Disc of the week

Dengue Fever
Venus on Earth (M80)
The Dengue Fever formula for a unique strain of rockin’, revisionist exotica is a demanding one. The L.A. quintet has resurrected pre-Pol Pot Cambodia’s psychedelic soul à gogo in a Khmer vernacular, and thickened the plot with hints of Afro brass and spaghetti Western gravitas. They defined their sound on their debut Escape From Dragon House, a smash hit in world-music circles, so this follow-up finds them clarifying it with a cool confidence. While guitarist Zac Holtzman’s knack for carefully crafted tunes lay the foundation, it’s Chhom Nimol’s sinuous vocals, often hitting a gooseflesh crest, that seal the deal. 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Sheryl Crow
Detours (Interscope/Universal)
Wanting to recapture her lost glory as a sharp-witted ’90s songwriter, Sheryl Crow has re-enlisted Tuesday Night Music Club producer/collaborator Bill Bottrell to remind her she was once a struggling folk singer. The truth is her sophomore record was the real masterpiece—a triumph of incomprehensible beat poetry—yet she never had the courage to continue down that path, and she’s regressed as a songwriter since then. As such, Detours adequately emulates the communal, unrehearsed vibe of her debut. It’s just that lyrically, she’s become another disillusioned American hoping to end the Iraq War through song.
5.5/10 (Erik Leijon)

Jason Collett
Here’s to Being Here (Arts & Crafts)
Anyone who lived through the ’70s and ’80s, or who’s familiar with the country/folk-informed rock and pop that occupied the airwaves during those decades, may be tempted to stop Jason Collett, because we have heard this one before. Broken Social Scene’s urban cowboy, backed by his band Paso Mino, has made a pleasant enough sophomore album, echoing the likes of latter-day Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Neil Young, George Harrison, Lou Reed and Bryan Ferry with a light touch and a hearty twang. If this fails to make lite-rock radio, it’ll be proof that payola is alive and well. 6.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

Adele
19 (XL/Select)
With influences from the worlds of classic blues, contemporary R&B and “alternative” singer-songwriters, this British teen strikes an intriguing balance, and has hit the charts in her native land because of it. Though her arsenal of ballads smack of MOR pop, as does her sometimes laughably distorted diva enunciation, her application of soul to tricky beats and grooves, and her more outré lyrics and arrangements, have the makings of a crossover into credibility. Moreover, constant comparisons to Amy Winehouse, and recent analysis of her camel toe by classy tastemaker Perez Hilton, are about to catapult the young starlet over the Atlantic. (Incoming!) 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

Dead Meadow
Old Growth (Matador/Select)
With Dead Meadow’s latest coming hot on the heels of Black Mountain’s new one, In the Future, these are indeed good times for the beaded and bearded psych set. On the opener “Ain’t Got Nothin’ (To Go Wrong),” Dead Meadow (recently pared down to a three-piece), settle into a gently strummed, Spaceman 3-style drone jam before crossing the pond and taking sharp left turns down twisted Laurel Canyon roads on “The Great Deceiver.” If you are sick of noise mucking up the music of the current crop of psychedelic warlords, then turn this on, clamp on the headphones and mellow down easy. 8.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Brain Drill
Apocalyptic Feasting (Metal Blade)
If in terms of popularity, death metal is truly living up to its name in these noodling prog-metal days, somebody forgot to tell these dudes. Harkening back to the late-’80s Florida scene that birthed Cannibal Corpse, Brain Drill bring some evolution to the genre and manage to out-dazzle their Floridian forefathers with more velocity, technicality and extremity per blast beat. If you want to hear the new voice of death metal, check out “Force Fed Human Shit” and “Gorification.” 7/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Steve Aoki
Pillowface and His Airplane Chronicles (Thrive/Dim Mak)
A West Coast wizard of woo-hoo, the man the call Kid Millionaire comes correct with this disc of refined-grind, squelch-heavy motor disco. L.A. DJ/promoter/producer/label head Aoki applies a slutty swingers-nite formula to his programming, inviting various voices—Kid Sister, Uffie, Pase Rock, Har Mar Superstar—to toss off their two cents over notable nu rave, French re-Touch, residual electroclash and dirty dance-rock du jour—Justice twice, Peaches, Klaxons, Datarock and the like. That said, this set could have used a bit more flexibility in its flow, more funny flavouring to offset the ominous machine thud. 7.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Shad
The Old Prince (Black Box)
Canada needs a new, university student-approved hip hop king now that K-os is a boring rock star, and Wilfred Laurier grad Shad K is the perfect erudite rapper/poet type. Minimally arranged with low-key beats and string samples, and introspective lyrics to complement the sombre atmosphere, The Old Prince maintains an air of mystery throughout. Shad K is disheartened, still living at home, and questioning everything in that meditative university grad kind of way. “The Old Prince Still Lives at Home” and “Compromise” best exemplify his distant, sarcastic lyrical style, and the latter shows his affinity for ’70s soul arrangements. 8.5/10 (Erik Leijon)

