Agnes Obel "Aventine" (2013)

Aventine
release date: Sep. 30, 2013
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5]

Tracklist: 1. "Chord Left" - 2. "Fuel to Fire" - 3. "Dorian" (4 / 5) (live session) - 4. "Aventine" - 5. "Run Cried the Crawling" (3,5 / 5) - 6. "Tokka" (3,5 / 5) - 7. "The Curse" (3,5 / 5) - 8. "Pass Them By" - 9. "Words Are Dead" - 10. "Fivefold" - 11. "Smoke & Mirrors"

2nd studio album by Agnes Obel. The debut Philharmonics (2010) was a really fine and original work, and this is too. She continues in her own distinct alt. folk chamber pop singer/songwriter style. She has turned even more down on the indie folk element and made an ambient sound that really suits her voice. The album comes out as a more distinct and authentic album.

Outkast "Aquemini" (1998)

Aquemini
release date: Sep. 29, 1998
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,68]
producer: Outkast, Organized Noize, Mr. DJ, Donny Mathis
label: LaFace - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 2. "Return of the 'G' " - 3. "Rosa Parks" - 4. "Skew It on the Bar-B" (feat. Raekwon) - 5. "Aquemini" - 8. "West Savannah" - 11. "Mamacita" - 12. "SpottieOttieDopaliscious" - 15. "Liberation"

3rd studio album by Outkast is an album controlled more by the duo of André Benjamin and Antwan Patton as primary producers and as arrangers of album concept and songs, which has been recorded with a wide range of featuring artists, who has also had influence on the writing process.
Stylistically, the duo experiments more with its style and incorporates all sorts of instruments on an album that maybe referred to as southern hip hop and conscious hip hop but also pays more attention on neo-soul than previously.
I didn't get to listen to the album before discovering their perhaps most wide-spread success with Speakerboxxx / The Love Below from 2003 and the acclaimed follow-up to this one, Stankonia from 2000, but I simply feel that "Aquemini" is the duo's best and best balanced album ever. Speakerboxxx... is the bolder move into popular music with its fusion of contemporary r&b, neo-soul and hip hop but also points in so many directions that you had absolutely no idea of where they'd go from there on. On the 2000 album they try to be more hardcore, but in essence that is also a fine album, though.
Recommendable.
[ allmusic.com, Q Magazine 5 / 5, Spin 4,5 / 5, Uncut, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

Neil Young "Le Noise" (2010)

Le Noise
release date: Sep. 28, 2010
format: digital
[album rate: 2,5 / 5] [2,48]
producer: Daniel Lanois
label: Reprise Records - nationality: Canada

31st studio album by Neil Young is one of his more experimental albums. Whenever he feels like it, he trows himself over a new style and here he plays with noise rock and experimental rock, mostly. The (French-)Canadian musician and producer Daniel Lanois has given name to the album, but it's also a rather fitting title. Not all tracks are fuelled with reverberating electric guitar, but I cannot help thinking of the album as the result of Young just playing along in a studio and Lanois taping, and adding a production fingerprint to that. However, the album sold well, and was met by positive reviews. It reached number #2 on the Canadian album charts list, and to number #10 in Europe.
Neil has had his time in the lab. A time spent experimenting with content and form, with genres and styles - with this and that. This is just another one trying something else. "Let's see what happens if you record what I make of this today..." Sure, the man is gifted and he he has made more than just a fair share of classic songs and albums, but sometimes he misses. This is such a case. I don't like it, and I frankly find it one of his worst albums.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Rolling Stone, The Guardian 4 / 5 stars ]

XTC "Transistor Blast" (1998)

Transistor Blast, [Archival] (compilation)
release date: Nov. 24, 1998
format: digital (4-disc box set)
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: various
label: Cooking Vinyl - nationality: England, UK

A 4-disc box set with the subtitle "The Best of the BBC Sessions" containing 51 tracks released after the band was finally set free from Virgin Records. Disc 1 and 2 contain BBC sessions recorded for various BBC programs including John Peel Radio 1 Show recorded from 1977-79, but it also include BBC programs recorded up until 1989. Disc 3 and 4 contain early live recordings - CD 3 is the collection of recordings from two different concerts in London, in 1978 and '79, and CD 4 is exclusively the recordings from a specific concert at the Hammersmith Odeon, Dec. 1980.
Needless say, this is a collector's item as it's more about showcasing the band playing well-known songs in alternate and live versions. With the relatively long timespan found on the first two discs they represent the most varied material, and Disc 3 and 4 only document what a great live band XTC was.
[ allmusic.com, Q Magazine 3 / 5, The Music Box 4 / 5 stars ]

