Records
They got the blues, they got the shoes and damn right, they got the singles to review - they the majestically quiffed Tim Matthew (emcee from brilliant Edinburgh scuzztrels, Mystery Juice) and ace lighting boffin Willie Suddon, two men dipping a tentative toe into this week’s steaming hot-tub of new releases. Interview: Paul
games@|ist.co.uk
BLACK AND WHITE (Electronic Arts) 229.99 cm.
After a carr‘raityi i‘ ll",l‘(t Ilia? tint") lr'iiriil'“ wouio lint IRA} Bar» Aux: '7 .'e ".23 mt the sticps. ltli' ates‘. ga'i‘.e f'ron‘ .iqiii‘ws {J‘Illllfl iDl'ttfi' i.i1l)i,"‘r.i,\
has had the industr‘.
Whitelaw
I MY VITRIOL ‘Grounded’ (Infectious) Are they iii/nieta/T/ Are they post-grunge? Who honest/y gives?
Tim Matthew: l or what this is. it's fine. but it's not really my cup of tea. Willie Suddon: I can see lots of kids in black eye-liner dancing up and down
to this . ..
TM . . exorcisirig their deriioris. Do you know. I sax'.’ an advert in a shop Window in leith that said. “lixorcise bike for sale"? icycles furiously) 'Out foul
demon. outl'.
I ECHOBOY ‘Turning On’ (Mute) 7— ft/fes/nerising, e/ectrocuted drone—pop.
WS 8 TM Yes!!!
TM That's more like it. This makes me think of Ten Benson. Hurrah for Echoboy! It comes out on the same day as our single though. so l don't want anyone to
buy it.
I ERROL BROWN ‘Still Sexy (Yes You Are)’ (Universal) Oh Erro/. you Tim/voting o/d tease. WS (dancing) Nice 'Pa-Poof' noise before the chorus there.
TM Perhaps they'll use this for the next Tory campaign. ! can Just imagine hearing this as the Tories raise their sweaty arms at their next conference.
WS You can imagine Anne Wrddecombe dancing to this. can't you?
I CAPTAIN SOUL ‘Your Time’ (Poptones) — Decided/y noii- ‘gear' sing/e from (SOs—add/ed bed—heads.
TM I've heard this before.
WS Many times before
TM No I've actually heard this. Or have I? Difficult to say. All very . . . pleasant.
but far too safe.
I ANASTACIA ‘Cowboys and Kisses’ (Epic)
Curious/y ///\'(;’(I/)/(? Bon Jovr-thonged ba//ad.
TM She's got a fantastic voice but this is very MOR. WS (singing. eyes closedi Cowboys and kisses . . .
TM If you give her my number I'll he happy to go 'round and supply vocal drum fills on some of her tracks (Willie and Tim proceed to emit QthOlI-SIZOU drum fills
before each chorus).
SINGLE OF THE FORT NIGHT: I [DELETIA] ‘Thinking Dogs for the Stupid EP (Evil World) Ace PIX/es-t/ngered punk-stuff.
W8 I like listening to people who can't sing. TM This is great. Hurrah! Nice to hear a bit of rawness. much more exciting.
WS l'd buy that.
TM She's going 'Doo~dee—doo'! Yes! I Mystery Juice release their ‘Open My Mouth And Do Nothing’ EP
(Vertical) on 7 May.
thought the guitarist had real commercial possbilitres. It didn't work out. but Remy has flourished back in the Independent sector in London. and this latest release on his own label is a very enjoyable slice of blues-rooted iaxwfunk. powered by drummer Mark Mondesrr's Supple but drivrng grooves. Saxorihonist Jean Toussaint contributes soprano to several tracks. but it is Remy's own fleet. incisive guitar work that catches the ear. (Kenny Mathiesonl
CLASSICAL
JAMES MACMILLAN
Mass and Other Sacred Music iHyperioni
COO
James Maclvlillan must be well pleased wrth both the quantity and Quality of current recordings of his music (not to mention Celtic's triumphsi. Hot on the heels of his
