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.
LINDSAY DAVIS: Stray Arrow (2000, ****)
Borne of heartbreak and scraping the depths of unrequited love, the debut album from Murfreesboro guitarist Davis contains nine tortured and bleak cries for passion. Several of the songs are simple acoustic pieces, and others add electric or horn flourishes, very effectively. The production is somewhat muddy, intentionally not as commercial as what the big boys play, but by adding old out-of-tune guitars to the mix, around Davis's wonderful voice and acoustic, the result is surprisingly stark and honest. Very highly recommended. (Stray Arrow is available in a low-priced limited edition from the artist, who may be contacted at [email protected].)
DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE: The Photo Album (2001, ***)
This is the Washington band's third record and it contains ten very clever and intricate songs, most notably "Information Travels Faster." They're like The Mendoza Line, but without the so-flawed-it's-perfect edge.
DEPECHE MODE: A Broken Frame (1982, UK #8, US #177, ***)
Their second album is the first of a surprisingly short run of great albums. They've been consistent with songs, but none of their recent albums have been as solid as their 1982-84 period. Key tracks: "Leave in Silence" and the remarkable "The Sun and the Rainfall." Often insightful lyrics, great production.
DEPECHE MODE: "Leave in Silence" CD single (1982, UK #18)
Three mixes of the lead and two mixes of "My Secret Garden," all very listenable.
DEPECHE MODE: Construction Time Again (1983, UK #6, US #166, ***)
A fabulous little number from 1983, nine songs augmented here by a remix of the classic "Everything Counts." Their lyrics start to take an interesting political edge and they continue to experiment with how far you can take a synth within the realm of pop.
DEPECHE MODE: Some Great Reward (1984, UK #5, US #51, ****)
This remarkable fourth album, from 1984, is the highlight of their career. All the tracks are well-written and performed, and the stunning "Blasphemous Rumours" continues to knock high schoolers on their asses today. Just one of many fantastic LPs released that year...
DEPECHE MODE: Black Celebration (1986, UK #4, US #90, *)
Their first stumble, and it's a huge lyrical one. Much of this 1986 album is very good, with performance and production miles removed from the simple doo-dah ditties of five years before. Some tracks, including "Here is the House" and the remarkable "Question of Lust," still floor me. On the polar opposite are the pathetic, shallow "World Full of Nothing" and the offensively naive "New Dress." Approach with caution.
DEPECHE MODE: "A Question of Lust" CD single (1986, UK #28)
One of their finest hours, though oddly this one just barely made the UK top 30. This hodgepodge of a single features two mixes of the lead, two mixes of "Christmas Island," a live version of "People are People" and an instrumental version of "It Doesn't Matter Two."
DEPECHE MODE: "A Question of Time" CD single (1986, UK #17)
The third single from Black Celebration is an eight-track mini-album, with three mixes of the lead, five live songs (from Birmingham, 1986) and a remix of "Black Celebration." That adds up to nine songs because the eighth track edits together a remix and a live recording of the lead.
DEPECHE MODE: Music for the Masses (1987, UK #10, US #35, **)
This 1987 album continued Mode's very productive decade, with six studio albums, a mess of singles and a compilation in just seven years. This is somewhat superior to Black Celebration since the lyrics are a little better, and new technology gave them access to a whole new bank of sounds. Minor American hits like "Strangelove" and "Behind the Wheel" gained huge MTV play and pushed the album into the American top 40, where their cult following grew enormously for years. The CD adds two period B-sides and two remixes.
DEPECHE MODE: "Little 15" CD single (1988, UK #60)
This was issued as a single in Europe, and imported into England with enough numbers to dent the UK top 60. It contains the lead, an instrumental called "St Jarna" and a solo performance by Alan Wilder of the "Moonlight Sonata."
DEPECHE MODE: 101 (1989, UK #5, US #45, *)
To promote Masses, the Mode undertook a mammoth world tour that cemented their following. The 101st, and last show of the tour was recorded at the Pasadena Rose Bowl before a huge, and extremely noisy crowd. The packaging of this 1989 album is very sharp, but since Gahan is a far better studio singer, this one might be saved until a little later. Oddly, in a move that makes me question Billboard, 101 missed the US top 40 and the single "Everything Counts" didn't chart at all, despite massive radio and MTV play for both, and the sold out stadiums, and the mainstream acceptance of the band into the top 10 the following year.
