December 2005
Record
Nine Black Alps
Prodigy
Mylo
The Sounds
Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan
Audio Bullys
Half-Handed Cloud
The M's
The Advantage
The Seconds
Black Wire
She Wants Revenge
Grand National
Mates of State
Lady Sovereign
Polysics
Reviews
Nine Black Alps
Everything Is
Interscope
This is one of my favorite records this year so far. Nine Black Alps is a
band that is from England but sounds American. It's like heavy rock that should
be liked by the punks. Right away "Get Your Guns" is like a Nirvana track.
"Cosmopolitan" is more angular and has more in common with bands like The Rakes
and Maximo Park. "Not Everyone" is more like Nirvana. Grunge is back!
"Unsatisfied" reminds me of early Placebo. One of the best songs is "Headlights." It
is a song that combines heavy rock with Beatles-like melody. They even have
one or two acoustic numbers like "Behind Your Eyes" which is fairly cool. More
big sound rock fills the rest of the album. "Everybody Is" changes the tempo
a bit. Every song on this disc is worthwhile. This is a strong debut.
Hopefully this catches on.
Prodigy
Their Law: The Singles 1990-2005
XL Recordings
Prodigy is one of the most important dance music groups of all time. They
combined heavy rock with hiphop beats and changed history. Where the Chemical
Brothers failed, Prodigy succeeded. Prodigy's album "Fat of The Land" was number
one worldwide, even in America. The only British bands to do this are Prodigy
and Radiohead. Prodigy have had many imitators. Those results seem dated now.
Prodigy somehow has still remained fresh. Songs like "Firestarter" and
"Breathe" still have that impact they once had back in the day. This disc brings
older songs like "Charly" and "Poison" together with newer ones like "Girls"
and "Spitfire." The intensity doesn't let up. This recording is two discs
long. It adds new unreleased tracks. It has a good booklet that comes along with
the package. The DVD of all the videos is amazing. This is one of the most
successful British bands of the last ten years. Hopefully they will play more
shows. Their recent appearance in the Coachella was a highlight.
Mylo
Destroy Rock and Roll
RCA Records
I was hanging out with my friend Kaz Gamble (Cooler Kids) in the studio last
summer. He was in the UK for a while. He showed me all the latest and
greatest. The Mylo record was one of the ones he picked out. This record is as
exciting as Daft Punk and LCD Soundsystem. Since it has caused so much buzz in
Europe, I guess that is why it's on a big label, RCA, not really known for its
roster of dance acts. RCA? I think of the Strokes, Stellastarr*, and Kings of Leon,
and so on. Mylo must feel hip to that. Mixing up genres: it is the future. I
recommend it. This may the cool record to have.
The Sounds
Dying To Say This To You
New Line Records
Just when you forgot about bands from Sweden, here come back The Sounds. They
have the potential to be as big as Blondie, or even The Cardigans. Their
first album had a few megahits and some forgettable numbers. This one doesn't have
that stand out track, but seems like a much better album. The Sounds have
been able to make an album that is interesting all the way through. Recently they
came to California and did some surprise shows and knocked them dead. Here
are some cool songs like "Song With A Mission" and "Paint By Numbers." My
favorite so far is "Ego." It almost has a Madonna/Abba feel to it. It's like Abba
doing a punk song. The Sounds will always have those new wave connotations
because they use so much 1980s synth sounds. It's a pretty cool follow up album.
It should be popular with the kids.
Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan
Ballad of The Broken Seas
V2
One of the first albums of the year is upon us. This strange pairing seems
like weird dream. Isobel Campbell was in Belle & Sebastian and the band has
suffered since she left. She did one solo record that was pretty good. Mark
Lanegan is from Screaming Trees/Queens of The Stone Age. He also did a solo album
last year that was pretty interesting. Like some of their heroes, such as Nick
Cave, Tom Waits, and Leonard Cohen, it is time both of these artists did
something with both female and male vocals. It comes off sounding like an indie Lee
& Nancy record. There is folk sound. There is a spaghetti western vibe on a
few songs. One of the best songs is "The False Husband." There is a Hank
Williams cover. "Come Walk With Me?" has a nursery rhyme about it. This album
really goes from strength to strength. It is a brilliant experiment. I look forward
to the live show. I can ignore the new B&S record coming out this month.
Audio Bullys
Generation
Astralwerks
This is the latest from the London group. They are the English equivalent to
Daft Punk. Techno music has become more underground in the past few years, and
has probably suffered more from illegal downloads. It has also been a time
for mediocre albums by Moby and Fatboy Slim, who you used to be able to count
on. The Prodigy's latest was only slightly. It's up to Audio Bullys to be
relevant in 2006, almost twenty years after the dance craze took over. We have a
track "Keep On Moving" which kind of sums up their philosophy. The rapping
reminds me more of The Streets. "Shot You Down" which features Nancy Sinatra
precedes this. This is a brilliant track. This album covers hiphop and electro.
It's funny when you hear these British guys rapping because it is so different.
There was a British B-boy thing in the 1980s and it expanded into bands like
Massive Attack and Prodigy. This is the latest flavor. The track with Suggs
from Madness "This Road" is very cool. This is a band to check.
Half-Handed Cloud
Halos & Lassos
Asthmatic Kitty
This is supposed to be like Outsider Art. The album cover has drawings like
Henry Darger. A guy named John Ringhofer did this record. He is a custodian in
a church. He also plays with Sufjan Stevens. It is very childish pop music
with details about life and the Bible. The message is clear: "Never grow up!"
