RECORD REVIEWS MUSIC
vocals are to die for - '
classically rich. like Sinatra without the big band backing. On Brecht's ‘How Fortunate The Man With None’ there’s no otherworldly arrangement buoying up proceedings — it'sjust Perry‘s voice and a mantra melody. A collection of songs to take to the grave with you. (Fiona Shepherd)
l I The Remnants: A
Hope Sandoval‘s voice was a teardrop given the power of sound. Dave Roback‘s guitar had a wraith-like stealth that always hit home. It was a formula whose magic was its vagueness.
So Tonight That I Might See is a similar triumph. in fact. it's the same } triumph. Which is fine. é Melancholy doesn't come } much more life-altering ‘ Norse Of A Different than ‘lnto Dust‘. wherein
Colour (Hunter S) Dublin’s a cello once again stakes E Stars Of Heaven never its claim to be cerebral
l
Charity Dinner and Cabaret
3 shone brightly enough. rock's secret weapon. The I ! which was annoying 'cos 1 title track is ‘Venus in they were great. Country Furs‘. ‘Five String
6:. 0/
I ll: Phair: Exile In
Guyviile (Matador) Sexual politics are all very interesting and there‘s umpteen angles front which to attack the subject. It's unfortunate that Liz Phair‘s take on the whole ridiculous Charade has to come hot on the heels of P. J. Harvey‘s contrary assault on our prejudices. however. Although musical parity only extends as far as a keen blues influence. lyrically the two women pace the same cage and ultimately Harvey's soundtrack is more extreme and therefore forceful than Phair’s four-sided skip through growling acoustic observations and oft- patented American folk chantoosie vocals. ‘1'“ fuck you till your dick is blue.’ she promises. You get the picture. (Fiona Shepherd)
I Dead Can Dance: Into The Labyrinth (MB) In the breath-taking rush of Dead Can Dance's exotic eclecticism. it‘s easy to overlook the atmosphere generated simply by the voices. This album redresses this with its stripped-down approach. Lisa Gerrard's mellifluous contralto has been slaveringly celebrated at every turn. but Brendan Perry‘s smooth. precise
; textures. spiritual pop. and
Stephen Ryan's ever- hoarse voice. as if he had just cried himselfdry. or
been sucker-punched in i the guts. Now come The ‘ Revenants. Ryan‘s new
band. toting romance and Paisley Underground country-rock. Said romance tends to make Ryan wallow (‘Sympathy‘. ‘Speak Slowly‘). But resoluteness
' is at hand. in the form of Eileen Gogan. A vocal
double for Natalie Merchant. on ‘William Byrd’ and ‘Capercailye' (sic). she brings some of the snappy deftness of her own band. The Would- Be‘s. to bear on Ryan's
often stodgy REMisms. Between the two of them. , Ryan and Gogan. they
raise a lovelorn album that thoroughly (harms. (Craig McLean)
I Nirvana: In Utero
(Geffen) Punk rock. Loud. ; Scary. Mental. An
I anagram of ‘routine‘.
(Candida Albacans)
I Mazzy Star: So Tonight
; that I Might See A (Pariophone) The
mogadon march starts here. Mazzy Star. for the
unadventurous. crept out
three years ago with an album called She Hangs Brightly on Rough Trade. Spectral it was. haunting. shivery. atmospheric. etc.
‘ Serenade‘. by Arthur ‘Love‘ Lee is the drip drip
drip of maudlin sentiment.
And everything else has
the eerie effect of making
9 you fall in love with a
record whose central
l'leitmottfis deep
depression. Such sweet
sorrow. and all that. (Craig McLean)
I Aimee Mann: Whatever
(Imago) Sounding like
Kim Wilde ain‘t so bad.
