The rumours are true--it does sound (and even look, a bit) like Circa: Now and The State of the Art Is On Fire. Those early efforts, to my mind, confirmed RFTC as an extraordinary force within rock 'n' roll, a diamond-hard compression of the genre's historic glories. The last joint, RFTC, was disconcertingly clean and anaemic, more so even than the preceding Scream, Dracula, Scream, leading the faithful to murmur the unspeakable: rock 'n' roll's last white buffalo, these furious twilight champions of beer, sweat and Brylcreme, were locked in orbital decay. "Au contraire," howls the fierce, retaliatory Group Sounds. No punches are pulled as the lacerating guitars and imperious, jackhammer brass blaze ahead at full tilt. A bristling, volatile, recklessly grand return to form, no apologies and no idle threats. 10/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
Black Box Recorder The Facts of Life (Jetset)
Various Monokini (Monochrome/Fusion III)
Snake River Conspiracy Sonic Jihad (Reprise/Warner)
Various Electro Funk Breakdown (DMC/Song) It came as a surprise a few years ago when it was revealed that Afrika Bambaataa (who mixed this CD) was playing at raves in New York, mixing up everything from old-school electro to new-school drum & bass. Overhyped as he often is, you have to respect the fact that he's at least kept up with the times while keeping that early rap/electro vibe central in whatever he's doing. Electro Funk Breakdown finds him breaking down electro funk from a bunch of unknown, presumably U.S. breakbeat guys while also mixing in U.K. all-stars like Motion Unit and Ceasefire. Perfect for your next early '80s-style impromptu block-the-street party, as featured in Ghostbusters. 8.5/10 (Chris Hatherill) Lone Catalysts Hip Hop (BUKA/Nice)
Various Y4K (Distinctive Breaks) On the first few listens this superb mix of London's breakbeat underground sounds a bit on the sterile side, with occasional over-the-top cheese thrown in. Wailing vocals? Samples from The Matrix?! More minimal new-school breaks? Then it really starts to grow on you. "Red Pill," featuring Laurence Fishburne discussing the difference between pill effects, lodges firmly in your brain. The opening vocal track transforms from irritating embarrassment to all-out emotional singalong, and everything else then falls nicely into place. Sneaky. Brilliant and sneaky. 9/10 (Chris Hatherill) Various Sessions Vol. 3 (Afterhours/Song) Aterhours is a Chi-town label that first rose to prominence in the mid-'90s and served as a sonic stomping ground for nu-school housers like Johnny Fiasco, Rick Garcia and Roy Davis Jr. Sessions Vol. 3 is the latest opportunity to sample their varied wares over two discs. The first one is an unmixed collection that features diva-fied lung action with a twist of soul, and harder-edge material for those ecstatic carpet rides on the dancefloor, if ya know what I mean. The second disc is a 13-cut mix-off performed by the prolific Ron Caroll. Gospel-leaning vocals, disco-ish filterd loops and stripped-bare tribal quakers figure prominently in this high-octane set. For serious house junkies. 7.5/10 (Peter Lightburn) Various Every Tone a Testimony (Smithsonian Folkways)
Kristin Hersh Sunny Border Blue (4AD/Select) This former Throwing Muses frontwoman is admittedly possessed by an endless stream of twisted poetry, presented here to the tune of solid, largely acoustic alterna-pop. Not only did Hersh play all the instruments, but the disc is also entirely self-produced and self-penned, besides a cover of Cat Stevens' "Trouble." Don't mistake this for flaky folk fare--Hersh's raw, emotive words and voice match the intensity of the music, which becomes aggressive when the feeling is right. On the other hand, this isn't angry primal screaming--these songs retain a certain radio-friendliness despite their brutal honesty. 8/10 (Lorraine Carpenter) The Sadies Tremendous Efforts (Bloodshot/Outside)
Soulive Doin' Something (Blue Note/EMI)
Kirk MacDonald New Beginnings (Radioland/Universal) This superb, Nova-Scotia-born reedman is now a heavy hitter on the Toronto jazz scene. After studies at Berklee and with Don Palmer and Lee Konitz, he enlivened the Montreal jazz arena with some memorable playing. On this just-released 1998 session, he's joined by Lorne Lofsky, Brian Dickinson, Neil Swainson, Jerry Fuller and the lesser-known Rob Smith, a trumpeter. A Swainson composition is here along with seven beauties from the leader. One of the Canadian jazz albums of the year, this one was nominated for both the Juno and the new Indie awards. 10/10 (Len Dobbin) At Lion d'Or on Sun., March 25, 8pm, $15-18 |
