Robert Forster "Songs to Play" (2015)

Songs to Play

release date: Sep. 18, 2015

format: digital (10 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]

producer: Robert Forster, Luke McDonald & Scott Bromiley

label: Tapete Records - nationality: Australia

Track highlights: 2. "Let Me Imagine You" - 4. "And I Knew" - 6. "I'm so Happy for You" - 8. "Turn on the Rain" - 9. "I Love Myself and I Always Have" - 10. "Disaster in Motion"

6th studio album by Robert Forster following a full 7½ years after The Evangelist (Apr. 2008). Apparently, most of these songs were written in 2010 / 2011 but weren't recorded until around five years later. Forster has explained that he needed a break in his music career, and initially had set himself up for a five-year hiatus, which then turned into seven... It was a period during which he wrote music articles and simultaneously worked on his autobiography. The album has been made completely without former collaborators Adele Pickvance and Glenn Thompson. Forster clearly wanted to make a fresh restart and in their place he has invited the two members from Australian The John Steel Singers: Luke McDonald and Scott Bromiley - both as multi-instrumentalists. Forster produced the band's 2010 debut Tangalooma and together they then played some of these songs, which would end up on Songs to Play, and here the two are also credited as co-producers. Forster's wife, Karin Baümler, previously participated on his albums playing violin and doing backing vocals, but on this, she has played a fuller part on all tracks, and together with drummer Matt Piele from Forster's tour band, they all form the new backing 'band', which of course gives the output new colours.

Although McDonald and Bromiley have been given rein to contribute with their ideas, it's still very much a Robert Forster solo with lyrics and music credited the man himself. The style is laid in an acoustic contemporary folk rock characterised by strong bonds to classic rock & roll in its simplest form. At times it's uptempo without being danceable rock and the songs appear with a marked lightness compared to the gloomier tone on his previous albums.

Songs to Play is an album where the music has come to the fore and Forster successfully acts as a classic singer / songwriter without being weighed down by his former achievements, suppressed emotions and the melancholy, which have been natural traits in the past, and by that, the album could pave the way for a new dynamic in his original musical realm. In any case, it's not an album, as the predecessor, that sounds like falling in between The Go-Betweens and a solo album - it's definitely a pure Robert Forster release on which he deals with the present.

The front cover is a photo of Robert and Karin's daughter Loretta Forster.

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com, PopMatters 3,5 / 5, The Guardian 4 / 5 stars ]

Kraftwerk "The Mix" (1991)

2009 remaster

The Mix

release date: Jun. 11, 1991

format: cd (2009 remaster)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,38]

producer: Ralf Hütter, Florian Schneider

label: Kling Klang / EMI - nationality: Germany

10th studio album by Kraftwerk following a full five years after Electric Cafe (1986) isn't officially a compilation, although it may perfectly appear as that since it's dedicated to compositions stemming from all of the band's studio albums beginning with Autobahn (1974) right up to the most recent studio album Electric Cafe (1986). Ralf Hütter has offered his thoughts on why it's not to be considered a compilation or let alone a remix album, as others would claim. He states that these tracks are an expression of the band's live versions of well-known songs, all of which have been subjected to reshaping during the many years of performances. Since '86 percussionist Wolfgang Flür has left the band and as of '87, he was practically substituted by Fritz Hilpert. In 1990, Karl Bartos also left the band, after which Fernando Abrantes took over in his place and on the album here, but Abrantes left shortly after the release only to be replaced by Henning Schmitz.

Incidentally, 2009 is the year in which Kraftwerk reissued all of the it's essential albums in newly remastered editions - like this one - and they also reissued the box set Der Katalog (2004) with a back cover label '12345678', indicating the band's 8 studio albums from 1974 to 2003. Regardless Hütter's explanation, and intention, it doesn't change the fact that the tracks on The Mix have all been taken from previously released studio albums, and yes, they are here in completely new remixed versions. The album consists of 11 tracks and has a total running length of 65 minutes.

From both Autobahn (1974) and Radio-Aktivität (1975) only the respective title tracks have been included; from Trans Europa Express (1977) three tracks are included: the title track, "Abzug" and "Metall auf Metall"; from the album Die Mensch-Maschine (1979) only "Die Roboter" has found its way the this; from Computerwelt (1981) we again find three selected tracks: "Taschenrechner", "Computer Liebe", and "Heimcomputer", and from Electric Cafe (1986) only the song "Music Non-Stop" is included. With a bit of quick math, that sums up to only ten tracks, and that's because, in addition to album tracks, there's also room for "Dentaku", which is a Japanese version of "Taschenregner" in a slightly different version, originally featured as a B-side to the single release.

The album received a slightly luke-warm reception, but still landed at number #7 in Germany and at number #15 in the UK. Kraftwerk also released the new versions of "Die Roboter" and "Radio-Aktivität" as the two (promotional) singles from the album.

