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With the departure of Lou Barlow, J. Mascis was left to determine the course of Dinosaur Jr. And it was Barlow who gave the band its edge: he was Mascis's Brian Eno. And Green Mind's more clean, or accessible, sound (or however you want to say it) demonstrates this. Without a real cohort, Green Mind is more a J. Mascis solo album than a concerted band effort, but it stays true to what its predecessor, Bug, foretold. Green Mind expands DJ's sound with flutes and the more overt presence of acoustic guitar. The lyrics are par for the course: obscure portraits of isolation, desire, and eventual heartbreak. But what shines on this album is what the listener would suspect, J's guitar playing. Not as sloppy and crazed as "Dinosaur" or "You're Living All Over Me," many of the solos and riffs here don't recall Black Sabbath, but are, dare I say it, a bit more refined. But the album is all the better for it. Though "How'd You Pin That One on Me" harkens back to a more punk-metal sounding Dinosaur Jr., with fast guitar riffing and manic wah'd out solos, cementing J's status as a rock guitar god. Green Mind ushered in a new era for Dinosaur Jr., which, from this point, would be J's band, though their sound broadened a bit with the addition of Matt Johnson on later albums. See Where You Been for Dinosaur Jr.'s last great effort.

GUNMOLL represented, at the outset, a new generation of bands burning on the fuel of inspiration laid down by the likes of JAWBREAKER, LEATHERFACE, and HOT WATER MUSIC, with a bittersweet dark edge akin to ALKALINE TRIO. Equally, the band was an abrupt turn and catalyst for members Jon Marburger, who drummed in the influential and innovative word-of-mouth, tug-at-your-heartstrings cult phenomenon I HATE MYSELF and Derron Nuhfer, who played Bari Sax for six years with pop-punk scientists LESS THAN JAKE, and who moved to bass and backing vocals for GUNMOLL. Both wanted change and to start something new! "Board of Rejection" immediately jumps out of the speakers with a huge sound and a vibrance that is unparalleled. The vocals are hard-hitting, yet with inescapable melody lines and instantly memorable turns of phrase. The guitars are intricate yet direct: power chords with subtle flourishes coming to the forefront. Thunderous basslines continue the themes laid down and solidify the framework between. Powerful drumming, on-a-dime tight, stylistically fluid: every sound is clear, from the brightest cymbal ring to the heaviest floor tom resolve. This is the pinnacle achievement for GUNMOLL: a no-bullshit, anthemic testament to years spent drenched in the sweat and noise pouring out of the hot, humid, moldy warehouses of Gainesville, Florida!

This is by far Radio 4's best album to date--Yes, they sound like Gang of Four....Yes...it sounds like Jah Wobble playing bass....here's a new one, they even remind me a bit of Dance Society with the synth textures and the sometimes shouted lyrics. Amidst all the comparisons and blatant lifting, I must admit, after listening to Entertainment, Solid Gold, Metal Box and every other 'influence' for going on over 20+ years---I'm glad to have something a bit differant-----Franz Ferdinand sounds like Gang of Four and Au Pairs....still interesting....even the Futureheads sound like a mix of XTC and early Bill Nelson (Red Noise era). Truth is, these bands are made up of kids that have grown up listening to their parents record collections.....I would certainly rather have a band ripping off Wire and the Comsat Angels then playing grundge, metal or rap....

Angels With Dirty Faces has a slightly softer edge than MATM's spectacular previous release, More Seduction, but the most important aspect of the new album is that it shows the excellent songwriting exhibited on the previous disc was no fluke. One great song after another tumbles out of Angels, with nothing that's less than inspired anywhere in sight. MATM has proven they can do a wonderful job with covers, but Manda's original material is what shines most brightly here. Beyond-catchy songs like Say Anything, Lipstick, Simple Things and Boys Will Be Boys remain in one's head long after the last note has played.

The incredibly fun, catchy songs are what allow this record to be great, but the effect on the listener wouldn't be the same without a strong band to back them up. Manda plays a very capable bass, Joe Damage offers sharp, very well-crafted guitar work, the newly added Elias Dubok plays an important role on keyboards, and powerhouse drummer Mark Slak helps bring everything together and prevents the sound from ever getting TOO soft. There are some obvious 80's influences here, but the sound is not retro - Manda & Co. are definining their own little homeplace in today's musical world.

Manda & The Marbles want to take us all for a sonic joyride. I can't imagine why anyone who enjoys rock & roll would want to resist.

