Alt.Culture.Guide

Porcupine Tree - Deadwing (2005)

2008-04-10T17:49:00.002-04:00

If any band leads the charge, bringing progressive-rock back to the great unwashed masses, it may well be Porcupine Tree. For almost a decade and a half, the English band, led by singer, songwriter and guitarist Steven Wilson, has forged a career by tempering prog-rock tendencies with hard rock sensibilities. Unlike other leading lights in the modern prog movement such as Spock’s Beard or the Flower Kings, bands that take their cue from ‘70s-era progmasters like Yes or King Crimson, Porcupine Tree instead follows a path more similar to Pink Floyd. Throw in a strong measure of NWOBM reliance on startling guitar riffs; add elements of lush, ‘90s-vintage 4AD label atmospherics and stir well with Wilson’s self-taught musical genius and you’ll have the sound of Porcupine Tree.

The eighth studio effort from Porcupine Tree, and only the band’s second album to receive any sort of significant stateside distribution, Deadwing is a magnificent collection of songs with easy appeal to both the mainstream music fan and the diehard prog-rocker. The album opens with the nine-minute-plus title cut, a stunning musical tour de force that never loses steam no matter how many twists and turns the song takes. Infected with an overall moody ambience, Wilson’s somber lyrics are supported by taut leads and blazing riffs, tribal drumbeats and Richard Barbieri’s magnificent keyboard wizardry. The wiry guitar solo in the middle of the song is provided courtesy of Adrian Belew, a well respected fretmaster with credentials from both the prog-rock and art-rock worlds.

Deadwing gets a little heavier with “Shallow,” a riff-happy rocker that edges into industrial territory, swinging back towards sanity before Trent Reznor comes knocking at the door. Alternately both brutally electric and gently melodic, the song’s theme of technological alienation stands in stark contrast to “Lazarus,” a pastoral composition with fine vocal harmonies and beautifully constructed instrumental passages. “Halo” ventures into horror-rock territory, echoed vocals and monster rhythms counterbalanced by a harmonic chorus with its roots in hard-rocking ‘90s-era grunge.

The band is at its most progressive with the twelve-minute “Arriving Somewhere But Not Here,” the song’s breathtaking instrumentation incorporating elements of swirling psychedelica, Eno-styled ambient electronics and classic, ‘70s-vintage prog-rock song structure. The punchy “Open Car” may be as close to a single release as Deadwing ventures; with its monstrous riffing and larger-than-life vibe the song sojourns into prog-metal territory and would fit perfectly into a modern rock radio format.

Handling vocals, guitars and some secondary keyboards, Wilson’s talents are abundant. Every wunderkind needs players to push them towards greatness, however, and Porcupine Tree offers an impressive collection of instrumental virtuosos. Richard Barbieri, who cut his teeth with groundbreaking ‘80s-era new wave art-rock band Japan, brings a classical element to the band, his keyboard and synth creations providing the underlying structure for Wilson’s complex, extravagant compositions. Bassist Colin Edward is more than mere background scenery, his fills and occasional leads providing the band’s sound with a heavy bottom end while drummer Gavin Harrison brings an explosive hard rock mentality to the material. Altogether, the band’s musical chemistry is quite impressive, the foursome creating a tapestry of sound and emotion that is ambitious in scope and invigorating in its results. Poised on the brink of U.S. stardom, Porcupine Tree is ready for you…but are you ready for Porcupine Tree? (Atlantic Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Deadwing from Amazon.com)

Spock's Beard - Gluttons For Punishment (2005)

2008-04-09T17:24:00.002-04:00

The remaining members of Spock’s Beard had a lot to live up to when founding member and songwriter Neal Morse left the band a couple of years back. The major architect of the trademark Spock’s sound, Morse’s departure forced the other band members to step up and take the reins of the popular prog-rock trailblazers. With drummer Nick D’Virgilio assuming lead vocal duties and underrated guitarist Al Morse stepping into the spotlight more often, the band took on a harder, rock-oriented edge with its two post-Neal albums, Feeling Euphoria and Octane. The band developed a collective approach to songwriting that took advantage of their individual strength’s, bringing in friend John Boeghold for lyrical assistance where needed.

All that was missing was for the “new” band to establish its identity as a top-notch performance outfit, a questionable goal they seem to have rapidly achieved. After all, this is basically the same batch of guys that recorded such classic modern prog albums as The Light and Beware Of Darkness. Morse’s abdication changed the band’s sound and, perhaps, its focus but the talent and instrumental creativity remained in place. As documented by Gluttons For Punishment, the first live set from Spock’s Beard, version II, any questions about the band’s performance skills were absurd from the beginning.

Recorded during Spock’s Beard’s Spring 2005 European tour, Gluttons For Punishment, Live In ‘05 effectively recreates the recent Octane album almost in its entirety and in virtually the same running order as the studio original. Although it’s unusual for a band to release a live disc in such close proximity to a studio album, the clamoring of fans evidently tipped the band’s hand. There is some embroidery provided the studio versions of the Octane songs, albeit very little, and although the performances are dynamic and multi-layered, one can’t help but wonder what a little more time might have added to these songs in the way of instrumental interpretation.

The band all but ignores its recent Feeling Euphoria album, covering only two of that disc’s songs in “The Bottom Line” and “Ghosts Of Autumn,” alongside a sparse selection of songs from earlier Spock’s releases. “Harm’s Way,” from 1998’s The Kindness Of Strangers, provides an ample dose of keyboard wizard Ryo Okumoto’s mad riffing while also offering an excellent showcase for Al Morse’s understated and elegant fretwork. V’s “At The End Of The Day” kicks off the second disc, D’Virgilio’s vocals taking the song in different directions than Morse’s original reading, the tune benefiting from some improvisational jazz-rock fusion styled passages. Since taking over as the band’s frontman, D’Virgilio vocals have steadily improved, the talented drummer also forging a distinctive vocal identity around the band’s evolving sound.

Nowhere is D’Virgilio’s confidence more evident than on the album-closing, nearly twenty-minute revisiting of “The Light” from the very first Spock’s Beard album. The vocalist stretches his talents to their limits in recreating the roller-coaster highs and lows and dangerous curves of the song’s lengthy and varied performance. Given new muscle by the various players’ more aggressive direction, “The Light” is both a reminder of the past and a bridge to the band’s musical future. Spock’s Beard remains one of the most intriguing and innovative bands on the modern progressive rock landscape, a wonderful match of talents and musical chemistry that has continuously moved forward for over 20 years. Gluttons For Punishment, Live In ’05 is a fair snapshot of this moment in time for Spock’s Beard, an entertaining and exhilarating performance from one of the guiding lights of the current prog-rock movement. (Inside Out Music)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Gluttons For Punishment from Amazon.com)

Frank Black - Honeycomb (2005)

2008-04-09T17:11:00.003-04:00

When Nashville indie record store owner Mike “Grimey” Grimes told me about sitting in on a Frank Black recording session a year or so ago, the time and setting seemed unlikely. After all, Black was about to launch a full-fledged Pixies reunion tour, giving fans that missed the band the first time around a taste of what all the brouhaha was about in the first place. However, Grimey waxed ecstatic about Black playing off of a veritable “who’s who” of legendary Southern musicians in the Music City studio, promising an eye-opening CD as the result of the four-day working weekend.