The Mix is a fine album without dazzling. However, I think that especially the earliest compositions have been altered and given a more modern sound in such a way that they certainly don't stand as improvements to the originals. Later well-known tracks have been exposed to a little bit of everything, and at the end, the album is mostly for fans and connoisseurs, as others will be better served with the original versions. And of course you're are free to think what you want about all their fine tracks they have passed on and not included here. You may ask yourself why on Earth they didn't just release a double album, when there's plenty of material to revisit? It's certainly not an essential release, which basically functions more as bonus material - an appendix you can easily do without.

[ allmusic,com, Mojo 3 / 5, Q Magazine, Uncut 4 / 5 stars ]

org. cover

Cassandra Jenkins "Play Till You Win" (2017)

Play Till You Win [debut]

release date: Apr. 7, 2017

format: digital (11 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,42]

producer: Cassandra Jenkins & Sam Owens

label: self-released - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Candy Crane" (live) - 2. "Tennessee Waltz" - 5. "Red Lips" - 6. "Disappearing" - 9. "Disco Death Dance" - 10. "Some Time" - 11. "Halley" (live)

Full-length studio album debut by Cassandra Jenkins is a decent first-attempt where she already upholds a certain self-reliance as someone who's been around much longer. And that is something, which is stressed by how the album is both a coherent and nicely varied experience. She has her own laid-back singing style and maturely builds on classic folk rock and country of the 70s without sounding dated. What lacks, are stronger personal songs and some of the original quality you'll find on her later releases, but all in all, Play Till You Win is a fine debut.

[ The Line of Best Fit 7,5 / 10 stars ]

Nick Cave & Warren Ellis "Carnage" (2021)

Carnage

release date: Feb. 25, 2021

format: digital (8 x File, MP3)

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

producer: Nick Cave & Warren Ellis

label: Goliath Records - nationality: Australia

Track highlights: 1. "Hand of God" - 2. "Old Time" - 3. "Carnage" - 4. "White Elephant" - 6. "Lavender Fields" - 7. "Shattered Ground" - 8. "Balcony Man"

First actual duo-project credited Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, long time collaborators in Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, who most recently released Ghosteen in 2019. However, since 2005 when they made music for the performance "Woyzech", they have co-written music for a large number of performances and films - which are also available as soundtrack releases. Ellis has been a member of The Bad Seeds since the '97 album The Boatman's Call, but has featured on the band's albums since '92, and his role in the band has only grown over time. In '97 he had a minor part playing violin and keyboards as 'extra spice' to the band's sound, from the 2001 album No More Shall We Part he was also credited some compositions, from the 2008 album Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! he is a distinctive composer and multi-instrumentalist, and from Push the Sky Away in 2013 he is now credited as composer along with Cave on all tracks, and thus the musical center of the band has shifted to being exclusively a pair collaboration in recent years, with Cave providing lyrics and Ellis supplementing with music. Therefore, the album here is not a huge surprise, since this is how they have worked on their recent three studio albums. The music with The Bad Seeds has thus transformed over the years from being alt. rock towards an increased focus on Cave's lyrics to being a kind of poetic recitations with evocative background music.

On Push the Sky Away you'll notice percussion, bass, and guitar, but it's with instrumentation such as violin, cello, and keyboards as the main sound sources, and there's a stylistic interference with elements from jazz, Tindersticks, and something reminiscent of Tom Waits' experimental style. This new and more naked soundscape becomes even more evident on Skeleton Tree, and with Ghosteen the rhythmic element is now completely absent, replaced by Cave's insistent vocal and Ellis's keyboards as spheric tapestry.

On Carnage you'll find a progression towards more complex compositions, where guitar, bass, and percussion are occasionally heard - mostly on "Old Time". In that way it sounds more like the continuation of Skeleton Tree rather than Ghosteen, but most of all it's a new chapter in the book of human pain, sorrow, and suffering as experienced by Nick Cave. From being a direct dramatic writer who told about crooked existences and people living in the shadows of society, Cave has grown over the past decade into a more lyrical playwright who talks about existential aspects of life and death.

The album has been met by positive reviews - but that's nearly always how it works for Cave. He is, if anything, a critics' darling, and the album has landed several international top-10 positions, including number #2 in Australia, number #3 in the UK, Belgium and in the Netherlands, number #5 in Germany, and a number #1 position in Scotland and Portugal.

It's a nice and fine acquaintance without fillers but perhaps also the slightly expected release. However, the music is good, the lyrics compelling and the level high. It's an album that wins over time because Cave and Ellis are just great together.

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, Gaffa.dk 5 / 6, NME 5 / 5 stars ]

John Travolta / Olivia Newton-John "You're the One That I Want" (1978) (single)

You're the One That I Want, 7'' single

release date: Mar. 1978

format: vinyl

[single rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,38]

producer: John Farrar

label: RSO - nationality: Australia / USA

Tracklist: A) "You're the One That I Want" - - B) "Alone at a Drive-in Movie (instrumental)"

Single release taken from the 1978 musical film "Grease" by Randal Kleiser. I think I may have purchased this particular item myself at the age of 14, probably after watching the film. I can't say that I was a fan of neither Newton-John nor of Travolta, but I do recall liking the film and the energy of the title track.

