new introductory bit here.
This is a reviews page based on my own collection, which just keeps growing despite itself. If it isn't listed here, it's because I don't own it yet, or I haven't gotten around to it yet.
Also, bother your local "new rock" radio station and make sure they are playing "new rock" and not "Rock the Casbah," which is not new.
note: entries in red text indicate my pick for the artist's best available album. A gold numeral indicates the POPocalypse winner of the year's best album; second- and third-place winners are in blue. Green lettering indicates an obviously exploitative record company compilation without apparent artist input.
BALLOON: Gravity (***)
An extremely moody, passionate effort from the (Canadian?) duo with a serious Sylvian influence. Contains the truly beautiful "Now That the Thrill's Gone," along with guest contributions from Sarah McLachlan and Michael Brook.
BASIA: Basia on Broadway (**)
Rather like the singer herself, I find myself really wishing I could like this album, but I just can't bring myself to embrace it. This is a standard "hits live" performed with a large band of polished veterans, who hit all the right notes of upbeat jazz but often forget to add any emotion to the mix. "Cruising for Bruising" has long been a favorite driving song laced with nostalgia; its rendition here isn't bad.
BAUHAUS: Burning from the Inside (1983, UK #13, *)
1983 goth classic featuring "She's in Parties" and "Who Killed Mr. Moonlight" but also a lot of poor instrumentation from Peter Murphy's less talented bandmates. "Antonin Artaud" is the worst song ever recorded.
MARGARET BECKER: Steps of Faith 1987-1991 (1991, ***)
A good introduction to the best voice in Christian rock. Beautiful packaging with liner notes and the new song "This Love."
BELLE & SEBASTIAN: The Boy With the Arab Strap (1998, UK #12, ***)
Bob Geldof dismissed them as "wimpy." He's probably right, but they're also capable of some haunting melodies and strong lyrics. Sort of like Mazzy Star with more tempo, and not bad at all.
BEN FOLDS FIVE: Whatever and Ever Amen (1997, UK #30, US #90, ***)
Their second album is scarcely a departure from their debut, containing as it does another dozen insightful, honest and thoroughly goofy observations on romance. Their versatility remains their strong point: the comedy of "Steven's Last Night in Town" is countered by the horrible heartbreak of "Brick," a song which works on so many levels it's astonishing. And surely there has never been a more honest breakup song than the poignantly petulant "Song for the Dumped." This is a real winner.
BEN FOLDS FIVE: The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner (1999, UK #22, US #35, *****)
This is, by some distance, the best album of 1999. In some ways, it's a natural progression from prog notions of the early 70s, being a series of songs built around the theme of one man's life. In other ways, it's a masterful continuation of their own musical past. The incredibly funny "Your Redneck Past" is the only song here that could easily have been slotted into one of their earlier albums; the others, notably the storming opener "Narcolepsy" and the very sad "Magic," are screaming for attention. Frankly, listening to the songs individually and out of context makes this sound like it must be a hell of an album altogether; the whole is more than the sum of its parts.
BEN FOLDS FIVE: Truth & Rumors with Ben Folds Five
A great promotional accompaniment to Reinhold Messner, this features an interview along with six of the album's songs, including the radio version of "Army."
BETTER THAN EZRA: Deluxe (**)
This impressive second album, their first mainstream success, features some very strong writing and guitar by Kevin Griffin. Singles include the alterna-rock faves "Good," "In the Blood" and "Rosealia."
BIG STAR: #1 Record (1972, ****) and Radio City (1974, ***)
Memphis's Alex Chilton, as vocalist for the Box Tops, had been behind a handful of late '60s hits, such as "Cry Like a Baby" and "The Letter." After that band's demise, he formed Big Star with Chris Bell and signed to Ardent Records, a Stax subsidiary that suffered serious distribution problems. If only they had found a different label, Big Star might have been massive. This is very good early-70s power pop, mixing great big guitar chords with a vunerable edge and a desire for fun. It's a natural progression from the Beatles and the Kinks to Big Star, and, continuing the metaphor, Chilton's influence has been notable despite the failure of these two records, which are available on one CD from Stax. You can hear the seeds of the Replacements, the Bangles, R.E.M. and Teenage Fanclub here.
BLAKE BABIES: Earwig (**)
Their 15-song debut was recorded with three different bassists over a year's time and immediately nails the upbeat pop that would fill the band's too-short career. My favorite songs are "Dead and Gone" and "Your Way or the Highway," but there is a certain monotony here that makes some of the later songs seem superfluous.
BLAKE BABIES: "Rosy Jack World" EP (***)
A great swan song for the band, this five-song disc contains three band originals, including "Nirvana," which Juliana Hatfield would redo solo, and covers of Dinosaur Jr.'s "Severed Lips" and the Grass Roots' "Temptation Eyes," a performance that almost broke the band nationwide.