Bob Mould "Patch the Sky" (2016)

Patch the Sky
release date: Mar. 25, 2016
format: cd (MRG580)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,94]
producer: Bob Mould
label: Merge Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Voices in My Head" - 3. "Hold On" - 4. "You Say You" (4 / 5) (live) - 5. "Losing Sleep" - 6. "Pray for Rain" - 7. "Lucifer and God" (4 / 5) - 9. "Hands Are Tied" (4 / 5) - 11. "Losing Time" - 12. "Monument"

11th studio album by Bob Mould is a self-produced Mould vintage and his third consecutive album on a more than fine level in his silver age. After a rather long period of time with little artistic glow from the late 1990s - to be more precise following his 1998 album The Last Dog and Pony Show to his 'first' comeback album Silver Age in 2012, the likewise potent Beauty & Ruin from 2014, Patch the Sky is everything you'd expect from the man right after his 1990s adventures but the first decade in the new millennium was not on par with his first golden period or his three most recent solo releases.
This is like the fulfilment of an artistic circle, which reaches back to Black Sheets of Rain (1990). Bob returns to a well-known formula without simply repeating himself. The music is energetic bursts of harmonies set ablaze with electricity.
'A grower... mind you' would be a suitable label to those who would reject it as superficial noise and / or an album with Mould on repeat. In my mind this even surpasses his 2014 album, which makes it nothing less than his second best solo album ever, so just give it a spin or two more, and see if you get it.
This is one the absolute best of the year and naturally highly recommendable material!
[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone, Mojo 4 / 5 stars ]

2016 Favourite releases: 1. Tindersticks The Waiting Room - 2. Ukendt Kunstner Den anden side - 3. Bob Mould Patch the Sky

John Frusciante "PBX Funicular Intaglio Zone" (2012)

PBX Funicular Intaglio Zone
release date: Sep. 24, 2012
format: cd
[album rate: 2 / 5]

Track highlights: 2. "Hear Say" - 4. "Ratiug" - 6. "Mistakes" - 8. "Central" - 10. "After the Ending"

9th full-length solo album by John Frusciante follows The Empyrian (2009), and here he has really changed his style. The predecessor was stylistically unique, much like all his albums have been, but normally still close to its immediate predecessor, but on this you may hear what could be a natural consequence of his many recent collaboration works with Omar Rodríguez-López. This is much more of experimental electronic art rock than just regular alt. rock. Gone is also any traces of singer / songwriter, and what remains is his touch of neo-psychedelic. In some places, I think, there is musique concrete and in that way it shares bonds with works by Frank Zappa.
I have tried but I just don't like it.

Kings of Leon "Mechanical Bull" (2013)

Deluxe edition

Mechanical Bull
release date: Sep. 24, 2013
format: digital (Deluxe Edition)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,12]
producer: Angelo Petraglia
label: RCA Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Supersoaker" - 5. "Temple" - 6. "Wait for Me" - 9. "Tonight"

6th studio album by Kings of Leon is this time produced by Angelo Petraglia exclusively, and the album doesn't contain big surprises - in terms of style and sound. It appears as the continued process where the band seems to be contented in adding new songs to their well-known musical repertoire from time to time. Three years have passed since Come Around Sundown (Oct. 2010) and the band holds on to its popular sound.

Two singles were issued to promote the album: "Supersoaker" and "Wait for Me", both of which performed well, reaching positions such as a 9th & 10th spot on the national chart, and the album is already seen as one of the their more successful - at least in terms of sales figures. The album was generally met by positive reviews and also landed on top of the rock and alternative lists on the US Billboard charts, and the album was nominated a Grammy in the category Best Rock Album.

Accolades aside, I really don't think the album is an improvement over the band's predecessor, which I still think of as the band's best. Mechanical Bull features some of the same strong pop / rock tunes built around a spacious guitar sound and harmony choruses. What I miss most of all here are clear original songs, as several of the tracks sound a little too familiar - "Whoa, but isn't that an older song?", I often catch myself wondering during a listening, because songs simply sound too much like some of their older ones. What makes it worse, I think, is that some tracks sound like covers or at best: interpretations of U2 or Pearl Jam songs. For example, listen to "Beautiful War" while imagining Bono as lead vocalist... and then "Coming Back Again", which simply sounds like a lighter version of "The Fixer" by Pearl Jam.

