As promised the album reviews of 2006, in no particular order. HAPPY NEW YEAR! The Hold Steady: Boys and Girls in America (Vagrant, 2006). “Stuck Between Stations” has the look and feel of a hit single, and knowing Craig Finn, he could care less. Hits are not what he’s about. Unlike so many other auteurs, whom emote about topics they’ve never even observed, much less experienced, Finn invites us into a world he knows first hand: a world where broken bottles and broken dreams are one in the same. His heroes – the kids, always the kids – struggle, fall and pick themselves up. Like the girl in “You Can Make Him Like You” who dumps her boyfriend when she finally gets tired of his drug use. Strangely depressing and uplifting at the same time, but what else could you expect from someone who stole the title of his album from a Jack Kerouac line? A- The Gothic Archies: The Tragic Treasury: Songs From a Series of Unfortunate Events (Nonesuch, 2006). From the sublime to the ridiculou...
Posts
Top Albums of 2006 (1st go around) Like I really need to say this. This list will be updated at some point during the next few weeks, as is my prerogative as a critic. One change in format from last year: the A albums are in bold to separate them from the pack. As was the case last year I will follow with the long, overdue reviews of these albums over the next few weeks. 1. Bob Dylan: Modern Times (Columbia) 2. Ghostface Killah: Fishscale (Def Jam) 3. The Klezmatics: Wonder Wheel (JMG) 4. Tom Waits: Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards (Anti) 5. Rosanne Cash: Black Cadillac (Capitol) 6. The Streets: The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living (Vice/Atlantic) 7. Joanna Newsom: Ys (Drag City) 8. Outkast: Idlewild (LeFace) 9. Todd Snider: The Devil You Know (New Door) 10. Maria Muldaur: Heart of Mine:...
DEVILS, BLOATS, OLD FARTS AND YIDDISH MARXISTS. NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL ECLECTIC! The following reviews are dedicated to Robert Christgau, who last week was “fired” by The Village Voice as part of a “restructuring.” For 37 years he inspired countless rock lovers and would-be critics with his wit and a painfully honest style of writing. Now he’s a free agent, a casualty of an industry that long ago stopped giving a shit about rock-n-roll. Good luck, Robert. We will never forget your contributions, commitment or your passion. Todd Snider: The Devil You Know (New Door, 2006). That Snider has become a troubadour of the underclass is a given; that he’s managed to develop into a substantial artist capable of transcending his art into a competent product and a vehicle that continues to draw new fans to him is the best damn news musically to hit the industry in years. What made East Nashville Skyline unique and great was Snider’s ability to be both funny and evoke rage at the same tim...
AND THE TOP PICKS KEEP COMING! The Go-Betweens: That Striped Sunlight Sound (Yep Roc, 2006). It portends Street Survivors if for no other reason than the timing (released four months prior to Grant’s passing). And like Lynyrd Skynyrd before them there is a cruel irony that gets played out here in that anyone who missed the boat the first time around now gets a chance to catch up and appreciate them for what they were: the wittiest and most prolific pair of popsters this side of Liverpool. The bonus DVD adds a special touch – check out the last interview with McLennan in which he comments on their future as a band. Their like will not soon be duplicated. A- Jenny Lewis With the Watson Twins: Rabbit Fur Coat (Team Love, 2006). Fronting Rilo Kiley was easy for Lewis. She was the ultimate indie wet dream: hot, sexy, fearless, and with a tight band behind her. Flying solo is another thing. Her voice, not exactly her strongest asset, blossoms nicely here. It’s a cross between...