~ ~ ~

This post is part of MyMusicJourney, which enlists key releases that have shaped my musical taste when growing up and until age 14. Most of these releases come from my parents' and / or my older brother's collection.

Toyah "Minx" (1985)

Minx
release date: Jul. 25, 1985
format: digital
[album rate: 2,5 / 5] [2,72]
producer: Christopher Neil
label: Portrait Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Soldier of Fortune, Terrorist of Love" - 2. "Don't Fall in Love (I Said)" - 3. "Soul Passing Through Soul" - 11. "America for Beginners"

Studio solo debut by Toyah Wilcox, although it's also the sixth album credited Toyah. After Love Is the Law (Oct. 1983) the band faced declining sales figures and interest, and most of the band members became engaged in other acts, basically, leaving Wilcox and Joel Bogen alone - once again. Except this time, Toyah Wilcox now signed a contract with CBS subsidiary Portrait as a solo artist. Songwriting duo Wilcox / Bogen is here credited a single song (track #7), while most of the other tracks are credited Wilcox and keyboardist Simon Darlow. The album also feature a total of four covers - songs originally released by Rare Bird (track #4), DATA (track #6), Alice Cooper (track #9), and Latin Quarter (track #11).

Alledgedly, the money men of the label had much to say in terms of details about the sound and style of the album, and also regarding what specific tracks they wanted on an album that appears to have been produced with an American market in mind, i.e. with clear focus on a mainstream style within a pop / rock bubble at a time when synthpop and the contemporary soft version of new wave with toned-down art pop was state-of-the-art. The arrangements show bold use of vocal harmonies, keyboards, and the typical '80s drum sound, as well as the use of strings. Even the front cover highlights a shift towards a different audience in mind with a Toyah Wilcox [in a Sheena Easton / Frida / Tina Turner look-a-like] style and definitely not meant for punk rock associations.

The album actually performed quite well, peaking at number #24 on the national albums chart, and the first single "Don't Fall in Love (I Said)" peaked as number #22. Tracks #3 and #10 were also issued as singles and landed as No. #57 and #93, respectively.

Both musically and stylistically, Toyah simply ceased to appeal to me after Love Is the Law, and this very album just cemented my lack of interest. I believe much of the relatively significant commercial success that she faced after all is largely due to her background as an actor in a number of British films, TV series, and in roles as TV presenter on various BBC-productions. From a musical historical perspective, the band Toyah and soloist Toyah Wilcox released only a few really substantial albums, where Anthem (1981) is the only truly outstanding original.

One year following Minx, Wilcox married guitarist Robert Fripp, and she continued to release solo albums up until '96, after which the pace of new releases slowed considerably. The 2008 album In the Court of the Crimson Queen - paying tribute to husband Fripp's band King Crimson's acclaimed debut In the Court of the Crimson King from 1969 - from the beginning of 2021, is Wilcox's most recent studio album.

Not recommended.

Kings of Leon "When You See Yourself" (2021)

When You See Yourself
release date: Mar. 5, 2021
format: digital
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,80]
producer: Markus Dravs
label: RCA Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "When You See Yourself, Are You Far Away" - 2. "The Bandit" (live) - 3. "100,000 People" (4 / 5) - 4. "Stormy Weather" - 5. "A Wave" (4 / 5) - 6. "Golden Restless Age" - 8. "Supermarket"

8th studio album from Kings of Leon following 4½ år after WALLS (Oct. 2016) is the band's second consecutive album to be made with producer Markus Dravs.

Stylewise, this new album doesn't come up with great many surprises. Kings of Leon is a band set on playing their own melodic mix of alt. rock and they basically keep quite strict to a formula they have distilled on since 2008 / 2010. And yet, this one comfortly manages to place itself in the better half of the band's repertoire, thus distancing itself elegantly from the poppier WALLS, which still holds up the band's so far only to reach the glorious national first spot on Billboard 200. Saleswise, it would have been expected that the band and its record company in support would go for a replication of success, but instead the band has produced, what to me sounds like, a gracious mix of its artistic peak with Come Around Sundown (2010) and Only by the Night (2008). By doing so, you could argue that Kings of Leon have found back on a proper course they sought out a decade ago but which instead took them on a sidetrack occupied by pop-ballads - something you'll find plenty of on their previous two studio albums from 2013 and 2016, respectively. Even with some retreatment to former heydays, When You See Yourself still makes a fine updated version of one of the finest US rock bands this century.