Sadly, to my ears, it's not entirely unlike the story of The Killers. A band starts its career with a rather original rock sound and after good sales numbers the band turns more to the popular / mainstream side of pop / rock, which means... even better sales figures! You can hardly blame a band for being excited about gaining popularity.

Musically, I think it offers too little, and personally I only rate this above average, which means it's basically one of the band's worst albums. It's practically one of those albums that you can put on without bothering anyone. I mean, even my old mother wouldn't mind, and although I care a lot for her, I don't really see that as a positive thing.

Not recommended.

[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5, Q Magazine, 👍NME 3 / 5 stars ]

 

original cover

 

alt. cover

Morrissey "World Peace Is None of Your Business" (2014)

World Peace Is None of Your Business
release date: Jul. 15, 2014
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,64]
producer: Joe Chiccarelli
label: Harvest Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "World Peace Is None of Your Business" - 3. "I'm Not a Man" - 4. "Istanbul" (4 / 5) - 5. "Earth Is the Loneliest Planet" - 6. "Staircase at the University" - 7. "The Bullfighter Dies" - 8. "Kiss Me Alot" - 10. "Kick the Bride Down the Aisle" (4 / 5) - 11. "Mountjoy"

10th studio album by Morrissey and his first for Harvest as he had signed a two-record deal with mother company Capitol Records who had just acquired EMI's catalogue [this remains his only for Harvest, as he was released from the contract with Capitol in 2015].
The album features a new producer and the songs are primarily written together with Morrissey's old musical associates Boz Boorer (who has written 5 out of 12 songs) and Jessie Tobias (who has written 5 out of 12 songs), with two tracks co-written with new multi-instrumentalist Gustavo Manzur. The musicians on the album are Boz Boorer on guitar, clarinet and saxophone, Jesse Tobias on guitar, Solomon Walker on bass, Matt(hew) Walker on drums and percussion, and with Gustavo Manzur playing piano, organ, synths, trumpet, accordion, guitar, didgeridoo and q-chord.
The album slowly opens up, and my initial luke-warm feelings to it slowly vanished and soon it has become a delightful experience. It comes out pretty much on par with Years of Refusal (2009), and is therefore also tightly bonded to his strong comeback album You Are the Quarry from 2004. Like many recent Morrissey albums it contains music that needs attention to grow, and if first granted, it reveals subtle, strong, and very fine songwriting beneath... a waterline, or perhaps just to over-rule a first verdict. Nevertheless, it surely contains music for precocious ears.
[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5, The Guardian, Mojo, 4 / 5, NME 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Julian Cope "Peggy Suicide" (1991)

Peggy Suicide
release date: Apr. 22, 1991
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5] [4,06]
producer: Julian Cope, Donald Ross Skinner
label: Island Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Pristeen" - 3. "East Easy Rider" (4 / 5) - 5. "Hanging Out & Hung Up on the Line" - 6. "Safesurfer" (4 / 5) - 7. "If You Loved Me at All" - 12. "Head" - 14. "Beautiful Love" - 17. "The American Lite" - 18. "Las Vegas Basement"

7th studio album by Julian Cope released on Island Records officially follows My Nation Underground (1988); however, in between these, Cope released the two lo-fi albums Skellington (1989) and Droolian (1990), which may be regarded as his protest to the record company's desires concerning the promotion and the artistic direction following his '88-album. In that regard, these two parenthetic releases may be seen as the necessary valves / extremes paving way for a new charachteristic sound and style for Cope.

With 18 tracks and a total running time exceeding 75 minutes Peggy Suicide simply stands as Cope's most fascinating album to date. It feature a vast bunch of musicians - some of which are reappearing guests from previous albums and some usual suspects, such as Donald Ross Skinner, Mark 'Rooster' Cosby and Ron Fair, and apart from these the album also sees former The Smiths' drummer Mike Joyce on three compositions.

The style manifested here (for the first time) is Cope's own original blend of alt. rock incorporating psychedelic rock, space rock, and neo-psychedelia are all traits of his music following this very release. The album contains beautiful ballads, hard rock energy, and complex arrangements - altogether held in place by fascinating stories and / or catchy hooks. Furthermore, the stylistic cocktail builds on traditionel rock & roll, blues rock, and glam rock, and the whole album is a genuine conceptual manifest, thematically touching on religion, spirituality, women's rights, ecology, global critisism and consumerism. 'Peggy Suicide' is Cope's image and conception of Mother Earth after humans has ravaged the planet. All themes are a compound, which he brings with him on successive albums.

