REVIEW MUSIC
'2 I
V ALBUMS
mi) " \,
Kirsty MacColl I Kirsty MacColl: Electric Landlady (Virgin) The dance aspirations ofthe ‘Walking Down Madison’ single are not extended throughout this album. At first. this is disappointing since the single is such an interesting affair. However. with contributions from Mark Nevin. Jem Finer (ofThe Pogues) and Johnny Marr. the album isa compelling collection of songs vocalising Kirsty‘s personal and global views. The addition of brass parts on songs like ‘My Affair“ and ‘l-le Never Mentioned Love‘ help lift the songs out ofthe well-trodan singer-songwriter framework. Gentle and unassuming. Electric Land/tidy should see Kirsty elevated to the status of regular chart act rather than the occasional intruder she seems to be at the moment. (James Haliburton) I The Saw Doctors: "This is flock'n'floll. Want My Old Job BecHSotid) ‘Native music’ with balls and balderdash. The Saw Doctors are the kind of indigenous success story that does Ireland proud and gives advocates of an autonomous, homespun Scottish record industry cause for envious longing. Their first single, ‘I Useta Lover‘ sprang from nowhere on a Dublin indie and topped the Irish charts for three years (or something) and now enjoys the giddy status as the biggest ever selling single in Irish history. Phew. A galloping tale of unrequited obsession and free-form loving, a cocky small-town mix ofcharm and chagrin, it‘s easy to see how ‘I Useta Lover‘ wowed the millions.
Over an album, the Wedding Present-with-bodhran affectations remain cheerin irreverent.
Thankfully though, nothing is ever artfully contrived. If This Is Rock'n’Roll . . . contains enough knowing winks at its own fun-for-all limitations to keep the fire alive. For now anyway. (Craig McLean)
I ituey Lewis And The News: Hard At Play (Chrysalis) Huey and the lads describe themselves as ‘essentially a bar band', and you can't argue with that. HardAr Play boasts
a generally harsher approach than the airbrushed MOR sentiments of 1988‘s Small
World set. Here. twelve-bar blues predominate, in the manner of a less-grubby ZZ Top. whilst young Huey - Ted Rodgers in a lumberjack shirt — barks about ‘Attitude‘. the fact that ‘Time Ain’t Money‘. and recommends that ‘We I
~ Should Be Making Love‘.
Now, you can't argue with ’ any ofthat, and HardAt Play is that kind ofan album. You want to
dislike it for its boorish predictability, macho platitudes and beery tub-thumping rockery.
but the old foot will keep tapping. the head nods
and you have to admit that ' Mr Lewis sure knows how ' to deliver a cliche. (Paul
W. Hullah)
I The Fat Lady Sings: Twist (East West) This stuff i completely stifled for me sometime in 1990. asthc optimistic wave of ‘substantial‘ Celtic bands sussed that they‘d run into a brick wall and gratefully { sank into the CD trays of mortgaged over-255. Not that Twist is a major landmark in that genre anyway. It‘s archetypical — guitars alternately chiming and droning. a bit of piano, a voice that recalls the constricted tones of Bather Chris Thompson — but for a debut it‘s almost indecently flat and unmoving. Perhaps the studio leeched all the life out of them. but lsuspect the Fat Lady Sings songbook held pretty slim pickings to begin with. (Alastair Mabbott)
V SINGLES
I Candyland: Bitter Moon (Non Fiction) More than anything else, Candyland ache to be trendy. Having edged into the ambient indie pop groove along with The Beloved and Sunsonic. they desperately want to be the name on everyone‘slips, and if that means sacrificing the more traditional paths to noteriety— like good songs, for instance — then they will. A lone feeble falsetto among the simple keyboards and tinny syncopation provides a wavering reminder that Candyland are in fact a group and not the alias of
some production whizz. (F5) I The Would Be's: Silly Songs For Cynical People (Decoy) Fresh from supporting Morrissey in Dublin. the six-piece release a fine Stephen Street-produced EP. Falling somewhere between Blondie and 10,000 Maniacs, with just a hint of The Cardiacs thanks to the trombone and saxophone. the four deceptively simple songs have enough unexpected twists and turns to make them completely irresistible. (JH) I Pixies: Planet OISound (MD) As the first single from the forthcoming Trompe Le Monde. and the initial fruits of Pixies' much-heralded heavy metal phase. this isa somewhat unconvincing release. Sounding rushed and half-baked. it may simply be a minor hiccup on their road to world domination. Only spasmodically raucous. it seems to be the sound of Pixies treading inspirational water. (JH) I Spirea x: Speed Reaction (MD) The hotly-hyped Spireas must be anticipating a brutal backlash any day now, but ‘Speed Reaction', their second single, isn't going to trigger it. Like its predecessor, it doesn't begin, or commence, or kick off, it just bursts. The Byrdsy 12-string has been dropped this time, but to make up for it afierce rhythm guitar slices its way through the heart of the song. The remaining three tracks here are fairly throwaway things. but for the jump-start charge of ‘Speed Reaction’, it‘s well worth it. (AM) I The Wolfgang Press: Mama Told Me Not To Come (MD) Ifthe charts truly reflected talent. then TWP‘s previous single. ‘Time‘, would have been massive. As it is, the concensus seems to be that 4AD and dance music cannot go hand in hand. 'Mama', written by Randy Newman, is an equally superior dancefloor cut, laid-back and very funky, that just deserves more than the cult status it will no doubt have to make do with. (JH) I Perchmen: Voice/State Endorsed Homophobia (Citybeet) For all the trainspotters out there. the voice behind Parchman is one Ivor Perry. formerly with The Redskins and Easterhouse. For the rest of you. this double-A-side is an occasionally intriguing, though rarely innovative, slice of hypnotic hardcore that, while retaining Perry’s ear fora good tune, crosses the sloganeering dance boundary with a fair amount of success. (JH)
|.I.M. P RESENTS DIRECT F ' OM AMERICA ORIGINAL BAN D FROM THE MOVIE
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BAND
GLASGOW ROYAL CONL ERT HALL
Frida= 7th June 1991
Tickets £10.50, £12.50 8. £15.00 irom 041-332 3123
Mas/£6405
FESHMeNmYMa/v.
RUBY SUIT
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David Allen’s Magic Brothers The Disco Hippies
Dr Phibes and the House of Wax Equations GLASGOW BARROWLANDS FRIDAY 5th JULY
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