Stars
Heart
(Paper Bag Records)
What with the world’s leaders at each other’s throats, terrorists lurking around every corner and the remobilized Kiss army threatening a venue near you, the world could use a little heart right now. And like a safe harbour in stormy weather, Stars provide a cozy sanctuary of lush, organic pop to calm the waters and soothe the troubled soul. Flying in the face of current trends, musically and globally, the Montreal-based quartet eschews testosterone-driven rock, rap and nu-metal in favour of passionate, heartfelt love songs with a nod to such bands as the Flaming Lips and the Delgados for inspiration.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nocturama
(Anti/Epitath)
Australia’s reigning goth poet, Nick Cave, goes soft on us for most of this gentle, simple disc, crooning songs of love, hope and longing. Present are his characteristic mood swings, down-in-the-dumps torch songs and trademark black humour. But the disturbed lunatic is thankfully lurking close by. And on the scorching “Dead Man In My Bed” and the CD’s epic 15-minute, 40-verse closer, “Babe, I’m On Fire,” Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds deliver a passionate maelstrom of organ swirls, crashing drums, violins and freaked-out guitar work. This is typically overplayed, but things just wouldn’t be right without them. Move fast and you can score a special-edition DVD disc with the “Babe, I’m On Fire” video in all its crash-and-burn glory.
Puerto Muerto
Your Bloated Corpse Has Washed Ashore!
(Actiondriver)
The title of this disc alone lets you know you’re in for something a little different. This 19-song debut is an odd amalgam of spaghetti-western soundtracks, sea shanty ditties, rum-soaked ballads and Latino-tinged crooning. The compositions are sparse, with duo Tim Kelley and Christa Meyer alternating vocals over a single guitar with occasional flourishes of percussion and the odd instrument stolen from Tom Waits’ tool shed. The themes are dark: injustice, abandonment, folly and various other forms of misfortune and unravelling of social fabric. The only cover is a version of David Bowie’s “Sorrow” that, while good, seems out of place against the traditional vibe of the rest of the disc. But it all works. Somehow.
Massive Attack
100th Window
(Virgin Records)
In the five years since their last release, Massive Attack has suffered further casualties to their roster of collaborators, leaving Robert del Naja as the sole guiding force behind the influential band’s latest, 100th Window. Missing for reasons personal and/or artistic are Daddy G, with his signature rumbling vocals, and Mushroom. And while this comes as bad news to fans of Massive Attack’s much admired debut Blue Lines and the brooding Mezzanine, the essence of Massive Attack remains intact: menacing bass lines, ethereal electronic vibes, and moody, emotional vocals. More a sneak attack than a full-on frontal assault, 100th Window nonetheless achieves victory through the continuing presence of reggae legend Horace Andy’s languid voice (two tracks), varied instrumentation with Silk Road overtones, and the welcome addition of Sinead O’Connor’s haunting, honest vocals (three tracks). Even if it doesn’t approach the brilliance of Blue Lines or Mezzanine, anxious fans will be happy with even a middling Massive Attack release.
Tegan and Sara
If It Was You
(Superclose)
If you measure an album’s quality by how long its songs linger in your head, then you’d have to give If It Was You a spot at the top of the list. Tegan and Sara’s hard-edged, genre-defying songs ricochet in your head for days after a listen. Pop it in a record store sound system and watch the rack browsers migrate like spawning salmon to the checkout counter to ask “who’s playing?” Hailing from Calgary, the 23-year-old twin sisters seem poised for much deserved mainstream stardom having already toured with the likes of Neil Young, The Pretenders, Rufus Wainwright and the Lilith Fair. Their sound is hard to define, segueing effortlessly between rock, folk, punk, alternative and pop…often within the same song! Both sisters share songwriting and singing chores, one soft and sweet, the other more gritty. All in all, a compelling mix that Billboard magazine called “a near pop rock masterpiece.” Catch them live if you can.
Paul Weller
Illumination
(Yep Roc Records)
Make some space next to your Jam and Style Council discs…Paul Weller’s back with a solo effort worthy of sharing space with his definitive output with those two bands during the 1970s and 1980s. His last two solo efforts (Heavy Soul and Heliocentric) suggested he may have lost his touch. But Illumination confirms that he and his muse have thankfully reacquainted to produce an album exploding with melodic verve, positive energy and a healthy dose of fun. Recorded quickly and with a minimum of technical fuss (something he admits bogged him down with Heliocentric), Illumination contains some of his best work. Make an effort to find the deluxe issue containing a five-song video disc and three additional kick-ass tracks.