It's quite a strong statement, alone in how it's all staged together but also in the way the single tracks are arranged in relation to one another. And the compositions are all treated with textual explanations by Cope in the included cd-inlay and in place of lyrics. You'll notice clear elements of progressive rock here and there, but more than speaking of specific styles, the whole album appears as a narrative with chapters, repeating motifs and themes already revealed, after which they resurrect in new contexts.

Quite understandably, Peggy Suicide is included in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die", as Cope's only. The album is no less than his best ever and naturally highly recommended.

[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, Q Magazine, Rolling Stone, Uncut 4 / 5 stars ]

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark "History of Modern" (2010)

History of Modern
release date: Sep. 20, 2010
format: cd
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,08]
producer: OMD
label: Bright Antenna - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "If You Want It" - 3. "History of Modern (Part I)" (live) - 4. "History of Modern (Part II)" - 9. "Sister Marie Says" (live)

11th studio album by OMD is the band's comeback album and its first studio album in 14 years as the direct follow-up to Universal from 1996.
The band's disbandment in 1996 lasted 10 years, and the reformation wasn't something that was anticipated, but an invitation from a German television programme and the fact that McCluskey's wife recently had filed for a divorce and moved back to California with their two children apparently made the necessary interruption that paved the way for a re-union. This was not just any project-version of the band but the original quartet and the most acclaimed constitution of the band featuring the two songwriters Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys backed by Malcolm Holmes and Martin Cooper.
Prior to the works on this album the band toured in 2007 performing the Architecture & Morality album live, and a new remastered version of the album was released.
History of Modern is pure synthpop with traces of dance pop that also characterised the album Universal from 1996, and I don't think it's just coincidental that these two albums released 14 years apart sound much the same 'cause many of the album's tracks have been written by McCluskey alone or with former co-writers several years ago, so it's really a bit of an "unclean" restart.
The album harvested luke-warm reviews, some praising OMD's return, others stating that it wasn't really a great comeback; but nonetheless the album went #28 on the national albums chart list. Two singles released from the album, "If You Want It" and "Sister Marie Says" didn't fare well as they only made it to #169 on the singles charts list.
Personally, I didn't embrace this album as a fine return. I think, its biggest fault is the sense of sounding aged like something pre-2000, or: a natural follow-up to the '96 album, which it really doesn't differ a great deal from.
Not really recommended.
[ allmusic.com 2,5 / 5, Mojo 3 / 5, Q Magazine 4 / 5 stars ]

Antony and the Johnsons + Charles Atlas "Turning" (2014)

Turning (A film by Charles Atlas)

release date: Nov. 10, 2014

format: cd + dvd

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,76]

producer: Lucy Sexton, Vibeke Vogel

label: Rough Trade - nationality: USA

Live album and a film by Antony and the Johnsons in collaboration with American video artist Charles Atlas. The music is not a best of release but more of a soundtrack as the release is a combined film by Atlas and a soundtrack by Antony and the Johnsons. Also, the music was recorded on Nov. 4-5, at The Barbican Centre, London.

The film is not a traditional concert film but more of an art film ressembling a performance collage or art installation focussing on 13 women and gender issues. The cd soundtrack contains 17 tracks with tracks taken from various studio releases.

Turning is a most fascinating release, some tracks light up stronger in these live versions, whereas others may have worked better experienced live, but it's nevertheless a strong and vital example of the power of Antony's songs and voice in particular.

[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, Pitchfork 7,1 / 10, Rolling Stone, NME 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Zucchero "Zucchero" (1990)

Zucchero (compilation)

released: Sep. 3, 1990

format: cd (1991 reissue)

[album rate: 4 / 5]

producer: various

label: London Records - nationality: Italy

1st compilation album by Zucchero had some issues with the sticker: "Zucchero Sings His Hits In English". This is the first album released for the Italian market completely without his usual stage name "Zucchero Sugar Fornaciari". The first issues consisted of only nine compositions (which also applies for all vinyl pressings), whereas cd re-issues from '91 and later all came with twelve tracks.

On some lists the album is filed as a studio album, and I admit it is difficult to label entirely. Fact is, the songs here have all been issued before-hand, BUT never in these versions. British songwriter Frank Musker has written English lyrics for seven of the original nine compositions - the last two songs are together with the additional three extra tracks held in the original Italian versions. This makes the majority of the songs appear in new versions and in new arrangements, but then again: they have been selected for the purpose of widening the knowledge of Zucchero's music, and five of the songs still come in their original versions...

