C.V. Jørgensen "Sjælland" (1994)

Sjælland

release date: Sep. 26 1994

format: cd (PCCD 8074)

[album rate: 4 / 5] [4,22]

producer: Kasper Winding

label: Pladecompagniet - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Ude af sync" (4 / 5) - 2. "Blåt blod til alle" (4 / 5) - 3. "Fuld af forundring" - 4. "Florafobi" (5 / 5) (short live clip) - 5. "Spildte bedrifter" (4,5 / 5) (live) - 7. "Skygger af skønhed" (5 / 5) - 8. "Intet er mig helligt" - 9. "Hvad mere er der egentlig at sige" (4,5 / 5)

11th studio album by C.V. Jørgensen released a long full four years after his fine I det muntre hjørne (1990). In the meantime, Elap released the compilation 16 hits (1992) as a revised edition on cassette and CD of the previously released Det Ganske Lille Band's bedste from 1980. After having produced his two most recent studio releases on his own, C.V. returned the task to someone else taking care of the production sound. All his previous albums have been grounded in traditional rock but by engaging with the bolder 'pop' artist, vocalist and producer Kasper Winding, he ensures a distinctly different expression. C.V. had already worked with Winding in '78, when the two collaborated on the music for Morten Arnfred's film "Mig og Charly" and also the following year for the music to "Johnny Larsen". Since 1990, C.V. gradually turned down the concert activity and led a slightly more withdrawn existence, so the release of new material has been awaited with great excitement. The album's title is a play on the words 'soul' ['sjæl'] and 'country' ['land'] - put together in Danish also happens to be the name for the island of Sjælland [Zealand] - indicating a collection of tracks with a spiritual quality. In that way, it's also a highly personal album, which was also made completely without the usual close team of stable musicians. C.V. is credited on guitar in addition to his vocals, and Winding acts as multi-instrumentalist handling bass, keyboards, and drums, while the tracks are otherwise made with few other musicians, and where only trumpeter Flemming Agerskov is heard on several tracks.

Stylistically, C.V. always had a soft spot for jazz, and on his breakthrough album Storbyens små oaser from '77 you'll clearly notice a special jazz tone on several tracks - something you may also sense in small measure on his last two albums, but with Sjælland this is further emphasized with a style that combines previously unknown terrain - at least when it comes to the discography of C.V. Jørgensen. There is basically no focus on rock in a traditional sense, but only in a combo of trip hop and free jazz in a synthpop wrapping. It's a totally different expression than any other of his albums and in relation to his idiosyncrasy, which has given him status of a national rock icon. The inclusion of electronic instrumentation and a distinct synthpop style founded on keyboards, synths and rhythm programming fused with elements from free jazz is a most daring and remarkable change of style - something that e.g. shares traits with the '89 album Hats by Scottish band The Blue Nile.

Sjælland was released to mostly positive reviews, and although several critics were not exactly enthusiastic about Winding's production, the album ended up as one of Jørgensen's most praised albums. It's also my impression that the first critics of the album's sound nevertheless forgot their first judgment at a later stage.

It's C.V. in his most poetic corner, thus far. It must be remembered that at this point of his career he had been put on a pedestal as the outstanding national rock artist with an unusually sharp pen, which he directed against consumerism, double standards, social conflicts, as general ridicule of those in power and criticism of the political establishment without him taking a stand in relation to a clear left-right sympathy. He then advances here as a 'real' poet with songs full of lyrical features such as inner dialogue, sentiments and figurative language, which in places are the opposite to the characteristics of the epic narrative form and his image as a songwriter who was widely considered some kind of equivalent to that of the short story only adapted to a musical expression.

I attended one of his first live concerts with the album tour in '94, and the weirdest thing from the concert was my shock experiencing the aversion of the audience to his new songs. It was C.V.'s first live tour in four years with new material, and yet all a large group of fans clearly wanted was to hear him play his old stables, which meant that whenever the band started up with one of the new songs, people showed their contempt by hooting and booing. Apart from that 'detail', C.V., band and music were excellently executed, but I still left the concert with a bitter taste in my mouth after witnessing something that was so utter disrespectful. And with that in mind, I can't help thinking that experiences like that on that particular tour may be linked to C.V.'s later renunciation to live performance and also to his otherwise somewhat general withdrawal from the spotlight.

However, Sjælland was both an artistic triumph and a sales success, but it's also clear that fans were immensely divided about the his new musical direction. Some of long-running fans simply couldn't come to terms with C.V.'s progress as an artist, and he would at times be referred to as someone who had 'sold out'.

Imho, this album is no less than the best Danish album of the 1990s. It's C.V's best and most coherent album, and it's simply among the best Danish albums ever. It's nearly right up there fighting for the title as Best Danish Album Of All Time fighting side by side with Hip by Steppeulvene and the album Supertanker by Kliché.

The front cover is routinely credited C.V.'s girlfriend since 1970, Annemarie Albrectsen.

Highly recommended - a must.