A Quiet Heart
“It doesn't matter how far you've come You've always got further to go.” - Grant McLennan Some deaths are tragic: Buddy Holly, Otis Redding, Ronnie Van Zant, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Some are inevitable: Frankie Lymon, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and, later, Kurt Cobain. Then there are those deaths that seem strangely poetic in there happenstance, as though orchestrated by the gods, neither inevitable nor tragic, just matter of fact. At the age of 48 Grant McLennan was seemingly at the apex of a career that had already once been reinvented. The six albums he and his partner Robert Forster had put out in the 1980s as the leaders of The Go-Betweens had done more than just deliver some of the wittiest and most mature songwriting of the decade; they single-handedly were responsible for creating a whole new genre of music that is now referred to as adult alternative. Groups like Belle and Sebastian, Luna, and even Yo La Tengo were quick to adopt elements of their styl...
DON'T STOP ME NOW, I'M ON A ROLL! Frank London's Klezmer Brass Allstars: Carnival Conspiracy (Piranha, 2006). The difference between your basic bar mitzvah band and the truly unique world-vision eastern-European Yiddish band the Klezmatics became famous for may be a fine line, but damn if London doesn't skirt it brilliantly. While I confess to being no expert on the history of the music, its Ukrainian folk roots aided by a mix of Brazilian rhythm put this album over the top for me. In deed, I'm thinking it's this years Gogol Bordello. A little less anarchic, but still steeped in the Gypsy tradition. A Rhett Miller: The Believer (Verve Forecast, 2006). Like Paul Westerberg before him, he finds life in the solo lane to be both liberating and challenging at the same time. Unlike Westerberg, he's up for the challenge. While I still miss the Old 97's, if for no other reason that I still feel a good, tight band is both essential and rare these days, Miller...
IT'S ABOUT TIME! Taking 4 months off from a hobby that at times seemed more work than delight, I thought it was time to come back and share some insight into some new releases this year. Even hobbyists have to show up for work sometimes! Kimya Dawson: Remember That I Love You (K, 2006). Calling Dawson an acquired taste seems pointless at this stage. She is now one of the preeminent singer/songwriters of the decade. She's witty, sincere, and a champion of the minimalist school. She also has a way with words. Anyone who can put rhymes like adios, ghost, coast, host and toast in the same song and make them work has my heart. In deed she bares a strange resemblance to another square peg: Stephin Merritt. The cross she bares is the reason she's so beloved, and, while the human in me hopes she finally finds the peace that's been missing from her life, the critic is pulling for more of the same misery. Selfish perhaps, but then I also thought Amy Rigby was better when she ...
2005 AT LAST! OK, so all it took was 5 months to finally come up with a top 40 for 2005. You think this is easy? You try it! 1. Gogol Bordello: Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike (Side One Dummy). 2. The Rough Guide to the Music of the Sahara (World Music Network). 3. Thelonious Monk Quartet: Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall (Blue Note). 4. Our New Orleans: A Benefit Album for the Gulf Coast (Nonesuch). 5. The Go-Betweens: Oceans Apart (Yep Roc). 6. M.I.A.: Arular (Interscope). 7. Kanye West: Late Registration (Roc-A-Fella). 8. Sufjan Stevens: Illinois (Asthmatic Kitty). 9. The New Pornographers: Twin Cinema (Matador). 10. Ani DiFranco: Knuckle Down (Righteous Babe). 11. The Hold Steady: Separation Sunday (Frenchkiss) 12. The White Stripes: Get Behind Me, Satan (V2). 13. Amadou & Miriam: Dimanche a Bamako (Nonesuch). 14. Sleater-Kinney: The Woods (Sub Pop). 15. The Chemical Brothers: Push the Butt...
In With the New. Some new music for the new year. Rosanne Cash: Black Cadillac (Capitol, 2006). With the loss of her step mother and both parents all within the space of two years, this is her loving memorial, if you will. In the title track she laments, "one of us gets to go to heaven, one has to stay here in hell." While in "I Was Watching You," she looks down from heaven at her parents wedding day and then watches their marriage fall apart knowing there's nothing she can do to stop it. As the sole matriarch of a family of tragedies and triumphs she finally comes to grips with her past, and accepts the truth that long after life there's still love; the love of her husband and kids; the love of her daddy who is still watching over her. Her grief is transcended finally by her father's faith. A faith that is now hers to bare. This is her finest album since Interiors, and its courage is as undeniable as it is redemptive. A Belle & Sebastian: The ...