Black’s Honeycomb is the result of those recording sessions, an uncharacteristic collection of traditional songs that incorporate elements of Southern soul, alt-country and roots rock. Fifteen, sixteen years ago, when the Pixies ruled the indie-rock roost with a barrage of amplifier squall, fractured vocals and discordant six-string work, Honeycomb would have been a radical departure for the American idol known as Black Francis. After nearly a decade and a half of a scattershot solo career that has seen the one-time poster child for alt-rock defiance careen off varying musical styles and styles of vocal delivery, Honeycomb instead serves as another indicator of Black’s seemingly bottomless well of talent.

As stated above, for his Nashville side trip, Black recruited some of the true giants of Southern music to back him in the studio. Among the players on Honeycomb are Steve Cropper, better known for his role in the two Blues Brothers movies than for his groundbreaking guitarwork and songwriting at Stax studios in Memphis; pianist Spooner Oldham, a Muscle Shoals veteran and accomplished Memphis songwriter; and bassist David Hood, an integral piece of the famed Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. Throw in well-traveled drummer Anton Fig and guests like Reggie Young, Buddy Miller and Ellis Hooks and you have better than two centuries of combined musical talent. The whole affair was brought together by noted producer/musician/songwriter Jon Tiven and captured on tape by legendary songwriter/producer Dan Penn.

The results of Black’s dream project are evident in the songs on Honeycomb. Perhaps Black’s most personal and reflective collection to date, the singer sounds downright wistful at times, many songs alternately both joyful and melancholy. With these topnotch studio professionals behind him, Black delves deep into the realities of romance and relationships, life and death with material that, at times, veers dangerously close to foppish singer/songwriter territory. Black’s collaborators prevent their morose frontman from plunging headfirst into the abyss of self-pity, though, with a loose funky groove, the subdued soundtrack propping up Black’s often somber vocals.

Black also pays homage to both the players he’s sharing the moment with and to his deep-rooted musical inspirations, covering songs by both Dan Penn and Doug Sahm. On the Penn/Chips Moman classic “Dark End Of The Street,” Black plays it straight with soulful vocals and a dark, subtle arrangement that redefine the song in a way that makes it sound like you’re hearing it for the first time. Black has a little more fun with Sahm’s “Sunday Sunny Mill Valley Groove Day,” capturing a laid-back feel with a bit of a Tex-Mex vibe. Combining a strong set of songs with spectacular musical performances, Honeycomb is an unlikely but welcome direction for Frank Black’s solo work and, like Grimey proclaimed those many months ago, a hell of a lot of fun. (Back Porch Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Honeycomb from Amazon.com)

The Fleshtones - Beachhead (2005)

2008-04-09T17:03:00.001-04:00

It’s hard to believe that the Fleshtones have been banging away at it for damn near thirty years. With more than a dozen albums and several thousand raucous live performances under their collective belts, one would think that these garage-rock greybeards would be running out of steam by now…and you’d be dead wrong, chuckles! While the band’s 2003 album Can You Swing? effectively resurrected the Fleshtones and placed them back at the forefront of the rock & roll pecking order where they belong, Beachhead stands as the band’s magnum opus. A culmination of three decades of blood, sweat and beers, this is the one Fleshtones disc where it all comes together.

Working with two quite different producers in two distinctly varied environments, the band has managed to perfectly capture its eclectic musical mix of Sky Saxon, Chuck Berry, Dick Dale and Stax soul. While Jim Diamond brings a certain contemporary street cred to the Fleshtones sound – the in-demand producer working with the band in his Ghetto Recorders studio in Detroit – Rick Miller of Southern Culture On The Skids adds a classic rock vibe to the tracks recorded at his Kudzu Ranch. Mix the results up in the final track listing and these two sides of the same coin meld together to present the indomitable rock & roll spirit of the Fleshtones in the best light possible.

The larger-than-life “Pretty Pretty Pretty,” driven by Keith Streng’s guitar and Pete Zaremba’s keyboard riffing, has received weekly airplay on Little Steven’s Underground Garage syndicated radio program, and for good reasons. The sound is all deliciously greasy meat and fried potatoes. Zaremba’s yelping vocals provide a sucker punch to your eardrums while the band rifles through your belongings for loose change. “You Never Know” nicks the guitar intro from “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” fattening it up with flange and reverb and reclaiming it for the ages, Zaremba’s snottier-than-thou vox channeled directly from the ghost of some long-dead teen vocalist from 1965. “I Want The Answers” is a case study in rock & roll primitivism, the song’s swelling six-string crescendos and nonsensical lyrics adding to, rather than subtracting from the tune’s party-time vibe.

The Fleshtones have long eschewed the “garage rock” label, preferring their own term “super rock.” It’s an apt description, given the Fleshtones sound and unflagging dedication to the truth and beauty of rock & roll. Regardless of what you want to call it, the Fleshtones have consistently cranked out entertaining music for the better part of thirty years, and Beachhead is no exception. (Yep Roc Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Beachhead from Amazon.com)

R.E.M. - Monster (1994)

2008-02-29T17:43:00.002-05:00

Predictably, R.E.M. have made a career out of being unpredictable. They've outlived their mid-80s status as critical darlings to become the most popular "alternative" band on the planet during the '90s. They've enjoyed their greatest commercial success by not touring, staying at home in Athens in the face of conventional wisdom while their last two albums – 1991's Out Of Time and 1992's internationally-successful Automatic For The People – combined to achieve sales of nearly 20 million copies worldwide.

A look at the literally hundreds of adjective-laden pieces that have been written about R.E.M. during their fourteen year career will show that no two critics have ever come to an agreement on just who or what R.E.M. really are as a band. Since the 1981 release of their self-produced independent single "Radio Free Europe," R.E.M. has somehow always managed to confound the pundits. They've constantly plagiarized themselves, worn their influences on their collective sleeves, and although every song they have ever created sounds similar, they manage to come out of the box every time with a new sound that captures new fans.

Predictably, the release of the band's tenth recording, Monster, won't be helping anyone pin an artistic identity on to R.E.M. anytime soon. Coming out of the studio after two years with an album that is heavier and more – shall we say – "metallic" than anything they've previously done, Monster at once both returns the band to its roots as well as takes them into an entirely unfamiliar direction. Casting aside the bright-edged pop songs that have frequented their last few albums, Monster showcases a stripped-down R.E.M. delivering a larger, fatter sound with a fervor uncharacteristic of their recent work.

With the exception of Monster's opening track, the single "What's The Frequency, Kenneth?" with its cultural reference point, radio-ready sound and oblique lyrics, Monster is an aggressively somber album. Lyrics are largely hidden beneath a clash of sound, with the lead guitar and rhythm section dueling for position like on R.E.M.'s early work. Guest artists are used sparingly this time out, the most striking instance being Thurston Moore's contribution to the feedback-ridden voodoo rock of "Crush With Eyeliner." The dark sarcasm of "King Of Comedy," the chaotic confusion of "Star 69" and the mesmerizing, repetitive guitar riff that underlines the haunting vocals of "Let Me In" represent a departure from what many R.E.M. fans have come to expect during the past few years.

Not that there aren't a few familiar touchstones to be found hereabouts. "Strange Currencies" opens with Peter Buck's gentle guitar line, the sound flowing like a stream into Michael Stipe's winsome vocals, appealing to a lost love and bemoaning the complexities of romance. The low-key falsetto on "Tongue" is matched by a soulful, yet minimal soundtrack while "Bang And Blame," with Stipe's trademark vocal phrasing, could be mistaken for a typical R.E.M. song if it wasn't for the subtle lyrical nuances that have been woven into the mix. "You" closes Monster with a philosophical cry in the dark, lyrics buried beneath ringing guitars and a steady, dirge-like drumbeat.

