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- Comeback Week: Bilal – Airtight's Revenge
At the major-label department of artist grievances, Bilal can take a number and wait in line until he decomposes. Though his career was placed on a worn path, the fact that he joined the land of the leaked, shelved, and dropped borders on tragic. When he debuted in 2001, he was the one for whom the neo-soul tag seemed most limiting, as he was more ahead of his time than a throwback. Elements of his first album, 1st Born Second — like the bold, otherworldly vocals and askew Mike City and Jay Dee productions — presaged the left-field R&B that bloomed later in the decade. Love for Sale, issued on promo vinyl, filched online by a portion of Bilal’s justifiably insatiable following, and subsequently mothballed by Universal, would have been emblematic of that development.Several years later, the singer, songwriter, and keyboardist finds himself on the sympathetic Plug Research, working with Steve McKie (who co-produces seven of 11 songs and is on most of the remainder in some capacity), fellow producers Shafiq Husayn of Sa-Ra, Nottz, Conley “Tone” Whitfield, and 88 Keys, and a number of session musicians that lend most of the content a full-band sound. It’s hard to listen to his first album for the independent label without imagining the handful of albums he could have released between 2004 and 2009. That is because it is a substantial leap from Love for Sale — halting, even for rabid fans who snapped up each collaboration and compilation track during the nine-year wait for the second commercially-released album. Throughout, Bilal simultaneously sounds as if he is singing for his life and does not give a damn about whether he is spared or not, and it’s a nonstop non-party.
The first three songs alone cover the failed resistance of romantic temptation, the repair of self-inflicted romantic damage, and, well, the matter of the third is not clear, but the sound is as fraught as it is affirming. The reeling, gnarled tension in the arrangement of “Cake & Eat It Too” is reflected in anguished falsetto confessions like “I’m so mixed up, baby, I, I –.” The thorniness in “Restart” and “All Matter” are enhanced with sharp guitars, but the lunging rhythms roil more than rock, while Bilal’s voice attacks, swoops, and glides with his live-wire, frayed-nerve vocal acrobatics. Again, that’s the first three songs. The fourth song is not a breather but something of a downcast epic, a harrowing life story about a severely damaged drug dealer’s daughter who breaks her back on a stripper pole. In fact, there is not much of a letup from there. While it does not remain quite as startling, what follows involves the in-flux “Levels” (a clash between a piano ballad and a black-grunge dirge over throbbing electronic sickness), the churning “Move On” (the closest the album gets to straightforward modern funk, akin to prime Van Hunt), and the pensive “The Dollar” (which, beat-wise, resembles Prince’s “Black Sweat” rescued from a scrap heap). This is one heavy, messy, dynamite album — one that could take a decade to be fully processed.
Переслать - News Roundup: 9/10/2010
One year after working together on a cover of Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good,” Jack White and Wanda Jackson are collaborating again, this time on Jackson’s new album, The Party Ain’t Over. Featuring 11 covers (including the Winehouse song) and a backup band comprising White, his wife Karen Elson, the Raconteurs’ Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler, Patti Smith’s son/Meg White’s husband Jackson Smith, and My Morning Jacket’s Carl Broemel, the album will be released next January. [Pitchfork.com]Where do kids go after they’ve graduated rock ‘n’ roll high school? Spinner has compiled the western world’s College Rankings of Rock, which include Kent State University (where notable alumni include Chrissie Hynde, Joe Walsh, and two members of Devo) to Thames Valley University in London (where Ray Davies, Ron Wood, Pete Townshend, and Freddy Mercury all studied). [Spinner.com]
The VMAs are this weekend, meaning it’s been one year since Kanye West infamously stormed the stage during Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech. Representatives from the show say the two won’t cross paths again this year; West has taken to Twitter to apologize repeatedly for the outburst, and Swift has yet to confirm her attendance, even though she’s been nominated for another award. So what can we expect? Total domination by Lady Gaga, who’s up for 13 trophies, and an opening performance for Emimen, who’s in second place with 8 nods. Drake, Mary J. Blige, Swizz Beatz, Bruno Mars, Florence and the Machine, Usher, Paramore, Linkin Park, B.o.B. and Justin Bieber will all perform, too. [Billboard.com]
Bicycle Diaries, David Byrne’s memoir about riding bikes in various cities, has made it onto audiobook, complete with background music and narration by the author himself. [Pitchfork.com]
Ray Charles would’ve turned 80 this month, and Concord Records is celebrating by releasing a rarities compilation named Rare Genius: The Undiscovered Masters. One of the album’s highlights is a duet with Johnny Cash on Kris Kristofferson's "Why Me, Lord?" The song was originally recorded in 1981 for a Johnny Cash album that was never completed. [PasteMagazine.com]
Speaking of comps, M.Ward and Chris Walla have contributed to a double-disc album of Led Zeppelin covers. From The Land of Ice And Snow: The Songs of Led Zeppelin also features the Long Winters, Laura Veirs, and a host of Pacific Northwest artists. [TwentyFourBit.com]
Переслать - Comeback Week: Superchunk – Majesty Shredding
It’s been nine years since Superchunk released Here’s to Shutting Up. That’s a long time anywhere, but in the world of indie rock, it’s forever. Since 2001 we’ve seen the rise (and fall) of shitgaze, chillwave, cold wave, the new wave of the new wave of new wave revival, bro wave, dance punk, emo pop, beard folk, and a thousand other awesome styles and sub-styles. Somehow enough time has passed that the twin-guitar, heart-on-sleeve indie rock of Superchunk sounds fresh again. Not that the band ever sounded stale, not even close! I just meant that the new album Majesty Shredding has all the headrush energy, broken-hearted whine, and sing-along glee the band displayed in their prime.Don’t believe me? The album is streaming on NPR right now so go check for yourself.