REBELS WITH A CAUSE! Steve Earle: Jerusalem (Artemis, 2002). Even in his earlier days, back when he courted the same audience that Dwight Yoakam and John Anderson used to own, Earle was sort of a rebel rouser. His class-consciousness earned him high praises from rock critics, but down in Nashville he was thought of as a light-weight Joe Ely. His addiction to heroine, combined with a propensity for shooting off his mouth, earned him a reputation as a radical. Jerusalem will certainly do nothing to quell his critics. If anything, with songs like "John Walker's Blues" and the title track, he's more likely to incite them. With a plethora of post 9/11 albums, all seeking to somehow make sense out of senseless violence, Earle's courage comes off as genuine. And even if it does cost him at the cash register - Wal-Mart has threatened not to carry the album - in the end history will be on his side. A. Todd Snider: East Nashville Skyline (Oh Boy, 2004). America's f...
The Best of the 1970s: The dawning of the age of the Singer/Songwriter, as well as the rise and fall of Album-Oriented Rock and Disco. This was the decade that ushered in and out three profound genres. Name me another decade that saw the likes of Led Zeppelin, Van Morrison, and the Bee Gees fight over who's stamp would define it better and I'll show you, well, you know what, forget it. There was no other decade like this. And yet, in many respects, this was a terrible decade for creativity. Save for the Joni Mitchells, the John Prines and the Stevie Wonders, this was a very narrow-minded decade. Unlike, its predecessor (the '60s) and its benefactor (the '80s) the 1970s were as predictable as dirt. No sooner had AOR exploded on the scene in late '69 than it began to fizzle out within a few years; by 1975 it was in its death throws, replaced by the early new wave/punk movement. Disco, too, became of a victim of its own fame. By 1979, it had become the nation's nu...
The Best of the 1980s: Indie Meets Major! I don't know about you, but I found this to be, overall, the best decade in pop music. It was diverse, transitional, unconventional, and, at the same time, popular. Not since the 1960s has there been such an influx of divergent musical genres and styles. It was tough choosing only 40, but here goes. 1. The Indestructible Beat of Soweto (Shanachie, 1986). 2. The Clash: London Calling (Epic, 1980). 3. Bruce Springsteen: Born in the U.S.A. (Columbia, 1984). 4. DeBarge: In a Special Way (Gordy, 1983). 5. Ornette Coleman: Of Human Feelings (Antilles, 1982). 6. Mekons: Fear and Whiskey (Sin import, 1985). 7. Lucinda Williams: Lucinda Williams (Rough Trade, 1988). 8. Public Enemy: It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back (Def Jam, 1988). 9. Prince: Sign O' the Times (Paisley Park, 1987). 10. X: Wild Gift (Slash, 1981). 11. Marshall Crenshaw: Field Day (Warner Bros., 1983). 12. James B...
2005's Honorable Mention Picking only 30 albums was difficult. In light of that I thought it only fair to list the albums that would've made it had the list been a top 40. Fiona Apple: Extraordinary Machine (Epic/Cleanslate). Danger Doom: The Mouse and the Mask (Epitaph). Franz Ferdinand: You Could Have It So Much Better (Domino). James McMurtry: Childish Things (Compadre). Art Brut: Bang Bang Rock & Roll (Banana Recordings). The Perceptionists : Black Dialogue (Def Jux). My Morning Jacket: Z (ATO/RCA). Bell Orchestre: Recording a Tape the Colour of the Light (Rough Trade). Wide Right: Sleeping on the Couch (Poptop). Four Tet: Everything Ecstatic (Domino). Life is cruel sometimes
TWO-FERS: Two albums each from various artists over the last three decades. R.E.M.: Lifes Rich Pageant (I.R.S., 1986). Not content to leave his lyrics in the dominion of obscurity, Michael Stipe finally enunciates and the result is not only an album that’s covertly political (Murmur) , but one that’s overtly political as well. At the same time it’s also their most popular effort. But for all the accolades “Fall on Me” earn them – and they certainly deserve it – it’s the more blunt songs like “These Days” and “The Flowers of Guatemala” that boil my juices. Their socialism is real, as is their ambition, and while this is not quite as potent as their debut, for staying power, it's right up there. A- R.E.M.: Document (I.R.S., 1987). For the record “It’s the End of the World As We Know It” is the finest song they’ve done, but for most of this “major breakthrough” I find myself wondering what all the fuss is about. Sure “The One I Love” finally puts them on the charts like ...
