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Category: Reviews

  • DJ YODA: FABRICLIVE 39

    DJ YODA: FABRICLIVE 39

    The Fabric nightclub in London is one of the capital’s hottest venues. Many international DJs hit this club, which prides itself on its very broad music policy. The range of music played inside can be sampled by perusing the FabricLive Mix Series selection of releases, of which this is the 39th episode. DJ Yoda is in the house this time, and he takes full advantage of the huge palette afforded him.

    DJ YODA

    FABRICLIVE 39

    Fabric

    2008-05-13

    The London-born DJ Yoda has carved a reputation over the years for his eclectic and slightly comic style. He is the self-proclaimed “DJ Shadow with a sense of humour”. From his early How to Cut and Paste mixes (volumes one and two), DJ Yoda has eschewed the regular turntablist rules in favour of a diverse, surreal, and sometimes downright silly set list. This release is no exception. On FabricLive 39 DJ Yoda ferrets through a dust-covered music library at a feverish pace, leaving no dust jacket unturned. On this ultimate party record, we are treated to a bunch of old school and modern rap “choons”. Interspersed with these are such diverse gems as a brass version of Marvin Gaye’s “Sexual Healing”, the Violent Femmes’ “Blister in the Sun”, and the ubiquitous “E.V.A.” by Jean-Jacques Perrey.

    There are so many places where DJ Yoda could slip up due to his rediculously mixed-up mix, but he only really stumbles in the opening round of this particular set. The pompous overture of “Intro/Requiem” doesn’t set the scene. There is no sense of fun here. This opener is overly grandiose and its unnecessary additional beats in “Blister in the Sun” are jarring. The mix into Skibadee’s “Ticka Tock” comes over as amateurish, largely due to this superfluous drum track. When they meet, the three parts just don’t go. However, after this slightly bumpy start, the album is a real treat.

    FabricLive 39 is not quite up to the same comedy standard as the How to Cut and Paste mixes but it is a damn fine snapshot of a party night out. If you need a CD to just throw on and forget about during your summer soirée then you can’t go far wrong with this one. Unless, of course, you wanted to go into the back catalogue of DJ Shadow, particularly his work with Cut Chemist. This release doesn’t really stack up if compared with the likes of Product Placement or even any of the How to Cut and Paste volumes.

    Unless you are using such releases as a mix tape for a party, they have a sort of “you had to be there” factor. This can sometimes be a bit difficult to translate into a listenable album in the cold light of day. That said, this release is a record in the truest sense: a record of an event. Like a photograph, it allows you to relive the event if you were there, and live vicariously through others if you weren’t. If you just want to pretend that you are a superstar DJ, then slap this CD into your player, stand behind your decks, and dream away.

    The review was originally posted on popmatters.com

    The review was originally posted on popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/dj-yoda-fabriclive-39-2496119358.html
  • THE DEATH SET: WORLDWIDE

    THE DEATH SET: WORLDWIDE

    Eighteen songs, 26 minutes. You just know that with statistics like that, the CD that you have put into you player is going to be out of the ordinary. The longest song on this album is two minutes and 24 seconds. To be honest if the songs were any longer your head might just cease to be in a fit of pique. Listening to the Death Set’s Worldwide is the real world expression of listening to Vogon poetry. Douglas Adams surely had something like this in mind when he created a race of beings that would use their artistic endeavours to torture those that annoy them. The album reaches in through your ear and batters your brain with a gold brick wrapped in a slice of lemon until you are begging for mercy. It is a veritable assault on the senses.

    THE DEATH SET

    WORLDWIDE

    Nija Tunes

    2008-04-22

    There is absolutely no point in fighting the inevitable. The sonic attack of Worldwide will kick the fight out of you. You will love this record despite all reason and you will not be able to fully determine why. Is it the catchy punk-o-matic construction of the tunes? Perhaps, they certainly are short and spiky but they aren’t particularly memorable even after a few listens. Then it must be the school ground sing-a-long nature of the vocal delivery? Could be, but in order to sing along you need to decipher the lyrics, and that is frankly nigh impossible. On repeated listens the only chorus I could work out was to “Intermission” which appeared to comprise of “something, something, the motherf**king death set”, or something.

