14 Pruner oF THE Arts / NovemBeR 1995 Black Grape It’s Great When You're Straight... Yeah (MCA) If funkless funk is your thing, then Black Grape’s debut album will make you a believer. Take the Happy Mondays’ aborted leftovers, give them some funky instruments (beware the sitar), and you've got yourself yet another reason to nuke the British pop scene (see you in hell Elastica). Admittedly, they sound like they're having a fun time, but they’re so smarmy and pretentious that I’m not going to think twice about throwing it in my fireplace. Somebody take pity on these guys and drive their funky tour bus off a cliff. -Erin Gillgannon The Flaming Lips Clouds Taste Metallic (Warner) \If NASA and the Beach Boys were to form a rock band, it would probably sound something like The Flaming Lips. They write seeming- ly simple pop hooks, and then beat the crap out of them with other worldly noise pollutants. Because of their inclination to over-layer tracks, their albums tend to take a while to grow on you, but once they do, it’s impossible to go through a day without a little ‘Lips. They haven’t broken any new ground with their new album, but who cares? Where they’re at is just fine. It’s a relief to see that they have stood their ground after all the success that they have been through, including a live perfor- mance on Beverly Hills 90210, and the inclusion of their song Bad Days in the film Batman Forever Sucks Shit. As long as they con- tinue to write good music, I could care less what they do to acquire cash. So what about the songs? Well, it’s all in good fun of course, even when it does cross over into the darker side. The song titles say it all: Abandoned Hospital Ship; Guy Who Got A Headache And Accidentally Saves The World; and Kim's Watermelon Gun, to name a few. And what does it all mean? I don’t know and I don’t care. I’m in a trance and I never want it to end. -Erin Gillgannon Hayden Everything I Long For (Harwood) Just when I am about to renounce Canadian talent, I stumble upon this little gem. Hayden is one of those one-man-band wonders who subtly wavers between bleak reali- ty and prevailing optimism. What makes his music so incredible is the simplicity of it all. For the most part it is just him, his guitar, his harmonica, and lyrics (that skip the grandiose and reconcile modestly for the here and now). We get to hear beautifully crafted songs about: phoning in sick for each other, crushes on women old enough to be your mother, the awkwardness of trying to meet someone and giving out your number, and the security of bunk beds. What makes this even more amazing is the fact that Hayden wrote, produced, and recorded most of this CD at home in his bedroom. One minor problem- the empty space, surprise recipes, and the end, prove nothing more than to irritate the listener. Everybody I Long For may be hard to find but well worth the energy in the end. -W. Sean Eliuk David Bowie Outside - The Nathan Adler Diaries: a hyper cycle (Virgin) Touring with Nine Inch Nails!?! According to a local American tv news broadcast, Bowie’s gone super industrial! Is it true? Well, sort of. Bowie’s discography has had a strange journey through my CD collection, second-hand shops, frantic retrievals, and nostaligic listenings with friends over late- nite conversations of no real importance. I can’t even think of Let’s Dance or Dancing in the Street without chuckling. But this, as loyal Bowie fans found out way before me, is something different. Upon listening to this disc, one hears a refreshingly different Bowie; a Bowie who has taken cues from the production values of Trent Reznor (check out the alt.mix on the UK import single The Hearts Filthy Lesson), is using the ever-prolific Brian Eno’s studio touch generously, and displays other modern influences (there are some striking similarities to Sting’s phrasings on track 4, A Small Plot of Land. -Henry Faber Seaweed Spanaway (Hollywood) This album does nothing for me. Laden with trite chord progres- sions and vocal melodies, there’s just not enough beneath the sur- face to hold my interest. Did Aaron Stauffer (vocals) have a nasal cold when he recorded his tracks? Stauffer’s voice is about as melodious as the tumult of the traffic on the Granville Street Bridge at rush-hour, in a down- pour. A fairly mainstream-sound- ing “alternative” release for this once-Sub Pop band. -Jonathan