world in ever more persistent strides. And Frog Rocket's latest does manifest signs of the Twins influence. at one point even echoing Gabriel Yared's memorable soundtrack to 805 art-house cult classic. Betty Blue. Synths moan and soar. a fiddle sings its lament after he plucks it like a medieval minstrel. drum beats get tangled in a mechanical mess and an acoustic guitar emits spine-shredding chords. But. altogether. delightful melodies unfold, proVing that. really. this frog is tucked away in his own wee pond. Gorgeous. (Andrew Richardson)
R88 KELIS Tasty (Virgin) .000
Kelis' debut Kaleidoscope was a powerful calling card. and ‘Caught Out There' was a righteous stomp of a track. but the follow up l/‘i/ander/and failed to capitalise on tli<3 lll()ll)(}llttllll ziii(l was a fairly lacklustre
affair. On her latest offering. Tasty. she's once again firing on all cylinders. The R88 has been beefed up with hip hop licks and heavy bass. and the spirit is back. The Neptunes produce about 50% of the album with guest stars such as Nas and Andre (3000 (OutKasti bulking up an already rich, layered and sultry sound. As sexy and rock as R&B's ever gonna get.
(Henry Northmore)
nock PRESTON SCHOOL OF INDUSTRY
Monsoon (Domino) 0...
As Preston School of Industry. Scott
Kannberg's first post- Pavement record. All
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songwriting and sound--
sourcing to create a record which is guirky without all the irritation that implies. and moving Without ever being sentimental or backwartl-looking. Cracking stuff, in other words.
(Doug Johnstone)
INDIE JETMARINE Jetmarine (Half Loaf Records) 000
Indie with balls from Jetmarine. formed by Murdoch MacL.eod and Dunsy (ex- Joyriders). veterans of the Scottish local scene. It has echoes of grunge filter. Dinosaur Jr in particular. throughout. but overall it's an Oasis swagger with leenage Fanclub harmonies. Polished as hell for a local self- produced release. but it's hard to find a spark of originality that really makes this shine from the likes of so many other indie nearly rans. Competent but too stuck in the years when indie and grunge ruled the hearts and minds of the youth.
(l lenry Northmore)
SOUNDI RACKS MIC ANDREWS Donnie Darko (Sanctuary) 0... HANS ZIMMER The Last Samurai (Elektra) 0..
Film scores can be tricky; without the visuals they can be left high and dry. their urgency lost when castrated to simply audio. But Michael Andrews’ work on Donnie Darko stands on its own, instantly evoking the mood of the film. Yet even if you hadn't seen said time travel and insanity conundrum that is the movie. its darkly brooding strings capture an emotion to perfection: a queasy unease. a moody melancholy. The ‘Mad
Records
World' cover is more poignant than the Tears For Fears original could have dreamed of. even if Gary Jules does sound like he's doing a Michael Stipe impression.
Hans Zimmer. on the other hand. gives us a far more filmic piece of work With the Last Sr’IHlU/(li. [invner is of course the rent a hack composer behind the scores for /-’ear/ Harbour. Hannibal and Black Hawk Down. It sounds like fllll‘ music: you can almost imagine the accompanying can‘era s-sxeeps. lt's orchestral with a heavy oriental bent as befits the story and there's some pox‘rerful 'ifiisic. but it feels naked without the accornpaiiying images. (Henry Northiitorei
TAK MEOUT
Lid 7" co DvD 12.01.04
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