112 THE LIST as Apr-13 Ma.
Symphony No 2 irevrewed last issue) comes this rather austere. more specialised disc of choral music. beautifully performed by the Chen of Westminster Cathedral under Martin Baker. The Mass. which uses the vernaCuIar rather than the Latin text as well as a contemporary setting. is the centrepiece of the disc. The half- dozen supperting pieces include his dedication to the victims of Dunblane. ‘A Child's Prayer'. and an instrumental piece fOr Organ. 'Gaudeamus in Iocrpacei
iKenny Mathieson
slazeiing at the chops with promises of anrgue gariieplay az'ic-sori‘t‘:
i Q
Love lavished on the detail of Black And White
(.Iraphics and an end to Hail te's mg". as king of gari‘es. ‘.‘v'hrie the final product
itseif fails to riieet these alisuid standards. Ham Anti '.',
shoulders {iti()‘.(: the normal gaining fodder.
At its core. B/ack ant: l'.
‘te still stands head and
life is a god srrri. You hate lilo.- and death (i(i\.'.t‘l oxer a
land of tini, ll‘-lll|()llf3 .‘xho demand nothing but l)(?lf(?i"ill)ll frari‘ illt‘ll dert. l aiih lexel
consists of a beautiful island poking fiorri sparkling seas ".‘.'|lll a
.iewporrit llllllllltfl‘,
scalable from stratospheric heights to in the n‘inrons' face ground level. Your influence is channelled through a drseriibodied hand that can move obit-(its. including subjects. food. wood and animals, as well as cast irirracles like fireball and storm. lt is pt ssible to play the entire game using the mouse alone but most Will combine keyboard commands to race around each lexel. fulfilling their godly
responsil )ilities.
Although stunningly realised. this much of the game is nothing new Ho‘s/ever. add iii a fariiilrar-like giant creature that learns. helps. hinders and fights and you begin to get something new. the love that has been lavished on the details also lets Black and l'V/irte shine. lrom rnini challenges involving your rrirnions to the threats from rival gods. the game reeks of gualiti, and depth. Although the guts of each level are similar. these numerous nuances make the game an unrivalled toy to
play.
Unfortunately some may find [3/(I(,‘/\ and l'./liite a little slow. even all fur coat no knickers. V‘i/annabe Gods on the other hand will find their minds blown by a challenging. thoughtful experience that plays as well as it looks. ilain [)avidsoni
PS2
QUAKE III REVOLUTION (Electronic Arts) £39.99 .0...
While the Dreamcast version of Quake III slavrshly mimics its PC counterpart to produce a fantastic liltllill)l£ty(}l' title. the P82 version of iD's baby tries very hard to make this a trying room game. On the face of rt little has changed. The graphics are sharp and quick. and the levels are immediately recognisal'ile to anyone who has played the original. However. gameplay tweaks have catered for the dualshock gamepad and after the first heavy sessron the realisation dawns that this is definitely a carefully crafted console game. To keep that living room feel. the multiplayer aspects are fulfilled with split-screen four-player mayhem. This truly adds to the game. as there IS nothing sweeter
than laughing heartily in the face of your latest frag. You can keep i'i/it’ir/o Party. ()uake /// now stands as the finest postpub activity known to man.
l’l AYS lA’l l( )N FREESTYLE SCOOTER (Ubisoft) £29.99 .00
Hands up who thinks that grown men in suits trundlrng along on their chrome scooters look as stupid as stupid gets? Woah. that's a
veritable forest of hands.
It is a shame that such an honourable child's toy like the scooter can be destroyed by adult twits. Thankfully Freesty/e Scooter is here to redress the balance. This is a childish game. with childish controls and childish graphics that captures all the childish
fun of scooterdoin. Unasliamedly similar to tony Hawk 's Skateboard/Iig. levels are opened by completing challenges such 2 s so many combo points or so many feet ground (or is it grindeer There is also a silly story involving the kidnap of your riiates but that soon fades into the background as you work out the best routes around each level. Unchallenging. familiar and fun, Freesty/e Scooter makes a stand against those bi- ‘-."/hee|ed Clty numpties and deserves recognition for that alone.