Переслать - News Roundup: 9/9/2010
The nominations for BET’s Hip Hop Awards were announced on Wednesday, and Jay-Z, Drake, Rick Ross and Nicki Minaj have the most nods. Jay-Z leads the pack with a record-breaking 10 nominations, including Best Live Performer, Lyricist of the Year, and Best Hip-Hop Video. Meanwhile, Drake scored eight nominations, including Hustler of the Year; Minaj is up for Rookie of the Year and six other awards, and Ross also earned seven nominations. The awards show will air on BET on Tuesday, October 12 at 8 p.m. and will be hosted by comedian Mike Epps. [Billboard.com]Rich Cronin, leader of the boy band LFO, died Wednesday at age 35 from leukemia. The band was best known for its 1999 hit single “Summer Girls”; in the 2000s, Cronin appeared on the VH1 reality show Mission: Man Band, which featured fellow former boy band members Chris Kirkpatrick, Jeff Timmons and Bryan Abrams. [VH1.com]
Joe Perry isn’t holding his tongue about Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler’s decision to become an American Idol judge. In an interview with The Calgary Herald, Perry said that once the band plays the final date of their current tour on September 16, “I don’t have a job with Aerosmith.” Perry called American Idol “one step above (Teenage Mutant) Ninja Turtles” and suggested that the rest of the band might not wait for Tyler to finish his Idol stint: “(You've got) four guys that are great together, and if you find the right singer, there's no reason you can't go and entertain people.” [RockItOutBlog.com]
Lou Reed brought Susan Boyle to tears on Wednesday after rejecting her request to sing his song “Perfect Day” on America’s Got Talent. Boyle was allegedly refused permission because Reed “isn’t a Boyle fan,” which caused the singer to walk off the show in tears and head to LAX, still crying. [Pitchfork.com]
Freebass, the bassist-driven supergroup of Joy Division’s Peter Hook, the Stone Roses’ Gary “Mani” Mounfield and the Smiths’ Andy Rourke, is no more. The group announced the breakup via a statement that said in part that “Recent events have made Freebass entirely unviable as a band, and with this in mind, it has been decided that the project should be shelved, rather than placed on hiatus while members pursue their other interests.” Posts from Mounfield’s Twitter account suggest why the band may have become unviable: “I"ve actually got an ongoing career, so I don't feel the need to exploit my past glories. I exist in the here and the now!!!” he wrote, adding that the group’s still unreleased EP It’s a Beautiful Life is “… where it belongs mate…. In the fuckin’ bargain bin before it's even released. You live and learn. I'm still no 1 though.” Rourke left the group a few weeks before the statement was released. [ConsequenceofSound.net]
Amy Winehouse is contributing her first new song in three years to the Quincy Jones tribute album Q: Soul Bossa Nostra. Working with collaborator Mark Ronson once again, Winehouse covered Lesley Gore’s 1963 hit “It’s My Party,” which was one of Jones’ first hits as a producer. This is Winehouse’s first new song of note since her cover of the Zutons’ “Valerie,” which appeared on Ronson’s 2007 album The Version. The singer is still scheduled to work with Ronson on her new album, though they haven’t started recording yet. [RollingStone.com]
Venerable indie label Matador Records is celebrating its 21st birthday with a party in Las Vegas — and a limited-edition, six-disc collection of some of its best music. Matador at 21 arrives on September 28 and features a disc of live performances from the label’s 10th anniversary concerts, a disc of material from 2008 to the present, an 85-page book and “36 custom Matador poker chips in three values.” [Blurt-Online.com]
Marilyn Manson is a big fan of the HBO comedy Eastbound & Down — so big, in fact, that he dresses like the show’s Kenny Powers. Interview Magazine has photographic proof. [InterviewMagazine.com]
Video roundup: Check out the video for Surfer Blood’s warm ‘n’ fuzzy “Floating Vibes” and Interpol’s optical illusion-friendly clip for “Barricade”. [Hypetrak.com, Spinner.com]
Переслать - Comeback Week: The Vaselines – Sex with an X
With hatchets buried, wounds healed and will restored, the time was right in 2008 for Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee to reform the Vaselines. Sub Pop wanted the duo to play a set at the label’s 25th anniversary, and when Sub Pop comes calling, you answer. That show, and the other reunion shows they played, were a smashing success, and after a bit, a light bulb went off over their heads. “New album!,” it flashed and next week the results will be released. Sex with an X has all the trademark humor, irreverence and charm of their late-’80s work, with very little other than slightly better fidelity to show for their 20+ year break from being a band. They could have picked almost any song from the album to be the lead-off single; they chose the title track and here’s the video:
Click here to view the embedded video.
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