With Monster, the band has carefully used their enormous success to flex their musical muscles, taking a few artistic risks and thus delivering an album that is their most mature and interesting work to date. The ability to recreate themselves from album to album without really ever straying far from their roots is the core of R.E.M.'s identity and a large part of their appeal. The individual band member's talents and limitations are melded together into a familiar group personality. Their may be other artists who do it better, or who do it louder, but nobody delivers with more consistency. Other bands, predictably, will come and go, but R.E.M. will always remain, unpredictable. (Warner Brothers)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Monster from Amazon.com)

Frank Zappa - The Yellow Shark (1994)

2008-02-29T17:10:00.001-05:00

Although guitarist/composer Frank Zappa's tragic death robbed the world of an artistic giant, we have thankfully been left an enormous and varied catalog of Zappa recordings by which to remember him. Rumours abound of a number of forthcoming post-humous Zappa releases, the product of a prolific creator who seems to have recorded most everything he recently wrote and performed. It is, curiously enough, a Frank Zappa album on which the talented musician never plays a note which serves as his swan-song.

The Yellow Shark, named after a gift from a creative fan (sorry – you'll just have to see the CD booklet for the complete story) is actually a collection of Zappa compositions commissioned by Germany's Ensemble Modern. The material presented here was culled from a series of performances in the fall of 1992 in Berlin, Frankfurt and Vienna by Ensemble Modern of The Yellow Shark and includes snatches of 25 years of Zappa's work.

A mutant hybrid of rock, jazz and random cacophony rendered as classical compositions, The Yellow Shark not only serves as an excellent showcase for the talents of the Ensemble Modern (easily the equals of better-known outfits such as the Kronos Quartet), but also champions Zappa's compositional skills in creating it. Mostly instrumental, the few lyrical pieces presented here – especially "Welcome To The United States" and "Food Gathering In Post-Industrial America, 1992" – remind us of Zappa's vicious sense of satire and his disrespect for any sort of authority. Not surprisingly, even mesmerizing instrumental passages such as those found in "Outrage At Valdez" or "Times Beach II" manage, through tone and texture, to make a significant social commentary without a single word. Such was Zappa's genius, and The Yellow Shark, the final project he worked on before his death, is a fitting monument to the artist's passing. (Barking Pumpkin Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy The Yellow Shark from Amazon.com)

Too Much Joy - ...Finally (1996)

2008-02-29T17:03:00.000-05:00

I've lived with this disc for a couple of months now, spinning it almost daily during that time and, like the Rancid album reviewed elsewhere, have yet to tire of it. Every listen brings something to the forefront, some undiscovered musical dimension, a new favorite song. From the unrelenting energy and weeping guitar riffs of You Will, a wicked little bit of social satire that opens ...Finally, to the working class blues of Underneath A Jersey Sky, New York rockers Too Much Joy have returned with a vengeance.

Formed the better part of a decade ago by a bunch of high school buddies with similar tastes in British punk and American pop, Too Much Joy made a splash on the indie rock scene with their 1988 Alias Records release Son Of Sam I Am. With a backing soundtrack of classic guitar rock and punkish energy, the band's smart ass lyrics and wise-guy stance served them well through a handful of well-received albums. After an unassuming sojourn into major label land, followed by a brief hiatus, TMJ have signed with the newly reactivated Discovery Records and delivered what is the best effort in their lengthy career with ...Finally.

With a musical style that travels across some three decades of rock history, mixing the disparate influences of sixties pop electricity, seventies arena rock bombast and eighties punk attitude and sincerity, ...Finally is a solid batch of songs. If the band isn't quite as ascerbic, lyrically, as they once were, well...they've gotten older and a bit wiser. They haven't lost an iota of their youthful enthusiasm, however, with cuts like the retrospective, self-effacing Weak or the soaring Different Galaxies providing invigorating evidence of their commitment and talents. Even if their smart ass antics have been toned down, the band's tongue is still firmly placed in their collective cheeks. I Believe In Something mixes a philosophical search for the meaning of a friend's prolonged death ("My friend had his death foretold / When he was twenty-six years old / I say the right things they're no help / His body slowly eats itself") with the patently irreverent ("Twelve step programs are the new religion / Gideon bibles make good rolling papers"). How To Be Happy provides a different take on love and relationships, disdaining the lost love in one breath ("Learning how to be happy / And learning not to care") slipping into melancholy the next ("I've got the tiniest bedroom / It's gigantic without you / Do they have bedrooms where you are?").

...Finally showcases a band with a fine sense of pop style, and the chops to pull it off. Even the choice of Billy Bragg's wonderful A New England – here given a non-stop vocal delivery and punkish arrangement that is as far away as possible from Bragg's or Kirsty MacColl's hit versions of the song – illustrates the band's ability to take the familiar and imprint it with their own identity without losing the spirit of the original. Too Much Joy are a top notch band, from Tim Quirk's infectiously flawed vocals and lyrical romanticism to Jay Blumenfield's undervalued six string contributions and scorching leads. The rhythm section of Tommy Vinton and William Wittman aren't just content to back the guys up front; they provide a constant presence in each song, with Vinton's muscular drumming and Wittman's carefully crafted and fluid bass lines adding an integral element to the trademark Too Much Joy sound.

A magnificent comeback effort, ...Finally may finally win Too Much Joy the attention they deserve. I've always considered them to be a band ahead of their time, maybe it's time that alt-rock audiences caught up with them. ...Finally comes highly recommended, an early candidate for "best of the year" status. (Discovery Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy ...Finally from Amazon.com)

Jello Biafra - Beyond The Valley Of The Gift Police (1995)

2008-02-15T17:31:00.001-05:00

As a young man, Jello Biafra had something that he wanted to say. Through the lyrics of the songs he wrote, performed by the band that he assembled upon arriving in San Francisco, the Dead Kennedys, Biafra achieved a semblance of fame and an even greater notoriety. His sharp-edged poetry struck out at the bloated hypocrites and authoritarian power structure of America with great wit and insight. Even if his words weren't the most polished or flowery, he delivered them with a ferocity and passion that made the Dead Kennedys hardcore pioneers, influential far beyond their commercial reach.

It's been just about fifteen years now since the release of the Dead Kennedys' first album, the powerful Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables, and Biafra has come a long way since he wrote songs like Kill The Poor, Holiday In Cambodia or Let's Lynch The Landlord. Throughout this decade and a half, he's been responsible for the formation of a successful indie record label in Alternative Tentacles, and through the label he has helped dozens of other underground artists of every stripe – from punk to industrial to outright experimental – make their art known to the world at large. He's suffered through the break-up of his band, a well-publicized obscenity arrest and a lengthy legal battle against censorship.

Probably more than anything else that Biafra has accomplished during the past fifteen years, however, the most important in my eyes are his contributions towards the rebirth of the spoken word. Along with Henry Rollins, another underground icon, Biafra popularized an exchange of ideas and information, promulgating a widespread epidemic of thought created by a mind virus of his creation. Through the course of a handful of multi-disc spoken word collections and subsequent public performances, Biafra has torn down the artificial commercial barriers that have been holding back one of the simplest, oldest art forms in the history of mankind: speech.