1994 Favourite releases: 1. The Prodigy Music for the Jilted Generation - 2. Everything but the Girl Amplified Heart - 3. C.V. Jørgensen Sjælland

Queen Elizabeth "Queen Elizabeth" (1994)

Queen Elizabeth [debut]

release date: Nov. 1994

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,28]

producer: Julian Cope

label: Echo - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Superstar" - 2. "Avebury: The Arranged Marriage of Heaven and Earth"

Studio album debut from duo Queen Elizabeth consisting of Julian Cope and multi-instrumentalist Thighpaulsandra (aka Tim Lewis) - the latter features on Cope's most recent Autogeddon (Aug. '94). The album (only) consists of two compositions running just under 35 and just over 31 minutes, respectively.

The music is characterised by experimentation and is mainly kept in a simple electronic universe, where synths, mellotron, and programming are main components, and although traditional instruments such as guitar, bass, piano, and drums are part of the compositions, the final product is a work of electronic model completely without any apparent influence from styles that one might be inclined to associate with Cope, such as funk, space rock, or neo-psychedelia. As the experimental collaboration album Rite - made by Cope and the long-time musical associate Donald Ross Skinner (who, by the way, also features here) from '93 - it's easy to think of Queen Elizabeth as music made for a film, but where Rite was influenced by many well-known styles and genres from the past three decades, the album here appears far more minimalistic, more stylish experimental - without being downright masterful for that matter.

Frank Black "Teenager of the Year" (1994)

Teenager of the Year
release date: May 24, 1994
format: cd (1999 reissue)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,68]
producer: Eric Drew Feldman, Frank Black, Alistair Clay
label: 4AD Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Whatever Happened to Pong?" - 2. "Thalassocracy" - 3. "(I Want to Live on an) Abstract Plain" - 5. "The Vanishing Spies" - 6. "Speedy Marie" - 7. "Headache" (4 / 5) (live) - 11. "Fiddle Riddle" - 14. "I Could Stay Here Forever" - 16. "Superabound" - 17. "Big Red" - 20. "Pure Denizen of the Citizens Band"

2nd solo studio album by Frank Black is a true long-player at 62 min. playing time and containing 22 tracks (with several tracks under 2 min. and 10 tracks over 3 mins) thus being released as a double vinyl lp. Like on his debut, former Pixies guitarist Joey Santiago feature on several tracks but the musical backbone is once again co-producer Eric Drew Feldman on bass & keyboards and Nick Vincent on drums.
Stylistically, Black may not introduce a lot of new styles here - he excels in what he does best: playing alt. rock and indie rock - at the time often referred to as college rock, but the album is something else than his first solo album where he sort of just did what he had been used to do. And lyrically, he just continues to sing about whatever pops up in his weird super-sub-conscious fantasy. Yes, it's songs about video-games, comics' and cartoon characters, space, UFOs and what lies in between [!]... Quite often it's rather funny, though. The album is very varied incorporating not only inspiration from other genres and styles but by adding elements from 1960s surf rock, folk rock, 70s art rock and of course punk rock. Sometimes he even sounds inspired by more traditional folk as exemplified in "Superabound" and "Sir Rockaby", but without pointing in all directions he somehow manages to keep it all together thanks to a simple production sound without too much post-recording rework and by altogether containing all the various styles in his special universe of alt. rock.
Admittedly, I rejected the album in '94. I did try listening to it - more than once - but I just didn't get it. To me, it was too noisy and without direction and appeal. I dunno. I guess I felt the same way about Trompe le monde by Pixies when I first heard that one. There's something confrontational about his music that may cause people to keep it out, perhaps. Anyway, for me this is an album that has taken more than a usual amount time to settle and to adjust to. But I have. From a 2010-perspective I can't really understand why I didn't just embrace the album as the continued journey out of Pixies - kind of together with what The Breeders did.
The album contains a lot of fine tracks and great bits, and overall, it's quite an accomplishment, where I feel completely in line with Al Wesel of Rolling Stone when he sums up that: "The songs switch gears so much that you're never sure where you might end up, but the ride is always exhilarating." At the time of its release, the album was met by fine but also luke-warm reviews; however, time has really rocketed the album up on many best of charts, and it's also included in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, NME, Select, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

Grant McLennan "Horsebreaker Star" (1994)

Horsebreaker Star

release date: Dec. 1994

format: 2 cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,68]

producer: John Keane

label: Beggars Banquet - nationality: Australia

Track highlights, disc 1: 1. "Simone and Perry" (4 / 5) - 2. "Ice in Heaven" - 5. "Don't You Cry for Me No More" - 6. "Put You Down" - 8. "Coming Up for Air" - 9. "Ballad of Easy Rider" - 10. "Open Invitation" - 11. "Open My Eyes" - 12. "From My Lips" - - disc 2: 1. "Dropping You" - 2. "Hot Water" - 3. "Keep My Word" - 9. "All Her Songs"

3rd studio album by Grant McLennan following two years after Fireboy is no less than a double album consisting of 24 compositions - all written and composed by McLennan except "Ballad of Easy Rider" by Roger McGuinn. The album is his first solo release where he skipped the 'W.' in Grant W. McLennan. It was recorded in Athens, Georgia by local sound engineer and producer John Keane, who at this point recently had worked with R.E.M. (Out of Time and Automatic for the People), Lisa Germano (Happiness), Indigo Girls (Rites of Passage), Madder Rose (Swim), Vic Cheshnut (Drunk) amongst others and he was already a hot producer name on the indie rock and alt. rock scene.

