime," Spelled in Bones is dull and downbeat by comparison. Despite a few flaky new age misfires, the record is almost more compelling lyrically than musically, as Johnson explores the fundamentals - God, man and nature. 6/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Xiu Xiu
La Forêt (5 Rue Christine)
A century ago, Jamie Stewart would have spent his days whispering, warbling, shouting and playing improvised percussion in a nuthouse rocking chair. Today, he's the Crispin Glover of indie rock, hailed as a near-outsider genius, if only for the painful honesty of it all. Less pop than 2003's Fabulous Muscles, this record casts feverish confessions and macabre daydreams over a choppy array of music box keys, shrill synths and murky guitars. On the political tip, Stewart says "Saturn" is about "wanting to rape the president to death and eat his body as inspired by the Goya painting of Saturn eating his sons." An acquired taste, to be sure. 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Deep Dark United
Ancient (Blocks)
The Hidden Cameras' Owen Pallett once likened witnessing a Deep Dark United live show to "watching the greatest actors in the world on a Handicam." While it's not altogether clear what he meant by that, Ancient listeners will almost certainly burrow their way to a meaning. The music, like the wit and whimsy of lead singer Alex Lukashevsky, is at once alien and familiar, accessible yet difficult to wrap your head around. Word on the street is that each time the Toronto five-piece play (keys, drums, guitar, sax) their "avant-garde for dummies" monthly at T.O.'s Tranzac bar, they play the same songs in a totally different and engaging way. 7/10 (Raf Katigbak) With John Lennox at Pharmacie Esperanza on Fri., Aug. 12 and with Ancient Rivers of Mount Ethrie on Sat., Aug. 13, 9 p.m., $5
Jennifer Cardini
Lust (Human/Discograph France)
This debut mix CD by Parisian electro DJ Jennifer Cardini is aptly titled, not only because it's the name of her regular residency at the white-hot French ladies-only club Pulp, but also because it describes Cardini's blend of deep sexy electro rockers and minimalist breaks to a T. Cardini kicks off the hour-long mix with the stripped-down synth beats of Claro Intelecto's "Nobody," then moves into the slinky funk of tracks like "She's the 1 Circles In Time (Mathew Jonson Remix)" and the gloomy Detroit style of Dom & Kom's "Darkness" flowing through some dancefloor burners like Holz's "Splitter" and a thumping remix of Miss Kittin's "Requiem for a Hit." 7.5/10 (Raf Katigbak) At Overdose with DJ Mini at Parking on Thurs., Aug. 11, 10 p.m., $4
Various
Beatles Regrooved (Koch)
I'm a firm believer in the destruction of sacred cows. If the invention of the sampler and its musical offspring hip hop has taught us anything, it's that a) Ben Mulroney should never ever be allowed to say "bling-bling" in public, and b) our pop culture past is there for us to fuck with, reinterpret and re-examine. However, when it comes to the Beatles, if you're gonna mess with that shit, you better do a helluva good job. Sadly, the follow-up to Koch's Classics Regrooved falls very short of the mark, and while these tracks aren't expected to rise above the originals, most of them are shockingly bland. 2/10 (Raf Katigbak)
9th Wonder and Buckshot
Chemistry (Duck Down Music)
More often than not, these stellar link-ups are a terrible let down. Not the case here, with 9th's soulful production bringing out some energy from Buckshot, the former Black Moon MC. Buck in turn weaves his classic flow into the new sounds, and the result is a great record that has the best of both talents shining. Tracks like "Chemistry 101" and the Boot Camp/Justus League meeting on "U Wondering" are indicative of the quality that can be found here. Some complaints about 9th's inability to hear similarities in his own beats, but overall, this record pays off where it counts. 8/10 (Scott C)
Quasimoto
The Further Adventures of Lord Quas (Stones Throw)
In the case of this particular Madlib alias, we as listeners have already assumed that any rational approach to creating musical soundscapes has been abandoned for weed smoke. That said, this jagged, unpolished barrage of drums, Melvin Van Peebles samples and dime-bag craziness wouldn't be complete without the voices of reason: Quas and Madlib. Two-minute tracks abound, with filler and skits for days, but it all contributes to the altered state you'll eventually be in after listening to this. If Madlib didn't make as much music as he does, this might be dismissed as another stoner record, but I don't think he'd mind. 7.5/10 (Scott C)
John Hiatt
Master of Disaster (New West Records)
One of Americana's greatest unsung heroes teams up with the North Mississippi All Stars and releases one of his greatest records yet. Hiatt is one of the best wordsmiths out there and his unique style of storytelling in songs includes odes to addiction in "Master of Disaster" and destitution in the amazing "Ain't Ever Goin' Back." Hiatt knows how to deliver his pearls as his mumble/drawl will have you hanging on every word. Bonus points to his collaborators like the N.M.A.S. for knowing their place and never stepping on any toes. 8.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Antonio Placer
Siria (Le Chante de Monde/Fusion III)
Ted Nash and Odeon
La Espada de la Noche (Palmetto/ Fusion III)
Placer is a wonderful singer and guitarist from Spain. He's assisted by Steve Swallow and Brazilian guitarist Paulo Bellinati and guests, percussionist Negrito Trasante of Uruguay and reedman Gavino Murgia from Sardinia - a global village that works well over 13 tracks. Multi-reedman (tenor, alto, clarinet, bass clarinet and alto flute) Nash is the son of trombonist Dick Nash and nephew of tenorman Ted Nash, both alumni of the Les Brown band. Odeon is a bit of an oddity, made up of Bill Schimmel (accordion), Nathalie Bonin (violin), Clark Gayton (tuba, trombone and baritone horn) and Matt Wilson (drums). They do "Tico Tico," two movements from Rodrigo's famed "Aranjuez" and a Tango version of Gillespie's "Night In Tunisia" that's worth the price of admission. 9/10 (Len Dobbin)
Mini CD Reviews
Claudia Acuna Luna (Maxjazz) Wonderful singer with much of the material that made her Club Soda concert a Jazz Festival highlight. 8.5 (LD)
The Hidden Cameras Learning the Lie (Evil Evil/Outside) Who knew songs about semiotics could be this peppy? Four demos on two baby-blue vinyl seven-inches preview the next album by T.O.'s homo pop heroes. 8 (LC)
Various Horloge Biologique OST (Go/Select) A homegrown soundtrack for a homegrown flick, feat. the bratty rock, synthpop, funk and reggae of Poxy, Dee, Echo Kitty and others, plus Talk Talk's "It's My Life." 7 (LC)
Shemekia Copeland The Soul Truth (Alligator/Fusion III) Copeland's pipes and Steve Cropper's production promise a lot but never deliver. 6 (JC)
Omnikrom Futurs Millionnaires Vol. 1 (Magifiques) This is crunk in Dockers with penny loafers and an ascot. 6 (SC)
Various Clubbers Guide Vol. 1 (Ministry of Sound/Ultra) A two-CD commercial club mix by Johnny Vicious featuring insane über-trance remixes of Roxette and Technotronic? File under: guilty pleasure. 6 (RK)
Tommy Lee Tommyland (604/Universal) Lee believes his tabloid rag clips and puts out some of the most tepid rock/electronica/pop I've heard in years. 5.5 (JC)
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