The Best of 2002 The year after 9/11. Yes, the world went on after all! 1. The Mekons: OOOH! 2. DJ Shadow: The Private Press 3. Kimya Dawson: I'm Sorry That Sometimes I'm Mean 4. Northern State: Dying in Stereo 5. Cornershop: Handcream for a Generation 6. Sleater-Kinney: One Beat 7. Orchestra Baobab: Specialist in All Styles 8. Kasey Chambers: Barricades & Brickwalls 9. Spoon: Kill the Moonlight 10. Youssou N'Dour: Nothing's in Vain (Coono du reer) 11. Rhett Miller: The Instigator 12. Johnny Cash: American IV: The Man Comes Around 13. Steve Earle: Jerusalem 14. The Mountain Goats: Tallahassee 15. Tom Waits: Blood Money 16. Mr. Lif: I Phantom 17. Will Rigby: Paradoxaholic 18. Pretty Girls Make Graves: Good Health 19. Luna: Close Cover Before Striking 20. The Bottle Rockets: Songs of Sahm 21. Pretenders: Loose Screw 22. The Reputation: The Reputation 23. The Go-Betweens: Spring Hill Fair 24. Ryan Adams: Demolition 25. The ...
An admirer - OK it's me - writes: "Your style is reminiscent of Robert Christgau of the Village Voice. You mentioned his influence early on in your blog. Were there any other critics who impacted your style? More to the point, why was it so necessary to "borrow" from them in the first place?" Actually the first critic that I remember reading was Wayne Robbins in Newsday during the late '70s. For the first time I was introduced to music I had never heard before from artists such as Television, the Talking Heads, and Elvis Costello. I was fascinated that any one was actually writing about contemporary rock music in such an insightful way. I learned so much from reading these reviews that it made me hungry for more. I stumbled on to Robert Christgau quite by accident. I picked up an issue of The Village Voice one day in February 1982, and read the annual "Pazz and Jop" critics poll. All of a sudden there were all these different types of music th...
The Best of 2003. Now that I'm on a roll here, why stop? 1. Liz Phair: Liz Phair (Capitol). 2. OutKast: Speakerboxx/The Love Below (Arista). 3. Buck 65: Talkin' Honky Blues (WEA). 4. Fountains of Wayne: Welcome Interstate Managers (S-Curve). 5. James Carter: Gardenias for Lady Day (Sony). 6. Lucinda Williams: World Without Tears (Lost Highway). 7. The Libertines: Up the Bracket (Rough Trade). 8. The Wrens: The Meadowlands (Absolutely Kosher). 9. Missy Elliott: This Is Not a Test (Elektra). 10. Amy Rigby: Til the Wheels Fall Off (Signature Sounds). 11. Amy Allison: No Frills Friend (Diesel Only). 12. Warren Zevon: The Wind (Artemis). 13. Pretty Girls Make Graves: The New Romance (Matador). 14. Yo La Tengo: Summer Sun (Matador). 15. The Shins: Chutes Too Narrow (Sub Pop). 16. Belle & Sebastian: Dear Catastrophe Waitress (Sanctuary). 17. Drive-By Truckers: Decoration Day (New West). 18. James Blood Ulmer: No Escape From the Blues (Hyena). 19. Lif...