After Fireboy, McLennan was busy touring as solo artist throughout '93. John Keane is also credited as multi-instrumentalist, and together with a handful of local studio musicians including Steve Venz, Andy Carlson and Joel Morris they play alongside McLennan on all tracks. Uncredited (except on track #6) Syd Straw provides some fine backing vocals to most songs. The music is predominantly held together by guitar, bass, percussion and string arrangements. Some are light and uptempo shaped, some are slow and ballad-like with a strong folk or country-sensation reminding us about Athens, Georgia where jangle pop flourished through R.E.M. and 10,000 Maniacs, but also with a strong reminiscence of The Go-Betweens and their sources of inspiration.

Personally, he seems to have put Amanda Brown behind him. At least when listening to the lyrics, but it's still evident that broken love and an ever-present melancholy plays a major part in his songwriting. It's music in the well-known jangle pop and singer / songwriter category with songs about relations - the ld and new, about friendships, the good and warm, but also the lost love songs as the scary dark tale in "Coming Up for Air".

Horsebreaker Star is a tremendous achievement when thinking it's one man's work. I can't decide if I find it too long or just right. There's undoubtedly tracks you could live without, and despite I have "only" found 13 highlighted tracks it's still difficult to point out enough songs for a standard 10-12 track album 'cause it feels very much of a whole. The album alone showcases McLennan as one of the finest Australian songwriters of modern ages.

Imho, this is his so far best solo album and naturally highly recommended.

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

The Church "Sometime Anywhere" (1994)

Sometime Anywhere

release date: May 31, 1994

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,44]

producer: The Church & (Andy) Dare Mason

label: Arista Records - nationality: Australia

Track highlights: 1. "Day of the Dead" - 2. "Lost My Touch" - 3. "Loveblind" - 4. "My Little Problem" - 5. "The Maven" - 9. "Two Places at Once" - 10. "Business Woman"

8th studio album by The Church released two years after the significant change in style with Priest = Aura (Mar. 1992) may have been released under the moniker of The Church, but a lot has changed since the rock-solid quartet of Kilbey, Koppes, Wilson-Piper, and Ploog released the international breakthrough album Starfish in 1988. The record company was in control when shaping the sound on Gold Afternoon Fix (Feb. 1990), and with the daring '92 album, you saw the first cracks in a quartet that had only been on a rise since the beginning of the 80s. The drummer was replaced, and then guitarist Peter Koppes left after the 1990 album - and for a time he formed the band The Well together with Richard Ploog, among others, and both Kilbey and Wilson-Piper were busy on their own music projects. Wilson-Piper played in the band All About Eve and Kilbey had started the collaboration Jack Frost with Grant McLennan from the Go-Betweens, so that The Church still existed really could be seen as the last convulsions. Arista still stood behind Kilbey and Wilson-Piper, even though the band was in some sort of disbandment. When it turned out that neither new drummer Daugherty wanted to continue, Kilbey and Wilson-Piper met alone and took advantage of having more freedom to shape the music they wanted. In this way, Sometime Anywhere is the result of a new perspective on music created with bold use of drum machine and synths, although there is also room for traditional drums - here played by Tim Powles, who later ended up as a permanent member of the new formation of The Church and he who also features on the second Jack Frost album Snow Job (1995).

Although the album is largely created through improvs and experimentation in the studio, it appears tighter and on the one hand as more closely connected to the band's previous albums than as a direct continuation of the looser Priest = Aura - and on the other hand, it appears as a mix of the band's previous characteristics and by doing so actually addresses the '92 album - or: somewhere in between. Sometime Anywhere has a duration of approx. 77 min. - something close to the absolute maximum for CD releases, and most tracks have a playing length that challenge the traditional three minutes in popular music. Also, there is no focus on single hits, and only one single was chosen for single release: the song "Two Places at Once", which has not charted on any singles charts. Despite positive reviews, the album didn't perform well, and it became the band's final with Arista, who by then no longer saw potential in the band's music.

Unlike the band's previous album, I actually acquired the album when it came out. After a single listen, I thought the band was once again embarking on an exciting development. Afterwards, I didn't listen to it that much - I found it a bit unstructured, but still with a certain originality, although, I could also found it had the touch of a special production, not far removed from U2's Achtung Baby (1991).

In retrospect, the album hasn't aged as one of the band's best, but it's part of the new improvisational approach Kilbey established in the early 90s and which he has since continued in the many musical projects he has been involved in.

[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, Q Magazine 3 / 5 stars ]

Julia Cope "Autogeddon" (1994)

Autogeddon

release date: Aug. 9, 1994

format: cd (ECHCD 1)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,64]

producer: Julian Cope

label: Echo - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Autogeddon Blues" - 3. "Don't Call Me Mark Chapman" - 4. "I Gotta Walk" - 6. "Paranormal in the West Country (Medley): i) 'Paranormal Pt. 1', ii) 'Archdrude's Roadtrip', iii) 'Kar-ma-kanik' " - 7. "Ain't But the One Way"

10th solo album by Julian Cope follows The Skellington Chronicles (Jun. 1993) but is seen as the natural sequel to Jehovahkill (Oct. 1992). Also, following the '92 album, he released the collaboration album Rite (Feb. 1993), made with Donald Ross Skinner. The album is the first issue on the newly founded sublabel Echo, a division of Chrysalis Group.

