Guided By Voices Isolation Drills (TVT/Universal)
Church of Misery Master of Brutality (Southern Lord) Operator Generator Polar Fleet (Man's Ruin/Koch) Two masters of doom slog it out here for the thorned crown of heaviosity. COM confuse us a bit at the start with a proclamation of "death to all fake stoners" but we'll let that one go as they are from Japan. Trekking in the path of all things Sabbath, COM write songs about mass murders, John Wayne Gacy, Ed Kemper, Peter Sutcliffe and Herbert Mullin and lay down the leaden riffs that seem plucked straight from the plastic fingertips of Tony Iommi. Operator Generator get more on the Kyuss tip and let the jams do the walking with a bit of prog thrown in. The Sabbath references are a bit obscure at first but after singer Mitchell French's nasal twang is thrown over top we're back to Ozzy's stomping ground. Two great doom releases just in time for spring. Both 9/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Skindive self-titled (Palm Pictures/Outside) I was told I would like this theme-epic electroni-rock troop from Ireland. After the first two tracks, their hooks had laid waste to all barriers and they've only sunk in deeper with every listen. Rambling film-dialogue samples, funky drum loops and other creepy sounds swirl in the murk behind fuzzy bass and hole-ripping guitar chunks, offset by horn blasts and soundtrack melodrama provided by the Irish Film Orchestra. Tracks such as "Salt Peter," "Skindive," the goosebumping "Space Age Lullaby" and the ginormously overwhelming "Confession" will leave you gasping for air. 8.5/10 (Lateef Martin)
Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra Liberation Afrobeat Vol. 1 (Ninja Tune/Outside) There's definitely something different about the Antibalas Orchestra. Fifteen strong and playing music that makes them sound even bigger than that may have something to do with it. Cranking out songs that speak with rolling thunder, liberation, insurrection and unrest, this band pumps out the genuine Afrobeat sound peppered with lyrics in English, Spanish and Yoruba. This record is a reissue of something the band had put out independently a while back, but was unavailable to a lot of the very people they wanted to reach. Leave it to Ninja to bring you something else that can only be classified as great music, and watch closely for future Antibalas releases. 8.5/10 (Scott C) Pilote Doitnowman (Certificate 18/Fusion III) Continuing to break away from their usual drum & bass, Certificate 18 release a second album of strange noises and chill little beats from Pilote, aka Brighton, England's Stuart Cullen. Intriguing track names like "Paul Oakenfold" and "French Canadian" draw you into an essential release for fans of Boards of Canada who want their drums a little more cut up and warped--or fans of Jega who want their drums a little less cut up and warped. Though not absolutely brilliant as a track by track listen, Doitnowman is great for doing weird stuff in your house, like hiding behind your couch or scuba diving in the bath. 7/10 (Chris Hatherill) Various Bombay One (Bombay/Koch)
Blake Baxter Dreamsequence III: The Collective (Tresor/Fusion III) A weird and winding trip through just about every dance music genre known to man, Dreamsequence III is as mysterious as the man who made it. Though not a household name, Baxter preceded legends like Derrick May, and was once called Detroit's "most underrated figure." No less prolific than the rest of them, he went on to record for a whole bunch of labels, and this latest album shows it. Two CDs ranging from porno downtempo to house, techno, booty and even a minimal hip hop track where a guy just goes "Yo, yo, yo... yo, yo." Interesting, but not essential. 7.5/10 (Chris Hatherill)
Serge Gainsbourg/Various I S Serge (Mercury/Universal)
Shuggie Otis Inspiration Information (Luakabop/EMI) Oh, the ballad of Shuggie Otis. You know how it goes. "Shuggie could've been this," and "Shuggie would've been that." It's the classic tale of the enormously gifted artist who had all the potential to knock the music-buying public on its ear, but naturally the record was "too stubbornly unique for the rock marketplace of 1974," as it says in the liner notes. Shuggie Otis was a seriously talented arranger and composer in the early '70s who was on par with guys like Sly Stone. It's a shame the bottom fell out then, when he was creating classics like the title track and "Strawberry Letter 23." These are real rare grooves and California soul, reissued just for you. 8/10 (Scott C) Ani DiFranco Revelling/Reckoning (Righteous Babe/Festival) This self-produced double disc, DiFranco's 13th album on her label, is an ambitious, moody epic that dips into several roots genres, partly with a full band and partly with her characteristic soulful vocals and acoustic guitar. Both discs feature songs about love and politics but the musical influences on Revelling range from funk to blues to jazz, showcasing all variety of guitars, keys and woodwinds. Reckoning, the more introspective and sparse flipside, exhibits DiFranco's love of folk more fully. While it's easy to admire DiFranco's skill, her quirky, folky, singer-songwriter aura will remain elusive to most, but will be cherished by devotees. 6.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter) Yolanda Adams The Experience (Warner)