Anyway, the collection is fine, the songs are splendid and show what a great songwriter Zucchero is.

It's a recommended acquisition of alternative international versions of his older songs, although, later compilations better this one.

Arctic Monkeys "Suck It and See" (2011)

Suck It and See
release date: Jun. 6, 2011
format: digital
[album rate: 2,5 / 5]

Track highlights: 4. "The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala" - 8. "Reckless Serenade" - 9. "Piledriver Waltz" - 12. "That's Where You're Wrong"

4th studio album by Arctic Monkeys.
This is a slight return to better music. I haven't played it a lot as it simply never touched me but I find that the songs are better, and more British sounding than the previous album, although it's also recorded and produced in US, but apparently, with focus on live takes in the studio, securing a more energetic and garage rock sound than the heavy rock production sound on Humbug (2009). The band has returned to a more "mainstream" sound and has left the psychedelic rock (which is just fine), as was the case with Favourite Worst Nightmare (2007). Some tracks even have a dream pop or shoegaze sound with heavy distortion and flanger guitar effects, e.g. "The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala", and "Reckless Serenade". I think, some of the quirkiness and garage rock element is missing, but that said, it contains some fine tracks. The track "Piledriver Waltz" is also included on Alex Turner's solo album (ep), the soundtrack Submarine (2011).

BEST OF 2004:Arcade Fire "Funeral" (2004)

Funeral [debut]
release date: Sep. 14, 2004
format: cd
[album rate: 4,5 / 5] [4,56]
producer: Arcade Fire
label: Merge Records - nationality: Canada

Track highlights: 1. "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" - 2. "Neighborhood #2 (Laïka)" (5 / 5) (live in Amsterdam) - 3. "Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)" (5 / 5) (live on Jools Holland) - 5. "Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles)" - 7. "Wake Up" - 8. "Haïti" (5 / 5) - 9. "Rebellion (Lies)" (5 / 5) - 10. "In the Backseat"

Studio debut album by Arcade Fire. Despite the amount of hype that preceded it, the album lives up to all expectations and more! This is great innovative music that takes you places and makes you wanna turn up the volume and just... dance. It may not look pretty [me dancing] but it sure makes me wanna move :-) In spite of the sinister theme of death and loss, it really is an uplifting and positive album, and with this: they deserve all the hype. This was without comparison my most beloved cd that year.The album is enlisted in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".
[ allmusic.com 5 / 5, NME 4,5 / 5, Rolling Stone, Uncut 4 / 5 stars ]

2004 Favourite releases: 1. Arcade Fire Funeral - 2. The Streets A Grand Don't Come for Free - 3. Grant-Lee Phillips Virginia Creeper

Olesen-Olesen "Der er brev fra Onkel Bob i Amerika" (2000)

Der er brev fra Onkel Bob i Amerika
release date: Sep. 13, 2000
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5] [4,08]
produced: Kim Hyttel, Olesen-Olesen
label: Midget Records - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Set gennem en voksende rus" (4 / 5) (acoustic live) - 2. "Lad mig sove til jeg vågner" (4 / 5) - 3. "Ikke kun i Nordvest" - 4. "Farvel store ego" (4,5 / 5) - 5. "Audrey Hepburn" - 7. "Hologram" (4 / 5) - 8. "Venter på renæssancen" - 9. "Hvor alting hører op" - 10. "Når man nærmest har alt" (4 / 5)

3rd studio album by Olesen-Olesen released on Midget Records and produced by Kim Hyttel and Olesen-Olesen is an 11 tracks album with a running time at (only) 40 mins.
Stylistically, the duo continues in a singer / songwriter context with this album as their most chamber pop styled release.
In my mind - and in retrospect after having released 7 full-length studio albums - this very album is the duo's best, their most coherent, and also their most orchestrated album. It has a fine balanced background foundation with slide-guitar, bass, and drums but also a well-tempered Hammond organ. On top of that, Peter H. Olesen shines in his ever-present melancholy of images of long-gone America, stories about Dylan ('Onkel Bob' ['Uncle Bob'], of course), Audrey Hepburn, about ordinary life, longing in general, and the ongoing stories about self-esteem and lost and future illusions.
This is one of my absolute favourite albums of the year 2000.

