Records
90 Day Men
There's never been a better time to make a pitch for political power when you consrder that giiiips like Schv-rarzenegger are being taken seriously. In the People's Republic of Carolyn there'd be no space for bland. over-produced pop that's only apprecrated by old dears who watch GMTV. Not content wrth starring in Neighbours, Delta Goodrem releases ‘Innocent Eyes' (Sony) O , a monotonous power ballad about youth. Other dry boak- inducing tunes are Kim Marsh's 'Sentrmental' (island) 0 and Parsley punter David Sneddon's MOR mum music. 'Baby Get Higher' (Mercury) 0. . Frankly comrades. is this the sort of music you want impressionable youngsters exposed to? Do y0u want to see kids cutting about in cardigans? On the home front. progress is vrsrble. Perth boys Tenesse Kait exude promise with the stop-start alt rock of ‘Vaseline Smile' (Buzz) 000 . Lexxi (demo) 0... . performers of melodic indie rock should also be commended for 'Sooner or Later'. Singer/ guitarist L0uise has a rare mice that could compete for angst pornts with Fame Academy's Alex. Debut single ‘Clever Subject Line' from Edinburgh based Speaking in Capitals (Agony) O. is lo-fi emo With suitably abstract song titles. while Glasgow‘s Palomino could be mistaken fOr sons of Neil Young with their debut EP. ‘Miss the Rain (Console) .0 . Representing the Berders are Stick Finlays wrth ‘Return To Zero‘. a guitar heavy slice of roaring alt rock (demo) I.
The Canadians. however. are remarkable. Scout Niblett delivers gorgeous Chan Marshall-esque vocals on the strangely delightful ‘I Will Be a Prince' (Too Pure) 00.. and Broken Social Scene's 'Cause :. Time' (Mercury) 00.. is a melodious rock-pop track tinged wrth an intense air.
Tony Massera gives us some Asian-inspired house with ‘lndian Vibes' (Skyline) O. . while Genral Levy vs Zeus feat Bally Jagpat go further and combine ragga wrth ASran sounds on ‘Shake (What Ya Mama Gave Ya‘) (EastWest) 0.0
Mark Owen returns with 'Alone Without You' (Universal) 000 . a good bit of melodic guitar pop. while Daniel Bedingtield shamelessly takes M-People's crown of making dance musrc for people who only dance at work nights out with ‘Friday' (Polydor) 0
Although Electric Six. have been paramount in keeping up morale with the infectious rock nonsense of ‘Dance Commander' (XL)
000 . Single of the Fortnight goes to Chicago-based 90 Day Men for their ‘Too Late or Too Dead' EP (Seuthern) COO. . The dramatic piano and whispering. breathy vocals from Brian Case make beautifully, intense listening. Viva la revolution. (Carolyn Rae)
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TEXAS
Careful What You Wish For
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Texas are a band with a strangely split [)Olfflfl‘dllliy. ()r‘ the one lltlf‘tl our Sharleen loves the pop s.ar persona l"o matter l‘f)‘.'.’ rnuch she denies ti, on the other she and "(3' band wave tl‘e crediblit. of The underground. And so we're e‘f unit" a t‘i)YYll)l(?I(3 dog's dinne' of a record. to but .t t>'tii‘t“,. It's as .t' the, ".e been gr.en the instructions ‘c' producing interesting. eclectic music electronrca. ska. country ne~'. ‘.'.ia‘.'e. etc — onli, badly translated from the Japanese. The, Just don't get it. The result s sometimes had itl‘e chees, ska pop of ‘Broke'i'i and sometimes (loxnirigl‘t embarrassing the trance; "ap traiest‘, of 'A Pace in M, ‘i.‘.'c"d' but al'.'.a’. s less tnan t"e sum of ts baits.
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so ’lort't expect the" debut long planer to be cornposezl only of dance-floor filers. lhe likes of "Dubsbot' take a more hip hop angle. .'.'hile 'Hocksteady Concentrates on a drum loop peppered ‘.'.'ith electro beats.
\fi’ord is that NuBreed are Australia's premier electronic act. and leader of the break beat scene down under. Their debut album is filled with electronic funk which sadly becomes rnonotor‘ous due to lack of dii.'e'sit;. in their sound. l'_dgier tracks such as ‘(Dtiriotis and the pounding beats of 'Sukerpunch' prevent the album from sounding - at times like background, not dance music.
'Ctiti)l§,li Rae»
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Exactly whether or not Perth’s Hadrotones should still be referring to then‘selxes as ‘alt.blues terrorists is a matter of debate — lust nobody tell Tony. eh? l.'.'hrle not exactl, Ifflllf‘fllig. though. there is something a bit surly about them, Maybe tl‘at’s got a lot to do with Daze Arcane; file- tnroated Captain Beefheart-st,ie ‘.().’L<’il8. :2' it cou':t gust be the barrisforrr‘ing. cnucking- cut time storm; the. :z'eate. lrnagine the
iiii'A'TTriew BOURNE
The Electric Dr M :3 1 We. ' l'xzr. CO.
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li-l‘ut rem lulartsrt's neg'. f8 l Recordings labor features his \tlii-i l ant. a ‘i\.(} piece (fi(?’.’.l|( outfit lle ,iiirt-ntiates
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piano. ‘.‘.’l”l Cnr=s Sharkei,’ on guitar. Rizian Vosloo on b; ss. and two drummers. Dane Black and San: Hobbs. The; set loose an alternately spacious and hair raisingli, dense electronic ll:£l‘,'ll(:l¥l that pulls tcgether a .'.ho‘e tangle of inusica! strands. frorii fret.- ;a// and experirizenta. electron'r lllll‘;!(; to sarribles and break beats.
'Kenny Matliiesonr
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EDISON WOODS Seven Principles of Leave No Trace '(illllr’fil‘rmtlfibi 0..
Ed son ‘.'.'oods is the 'l‘itllil faceted creative alter ego of New York» based musician. theatre practitioner and conceptual artist Julia Frodahl. This. her first CD to receive a European release. is an assortment of haunting sublime. sometimes Sinister rnuSical vistas. featuring contributions from the likes of Simon Raymonde of Cocteau T.-.irns larne and Spark'eho'se engineer Ala": ‘.".’eatherhead. Seine of these tracks. Such as the eerie ‘Like a
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(liteil l». the White Stripes as a major influence and signed by ex (Slur rrian (imharn
(Loxori To li ;(J.'.’ll label.
garage rook legend Billy ()hiirlislx's latest ban'l the Buff Med.‘.a,is dress like P'ussian sol-“tiers and are indeed H:ll(,'. from the past Al)l)(llf:liil', the result of sitting Ill a grubby teeriagi: bedroom for Qt) years 'ioirig iiothirtg but listenir‘r) to the Kinks' 'You Heall, (jot Me' and ‘.",ing to catrfr‘ a glimpse of The girl next door ill ,, this is a rule. bra/e" iittle record nr, lrills
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of pare/t do:rr.. punk rock that", so retro and simplistic. it‘s almost guaint Nick Dawson)
Hock STELLASTARR"
Stellastarr' (RCA, O...
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Topshop if, a test of ‘80's fashior: ~ neoris and bold contrasting colours dominate the ghastly attire a Jailable. New York's Stellastarr' are the ‘irst to re .e fine darker side o‘ the 'Efi's — they‘re the sound of
guys in biac coats.