RECORD REVIEWS MUSIC
Goodbye Mr Mackenzie‘s Martin Metcalle: ‘snitting around'
I The Chemical Brothers: Exit Planet Dust (Virgin) A whiff of adrenalin. a hint of hardcore and The Dust Brothers have transmuted into The Chemical Brothers. l-‘or 3t) glorious minutes. they combine the vitality of punk. the pumping drive of Motorhead. the liliessc of block-party hip hop and the sheer hedonism of the dancelioor into a six-song explosion of beats. This is music to wind down the \\llitl()\\‘. put down the foot and drive to; music to take to the bedroom. turn tip the volutne and annoy the hell out of your parents with. (“or the rest of the album. The Brothers mine their extensive experience of the trip hop vein with deep and mellow hip hop beats. acidic organ noises atid the odd application of
reverb. There are even vocals. courtesy of Beth Orton atid Tim Burgess. although these come over
a tad pretentious. "The brothers gonna work it
out".’ Too damn right they
are. but a wee bit more work is needed. (Thom Dibdin)
I Deep Forest: Boheme
(Columbia) Sampling ethnic artists and turning
their work into modern
dance tnusic does not need to be blatant exploitation. Remember lillt) and Byrne's .llv Life //l The li’in/i (If (i/imlx'.’ And the recent Going ('ilobal Series' release \i’ri/u.’ ( Barclay/l .ondon l. with its quite .stlpc‘l'l‘ house and techno remixes of folk who are stars on their own continents. But as for Hench duo Deep Forest: [ill/It’lllt' is ethno leehno by numbers. lt's a lligllly [)(illSllL‘tl piece of background noise. which sucks all the soul from the original songs and samples without giving back anything in return. Deep l‘orest: guilty as charged. (Thom l)ibdin)
I Goodbye Mr Mackenzie: Jezebel (Blokshok) The Mackenzies have already shown that they're a particularly suitable band for packages of unreleased and ‘lost' tracks. and Jezebel shows them once again sniffing
around the darkened. gloomy backstreets of the city that brought you lrvine Welsh. checking under stones and probing the less pleasant bits of the human psyche ~ hence their commendahly empathetic version of Leonard Cohen‘s 'l)ress Rehearsal Rag'. The only really unnecessary track is another cover: Television's 'See No livil'. ‘lt‘s only gonnae be a B-side anyway.’ smirks Martin Metcalfe as it fades out. Wrong first time. but I suppose ‘lt's only gonnae he track o of an odds-and-ends compilation ('l)‘ would have been a hit of a mouthful. (Alastair
M abbotl)
I Butialo Tom: Sleepy Eyed (Beggars Banquet) ()thers have made more money out of the US college rock circuit. but none have so affecting a voice as Bill .lillit)\'ll/. of Buffalo Tom. Sleepy Iiyei/ sees the trio continue in their unliashy but intense way. seemingly reinvigorated after 1993's more polished Big l\)('(/ letter Dav. Heartfelt. open and honest. Sleepy lived will have you scratching your head over how hands like Soul ‘interesting‘ Asylum generate the sales they do when there are hands like the Tom around. (Alastair Mabbott)
I Dee Dee Bridgewater: Love And Peace (Verve) Album of the month. and a definite contender for album of the year. The Paris-based American singer Dee Dee Bridgewater has struck a rich vein of late. and this all-Horace Silver tribute takes her work to new heights of achievement. Immaculate singing. terrific tunes. great arrangements and superb playing all make this an essential purchase for anyone with even a passing interest in jazz vocals. Diane Reeves‘ Quiet After T/H’ Slur/It (Blue Note) isn't quite in this class. but is also well worth checking out.
I Jim Mullen: Rule 0t Thumb (EFZ) Those who heard any of M ullen‘s recent Scottish concerts will have had a sneak preview of much of the material on this excellent set. and the recorded versions confirm the promise of their live workouts. Mullen‘s thumb-picking style and harmonic conception are as authoritative and original as ever. while the band. with Dave ()‘Higgins on saxes. Laurence Cottle on bass.
and Ian Thomas behind the drums. reveal the benefits of mutual understanding developed on the bandstand. Recommended.
I Wynton and Ellis Marsalis: Joe Cool’s Blues (Columbia) Jazz's most eminent father-and- son pairing pay (separate) tribute to the Peanuts
cartoon. with l‘Illis's Trio
concentrating on Vince (iuaraldi‘s original music. and Wyiitons Septet playing his own pieces written for the cartoon. The concept is a little odd. but the music is predictably high Ill quality. and great fun. \Vynton's pianist. liric Reed. also makes an impressive debut
recording as leader on [he ‘
Swing Am/ / (Mo Jan). I David Newton Trio: In Good Company (Candid)
The Scottish pianist opens
his contract with the famous American label with a sparkling trio set. using his regular cohorts. Dave (ireen and Allan (ianley. As a calling card for his increasingly assured pianism it is right up there with his excellent Linn trio sets. and offers a nice balance of standards with original tunes. Newton can also be heard making a cogent contribution to US
saxophonist Michael llashim's 'l'rmimI/mitie xii/2v (33 Records). a line contemporary bop set.
I East Down Septet: Out Of Gridlock (HEP Records) 29th Street Sax Quartet members Rich Rothenberg and .lllll llartog and lirench horn maestro Tom Varner will be the most familiar names in this engaging New York septct. who have found their way onto Alastair Robertson's lidinhurgh-based label. It's easy to hear why this combination of adventurous soloing and sinuous. inventive arrangements caught Alastair's ear. and it will do the same for yours if you let it.
I Charles Lloyd: All My Relations (ECM) Saxman Charles Lloyd's late renaissance has been one of the unexpected highlights of the current decade. and this quartet session keeps up the good work of albums like The ('ull. Lloyd is in muscular. inventive voice on tenor throughout a set of his own tunes. and it is great to hear Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson again. while Anders
Jormin and Billy liu‘t
make a superb rhythm team. (Kenny Mathieson)
l Gm MUSIC PRESENTS Andv White Liam O Maonlai
_ Hothouse Flowers Tim Finn Crowded House 14th July Glasgow The Garage
Tllf.
BATHERS
*GUEST VOCALS LIZ FRASER (COCTEAU TWINS)
lilll\lil l'ilill l .i lii‘lll' \iigelr L3 lil. \5lil l\\ 9‘ ’l‘lll‘ litll'dr‘il‘ I.)
l_ltily
l.liily
S T Ev IE N 25th July
‘ \ Edinburgh .c . The Venue A W
5th October Motherwell Civic Centre 01698 267515
/\ 6th October Glenrothes Rothes Hall 3 I G-
llllllll'l'lll
7th October Glasgow Barrowland
0131 557 6969 E 8th October Edinburgh Usher Hall a u stra I ia n
0131 228 1155
i I i i '- ‘ 20th October ‘ 7 Glasgow Barrowlands
. NanciGrifiith
An Acoustic Retrospective
17th October Edinburgh Usher Hall 0131 228 1155
18th October Glasgow Royal Concert Hall 0141-227 5511
29th October Edinburgh Festival Theatre 0131-529 6000 3lst October Glasgow Royal Concert Hall 0141-227 5511
| Tickets from Glasgow Just the Ticket Union Street, l-Iilinhurgli Virgin & l Hi i iin" & all 'liuttu outlets. Credit Cards: OBI-557 6060/014l-556 5533.
The List 14-27 Jul I995 41