THE BLOW MONKEYS: Animal Magic (1986, UK #21, US #35, ***)
Contains their only US chart dent, "Digging Your Scene," and several other bits of British pop soul. Upbeat and confident and pretty well written, although most tracks have a tendency to finish two minutes in and just meander through a lot of bass and horns for a while longer before petering out.
THE BLOW MONKEYS: The Masters (***)
A 1997 compilation from Eagle Records, this scrimps on the packaging, featuring only one lousy photo and a three paragraph essay, and lacking details on production, original issue, etc. On the other hand, it does feature 18 songs, far more than these kinds of cheapo hits albums usually give, and includes quite a few songs that were never released in America.
BLUE CONDITION: ed (***)
This Athens four-piece struggled for a few years in the mid-90s to make it, eventually disintegrating shortly after the release of their sole album. ed captures the band's sound and versatility well, and features several styles, ranging from successful dense pop to unsucessful light metal. Drummer Justin Aldridge propels things nicely.
THE BLUE NILE: Hats (1989, UK #12, US #108, ****)
The album brings up memories of the summer of 1989, learning to drive before going off to college, listening to WRAS in Atlanta and getting the first emotional headbutt of "The Downtown Lights," a perfect ode to everything that love should be and never is. A priceless, overlooked joy of an album.
BLUR: Parklife (1994, UK #1, **)
I prefer Oasis. By leagues. But "Girls & Boys" is a fucking brilliant single.
BOOK OF LOVE: Candy Carol (1991, US #174, **)
The band briefly capitalized on their cult appeal with the club favorites "Alice Everyday" and "Counting the Rosaries," very good tracks that still didn't translate into mainstream success.
BOOK OF LOVE: Lovebubble (**)
In 1993, they couldn't even get much club play with this straight-to-clearance offering that features a fabulous two-part song called "Chatterbox" and an unimaginative, if cute cover of Bowie's "Sound and Vision." I think Sire was going through a bit of internal upheaval at the time, leaving this unpromoted and ignored.
BOSS HOG: Boss Hog (1995, ***)
There were fears that when Jon Spencer and Christina Martinez took their bluesy punk act to major label DGC Records in 1995, they would be forced to tone their raucous act down a little. These proved to be unfounded. The album makes a play at traditional pop practices, as much good punk does, but it's done without any lyrical or musical compromise. It's a resounding success.
BOSS HOG: Whiteout (2000, ***)
The third full album from New York's hammering Boss Hog, the synth-punk side project to the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. Uncompromising, aggressive synths and a blues ethic make this a thrilling ride. Best tracks: "Nursery Rhymes," "Itchy & Scratchy" and "Get it While You Wait," which dented the UK chart at #118. Several tracks were produced by Gang of Four's Andy Gill.
BOULEVARD: "Octane Lovers" EP (2000)
This Athens act doesn't make any bones about its influences -- I mean, come on, Brett Anderson could have written this title track in his sleep -- but it's very refreshing to see a band that loves glam and guitar pop do such a very good job roaring in the studio. This EP is probably out of print by now, but the four songs were given away on a CD-R at the band's afternoon show at AthFest 2001 (which closed with a flawless, if unoriginal, performance of "Moonage Daydream") and they are also available for download from their site, www.boulevardrock.net.
BOY GEORGE: Cheapness and Beauty (1995, UK #44, ***)
Aggressive, hard-edged electronic dance, this is a surprisingly good album. It's full of bitter, angry glam. The opening track and lead single is a cover of Iggy Pop's "Funtime" which soars like a dive bomber.
BOY GEORGE: at worst... the best of Boy George and Culture Club (1993, UK #24, US #169, ***)
Considering what a cheapo this compilation could have been in the wrong hands, this is a surprising success. It features nine Culture Club smashes and ten tracks from some of th' Boy's various solo ventures, including some remixes, a guest vocal for PM Dawn and his awesome "The Crying Game." Honestly, little of the solo material holds a candle to the Culture Club tracks, but it makes more sense to buy this than any Club issue.
BRAVE ULYSSES: Tempus Fugit (2001, ***)
This defunct Atlanta four-piece, the members sometimes jamming with guests, recorded their sessions for strictly limited edition and quickly out-of-print albums. The sixteen best pieces from 2000, their first year of operation, are compiled on Tempus Fugit, which is available for purchase at Quite Quite Fantastic. Much of the material is taut instrumental jamming, with the leads taken by both guitarist Michael Phillips and drummer Eric Ingram, late of the legendary Atlanta act Bob, as they move the music into an improvised fusion of acid and jazz rock. Steve Calzone adds appropriate keyboard and saxophone fluorishes to the proceedings, although the shrieking synths of �On the Attack� are not as subtle as the rest of his work. �Phase Shift Blues (in C Sharp),� �Weather Report� and a very interesting take on Miles Davis�s �Great Expectations� are possibly the best songs, and altogether perfect for late night driving.