Autogeddon [whose title is a play on the Christian term 'Armageddon' for the annihilation of the Earth] is on the one hand his final part of a trilogy, but at the same time it appears very much as a fairly independent release, as it doesn't contain a smilar extensive tracklist as the other two albums - it comes with 'only' eight tracks but stil has a total playing length of 46 minutes - and then it's not divided into phases either. Musically, focus is also on other styles. The cosmic space rock and the German krautrock have been reduced and / or replaced by an indie rock style mixed with neo-psychedelia and progressive rock. The compositions are longer but not unusually long - with the exception of two songs: "West Country (Medley)" consisting of three parts, i) "Paranormal Pt. 1", ii) "Archdude's Roadtrip" and iii) "Kar- ma-kanik" with a total running length of 8:30 minutes, and the song "S.T.A.R.C.A.R." running 11:28 minutes. Common to all tracks is an overall theme of car culture as an image of (especially) Western consumerism and Cope's perspective on the destruction of the global environment - which in this way adds the album to his main theme in the trilogy. A greater focus has crept in on progressive compositions at the expense of more catchy songs, which nearly always were part of his albums. Perhaps Cope has simply adjusted to his own mindset of getting messages across instead of following the record companies' desire for sales ability - this new perspective on music is emphasised by giving the individual tracks an explanation in the inlay, rather than the regular reproduction of the song's text (also seen on Peggy Suicide).

Autogeddon received a mixed reception but still sold well and is ranked as Cope's second best solo album with a number #16 in the UK, only surpassed by Saint Julian (1987). Despite good sales figures, the album appears as less accessible, where focus has been accentuated on musical originality and perhaps especially on the message, which in any case may also be seen as an increased demand for the listener's attention and his / her willingness to come to terms with the actual meaning of the songs as something other than just pure musical enjoyment.

Shortly after this, Cope and Thighpaulsandra released the instrumental album Queen Elizabeth (Nov. '94) under the same name.

[ allmusic.com, Q Magazine 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5, NME 4 / 5 stars ]

The Divine Comedy "Promenade" (1994)

Promenade

release date: Mar. 28, 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,22]
producer: Neil Hannon, Darren Allison
label: Setanta Records - nationality: Northern Ireland, UK

Track highlights: 2. "Going Downhill Fast" - 3. "The Booklovers" - 6. "Don't Look Down" - 7. "When the Lights Go Out All Over Europe" (4 / 5) (live) - 8. "The Summerhouse" - 11. "Tonight We Fly" (4 / 5) (live)

3rd studio album by The Divine Comedy. This was the first really critically acclaimed album by Neil Hannon. Commercially, he still didn't reach any major sales but the critics and a growing crowd of fans hailed Hannon after this his first conceptual album. The entire album is about two lovers meeting one day at the seaside. The style is as its predecessor chamber pop but this time with much more use of strings and orchestrated symphonic arrangements.
[ allmusic.com, Q Magazine 4 / 5 stars ]

Robert Forster "I Had a New York Girlfriend" (1994)

I Had a New York Girlfriend

release date: Oct. 25, 1994

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,64]

producer: Robert Forster

label: Rough Trade Records - nationality: Australia

Track highlights: 1. "Nature's Way" - 3. "Echo Beach" - 4. "Tell Me That It Isn't True" - 5. "2541" (4 / 5) (live with Grant Hart) - 6. "Anytime" - 7. "Locked Away" - 8. "Look Out Here Comes Tomorrow" - 9. "Alone"

3rd studio album by Robert Forster following one year after his sophomore Calling From a Country Phone is like that released on Beggars Banquet - with Rough Trade distributing optical issues for the German and Scandinavian markets. The album consists of 12 compositions that are all covers with Forster sending his praise to some of his idols. The album is recorded with a short list of familiar names including bassist Mick Harvey, keyboardist Conway Savage - both from The Bad Seeds - and with drummer Clare Moore. Also future Bad Seeds member Warren Ellis plays violin on two tracks. The songwriters represent all types of styles and are credited for music spanning several decades, and they are as follows: Randy California (of the American band Spirit), Guy Charles Clark (American folk / country artist), Mark Gane (of American band Martha & The Muffins), Bob Dylan, Grant Hart (of American punk rock band Hüsker Dü), Herbert 'Happy' Lawson (American country songwriter), Steve Jordan & Keith Richards (song taken from Richard's solo debut), Neil Diamond, Tom Kelly & Billy Steinberg (song from their project i-Ten), Michael Hansonis (of German indie rock band King Candy), Mickey Newbury (American singer / songwriter), Bill Anderson (American country songwriter).

It's a quite coherent release despite the fact that all songs originally stem from various stylistic genres. All compositions have that distict personal touch of Forster's songwriting skills, which makes them all sound like his personal songs. Of course it helps that he only makes use of a handful of musicians and also that the individual songs mostly are arranged with focus on the performance of the vocal, guitar and / or piano backing, so that the songs have a re-arranged mix that fit in a jangle pop and folk-territory - and that works quite nicely. It still contains elements of Forster's love for traditional country, but nowhere to the same extent as you fill find on Calling From a Country Phone. Best songs here are, however, the jangle pop arrangements of the original new wave song "Echo Beach" by Martha & The Muffins, the country song "Anytime" by songwriter Herbert Lawson, and the punk rock song "2541" by Grant Hart. Alongside these, other songs shine almost as bright making the whole thing a fine collection of "lost classics".