Lander Helium Superball+ E.P. (Matador) Short and sweet, this E.P. gives you a quick glimpse of the ever- briliant Helium. Superball, taken from their absoloutley increadible full length LP, The Dirt of Luck, is an excellent indicator that this band is bound for super-star heights. More controled Sonic Youth fronted by Suzanne Vega with a fuzz-mike, is really the only description that even comes close to describing their powerful and tasteful sound. The rest of the disc features four non-album tracks that are pretty strong, although the stand out cut is definately “What Institution Are You From?” It features an almost Stereolab-ian ethereal field of analog organ sonds and shimmering guitars that is quite delicious. Hours of fun, but be sure to snatch up The Dirt of Luck, too! -squeakyvoiced Henry Catherine Wheel happy days (Fontana/Mercury) happy days took me for a loop. The opening track God Inside My Head surprised me with a cliché grungy guitar-chug riff, unfamiliar on previous Catherine Wheel albums. However, by the time the chorus rolls around, we are reminded of exactly why it is that we dig CW: melodic phrases of well-formed simplicity swim hap- pily through our minds long after the fact, satisfying our desperate escapism and making us feel all warm and giddy inside. The remaining 13 tracks do the same. -Jonathan Lander The Poop Alley Tapes A Compilation of 31 Los Angeles Bands (WIN Records) Lots of great songs, and of course, some shitty ones (pun intended). Starting off the album is The Rentals’ Pixie-esque California - a contextual preface to the Cali bands to follow. Highlights are Recess Study No. 1 for Symphony No. 1 - a sample of female a cap- pella ‘ahs’ with just enough off- key vocals to keep it interesting; The Strawberry Jams mix techno- dance beats with cool, fat analog synth arpeggios in their cuddly Kinda Sorta Maybe. Danny Frankel’s experimental instrumen- tal ‘Rainbow Wig on Haight Street’ blends bongos, percussion, and a repetitive CCR vibrato-guitar riff over a 2/4 drum beat and excerpts from a Christian radio-evangelist. Cool. Arty-rock is also included, with tracks by That Dog, Too Much Girl, and Rump. There’s also a fair number of ambient sound- experiments by bands like Shady Ladies of the Mother Load, Crib, and my favourite, Speculum Fight. The jewel of this disc is Honky Tonky Woman by an “artist” dubbed Radies Man. It’s a 70’s-Stones-influ- enced ballad that has more way-off- key Japanese- accented English vocals to rival the charm of any Ween number. The song’s allure is that it’s very Karaoke and very sincere. The story goes that it’s a track off a tape that’s been floating around recording studios for years, and the people at WIN Records felt they just had to include it. Lyric specimen: “She the girl that took my heart / She’s the lady that took my pride / | still want her body”. This double-CD is a fantastic introduction to dozens of LA indie bands that I would otherwise have probably never listened to. It’s also very refreshing to hear a compila- tion album that is gender-bal- anced. I highly recommend this album to those interested in the LA indie scene. All tracks are pre- viously unreleased, so it may be a collector’s item. -Jonathan Lander Suzanne Little Be Here Now (Nettwerk) I've noticed over the past few years that Nettwerk, a once innov- ative label, has been floating in a slump. Now they have discovered a new Canadian talent to place all their hopes on. It’s just too bad the scouts didn’t look harder, because this songbird is unable to help. The album starts off strong with a quaint, folky dance tune rivaling anything Madonna has ever recorded. It is strongly followed by In My Hands, an emotional roller coaster about twisted love. However, after that Sarah/Kate/Milla/Pooka loses ground fast, desperate for any direction. We skirt over typical issues such as self-empowerment to the triviality of war in Tarantula — “Watch as vicious war parties / show no mercy for their prey / you will see the weak devoured.” By song five my mind began to shut down, and I could no longer take any more of Sarah/Tori/Kirsty/Jewel. I was longing for something with a little more content. A word of wisdom to Nettwerk: stop playing the game so safely, and try taking more chances. -W. Sean Eliuk Lloyd Cole Love Story (Rykodisc / Denon) Full-on Old School Lloyd Cole action. Music to