Patti LaBelle is one of those artists that I know was big in the past, but has not really done anything earthshaking since I became cognizant of music. For those that do not know, LaBelle started out as a singer for the Bluebelles, changed their name to Labelle, and then broke free from the rest of the pack starting in 1976. From 1962 to 1993, LaBelle charted tens of songs,…
The opening piano to “He Was There” should be reminiscent to listeners to Des’ree’s “Kissing You”. In fact, the general style of “He Was There” is tracked alongside that song, even if the act adds a considerable amount of gospel influence to the mix. The decision to put the longest track at the beginning of the disc is an interesting one; this gambit has sunk many a band when they…
I like how all of the band’s album titles have dealt with illegal immigration. This is not the next Manic Hispanic, but rather an interesting band that starts off their “We Came To Take Your Jobs Away” with a track that blends together a They Might Be Giants sound with a more Middle Eastern sound. While Kultur Shock is confident that their song will never be on the radio during…
The raw exuberance that Woven Bones seethes from its tightly-wound inner coil of turmoil isn’t exactly the stuff daydreams are made of, but as their menacing presence has been culminating over the past couple of years, it’s now clear as daylight that their finest efforts would come together on this, their debut LP. As they’ve effectively dragged the shards of their tattered souls with building ferocity on each of their…
There is a tremendous comparison available here in Kronowitt’s case, in which Kronowitt sets eirself to be the inheritor of the Elvis Costello mantle; the heavily-vocal opening to “Elements” really subjugates the instrumental side of things to Kronowitt’s emotive voice. The first real hit on this album is “Ballad of Pete & Heather”; the pitch-shifting aspect of Kronowitt’s vocals taking on a Marc Schultz tone at times. The Spanish-infused guitar…
The opening track to “Green City” is called “Vanity”, and the approach done by the lead singer is something that has as its predecessor the over the top singing styles of fifties musicals. At the same time, the instrumentation that is present in this opening track has much more in common with the style of psychedelic rock that acts like The Doors were known for in the late sixties. To…
You know what would have been cool for Dave Koz to do? 12 different reinterpretations of Alien Ant Farm’s hit “At The Movies”. Well, this album is not it, and instead features Koz doing eir reinterpretation of a number of important films (Moon River, Cinema Paradiso, Schindler’s List). While there are hints of the original vocals for “Over The Rainbow”, a soulful sax line starts up soon after the vocals…
In a sense, the Kola Koca Death Squad takes the best parts of Johnny Rotten and Lou Reed, while simultaneously working under a psychedelic-influenced instrumentation to make something memorable for the first track on this disc, “Rising Son”. What is really a chaotic and emotional-filled set of vocals during “Power Condition” are really dominated and removed from their context with the very angular and proper arrangements on the track. When…
“Knuckles and Nipples”, the band (and the disc’s) theme, comes through with a fury that initially begins with a very growling, Doom-like vocal quality to MC Homeless’ vocals. In “Your Taste In Music Sucks”, the band does really not allow itself enough to really get out and construct an distinct sound for their track. The song is really just a car crash before the occupants could get up to full…
Jess Klein starts “Strawberry Lover” with one of the most bold steps forward on a disc I’ve ever heard, with “Darkroom” mixing together punk directness, country, musicals (think “Little Shop of Horrors”) and gospel in well less than three minutes. “Shonalee” has to be the farthest that Jess can go away from “Darkroom”, but the nuanced guitar lines on the track ensures the same level of quality being reached by…