In Forster's autobiography "Grant & I" he talks about this album as something he wish he'd never recorded. He says it was made in a rush, hardly without preparation and that it's basically a mistake compared to his better '93 album. Well, I'm sorry Robert, but I simply do not agree. This is a better album because of good material and a personal take on highly diverse songs. And perhaps the unpreparedness to the recording process just gave it that extra quality of Forster origin that others find in it - the same product he finds insufficient.

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com 3,5 / 5 stars ]

The Durutti Column "Sex and Death" (1994)

Sex and Death
release date: Nov. 1994
format: digital (facd2.01)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,18]
producer: Stephen Street, Vini Reilly
label: Factory Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Anthony" - 2. "The Rest of My Life" - 3. "For Colette" - 6. "My Irascible Friend" - 7. "Believe in Me" - 11. "Madre Mio"

9th "real" studio album by The Durutti Column released on Factor Too and co-produced by Stephen Street and Vini Reilly. As on Obey the Time (1990) and the successor Fidelity (1996) Reilly has really picked up electronic as his new musical playground. It's still music created for guitar but in an ambient electronic soundscape with the addition of traditional strings (violin and cello), and this release is much more interesting. The album was released on the new-founded label Factory Too, founded by Tony Wilson (co-founder of Factory Records) in the ashes of Factory Records, however, this new label didn't survive long as it was closed in 1996.
Without being one of of his best, the album offers some fine compositions where the overall impression is that Reilly is still searching for his style.
[ allmusic.com 2 / 5 stars ]

Robbie Robertson "Music for the Native Americans" (OST) (1994)

Music for the Native Americans (soundtrack)
release date: Oct. 4, 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
producer: Robbie Robertson
label: Capitol Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Coyote Dance" - 2. "Mahk Jchi (Heartbeat Drum Song)" (feat. Ulali) (live) - 3. "Ghost Dance" (4 / 5) - 5. "It Is a Good Day to Die" - 6. "Golden Feather" - 10. "Skinwalker"

3rd studio album by Robbie Robertson released as 'Robbie Robertson & The Red Road Ensemble' is a soundtrack album for the TV documentary "The Native Americans" - an American-produced series in three parts and six hours.

Being an actual soundtrack it's quite obvious a rather different album than his two previous studio releases, and the styles represented here are much more shaped towards traditional native Indian music with bits and pieces thrown in from rhythm & blues and the style established on his solo debut from '87. A few compositions are pure instrumentals with strong stylistic bonds to native Indian music, then some sound if leftovers from his debut, and a few points to his 1998 successor with the inclusion of electronica. The lasting impression is a great variety of songs of genuine complexity with some traditional melodic songs scattered all over the album, where the most memorable tracks being the first three.

The reception of the album was quite positive, as I recall it. Together with The Red Road Ensemble, Robertson toured America and Europe playing the music from the documentary much as to celebrate the much forgotten Indian culture. And as a half Indian himself, Robertson was put on a bit of a pedestal of the Indian culture movement with this contribution.

I recall listening to the album with much anticipation when it was all new and also remember my initial confusion as how to digest the whole thing. I think "complex" is a rather neutral kind of term to use when people actually don't fully appreciate something, and from my perspective, the album is generally formed by too many stylistic influences - not that those implications in themselves produce lesser works of art, but here the vast variety of styles point in too many directions; however, the album is far from a lesser work of art as it also contains fine structures and some truly fine compositions. Also, from a personal perspective, I have come to appreciate this much more over the years and today find it much more gratifying because of the album's complexity and despite the many stylistic impressions, you still find that common denominator in the native tone that fills the whole album.

Anyway, Robertson was lauded with this original album, but as a stand alone album, it's... different and somewhat difficult.

[ Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Elvis Costello & The Attractions "The Very Best of Elvis Costello & the Attractions" (1994)

The Very Best of Elvis Costello & the Attractions (compilation)
release date: Oct. 25, 1994
format: digital
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: various
label: Demon Records - nationality: England, UK

Best of compilation album released on Costello's former record label with songs spanning from his earliest albums to Blood & Chocolate (1986) after which he signed with Warner Bros. And just this label had earlier in '94 (Mar. 8) released Costello's Brutal Youth, which had been seen as a "return" despite having already released two other albums on Warner since his '86 album; however, both Spike (1989) and Mighty Like a Rose (1991) had been reviewed and possibly intentionally released as bolder mainstream albums, and Brutal Youth was compared to his more power pop-shaped '86 release.

This is not the best "best of" album you'll find with Costello, in fact there are so many best of albums claiming to contain his "hits" that it seems like an endless project to list them all. The first official album making the attempt to compile a best of album is The Best of Elvis Costello and The Attractions from 1985 issued on Columbia exclusively for the North American market containing 19 tracks, and a similar, though not identical, release The Best of Elvis Costello - The Man issued by Demon for the UK and Japanese markets containing 18 tracks. These two issues originally had the same front cover as background but "only" twelve tracks in common and a completely different playlist. Later issues of the UK version have a different cover. In 2007, Hip-O-Records issued the album The Best of Elvis Costello - The First 10 Years compiled by Costello himself, which basically is a (fine) combination of the two former best of albums containing 22 tracks.

