XYMOX
TWIST OF SHADOWS
1989-POLYGRAM
Produced By GREG & PETER WALSH
1. Evelyn
2. Obsession
3. Craving
4. Blind Hearts
5. The River
6. A Million Things
7. Tonight
8. Imagination
9. In The City
10. Clementina
Clan Of Xymox is a new wave band formed in the Netherlands in 1981 by a trio of songwriters: Ronny Moorings, Anka Wolbert and Pieter Nooten. They are considered pioneers in the genre of darkwave, and continue today as more of a goth band. After their first two albums didn’t get much attention, they shortened their name to Xymox and released Twist Of Shadows, and found sudden (but not huge) success in, of all places, the United States. While going mostly unnoticed in the rest of the world, Twist Of Shadows had three American hit singles: “Obsession”, “Blind Hearts”, and “Imagination”.
Twist Of Shadows is more of a pop album than their first two, and gained the band a kind of short lived cult status. It’s a very dancable album, with several uptempo songs, but it’s also very listenable, and contains elements of darker than new wave music. Dutch electronic music from the 80’s may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but if you dig it, this album will work nicely. Think of them as a kind of New Order type of band. They changed their name back to Clan Of Xymox in the 90’s, and they still play today. Twist Of Shadows is still their strongest album.
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MUSE
ABSOLUTION
2003-TASTE
Produced By RICH COSTEY, JOHN CORNFIELD, MUSE & PAUL REEVE
1. Intro
2. Apocalypse Please
3. Time Is Running Out
4. Sing For Absolution
5. Stockholm Syndrome
6. Falling Away With You
7. Hysteria
8. Interlude
9. Blackout
10. Butterflies & Hurricanes
11. The Small Print
12. Endlessly
13. Thoughts Of A Dying Atheist
14. Ruled By Secrecy
You know it’s gonna be a good day when you wake up singing “Sing For Absolution” by Muse. One of the truly great bands of the 2000’s, Muse released an amazing trio of albums between 2001 and 2006. Origin Of Symmetry, Absolution, and Black Holes & Revelations are as strong a trio as anyone has released, and surely the most recent string of successful albums in a long time. Absolution, from 2003, is the pinnacle of that success. Blending the huge sound of progressive symphonic rock and electronic music with the big sound of Matthew Bellamy’s guitars, Absolution is an absolute wall of music.
Impressive…as Muse is a three piece band. They make the most of it, though. Bellamy writes large, spacious songs with plenty of room for big sound, and the rhythm section of Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard is as good as it gets. Not only that, but the songs are catchy as hell. “Stockholm Syndrome” was the lead single, but also excellent are “Hysteria”, “Sing For Absolution”, and “Time Is Running Out”. If there’s anything negative to say about Absolution, it’s that maybe Bellamy’s voice can be a bit off putting…but that’s easy to get past…and he does have a great range. Muse is an exciting band with a huge sound, and Absolution is the album I would recommend first.
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LBEB
SHARE THE LIGHT
2006-SELF RELEASED
Produced By GARY M. RICH
1. Another Crazy Day
2. Southern Cross
3. Paradise
4. Song For Lisa
5. Touch & Go
6. Buckles & Bows
7. Sleepless Nights
8. Heartland
9. American Dream
10. Share The Light
Share The Light is an independent album by LBEB, which features my friend and the former bass player for Roadside Attraction (as well as my previous project Red Cloud) Spencer Pyne. _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
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LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO
SHAKA ZULU
1987-WARNER BROTHERS
Produced By PAUL SIMON
1. Unomathemba
2. Hello My Baby
3. Golgotha
4. King Of Kings
5. Lomhlaba Kawunoni (The Earth Never Gets Fat)
6. How Long?
7. Ikhaya Lamaqhawe
8. Yibo Labo (These Are The Guys)
9. Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain
10. Wawusho Kubani? (Who Were You Talking To?)
Ladysmith Black Mambazo had already been a successful act in Africa for 26 years when they were enlisted to help out Paul Simon on his Graceland album. Graceland shot the group to a sudden and massive international success, including in the United States, where world music was mostly an afterthought. But the group had appeared on Saturday Night Live with Simon and toured with him…and Graceland was maybe the biggest album of 1986. So it made sense that they went back into the studio to record what would be their 21t studio album with Simon as producer .