Highly recommended.
[ Gaffa.dk 5 / 6 stars ]

2000 Favourite releases: 1. PJ Harvey Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea - 2. Susana Baca Eco de sombras - 3. Olesen-Olesen Der er brev fra onkel Bob i Amerika

Thåström "Beväpna dig med vingar" (2012)

Beväpna dig med vingar
release date: Feb. 15, 2012
format: cd / vinyl (2022 repress - gatefold)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,62]
producer: Ulf Ivarsson
label: Razzia Records - nationality: Sweden

Track highlights: 1. "Bevåpna dig med vingar" - 2. "Låt dom regna" - 4. "Samarkanda" - 5. "St. Anna Katedral" - 9. "Sluta när jag vill"

7th solo studio album by Thåström released three years following Kärlek är för dom and also produced by Ulf Ivarsson but now on the small Swedish label, Razzia Records.
Stylistically, Thåström still moves primarily in the genre of singer / songwriter and alt. rock but it appears he has taken some of the musical inspiration with him from the band-project Sällskapet to this album as the first three and track #8 all have a darker and more sinister tone. Both Pelle Ossler and Niklas Hellberg of the trio are musicians on this, just as they are steady live musicians in Thåström's live band. Tracks #4, #5 and #9 sound more like usual Thåström compositions that could have been fitted easily on his 2009 album. It's also worth mentioning that old musical collaborator Per Hägglund has co-written six of the album's nine songs together with Thåström.
Beväpna dig med vingar was met by critical acclaim and topped the Swedish albums chart list. The title track and track #4 were released as singles without any notable entries. The album represents a more poetic and melancholic side to his repertoire than any of his other solo albums, and I like it, although, I also find it a bit dark.

The Fratellis "Costello Music" (2006)

Costello Music [debut]
release date: Sep. 11, 2006
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,72]
producer: Tony Hoffer
label: Fallout Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Henrietta" (live on later) - 2. "Flathead" (4 / 5) - 3. "Cuntry Boys & City Girls" - 5. "Chelsea Dagger" (live on later) - 6. "For the Girl" (4 / 5) (AOL live session) (acoustic) (acoustic live) - 8. "Creepin Up the Backstairs" (AOL live session) - 10. "Everybody Knows You Cried Last Night"

Studio album debut by Scottish Glasgow trio The Fratellis consisting of vocalist & guitarist Jon Fratelli (aka John Paul Lawler), bassist & backing vocalist Barry Fratelli (aka Barry Wallace) and drummer, percussionist & backing vocalist Mince Fratelli (aka Gordon McRory). The album is released on the Island Records' sublabel Fallout, and all songs are credited the band, although, on later albums Jon Fratelli is credited for the majority of the band's compositions.
This is fine alt. rock, indie rock, or garage rock revival somewhat related to another Scottish band, Franz Ferdinand, only, I think this is ever so much more direct and less pretentious, and I really like their retro references to music of the great British invasion beat combined with garage rock. Sometimes the style is more alt. rock like Arctic Monkeys but mostly it's just The Fratellis... not so much fuss, just the fun of it, and that's actually quite nice, and this is their only and best album, so far.
[ allmusic.com, NME 4 / 5, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Show lyrics <- click...

~ ~ ~
"For The Girl"

"La la la la la la........

Well she said I know but I just cant tell
Everything you've just been saying
Lucy was there as well in the dark
The kids in the band were playing

No-one can hear a word or tell
What the girl was singing
See she must've been 16 or 18
I'm just past caring

She was into the Stones when
I was into the Roses
She was breaking my bones when
I was bursting their noses
She would tell me a secret
I would lose it the next day
Young love pleases you easy
Makes you sick in a bad way

And all the while the girls sang
La la la la and she sang
Kickings for my sweetheart
Bruises that I just don't miss

And she said "I can't love you anymore than this!"

La la la la la la la...............
La la la la la la la...............

Aw she said she said no no no no
Then again yes why don't you kill me
He asked him why you messed up right there
Sweetheart you know that don't thrill me
Said I would've been there for if you had been a little bit nicer
I was dead by Sunday half dead scared just trying to please her

She getting the pills when
I was into her best friend
She was chasing the thrills
And living down at the West End
she was pretty in braces
I lived under her window
She said take me to London
Tell me something I don't know

And all the while the girls sang
La la la la she sang
Kickings for my sweetheart
Bruises that I just don't miss

And she said "I can't love you anymore than this!"

La la la la la.....
La la la la la.....
La la la la la.....

