WFHB's Latest Adds
DATE: 4.18.06ARTIST: Gentleman Caller
TITLE: Until We Are Missing (Affirmation)
GENRE: LOCAL/ROCK
GRADE: A
REVIEW: Another fine release from Kenny Childers and company.
Akin to the Mysteries of Life sound (Kenny played with them for awhile) but original enough to stand alone in songwriting quality and performance smarts.
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: 1,3,4,6,7,9,10 REVIEWER: Jim Manion/WFHB
DATE: 4.18.06
ARTIST:Darol Anger's Republic of Strings
TITLE: Generation Nation (Co)
GENRE: Folk/fusion mostly instrumental
GRADE: A
REVIEW: Fiddler Darol Anger is one of the most respected acoustic music fusioneers in the business, having established his reputation early as a member of the David Grisman Quintet in the 1970s, and he's the best type of fusioneer: one who puts the tune and the listener ahead of his own cleverness. Teaming up with veteran newgrass guitarist Scott Nygaard, the young cellist Rushad Eggleston, and an equally young five-string fiddler named Brittany Haas, Anger has now made two albums under the Republic of Strings rubric. The second, Generation Nation, finds the quartet bringing in multiple guest singers and instrumentalists, with some stunning (and some slightly disappointing) results. On the stunning side is an amazingly effective acoustic take on the soul classic "Chain of Fools," featuring singer Chris Webster and a smart, smoldering string arrangement. There's also a brilliant two-part medley that juxtaposes Ornette Coleman's "Ramblin'" with an obscure fiddle tune called "Yellow Barber." "The Seagull" is rhythmically weird but melodically gorgeous.
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: 3,4,5,6,7,9
REVIEWER: Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
NOTE: ATR BUSKIRK-CHUMLEY THEATER ON MAY 12, 2006
DATE: 4.18.06
ARTIST: Mint
TITLE: Magnetism (Funzalo)
GENRE: rock/alt
GRADE: A-
REVIEW: This five-piece from Belgium delivers soulful indie rock tunes. After their well-received debut, Echoes From The Engine Room, a busload of rave reviews, and great shows on big Benelux summer festivals, they`re back with this Funzalo-released album, produced by John Morand (Sparklehorse, Cracker). Throwing forty years of rock music into their blender, Mint still manage to sound exactly like themselves: distinctive songwriting, lush orchestrations, and a shoe-gazer aesthetic. A trend-dodging, exhilarating listen.
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: 1,2,3,5,7,8,10 REVIEWER: milesofmusic.com
DATE: 4.18.06
ARTIST:Prince
TITLE: 3121 (Universal)
GENRE: soul/funk
GRADE: A
REVIEW: Speaking in terms of his classic era, 3121 is more "Gett Off" than "Nothing Compares 2 U". The opening title track works almost entirely on eccentricity, as a huge crowd of pitch-shifted Princes harmonize on lyrics that basically amount to directions to a party. On the other end of the record, "Get on the Boat" boasts a sharp horn arrangement (with solos from Maceo Parker, no less) and a funk undercarriage vintage enough to have come straight from a thrift-shop basement-- and the loose, live feel doesn't hurt either. One thing that "Get on the Boat" exhibits in its piano part and timbale eruptions is a Latin influence that's more pervasive on 3121 than on any previous Prince album. "Te Amo Corazon" is a nicely nuanced ballad built on a slow, slightly rock-tinged mambo beat, and there are snatches of Cuban piano and Brazilian drums that crop up all over. Crunchy electro is the dominant strain in most of the album's best tracks, though, including the killer single "Black Sweat", the fractured keyboard riff of "Lolita", and "Love", inhabited by squishy keyboard and a monster chorus that slashes the ascending melody with buzzing synth bass. "The Word" strikes a nice electro-acoustic dichotomy, layering spacey synthesizer and a programmed beat with acoustic guitar and a strong sax hook.
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: 1,2,3,4,6,12
REVIEWER: excerpts from pitchforkmedia.com
DATE: 4.18.06
ARTIST:Peter Mulvey
TITLE: The Knuckleball Suite (Signature Sounds)
GENRE: folk/singer-songwriter
GRADE: A
REVIEW: Boston singer/songwriter varies his sound between moody acoustic songs and a few upbeat rockers. Guitarist David Goodrich is his secret weapon, always at his side with tastefully and interesting musicality. Mulvey's lyrics are rich with the experience of life.
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: upbeat – 1,4,12
mellow; 2,5,7,11
REVIEWER: Jim Manion/WFHB
DATE: 4.18.06
ARTIST: Danielle Howle
TITLE: Thank You Mark (Valley)
GENRE: folk/singer-songwriter
GRADE: A-
REVIEW: South Carolina songbird Danielle Howle is a sheer delight in live performance, where her swift wit and clever between-song quips work in counterpoint to her often somber and deeply introspective compositions. Studio sessions usually find the singer in a more consistently somber mood, exploring assorted sounds and genres while backed by a rotating selection of acoustic and electric instrumentation. The new Thank You, Mark not only is no exception, it also may represent an extreme. After starting on familiar ground with "Roses From Leroy's," a snail's pace breakup song which gives Howle's distinctly Carolinian-accented voice plenty of time to show its colors, Thank You, Mark (the title refers to CD producer Mark Bryan) abruptly sways to the honky-tonk bomp of "I'll Be Blue" before plunging southward into exceptionally dark slide-guitar blues with "Fields of Cotton." The jaunty swing-music sweep of "Oh Swear" and the soul workout of "Walking through the Black" even offer the intriguing novelty of hearing Howle interact with a horn section. Howle concludes the disc with "Woman to Win," a well-rendered country tune which includes an intriguing reference to living "like an Indigo Girl," and an effective gospel shouter called "Jesus Won't Wait," which owes as big a debt to Peggy Lee as to Mahalia Jackson.
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: 1,2,3,4,7,10,11
REVIEWER: stompandstammer.com
Also added:
Drive-By Truckers A Blessing and a Curse New West
Eric Lindell Change in the Weather Alligator
Cesaria Evora Rogamar Bluebird
Lila Downs La Cantina Narad
posted by WFHB Music @ 10:57:00 AM
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