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 !!!
Myth Takes (Warp/Fusion III)
Formed in ’95, Brooklyn’s percussion-heavy octet !!! (“chk-chk-chk,” out loud) were one of the very first units to reboot the dark, dubbed-out disco-punk of the early ’80s, and remain one of the very best. It’s not just that they have all the pieces—the dense, delirious drumming, eerie echoes and spooky spaghetti guitar, the push-’n’-pull bass, freaky electronics and hypnopompic vocals. It’s that they throw them together so flawlessly, charting a circuitous path that connects the finest musical moments of Memphis, Manchester and Mombassa, Minneapolis, Munich and Manhattan. “Break in Case of Anything” and “Bend Over Beethoven” (great title!) are twisted revisions of slick ’70s soul, “Yadnys” is biker-crank boogie for astronauts, and “Sweet Life” may well have been a pop song at one point. A tremendously cool effort. 9/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
 Arcade Fire
Neon Bible (Merge)
Funeral has to be one of this decade’s hardest acts to follow, but Arcade Fire manage to meet expectations, if just barely. Neon Bible won’t be quite the crowd-pleaser its predecessor was, with its relentlessly dark, strident lyrics about WWIII (9/11, the so-called culture war and “war on terror” all at once), and the prevalence of murky, brooding songs such as the title track, “Ocean of Noise” and “My Body Is a Cage.” But black is still beautiful, and the electric big-band energy of Funeral’s “Neighbourhood” series beats on with “Keep the Car Running,” “Antichrist Television Blues” and ye olde re-recorded favourite, “No Cars Go.” 8.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Air
Pocket Symphony
(Virgin/EMI)
What the Charlotte Gainsbourg record and JB Dunckel’s solo joint suggested, Pocket Symphony confirms—Air, those wunderkinds from France, have officially run out of gas. The star-pop perfection of Moon Safari is history now, but even the franco-Floyd tangents that followed would be vastly preferable to this resolutely forgettable, over-produced blend of new-age fluff and bank-lobby schmaltz. Production by Nigel Godrich, visits from Jarvis Cocker and Tony Allen, and even a bunch of weird Japanese instruments can’t save this utter dud. 3/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
 Big Business
Here Come the Waterworks (Hydra Head/Sonic Unyon)
Oh my gawd, this is so fucking heavy! Possessing the prog tendencies of Mastodon, the crushing wallop of the Melvins and the exploration of Isis, this bass/drum duo lay down the epic dirge better than anyone, which is nothing short of stupendous considering the band only boasts two members. It’s not all just ballast and blast here, as they’ve incorporated more melody in the vocal department, courtesy of Jared Warren’s whiskey-soaked croon this time around. Although aggressive music is probably at its creative zenith right now, it’s records like this that will finally put it on the map. Early contender for record of the year? It’s got my vote. 9/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Relient K
Five Score and Seven Years Ago (Gotee/EMI)
Lil’ Baby Jesus is shedding tears in heaven, knowing that boring bands like Relient K are using his name in vain to sell their ultra-sleek and utterly banal brand of mall-punk to home-schooled Midwesterners going through Vicodin withdrawal. Faith-based music begins and ends with Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers singing “That’s Heaven to Me” at Sunday mass, not some New Found Glory-stealing Jesus-campers who probably use these 14 tracks of pure pop-punk hell to send subliminal messages about teen abstinence. 2 (latent homosexuals in the band)/10 (Rev. Erik Leijon) With Sherwood and Mae at Club Soda, Tues., Mar. 13, 8 p.m., $17.50, all ages
 Black Lips
Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo Vice/Warner
I hear about another band purporting that they’re going to put garage rock back on the map, I swear I’m going to start swinging. It’s doubtful Black Lips are going to blow up either, but this faux live-in-Mexico record stomps like a good Pebbles comp, and just before things get bogged down in retro posturing, add a heaping amount of white noise, reverb-drenched vocals and feedback. Black Lips straddle the line, with appeal for the garage snobs as well as those who wouldn’t know the Pretty Things from Spacemen. 7.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Dean & Britta
Back Numbers (Zoe/Rounder)
Recently married, and divorced from their old band Luna, Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips enlisted producer Tony Visconti for this commendable sophomore album. The duo’s compositions dominate this record, as opposed to their cover-heavy debut, 2003’s L’Aventura, though their version of Lee Hazelwood’s “You Turned My Head Around” is a highlight here. Luna’s Velvet Underground-derived riffs are absent, replaced by softer guitar work in cahoots with genteel synths, vibraphone and other tools of the dream pop trade. If these two ever reproduce, they’ve got lullabies a-plenty. 7.5 (LC) At Main Hall on Sat., March 10, 9 p.m., $20
Heart & Soul
Pulsar to P.U.L.S.A.R.