The first Black Box Recorder album, 1998's England Made Me, was originally conceived by Auteurs and Baader Meinhof frontman Luke Haines as a typically baleful response to the cultural and political hysteria--respectively, Britpop and Tony Blair--then gripping Britain. Recorded with the help of former Jesus & Mary Chain drummer John Moore and singer Sarah Nixey, it did for Britpop roughly what the film Carrie did for the senior prom. The Facts of Life, the follow-up, maintains the withering glare but fixes it this time on the personal. The songs here obsess with unnerving clarity and mordant wit on the banal, cruel details of human relationships and are narrated perfectly by Nixey. Where her perfectly English-accented whisper infused England Made Me with the air of a bored aristocrat finding contemptuous amusement in the misery of others, on The Facts of Life she has located an edge of taunting viciousness all the more diabolical for being so understated. The tunes, as ever, are sweet and insidious, perhaps best thought of as Saint Etienne turned feral. Highlights on an album full of them are "English Motorway" and "The Art of Driving"--BBR triumphantly reclaiming the American rock & roll prerogative of the road song for their damp, claustrophobic homeland. The Facts of Life is a masterpiece. --


Black Box Recorder are an enigma. A three piece comprised of the haunting and fragile-voiced Sarah Nixey, Auteurs henchman Luke Haines and absinthe importer (& former Jesus & Mary Chain) John Moore. Stylistally, the band have catapulted themselves into some netherworld halfway between Air and Velvet Underground. Instruments include, Guitar arpeggios, synthesizers, glockenspiels, chiming xylophones, strings and drum machines. This release features the bonus tracks, 'Start As You Mean To Go Up' and 'Brutality'. Standard jewel case. 2001 release.

The cd contains a nice mix of emo, techno, and metal although I can see where this might lead to some problems with people. I would have prefered more catchy emo tunes like Get Well Soon rather some of the heavier stuff because I have other bands to listen to for that kind of music. You can tell that they are trying to be humorous on a few of the songs and it works well. Overall, this cd has been enjoying listen and I will now look into some of their older material.

Features numerous A-sides, B-sides, comp tracks, and outtakes from all 4 studio albums. Presented chronologically, the journey begins in November '88 with a track recorded on the first Jawbreaker demo (before they were even known as Jawbreaker) and ends 20 years later with the trio's final studio recording, a version of 'Boxcar' re-worked at the end of the DGC Dear You sessions. 20 tracks. 2002.

magnusss wrote:victory, druze, jel' moze lozinka za Dinosaur Jr. - Green Mind, ako ima. Blagodarim.

The great soul singer made his secular comeback with 2002's I Can't Stop, but Everything's OK is truly Al Green's return to form. Green left the concert stage for the pulpit in 1979, and while his pretty falsetto reading of Joe Cocker's "You Are So Beautiful" could easily be holy praise, he makes it clear in his asides that he's keeping things on a strictly earthly plane this time. Twenty-eight years after "Love and Happiness," these satisfying songs glide on those emotions as Green celebrates joy and carnal desire. He couldn't be clearer than in numbers like "I Wanna Hold You." When he sings about lovemaking his voice seems buoyed by helium, it's so light, high, and soaring. Green and producer Willie Mitchell made magic together at Memphis's Hi Records in the '70s with their mix of Green's buttery tones and ecstatic cries and deep percussion-, horn-, and keyboard-swathed grooves. They do it again here repeatedly, capturing the élan of their heyday on numbers like the title track and "Build Me Up." If Green's new missionary work is putting a little love in our hearts during these turbulent, conflicted times, this reassuringly titled CD is a great start.

The self-proclaimed "King of Rock 'n' Soul" upholds his title on this follow-up to his 2002 Grammy-winning comeback, Don't Give Up on Me. At 64, Solomon Burke's voice still has an electric crackle. Every low purr and keening near-falsetto that he applied to a string of hits between 1961 and 1968 that helped build Atlantic Records remains intact. In fact, if anything, he's more persuasive and versatile today. Burke breathes zestful life into material as diverse as the opening stomp, "I Need Your Love in My Life," the testifying "Let Somebody Love Me," a sweet reading of the Band's "It Makes No Difference," and Hank Williams Sr.'s country-gospel "Wealth Won't Save Your Soul"--the latter of which Burke, who's an ordained bishop, takes to church with a soaring organ-driven arrangement.

