salvo of daft, near-rave
euphoria. Thereafter,
fh‘jfi‘fijf'Robenson, SINGLES & DOWNLOADS
FOLK ROCK though, there’s a patent BRIGHT EYES lack of new ideas, as ‘éAfizRIos Cassadaga the sense that these Hidden (Polydor) 0"“ tunes only take off live, (Jazzizit) m. . ‘ and sound uncannin like a speeded up Franz Pianist and keyboard Ferdinand, is repetitively A , ._ '- - _ player Tom Cawley is thumped into your brain. joined by Sam Burgess Best enjoyed on a head might now reside in on bass and Joshua full of uppers, as the London, but there’s still Blackmore on drums in good doctor himself an overwhelmingly odd, an exemplary exhibition might have said. countrified strain to this, of contemporary piano (Malcolm Jack) their second LP. trio that sounds a lot Squelchy beats and lo- fresher and more Is there anything Conor “05's fi junk-box eclecticism imaginative than EST on Oberst can’t do? Side- The Adventures of characterise the like of their recent Glasgow projects and record Ghosthorse and ‘Big Chief (The B&B outing. Cawley is easily label exec duties aside, Sti||bom Frequenter)’, while the best known member _ this is the talented (Touch & Go) ‘Abide’ brings Cormack of this trio, and if it is his "'3 a mad: Wad: mad: madgmad» mad month troubadour's seventh :_ - 4 across like a kind of and firet up '3 e bonkerev Sk'me'eurf Cheese
dream offering from Thomas 'l’ruax called ‘Have We Been Left Behind?’ (Anarkhy)
m0 . I’m not sure exactly what’s happening on the cover of ex-Sugababe Siobhan Donaghy’s ‘Don’t Give It Up’ (Parlophone) O. , or in the song for that matter, but the CD is very pretty and the contents are commendably out there for a pop songstress. I
Orcadian Elliot Smith. It’s gorgeous little gems like ‘Home Help’ that show him at his best though: soft hearted, fleeting and glad to just be that bit different. (Malcolm Jack)
studio album, under the guise of Bright Eyes, released at the tender age of 27. It's an utterly lovely listen from start to finish. The best of his hugely impressive releases to date;
Cassadaga sways from ~ ' ' don’t know why Erasure are releasing music sumptuous string-tinged Lord, deliver us from Sex Change contribution that makes hm the ease for " 00”” Fe“ I“ Love YV'th You, country sing-a-longs to hen-toed girls wearing (Thrill Jockey) m the most striking .(MUte) . was eemeth'hg Of a the' to get big riffed rock attacks, glittering plastic jewelry ,_ ._ impression, this is a 'hte and proved unworthy 0f the efleh- The with shimmering female and wielding ' ‘ genuine ensemble, with Fe" are heek toot 'eVe them or hate them, With chorus-fuelled ballads Bontempi’s. Have they each of the players :Refermet'eh' (sehetua’Y) . - ' deh’t see in-between. Add to this gone yet? No — Coco contributing in full 't pereehe'w- Beek Oh the "th S'de 0f the Oberst’s trademark Rosie return with measure to the music. herder the hermy camel" Face Step forward wavering vocals and another archly twee If you only know W'th three d'eperete and Uhehy hum numbers poetic lyrics and guest album entitled The Cawley from Acoustic eh ‘Aweeeme! No Way? (Fat HippY) m appearances from Adventures of Ladyland, then the ease eh'y to be OUt'behed by I'm’ 0' Gillian Welch, M Ward, Ghosthorse and and grace of his and the eerki ShOUtY threeh 0f ‘0“ W'th The" Ben Kweller and Janet Stil/born, a record that beautiful, delicately HeadS/Nngs'zed Karma' (3L) m Weiss among others veritably drips with There’s a feeling that coloured ballads might CW" have the" moments on the eefl' and you’ve got a saccharine sweet you’re missing out on take you by surprise. Centred e'ehehhg reek Of '0‘" Thoughts Q" mesmerising album that poison and self— the joke with bands like Elsewhere, the surging, The Peep'e You Love, (demo) Wh"e his musical conscious affectations Trans Am. What with the restless, occasionally “New 'deee' (Leve'te) m '3 a meet worthy contemporaries will a-go-go. faux boy band press rock-influenced energy Qu'tar pep met for The . struggle to better. And you thought no shots and the musical of the music provides a “fled” .M'dd'm tens 'h W'th theft th'ek (Camilla Pia) one would be so cruel appropriation of highly-charged eeeeht 'eed'hg the heheet e't-eeUht'Y d'hy DISCO PUNK as to splice trip hop everything from Rush to counten/veight. Worth Beep Beepv I Love-Y0” (Pem'hel m - sun-DISCO fuggy nonsense Wlth Harold Faltemeyer, it all checking out. 3"”.3'30 return .W'th the" eVer'eepeheeb'e