    If Worldwide goes half way to capture the live experience of this band then the Death Set are a must see. These songs are fed through the early 1980s UK punk scene and spat out at velocity accompanied by a biscuit tin lid, a cheap Bontempi organ and a Speak and Spell. Can you spell “It Rocks”? It may sound like it was written and performed by a bunch of spotty teenagers with more testosterone and angst than talent but it sure gets the fire stoked. To go through each track and try to describe them or even liken them to that which has gone before would be pointless in the extreme. Try to imagine Big Black singing karaoke to a 12″ Long Playing record (like your Dad has) of early Devo songs, played at 45 rpm.

    With songs no longer than two and a half minutes how do you manage to squeeze in fillers? Somehow the Death Set manage. There are five under-a-minute instrumentals that would suffice for ringtones if you were of a mind to really piss people off. My choice is the 30 second “MFDS” which is a sample of the chorus of “Intermission”. I spend each day in a Russian roulette situation praying that my mobile phone doesn’t go off in that important board meeting; it is the only thing that keeps me awake.

    Worldwide is a timely reaction to the kind of songs that you hear on the radio every single day. It screams, “tear down and rebuild” just as a good punk record should, while the music industry around it is saying, “recycle”. What’s more the musicians are clearly smiling in the process. Frank Zappa once begged the question “Does Humor Belong in Music?” The Death Set scream, “yes, yes, yes” like Meg Ryan on Pink Viagra. While for the most part it is a bloody noise, it is a welcome noise and one that I will certainly be inflicting upon myself in the future. If only I could work out what they were saying.

    This review was originally posted on popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/the-death-set-worldwide-2496128438.html
  • APOCALYPTICA: WORLDS COLLIDE

    APOCALYPTICA: WORLDS COLLIDE

    When Apocalyptica appeared on the music scene in 1996 with Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, they were busting the lid off a new can. Their unique blend of heavy metal and cellos was something really remarkable and daring. What was hard to fathom was their target audience. Those that liked classical music would have shunned the recording as sacrilege, and fans of Metallica were a little bemused. Their debut highlighted all of the similarities between classical music and the brand of metal made popular by Metallica. The idea was simple, unconventional, and brilliant. Just take four cellos and some classical arrangements of Metallica tunes, record them, and release to the general public.

    APOCALYPTICA

    WORDS COLLIDE

    Jive

    2008-04-15

    Worlds Collide is a different sort of record. It uses a somewhat more conventional approach, and is not really the better for it. Where before the band played it straight with acoustic instruments and no percussion, this album — with its drums and distorted cellos (sounding like guitars) — comes at you more like a rock band. Although this isn’t Apocalyptica’s first release to include drums (they have had a permanent drummer since 2005), one cannot help but feel that they’d be lost without them now. The addition of drums and distortion makes them a different band altogether. Rather than being (as they used to say) chamber musicians who happened to like metal, they have evolved into a metal band that happens to play cellos.

    On first listen, the instrumentals on Worlds Collide are overshadowed by the tracks with vocals on them. It can be quite a struggle to keep your hands from the skip button as the tracks with vocal accompaniment sound so much more accomplished. This is where the transition between chamber metal musicians and metal band becomes problematic, as the instrumentals were really what the band used to be about. It would be a horrible shame if the vocal-free songs were avoided in favour of the somewhat (dare I say it) gimmicky tracks with guest stars on them.

    Till Lindemann (Rammstein), Corey Taylor (Slipknot), Dave Lombardo (Slayer), and Cristina Scabbia (Lacuna Coil) all offered their musical services to this recording. Tomoyasu Hotei comes and goes almost unnoticed, while Lombardo could frankly be any drummer to the untrained ear, and Scabbia does a passable Evanescence impression. Only Lindemann offers anything that one might call different with his rendition of David Bowie’s “Heroes” in German (the song is credited as “Helden” on the album). On another day, this cover version could so easily have been cheesy, but not today — though I can’t help but smirk every time I hear the initial, earnest, and very guttural “Du”. That’s not to say that the guest spots are without value. Despite my earlier dismissive remarks, they do come over well. Flagship track “I’m Not Jesus”, featuring Corey Taylor, tackles the thorny subject of child abuse by priests, but it has a really catchy chorus to prevent it from burning in hell for all eternity. Re-recorded for the American release of the album, “I Don’t Care” with Adam Gontier (Three Days Grace) on vocal duties is equally memorable, even if it sounds like it’s been lifted from the next Spiderman soundtrack (that is to say, it sounds a bit like Nickelback). However, as commercial as these tracks are, the shift from the unusual to a regular rock band is palpable. Now that Apocalyptica have integrated aspects from “regular” rock music into their sound, what really sets them apart from every other metal band out there?