DEPECHE MODE: Violator (1990, UK #2, US #7, ***)
Their seventh studio LP, from 1990, was their first American top 5, and it's aged quite well. The best songs are the singles, but there isn't anything to be embarassed about, except maybe "Halo." Overall, it's not as truly impressive as their 1982-84 albums, but it's still a solid effort and an important addition to their resume.
DEPECHE MODE: "Personal Jesus" CD single (1989, UK #13, US #28)
Now here's good value for money. Four mixes of the lead, a superior acoustic re-recording of the same song, plus three mixes of "Dangerous." This sets the tone for DM's subsequent lengthy singles that most artists and record companies don't bother matching.
DEPECHE MODE: "Enjoy the Silence" CD single (1990, UK #6, US #8)
Five mixes of the lead, along with a short acoustic re-recording using a harmonium and two non-LP tracks.
DEPECHE MODE: "Policy of Truth" CD single (1990, UK #16, US #15)
Four mixes of the lead and an excellent non-LP track called "Kaleid."
DEPECHE MODE: "World in My Eyes" CD single (1990, UK #17, US #52)
Three mixes of the lead, along with two mixes each of a pair of new vocal tracks, "Happiest Girl" and the silly "Sea of Sin."
DEPECHE MODE: Songs of Faith and Devotion (1993, UK #1, US #1, *)
Oh dear. Someone started believing the hype. This stinks. But it made #1 in the US and UK...
DEPECHE MODE: "I Feel You" CD single (1993, UK #8, US #37)
Four overlong and undercooked mixes of an already tedious song. Packaging reveals Dave Gahan at his most self-consciously sleazy.
DEPECHE MODE: "Walking in My Shoes" CD single (1993, UK #14, US #69)
The only good single from Songs of Faith & Devotion is this second one, represented by five good mixes and one awful one that contains humpback whale noises. There are also two mixes of the so-so B-side "My Joy."
DEPECHE MODE: Songs of Faith and Devotion Live (1993, US #193, *)
Oh, here's a great idea: Depeche Mode aren't very good live, and they've just released their worst album ever, so let's have a new record where they just play the whole lousy album live! Bound to sell! Or not.
DEPECHE MODE: Ultra (1997, UK #1, US #5, ***)
A welcome near-return to reform in 1997, after drugs, departure and depression. Alan Wilder has left and the band has a couple of ugly moments (like the wretched "Barrel of a Gun"), but this is mostly lush and moody and no darker than some earlier work. The beautiful "Home" is an elegy in the "Question of Lust" vein. Initially successful, this is a usual cutout bargain only 18 months later.
DEPECHE MODE: "Only When I Lose Myself" CD single (1998, UK #17, US #61)
Two mixes, teamed with a pair of new tracks and a new mix of "World in My Eyes." Put together to promote a 1998 compilation, it works pretty well.
MARCELLA DETROIT: Jewel (***)
In 1994, not long after Shakespear's Sister splintered, Detroit tried for a solo shot, but not even a guest spot from Elton John and the soaring production from vet Chris Thomas could push this likeable, AC effort up the US charts. "I Believe" and the tragic, country-tinged "Out of My Mind" should have been massive.
DIDO: No Angel (1999, UK #1 [in 2001], ***)
Led by the 1999 radio smash "Here With Me," which could either be the most creepily obsessive or the most aching song of the year, depending on how you look at it, No Angel is a very worthwhile record. Dido Armstrong wrote or co-wrote all of the material, mostly dealing with the pain and the hope of love and provides vocals and keyboards. Other interesting selections: "Hunter" and "Thankyou."
ANI DiFRANCO: Ani DiFranco (1990, **) and Not So Soft (1991, **)
If Ani, who released 11 albums and an EP between 1990 and 1998, is guilty of anything, it's not giving herself the space and the chance to grow. I'm intrigued by the honest, direct, solo folk material on her first two albums, but I'm not capable of remembering which song appears on which album. And, like a lot of acoustic pieces with such simple musical construction but a lot of weight behind the lyrics, they honestly lose their impact very quickly after the listener gets to know the songs. I enjoyed some of these pieces a great deal, especially the tragic "Gratitude," but I'm in no rush to hear them a fifth or sixth time.