Beyond The Valley Of The Gift Police is Biafra's fourth spoken word album, and, perhaps, his most adventuresome to date. A three-disc set, Biafra covers a lot of material over the course of the collection's three plus hours, managing to keep the listener's attention level constantly focused upon his words without ever lapsing into boredom. Biafra's insights are invaluable, his information well-researched and solid. Just as he did with the Dead Kennedys, Biafra uses a wicked sense of humor and a razor-sharp wit to comment on the foibles of the society we've created even while he is verbally skewering his deserving targets.

Given the time to stretch out and take proper aim at his targets, Biafra is devastating. Message To Our Sponsor offers progressive answers to social ills upon which conservatives and liberals alike stumble over in their mad rush to prove that they're more regressive. Experts provides a not-so-subtle commentary on the disasters created by the overpaid consultants we sadly turn to for answers, while his scathing satirical attack on the Religious Right is as hilarious as it is thought-provoking. His traditional Talk On Censorship covers his entire relationship with Tipper Gore, the Frankenchrist ordeal, his Oprah appearances and provides more than a few warnings that although the governmental cast might be different, nothing has really changed. The autobiographical Eric Meets The Moose Diarrhea Salesman is a brilliant accounting of growing up during the seventies and the insights provided by youthful innocence.

Throughout the course of the thousands of words to be found on Beyond The Valley Of The Gift Police, Biafra uses his verbal skills to warn us that the Emperor really isn't wearing any clothes, and that we should never fail to question authority. In an American media dominated by Lilly-white, right-wing conservative Christian voices, Biafra stands tall as a voice of reason, of concern, of passion. His is a radical world of ideas, of questions, of informed opinion. He never fails to move me, to make me think, to provide a different slant on a subject. Whereas Rollins' spoken word material opened the door to the sharing of personal reflections, Biafra's material has always carried with it the threat of danger, of subversion. Jello Biafra still has something to say; hopefully, he'll continue to share it with us for quite some time.... (Alternative Tentacles)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Beyond The Valley Of The Gift Police from Amazon.com)

Bad Religion - All Ages (1995)

2008-02-15T17:19:00.000-05:00

Contrary to the belief of many scribes, the recent punk rock revival hasn't occurred overnight. Mainstream critics have all but ignored the punk underground, perhaps thinking that it would go away if they just didn't write about it. The kids knew all along what time it was, jamming local all ages shows at clubs across the country to see bands like 7 Seconds, NoFX, Operation Ivy and the grandpappy of them all, Bad Religion.

Formed during the early-80s American hardcore punk revolution, Bad Religion rapidly became South Cali faves with the release of their uncompromising debut, How Could Hell Be Any Worse? As the hardcore movement began to lose steam come mid-decade, mutating into a dozen varied musical forms, the band split into separate factions and stayed out of the game for almost four years. In 1988 the original five members of Bad Religion reunited to release the ground-breaking Suffer, and a revitalized punk scene was born that would carry over to the present day.

Over the next few years, Bad Religion would rewrite the book on punk rock. The band had developed a driving, furious rock style that combined the attitude and energy of punk with musical elements drawn from almost 40 years of rock & roll. Intelligent lyrics, often espousing a certain socially-conscious world view, were contributed by vocalist Greg Graffin and guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Released through Gurewitz's Epitaph Records label, albums like No Control, Against The Grain and Generator captured the hearts and imaginations of young fans, each selling upwards of a hundred thousand copies – unheard of, at that time, for a punk band on an indie label.

All Ages culls material from the aforementioned late-80s/early-90s releases, as well as a pair of previously unreleased live cuts and a taste from their 1981 debut, We're Only Gonna Die. All Ages is a significant overview of the band's work during this important time period, presenting the band's talents through cuts like You Are (The Government), No Control, Fuck Armageddon...This Is Hell and 21st Century Digital Boy. Twenty-two cuts in all are included, each one going a long way towards explaining the band's popularity and influence. This stuff is whip smart punk rock: no frills, cranked out fast and furious with style and intelligence.

Covering as it does, Bad Religion's 1988-1994 pre-Atlantic label years, All Ages serves as an excellent document of the band's achievements to this point, showcasing a considerable musical growth and their maturity into one of rock's best bands. Along with the previously-released, self-explanatory 80-85, the appropriately-titled All Ages is an excellent compilation for fans of the band as well as an important touchstone in the band's career. With the major-label release of Recipe For Hate, Bad Religion began writing the next chapter in their story, and only time will tell the story. (Epitaph Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy All Ages from Amazon.com)

Living Color - Pride (1995)

2008-02-15T16:12:00.000-05:00

It took a combination of factors to make Living Colour possible: several years of the Reagan administration's attack on progress, a volatile indie rock scene that spawned important changes in the music industry, and the growth in success of rap music that brought elements of African-American culture to a receptive white mainstream. Into this atmosphere stepped one of the funkiest, baddest, hardest rocking and most technically adroit rock & roll outfits to grace the genre (that just happened to be composed of four talented Black men). Living Colour's debut, Vivid, was released in 1988 and instantly received almost universal critical acclaim. The album broke down barriers of race, musical style and fashion that had been long-standing in rock.

The band's members brought varied backgrounds to the creation of Living Colour. Singer Corey Glover was an actor with little or no musical experience, possibly enabling him to develop a unique and individually powerful musical style. Drummer Will Calhoun was a Berklee School of Music grad, his jazz background serving to shore up the band's complex and diverse stylistic experiments. Guitarist Vernon Reid, an alumni of Ronald Shannon Jackson's Decoding Society, came into the public eye as a player in Mick Jagger's solo band. Together with bassist Muzz Skillings, Living Colour made Vivid an international success, the disc's masterful blend of hard rock, blues and jazz riffs winning them a loyal audience that cut across race lines.

Successful tours and multi-platinum status was to follow as, over the course of three albums and an EP, Living Colour developed its unique musical voice and identity. The recent release of Pride showcases the incredible talent that is Living Colour. Much more than a mere greatest hits album, Pride serves quite well instead as a musical document of Living Colour's first six or seven years. The hits are all here, of course, from the raging Cult Of Personality or the confrontational Funny Vibe to the memorable Open Letter To A Landlord and the band's "theme song," What's Your Favorite Color? Pride culls a lot of material from the band's ground-breaking debut, with a handful of cuts thrown in from Time's Up and only a couple from Stain and the Biscuits EP. A number of unreleased songs and a single release round out the disc.

Of the previously unreleased cuts included on Pride, Release The Pressure particularly stands out. A wicked, no-compromise rocker, Corey Glover's vocals are menacing, primal growls backed by some wonderfully chaotic guitar playing. Sacred Ground is a metallic thrasher run amok, echoed vocals laid on top of a frantic beat and Reid's heaviest playing yet. A jazzy beat and muted guitar open These Are Happy Times, the focus on Glover's soulful reading of the song's lyrics. Bassist Doug Winbush, who replaced Skillings after Time's Up, performs some understated but tasteful fretwork to underline the song's social message. These three cuts show the band's enormous musical diversity and skill at improvising upon a standard hard rock foundation.