Highly recommended

[ allmusic.com, Clash 3,5 / 5, 👍NME 4 / 5 stars ]

Les Negresses Vertes "Famille nombreuse" (1991)

Famille nombreuse
release date: Nov. 1, 1991
format: vinyl (gatefold) / digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,68]
producer: Sodi & Clive (aka Clive Martin)
label: Delabel / Razzia Disques - nationality: France

Track highlights: 1. "Famille heureuse" - 2. "Perpétuellement vôtre" - 6. "Sous le soleil de Bodega" - 8. "Hou ! Mamma mia..." - 9. "Infidèle cervelle" - 10. "La France a ses dimanches" - 12. "Car c'est un blouze"

2nd studio album by French band Les Negresses Vertes, which here enlists eleven members, although the cover photos only counts ten members. Prior to this, the band featured on the international Cole Porter tribute album Red Hot + Blue from 1990 with their version of "I Love Paris".

Here, the band attempts to continue in the same style from Mlah (1989), but nevertheless with more polished arrangements, which lacks the rebellious streak that caused the band to be compared to Madness and The Pogues. However, the album does succeed in presenting a more common tone, where Mlah pointed in various directions and also reflected music from a sea of ​​styles, and in that regard Familie nombreuse is an album that roughly stays on the same ground throughout. It's original, but in my mind it's missing that extra kick the debut contained. Having said that, the music here is by no means poor, but at times sticks out as slightly uninspired, although I personally find that the album actually improves in the latter half - perhaps simply because these songs share some of the traits from Mlah.

Familie nombreuse [meaning 'large family'] is the band's final with the its front figure, lead vocalist, and one of its major songwriters: Helno Rota, who died of an overdose in '93 (at the age of 29), after which the band's line-up changed considerably. The band continued to release albums up until around 2001, after which they have been less active. However, around 2018 and up to the 30th anniversary of this very album, Les Negresses Vertes (reformed with several of the original members) resumed their live performances, playing tracks from Mlah in particular (see here and here - and here a promotion spot for their tour).

[ 👎allmusic.com 2 / 5 stars, Popdose review ]

Elvis Costello "The Best of Elvis Costello - The First 10 Years" (2007)

The Best of Elvis Costello - The First 10 Years (compilation)
release date: May 1, 2007
format: digital
[album rate: 4,5 / 5]
producer: various
label: Hip-O Records - nationality: England, UK

Best of compilation by Elvis Costello compiled by Costello himself is a strong contender to the best single disc compilation around with his earliest - and best - material. The selection starts off from the debut album My Aim Is True (1977) and ends with his last album released on F-Beat, Blood & Chocolate (1986). A couple of fine things about the album is how all studio releases except (the shallow) Goodbye Cruel World (1984) from this ten year period are represented, and that the songs appear in chronological order. The total of 22 tracks is made up from three taken from Costello's first three albums, My Aim..., This Year's Model (1978) and Armed Forces (1979), then two from albums 4 and 5, Get Happy!! (1980) and Trust (1981), one composition from his 6th, Almost Blue (1981), then again three from his 7th, Imperial Bedroom (1982), two from his 8th, Punch the Clock (1983), two from his 10th, King of America (1986), and one song from his 11th, Blood & Chocolate. Of course there's no way he would be able to satisfy everyone's taste and personally; I miss more from Get Happy!! and Blood & Chocolate and I could live without few of the selected, but ultimately, it's impossible to pick 22 tracks only, and when going for 1-3 songs from these albums, it's a pretty decent job.

[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Les Negresses Vertes "Mlah" (1989)

Mlah [debut]
release date: (Jan.?) 1989
format: vinyl / 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, and a copy of the same vinyl issue I once owned. 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
udgivet: 19. feb. 2021
format: vinyl (LTD. blue vinyl) / digital (7 x File, FLAC)
[vurdering: 4 / 5] [4,02]
producer: Stuart A. Staples
selskab: Lucky Dog / City Slang - nationalitet: England, UK

Fuld trackliste: 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"