    In the grand scheme of things, there is probably only so much one can do with heavy metal music (I’ll burn for that one). Apocalyptica began their career by marching to the beat of their own drum, but somehow the introduction of percussion has brought them into the mainstream. What they produce is still high-quality material, although ultimately not as groundbreaking as they were 12 years ago, and this is a shame. However, the introduction of mainstream elements and the use of guests from more established acts are likely to bring them new fans. Rather than converting their target audience, Apocalyptica have capitulated and headed for the mainstream.

    This review originally appeared on popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/apocalyptica-worlds-collide-2496131664.html
  • WHITESNAKE: GOOD TO BE BAD

    WHITESNAKE: GOOD TO BE BAD

    “It’s very butch. Very muscular…” says David Coverdale about the first Whitesnake album in 11 years. Pause for a while and take that in.

    WHITESNAKE

    GOOD TO BE BAD

    SPV

    2008-04-22

    The endless 25th anniversary reunion of the masters of hairspray metal is into its sixth year and has spawned Good To Be Bad. Coverdale & Co. are not known for releasing groundbreaking material so one might be forgiven for expecting no surprises on first listen. One would be wrong. The biggest surprise is that it is not a bad record. Sure, it is full of double entendre-fueled cock rock, but as far that oeuvre goes this is a pretty respectable example.

    This is a summer blockbuster of a record. It is akin to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the CGI Gopher in so far as it does exactly what it says on the tin. People will enjoy both because they provide an opportunity to relive past youth (and hair) without taxing the brain in any way, shape, or form. Granted, Harrison Ford will be banking more cash as a result of his endeavor, but that is what you get if you keep retiring and then coming back, Dave.

    This album ticks all of the boxes for devotees of the band. It drives down the familiar lane of Led Zeppelin riffs, big choruses, and is overflowing with “sexy” lyrics. While unlikely to win over any new fans, it will give the band something to sell at gigs. So, take her top down, ease the seat back, slide it in, and ride her at full pelt with this blasting from her speakers at full volume. Sometimes it’s Good To Be Bad.

    This review originally appeared on popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/whitesnake-good-to-be-bad-2496129880.html
  • ASIA: PHOENIX

    ASIA: PHOENIX

    It is 25 years since Asia released the follow up to their successful eponymous debut album. Their sophomore effort Alpha didn’t especially set cash registers singing and was largely considered to be a disappointment. Soon after that release, original guitarist Steve Howe (of Yes fame) left and the band went through twenty-something years of line-up changes and lukewarm receptions to increasingly similar sounding (and similar titled) albums.

    ASIA

    PHOENIX

    Frontiers

    2008-04-11

    2008 sees all four of the founding fathers of progressive rock reunite with Phoenix. This album is in fact that “difficult” third album. It fits perfectly alongside the first two, slotting so seamlessly into their catalogue that you could easily forget that there have been eight studio albums in the intervening 25 years. Ultimately Phoenix would have you believe that those years never happened and that these godfathers of pompous AOR are picking up the threads where they left them all those years ago.

    “1982 feels like only yesterday,” comments keyboardist Geoff Downes. That would account for why he and his cohorts have produced this tiresome 1980s hand-me-down of a collection that cheerfully ignores the fact that the previous album these four musicians made together under this moniker was last century. Fans of the originals have most likely moved on, and so should Asia. The one saving grace is that while Asia are sidetracked by touring to promote this album they are preventing Yes, E.L.P., and The Buggles from re-forming.

    This review originally appeared on popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/asia-phoenix-2496131406.html
  • EASTFIELD/DESTRUCTORS 666: LABOR OMNIA VINCIT

    EASTFIELD/DESTRUCTORS 666: LABOR OMNIA VINCIT

    The title of this split EP translates from Latin into “Hard work Conquers All” and that speaks volumes for this release. It harkens back to a day when independent releases were independent of major record labels. It has a real “do it yourself” work ethic stamped through it like a stick of rock.