Producer Don Was draws on the classic Stax and Muscle Shoals sounds, using keyboards and guitars--the latter played by Ray Parker Jr. and Shoals veteran Reggie Young--to underscore Burke's powerful vocal melodies. And the bloodlines of classic Memphis propulsion run through drummer James Gadson's veins. With such superb accomplices Burke doesn't just make do... he makes great music. --Ted Drozdowski
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A classic soul album from the GRAMMY-winning legend! Produced by Don Was and featuring brand-new songs by Van Morrison and Dr. John

One of the most powerful and original voices in the history of soul music, Solomon Burke continues his career renaissance with Make Do With What You Got. Produced by celebrated studio auteur Don Was (The Rolling Stones, Bonnie Raitt), and featuring veteran soul musicians such as Ray Parker Jr. and Reggie Young, Make Do With What You Got is a return to Burke’s soul roots after the Grammy-winning 2002 album Don’t Give Up On Me. Like its predecessor, the album contains songs by some of rock’s finest songwriters: Bob Dylan, Jagger/Richards, Van Morrison, Robbie Robertson, Dr. John, and others. Also included is a personal introduction by Van Morrison.

Having put the Akoustic/Elektric band to bed, Chick Corea didn't delve into another group project right away, opting instead to get in touch with himself on the solo Expressions. This is just Corea on a Yamaha grand piano thumbing through a songbook that includes standards as well as one new track, "Blues for Art." (The disc is dedicated to Art Tatum.) Sometimes subverting the original melodies ("I Want to Be Happy") and other times giving them fairly straight interpretations (his own "Armando's Rhumba"), Corea seems comfortable, if not always inspired. However, unless you're well acquainted with the original versions, it's nearly impossible to glean what the pianist is adding to (or saying about) the music. Because of the similar circumstances for each recording, individual tracks rarely stand out from the whole. There are discernible moods as the pianist waxes sentimental ("This Was Nearly Mine"), indulges in the intellectual ("Oblivion"), or grows restless ("It Could Happen to You"), but the tricks and timbres become familiar before long. Corea has released relatively few works of solo piano, and they tend to be hit-or-miss affairs. By revisiting the standards, Expressions at least gives listeners a point of reference to enjoy this music from, but those looking for dazzling technique or brilliant revisionism will find better examples of these peppered throughout Corea's catalog. It's not a lightweight record, but reputations are made from stronger stuff. ~ Dave Connolly, All Music Guide

Sebadoh's two songwriters, the tragically inclined Lou Barlow and the testy Jason Lowenstein, have often been at musical odds. Their albums, several of which are indie-rock classics, are sometimes out of balance because of this dueling dynamic of lovesickness and aggression. With The Sebadoh the band finally evens out this discrepancy and strikes a more unified mood. "Color Blind" is an atypically introspective look at race relations. "Flame" faces life changes with a catchy, metronomic chorus, and the rolling dissonance of "Decide" confronts a loss of trust with kickin' rock muscle. Fans of Barlow's hangdog yearnings may have a new standard in the moving "Love Is Stronger," a song that elegantly states the primacy of love. The Sebadoh, you might say, is like Prozac. It has ironed out the bipolar characteristics of a band and left us with a strange but welcome elation. --Lois Maffeo

Spin
The Sebadoh sounds like everyone's been drinking from a very communal well.


There is not one song on here that cannot escape the label of "catchy". Lo-fi, guitar-driven, melodic and fun, it's a work of art that is easily embraced and fits well into any day. Sebadoh is an honestly enjoyable rock band whose songwriting is A++, as well are their lyrics. You have probably already heard of what a gem the song "Flame" is with a ready-set-go start and race to it, or how "Love is Stronger" glorifies the power of love (they refined such a ubiquitous cliche!) with a downtrodden beat that belongs etched into the heart of every romantically-confused individual. "Sorry" is also a smart little tune to absorb once in a while. Don't fool yourself: this is an album you should own.

