DIRTY BRIEFS: DEADLY SNAKES, DEADSTRING
BROTHERS, EELS, REBECCA ZAPEN, SONIC YOUTH,
THE LOONS, DEVO, THE PLANET THE, INARA
GEORGE, MICHAEL ANDREWS & MIRANDA JULY,
UGLY THINGS...
BROTHERS, EELS, REBECCA ZAPEN, SONIC YOUTH,
THE LOONS, DEVO, THE PLANET THE, INARA
GEORGE, MICHAEL ANDREWS & MIRANDA JULY,
UGLY THINGS...
CLICK IMAGES FOR LABEL LINKS
Robert Pollard
From A Compound Eye
Merge
From A Compound Eye is the highly anticipated 26-song
double album from Robert Pollard, his first solo
record since he closed down Guided By Voices.
Ironically, it suffers from the expectations Pollard
was hoping to put an end to. That doesn't mean it
isn't worth the time and money; it most certainly is,
but much like GBV's sprawling opus, Mag Earwhig!,
there's a missing X-factor that keeps the record from
feeling whole. All the highlights just don't add up
for reasons that are difficult to grasp. And though
it's lacking the hooks of watermarks like Bee Thousand
and Isolation Drills, this is not that kind of record.
It's more along the lines of his horror-prog project
The Circus Devils, mixed with more human concerns and
contradictions like love/lust, confidence/self-doubt,
and life/death. All this equals a feeling of rebirth,
which couldn't be more fitting. For the moment,
Pollard's renaissance appears partially obscured, but
like all great art, the merits of FACE will continue
to be revealed.
--Bart Bealmear
Cordero
En Este Momento
Bloodshot
I can count on Bloodshot to put something cool and offbeat in my p.o. box. Ani
Cordero started this band in Tucson Arizona in early 1999 borrowing members of
Tucson’s Calexico and Giant Sand. In 2000 Ani moved to New York City and
reformed the band with her husband Chris Verene (formerly of Merge Records’ The
Rock*A*Teens and D.Q.E.). This is Cordero’s fourth record, but the first I have heard.
It’s a fresh sound; upbeat and romantic. The driving beats, Latin influence and sultry
bilingual vocals make En Este Momento a genuine pleasure.
Circuit
Eau de Humanity
WEA Distribution
This band reminds me of being stuck in traffic on my daily commute. You know, when
there is nothing on the radio and after ten minutes in seek mode you settle on some
crappy new metal tune, trying desperately to find something you like about it because
the alternative is beating your head against the steering wheel. If Circuit is on the air,
it is a bit of a toss up. The most remarkable thing about this band is that they are
from Ottawa. Beyond that they are more of the same post-grunge alt. metal (their
producer also worked with Nickelback). On song three the male vocals sound like a
big hairy Alanis Morrisette. Eau de Humanity hits all the stops from power ballads to
pinch harmonics; lots and lots of pointless non-melodic guitar wank and clichéd lyrics.
Just like the cologne on the cover, this band is cheesy and stinky.
Mommy and Daddy
Duel at Dawn
Kanine Records
For many years I felt like The Jesus and Mary Chain’s Psychocandy was a guilty
pleasure; something to keep to myself. It turns out for many this was an important
album; the limitations of the band freed many from the restrictions of 80s rock. In a
way The Jesus and Mary Chain was my age cohort’s Velvet Underground. Anyway,
since then, give me anything catchy, dark and fuzzy that still calls itself pop and I am
generally satisfied. Mommy and Daddy meet said criteria. Duel at Dawn is fun, high-
energy stuff with lots of fuzz-bass skronk-keyboard girl-boy freakouts. Dance!
The 88
Over and Over
Mootron Records/EMK Records
I wonder if these boys from L.A have heard of the Delta 88. No matter. The mod 60s
cover gave me a start. It is a bit generic looking and has little to do with the sound of
The 88 but I have some personal history with the round silver Electrohome turntable
on the cover. I found my first one at a Value Village in Ypsilanti in the late 80s. It was
$10. That was the golden age of thrifting (have you read the zine book Thriftscore?
Highly recommended!). That record player was so fun and spacey. I hooked it up to a
groovy stereo 8-track which acted as the amplifier. My room looked like the inside of
a spaceship. I lost that turntable along with lots of other treasures in a house fire a
year later. I remember digging it out of the rubble and trying to clean the smoke
damage off the clear domed dust cover, to no avail. The turntable itself was damaged
beyond repair, but I loved it so much I kept it anyway. A few years ago, some 15
years later, I found the same model on eBay. It cost quite a bit more but I happily
snapped it up.
So yeah, I had high hopes here for some music to match the cover art. Problem
number one is the music doesn’t sound like anything that would have been played on
that round silver turntable. The 88 are arty “alternative” radio pop sometimes
reminiscent of Queen and Radiohead with lots of clever changes and the like. There
is some talent here and some good ideas but the overly produced sound, the
uninspired band name, the white guy with dread locks, and the band’s L.A. location
leave me feeling like some guys got together and forced out a pop album, they
succeed there, but it is too typical and safe for my taste.