    EASTFIELD/DESTRUCTORS 666

    LABOR OMNIA VINCIT

    Unavailable

    Both Eastfield and Destructors 666 hail from the east of England. Destructors 666 are the latest incarnation of the Destructors, the Peterborough band that coughed up Gizz Butt (former guitarist for the Prodigy). In various forms they have been around since 1976 so in Cambridgeshire, England they are like the grandfathers of punk.

    No attempts are made my either band to break moulds or do anything innovative. What you might expect from an old school split punk single is exactly what you get. That may sound overly dismissive but these groups know their target audience, so why re invent the wheel. Of the seven songs present Destructors 666 come out sounding the more polished in a Misfits kind of way. Eastfield lose points for completely destroying the Tom Robinson Band’s gay rights standard “Glad to Be Gay”.

    This review originally poisoned popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/eastfield-destructors666-labor-omnia-vincit-2496144083.html
  • BEAU JENNINGS: HOLY TULSA THUNDER

    BEAU JENNINGS: HOLY TULSA THUNDER

    The frontman of Cheyenne, Beau Jennings, has released this crop of tunes as a solo album because they allegedly did not fit with the sound of his main project.

    BEAU JENNINGS

    HOLY TULSA THUNDER

    Murkville Music

    2008-07-08

    In honesty there is little difference between these songs and Cheyenne songs. In execution they have perhaps a more southern boogie/Americana feel sounding at times like Neil Young channeling Lynyrd Skynyrd. Jennings’ voice has the timbre of Jeff Tweedy. Overall, this is a fine collection if alt-country is your thing. There are some fine examples of said genre included on this recording. Take “Girl From Oklahoma” for instance, a song that was born in the country but has gotten used to living in the city. It looks back to a time when things were simpler, when fun could be found by hunting down a “strange old bar” and having a few drinks. The claim on the press notes is that this is a drinking album and this is quite true. A bottle of sour mash, a sunny day, and this record would make fine bar-fellows indeed.

    This review originally wasted the time of popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/beau-jennings-holy-tulsa-thunder-2496143960.html
  • LISA CERBONE: WE WERE ALL TOGETHER

    LISA CERBONE: WE WERE ALL TOGETHER

    Lisa Cerbone has a gentle, childlike voice and with We Were All Together she has created an album that is somewhat evocative of Tanya Donelly or Kristin Hersh.

    LISA CERBONE

    WE WERE ALL TOGETHER

    Ocean Music

    2008-04-08

    Every aspect of this package — from the case with its lyric adorned fine art photo cards to the crystal clear production — is finely crafted and exudes quality. One wonders why this lady is not more well known as this is her fourth release in the last eight years. We Were All Together is a collection of ten melancholy vignettes held against backdrop of stark hush. Cerbone tingles the spine of the listener with this intimate and quite beautiful recording. This quality is most evident in tunes such as “Change the Ending” and the opening track “Humming”. This record is of course not for everyone. It tends to be a little over-serious at times and leaves you feeling quite bereft once it is over. This last point also one of the positive aspects of this CD. After all if art does not engage you then what is the use of it?

    This miniature review was originally published on popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/lisa-cerbone-we-were-all-together-2496144008.html
  • MUD: YEARBOOK

    MUD: YEARBOOK

    MUD

    YEARBOOK

    Talking House

    2008-04-15

    It is a sad day when you have to consider the possibility that you are old and no longer understand young people’s music. To this reviewer Mud’s Yearbook contains 13 songs that, with one exception, all sound identical. The album appears like it was created by the corpses of Real Big Fish with the ska influences ripped forcibly from their cold dead hands fronted by Avril Lavigne. It is Californian punk by checklist; repetitive riff… check, amusing self deprecating lyrics… check, brass section… check. I could go on.

    One song stands out because it dares to be different. “Psycho” could easily be from a film soundtrack (I’ll leave the cynics among you to say that it is deliberately targeting such a market). With a lush orchestra arrangement it comes over like a Bond theme, only with less subtlety. It really is quite bombastic and audacious, even if it doesn’t really appear to have a chorus. However, after the chorus overload of the rest of the album it comes as a welcome reprieve. This song is worth the price of a single-track download but the rest of the album doesn’t really do anything remarkable. Or maybe I just don’t get “young people’s music” anymore.

    This review was originally posted to popmatters.com

    https://www.popmatters.com/mud-yearbook-2496144076.html