drink whiskey and weep by. -Lulu 14 Paver orm Aes | Novae 1995 DUND TLANET OF St Black Grape Is Great When You're Straight. Yoh (wea) If funkless funk is your thing then Black Grape’s debut album will make you a believer. Take the Happy Mondays’ aborted leftovers, give them some funky instruments (beware the sitar), and you've got yourself yet another reason to nuke the British pop scene (see ‘you in hell Elastica). Admittedly, they sound like they're having a fun time, but they're so smarmy and pretentious that 'm not going to think twice about throwing it in my fireplace. Somebody take pity fon these guys and drive the funky tour bus offa cliff Erin Gillgannon The Flaming Lips Clouds Taste Metalic (Warne) MIENASA and the Beach Boys were to form a rock band, it would probably sound something like The laming Lips. They write seeming- ly simple pop hooks, and then beat the crap out of them with other worldly noise pollutants. Because of their inclination to over-layer tracks, their albums tend to take a while to grow on you, but once they do, it's impossible to go through a day without a litle ‘Lips. They haven't broken any, new ground with their new album, bbut who cares? Where they're at is Just fine I's a relief to see that they have stood their ground after all the success that they have been through, including a live perfor- THE FLAMING LIPS ‘mance on Beverly Hills 90210, and the inclusion of their song Bad Days inthe film Batman Forever Sucks Shit. As long as they con- tinue to write good music, | could ‘care less what they do to acquire ‘ash. So what about the songs? Well, its all in good fun of course, ‘even when it does cross over into the darker side. The song titles say itall: Abandoned Hospital Ship; Guy Who Got A Headache And ‘Accidentally Saves The World; and Kim's Watermelon Gun, to name a fev. And what does it all mean? 1 don't know and I don't care I'm in a trance and I never want it to end. -Erin Gillgannon Hayden Everything I Long For (Harwood) Just when Iam about to renounce ‘Canadian talent, I stumble upon is litle gem. Hayden is one of those one-man-band wonders who subtly wavers between bleak reali- ty and prevailing optimism. What ‘makes his music so incredible is the simplicity of ital. For the ‘most part itis just him, his guitar, his harmonica, and lyrics (that skip the grandiose and reconcile modestly forthe here and now), We get to hear beautifully crafted songs about: phoning in sick for cach other, crushes on women old {enough to be your mother, the awkwardness of trying to meet ‘someone and giving out your ‘number, and the security of bunk beds. What makes this even more amazing fs the fact that Hayden wrote, produced, and recorded ‘most ofthis CD at home in his bedroom. One minor problem the ‘empty space, surprise recipes, and the end, prove nothing more than to istate the listener. Evenbody Long For may be hard to find but well worth the energy in the end -W. Sean Eliuk David Bowie Outside ~ The Nathan Adler Diaries: a hyper cycle (Virgin) Touring with Nine Inch Nails?! According to a local American tv news broadcast, Bowie's gone super industrial si true? Well, sort of. Bowie's discography has had a strange journey through my CD collection, second-hand shops, frantic retrievals, and nostaligic listenings with friends over late- nite conversations of no real ‘importance. [can't even think of Let's Dance or Dancing in the ‘Street without chuckling. But this, as loyal Bowie Fans found out way before me, is something different. Upon listening to this disc, one hears a refreshingly different Bowie: a Bowie who has taken cues from the production values of ‘Trent Reznor (check out the altmix on the UK import single The Hears Filthy Lesson, is using the ever-prolific Brian Eno's studio touch generously, and displays other modern influences (there are some striking similarities to Sting’s phrasings on track 4, A’ Small Plot of Land. “Henry Faber Seaweed Spanaway Hollywood) This album does nothing for me. Laden with trite chord progres- sions and vocal melodies, there's Just not enough beneath the sur- face to hold my interest. Did ‘Aaron Stauffer (vocals) have a nasal cold when he recorded his tracks? Stauffe’s voice is about as melodious as the tumult ofthe traffic on the Granville Street Bridge at rush-hour, in a down- pout. A fairly mainstream-sound= ing “alternative” release for