(Natacha’s Recordings)
Le Peuplier de Simon
Cheers to the Seasons
(Natacha’s Recordings)
This week, local label/collective Natacha’s celebrates five years of testing the boundaries between experimental electronics, psych jams and indie pop with a humble, handmade sensibility, and their birthday party boasts some neat new releases. Heart & Soul (Jacob Chelkowski and Natacha’s co-founder Léon Lo) have a go at synth-heavy, home-style house-capades, nodding shamelessly at Kraftwerk, Moroder and John Carpenter’s early film scores, while the disc by le Peuplier de Simon (co-founder number two Simon Bélair) comes off like a sonic zoom on a day in the life of a cybernetic sea-monkey colony. Lo and Bélair also scored a short animated film, The Tale of the Deceptive Dog, which they’ll launch as the label’s first DVD at their party this weekend. Oh, and cake, costumes and cotton candy are also on the agenda. Both 7/10 (Rupert Bottenberg) CD/DVD launches with DJ Cyan, DJ Debbie Wayne at Zoobizarre, Sat., Mar. 10, 10 p.m., pay what you can
 Deweare
High Class Trauma (Milagro/Outside)
Hailing from Verdun (the one in France, eh), Montreal-based Franck Deweare may sing in English, but there’s no denying his slick, sexy, sun-deprived Euro-cool. A penchant for the sounds of sinful ’70s cinema adds substantial flavour to the velvety, midnight-blue funk-rock and baroque, brandy-scented bubblegum bump that the eminently understated Deweare and his cohorts Jean-Phi Goncalves and Alex McMahon deliver. Numbers like the unstoppable “Swallow” and “The New Dawn,” with the bluesy pipes of Betty Bonifassi of Belleville/Champion fame, are hard to shake once they’ve eased their way into your head. 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
Amon Tobin
Foley Room (Ninja Tune/Outside)
Amon Tobin is perhaps best known for transporting us to musical worlds unknown, pushing the listener’s aural experience to its furthest limits, while still infusing things with a depth of artistry and originality. Foley Room finds its conceptual basis in recording raw materials from nature, everyday life and a handpicked array of musicians, sounds which Tobin samples, dismembers and deconstructs into an unapologetic and very difficult listen. This is panoramic mayhem over the course of 12 tracks, challenging all who dare to embrace yet another side of this evolving talent. 7/10 (Scott C)
 Pretty Ricky
Late Night Special(Warner)
The four-brother, Miami-based quartet Pretty Ricky attempt to fill the void left by missing-in-action male vocal bands like Jodeci. But unlike that group, Pretty Ricky ups the ante with some blunt sex talk that leaves nothing to the imagination. Combining melodic vocals with a rapid-fire rap style, the brothers tackle everything from phone sex (“On the Hotline”) to sexual positions (“Love Like Honey”) with a gusto that would make R. Kelly blush. There is some fun, albeit safer, stuff here—the club jam “Push It Baby” swings with an infectious island groove—but mostly, Ricky’s rhythms get lost below the waistline, and that ain’t so pretty. 5.5/10 (Gerard Dee)
 Antibalas
Security
(Anti/FAB)
An ironic title, given that the fifth album from NYC’s dozen-strong Afro-beat revival machine leaves the safe turf of Fela Kuti’s funky template. Yes, the polyrhythms and politically charged chants, snaking basslines and thunderous horns remain intact, and at well over 10 minutes, “Filibuster X” could be straight outta mid-’70s Lagos, Nigeria. But hold on, John McEntire of Tortoise is in the producer’s chair here, so serious jazz tangents (“Age”), varied tempos and textures (“Sanctuary”) and challenging experiments in instrumentation and melody (“I.C.E.” and the fearsome opener “Beaten Metal”) are in the cards. 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
Brian Browne
Quiet Night
(independent)
Lorraine Desmarais
Live: Club Soda
(Analekta)
Welcome new releases from a pair of veteran Canadian pianists. Browne is an icon who lives in Ottawa and once studied with Oscar Peterson. On this eight-track outing, he’s joined by bassist Paul Novotny and drummer Bruce Philp. The well-chosen material here includes “Django,” Stevie Wonder’s “All in Love Is Fair” and a pair of superb originals, “Beautiful Creatures” and the funky “’Til the Cows Come Home.” Lorraine’s trio, with guests Tiger Okoshi and Michel Cusson, was captured live on an inspired night here in Montreal. A return to her “Bluesy Busy Lovers” is a highlight, but don’t miss their look at Jerome Kern’s “Yesterdays,” Tiger’s adaptation of the traditional Japanese piece “Kagome Kagome” or the groove set on “St. Louis Blues.”
Both 9/10 (Len Dobbin)
Mini CD Reviews
Arab Strap
Ten Years of Tears
(Chemikal Underground)
Relatively upbeat alternate versions and unreleased tracks relieve
the depression on this career-spanning comp by Scotland’s top sad bastards.
8 (LC)
Rwake
Voices of Omens
(Relapse/Koch)
These acid-gobbling metalheads pierce between the lobes, but their hallucinatory state quickly dissolves before the vicious male/female vocal onslaught.
8 (JC)
Various
Johnny Greenwood Is the Controller
(Trojan/Sanctuary)
The Radiohead guitarist dives deep into the Trojan vaults, and comes up with some serious dub-reggae gold.
7.5 (RB)
Comeback Kid
Broadcasting…
(Smallman/Warner)
Replacing old vocalist Scott Wade with their guitarist on the mic has had no effect on the Winnipeg quartet’s hardcore sound.
7/10 (EL) At Foufounes Électriques, Sat., Mar. 10, 8 p.m., $15
Bright Eyes
Four Winds EP
(Saddle Creek)
With an LP on the way (due April 10), the Omaha crew offers a pale variety pack of country rock, chamber pop, sad-boy ballads and “cartoon blues.”
6.5 (LC)
Hellogoodbye
Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs!
(Drive-Thru/Sanctuary)
A less shameful alternative for closeted Panic! At the Disco fans.
5 (EL)
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