A lot has been written of Vernon Reid's six-string prowess, every compliment quite justified by the man's large talent. As evidenced by Pride, it is Reid's guitar that lends the band the greatest part of its identity, filling each song with a creative energy and breathing life into an otherwise morose musical genre. After seeing and experiencing Reid perform live more than once, I'd personally place him among the legends of rock guitar, artists like Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan who redefined styles and pushed the envelope. It is also shown by Pride, though, that it is a combination of talents, from Glover's vocals and Calhoun's rock-steady drumming along with the contributions of two skilled bassists that play along with Reid to make Living Colour great. The band is made up of four very talented men without which the accomplishments of Living Colour would not have been possible. Pride is a wonderful showcase for the band and what they can do musically. (Epic Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Pride from Amazon.com)

Manic Street Preachers - Street Preaching (1996)

2008-01-27T16:54:00.000-05:00

It's been five years now since my trip to London, but I remember most of it like it was only yesterday. The buzz on the street was for a band that many were calling a cross between the Sex Pistols and the Clash. The British music media was raising a clamor, as well, with such stiff-lipped rock & roll stalwarts as New Music Express and Melody Maker waxing ecstatic over the band. Intrigued, I spent most of that week trying to hunt down the handful of singles released at that time by the Manic Street Preachers.

Half a decade later, the Manic Street Preachers are one of rock's great "might have beens." Hugely successful in the U.K., throughout Europe and Japan, their blend of hardcore punk and British pop – or "popcore" as my former colleague Jesse Garon has termed it – never quite caught on in the United States beyond a small cult audience. Just as their American record company was about to release their third album, titled The Holy Bible, guitarist Richey James disappeared. Vanished, gone, dropped off the face of the planet entirely. That was a year or so ago and to the best of my knowledge, he's yet to be found.

'Tis a shame, actually, given that there seems to be a minor Brit-pop fever spreading stateside what with bands like Oasis, Pulp and Blur catching on, commercially, at different levels. Had their third album not been shelved by Epic, who's to say what MSP might have achieved? For fans of the band, there exists a handful of live discs from the band's short-lived career. Street Preaching, on Italy's Kiss The Stone (or KTS) bootleg label, is a fine documentation of MSP in a performance atmosphere. Culled from 1992 tours of Europe and Japan in support of Generation Terrorists, the band's debut, Street Preaching includes many of the band's early English hits, cuts like "You Love Us," "Crucifix Kiss," "Stay Beautiful" and "Slash And Burn." A few songs are included twice ("You Love Us" three times!), represented in slightly varying forms from different shows.

The performances captured on Street Preaching may or may not be typical MSP. Never having seen them myself, I can't say for certain. This seventy-minute disc does a fine job of showcasing the band's electric appeal, however. Vocalist James Dean Bradfield's charismatic delivery mesmerizes the various audiences while James' guitar burns and blisters through every song. Bradfield's between song patter is keep to a minimum, what is presented illustrates a swaggering, confident rock & roll frontman. Given another shot, I feel that the Manic Street Preachers could have been a big band in the U.S. Instead we've got Street Preaching, a musical snapshot freezing the band forever in time. (KTS Records - bootleg)

Rage Against The Machine - Who's On First? (1996)

2008-01-27T16:11:00.000-05:00

Rage Against The Machine's debut album literally exploded onto the American musical landscape, its energetic hybrid of hard rock, molten metal riffs and rap-inspired vocals as deadly as a gutshot, as powerful as a police officer's nightstick to the head. RATM are unapologetically political, musically radical and overall a great band to see live.

A favorite among tape traders and bootleggers, there are a number of RATM performances circulating among the collectors community. One of the better collections, taken from the band's 1993 U.S. tour, is Who's On First?, released by the Hawk bootleg label in Italy. The songs compiled on Who's On First? represent some of the band's better performances, versions of "Bombtrack," "Bullet In The Head" and "Killing In The Name" offering extremely energetic musical and vocal gymnastics. Zach de la Rocha's spoken rendition of Alan Ginsburg's "How To Be Played On A Jukebox" is particularly potent, tying together the FBI, CIA and the Mafia in the world drug trade, fighting against Democracy in Vietnam and elsewhere under the aegis of multi-national corporate capitalism. Underscored by darkly threatening instrumentation, it is a fiercely venomous rendering of the song.

Altogether, Who's On First? runs nearly fifty minutes in length, offering a fine live set of Rage Against The Machine's most popular songs. With the band's recently-released Evil Empire tracking quite well on the charts, a summer tour and a handful of guest appearances at Lollapalooza, Rage Against The Machine will continue to increase its fan base with an incredibly monstrous live persona. Until the inevitable live recordings from their upcoming 1996 tour start to appear, I'd heartily recommend Who's On First? to the band's rabid fans. (Hawk Records - bootleg)

Midnight Oil - Earth And Sun And Moon (1993)

2008-01-27T15:18:00.000-05:00

Expectations have been raised, the ante upped with the release of Earth And Sun And Moon, Midnight Oil's ninth album and their first studio work in nearly three years. If 1987's platinum-selling Diesel And Dust proved to be the Australian band's breakthrough album, 1989's Blue Sky Mining left the Oils poised on the brink of international superstardom. A lengthy creative silence was punctuated only by the reissuing of long unavailable early Oils' albums and last year's lackluster live set (which failed to capture that band's real live energy and ability).

Earth And Sun And Moon lives up to every single artistic promise Midnight Oil has ever made, as the band stays true to both their musical roots and their political and philosophical underpinnings. Their distinctively unique sound – a hybrid of '60s-styled American-influenced hard rock and quirky Australian pop has proven to be the perfect vehicle for the delivery of their politically-oriented message of racial equality, brotherhood and environmental populism. This disc offers a set of songs that should please both die-hard fans and attract new listeners with several radio-friendly yet powerful cuts.

Americans tend to view Australia as the land of "Crocodile Dundee," with a jaunty "g'day mate!" and "shrimp on the barbie." It is a culture familiar, yet alien to our own, and it is in this light that the Oils and their work must be viewed. The band lives on an island that is part urban decay and part pastoral countryside, part tropical rainforest and part desert. It is in this microcosm of the planet at large which tempers their unique point-of-view and fuels their artistic vision. Some critics have complained of the band's alarmist frame of mind and radical ideals; they miss the optimism boiling under the surface which says that "we can change the world, if we want."

The core trio of what was to become Midnight Oil...drummer Rob Hirst, guitarist Jim Moginie and bass player Andrew "Bear" James...first came together in 1971 in Sydney. In 1975 the fledgling Oils advertised for a vocalist, attracting charismatic frontman Peter Garrett; a year later they added additional guitarist Martin Rotsey. They changed their name and Midnight Oil was formed. Current bassist Bones Hillman joined the group in 1989 during the Diesel And Dust tour.

By 1978 the Oils went from playing the rough seaside surf joints of Sydney's northern shores to playing for the rougher inner city punk clubs. Their aggressive style and dynamic live show (along with Garrett's unconventional vocal delivery) won them a cult following and led to widespread, year-long touring across the country. The band subsequently formed their own record label, releasing their self-titled debut in November of 1978.

The Oils have never been afraid to take a controversial stance, and their political preferences are well-known. Ten days after the release of their first album, they played a anti-uranium mining benefit. They never looked back, forever linking their art with their politics, activists at heart, championing causes and groups such as Greenpeace and Save The Whales. Formidable frontman Peter Garrett, tall and bald-pated, ran for election to the Australian Senate under the Nuclear Disarmament Party ticket in 1984, suffering a narrow defeat in the closely-contested race.