13. studiealbum fra Tindersticks efterfølger No Treasure but Hope (nov. 2019) og er udgivet på Stuart Staples' eget label, Lucky Dog, med hjælp fra det uafhængige tyske selskab City Slang. Bandet er stadig samme kvintet, bestående af forsanger, primær sangskriver og komponist Stuart A. Staples, guitarist Neil Fraser, basist og tangentspiller Dan McKinna, tangentspiller David Boulter og trommeslager Earl Harvin. Albummet indeholder blot syv numre og har en samlet spilletid på lige over 46 minutter, hvilket betyder, at flere numre har længere spilletid end de sædvanlige 3 til 4 minutter - selvom bandet på de seneste udgivelser har forsøgt sig med andre utraditionelle tiltag i udviklingen af bandets lydunivers. Lidt ukonventionelt starter albummet her med det absolut længste nummer, der varer mere end 11 minutter, og nummeret er da også usædvanligt for Tindersticks, da det har en tydelig elektronisk kant. Herefter fortsætter albummet mere traditionelt for bandet med ret simpelt opbygget chamber pop uden en masse dikedarer udover Staples' markante vokal oven på stille guitartoner, et næsten ikke-eksisterende ambient keyboard og svagt-hørbare strygere - og helt uden traditionelle trommer. Et andet nyt træk er tilstedeværelsen af covers. Ud af albummets syv numre er der tre coversange, og selvom originalversionerne er ret tilgængelige, har Tindersticks forvandlet disse til rene Tindersticks-sange, så det hele fungerer ret fint sammen. "A Man Needs a Maid" er en velkendt Neil Young-sang fra hans klassiske Harvest-album fra 1972, og den er her fuldstændig tilpasset et Tindersticks-univers med lyse korstemmer og Staples' kontrasterende mørkere vokal - resultatet er rigtig godt. Det efterfølgende nummer, "Lady with the Braid", er sandsynligvis en mindre kendt sang for de fleste, skrevet af [Dorothy] Dory Previn [aka Dory Langdon, aka Dory Previn Shannon] og hentet fra hendes andet singer / songwriter-studiealbum Mythical Kings and Iguanas fra 1971. Denne efterfølges af det sidste covernummer: "You'll Have to Scream Louder" skrevet af Dan Treacy til det britiske post-punk band Television Personalities og hentet fra 1984-albummet The Painted Word. Herefter fortsætter Distractions med en ligeledes næsten typisk Tindersticks-komposition med fransk tekst: "Tue-moi" ['Slå mig ihjel'], hvor Staples med sit engelsk-franske [beklager] gør sit bedste i fransk 'chanson'-stil, hvilket nok kun briter og visse smigrede franskmænd vil opfatte som noget ekstraordinært. Sangen er dog noget helt særligt på en anden måde, da det er Staples' inspiration fra og hans tanker om attentatet på det franske spillested Bataclan i 2015 - et spillested, som Tindersticks har besøgt flere gange. Albummet slutter lidt, som det starter - med et lidt mere eksperimenterende nummer med tape-loops og 'anden elektronik', selvom det stadig mest bare lyder som Tindersticks i det lidt jazzede hjørne. På sin vis minder albummet om Staples' seneste soloudspil, albummet Arrhythmia fra 2018, som er første gang, man bemærker Staples eksperimentere med elektroniske virkemidler. Dét album var også usædvanligt på grund af sine ret lange kompositioner.

Alt i alt, er Distractions et album, der byder på både nyt og gammelt, og som umiskendeligt er Tindersticks, der for alvor har skruet ned for arrangementerne, men det er et album, der vinder over tid. Det velkendte chamber pop-element er kun svagt til stede, mens der i stedet er blevet plads til noget eksperimenterende, der låner fra både moderne stilarter og fra jazz.

Tindersticks fortsætter med at lave fascinerende musik - det virker som om, de har fundet deres helt egen plads i alt. rock-sfæren med plads nok til at fortsætte eksperimenterne uden samtidig at miste den kunstneriske fremdrift. Og jeg er fristet til at spørge: "Hvornår har det her band egentlig lavet et dårligt album?" Det er i hvert fald meget længe siden, og det har bestemt ikke været tilfældet, siden bandet var ramt af interne konflikter omkring årtusindskiftet.

Stor annbefaling.

Coveret til albummet er krediteret Sidonie Osborne Staples - datter til Stuart Staples & Suzanne Osborne.

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

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 the New York-based band Big Thief following the release of Big Thief'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 formats 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" run for 21:12 and 16:12 minutes respectively. Apparently, the album came about as the band's live tour activities had been brought to an abrupt end due to the COVID-19 lock-down.

This solo outing by Lenker doesn't fall far from the albums by Big Thief but in general Lenker's solo songs tend to be more instrospective, more quiet singer / songwriter and more stripped down material without the distinct bond to an indie rock scene, and with this one she reveals an even more subtle and near lo-fi-arranged intimate collection that just 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) with Phil Weinrobe as recording engineer.

Lyrically, it's deeply personal, yet on a general level of instrospectiveness. It's about how to deal with emotions linked to separation, loss and... human suffering, and then, it's nevertheless 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 really good.

Songs & Instrumentals is a most welcomed album.

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

I Break Horses "Warnings" (2020)

Warnings

release date: May 20, 2020

format: digital (12 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,92]

producer: Maria Lindén

label: Bella Union - nationality: Sweden

Track highlights: 1. "Turn" (4 / 5) - 2. "Silence" - 4. "I'll Be the Death of You" - 6. "The Prophet" (4,5 / 5) - 7. "Neon Lights" - 8. "I Live at Night" - 9. "Baby You Have Travelled for Miles Without Love in Your Eyes" (4 / 5) - 10. "Death Engine"

3rd studio album by I Break Horses as a follow-up to the more than six year old Chiaroscuro (Jan. 2014) is much as usual produced by the band's dynamo, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and composer Maria Lindén, and it's like the duo's two previous albums released on British label Bella Union.