She was into the Stones when
I was into the Roses
She was breaking my bones when
I was bursting their noses
She would tell me a secret
I would lose it the next day
Young love pleases you easy
Makes you sick in a bad way
And all the while the girls sang
La la la la she sang
Kickings for my sweetheart
Bruises that I just don't miss

And she said I don't like you
You can't stand me
I can't love you anymore than this"

~ ~ ~

The Streets "The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living" (2006)

The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living
release date: Apr. 10, 2006
format: digital
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,12]
producer: Mike Skinner
label: 679 / Locked On - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Prangin Out" - 2. "War of the Sexes" - 3. "The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living" - 7. "When You Wasn't Famous"

3rd studio album by The Streets following two years after the acclaimed A Grand Don't Come for Free (May 2004). Mike Skinner continues his original style and funny lyrics but the album was a bit of a obvious step down. Best track is "When You Wasn't Famous".
Despite my rating, the album was well-received by the public and like its predecessor it topped the albums chart in Britain.
[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 3 / 5 stars ]

John Mayer "Any Given Thursday" (2003) (live)

Any Given Thursday (live)
release date: Feb. 11, 2003
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,68]
producer: John Alagia
label: Aware / Columbia - nationality: USA

Track highlights, Disc 1: 2. "No Such Thing" - 3. "Back to You" - 4. "City Love" - 5. "Something's Missing" - 7. "Message in a Bottle" - 8. "Love Song For No One" - - Disc 2: 1. "Why Georgia" - 2. "Your Body Is a Wonderland" - 3. "My Stupid Mouth" - 7. "Neon"

1st live album by John Mayer is a double disc with a playing time above 1 hour and 40 mins. recorded Sep. 12, 2002, in Birmingham, Alabama as a 4-piece band consisting of John Mayer on vocals, guitars and keyboards, Michael Chaves on keyboards, guitars and backing vocals, David LaBruyere on bass and with Stephen Chopek on drums and percussion.
The album primarily features tracks from his studio debut and his forthcoming second album (to be released Sep. 2003) only. But however familiar the playlist may seem these songs come much more to life on this occasion proving what a talented artist Mayer really is. Both the two cover songs "Message in a Bottle" by The Police and "Lenny" by Stevie Ray Vaughan showcase Mayer as a man of rock music - pop / rock and blues rock. He pays tribute to two of his great influences, and he does that by making their songs vibrant and contemporary.
This album is easily Mayer's so far best. He's a fine instrumentalist - most people already knew that, but without the multi-layered studio sound he sounds so much better playing with charms, energy and skills, just having a good time picking his guitar and displaying his fascination for jazz and blues rock.
Highly recommendable.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5 stars ]

Tom Waits "Bone Machine" (1992)

Bone Machine
release date: Sep. 8, 1992
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,88]
producer: Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan
label: Island Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Earth Died Screaming" - 2. "Dirt in the Ground" - 3. "Such a Scream" - 4. "All Stripped Down" - 5. "Who Are You" - 7. "Jesus Gonna Be Here" - 8. "A Little Rain" - 10. "Goin' Out West" (4 / 5) - 12. "Black Wings" - 13. "Whistle Down the Wind" - 14. "I Don't Wanna Grow Up"

11th studio album from Tom Waits follows the release of the soundtrack Night on Earth (Apr. '92) is his first studio album featuring his wife Kathleen Brennan as 'associate producer' - she is credited as co-producer on Big Time (Sep. 88).

After what could be described, with some goodwill, as a trilogy of albums with an approximately uniform style starting with Swordfishtrombones (1983) and ending with Frank's Wild Years (1987), with this Waits takes another big step into a musical territory of experimental rock, and now with the use of stronger distorted vocals and more pronounced use of a variety of percussion. However, the album still features signature ballads such as "Who Are You", "A Little Rain", and "Whistle Down the Wind".

This album in particular took me some time to understand as something unique - which it really is, once you are ready for it, but my first impression was really not positive.

Bone Machine peaked at number #26 on the UK albums chart and it generally fared better in Europe, although, the album earned Waits the award "Best Alternative Music Album" at the 1992 Grammy Awards.

The album is Waits' so far final to be featured in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" along with a total of five other Waits releases.