"Earth And Sun And Moon," the song, as well as the album, is an unbridled celebration of the human spirit. Recorded in Sydney on an analog deck to create a live sound, Earth And Sun And Moon brings a new perspective to the issues which the Oils hold so dear. Since the band's eye-opening 1986 tour of their homeland's aboriginal settlements (which in turn led to Diesel And Dust), witnessing for themselves the poverty, alcoholism and pain visited upon the land's native population by white settlers, they have incorporated a great deal of aboriginal influence into their work, expanding it to include the influence of indigenous peoples worldwide.

From the thick, multi-layered guitars ringing with a handful of static notes which begin the title cut to the reverent tribal chants which close it, the song documents our social losses even while creating a season of hope for our collective futures. "Now there's oil spills in the water where Columbus once sailed/And there's history and mystery and it's rolling away" sings Garrett of our fortunes. "Too messed up to care/Anyone got a wing and a prayer?" he asks passionately, tossing off "In the blink of an eye/Thank you and good night." The popish, flower-child harmonies of the chorus sing of better days, closing with "Earth and Sun and Moon/Human tribe, one thin blue line/Earth and Sun and Moon will survive, will survive, we will survive..."

"Truganini," the album's first single release, is the sad story of the last Tasmanian Aborigine, Truganini. The sole survivor of a military pacification and resettlement program which eerily parallels that directed towards our own Native Americans, she begged to be buried in the D'Entrecasteaux Channel. After her death in 1876, her remains were buried in a vault in the Hobart Penitentiary, to later be dug up and stored in an old apple crate. Crudely displayed in the Tasmanian Museum until 1947, the noble queen finally got her wish after 200 years of unrest as her remains were cremated and scattered on the channel. The Oils use her story as an allegory for how life treats us all, as well as a comment on racism which is all pervasive: "Blue collar work, it don't get you nowhere/You just go round and round in debt/Somebody's got you on the treadmill, mate/And I hope you're not beaten yet." The chorus closes the somber tune, "I hear much support for the monarchy/I see the Union Jack in flames, let it burn/I see Namatjira with dignity/I see Truganini's in chains."

It is the final cut, though, of Earth And Sun And Moon, "Now Or Never Land," which serves to frame the album's contents and define its lyrical stance. An activist call to arms, it showcases the band's commitment to its ideals and its view of our future. A musically sparse song, with throbbing bass lines and rhythmic percussion underlining Garrett's course, effective vocals, "Now Or Never Land" explains "I grew tall in this lucky land/And I thank god for that/But there's needles in the sand." Describing the economic and environmental waste which greed has created in his land and ours, Garrett nonetheless goes on to proclaim, "It's a rhythm of the sea/Lost island of hope/It's a rhythm of the sea/Who will discover you?"

It is this island of hope which Midnight Oil sings to, hoping against hope to help create. "Rises in rivers, in power of the sun/Rises in sea level, look out mammon's bastard son/Infidels are praying at the stock exchange/Chrome camels are crashing on the smooth terrain," sings Garrett, damning the fools who have destroyed our garden of Eden. As the band winds down, though, his vocals describe the utopia possible – if all of us work to make it so – "Dream a South Pacific dream of now or never land/Suitcase full of good ideas, history that's filled with tears/Kill nostalgia, xenophobic fears/It's now or never land..." Although other cuts on Earth And Sun And Moon may speak volumes, such as "My Country" and its questioning of the blind following of patriotism, to the bittersweet memories of "In The Valley," it is this simple, eloquent closing statement which stands as a powerful illustration of the Oils' music. It's "now or never," folks, to create the sort of land we want to live in.... (Columbia Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Earth And Sun And Moon from Amazon.com)

Van Morrison - Too Long In Exile (1993)

2008-01-26T15:13:00.000-05:00

Like a fine wine, Van Morrison just keeps getting better with age. By the time that most rockers hit the half-century mark (if they survive that long), they've become absurdist parodies of themselves. Not so, Morrison, who has suffered battles with drink and defeated his own personal demons to become rock's true Poet Laureate. That he is an almost universally respected artist, beloved by young punks and old geezers alike, is a testimony to both his talent and his tenacity. Too Long In Exile is an excellent example of both.

Too Long In Exile is a masterpiece of Morrison's own unique fusion of rock, blues and jazz, with a top notch group of musicians (like keyboardist Georgie Fame and sax sensation Candy Dulfer) offering support and input. Through the years, much has been made of Morrison's vocals, and, truthfully, they have influenced everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Patti Smith and beyond. It is his songwriting that is the cornerstone of his reputation, however, his ability to spin tales as earthy as Ireland's green fields and as lofty as the heavens above. Too Long In Exile proves that the years have done nothing to diminish his songwriting abilities, even while showcasing the instrumental acumen of the band he has assembled.

"Big Time Operators" is a scathing damnation of the music biz, written, perhaps, with an autobiographical frame of reference. With Morrison offering a mournful, wailing guitar lead to match his hoarse, angry vocals, he belts out "they were glorified by the media, they were heroes who had names, they said that they would bury me, if I didn't play their game." He describes the sordid, dark side of the industry in a way that no investigative reporter ever could, never naming names, merely ending the cut with an enigmatic "baby, you know who I mean."

"Wasted Years," a duet with bluesman John Lee Hooker, offers the heartfelt regrets of two aging men looking back upon lost opportunities with an eye yet on the future, while Morrison's tender reading of poet W.B. Yeats' "Before The World Was Made" is an entirely appropriate interpretation of that work. It's evocation of the memories of a grieving lover seem to have been written for Morrison's sincere delivery: "And if I look upon you now, as though I have my view, with the earth beneath your feet, and heaven up above, would you think me cruel, after everything's been said, you're only looking for the face you had, before the world was made..."

Songs like "Till We Get The Healing Done" or the soulful "Ball & Chain," a love song which serves well Morrison's long-standing fascination with the subject matter, easily escape the cliches heaped upon such material by lesser artists. Cover tunes are carefully chosen, this disc's rendition of the Doc Pomus classic "Lonely Avenue" or Brook Benton's "I'll Take Care Of You" spotlighting Morrison's love of R & B. Skillfully crafted instrumentals, like "Close Enough For Jazz" or the unnamed piece leading into "Tell Me What You Want" offer a respite from the intensity of the songs surrounding them.

It is with the retelling of a hit from twenty-five years ago, "Gloria," that the Morrison magic, and the essence of his legend, shines through. Originally recorded in 1967, Morrison's band Them burst out of Belfast with what was to become a garage-band standard. This version, a duet with John Lee, moves a little slower, a bit more deliberately than the original. The years have passed, leaving their mark on both men. On the surface, yet another, more conservative remake of this classic song seems unnecessary; beneath the surface, however, a young man's pulse is racing and the passion spills out with each joyful singing of the familiar chorus, revitalizing both men. It is this power, this heart of the lion which separates the pretenders from the poets. This is the poetry of Van Morrison.... (Polydor Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Too Long In Exile from Amazon.com)

Wayne Kramer - The Hard Stuff (1995)

2008-01-16T17:10:00.000-05:00

The MC5 – with guitarist extraordinnaire Wayne Kramer – are one of those bands that has grown large in legend, receiving much more acclaim after their demise than they ever did during their brief artistic and commercial life span. As the cultural arm of the White Panther Party during the late-60s, the Detroit-based band mixed radical, "power-to-the-people" styled politics with crunching power chords and primordial metallic rock and roll. Along with fellow Motor City rockers Iggy & The Stooges, the MC5 did more to influence the punk rock revolution that would define the late-70s than any other band, save, perhaps, the New York Dolls.

