Author: jerobear
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Area 11: Modern Synthesis
Opener Override (C) promises Enter Shakiri style dance/rock/metal, but with more neck twiddling on the guitar. But The Contract is more pop punk than anything while Watchmaker suggests Muse-like ambitions, with a synth opening, though it’s a pop take on Muse, Area 11 not quite having the heft to do a full muse. Versus goes…
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Masaaki Suzuki: Stravinsky, Pulcinella Suite / Apollon Musagète / Concerto for Strings
Rather like the other classical CDs this week, we suspect that because we like this, purists may well have something to harp on about. Suzuki is an expert on Bach — he is recording the complete choral works of Bach, as well as Bach’s concertos, orchestral suites, and solo works for harpsichord and organ —…
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Hattie Briggs: Young Runaway
This enjoyable folk/pop album reminded us of Texan singer Keri Noble. We bought her 2005 album Fearless and play it quite often still; what makes the album is her voice, which is crystal clear and refreshing. Nothing you could put your finger on, just honest and easy on the ear, with no vocal gymnastics, quirks…
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Teenage Fanclub: Here
We suspect this review is aimed only at non-Fannies (as the band is known). The true fans will have bought this, probably after studying the band members’ DNA for flaws and cross-referencing with what singer Norman Blake had for tea on Wednesdays in 2003. Looking at reviews of this and their live gigs, we saw…
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The Handsome Family: Unseen
Based on a series of complex algorithms, this is the second best album* we have received to review in the <mumble mumble> years we’ve been doing this reviewing game. That doesn’t mean it’s got the best tunes or the best singing or the wildest guitar solos: it’s a combination of meticulous song-writing, musicianship, production and…
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Martha: Blisters In the Pit Of My Heart
We call this punk because they do, but it’s as much indie as punk, and it’s rather marvellous. Hailing from the splendidly named hamlet of Pity Me (either a shortening of something like Petit Mere or an ironic name for an agriculturally barren area), Martha play a kind of indie emo punk. Musically, it’s bright…
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Peter Sheppard Skærved: The Great Violins, Vol2: Niccolò Amati
Peter Sheppard Skærved is a classical version of Top Gear, except rather than jumping in a dream supercar for a jaunt across Europe, he jaunts the world finding and then playing superviolins. Like Top Gear, however, his presentation is populist, with readable sleeve notes and accessible music. The music itself is jaunty, in fact. This…
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Biffy Clyro: Ellipses
We’ve been fans of Biffy in the Review Corner for yonks, from back when they were three wee lads from Glasgow making in-your-face rock that was somewhere between metal and prog. Since then they’ve become bigger and bigger and the sound has evolved to this. It’s a bit Thin Lizzy, whose early albums are much…
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Little Brother: Eli Cold Tales
No-one likes a smart alec graduate turning up and telling them what to do at work, with all the experience a piece of paper brings, and no-one seems to like a slick rock band that turns up anthem-ready. Like learning on the job at work, we expect bands to play the toilet circuit and evolve…
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