The feeling is like "The world is flat." There are recent studies in science
that disprove this worldview. Man is mortal. Everyone you know will die. Man is
only a minor operation in the process of the cosmos. But being trapped like a
rat, and being in denial, will always fuel music and fantasy. It's like
finding a trapdoor leading to heaven. But it is all a dream anyway. Sometimes the
truth is you are not John Lennon but more like Kato Kaelin. I guess John here is
being ironic with his Casio tunes about childhood and God, with could be a
little like Elephant 6 stuff, but he may be not. And that is where the sad truth
comes in. Half-Handed Cloud could be those "so wrong he is right" type of
things. And all we can do is sit back and laugh at the spectacle of monomania.
Oh, mankind!
The M's
Future Women
Polyvinyl
It's the Chicago band's second record. Even though they are from Chicago,
the singer sounds like he is from the UK. It's a mix between garage rock (the
stooges) and British music (The Kinks). There is a lot of good time sin between.
We have this type of music in NYC and LA, and even Detroit. Now we have the
Midwest flavor coming in. "Shawnee Dupree" is a cool song. This is a band that
might be really good live. The album is fairly good overall. These guys could
be something very important.
The Advantage
Elf-titled
5 Rue Christine
The Advantage is a band that is getting a lot of attention right now. They
are really talented musicians. It is a mix of rock, progressive music and jazz.
This is a little like Frank Zappa. It's very spacey. It's jamming. It sounds
totally original. Some titles like "Metroid" and "Double Dragon" suggest
video games and a tip of the hat to King Crimson, and other far out rockers.
Amazing stuff!
The Seconds
Kratitude
5 Rue Christine
When I was living in Williamsburg in 2000, The Seconds were the most
happening band there. They were the future. They were the most exciting band I had
ever seen. Then they broke up for a while, and one of them went to graduate
school. In the meantime some new bands like The Strokes and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
showed up. I thought what happened to The Seconds? Brian Chase was in one of
those bands. It seemed like the pure Brooklyn music scene was over. There were a
lot of pretenders. It's good to see The Seconds back in action. They have come
back for their mantle. This record is experimental, frantic, intense, and
happy go lucky. The rhythms are complex. There is some repetition. Some ideas of
trance-like states are explored. I am reminded of Philip Glass. Great stuff.
This is one of the best of the year.
Black Wire
Black Wire
Giant Pecker
Black Wire is the latest group from Leeds. My friend Andrea made me a
compilation of new British bands from 2005. Black Wire was one of the bands to
immediately stand out. They are three guys with a drum machine. They have more in
common with some post-punk bands than the recent crops of British rock. They are
a combination of aggressive rock and dance music. That is why they have
probably played with bands as diverse as Ladytron and The Arctic Monkeys. There is
something really appealing about the song "The Face." Other stand out tracks
are "Smoke And Mirrors" and "Hard To Love Easy To Lay." This band may seem
weird, but they seem to have a lot of potential.
She Wants Revenge
She Wants Revenge
Geffen
This band came out of nowhere to be a major act and to make people notice.
Justin Warfield used to be in Tape, and he was known to be a collaborator with
Placebo. Adam 12 is some DJ that hangs out in LA. It could be some weird studio
project but these guys make some catchy music. They are the fastest rising
band since The Killers, The Bravery, and Louis XIV. Like those bands, there was
a lot of pre-release buzz generated by the internet and radio stations. They
sound like a goth band at times. One song sounds like Interpol. I saw them play
with The Kills last year and they were interesting. They are influenced by
new wave bands of the early 1980s, which is very trendy right now. So there is a
big backlash. Some people are going to love and so not. It is interesting
music. It's what the people want. The people have spoken.
Grand National
Kicking the National Habit
Sunday Best
Last year there were all these bands with "wolf" in the name. Now we have
National Trust, The national, and here Grand National. Not all these are
American bands either. This record is a fine one. It's very raw and expressive. But
one thing stands out: the lead singer sounds like Sting of The Police. I know
Lou Reed and Ian Curtis have become cooler over time. But Sting has always been
a twat. His voice is really annoying to my ears. The Police were one of those
over-rated bands, and I was glad when they broke up in 1983. But I hope this
bold fact doesn't hinder Grand National because I know some people are going
to dig it. Let's see how they do.
Mates of State
Bring It Back
Barsuk
Mates of State used to be a Bay Area band. I used to see them listed on the
schedule for Noise Pop every year. I didn't actually see them until early in
2005 when they played with Smoosh. I thought Mates of State was a really
original band. They only have two members. There is a boy on drums and vocals and a
girl on vocals and keyboards. All their records sound wonderful. But there live
show was very static. That is what happens when you have a lead singer that
plays piano. Hopefully they will add more members in the future. I like songs
here like "Fraud in the 80s." "Beautiful Dreamer" reminds me of Elephant 6
stuff. "What It Means" is like The Beatles. It's a pretty amazing journey.
Lady Sovereign
Vertical Challenge
Chocolate Industries
I have been hearing about this record for a long time. There were a bunch of
articles about Lady Sovereign. So this was supposed to be a big deal then. We
have been hearing about all these people from rough neighborhoods around
London. I don't know what the big deal is. Even though this is a cool record, I
don't think it's as happening as M.I.A. and The Go! Team. Since you never hear
about this record anymore means that it didn't really catch on. There will be no
upscale signing to Interscope. But on the other hand this might be a cool
record to discover in years to come. This is too much of a remix album to be
considered a proper first album. There are always those cool underground records
that are loved by some. This record may be too ahead of its time.
Alexander Laurence