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

Jan Garbarek "Visible World" (1996)

Visible World
release date: Mar. 26, 1996
format: cd (ECM 1585)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,18]
producer: Manfred Eicher
label: ECM Records - nationality: Norway

Track highlights: 1. "Red Wind" - 2. "The Creek" (4 / 5) - 3. "The Survivor" - 9. "Giulietta" - 12. "The Quest"

Studio album by Jan Garbarek released as a solo release, although, it features more or less the same musicians who are part of Jan Garbarek Group and who released Twelve Moons (1993) and comprises Rainer Brüninghaus on keyboards, Eberhard Weber on bass, Manu Katché on drums, and Marilyn Mazur on percussion. Also, the music is very much like that specific release. The style is more on the fusion side than on the traditional folk, which is the downside of the album. Imho, the fusion and free jazz elements do not suit his playing style nor reflect his originality the best. There are enough artists and releases from the '70s who have experimented with jazz fusion with large orchestral compositions, and I'm not a big fan of that. This release closes in on the smooth jazz and jazz fusion of Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, Al Jarreau, Al Di Meola, Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock, and many more that I just don't appreciate. Yes, they are undoubtedly great instrumentalists, and they have huge crowds lauding their music - I'm just not one of them. However, this is also a turning point in Garbarek's music. At this point he has returned to his earliest releases of more free jazz but he has expanded it with percussion-based fusion jazz and moved away from the ambient style and traditional folk, and that's an area he dwells in and explores in the following many releases that I find are less interesting compared to his music of the 1980s and earliest 1990s.
Garbarek is not just one of Norway's or Scandinavia's - he's one of the world's finest contemporary jazz musicians, and despite not being one of my favourites by his hands, the album still offers fine music.

The Breeders "Safari" (1992) (ep)

Safari, ep
release date: Mar. 9, 1992
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,40]
producer: Paul Berry, Dante DeSole, Guy Fixsen
label: 4AD Records - nationality: USA

Tracklist: 1. "Do You Love Me Now?" - 2. "Don't Call Home" (3,5 / 5) - 3. "Safari" (3,5 / 5) - 4. "So Sad About Us" (3,5 / 5) (live)

Ep release by The Breeders. After Pod (1990) the band members returned to their original bands, and Tanya Donelly was in the making of forming the band Belly, while Kim would bring in her twin sister Kelley to substitute Tanya. The Safari release is the only with both Tania and Kelley performing. Stylistically, it appears as the continued style from Pod; however, looking at the writing and instrument credits it becomes clear that The Breeders is more of a Kim Deal-project than a Deal / Donelly project, which also explains Donelly's wish to form a band of her own. Three tracks here are written by Kim (either alone or with someone else than Tania), and the last track is a cover written by Pete Townshend. The first track also appears on Last Splash (1993), and it's written by the two Kelley sisters.
The ep appears as a step up in terms of solid songs, and it showcases Kim Deal's capabilities as songwriter.

Cocteau Twins "Milk & Kisses" (1996)

Milk & Kisses
release date: Mar. 1996
format: cd (2006 remaster)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,62]
produced by Cocteau Twins
label: Fontana Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Violaine" - 2. "Serpentskirt" - 3. "Tishbite" - 5. "Calfskin Smack" - 10. "Seekers Who Are Lovers"

8th and final studio album by the Scottish trio Cocteau Twins released on Fontana and produced by the band. This is a continued journey from their previous album Four-Calendar Café (1993) into a subtle 'dream pop' universe but also a return to a more Robin Guthrie (multi-layered) guitar-driven sound compared to the predecessor, and you could argue that it takes them back to their trademark of distorted wall-of-sound guitars. What it really leaves me with, is an impression of "nothing new", and that's a bit sad 'cause it's not all bad. It just doesn't offer anything... new, which they basically always did with previous releases. They were always on the move to a new sound, only here, they re-use what seem to work previously.

By 1997 the band had split. While in the band and afterwards, Robin Guthrie has worked as record producer and in 2003 he released his first solo album Imperial after which he has pursued a solo career releasing new albums every now and then including a number of fine soundtracks - alone, or in collaborations. Simon Raymonde released his so far only solo album Blame Someone Else in 1997 and has been involved in other bands as well as worked as record producer, and together with Guthrie the two have worked on several projects since the break-up. Elizabeth Fraser has been a much-asked for artist but mainly lived a life away from the spotlight, although she has occasionally contributed as featuring guest vocalist on other artists' albums, as well as at live concerts, but an announced solo album has yet to be realised.
Milk & Kisses was reissued in 2006 in a remastered edition produced by Guthrie.

Fine but not amongst their absolute best.

2006 remaster