Twenty-five years have passed and here is Kramer resurfacing with his solo debut disc. At a time when most forty-something artists from the '60s are totaling up their mutual fund yields and cranking out safe-as-milk reunion albums, Kramer's The Hard Stuff burns and scrapes like a shot of raw whiskey with a broken glass chaser. Recruiting an all-star team of punk rockers, including members of Rancid, Bad Religion, Clawhammer and the Melvins, Kramer shows that he can still run musical circles around the young 'uns.

Along with co-writer Mick Farren, Kramer has assembled eleven killer cuts for The Hard Stuff, with songs like "Edge Of The Switchblade," "Junkie Romance," "Incident On Stock Island" and "Crack In The Universe" brimming over with the sort of street poetry, colorful imagery and sheer attitude we haven't seen since Lou Reed's day in the sun. It's the music that truly sets The Hard Stuff apart, however, as Kramer's guitar screams, cries, moans and roars with a passion and a ferocity few players can even attempt, much less coax from their instruments. A quarter of a century may have passed since the MC5 broke up, but Kramer proves with The Hard Stuff that he can still kick out the jams. (Epitaph Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy The Hard Stuff from Amazon.com)

Anti-Flag - For Blood And Empire (2006)

2008-01-05T17:28:00.000-05:00

Since punk rockers are an argumentative bunch of boojies under any circumstances, I’m sure that the major label defection of indie hardcore stalwarts Anti-Flag has already been chewed over and spat out on dozens of chatrooms and message boards across the star-spangled ‘net. Maybe the Reverend is too old for this sort of hijinx, or maybe I just don’t give a damn. These ears honestly can’t hear much diff between For Blood And Empire, Anti-Flag’s controversial major label debut, and the three or four other AF CDs that rotate off my shelf and onto the music box from time to time. Let’s take a peak at some of AF’s new major label concerns, shall we? Anti-war? Check. Anti-racist? Check. Anti-corporate? Check. Anti-WTO, Big Media and social injustice? Check, check and checkmate.

The music on For Blood And Empire still blisters and peels, the guitars cut all the way down to the bone, and frontman Justin Sane’s vocals still spit out venomous lyrics with an admirable fury. Is Anti-Flag signing with Sony BMG to reach a wider audience with its radical agenda any different than Bad Religion releasing albums through WEA? I say that Justin and crew should grab the cash and hightail it back to Steeltown before the Germans running RCA wake up and realize what they’ve done. In the meantime, all you young punx relax…Anti-Flag still kicks ass and For Blood And Empire is the balls. The Reverend sez so…. (RCA Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy For Blood And Empire from Amazon.com)

Against All Authority - The Restoration Of Chaos & Order (2006)

2008-01-05T17:23:00.000-05:00

While many of their ideological brethren have fled the punk-rock playground in search of corporate sponsorship, respectability and a pension plan, Against All Authority has done an admirable job of adhering to its D.I.Y. aesthetic. The Restoration Of Chaos & Order doesn’t break any new ground, lyrically or musically, but for Warped Tour kidz whose only exposure to radical politricks comes from The Daily Show, this should hit ‘em like a typhoon. The disc reveals just enough skankin’ riddims to soften the band’s hardcore punk sound a bit in the face of an unrelenting barrage of blistering guitars and throbbing basslines, every song displaying honest “rage against the machine.” AAA is unafraid to tackle issues like corporate greed, televised warfare, corrupt politics and the homogenization of punk with a righteous anger earned by a decade of living right, and a defiance that hasn’t budged an inch in over a decade. “We turn it up cause we like it loud,” indeed. (Hopeless Records) (Click on the CD cover to buy The Restoration Of Chaos & Order from Amazon.com)

Mardo - The New Gun (2006)

2008-01-05T17:15:00.000-05:00

None of the current crop o’ revival kiddies trying to relive the boozy glory days of their grandparents can walk the ‘70s-styled cock-rock mambo line like the brothers Mardo. Weaned on mildew-crusted 45s by the likes of T-Rex, Slade, Sabbath and Zeppelin, the band’s self-titled debut was a brilliant bit o’ retro rock. With this second shot at overnite success, it seems like a committee of advisors, consultants, image-shapers and other ne’er-do-wells have chopped and screwed, flanged and wah-wah’d away the psyche-drenched booger-rock of Mardo’s debut in favor of a blatant grab at respectability. The money men behind the band smell a quick return on their investment and they’ve brought back producer Les Pierce to make sure that the boys play ball.

It’s the jazzman that fumbles the pill this time out, though, cleaning the band up a little too much, injecting bits-n-pieces of balladry where there should be strutting, funk where there should be mindless riffing, and jazzy licks where there should be, well…more mindless riffing. The New Gun has its moments, tunes like “Lolita Live & Learn” displaying the Mardo of yore, the guys showing more chops than a Kobe chef. Far too often, however, they’re reduced to merely mimicking Bon Scott and AC/DC, or worse yet, Bret Michaels and Poison. It may grab them some airplay, but it sure won’t get them any respect. Better luck next time, boys…. (House Of Restitution Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy The New Gun from Amazon.com)

Rebel Meets Rebel - Rebel Meets Rebel (2006)

2008-01-04T17:35:00.000-05:00

The senseless death of metal giant “Dimebag” Darrell is all the more tragic considering that the talented guitarist had a lot of music left to share. The best example of this is Rebel Meets Rebel, a collaborative effort between Dimebag, his brother Vinnie Paul and outlaw country legend David Allen Coe. Growing up in Texas, the brothers were huge fans of Coe’s music, and somewhere along the Pantera/Damageplan road-to-ruin they had the pleasure of meeting their longtime idol. As musicians are often want to do, they agreed that they should get together sometime and write some songs. Mind you, these informal agreements seldom bear musical fruit, but in the case of these three madmen, they created the metallic twangfest that they called “Rebel Meets Rebel.”

With Coe supplying vocals and lyrics in front of a band that includes brother Vinnie blistering the skins, Dimebag delivering his typical scorched-earth six-string pyrotechnics and bassist Rex Brown holding down the bottom end, these songs kick serious ass! An unlikely mix of honky-tonk country, Southern-fried funk and uber shred-metal, this bastard hybrid actually works! The album’s inspired instrumentation reveals previously unseen facets of Darrell’s talents, the hard-rocking results both breathtaking and invigorating. This is muscular music that takes the best of its myriad influences and proceeds to knock down the house with a sonic fury, creating a fitting epitaph to the amazing career of the one-and-only Dimebag Darrell. R.I.P. (rock in peace) big guy! (Big Vin Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Rebel Meets Rebel from Amazon.com)

Ozric Tentacles - Spirals In Hyperspace (2005)

2007-12-14T15:38:00.000-05:00

It's hard to put your finger on Ozric Tentacles, and just when you think that you have them figured out, they defy your expectations by evolving, chameleon-like, into something else entirely. Formed by multi-instrumentalist Ed Wynne back in the dark ages (1983), the Ozrics originally sold a blend of jazz-rock fusion similar to Mahavishnu, mixed with flighty space-rock a la Hawkwind. By the end of the decade the band had become the sole province of the British "crusty" movement. A sort of cross between '60s vintage hippie culture and '80s-era New Age thought, crustys roamed across the English countryside from one outdoor festival or rave to another–kind of like a cosmic Anglo Grateful Dead caravan. During the mid-90s, the Ozrics even flirted with U.S. audiences. A 1994 tour and two major label releases failed to break the band stateside, although they did attract a loyal cult following, including many fans of the jam band phenomenon.

