New Stuff, A New Favorite, A Few Live Shows, something from Netflix and A Couple from 2006 that I Missed Earlier
Although it came out in 2003, I finally heard this recently and I can’t stop playing it. In fact it’s so good that I have devoted an entire column to a full review. At this point, though, all you should know is that if you like pop-punk, early ‘70s glam or power-pop, this record is an absolute must-have that’s just as good as any of its influences. And yes, I’m four years late to the party, but nevertheless this may be my new favorite record of the millenium.
After the brilliant 2003 album Hearts of Oak, I felt that the next year’s Shake the Sheets was good, but a bit hurried and to tell the truth, a bit of a letdown from the amazing highs of Hearts of Oak and its predecessor The Tyranny of Distance. Fortunately, this album is a return to the type of material found in abundance on Hearts of Oak and in particular The Tyranny of Distance, the record it most resembles. It’s a 15-song, hour-long journey that encapsulates everything from blistering scorchers like “The Sons of Cain” and “The World Stops Turning” to ballads like “The Lost Brigade” and “The Toro and the Toreador”. The real highlight, however, is “A Bottle of Buckie”, a brilliant jangle-pop tune that rivals anything in his vast catalog and I’m including his previous bands CHISEL, ANIMAL CRACKERS and even CITIZENS ARREST here. Without delving too heavily into the lyrics, this record seems as concerned with current events as Shake the Sheets was, resulting in songs with titles like “Fourth World War” (actually just the album’s intro), “Army Bound” and the album closer “C.I.A.”. The only dud here is “Bomb.Repeat.Bomb”, a tedious and plodding track that has a prominent FUGAZI feel in the verses only to ruin it with a chorus that sounds like something a nu-metal band like LINKIN PARK would employ. I’ve been hearing it on WXPN, so I don’t know if this is his bid for a radio hit, but if it is, it’s a mistake that takes away from his vast melodic gifts. The rest of this album is a winner, though.
What About Me (R)
This 1993 film by director RACHEL AMODEO stars Amadeo herself as a woman forced out of her apartment and onto the mean streets of the pre-gentrified Lower East Side. It tackles issues like squatters’ rights, homelessness, rape and drug abuse and as such could just as easily apply today as to the times it was made in. A virtual who’s who of ‘70s New York punk show up in the film ranging from RICHARD HELL and ROCKETS REDGLARE to DEE DEE RAMONE. The most prominent cameo appearance, however, comes from JOHNNY THUNDERS, who also did the score for the film. In addition, the use of his solo classics “So Alone” and “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory” are extraordinarily moving as well.
Although this is the first album under his own name, this is really the BAD RELIGION singer’s second solo effort. However, this is a vastly different record from the first one, which was released in 1997 under the name AMERICAN LESION. While that record was a piano-driven record in the vein of BEN FOLDS, JOE JACKSON circa Night and Day or perhaps even TODD RUNDGREN (Graffin’s idol and the producer of Bad Religion’s The New America), this one is essentially an alt-country record with backing by the Canadian band THE WEAKERTHANS. About half of the record is taken up by old folk and country tunes like the murder ballads “Omie Wise” and “Little Sadie” while the other half consists of Graffin originals. Several of the songs include background vocals by JOLIE HOLLAND and Bad Religion guitarist BRETT GUREWITZ.
It’s good to know that some things never change. Motorhead founder and leader LEMMY KILMISTER, even at 60, is still as bad-ass as ever both in terms of his looks, attitude and the sheer volume, velocity and attitude of their newest record. Although our own JACK RABID gave their previous album (2004’s Inferno) the coveted #1 slot in a previous issue of The Big Takeover, I prefer this one. Nevertheless, Motorhead aren’t known for diversity, so you pretty much know what you’re in for. The standouts on this set include “Sucker” (one of a number of anti-war songs that Motorhead has recorded over the years) and more lascivious material like “Christine” (which reminds me a lot of the KISS song “Christine Sixteen”) and “One Night Stand”. “God Was Never on Your Side” starts off as an acoustic ballad (!), but gradually transforms into a typical Motorhead stomper. For whatever reasons, “R.A.M.O.N.E.S.” is included as a “bonus track” here though it was previously recorded for their 1916 album.
This is a virtual continuation of their terrific first record A Certain Trigger and frankly, I couldn’t be happier. Unlike other UK post-punk acts who made great debut records and then stumbled on their follow-ups (I’m looking at you, BLOC PARTY, FUTUREHEADS and especially KAISER CHIEFS), Maximo Park prove that sometimes it’s OK not to mess with a good thing. The whole record is filled with hooks out the wazoo, but try the first single “Our Velocity” to get a glimpse of this album’s delights.
Touring behind their excellent 2006 album The Body, The Blood, The Machine, The Thermals played a short, excellent set at the First Unitarian Church. It was a thrill to see HUTCH HARRIS’s urgent vocals and maniacal energy to go along with bassist KATHY FOSTER’s rapid-fire playing. The Big Sleep warmed up the crowd nicely with their mostly instrumental noise-rock and The A-Sides answered the question of what a noise-pop band fronted by JEFF TWEEDY of WILCO would sound like.
Similar to bands like STEREOLAB and WILD CARNATION, this underrated UK band releases another winner after 2005’s terrific Axes. However, this album is more along the lines of 2004’s The Power Out in that the emphasis here is on pop song strucutres on not on the more experimental, post-rock leanings of Axes. The songs are shorter and catchier and there seems to be less guitar distortion on here and more of an emphasis on keyboard sounds. Nevertheless, this is still a satisfying listen.
This one has been growing on me lately. At first I thought it was a real mixed bag, but now I think it’s mostly a strong album with a few weak tracks. In fact, if you take out the tedious, self-referencing (though funny) “Insult Song” and the over 10-minute “Das Boat”, this is a pretty solid Fall album. In particular, I really like the title track, “Scenario” and “The Wright Stuff”. The cover of “White Line Fever” is surprisingly touching as well.
A much better show than the only time I saw Luna back in 2001 at Maxwells, this beautiful and great-sounding room (complete with seats) was a perfect sitting for the mellow stylings of DEAN WAREHAM and BRITTA PHILLIPS. They were accompanied by 3 other musicians, including the vibraphonist Sean McCaul, who also opened the show with his own set. The set started out slowly, with Dean admitting that it was their first show in years. However, once they played LUNA’s “Moon Palace” (off of their brilliant 1995 album Penthouse), the show really came to life. They also dipped their toes in the GALAXIE 500 catalog briefly with “Hearing Voices” from their final album This Is Our Music. This song, along with several other Luna numbers which interestingly all came from Penthouse (including “Chinatown”) mixed well with material from their 2 albums (including the new one Back Numbers) and prevented the show from getting too mellow and samey-sounding. For the encore, they once again rented the Penthouse and played the SERGE GAINSBOURG song “Bonnie and Clyde”, which was originally included as a hidden track on Penthouse. On the recorded version, Stereolab’s LAETITIA SADIER dueted with Wareham, but Phillips handled Sadier’s part quite capably.