Six years is a long time between releases in modern popular music culture, but it's the pace of Lindén and percussionist Fredrik Balck who seem in complete control, although part of the explanation for the long wait may have to do with Lindén's perfectionism and the fact that some recordings were lost. The album consists of 12 tracks varying from 1 to 9 minutes and with a total running time of 54 minutes.

Musically, the album lands somewhere in between the first two albums - Hearts from 2011 with its guitar-driven shoegaze and My Bloody Valentine-esque wall of sound versus the more electronic synthpop release from 2014. You'll find energetic uptempo tracks with almost inaudible guitar as background instrumentation, but otherwise it's a more strict synthpop and electropop version of dreampop guided by keyboards, synths, and drum programming, the duo presents here. Lindén is undoubtedly the duo's leading figure - in addition to her vocal contributions, she handles guitar, bass, and keyboards, while Balck, in addition to his part of co-songwriter, apparently is content to contribute as the duo's rhythmic planner.

Warnings has been released to fine reviews, and it's an album that may leave you with a feeling of something ingenious and original pointing back to the best by The Knife, but which also borrows from Cocteau Twins and Radio Dept., but cleverly avoids imitation, because it appears thoroughly new. Lindén doesn't reveal an impressive vocal as some contemporary pop artists, but on Warnings the vocal side is more of a contribution to the tone of dreampop in line with the sound of a synthesiser or the keyboards, and the rhythmic contribution of percussion and drum programming varies from trance-like monotony over more traditional simple rhythm structures to something almost dynamic organic as you would find on albums by The Creatures.

With Warnings, I Break Horses has made a minor masterpiece by balancing the positive energy of their debut with the greater rhythmic complexity of the follow-up. It's a huge musical overview with ties to various styles, which creates rare dynamics, and it's an inviting and captivating sound that deserves all the great reviews. With Warnings the duo has made a most surprising leap to the front of bus.

Highly recommended.

[ allmusic.com, Under the Radar 4,5 / 5, NME, 👍The Line of Best Fit 4 / 5 stars ]

2020 Favourite releases: 1. Gorillaz Song Machine, Season One - Strange Timez - 2. Kesi BO4L - 3. I Break Horses Warnings

Robin Guthrie & Harold Budd "Another Flower" (2020)

Another Flower

release date: Dec. 4, 2020

format: digital (9 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,56]

producer: Robin Guthrie

label: Soleil Après Minuit - nationality: Skotland, UK / USA

Track highlights: 1. "Some Smoke" - 2. "Perfect Fire" - 4. "November Day" - 5. "After Dark" - 7. "Harlequin Delight" - 8. "Very Slender Homage"

Final collaborative project between Scottish dream pop master Robin Guthrie and American composer and minimalist Harold Budd. The album is not a bunch of brand new compositions but actually a collection of more than seven years old recordings, which now see the light of day. Possibly, they were intended as another joint work between the now 58-year-old Guthrie and 84-year-old Budd, but it now appears as their last joint work, as Budd was hit by COVID-19 before the album came out and eventually died from complications related to the decease on Dec. 8, 2020 - only 14 days before the album release. As noted in the accompanying liner notes, the album is "Written and performed by Robin Guthrie & Harold Budd during a rainy Summer in Brittany, 2013". It isn't directly mentioned that the album was recorded over a single day or over a matter of sessions, but most often they basically worked in the moment with the recorder running, and while the music was created and performed from start to finish. Perhaps this music wouldn't have been released had Budd not passed away so abruptly 'cause fact is: these compositions are seven-year-old recordings with which Guthrie now choose to pay tribute to his long-time musical playmate. And Harold Budd may not have heard the album in its entirety and with the tracks precisely ordered as they appear here - but Budd heard it all, because he was there himself.

As usual, it's the gentle atmospheric sounds that dominate Guthrie and Budd's music. Since these compositions they have released more than a handful of joint albums, either as musical scores for feature films or as their own releases. They are both listed here as performers and composers of all music, and as usual only Guthrie is credited as album producer. It's another chapter in a common ethereal ambient style that clearly touches on new age and doesn't walk on entirely new paths. The elder Budd is a classically-schooled pianist and composer, and he has early admitted to an improvisational and minimalist expression, which has proven to go quite well with Guthrie's preference for an airy guitar sound. Their final recordings together in terms of chronology was their collaborative works resulting in the 2014 soundtrack White Bird in a Blizzard for the film of the same name directed by Japanese-American Gregg Araki, who had also made "Mysterious Skin" in 2005, for which Guthrie and Budd introduced their collaborative work. In addition to these soundtracks, together they composed and made After the Night Falls and Before the Day Breaks released simultaneously in 2007 as two individual releases, and later they released Bordeaux in 2011. That same year, they also released Winter Garden as a joint project with Italian musician Eraldo Bernocchi.