JACQUES BREL: Jacques Brel (1990, ***)
This is a 1990 2-CD collection from Polygram that includes 34 songs. It's part of a series of similarly-packaged double-disc sets for major French artists like Yves Montand and Serge Gainsbourg. It begins with a live version of "Amsterdam," which was later a standard of Bowie's repertoire, along with "Au Suivant" (Marc Almond), "Ne Me Quitte Pas" (Almond, Alison Moyet), "Mathilde" (Scott Walker), "Jacky" (Walker, Almond), and "Marieke," which I know somebody's done in English. Most of the work is beautifully dramatic, with soaring vocals. (Update: I expressed confusion about the chorus of "Rosa," and reader Christine Dora suggested that the singer, remembering his childhood and cousin Rosa, is also remembering Latin class, where his classmates, small children, are singing the various declensions of the noun "rosa," meaning rose. How clever!)
LESLIE BRISCUSSE & ANTHONY NEWLEY: Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory original soundtrack (1971, ***)
This scrumdidilyumptious soundtrack mixes elements of the score and some of the cute kid's songs with snatches of the film dialogue. The overall result is perfect for a sunrise drive.
BRONSKI BEAT: The Age of Consent (1984, UK #4, US #36, ***)
Crucial dance album from 1984, now available in a reissue with six extra tracks. "Why?" and "Smalltown Boy" are just as danceable and important as ever, and the version of "I Feel Love" that features Marc Almond is pure bliss.
MICHAEL BROOK: Cobalt Blue (***)
This is a rare solo venture for the veteran session guitarist who's been called upon to provide soundscapes for everyone from Brian Eno to David Sylvian. The instrumentals here sound like they started with freeform improvisation, but were tightened and reigned to create taut musical imagery with the bare minimum of excess. Very listenable.
IAN BROWN: Golden Greats (1999, UK #14, **)
The second solo outing from the ex-Stone Roses singer was released in late 1999 to moderate UK success. It offers a harder-edged dance-synth sound (perhaps influenced by the late '90s Ibiza sound?), but otherwise is a solid continuation of the themes heard throughout the decade from the Roses and their Manchester cousins the Happy Mondays. "Dolphins Were Monkeys" did some small business in American clubs in early 2000 thanks to a nifty remix by UNKLE, included here.
THE BUDDY O'REILLY BAND: Under the Table (1996, ***)
Celtic folk isn't normally my bag, but this Atlanta seven-piece swings with such unbridled fun that it's impossible not to be swept along with them. The only down side, and this purely a technical one, is that while Lisa Edwards has a beautiful voice, she is somewhat undisciplined, and is almost breathless by the end of "The Town of Ballybay." This certainly works within the concept of a band of talented amateurs having a great time, which you can, and should hear, at their MP3.com site. And to paraphrase Alan Moore, Sarah Vegotsky, unconscious, is worth ten other fiddlers awake.
BUSH: Sixteen Stone (1995, UK #42, US #4, *)
Proving, as ever, that American radio does not make a lick of sense, someone in some station somewhere decided to play the absolute hell out of this album. Why this, and not hundreds of more deserving British bands, no one can say... I mean, if you're going to play a Brit act, then why not a good one, or at least a successful one? Bush, who have rarely peeked above the top 40 in their homeland, scored in the US by sounding as much like Pearl Jam as it's possible to do without actually playing Pearl Jam records. In its defense, the "asshole brother" line is worth a grin, and "Glycerine" aspires to honest greatness despite the wholly inappropriate buzzsaw backbeat. Nothing else on this record is worth the effort.
BERNARD BUTLER: People Move On (1998, UK #11, ***)
Suede's former writer-guitarist took a lengthy road between leaving that band and issuing his debut LP six years later. He did several memorable singles with David McAlmont (1995's "Yes" is achingly sublime) but it was the shimmering, upbeat pop masterpiece "Not Alone" (UK #27) included here, which showed he was still more than capable of matching Suede's earliest great moments. "Not Alone" was atypical of most of the downbeat, heavy guitar material here however, and when this album was issued later in 1998, it stood out too much. Perhaps not coincidentally, the successive singles didn't perform as well. Despite its schizophrenia, this is still a very worthwhile album, and an excellent counterpoint to Suede's ongoing career.
BERNARD BUTLER: "Not Alone" (1998, UK #27)
"Not Alone" (praised above) preceded Bernard's debut album and is available on this very good single with two B-sides.