Demon also released the extensive album Girls + £ ÷ Girls = $ & Girls (commonly referred to as Girls, Girls, Girls) subtitled "The Songs of Elvis Costello / The Sounds of Elvis Costello & The Attractions" from 1989 containing 47 tracks, and in 1999: The Very Best of Elvis Costello containing 42 tracks. Apart from these, Demon and associated labels have released various compilation albums, and also Warner / WEA has issued a number of Costello compilations like Malice and Magic (1994) and Extreme Honey (The Very Best of the Warner Bros. Years) (1997).

Forced to choose just one of the many best of albums, I would go with the 2007 Hip-O-Records issue.

[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]

American Music Club "San Francisco" (1994)

San Francisco
release date: Oct. 4, 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3 / 5] [2,68]
producer: Joe Chiccarelli and American Music Club
label: Reprise Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Fearless" - 3. "Can You Help Me?" - 5. "Wish The World Away" - 12. "I Broke My Promise" - 16. "California Dreamin' "

7th studio album by American Music Club is an album of 16 songs of which Mark Eitzel composed 1-15. The last two tracks are not enlisted on inlay or back cover. Track #16 is a cover of the hit single "California Dreamin' " by The Mamas & The Papas (org. rel. Dec. 8, 1965).
The music is the rather distinct style of most albums by AMC and / or Mark Eitzel solo with focus on singer / songwriter compositions and a certain slow folk rock (also labelled slowcore) with references to alt. country.
It's not a bad album but I've always found it somewhat anonymous.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

Elvis Costello "Brutal Youth" (1994)

Brutal Youth
release date: Mar. 8, 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,66]
producer: Mitchell Froom and Elvis Costello
label: Warner Bros. - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Pony St." - 2. "Kinder Murder" (4 / 5) (live on Letterman) - 3. "13 Steps Lead Down" - 4. "This Is Hell" - 5. "Clown Strike" - 7. "Still Too Soon to Know" - 9. "Sulky Girl" (official video) - 11. "My Science Fiction Twin" - 13. "Just About Glad" - 15. "Favourite Hour"

14th studio album by Elvis Costello follows an usual three years since his latest album Mighty Like a Rose (1991). The album is like the '91 release co-produced by Mitchell Froom and it's Costello's first album since Blood and Chocolate (1986) to feature The Attractions. They are not credited on the cover (or spine) but are listed as backing band on five of the songs. The relative long hiatus - for Costello - in between albums doesn't mean he didn't produce and compose music. As soon as the recording sessions for his '91 album was over (Winter '90/'91), he was engaged in composing and writing music with film-composer Richard Harvey for the BBC Channel 4 TV-series GBH, released Jul. '91, in '92 he began a collaborative work with the classical act The Brodsky Quartet with whom he released the album The Juliet Letters (Jan. '93), AND he wrote and composed all songs songs for the Wendy James' solo debut Now Ain't the Time for Your Tears (1993) - half of these co-written by Costello's wife Cait O'Riordan. So, no! The man is bloody productive as always.

Critics were rather divided on this (see below) ranking the album from mediocre to near masterpiece. Stephen Erlewine from Allmusic criticises the production sound: "Unfortunately, all this nostalgia and good intentions are cancelled by the retention of producer Mitchell Froom, whose junkyard, hazily cerebral productions stand in direct contrast to the Attractions' best work.", and Chris Willman in Los Angeles Times on the other hand: "You don’t have to have underrated Costello’s recent work to agree this is his finest album since his last with the Attractions, 1986’s Blood and Chocolate.”

Brutal Youth was promoted as a return to former heydays and it's striking how Costello has left the orchestrated arrangements of brass and strings somewhat behind instead of focussing on simpler song structures. That said, it's not Blood and Chocolate part 2 - the power pop songs are outnumbered by more singer / songwriter and pop / rock material but it IS a fine album that gave promises of a return to form of one of Britain's most acclaimed contemporary songwriters.

[ allmusic.com 2,5 / 5, Blender, Rolling Stone 3 / 5, Q Magazine, Uncut 4 / 5, NME 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Lush "Split" (1994)

vinyl cover

Split
release date: Jun. 13, 1994
format: vinyl (CAD 4011) / cd (Deluxe Edition)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,90]
producer: Mike Hedges and Lush
label: 4AD Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: A) 1. "Light from a Dead Star" - 2. "Kiss Chase" (4 / 5) - 3. "Blackout" - 4. "Hypocrite" (live) - 5. "Lovelife" (4,5 / 5) - 6. "Desire Lines" - 7. "The Invisible Man" (4 / 5) - - B) 1. "Undertow" - 2. "Never-Never" (4,5 / 5) - 3. "Lit Up" (5 / 5) (live) - 4. "Starlust"