Through the years, the band has dabbled in a number of genre-hopping exercises, from prog-rock and Eno-inspired ambiance to trance and electronica. No matter the path they've chosen, every Ozrics album was certain to feature Wynne's edgy guitarwork and imaginative songwriting, and Spirals In Hyperspace is no exception. The latest effort from the Ozric mastermind is basically a studio creation, falling heavily into an electronic vein, with a few friends and former bandmates dropping by to lend a hand here and there. Wynne handles guitars, keyboards and synth programming on most of the tracks, painting a dense, multi-layered portrait of sound and emotion. The sound here runs the gamut from the manic oscillating vibe of "Chewier," which includes Ozrics drummer Schoo and Brandi Wynne on glide bass, to the aggressive "Akasha," which features guitarist Steve Hillage floating adrift amidst a chimera of shimmering instruments.

Each of the nine songs on Spirals In Hyperspace has been carefully crafted, mixing organic instrumentation and technological flourishes in the creation of unique musical experience. Not one of the songs clocks in at less than five minutes, and the average length is closer to the eight-minute mark. The results can be breathtaking and, at times, hypnotic, luring the listener inside and setting them up for an unexpected change in direction. "Plasmoid," for instance, is supported by a funky, Stax-sounding six-string groove and chirping electronic rhythms, Wynne's wicked guitar lead threaded throughout the song. "Plasmoid" tumbles into "Oakum," however, an extended space music jam that incorporates ambient electronics, stabs of muted keyboards, aboriginal rhythms and a soaring guitar line that flies all over the damn place. You never know what to expect until it hits you upside the head....

While not the most engaging album in the Ozric Tentacles' canon–my personal favorites remain Strangeitude and Arborescence–Spirals In Hyperspace is nevertheless an invigorating collection of songs. Appealing to fans of just about any sort of progressive instrumental rock or electronic experimentation, Spirals In Hyperspace might be the closest that you can get to travelling in outer space without leaving the comfort of your own home. (Magna Carta Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Spirals In Hyperspace from Amazon.com)

Nihilist - The Nihilist Demos (2005)

2007-12-14T15:36:00.000-05:00

One of the most trailblazing of the early-90s death metal bands, Sweden's Entombed earned a worldwide audience on the basis of its immense instrumental skills and willingness to experiment sonically. The band's chameleonlike nature is the stuff of legend – just when you thought you had Entombed all figured out, the band would go and change directions on you. As maddening as this might be for hardcore fans, it has served to earn Entombed a status as one of the most influential bands in the heavy metal genre.

Before there was Entombed, however, there was Nihilist, a band formed by future Entombed members Alex Hellid and Nicke Andersson. Harbingers of the sound that Entombed would eventually unleash upon the world with its groundbreaking Left Hand Path album, Nihilist, in many ways, sketched out the blueprint and threw together the foundation upon which death metal was built.

To say that Nihilist's early sound is a revelation might in itself be an understatement. This self-titled release features four distinctive demo sessions from across two years, several songs that, although circulated for a decade and a half in underground metal circles, have never been released on CD to my knowledge. The eleven songs remembered here display the band's evolution and maturation, from the low-fi, bass-heavy screamers of "Sentenced To Death" and "Carnal Leftovers" (from 1988's Premature Autopsy demo) to the no-quarter-asked-and-none-given sonic barrage of "Morbid Devourment" (from 1989's The Drowned Sessions).

Fueled by Andersson's massive percussion work, Nihilist blends the heaviest of metal with extreme hardcore and no little amount of doom-and-gloom, delivering a soundtrack to oblivion. Andersson's drums hit you like the galloping heels of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse while Hellid's surgically-precise guitar leads are paired with muscular riffs and LG Petrov's demonic vocals.

Rounding out the disc is a trio of early Entombed demos from 1989's But Life Goes On sessions. These three recordings – "But Life Goes On," "Shreds Of Flesh" and "The Truth Beyond" – would earn the band its first recording contract, Entombed later reprising a couple of the tunes for its official debut, 1990's Left Hand Path. The demos offered here are raw and undiluted, even by death metal standards, offering metal fans one of the most brutal sounds this side of the River Styx.

After disbanding Nihilist, Andersson and Hellid would recruit the band's vocalist Petrov and frequent guitar collaborator Ulf Cederlund to form Entombed and, as they say, the rest is history. The history of this important band can be found in the grooves of these demos, however, Nihilist providing an integral missing link in the storied history of death metal. Heartily recommended for fans of bands like Napalm Death, Obituary, even Pantera...and, of course, Entombed. (Candlelight Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy The Nihilist Demos from Amazon.com)

Napalm Death - The Code Is Red...Long Live The Code (2005)

2007-12-14T15:34:00.000-05:00

For almost two dozen years, heavy metal innovators Napalm Death have delivered the goods unlike any other band. These guys wrote the fuckin' blueprint for extreme metal, Napalm Death cranking out some of the most brutal, unrelenting and uncompromising music that your ears will ever experience. There's nothing subtle about the Napalm Death approach – the band's signature sonic assault could be more closely compared to a lead pipe colliding with your skull rather than the stiletto stuck between your ribs.

There's also little about The Code Is Red...Long Live The Code that will appeal to a mass audience bottle-fed whitebread "nu-metal" and "modern rock" by MTV and corporate radio. Make no doubt, Napalm Death is a cult band, deservedly so, and methinks that the band would have it no other way. Beneath the din and glorious noise of The Code Is Red...Long Live The Code is a spectacular worldview, a misanthropic perspective that is as brutally honest as the music is honestly brutal. With lyrics penned by vocalist Barney Greenway, who's demon-on-acid vocals have been imitated by every lesser death metal frontman for decades now, the album tackles such heady subject matter as the war in Iraq, American imperialism and economic injustice. With disdain for the current cultural landscape worthy of Artaud, Greenway's blistering lyrical attacks on political hypocrisy are as intelligent and informed as they are menacing.

Of course, deciphering he lyrics from Greenway's rabid delivery is difficult enough a chore, even more so when combined with Napalm Death's monster mix of death metal, hardcore punk and industrial-strength bluster. Guitarist Mitch Harris wields his guitar much the same way that a Viking warrior would swing his battleaxe – with strength and deadly accuracy. It's the explosive rhythm section of bassist Shane Embury and drummer Danny Herrera that serve as the band's backbone, however, with rapid-fire drumbeats and bludgeoning basslines supporting Greenway's manic vocals and driving each song to the edge of insanity.

The Code Is Red...Long Live The Code brings in some guest vocalists to thrash around with the band, notably Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed, Jeff Walker of Carcass and former Dead Kennedys' frontman Jello Biafra. Biafra's contribution to "The Great And The Good" is as close to a duet as you're likely to hear on a Napalm Death album. Intertwining his distinctive vocals alongside Greenway's, Biafra manages to move the song from the band's usual scorched earth delivery into the realm of something really nightmarish. Napalm Death defined the "grindcore" genre a generation ago, and longtime fanatics of the sound will not be disappointed by The Code Is Red...Long Live The Code. There's still a lot of life left in these old dogs; with its 13th album, Napalm Death has effectively captured the sound of the coming cultural Armageddon...eerie, even by the standards of extreme music. (Century Media Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy The Code Is Red... from Amazon.com)