Another Flower is, as the title suggests, another distinctive work from Guthrie and Budd - another flower. Perhaps, this was a metaphor Budd used about their compositions or works - we don't know for sure. Guthrie came up with the title after Budd's death - it could also be a reference to Budd himself, as a flower that was here, it was seen, admired, and is now gone. Musically speaking, it's not the large and complex compositional structures that characterise their compositions, but it's music created in a shared moment and in a warm, friendly common expression. You could object that they cling on to the same colours, the same airy timbres, which in way they do, but these are tones that contain something valuable by being created as common breaths expressed in music, and which show themselves as a unique and living organism.

Although new age as such is not really a favourite genre of mine, the album here expresses something quite unique. It's the evidence of both musicians' fondness for the instantaneous - the moment of creation, and they both allow / invite one another to contribute without one or the other dominate the soundscape, or you end up sensing one over the other, and that's a great strength and quality to be able to strike a common note when improvising. When one leads, the other follows suit, and they set out in a common unknown direction with equal vigor to a common end.

Another Flower may not be a work that indicates new paths or inspires new styles, but the music clearly has its merits, and occasionally I feel the music strikes an expression that reminds me of other big names of ethereal music, such as Palle Mikkelborg or Ryuichi Sakamoto, but always without giving impression of plagiarism. When I shut my eyes, I can easily conjure up internal images of underwater footage from Luc Besson's "Le Grand Bleu", which had music by Éric Serra. It's done sincerely and beautifully, and it's perhaps Guthrie and Budd's greatest swan song. At least I haven't heard them perform better than on this album.

Recommended.

Sigur Rós "Odin's Raven Magic" (2020)

Odin's Raven Magic (soundtrack)

release date: Dec. 4, 2020

format: digital (8 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,72]

producer: Sigur Rós [?]

label: Krúnk - nationality: Iceland

Track highlights: 2. "Alföður orkar" - 3. "Dvergmál" - 4. "Stendur æva" - 5. "Áss hinn hvíti" - 7. "Spár eða spakmál" - 8. "Dagrenning"

Soundtrack album, or so it has been described by the band on its bandcamp site. The music here is actually "an orchestral collaboration between Sigur Rós, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, Steindór Andersen and Maria Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir which premiered 18 years ago at the Barbican Centre in London [...]" [written in 2020] - it premiered at the Barbican Centre in London, Apr. 21, 2002, which means the band had not yet released its third studio album as the collaboration falls between the second, Ágætus byrjun (Jun. 1999) and [ ] ('the brackets album') (Oct. 2002).

In hindsight, 'cause I didn't know about it until it was released in 2020, it's remarkable album. Near majestic. I understand the term soundtrack, although it's 'only' the music to an ancient Icelandic poem without a visual side to it. It's orchestrated, but nevertheless it also feels like a post-rock, or experimental transgressing piece of art. It's neo-classical and experimental rock - but it works unlike many other such attempts of a fusion between classical music and music from the pop culture.

Odin's Raven Magic is simply a truly wonderful album.

All tracks are credited Jón Þór Birgisson, Georg Hólm, Orri Páll Dýrason, Kjartan Sveinsson, Steindór Andersen, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson and María Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir.

Toyah "Love Is the Law" (1983)

Love Is the Law
release date: Oct. 24, 1983
format: vinyl (HOTLP 83003) / digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,38]
producer: Nick Tauber
label: Safari Records / Hot Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "I Explode" - 4. "Rebel Run" - 5. "Martian Cowboy" - 6. "Dreamscape" - 7. "Time Is Ours" - 10. "The Vow"

5th studio album by Toyah [band name] following Changeling (1982) originally released on Safari Records is the final album by the band Toyah. After this, Toyah Wilcox released her first solo album Minx (1985) under the same name. The majority of the songs here are written by Toyah and composed by guitarist Joel Bogen, just as they had shared credits on previous releases, and perhaps there is some kind of hidden sign of an imminent breakup of the band in the fact that the members had come and gone - bass players, keyboardists, and drummers were often different individuals on the band's first four albums. This is also the final album with one of the founding musicians of Toyah: guitarist and main composer Joel Bogen, with whom Wilcox wrote and composed the majority of the band's music. Bassist Phil Spalding (in the band from '81) appears on only three out of a total of ten tracks on the original album. On the remaining songs he has been replaced by Brad Lang, who here is one of three new members only appearing on this. The other two are: keyboardist Simon Darlow, and new drummer Andy Duncan. However, Darlow would later, from around 2007, again assist Wilcox.

In terms of style, it's clear that the band here has taken a significant step into the world of synthpop mixing that with a richly orchestrated art pop à la Kate Bush, and somewhat with the same inspiration as you may hear on the band's most recent two albums - just listen to "The Vow", and here it's most obvious how much synthesisers have come to fill the soundscape. The connection to the '70s is minimized, and the album introduces a new path, which is not quite pure neo-romantic but which may still be classified as synthpop. On Toyah's first two albums, the inspiration blatantly came from German Nina Hagen, and Toyah most of all sounded like an English clone of Nina Hagen Band. And with this new album, I can't quite shake the thought that a new German artist might have been a big inspiration. Nena, or perhaps you may think of Toyah Wilcox as the slightly outlandish image of Kate Bush trying to be Nena - or vice versa.