2nd studio album by English, London-founded band Lush. This is just another great album released in 1994, and it's just outside my personal top-10 favourites. The debut release Gala (Nov. 1990) compiles the band's first releases, a single and two eps. It's dark and promising shoegaze and the follow-up, which is the actual full-length studio debut Spooky (Jan. 1992) turned out as what seemed more like an unfinished Robin Guthrie-project.
Split has a fine balance between dream pop and indie pop, and it both comes with long progressive dreamy sounds as well as more direct almost power pop energetic tracks, all kept together by the same touch. The front duo is made up of Emma Anderson and Miki Berenyi who are both doing lead vocals and play guitars, with Phil King playing bass, and Chris Acland handling drums. The album is produced by Mike Hedges, who used to work with post-punk and gothic rock bands like The Cure, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Bauhaus but also with more synth pop and new romantic bands like Associates, Thomas Dolby and that seems like a better choice than Guthrie's strong production signature of dream pop reminding me of album productions for This Mortail Coil and his former main band Cocteau Twins. After this, Lush released its perhaps least interesting album, Lovelife (1996), which indicated a change in style towards more indistinct britpop, and then the band's career came to a devastating end by drummer Chris Acland's tragic suicide in '96 and the remaining members then decided to call it a day. Berenyi featured on a few releases and then changed career, Emma Anderson continued in the duo-band Sing-Sing, and King appears to have chosen a way out of the backdoor of the business; however, and although being the band's lowest charting album, Split is a mighty fine album, and it stands as this band's most coherent and best effort, imho. The cd issue comes in a 2-disc Deluxe Edition with a 3-track bonus disc.
Recommended.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 ]

[ collectors' item - 1st pressing in NM condition from ~ €120,- ]

cd issue

Gangway "Optimism©" (1994)

Optimism©
release date: Apr. 14, 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3 / 5] [2,92]
producer: Henrik Balling, Illinton
label: Genlyd / BMG - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Endings" - 2. "Everything Seems to Go My Way" - 6. "A Million Words"

6th studio album by Gangway again following 1½ years after ther most recent studio album, Happy Ever After (Sep. '92). This time the album has been produced by main songwriter Henrik Balling together with Illinton [aka Lasse Mosegard] also credited bass programming. The title is actually the word "Optimism" followed by the letter 'G' in brackets as a variation of the copyright symbol [©] - cleverly referrencing 'Gangway'. For once, the band has managed to stay with the same label. Much as was the case with the '92 album Henrik Balling has composed the majority of the songs and (again) with Torben Johansen as songwriter of three compositions (tracks #6, #9, and #11), and with vocalist Allan Jensen as songwriter of track #4 (his first song on an album by Gangway). The band line-up remains unchanged but musically changes are evident. The sound is with a stronger emphasis on electronics without sounding like a follow-up to their '91 album. Now the style is closer to something in between New Order and Pet Shop Boys with a certain disco-feel, and Jesper Siberg (from Scatterbrain) is for the third consecutive album credited 'sound design'. It's still mostly primarily synth-pop with bits of sophisti-pop with an uptempo and danceable touch making it sound like a half-felt attempt to go in a dance club direction - perhaps inspired by Everything but the Girl?

It's an album practically without memorable tracks and I find it a new low point (not counting the British '88 re-release of Sitting in the Park) and their easily so far least favourable album.

Not recommended.

Blondie "The Platinum Collection" (1994)

The Platinum Collection (compilation)
release date: Nov. 1, 1994
format: digital (2 cd)
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: Richard Gottehrer / Mike Chapman / Alan Betrock
label: Chrysalis Records - nationality: USA

47 track 2 disc compilation album by Blondie. This is the one: The Ultimate, The Essential, and The Platinum best of Blondie album. There are so many compilations out there with this band, but most of them don't really contain enough great tracks to be what they are promoted as. This one hold what it promises. Of course 47 tracks is a lot, and hits and misses, they should be able to embrace the essential compositions. Aside from containing great tracks this is fine in more than one respect: it reflects a chronological order of the band's single releases, so one is able to sense the progression in sound and style, and then it contains all US and UK singles - both A- and B-sides from 1976 to 1982, which is the band's artistic period. If you don't want to collect all albums, and shuffle through more than 200 compositions of varied quality, this is more than a good alternative. The only downside to it is the decision to include a number of mediocre songs from the later period, but this is not just a best of collection, although, it may be judged as such. It's primary goal is to include all singles from the 7-year period, and naturally, they can't all be great - luckily (except "Once I Had A Love") the least interesting songs fall as the last 10 tracks. Highly recommendable.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]

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UK and Australian cover

Van Morrison "A Night In San Francisco" (1994) (live)

A Night In San Francisco (live)
release date: May 17, 1994
format: 2 cd (2008 remaster)
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: Van Morrison
label: Exile / Polydor - nationality: Northern Ireland, UK

Double disc live album by Van Morrison - which could've been called "Two Nights in California", are the recordings from two live concerts in Dec. 1993 in California - one night at the Mystic Theater, Petaluma, Dec. 12, and another night at the Masonic Auditorium, San Francisco, Dec. 18 - the 2008 Remaster contains the bonus track "Cleaning Windows" recorded at the Masonic Auditorium, Dec. 17, 1993.
A handful of special guests appear on some of the 23 songs, which represent many covers as well as familiar Morrison compositions. The guest artists are John Lee Hooker, Candy Dulfer, Junior Wells, Jimmy Witherspoon, and Morrison's daughter, Shana Morrison. Aside from these, a strong group of handpicked supporting musicians appear throughout all compositions: Ronnie Johnson on guitar, James Hunter on guitar & vocals, Brian Kennedy on vocals, Nicky Scott on bass, Georgie Fame on keyboards & vocals, John Savannah on piano & vocals, Geoff Dunn on drums, Teena Lyle on percussion & vibraphone, Kate St. John on soprano & tenor saxophone, and Haji Ahkba on flugelhorn. And this bunch really back Morrison in the best possible way.
The album is full of individual performances as well as tight, spontaneous and delightful playing, and on top of it all, Van Morrison swims in, with, against the streams of sound in the most natural manner. The album contains more than 2½ hours of music, which may seem like a long time, but frankly, it doesn't feel one minute too long. Also, the recordings and the production sound is just like being there.
Highly recommendable.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

