Les Negresses Vertes "Mlah" (1989)

Mlah [debut]
release date: (Jan.?) 1989
format: cd (1991)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,92]
producer: Clive Martin, Sodi (aka Sodi Marciszewer)
label: Delabel - nationality: France

Track highlights: 2. "Zobi la Mouche" (4 / 5) - 3. "C'est pas la mer à boire" - 4. "Voilà l'été" (4 / 5) (live 2019) - 5. "Orane" - 7. "Les yeux de ton père" - 8. "Il" - 11. "Marcelle Ratafia" - 12. "La danse des négresses" (live)

Studio album debut by French 8-piece orchestra Les Negresses Vertes ['The Green Negresses', or: 'The Green Black Girls'] consisting of lead vocalist Helno (aka Noël Rota, aka Helno Rota de Lourcqua), guitarist and backing vocalist Melino (aka Stéfane Michel Mellino), accordion player and guitarist Mathieu Canavese (aka Mathieu Crespin), bassist Paulo (aka Jean-Marie Dominique Paulus), harmonica player and trombonist Abraham Sirinix, trumpeter and percussionist Twist (aka Michel Ochowiak), pianist and percussionist L'Ami Ro (aka Joël Ruffier Des Aimes), and drummer Gaby le Magnifique (aka Laurent Gabriel). The band formed in the Autumn of '87 in Paris and has roots in the South of France and with many other national ties - e.g. to Algeria, Poland, Italy, and Spain. The album was originally released on French Off The Tracks Records and Razzia Disques, while international editions were released on several labels including Virgin, Sire, Polydor, and Warner Bros.

Stylistically, Mlah represents a huge mix of styles but is primarily bound to French musical traditions. There are obvious parts of folk rock and punk rock, which in places point in the direction of French Mano Negra, and / or British The Pogues, and then elsewhere more in the direction of Madness in a French version of ska. You'll also notice a strong influence from traditional music such as 'gypsy music', flamenco, muzette, and waltz, and the band's music has thus been referred to as 'gypsy punk' - although that designation is far from sufficient. Some have called Les Negresses Vertes a 'global-folk-punk-band', although that only serves to prove it more than ordinarily difficult to categorise the band's style.

I purchased the album back in '89 - and actually played it quite a bit, but unfortunately, I lost the vinyl version along the way. However, I have since got hold of a cd reissue containing two bonus tracks. The original version comes with 12 tracks and a total running length of approx. 42 minutes, while the '91 cd issue is approx. 48 minutes.

Mlah is the band's first, and in my view also their absolute best. There's an immediateness and a joy of playing, and the album mostly sounds like what it is: recorded live in a studio with all members in high spirits, which is aptly conveyed in the official music video for perhaps the their best-known song: "Zobi la Mouche" -  also listen to "Voilà l'été".

Highly recommended.

[ 👍allmusic.com 4 / 5 stars ]

Tindersticks "Distractions" (2021)

Distractions
release date: Feb. 19, 2021
format: vinyl (LTD. blue vinyl) / digital (7 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [4,02]
producer: Stuart A. Staples
label: Lucky Dog / City Slang - nationality: England, UK

Tracklist: 1. "Man Alone (Can't Stop the Fadin')" - 2. "I Imagine You" - 3. "A Man Needs a Maid" - 4. "Lady With the Braid" - 5. "You'll Have to Scream Louder" - 6. "Tue-Moi" - 7. "The Bough Bends"

13th studio album by Tindersticks succeeding No Treasure but Hope (Nov. 2019) released on Stuart Staples' label Lucky Dog aided by independent German label City Slang. The band is still the quintet consisting of lead vocalist, primary songwriter and composer Stuart A. Staples, guitarist Neil Fraser, bassist and keyboardist Dan McKinna, keyboardist David Boulter, and drummer Earl Harvin. The album 'only' contains seven compositions with a total running length at just above 46 minutes, which means several tracks have a longer running time than the common 3 to 4 minutes, although on recent releases the band really has done things its own way. Somewhat unconventionally, the album starts off with the longest track by far, running more than 11 minutes, and the track is also unusual for Tindersticks as it has a clear electronic edge. After that the album continues in a more traditional way for the band with quite simple-structered chamber pop without much other than Staples' vocal on top of quiet guitar notes, an almost non-existent ambient keyboard and faintly audible strings - with no traditional rhythm instruments whatsoever. Another new move is the presence of cover songs. Of the album's seven tracks, three here are covers and even though the original versions are extremely diverse, Tindersticks have turned the songs into Tindersticks songs, which fit quite nicely together. "A Man Needs a Maid" is a well-known Neil Young song from his classy Harvest album from 1972, and it's here completely adapted to a Tindersticks universe with bright backing vocals and Staples' contrasting darker vocal - the result is very good. The following track, "Lady With the Braid", is probably a lesser-known song to most people written by [Dorothy] Dory Previn [aka Dory Langdon, aka Dory Previn Shannon] taken from her second singer / songwriter studio album Mythical Kings and Iguanas from 1971. That song is followed by the final cover: "You'll Have to Scream Louder" written by Dan Treacy for the British post-punk band Television Personalities taken from the 1984 album The Painted Word. After this, Distractions continues with an also almost typical Tinderstick's composition with French lyrics: "Tue-moi" ['Kill Me'], where Staples with his English-French [sorry] does his best 'chanson' style, which probably only Brits and also some flattered French will perceive as something extraordinary. The song is something quite special in another way, as it's Staples' inspiration from and his thoughts on the assassination at the French venue the Bataclan in 2015 - a venue Tindersticks has visited several times. The album ends a bit like it starts - with a slightly more experimental track with tape loops and 'other electronics', although it still mostly sounds like Tindersticks in the slightly jazzy corner. In a way, the album is like a reminiscent of Staples' most recent solo, the album Arrhythmia from 2018, which is the first time you notice Staples experimenting with electronic devices. That album was also unusual for its rather long compositions.