Black Sheep
8WM/Novakane (Bum Rush)
Yep, Mr. Lawnge and Dres have parted ways, but that didn’t stop them from releasing what is essentially a Dres solo record under the Black Sheep moniker. Dres (a no-show at this past weekend’s Sneaker Pimps party) even talks about what may be the crux of the split on “Wonder,” where the chorus begs the question, “What happened to us?” It feels like Dres put a lot of himself into this, perhaps to offset the obvious criticisms that this new direction might invite, and the result is fairly entertaining. Dres, who’s comfortable with his flow and still has a sense of humour, is unafraid to include the man he’s become in the music. 7.5/10 (Scott C)

Mario
Go (J/Sony BMG)
Mario’s sophomore effort, 2004’s Turning Point, was supposed to be his boy-into-a-man moment, but it proved too juvenile to really usher him into that phase. So Go takes it a step further, hoping in-your-face vulgarity will prove more sobering than simply trying to sing like an adult. Ironically, the X-rated dialogue that pervades the title track and a few others are the most juvenile moments here. Other tracks, like the clever “Kryptonite” (rapper Rich Boy’s trash-talking interlude notwithstanding) and his Keith Sweat cover “Right and Wrong Way,” cast Mario in a more mature light than a foul mouth ever could.
7/10 (Gerard Dee)

Aphrodesia
Lagos by Bus (Cyberset)
With all the chatter about Vampire Weekend’s Yankee Afro-pop with no claim to authenticity, it’s interesting to turn to Aphrodesia, another American group who make it known that they don’t just own Afro-beat records, but they’ve been there and done that—there’s even a photo in the liner notes that shows them backstage before opening for Femi Kuti in Nigeria. Aphrodesia should take a hint from the Vampire boys and let the music speak for itself because, whether it’s authentic or not, it’s actually quite good. Tracks like “Ochun Mi,” “Agayu” and the short but sweet “Holy Ghost Invasion” would be surefire ways to fill a dancefloor. 8/10 (Erin MacLeod)

Afro Elements
It Remains to Be Seen (Freestyle)
Taking hard cues from George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Earth Wind & Fire and Masters at Work, Afro Elements balances on that delicate tightrope between polished studio funk, soul, Latin jazz-fusion and soulful house and disco. The trio of Simon Bramley, Phil Nelson and Neil Burditt certainly know how they want listeners to feel, tucking away jammers like “Think” featuring Heidi Vogel, and “Lift Your Life” featuring Tyaire and Benny Diggs, right in tight with instant soul classics like “Things You Do” with Gerry Williams. They even manage to snag keyboard legend Jeff Lorber to sit in on “Volcano,” another reason that this record will make you move. 8/10 (Scott C)

François Théberge with Lee Konitz
Soliloque (Effendi/Fusion III)
The leader, a multi-reedman, composer and arranger, is a most important product of the Montreal jazz scene who now lives in France. This is his second recording featuring saxophone giant Lee Konitz who, at 80, remains an improviser of the first rank. The compositional credits are shared between the two and they’re aided by players like Stephane Belmondo, with Mike Felberbaum and Michel Côté among those guesting here. Andy Hamilton’s book with Konitz, Conversations on the Improviser’s Art (University of Michigan Press), is also highly recommended. As in the past, these gentlemen do not disappoint. An early contender for CD of the year! 10/10 (Len Dobbin)

Mini CD Reviews

Carlos Nino & Miguel Atwood-Ferguson “Find a Way” (Dilla Classics) A passionately arranged and orchestrated reinterpretation of the Jay Dee-produced classic, made popular by A Tribe Called Quest. R.I.P.,
J Dilla. 10 (SC)

DJ Craze Fabriclive.38 (Fabric/Fusion III) Coldcut and Cool Kids, Chemies and Chromeo, Crockett and Tubbs collide in this wild, witty romp that never flags, meticulously knitted together by the master turntablist. 9 (RB)

Various Strictly the Best Vol. 38 (VP) I wait patiently for this annual collection of Jamaica’s best cultural tunes and love songs. Pure, warm niceness, a terrific antidote to winter. 9 (EM)

CunninLynguists Dirty Acres (Bad Taste) Southern rap the way it should be—dirty, dreary, derelict and God-fearing. 8.5 (EL)

Shorty Rogers Trumpet Ace, Bandleader, Composer (JSP) They left out “arranger.” This five-CD set of almost 100 tracks, spanning 1946–1954, has the groups of Red Norvo, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Louis Bellson and the Lighthouse All Stars, and many under Shorty’s leadership. 8 (LD)

Chris Joss Teraphonic Overdubs (ESL/Select) Pop-art funkadelica in slinky spy-fi is standard for Thievery Corp.’s label, but Joss raises the bar with this lively, likable release. 7 (RB)

The Details Draw a Distance. Draw a Border (Parliament of Trees) File this Winnipeg band under “melodramatic popular song,” where Bono meets Bright Eyes. 6 (LC)

Ben’s Brother Beta Male Fairytales (Relentless/EMI) The raspiness of Rod Stewart. The effeminacy of James Blunt. The whining of the youngest child. 1 (EL)

>> Music Listings