If you've never heard Yolanda Adams live, then you've never heard Yolanda Adams. Her studio albums are always a well-crafted gospel experience, but she earns her rep as queen of contemporary gospel when she lets you have it live. Recorded at New York's legendary Beacon Theater, The Experience is a combination of older material and cuts from her most recent set Mountain High, Valley Low. She throws in a cover of R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly," with Gerald Levert, for good measure. 8.5/10
David Binnet South (ACT/Fusion III) Reedman Binney, on alto and soprano saxes, has been a frequent visitor to Montreal on his own or with the group Lan Xang. Appreciation of this first-class player is ever-expanding and should continue to do so as he is now a member of guitarist Jim Hall's quartet. This sextet outing is top- drawer and Binney's playing and writing are abetted by his choice of musical companions--Chris Potter, Adam Rogers, Uri Caine, Scott Colley and either Brian Blade or Jim Black. 9/10 (Len Dobbin) At Bistro Duluth, Sat.--Sun., April 14--15. Various Hollywood Goes Wild! (RPM/Song)
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Along with brethren band the Bel Rays, the Streetwalkin' Cheetahs can now boast about being the only other L.A. band that matters. While the current crop of rockers rewrite the first Nashville Pussy record, the Cheetahs put the pedal to the metal and deliver the goods with sweat, blood, piss, vinegar and a truckload of melody. Guitars are pushed to the limits, where they should be, and vocals are screaming for vengeance. Just bashing away at the same old Johnny Thunders chords would make this a pretty boring listen but on songs like "No More," "Automatic" and "Lookout" these boys have a heartful of napalm under their vests and more than just a passing fancy for the glory years of Cheap Trick. The Saints cover, "Know Your Product," is fucking great, but the soul strut of "Dirty Mockingbird" is unstoppable. 9.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)
Yes, it's another album from Ohio's favourite teenage band--teenage meaning they've been at it since Britney was in diapers. However, GBV has yet to be afflicted with maturity: Doug Gillard's ballsy riffing and frontman Bob Pollard's head-bopping pop melodies are as immediate as a sugar rush. Some complex song structures and intricate guitar melodies reveal the level of experience these songwriters/musicians have, but they have neither softened nor gone muso. A pack of pop tunes ("Glad Girls") contrast the depressive fare ("How's My Drinking"), but both styles are nicely crafted and worthy of repeated listens. 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)
Your journey has taken you from Montreal to the shores of Calcutta, up river to the arid Gangetic plain, from New Delhi and Jaipur to the Deccan plateau and, finally, to the isle of Bombay at the edge of the Arabian Sea. It's hot, but a zephyr is gently rustling through the palms and you find refuge on a hammock in the shade. Off in the distance you can hear the soothing tribal beats of sultry, tropical house music inspired by your glorious surroundings. It's the Bombay One mix CD, featuring tunes from the masters, Derrick Carter and Chris Nazuka, KemeticJust and the man himself, Miguel Graça, all seamlessly mixed by Montreal via Bombay's Nav & Patrick Dream. 9/10 (Krista)
Serge Gainsbourg/Various Pop Sessions (Mercury/Universal)
A two-front tribute to the late "French, Jewish Isaac Hayes," elegant pervert and popcrafter par excellence. Pop Sessions sees some leading lights of current French pop (les Ritas, Pierpoljak, Rachid Taha) big-upping Serge in a live setting. Ranging from awful to merely passable, these covers only shine when handled by a pair of Gainsbourg's contemporaries, Françoise Hardy and Jane Birkin. The remix disc, I X Serge, fares better, though these clubby types (the Orb, Chateau Flight, Bob Sinclar) tend toward the '70s reggae/disco material, not Serge's finest work. Exceptions include Howie B. tackling "Melody Nelson" and dZihan & Kamien's go at "Je t'aime... moi, non plus." More satisfying, in that it builds on the originals rather than detracting from them. Pop Sessions 7.5/10, I X Serge 8/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)
Charity-driven anthologies like this one are always a mixed bag, with the good cause itself--here a sanctuary for mistreated and injured exotic animals--helping to wash down some of the less savoury numbers. In with the good (Russell Crowe and Mare Winningham) are the terrible (Juliette Lewis, why did you do this?), the funny (Brad Pitt, from his Johnny Suede stint) to the absolutely great (Billy Bob Thornton, believe it or not). Some fun listening, but there's still no supergroup here. 7/10 (Matthew Hays)