Sebadoh made its Sub Pop debut with Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock, which collects the highlights of the import compilations Rockin' the Forest and Sebadoh vs. Helmet. Lou Barlow's contributions are the gems here, especially the transcendent "Brand New Love," which first appeared in acoustic form on Weed Forestin' (and was later punked up by Superchunk); almost as good are "Vampire" and "Good Things," while an apt and poignant cover of David Crosby's "Everybody's Been Burned" underscores the emotional frailty which binds all of Barlow's work. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

The Clown is one of Charles Mingus' best albums of his career. Although he does have even better albums, The Clown remains an essential album of Charles Mingus. The album starts out with Hatian Fight Song. This is one of if no the best Mingus compostion. The blending of the instruments and the build up of intensity is done perfectly. This is followed by Blue Cee, which, although not as strong as Hatian Fight Song, keeps the level of greatness on the album. Following this is Reincarnation of A Love Bird. This is also an incredible song and one of Mingus' best. The last song is The Clown. Thi ssong features a long compostion by Mingus and a spoken story over it by Jean Shepard. This is a very different song. It isn't quite as good as the others on the album and once you listen to it once, you probably won't want to listen to it again. It doesn't really hurt the album though. Overall, The Clown is an incredible album and essential to fans of the incredible bass player.

Aziza Mustafa Zadeh was born in Baku, the Capital of Azerbaijan, to musical parents. Her father, Vagif Mustafa Zadeh, a pianist and composer, became famous by creating a fusion between jazz and the traditional Azerbaijani music known as mugam. His wife, Eliza Mustafa Zadeh, was a classically-trained singer from Georgia. As a young child Aziza enjoyed all forms of art - dancing, painting, singing - and at the age of 3 she appeared in public with her father, improvising with voice. But it was her talent for the piano that eventually shone through.

Having studied classical piano from an early age, and despite her enthusiasm for the compositions of JS Bach and Frederic Chopin, she soon began displaying a gift for improvisation. "I didn't practise enough," she admits. "If I don't feel like playing then I don't play." When her father died tragically on stage at the age of 39, it was a shocking blow to the young Aziza, and a major turning point in her life. Her mother's response to the crisis was to give up her own career as a classical singer and dedicate herself to nurturing her daughter's musical gifts. She now acts as her manager, and Aziza has come to rely on her judgment when she's writing or recording new pieces. "I trust her because she's extremely experienced as a classical musician and she had jazz experience with my father," Aziza points out. "And she knows a lot about music and history and literature."

When she was 17, she won the Thelonious Monk piano competition in Washington DC, playing some of Monk's compositions but in her own mugam-influenced style. Around the same time, she moved to Germany with her mother, and concentrated on developing her own distinctive musical direction.

In 1991, she released her debut album, entitled simply Aziza Mustafa Zadeh. It was immediately clear that this was an artist with an unusual and remarkable voice, able to blend her ethnic roots with both classical and jazz inputs. Early favourable impressions were reinforced by 1993's Always, which won Aziza both the ECHO Award and the German Phono Association's Jazz Award. So impressive were her talents that a prestigious squad of jazz musicians chose to join her in the studio for 1995's Dance Of Fire. Many less self-assured artists might have been overawed by a line up comprising guitarist Al Di Meola, bassman Stanley Clarke, former Weather Report drummer Omar Hakim and saxophonist Bill Evans, but once again Aziza produced an album unmistakeably imbued with her particular musical inclinations. 'Aziza is a genius, both as a composer and as a performer. Her music has much more meaning for me than just straight jazz because what I hear is her culture', said Di Meola. 'I hear Azerbaijan.'

With audiences now packing out her live concerts across Europe and beyond, from London and Paris to Istanbul and Tel Aviv, she created a mild frisson of excitement by wearing little more than long tendrils of hair on the sleeve of Seventh Truth (1996). Perhaps this image was designed to mirror the music within, which was mostly stripped down to solo piano and voice. The follow-up, Jazziza, mixed up her own compositions with jazz standards including My Funny Valentine and Dave Brubeck's Take Five.

Now there's Shamans, her first album under a new contract with Decca Records. The disc, recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London, draws together the varied strands of Aziza's music, brilliantly showcasing her classically-influenced piano playing on Bach Zadeh or Portrait Of Chopin, and giving full rein to her highly personalised vocal technique on compositions such as Ladies Of Azerbaijan or Sweet Sadness. The title piece is an unusual departure for Aziza, using only percussion, the chirruping of a cricket, and multiple overdubs of her own voice to evoke a mystical shadow-world. "For me, the spiritual part of life is the most important," she explains. "Shamans are special people - they can heal you."

Aziza Mustafa Zadeh: vocals, piano
Toots Thielemans: harmonica
Eduardo Contrera: percussion
Phillip Catherine: guitar.