Casting off the outwardly sinister themes of their 1999 debut England Made Me, this British trio (founded by the Auteurs' Luke Haines) exposes some of the universal, mundane quirks of budding adult life. These familiar tales retain their dark aura with Sarah Nixey's whispery Queen's English and a minimal, mid-tempo pop noir sound. With gentle strings, synths, xylophones and the lurking sound of whistling wind, a comparison to low-key Saint Etienne and All Saints, with a hint of horror-movie scores, wouldn't be out of order. One highlight is the title track, a pop gem with clichéd hip hop synths which doubles as a soft slice of sex ed. 9.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Monochrome's a new Montreal label on the avant-retro tip, clearly stated by this collection of modernized takes on familiar '60s French pop gems--you know, Gainsbourg, Hardy, Dutronc et al. Fully half the dozen tracks here are by acts from Quebec, but then three of those are by the label's in-house Monochrome Orchestra. There's also contributions from Brazil, the States and Germany--Stereo Total, a requisite inclusion, and Riviera, whose "Toute Toute Ma Chérie" challenges Pizzicato 5's recent version. Understandably, though, the winner here is the authentic French duo Ravel-Chapuis and their go at Dalida's "Paroles Paroles." 7.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
This is a welcomed change from the Orgys and other angry techno bands of the world. With elements of Curve and Garbage, SRC slither in creepily on the left with opener "Breed" and slam you hard with a thick-riffed chorus, giving the impression that this is an album full of hard techno, breaks and heavy riffage, when in fact it's mostly sweet pop. Vocalist Tobey and programmer Jason make solid tracks with an edge of menacing techno and a river of rage swarming under a shiny pop veneer. Includes a cover of the Cure's "Lovesong." 8/10 (Lateef Martin)
Pittsburgh's Lone Catalysts are not a new name to the dozens of backpackers who make a point of copping indie mix tapes on the regular, but they may not be familiar to most. The team of J. Rawls and J. Sands are working their craft from the heart, insisting on sick beats and vastly superior rhymes as their platform. As with a lot of cats who love this shit, no work is put into pushing their image, leaving only the songs to speak volumes about where they're coming from, a place that's real, identifiable and a pleasure to listen to. 8.5/10 (Scott C)
The oral traditions of African-Americans are an inheritance from the African griots, members of the village who kept history alive by word of mouth. They were the forerunners of the poets and political activists of African-American culture. This unique double disc set offers a stellar cross-section of some of the voices that kept the people moving: Langston Hughes, Booker T. Washington, Sojurner Truth, W.E.B. Du Bois, Angela Davis and other giants. From slavery to civil rights, these are some of the oral testimonies that kept hope alive. 9/10 (Gerard Dee)
Funny title, given the lazy confidence with which these cats truck on through the tunes on this Albini-engineered platter. The Sadies are among Canada's leading roots revisionists: two members, the Good brothers, are C&W pedigree and detour stints backing up Neko Case and André Williams (in town this week, but Sadie-less) further the case. Passing on the obvious murder ballads and drunken laments favoured elsewhere in y'all-ternative territory, they aren't above throwing a sudden Stones-y garage-rock number at you. The shit that really shines, though, are the instrumentals, real stoned-on-the-range stuff like "The Creepy Butler" or the amazing "Empty the Chamber." Spaghetti-esque, sure, but nice and al dente, damn it. Guests include Wilco's Bob Egan and a whole gang of Good kinfolk--must've been a shotgun wedding in town that week. 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
A few months back, this freshly dressed trio sauntered into town for a show at Le Swimming that simply shook the foundations of the power jazz trio concept. Now signed to Blue Note, Eric Krasno, Neal Evans and his brother Alan are killin' it with their first real chance to reach all kinds of people. Jazz, funk, soul and hip hop all meld into one tightly wrapped suckerpunch that is impossible to sit still to, let alone ignore. The heroes of new/old music have been revealed in Antibalas, Breakestra and now Soulive. 9/10 (Scott C)