- faux-folk poetics. Here seems a bit too clever— (Kenny Mathieson) hreed'hg e'eetreh'ee Oh the 'USh Azure (some) thgdom Of Fear r - 0000 The have a wa oft in some (Heme panda) .. the bastard offspring of clever for Its own good. - Y Y 399 9
vague emotion but I can’t be sure they’re not just reminding me of quiet moments with their previous releases. The real meat this fortnight
. . . . ROCK an exorCIsed Trlcky and In truth, there ls no joke, adolescent Bjork tinker if you like Kraftwerk fed xgfiistlxgggs
with their instruments, through a Pil-shaped - . mercilessly plopping mincer then this is the V8" sank Comes 'h the form Of a DOSt’SeO Pao'o musical influence on top gag in the cracker that ‘990‘ I wee” awarethat I "Ree them and of musical genre. is pulled as several of how have a e'hk'hg feehhg "m be'hg awh' Childish voices, forced your Christmases unhip (espeCIally after dismissing The Fall) by glee, and goth-lite comes at once. ChamP'Oh'hg the power pop Of ‘See YO,” At sentiments are enough Sex Change is not the The Ughts' (Rough Trade) ...,.. 8? S'ng'e Of to make the toughest Chicagoan trio’s finest the forth'ght' A perfeCt Compan'Oh p'ece , Art School inebriates stomach turn. but is eminently Comes 'h the Shape Of “BaCkf're At The used Shitdisco have been the (Alexander Kennedy) listenable. Building and “('93) e.” by 11" "mm Comes a life, soul and soundtrack bubbling along with dose second After that there's a" the Usua' of parties everywhere ACOUSTIC POP elbows out. driven b dross. Worse than usual actually, best steer HALF cousm . t Y from Glasgow to Iodine motorlk, melodic synth There are certain bands e'eer- (Mark Edmundeeh) Bangok in the last year. (Gronland) m parts and insistent drum that make sense only on How well their turbo- - ~ -' --—' --— —-———»——-———— batteries before record, and there are charged disco punk For all its wild weather exploding in a ball of certain bands that only which has meant an any closer to the shore. would transfer to record and curious inhabitants, electricity on the final make sense live. appearance on The OC When they get all dirgy was always in question, you probably couldn’t three tracks, one of Modest Mouse are a and a single, the and Tom Waits on us as though, and their debut help but make which is called ‘Tesco truly odd beast in that tremendous ‘Float On’ on ‘Parting of the album (named after a resplendently weird Vs Sainsbury’s’ for no they have never bothering the US charts Sensory’, they get ugly Hunter S Thompson music if you grew up obvious reason. It may completely fit either live — but remain a truly out- and beautiful, but lsaac novel) does suggest the strumming a guitar on not be as cohesive or or on record. They have, there outfit. Brock's canine yelp negative. Orkney. Half Cousin’s contrived as previous however, on occasion, This, their fifth album - means the listener can ‘I Know Kung Fu', 2004 album The efforts but Sex Change been utterly amazing. bolstered by the never quite settle in and ‘Reactor Party’ and Function Room provided is much more a They’ve made addition of Johnny Marr enjoy their rapacious ‘Disco Blood‘ make for some proof of that; main Scalextric set under the pretences to ‘breaking as a full-time member — grooves fully. a feet blistering opening man Kevin Cormack tree than a pair of through’ in the US — does little to bring them (Mark Robertson)
29 Mar—12 Apr 2007 THE LIST 6‘!