The Departure had played only a scattering of gigs in local hostelries before being catapulted onto festival stages in 2004. It was one hell of a steep learning curve, but they certainly impressed. Snapped up by Parlophone a mere six months after forming, they must have felt the pressure when recording this, their first full-length offering, so you can't blame the band for wanting to get it right.

Listening to Dirty Words brings new meaning to the term Robot Rock. And what with Coldplay's impeccably calculated X&Y sounding worthy of something Deep Thought might generate, it seems it's official - the laboratory is the new garage. Messrs. Doherty and Barat, please take note: not knowing how to play your instrument is so last year.

Dirty Words is testament to the power of modern day wizardry. Masterfully produced by Steve Osborne (New Order, Depeche Mode), each and every note here sounds as if it were positioned by microscope before being committed to tape. No leather and denim here, only lab coats and disposable gloves. What results is a somewhat sterile album with an impenetrable, icy sheen.

This may, of course, be entirely The Departure's intention. If nothing else, such an approach underscores the bands 80s influences. The nervous claustrophobia of "Changing Pilots" evokes the atmosphere of The Cure's Faith or Pornography, and David Jones' near-monotone vocals consistently recall Ian Curtis' downcast drawl.

And yet, with guitarists Sam Harvey and Lee Irons swapping shrill hooks, and Ben Winton's hefty basslines pushed right to the fore, it all adds up to a pretty danceable mix. Debut single "All Mapped Out" is a particular gem; built on a foundation of stuttering, interlocking guitar riffs, it definitely deserves its recent re-release. Also included are singles two and three ("Be My Enemy" and "Lump In My Throat"), further proof of the band's surprisingly mature songwriting.

It's a record born in the studio, rather than the heart. But however cold and detached it may sound, Dirty Words is a fine, flawlessly recorded debut.

Reviewer: Richard Banks
BBC Rock & Alt Reviews

"This is just a modern rock song/This is just a sorry lament/ We're four boys in corduroys/We're not terrific, but we're competent." With these words, Belle and Sebastian defined not a thing about their generation, just their own mastery as the kings and queens of literary Scottish indie-rock chamber music. This long-awaited compilation gathers the group's rare non-album singles klix back to 1997. It's two discs of steady brilliance, especially cult faves like "Dog on Wheels," "Lazy Line Painter Jane" and "Legal Man." But the best song is the most recent: "Marx and Engels," a 2001 piano-and-violin ballad where singer Stuart Murdoch explains why some shy klix would rather stay that way. It's a quintessential Belle and Sebastian gem.

mirzoni wrote:

The Departure - Dirty Words (2005)

The Departure
Dirty Words
(Parlophone)

The Departure had played only a scattering of gigs in local hostelries before being catapulted onto festival stages in 2004. It was one hell of a steep learning curve, but they certainly impressed. Snapped up by Parlophone a mere six months after forming, they must have felt the pressure when recording this, their first full-length offering, so you can't blame the band for wanting to get it right.

Listening to Dirty Words brings new meaning to the term Robot Rock. And what with Coldplay's impeccably calculated X&Y sounding worthy of something Deep Thought might generate, it seems it's official - the laboratory is the new garage. Messrs. Doherty and Barat, please take note: not knowing how to play your instrument is so last year.



Dirty Words is testament to the power of modern day wizardry. Masterfully produced by Steve Osborne (New Order, Depeche Mode), each and every note here sounds as if it were positioned by microscope before being committed to tape. No leather and denim here, only lab coats and disposable gloves. What results is a somewhat sterile album with an impenetrable, icy sheen.

This may, of course, be entirely The Departure's intention. If nothing else, such an approach underscores the bands 80s influences. The nervous claustrophobia of "Changing Pilots" evokes the atmosphere of The Cure's Faith or Pornography, and David Jones' near-monotone vocals consistently recall Ian Curtis' downcast drawl.

And yet, with guitarists Sam Harvey and Lee Irons swapping shrill hooks, and Ben Winton's hefty basslines pushed right to the fore, it all adds up to a pretty danceable mix. Debut single "All Mapped Out" is a particular gem; built on a foundation of stuttering, interlocking guitar riffs, it definitely deserves its recent re-release. Also included are singles two and three ("Be My Enemy" and "Lump In My Throat"), further proof of the band's surprisingly mature songwriting.

It's a record born in the studio, rather than the heart. But however cold and detached it may sound, Dirty Words is a fine, flawlessly recorded debut.

Reviewer: Richard Banks
BBC Rock & Alt Reviews