Cherry Ghost
After the sugar—rush. bubblegum-pop of ‘Girlfriend'. the dreary ballad that is Avril Lavigne‘s ‘When You're Gone' (Columbia)
0 is blandness personified. Andrea Corr‘s 'Shame On You' (Atlantic) 0
meanwhile isn't as bad as you'd think it would be but still manages to sound like the score to a Tourism Ireland advert. Similarly uninspired is Green Day's version of ‘Working Class Hero"
(Amnesty download) so
but it's for
Amnesty so buy it anyway. Meanwhile Roisin
Murphy's 'Overpowered' (EMI) 00 too sleek for its own good.
is just
DeSpite production from Timbaland Justin Timberlake's ‘Lovestoned' (Jive) CO is yet more love-god bravado from the former Mousketeer. Marginally better, is Robin Thicke’s ‘Lost Without U‘ (Interscope) so. which aims to woo the ladies without any of JT's Iasciviousness. Probably doesn‘t hurt that he looks like an Armani model either . . .
The Views 'Face For the Radio’ (1965)
(not about Robin Thicke then) proves
the Dundee lot can do acoustic. while the acid- disco-madness of The Aliens' ‘Robot Man'
(Pet Rock/EMI) 000
is Sure to appeal to
Beta Band mourners. The Wombats ‘Kill the Director' (14th Floor) 0000 . however. tops both groups with its frantic. SCLizzy indie rock
and whip-smart lyrics.
Talking ab0ut good lyrics . . . Talib Kweli's 'Listen!!!’ (Blacksmith) 0000 proves he might not have the fame of his peers but he's sure got the chops and in Coldplay-but-better way is Aqualung's ‘Cinderella' (Epic) 0000 . Also worth a listen are media faves Cold War Kids’ (V2) ‘Hang Me Out to Dry' 0000 with their brooding rock and out-of—tune pianos alike.
Smashing Pumpkins (Reprise) have reformed and released 'Tarantula' 000 While millions of grunge kids will be stoked, the rest of us are not. Much better is the completely loopy grime of Lethal Bizzle's 'Bizzle Bizzle'
(V2) 0...
Narrowly missing the top spot is The Hold Steady‘s ‘Chips Ahoy!‘ (Vagrant) 00000. a Springsteen-esgue tale of drugs. love and horseracing - not necessarily in that order. But Single of the Fortnight goes to Manchester‘s Cherry Ghosts ‘PeOple Help The People' (Heavenly) 000”. A shimmering. ethereal grower that SOunds like it was recorded in a cathedral in the dimming light of a fading sunset. Genius. (Andrew Borthwick)
FOLK
ALY BAIN 8: ALE MOLLER
Beyond the Stacks ONhiriie Records) “COO
Mention the words Aly Bain and due in the same sentence. and
62 THE LIST .I‘ .J.i.'i '2 .I..
the ineVitable association that springs to mind is With Phil
Cunningham. l'he fiddle
maestro's duo vvith Swedish iiiandola player Ale Moller is of more recent vintage. and is not yet as celebrated as his collaboration Willi Phil.
but musically it is on a similarly high level, and is unmistakably the sound of two masters at work.
Bain's playing on both fiddles and the less customary viola is simply brilliant. whether on Lip-tempo reels and jigs or achineg lovely slow airs. His highly expressive handling of the melodies combine Willi his impeccable phrasing. acute rhythmic sense and trademark nuances of bowing and accenting in peerless fashion. Meller is an ideal feil. and a considerable player in his own right. Their jointly-arranged explorations of a range of beguiling tunes drawn from the musical traditions of Shetland. Scandinavia. Scotland and Ireland are uniformly strong. (Kenny Mathieson)
AIHY POP SIOBHAN DONAGHY
So You Say (Parlophonei O...
Some may remember Donaghy as the one who (juit the Sugababes. burnt her bridges. then suffered a flop album. Fear not. she's back With So YOU Say. which has taken radio friendly pop and added a pinch of sophistication. Her vocals are beautiful. and suited to the gentle electro backing. reminiscent of the decent tracks on Madonna's Ray of Light. I here are moments when tracks feel over- produced: Donaghy's ethereal vocals occasionally feel frustratingly drov-Jned by the left-field effects that snake their way throughout.