The 1990s. Lately I've been feeling like this is the most misunderstood decade in rock music. New wave, grunge, hip-hop, alternative, all these genres and more pervaded the decade. Unlike the '80s, it was not a very popular decade, and yet I found myself listening to more challenging and enriching music than at any time since I spun my first 45. Here is a list of some of the best albums. Those that do not have reviews will receive them in due time. 1. David Murray: Shakill's Warrior (DIW/Columbia, 1991). 2. Lucinda Williams: Car Wheels on a Gravel Road (Mercury, 1998). See review, Sept. 2005. 3. Tricky: Maxinquaye (Island, 1995). See review, Sept. 2005. 4. Guitar Paradise of East Africa (Earthworks, 1991). 5. Iris DeMent: My Life (Warner Bros., 1994). See review, Sept. 2005. 6. DJ Shadow: Endtroducing . . . DJ Shadow (Mo Wax, 1996). 7. Freedy Johnston: Can You Fly (Bar/None, 1992). See review, Sept. 2005 8. Sonic Youth: A Thousand Leaves (Geffen, 1998). 9...
THE REST OF THE BEST Stevie Wonder: A Time To Love (Motown, 2005). By the time he was 27, yes 29 years ago, he had managed to grip the music industry by the short hairs. Few of his contemporaries could even dream of such accomplishments, yet alone live them out. Among the singer/ songwriter crowd only Dylan surpasses him. But as quickly as his star rose, his decline came just as quickly. 1979's Hotter Than July and 87's Characters were the highlights of a dwindling career that had even his most ardent of admirers wondering if the boy Wonder had packed it in. Like Springsteen before him, this album was his catharsis; a journey out of the past and into a relevant present. The melodies, always his strength, don't disappoint. And his politics, never fearful, are biting. On "If Your Love Cannot Be Moved" his words are a haunting warning: "You can't free the slaves to enslave them differently / You can't see the right only from your sight / You can...
IT'S YOUR TURN! Now that the site has been up and running for four months now, I thought I'd give those of you at home a chance to chime in with your questions about rock-n-roll, assuming, that is, that there's any body out there reading my stuff! Just place your question in the comments section, or if you prefer you can email me at feego1@optonline.net. I'll do my best to answer every question that comes my way. And while I don't profess to be an expert on any particular genre, as you can plainly see, I am opinionated. My opinions come from listening to loads of music since my childhood. Anxiously awaiting contact!
THE BEST OF 2004. Nothing like burning the candle at both ends, I say. While I'm not bailing on the completion of 2005's reviews, I thought I'd take a ride through the "Wayback Machine" and see what albums did it for me the year Bush did it to the country! 1. Kanye West: The College Dropout (Roc-A-Fella). 2. The Roots of Rock 'n' Roll 1946 - 1954 (Hip-O). 3. Jon Langford: All the Fame of Lofty Deeds (Bloodshot). 4. Todd Snider: East Nashville Skyline (Oh Boy). 5. Madvillian Madvilliany (Stones Throw). 6. The Mountain Goats: We Shall All Be Healed (4AD). 7. Ray Charles: Genius Loves Company (Concord/Hear Music). 8. Nellie McKay: Get Away From Me (Columbia). 9. The Reputation: To Force a Fate (Lookout). 10. The Arcade Fire: Funeral (Merge). 11. Rilo Kiley: More Adventurous (Brute/Beaute). 12. Thelonoius Monster: California Clam Chowder (Lakeshore). 13. Automato: Automato (Coup de Grace). 14. Northern State: All City (Columbia). 15....
IT’S INDEPENDENTS DAY! Three indie albums by three independent bands; who did it all by their lonesome, without the help of big brother to guide them. Let the bloodletting begin. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, 2005). Now let me see if I get this straight. I clap my hands and say, what? Wise ass comments aside, to call this Brooklyn’s answer to the Feelies would be too simple, though the first 20 seconds of “Is This Love” is a dead ringer for the lead in on The Good Earth’s “ The High Road.” Actually the number one indie-alternative, MP3 blogger’s choice for statement of the year actually owes its sound to any number of influences from early Talking Heads to Yo La Tengo to Television. In fact singer Alec Ounsworth could pass for Tom Verlaine in my book any day. On “The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth” the “trebly” guitar is pure Marquee Moon. But while I don’t want to rain on their parade of accolades, t...