; Nor is making a debut
album that might be
described as chug-rock. Not when you‘re Aimee
' Mann and your Whatever debut solo album is this assured. this confident
that your songs are ballsy ball-breakers. The
, intermittent sight of the ghost of Fleetwood Mac
. merely adds to the
adventure. So does the funky shuffle that starts ‘Could‘ve Been Anyone’. the Bangles-with-talent that is ‘Stupid Thing‘. the
Suzanne Vega-without-
the-primness that is
, ‘Jacob Marley‘s Chain‘.
Whatever reeks of plush
production and incipient . AORness; full credit to
Mann. then. that these potential pitfalls are welcomed aboard. and
i turned from minuses to plus points. Guess that‘s what comes of writing
such bullisth catchy
i songs. (Craig McLean)
voted "Besr Female Jazz Singer I992"
Hospitality Inn, Glasgow Friday lst October I993 Champagne Reception 7.00pm
qfigkgmffifilfi Tickets £30.00 from Chest, Heart & Stroke Scotland i~~~---’~‘-- " l03 Clarkston Road, Glasgow G44 38L Tel MI 633 I666
All proceeds to Chest, Heart 8: Stroke Scotland
W
I Fela iianeorne Itutl and Nigeria 70: The ’69 lo: Angelee Sessions (Stern's Africa) Recorded during a haphazardly-organised American tour while the band were dodging the long arm of US Immigration. this is a punchy collection of ten Afro-jazz-funk numbers. all of which would sound happily at home on today's dancefloor. Fela‘s big. gritty. declamatory vocals hold sway over an expansive mix of choppy. pulsing bass-and-congas rhythms. nippy guitars and bold. swaggering swathes of brass. much of the mix possessing an edgy improvisational freshness.
I Ami itoita: Songs ot
Praise (Stern's Africa)
About as refreshing a
contrast to the eponymous
TV God-slot as you could
wish for. this densely-
textured album showcases the striking vocal power
of a leading Malian artist. Her keen. full-throated voice creates intricate spiralling. swooping melodic patterns reminiscent of Arabic female singing. backed up by hypnotic throbbing bass. clean. vibrant guitar- picking and exotic. tinkling ripples of various traditional strin ed things. I Orchestra laTko Lange- langa: Zaire-Ghana (RetroAtric) Collected period hits from the 70s by a cutting-edge Ghanaian ensemble. notable for the nippy swinging dance rhythms. given added bite by the insistent seethe and snap
plangent. jazzy guitars chase each other around the fast-rolling melodies. while the group‘s easy-
going. grainy vocals float a lightly across the top.
I Orchestre Baobab: samba (Stern's Atrica) Wonderfully mellow. this
i one. a re-release of two
LPs from 1980—81 by an eleven-strong Senegalese outfit fusing traditional African melodies with Afro~Caribbean beats. The reggae or salsa-like rise and fall of the guitars rhythmic layers is punctuated by nervy. vervy dashes of sax and clarinet. Some deliciously tricky picking of bass and lead-guitar contrasts menin with the plaintive. quavering vocals; the overall sound is big. round. rich and resonant.
(Sue Wilson)
of the snare-drum. Lilting.
Sun. IOth Oct. - Edinburgh Venue Fri 22nd Oct. — Glasgow O.M.U.
_ RENEGADE l D)
itrumans water OIL SEED RAPE ; l _. _ FBI. 24TH SEPT. - GLASGOW O.M.U.
with special guests Soul Asylum & Eugenius Tuesday 26th October - Glasgow Barrowlands
.CURVE
SWERVEDRIVER
ANTENNA a. THE PINEAPPLES
CHAPTERHOUSE
i Mon. lst nov. -Etlinl)uglt Venue.
beautiful people 9
TWITCH 8. BRAINSTORM . GLASGOW BARROWLANDS .
SATURDAY 20 TH NOVEMBER Thur. 9th dec. - Etitn. Queens Hall
TICKETS FROM JUST THE TICKET. VIRGIN. RIPPING 8. T.O.C.T.A. - 031 557 6969
The List 24 September—7 October I993 33