The Nervous Return
Wake Up Dead
La Salle Records
This was released in 2004 but it takes me back to 1994. Sounds a lot like Girls
Against Boys or Fugazi with a subtle ska thing thrown in. It’s competent noise pop
with chanty vox and funky rhythms.
--Craig Campbell
From A Compound Eye
Merge
From A Compound Eye is the highly anticipated 26-song
double album from Robert Pollard, his first solo
record since he closed down Guided By Voices.
Ironically, it suffers from the expectations Pollard
was hoping to put an end to. That doesn't mean it
isn't worth the time and money; it most certainly is,
but much like GBV's sprawling opus, Mag Earwhig!,
there's a missing X-factor that keeps the record from
feeling whole. All the highlights just don't add up
for reasons that are difficult to grasp. And though
it's lacking the hooks of watermarks like Bee Thousand
and Isolation Drills, this is not that kind of record.
It's more along the lines of his horror-prog project
The Circus Devils, mixed with more human concerns and
contradictions like love/lust, confidence/self-doubt,
and life/death. All this equals a feeling of rebirth,
which couldn't be more fitting. For the moment,
Pollard's renaissance appears partially obscured, but
like all great art, the merits of FACE will continue
to be revealed.
--Bart Bealmear
Cordero
En Este Momento
Bloodshot
I can count on Bloodshot to put something cool and offbeat in my p.o. box. Ani
Cordero started this band in Tucson Arizona in early 1999 borrowing members of
Tucson’s Calexico and Giant Sand. In 2000 Ani moved to New York City and
reformed the band with her husband Chris Verene (formerly of Merge Records’ The
Rock*A*Teens and D.Q.E.). This is Cordero’s fourth record, but the first I have heard.
It’s a fresh sound; upbeat and romantic. The driving beats, Latin influence and sultry
bilingual vocals make En Este Momento a genuine pleasure.
Circuit
Eau de Humanity
WEA Distribution
This band reminds me of being stuck in traffic on my daily commute. You know, when
there is nothing on the radio and after ten minutes in seek mode you settle on some
crappy new metal tune, trying desperately to find something you like about it because
the alternative is beating your head against the steering wheel. If Circuit is on the air,
it is a bit of a toss up. The most remarkable thing about this band is that they are
from Ottawa. Beyond that they are more of the same post-grunge alt. metal (their
producer also worked with Nickelback). On song three the male vocals sound like a
big hairy Alanis Morrisette. Eau de Humanity hits all the stops from power ballads to
pinch harmonics; lots and lots of pointless non-melodic guitar wank and clichéd lyrics.
Just like the cologne on the cover, this band is cheesy and stinky.
Mommy and Daddy
Duel at Dawn
Kanine Records
For many years I felt like The Jesus and Mary Chain’s Psychocandy was a guilty
pleasure; something to keep to myself. It turns out for many this was an important
album; the limitations of the band freed many from the restrictions of 80s rock. In a
way The Jesus and Mary Chain was my age cohort’s Velvet Underground. Anyway,
since then, give me anything catchy, dark and fuzzy that still calls itself pop and I am
generally satisfied. Mommy and Daddy meet said criteria. Duel at Dawn is fun, high-
energy stuff with lots of fuzz-bass skronk-keyboard girl-boy freakouts. Dance!
The 88
Over and Over
Mootron Records/EMK Records
I wonder if these boys from L.A have heard of the Delta 88. No matter. The mod 60s
cover gave me a start. It is a bit generic looking and has little to do with the sound of
The 88 but I have some personal history with the round silver Electrohome turntable
on the cover. I found my first one at a Value Village in Ypsilanti in the late 80s. It was
$10. That was the golden age of thrifting (have you read the zine book Thriftscore?
Highly recommended!). That record player was so fun and spacey. I hooked it up to a
groovy stereo 8-track which acted as the amplifier. My room looked like the inside of
a spaceship. I lost that turntable along with lots of other treasures in a house fire a
year later. I remember digging it out of the rubble and trying to clean the smoke
damage off the clear domed dust cover, to no avail. The turntable itself was damaged
beyond repair, but I loved it so much I kept it anyway. A few years ago, some 15
years later, I found the same model on eBay. It cost quite a bit more but I happily
snapped it up.
So yeah, I had high hopes here for some music to match the cover art. Problem
number one is the music doesn’t sound like anything that would have been played on
that round silver turntable. The 88 are arty “alternative” radio pop sometimes
reminiscent of Queen and Radiohead with lots of clever changes and the like. There
is some talent here and some good ideas but the overly produced sound, the
uninspired band name, the white guy with dread locks, and the band’s L.A. location
leave me feeling like some guys got together and forced out a pop album, they
succeed there, but it is too typical and safe for my taste.
The Nervous Return
Wake Up Dead
La Salle Records
This was released in 2004 but it takes me back to 1994. Sounds a lot like Girls
Against Boys or Fugazi with a subtle ska thing thrown in. It’s competent noise pop
with chanty vox and funky rhythms.
--Craig Campbell