DOUBTS EVEN HERE: "So Few" CD single (1990)
Doubts Even Here have a teeny footnote in the story of Athens music because this CD single was the first independently-released compact disc in the city. Fronted by Smyrna's Amy Romesburg, the band had considerable local success in the late 80s with their chiming pop guitar sound, but suffered a post-graduation split not long after the release of this, their lone issue.
DOVES: Lost Souls (2000, UK #16, ****)
Based in Manchester, Doves is the current incarnation of a band that used to be called Sub Sub. Reinventing themselves in the mid-90s, they became a cult hit and critical darling with the single "The Cedar Room," which remains their defining moment, an oppressive guitar-and-synth landscape, explosive with passion and power. They sound somewhere between Oasis and Radiohead, but superior to either act. The US edition of this album contains three bonus tracks.
DOVES: The Last Broadcast (2002, ***)
The second Doves album isn't quite as remarkable as its predecessor, but it still has some great tracks like the single "There Goes the Fear," "Pounding" and the title track. Oddly, while this sounds like perfect US college radio material, they don't get as much play in the south.
NICK DRAKE: Pink Moon (1972, **)
Drake killed himself not long after locking himself in a room to record this acoustic set in 1972, surely the most depressing and bleak album of its time. This is a huge influence on a generation of sensitive singer-songwriters and is naturally not recommended for morning rush hour traffic.
DRESSY BESSY: Pink Hearts Yellow Moons (2000, ****)
This album is as perfect as pop gets, making it a natural for Athens' Kindercore Records even though the band is based in Colorado. Extraordinarily catchy with simple song constructions, Tammy Ealom and John Hill move things with chiming chords, and Ealom's sing-song vocals are huggable. "Little TV" is the best track, not that the others are less than wonderful.
DRESSY BESSY: Sound Go Round (2002, ***)
Quite a bit of repitition and not much innovation on this effort. Too many of these songs are pretty forgettable, but there's nothing wrong with it being on.
DURAN DURAN: Rio (1982, UK #2, US #6, ****)
Ripping off Roxy Music and Japan and adding weird poetry ("Sing blue silver"?), Le Bon & co. create a landmark 80s effort, with three hit US singles that rank among the best of their -- or anyone on the charts at time -- career. A couple of songs meander, but the urgency of "Hungry Like the Wolf" makes up for them.
DURAN DURAN: "Violence of Summer" CD single (1990, UK #20, US #64)
1990's Liberty was really only the second mistake of their career (all that Mad Max imagery was the first). This is the sad lead single, represented by four noisy mixes and an instrumental bonus.
DURAN DURAN: Duran Duran (1993, UK #4, US #7, **)
Their so-called "comeback" (for one record), this contains the monstrously overrated hit "Ordinary World" and some of the worst music they've ever made, including the media naive "Too Much Information" and an embarassing cover of "Femme Fatale" that would prelude later mistakes in their career. The single seductive gem of their 90s career, "Come Undone," stands out loud and proud from the many stumbles on this album.
BOB DYLAN: Bringing it All Back Home (1965, UK #1, US #6, ****)
Dylan's fifth album, and one of those most beloved by critics, shocked many of his fans at the time since it sported electric instruments. Several of the songs, like "Subterranean Homesick Blues," "Maggie's Farm," "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue," are now standards.
BOB DYLAN: Live 1966 (1998, UK #19, ****)
After three decades of bootlegging, CBS issued this astonishing "Royal Albert Hall" performance -- actually recorded at the Manchester Free Trade Hall May 17 1966. Backed by the Hawks, the group which would eventually become The Band, Dylan performed an acoustic folk set, and then plugged in. The audience of the day, which was cleaved right down the middle between "folk" fans and "rock" fans, were not impressed. Dylan and the Hawks made the loudest noise possible with 1966 equipment, to incessant catcalls, boos and slow clapping. A tension-filled moment of sheer brilliance.