this conce-Sub Pop band, Jonathan Lander Helium Superballe EP. (Matador) Short and sweet, this EP. gives ‘you a quick glimpse ofthe ever- briliant Helium. Superball, taken from their absotoutley increadible full length LP, The Dirt of Luck, is an excellent indicator that band is bound for super heights. More controled Sonic Youth fronted by Suzanne Vega with a fuzz-mike, is really the only description that even comes close to describing their powerful and tasteful sound, The rest ofthe dise features four non-album tracks that are pretty strong, although the stand out cutis definately “What Institution Are You From?” Ie features an almost Stereolab-ian ethereal field of analog organ sonds and shimmering guitars that is quite delicious. Hours of fun, ‘but be sure to snatch up The Dist ‘of Luck, too! =squeakyvoiced Henry Catherine Wheel happy days (Fontana/Mereury) happy days took ime fora loop. The opening, track God Inside My Head surprised ‘me with a cliché grungy guitar-chug #ff, unfamiliar fon previous Catherine Wheel albums. However, by the time the chorus rolls around, we are reminded of exactly why itis that we dig CW: melodic phrases of well-formed simplicity swim hap- through our minds long after the fact, satisfying our desperate escapism and making us fel all warm and glddy inside. The remaining 13 tracks do the same. Jonathan Lander The Poop Alley Tapes A.Compilation of 51 Los Angeles Bands (WIN Records) Lots of great songs, and of course, ‘some shitty ones (pun intended), Starting off the album is The Rentals’ Pixie-esque California ~ a contextual preface to the Cali, ‘bands to follow. Highlights are Recess Study No. 1 for Symphony No. 1 ~a sample of female a cap- pella ‘ahs’ with just enough off- key vocals to keep it interesting: The Strawberry Jams mix techno~ dance beats with cool, fat analog synth arpeggios in their cuddly Kinda Sorta Maybe. Danny Frankel's experimental instrumen= tal ‘Rainbow Wig on Haight Stret blends bongos, percussion, and a repetitive CCR vibrato-guitar riff over a 2/4 drum beat and excerpts from a Christian radio-evangelist Cool. Arty-rock is also included, with tracks by That Dog, Too ‘Much Girl, and Rump. There's also a fair number of ambient sound- ‘experiments by bands lke Shady Ladies of the Mother Load, Crib, and my favourite, Speculum Fight. The jewel ofthis disc is Honky Tonky Woman by an “artist” dubbed Radies Man. It’s 70's-Stones-influ- ‘enced ballad that hhas more way-off= key Japanese- accented English vocals to rival the charm of any Ween number. The song's allure is that very Karaoke and very sincere. The story goes that its a track off tape that’s been Nloating around recording studios for year, and the people at WIN Records felt they just had to include it. Lyric specimen: "She the irl that took my heart [She's the lady that took my pre / I still want her body? This double-CD fs a fantastic introduction to dozens of LA indie bands that I would otherwise have probably never listened to. I's also very refreshing to hear a compl tion album that is gender-bal- anced. I highly recommend this album to those interested in the LA indie scene. All tracks are pre- viously unreleased, soit may be a collectors item: Jonathan Lander Suzanne Be Here Now (Nettwerk) ittle ve noticed aver the past few ‘years that Nettwerk, @ once innov= ative label, has been floating in a slump. Now they have discovered a new Canadian talent to place all their hopes on. It’s just too bad the scouts didn’t look harder, because this songbird is unable to help ‘The album starts off strong with a folky dance tune rivaling anything Madonna has ever recorded. Iti strongly followed by Jn My Hands, an emotional roller ‘coaster about twisted love. However, ater that ‘Sarah/Kate/Milla/Pooka loses ‘round fast, desperate for any direction. We skirt over typical sues such as self-empowerment to the triviality of war in Tarantula ~ "Watch as vicious war parties / show no merey for their prey / you will see the weak devoured.” By song five my mind began to shut down, and I could no longer take any more of Sarah/Tori/Krsty/Jewel. was longing for something with a litle ‘more content. A word of wisdom to Nettwerk: stop playing the game so safely, and ty taking, ‘more chances. W, Sean Elk Lloyd Cole Love Story (Rykodise / Denon) Full-on Old School Lloyd Cole action. Music to drink whiskey and weep by. “Lula