Love Is the Law was the only release by Toyah that I purchased when it had only just come out and I've completely forgotten why I found it interesting in the first place. I wasn't a big fan but had listened to some of their hits, such as "I Want to Be Free" and "It's a Mystery" from the fine Anthem from 81, which I purchased much later, but I probably just came across the album in the local music store and noticed the cover and having the familiar songs in mind, and then upon listening through it, I may possibly have been impressed by the fine change in production sound. Also, I may have even listened to "Dreamscape" as the first track on the B-side, which is quite a magnificent cut when comparing to other new wave releases from that year. However, I do remember that I rather quickly tired of / was fed up with Wilcox's vocal and the pompous arrangements, which still reminded me of 1970s progressive pop / rock, although, Wilcox herself with her singing style appeared with the 'right profile' - i.e. a punk rock attitude, which on the one hand linked her with contemporary artists such as Hazel O'Connor and Nina Hagen, and on the other hand also with Debbie Harry and especially Kate Bush, who was actually a form of guarantee that it couldn't be all bad. And Love Is the Law is by no means a poor or mediocre album, even if time has not made it easier to listen to. Back then, I think, it was seen as something innovative and quite modern, but it's also an album that simply doesn't reach the same original quality as Anthem, which imho clearly is Toyah's all-time best.

[ Pop Rescue 3 / 5 stars ]

Cat Power "The Greatest" (2006)

The Greatest
release date: Jan. 9, 2006
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,65]
producer: Stuart Sikes
label: Matador / P-Vine Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "The Greatest" (4 / 5) (live on Later) - 2. "Living Proof" (live on Letterman) - 3. "Lived in Bars" (officiel video) (live on Later) - 5. "Empty Shell" - 6. "Willie" - 7. "Where Is My Love" (officiel video) - 12. "Love & Communication"

7th studio album by Cat Power (aka Chan Marshall) following a full three years after You Are Free (Feb. 2003). Like all Power's other albums, The Greatest is in the quieter end of folk rock and singer / songwriter genre with elements from alt. country and traditional blues. What's new here is especially a far more indie pop-tinged series of songs in larger-than-usual arrangements, which by that don't have 'the usual' clear lo-fi touch. The album therefore seems more airy, varied and lighter than most of her other albums, which have often carried an excessive heavy melancholic mood. The songs here appear brighter and lighter, even though Power's vocals are not that different and without ever displaying the big register, but which nevertheless has its own qualities, which are mainly rooted in a charismatic hoarse and occasionally almost whispering intonation, which can lead thoughts to Lana Del Rey and Hope Sandoval with a common starting point in Laura Nyro.

The Greatest is Cat Power's highest-charting album to date on the US Billboard 200 peaking at number #34, but it reached number #20 in Australia and at number #45 in the UK. The album won the Alternative Shortlist Music Prize (an award running from 2001 to 2007) ahead of names such as Band of Horses, Joanna Newsom, and Tom Waits - an award for which her 2003 album was also nominated without running with the award.

Imho, The Greatest is Powers best album to date and therefore also a recommended place to delve into the special universe of Cat Power.

[ allmusic.com, The Guardian, NME, Q 3 / 5, 👍Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5, Pitchfork 7,9 / 10 stars ]

Lingua Ignota "Wicked Game" (2018) (single)

Wicked Game, single

release date: Aug. 7, 2020

format: digital (1 x File, FLAC)

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

producer: Kristin Hayter

label: Sargent House - nationality: USA

Tracklist: 1. "Wicked Game"

Single release by Lingua Ignota issued via her new label Sargent House is one of several covers Kristin Hayter has recorded in the wake of the album's success with Caligula (2019). An all-covers album has been rumoured in the process but so far she has released singles in 2020 of "Jolene" (Dolly Parton), "Kim" (Eminem), and then this one by Chris Isaak as digital download singles only. Most recently in the series of covers, a 4-track ep, Agnus Dei, consisting of two covers of extreme black metal / grindcore and two compositions by Händel and J.S. Bach, respectively, was released in Feb. 2021.

"Wicked Game" has already been immortalised in its original version and through several fine covers, but Lingua Ignota's version is undoubtedly another that should be remembered. It's made with great respect of the original expression and tone, and still Hayter has nonetheless shaped it according to her own musical expression. She has managed to add another layer of desolation to the song without her regular use of black metal, throat singing, and metal noise. There is no doubt, however, who stands beind this version, and one can only guess that a great future could await Hayter if she would dare to throw off the brutal black-heavy noise in order to establish herself further as an artist. At least she shows a fine example of that right here.

[ bandcamp ]