LES SAVY FAV After the Balls Drop (French Kiss)
Live albums? Isn’t that so Seventies?
LES SAVY FAV After the Balls Drop (French Kiss)
Live albums? Isn’t that so Seventies?
TEAM GENIUS Hooray E.P. (Self-released)
The five tracks featured on this debut E.P. from Team Genius vacillate from quirky psych-folk (Sing Song & Hand Claps in E Major) to edgy post-punk (Let’s All Sleep Together & I’m Just An Idiot) to gnarly twee country-pop (Must). References the knowing observant might pick up would include the Flaming Lips, XTC, Velvet Underground, Bob Dylan, Lambchop to name but a few.
My personal highlights would be the geeky one-two sucker punch of the shamelessly shambolic Sing Song and the rather more mellifluent Hand Claps in E Major, which promise a textural direction that channels the slightly schizophrenic genius of the likes of Brian Wilson and Todd Rundgren.
Hopefully, a teaser for the full-length album to come.
Promising.
CAPTAIN WILBERFORCE Everybody Loves a Villain (Self-released)
No escapin’ technology! There was a time when bands and labels would be aghast at the thought of a new album being leaked on the internet. Now, the bands themselves are “leaking” the CD in advance before the official release – a new form of promotion – who would have believed that, a mere couple of years ago?!
I was talking to my Japanese friends, Takahashi and Limi (hope I spelt that right!) at last night’s WeekendTRIP gig at the Youth Park and both were very impressed by the sheer quality of Singapore music. They were mystified as to why events like WeekendTRIP and other Singapore music gigs were not better publicized and why Singapore music bands were not given more opportunities to play. Why indeed.
VARIOUS ARTISTS – Parx-E (Clear Springs Entertainment)
Here’s a pleasant surprise! Clear Springs Entertainment, out of Melbourne, sent me this compilation of pretty diverse indie bands (from US, Australia, NZ & Scotland) and for the most part, colour me impressed.
This was the week when we (Ric, Kazz & I) put the My Magic soundtrack together and it was a magical time indeed! Last Saturday, we attempted to record the closing credits track live with Jonathan but discovered that there was too much noise rendering the recording virtually unusable.
THE CHARLATANS You Cross My Path (Self-released)
Music for free – what a concept!If you didn’t already know, the Charlatans have followed in the footsteps of The Crimea and Radiohead by making their latest album available online for free. The album is You Cross My Path and it is a disco monster! Well, in the sense that the Charlies have the dancefloor firmly in their sights when recording this collection of keyboard-driven songs. Thus, a track like Misbegotten is wrapped with bouncy electronics and a melody line that is not too far removed from New Order’s Blue Monday.
The rest of You Cross My Path is chock full of toe-tapping instantly likeable tunes like the choppy title track, the catchy Oh! Vanity and the truly gorgeous Bird/Reprise. It almost seems like the band has pulled out all the stops to ensure that You Cross My Path has the makings of a classic Britpop album.
So, You Cross My Path deserves the highest recommendations. Please do yourself a favour and get that free download whilst it’s still available at Xfm.com. Absolutely essential.
The quality of a good song is evident in (almost) every musical context. Now, the Great Spy Experiment has wonderful songs and the challenge for the band at this Mosaic Music Festival event at the Esplanade Concourse tonight was to present them in an acoustic format. And the band delivered with aplomb!
STICKMAN – Thin White Line (Self released)
Stickman has been kind enough to share with me their well-crafted music a couple of times and regretfully, I was unable to review Thin White Line in the year it was released i.e. 2007. But here it is!
Basically, Stickman viz. Gordy Axt, Kylie Buddin, Stu and Sam Mullins deal in melodic pop-rock with an emphasis on songs. I suppose key reference points would be, in my opinion, the Barenaked Ladies, Elvis Costello, Phish, Fountains of Wayne. Anyone I guess who can hang a memorable tune on a finely constructed studio recording.
Strong material throughout but I especially love the gorgeous ballad Paint, the psychedelically textured Nadine, the jaunty humorous Vicki the Ventriloquist and the pleasing opening title track. Some may label Stickman as “old school” but as far as I’m concerned, good music is timeless and Thin White Line is good music indeed.
NATURALLY 7 Live at Montreux 2007 DVD (Eagle Rock)
Are acapella groups a gimmick?
AMERICAN MUSIC CLUB The Golden Age (Merge)
Contrary to popularly-held opinion, I actually thought that San Francisco – AMC’s last album before the recent renaissance – was AMC’s finest effort.
THE NINES Grand Jukle’s Field (T.A.S. Gold Recordings)
Powerpop fans know that they’re safe with The Nines.
By and large, The Nines have a fixed agenda – basically channel the likes of Paul McCartney and XTC into gloriously tuneful pop nuggets that are bright and shiny without a cloud on the horizon.
As a general statement, that assessment is accurate also of Grand Jukle’s Field the latest offering from the Nines.
QUEEN ROCK MONTREAL DVD (Eagle Rock)
Absolutely the best Queen live DVD ever!