AN ACCIDENT AND A DISASTER MAKE FOR TWO REMARKABLE RECORDINGS AND TWO LATE PICKS FOR 2005. Thelonious Monk Quartet: Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall (Blue Note, 2005). Discovered accidentally in an unmarked box by a Library of Congress engineer and beautifully restored, this 1957 performance of these two legends is what the term classic was intended for. Both men were at their peak that night and it is nothing short of astonishing to note that prior to this recording being unearthed, there were only THREE studio tracks of these two genius’s playing together. Though it’s primarily Monk’s album, Coltrane’s playing portends bigger things to come for him. Like his recordings with Miles Davis, most notably Kind of Blue, he was the perfect accompanist. This is music that demands and rewards repeated listening. A+ Our New Orleans: A Benefit Album for the Gulf Coast (Nonesuch, 2005). Loath though I am to buy into the whole benefit album concept – the last such...
ALL THE WORLD MUSIC'S A STAGE! A play on words, perhaps, but 2005 was the finest year for world music in over a decade. Enjoy. I know I did! The Rough Guide to the Music of the Sahara (World Music Network, 2005). Did you know that the Sahara by itself is bigger than all of Europe? Neither did I. Encompassing countries like Mauritania, Algeria, Libya and Mali, this compilation pays tribute to the diversity of the region's musical culture. Far from being the typical "sampler" so many lesser albums would've settled for, Andy Morgan insisted on getting it right. While I certainly can't claim any profound understanding of the area's musical heritage, there's no denying the brilliance of the music - a cross between blues and funk, the likes of which haven't hit these shores in quite some time. And then there are the haunting chants, mostly by women, which in this culture is still thought of as risqué. A wonderful album! A+ M.I.A.: Arular (Interscope, 2...
2005 list Revised. As stated previously, changes with any critic are inevitable. However, I believe this is finally it. P.S.: the deletions of Danger Doom and Franz Ferdinand do not represent a change in status; both remain A- albums. It's just that I wanted to keep the number at a respectable 30 to make things simple. 1. Gogol Bordello: Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike (Side One Dummy). 2. The Rough Guide to the Music of the Sahara (World Music Network). 3. Thelonious Monk Quartet: Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall (Blue Note). 4. Our New Orleans: A Benefit Album for the Gulf Coast (Nonesuch). 5. The Go-Betweens: Oceans Apart (Yep Roc). 6. M.I.A.: Arular (Interscope). 7. Kanye West: Late Registration (Roc-A-Fella). 8. Sufjan Stevens: Illinois (Asthmatic Kitty). 9. The New Pornographers: Twin Cinema (Matador). 10. Ani DiFranco: Knuckle Down (Righteous Babe). 11. The Hold Steady: Separation Sunday (Frenchkiss) 12. ...
I know what you're saying. Peter, how can you have a top albums list when you haven't reviewed all of them in print? Hold your horses. All good reviews come to those who wait. I promise all 30 will be out by EOM. Kanye West: Late Registration (Roc-A-Fella, 2005). While no one reasonably expected a repeat of last year's brilliance, with even some predicting a sophomore jinx, there's no denying his greatness on effort two. Call this his Sticky Fingers to last year's Exile on Main Street. Where with the former one had to play through several times to immerse one's self in the underlying rage and his conceptualizing lyrics, here, simplicity rules the day. He's going straight for the hook and the mob. I particularly like the song where he pays tribute to his mom; nice to know he has some of his priorities straight. And then there's "Gold Digger," one of the top songs of the year. Unlike College Dropout , this is a record everyone will want to bu...