All in all, Distractions is an album that offers both new and old, and which is unmistakably Tindersticks, who have seriously turned down on the arrangements. The well-known chamber pop element is only faintly present, and instead something experimental appears borrowing both from modern styles and from jazz.

Tindersticks continue to make fascinating music - it seems they have found their own slot in the alt. rock sphere with enough space to keep experimenting without losing artistic progression. And I'm tempted to ask 'when did this band really make a poor album?' It's definitely been a long time, and it certainly hasn't been the case since the band suffered internal conflicts by the turn of the century.

Recommended.

The front cover is credited Sidonie Osborne Staples - daughter of Stuart Staples & Suzanne Osborne.

[ 👍allmusic.com, Uncut 4 / 5, musicOMH 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Band of Horses "Mirage Rock" (2012)

Mirage Rock

release date: Sep. 18, 2012

format: digital (11 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,12]

producer: Glyn Johns

label: Columbia - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Knock Knock" (live) - 3. "Slow Cruel Hands of Time" - 4. "A Little Biblical" - 6. "Dumpster World" - 8. "Everything’s Gonna Be Undone" - 9. "Feud"

4th studio album by Band of Horses follows 2½ years after Infinite Arms and it introduces Glyn Johns as producer. For once, the line-up remains unchanged from the previous album.

Initially, the album was met by quite positive reviews with critics stating that the band continues to deliver a remarkable strain of folk rock, but after some time the overall reception seemed to be less overwhelming with fans seing this a step down. The band gained some succes with the promotion single "Knock Knock" but both that and the two following singles (tracks 3 and 9) failed in the charts and the album didn't perform like the predecessor.

In my mind, the band performs fine, Bridwell sings with enthusiasm, and overall the album appears as nice and warm, but it also has a tone of something anonymous. The biggest lack is its coherency with some tracks appearing as mere fillers. A few tracks are truly fine and stand out as solid workmanship, but compared to the first two albums, this is goes down as a pale immitation.

[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5, Q Magazine 3 / 5, Pitchfork 4,0 / 10, Spin 2 / 5 stars ]

Tom Waits - Studio albums from 1-17

Pos.		Album		Release year		Album rate
1.		Swordfishtrombones		1983		4,58
2.		Small Change		1976		4,32
3.		Heartattack and Vine		1980		4,28
4.		The Heart of Saturday Night		1974		4,18
5.		Bad as Me		2011		4,12
6.		Frank's Wild Years		1987		4,08
7.		Blue Valentine		1978		4,06
8.		Rain Dogs		1985		3,96
9.		Mule Variations		1999		3,94
10.		Bone Machine		1992		3,88
11.		Nighthawks at the Diner		1975		3,86
12.		Closing Time		1973		3,85
13.		Real Gone		2004		3,78
14.		Foreign Affairs		1977		3,68
15.		Alice		2002		3,48
16.		The Black Rider		1993		3,33
17.		Blood Money		2002		3,18

Adrianne Lenker "Songs & Instrumentals" (2020)

Songs & Instrumentals

release date: Oct. 23, 2020

format: 2cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,66]

producer: Phil Weinrobe

label: 4AD - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Two Reverse" - 2. "Ingydar" - 3. "Anything" - 4. "Forwards Beckon Rebound" - 5. "Heavy Focus" - 6. "Half Return" - 8. "Zombie Girl" - 9. "Not a Lot, Just Forever" - 10. "Dragon Eyes" - 13. "Music for Indigo"

Double solo album by Adrianne Lenker from Big Thief following the release of the band's 2019 album Two Hands (Oct. 2019) for which Lenker single-handedly wrote and composed nearly all songs much to the usual tradition within the band. Songs & Instrumentals has been issued as double album in vinyl and cd format, and then it also exists as two single albums released in digital formats via bandcamp.com. Thing is, "Songs" is the title of the vocal side of the album (running 40:15 minutes) and "Instrumentals", well yes, it goes to show - and apart from that, this 'second part' only consists of two compositions - here, tracks #12 and #13 ("Music for Indigo" and "Mostly Chimes") which runs for 21:12 and 16:12 minutes respectively. Apparently, the album came about as the band's live tour activities were brought to an abrupt end due to the COVID-19 lock-down.

The album doesn't fall far from the releases by Big Thief, but in general Lenker's solo songs are more instrospective, more quiet singer / songwriter and more stripped down material without a distinct bond to the indie rock scene, and with this album she reveals an even more subtle and near lo-fi-arranged intimate collection of compositions that feel like the most natural thing - which in the case of Adrianne Lenker, it probably just is. In fact, the whole album appears to only have Lenker as performer on guitar and vocal (as well as painter for the cover) and basically with Weinrobe as recording engineer.

Lyrically, it's deeply personal, yet on a general level of instrospectiveness - how to deal with emotions linked to separation, loss and... human suffering, and then, it's yet light-hearted music all because of light strumming acoustic guitars and a gentle vocal aided along with delicate percussion. Regarding 'track highlights', it's difficult, if not impossible, to point out specific songs when in fact it's the whole album as an experience that makes it so good.

Songs & Instrumentals is a most welcomed album.

[ allmusic.com 3,5 / 5, NME, Uncut 4 / 5, Pitchfork 8,8 / 10 stars ]