Nevertheless. this is a gorgeous album that forms the perfect soundtrack to a quiet night in. (Sian Bevan)
ELECTRONICA ULRIC SCHNAUSS Goodbye (lndependiente) 000
When a creative force is raised in a boring little armpit such as Kiel. it's perhaps inevitable that the only reaction is to try and make something gorgeous from the tediurn. With his third album. both the banal and the beautiful are present as Ulrich Schnauss meanders snake-like around a variety of bubbly sounds and dips in and out of his own moods. which appear to range from languid to Quite bad. ‘Einfeld' is not a near- tribute to one of America's greatest sitcoms but an ephemeral Harold Budd-like landscape of sound (ie soundscape) and while ‘A Song About Hope' is technically not a song. it's sprinkled with upbeat seeds of optimism.
(Brian Donaldson)
JAZZ
TONY SCOTT A Jazz Life
(Kind of Blue) 000
When clarinettist Tony Scott spent some time in Edinburgh one summer in the late 80$. his role as an important contributor to the emergence of both bebop and an early proto-version of free jazz in New York had all but been forgotten. His reputation has been somewhat restored since then. and this posthumously released disc is a coda to a notable — if eccentric —
jazz life.
Scott settled in Italy (his real name was Sciacca). where this session was recorded last year. His own playing is far from the pomp of his best work of the 50s. but he strikes an elegiac note in a repertorie that features music by Ellington. Strayhorn (including a spoken version of ‘Lush Life'. a tune that obsessed him). Gershwm. Monk. Gillespie. and a couple of his own tunes. He is respectfully accompanied by members of Ravi Coltrane's band. presumably on tour at the time.
(Kenny Mathieson)
INDIE FOLK
STRIKE THE COLOURS
The Face That Sunk a Thousand Ships (Deadlight) 000
As a collaborator with everyone from Arab Strap to ldlewild and Malcolm Middleton. Jenny Reeve's myriad musical talents have graced many a record to fine effect over the last few years. Now at last stepping into the limelight herself with 'DIY. fluid project' Strike the Colours. this is her much anticipated album debut
Or rather mini-album debut. being that it rather frustratingly only features a fleeting six tracks. All of which are thoroughly alluring things: spectral. melodious indie folk whispers. wrapped in country-tinged strings and chiming piano. A good record only half realised. or just a glimpse of what's to come? Here‘s to the finding out. (Malcolm Jack)
INDIE POP
THE JUST JOANS
Last Tango in Motherwell
(Ivan Lendil) .00.
Problem page pop from a bunch of self-
confessed puny losers from Mothenrvell? It shouldn‘t work — hearing them sniff and sigh through bleak, downbeat stories about getting chucked in Strathclyde Park. or feeling they‘ve missed their prime when they are still students. But a lovable blend of sleepy acoustic guitars. Brian Wilson-esgue harmonies. and west coast sarcasm wins in the end. Named after the Daily Records longstanding agony aunt, they sugar coat the self-deprecation and moaning by ripping their pals 0r throwing in Russ Abbot references. Bittersweet and clinging nostalgically to high school glory days. The Just Joans complain they have past their best. but if they stop greeting. they have plenty to look forward to. (Claire Sawers)
ELECTRO
SIMIAN MOBILE DISCO
Attack Decay Sustain Release
(Wichita) coo.
ATTACK QECAE’
martini RELEASE
Have you forgotten how exciting electronic music can be? Well you're about to be reminded as two albums released this year are set to totally revitalise the genre. One comes in the form of 7‘ by Justice. the other is this impressive offering to feast upon. Already famed for their work in Simian and for remixing tracks by Muse and Klaxons. James Ellis Ford and James Anthony Shaw have created a thrilling first effort that will really get pulses racing. from the scratchy blips and beeps of ‘It's the Beat' to the infectious hooks