John Frusciante "Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt" (1994)

Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt [debut]
release date: Mar. 8, 1994
format: digital
[album rate: 1,5 / 5]

Some tracks: 2. "My Smile Is a Rifle" - 3. "Head (Beach Arab)" - 4. "Big Takeover" - 8. "Been Insane" - 10. "Your Pussy's Glued to a Building on Fire" - 14. "Untitled #2" - 21. "Untitled #9" - 24. "Untitled #12"

Studio debut album by John Frusciante released on American Recordings. The album shows a completely different side to the guitarist of Red Hot Chili Peppers whom he left in 1992. Stylistically, it's a most evident example of Frusciante's interest in expressions of creativity made in "streams of consciousness". The first half of the album Tracks 1-12 are labelled "Niandra LaDes", and they were written shortly after the completion of Red Hot Chili Peppers' break-through album Blood Sugar Sex Magic (Sep. 1991), and the other half, tracks 13-25, labelled "Usually Just a T-Shirt" (commonly referred to as "Untitled #1-13") were recorded while touring with RHCP i.e. before breaking with the band but at a time when he had become a serious drug addict of heroin and cocaine. The music is said to reflect Frusciante's spirituality and an unbalanced emotional state, and also his drug abuse during the recording sessions, which took place in his own house from 1991-93. Anyway, it's apparent how the second part seems much more improvised. I have come to know of the music of Frusciante much later, and have only come across this album a few months ago, and I must agree to Christian Hoard of Rolling Stone Magazine that it mostly just appears to be 'ramblings' and what sound as rough demos. These takes may be avant-garde and / or experimental neo-psychedelic rock and instant expressiveness of a genius, but nevertheless, it ain't good.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, Rolling Stone 2 / 5 stars ]

Greene "Lovers' Lingo" (1994)

Lovers' Lingo

release date: Apr. 18, 1994

format: cd

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,33]

producer: Troels Bech

label: Cloudland - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Being With Someone" (live) - 2. "Introducing Love to a Cynic" (live) - 3. "Lovers' Lingo" - 7. "Venus in Furs" - 9. "Can't Find Myself"

2nd studio album by Greene and the follow-up to Teenage Museum (May 1992) is Greene in a slightly changed line-up making it a quintet with lead vocalist Peter H. Olesen, acoustic guitarist Henrik Olesen, lead guitarist Marco de Andreis, and with Flemming Borby on drums and organ. New member here is Henrik Duus on electric & acoustic guitar, who only features on this album. Aside from that also John Krog Hansen (from The Poets, here replacing Kim Borreby) is credited on bass - he would be official member after the release. All songs are credited Olesen / Olesen except track #1 with additional music by Jens Unmack and track #7, a cover of Lou Reed's "Venus in Furs".

Musically, the band has turned down on its post-punk roots and embraced more melodic and harmony-based indie pop with room for ballads, holding on to a more subdued jangle pop sound.

I recall being quite happy for this album when it was released but also found it with apparent inspiration from The Sound / Adrian Borland and not so much the Go-Betweens / Aztec Camera sound they demonstrated on the debut, but over the years, I don't see it as the strong follow-up, I initially embraced back then. It still has its moments - mostly in terms of reflecting better arrangements and for being better produced - but as original music it stands a bit with the one foot in following The Sound and the other wanting to follow Lou Reed and ends up being a bit indecisive. Also, when looking back at the band's discography - counting three full-length studio albums, Lovers' Lingo appears their weakest moment.

Adrian Borland "Beautiful Ammunition" (1994)

Beautiful Ammunition
release date: 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,72]
producer: Mark Hunziger, Mark Kelser, Adrian Borland
label: Resolve Records - nationality: England, UK

Tracklist: 1. "Re-United States of Love" (5 / 5) - 2. "Open Door" - 3. "Rocket" - 4. "Stranger in the Soul" - 5. "Break My Fall" - 6. "Station of the Cross" - 7. "Simple Little Love" - 8. "White Room" - 9. "Past Full of Shadows" - 10. "Ordinary Angel" (4 / 5) (alt. version) - 11. "Lonely Late-Nighter" - 12. "Someone Will Love You Today" - 13. "Forgiveness" - 14. "Rootless" (3,5 / 5) - 15. "In Passing" - 16. "Shoreline"

3rd studio album release by Adrian Borland, and the first to be released under his name only. It shows a more introvert and darker side to Adrian, which could be seen as a bit of a return into gloomy despair, as on Thunder Up (1987) the final album by The Sound. In hindsight, it points to and draws attention to his troubled life. Nevertheless, it really contains some fine tracks and "Re-United States of Love" is a wonderful composition.