Shaka Zulu is different from other Ladysmith releases in that it was created with America in mind. Even the lyrics are printed in English to help the American listener. But the most important thing is that regardless of marketing, the music of this group is as beautiful as ever. This is a vocal group that sings in a specific Zulu style that is hauntingly beautiful. The songs on Shaka Zulu marked a perfect introduction for American audiences to their sound, and still stands today as an important landmark in the evolution of world music in America. They were popular for a few years here, then drifted back to what they were before: extremely talented and not well known outside of Africa. But this is amazing music, as is anything else you’ll ever find by them.
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BRIAN ENO
ANOTHER GREEN WORLD
1975-ASTRALWERKS
Produced By BRIAN ENO & RHETT DAVIES
1. Sky Saw
2. Over Fire Island
3. St. Elmo’s Fire
4. In Dark Trees
5. The Big Ship
6. I’ll Come Running
7. Another Green World
8. Sombre Reptiles
9. Little Fishes
10. Golden Hours
11. Becalmed
12. Zawinul/Lava
13. Everything Merges With The Night
14. Spirits Drifting
Genius, innovator, visionary. There aren’t many people in music who can be called all three, but Brian Eno is one of them. Eno’s career began as a member of Roxy Music, quitting after the For Your Pleasure album because of disputes with Bryan Ferry. His solo career has been greatly prolific and highly influencial. He has also been one of the top producers of his time working on great albums by bands like U2, Talking Heads and David Bowie. Eno continues today as a major force in music, and is considered the father of ambient music.
Another Green World is Eno’s third studio solo album. He brings in plenty of guests (Robert Fripp, Phil Collins and John Cale), and shows that he was growing quickly as a songwriter. Not caring about what was deemed sellable in 1975, only 5 of the 14 songs have lyrics, and his experimental use of instrumentation works on every level. Though not truly an electronic album, Another Green World certainly points the way for the future of the genre. As with most of what Eno has done in his career, Another Green World is a masterwork, melding pop seamlessly with the avant garde and the experimental. One of his most accessible albums, and a must have if you’re any kind of fan of Eno’s work.
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[youtube][https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PzeTmiYylA[/youtube]
Another Green World has been used as the basis of a performance by one of the world’s best but Belgian dance theater groups Rosas led by Anne-Theresa De Keersmaeker I’ve been to; very nice[/youtube]
UNCLE TUPELO
STILL FEEL GONE
1991-ROCKVILLE
Produced By PAUL Q. KOLDERIE & SEAN SLADE
1. Gun
2. Looking For A Way Out
3. Fall Down Easy
4. Nothing
5. Still Be Around
6. Watch Me Fall
7. Punch Drunk
8. Postcard
9. D. Boon
10. True To Life
11. Cold Shoulder
12. Discarded
13. If That’s Alright
14. Sauget Wind
15. I Wanna Destroy You
16. Watch Me Fall (Demo)
17. Looking For A Way Out (Demo: Fast Version)
18. If That’s Alright (Demo: Fast Acoustic Version)
Nobody really knew who Uncle Tupelo was while they were together, but they gained a lot of fame after their breakup. A lot had to do with the bands the members formed afterwards: Jay Farrar started Son Volt, and Jeff Tweedy started Wilco. But while they were together, Uncle Tupelo jump started alt country. Their last two albums are landmarks in the genre, and their first album (No Depression) even gave alt country its nickname. Their second album? Still Feel Gone is maybe the least mentioned of the four. It’s almost the same album as No Depression, as there wasn’t a whole lot of growth from them initially.
Here, the band is still trying to find its identity. At this point, they were still basically a punk band that wasn’t afraid to play acoustically…and they seemed fascinated with outlaw country music. The band had pretty much no country chops, but they try hard. And as strange as it is to hear a punk band trying to navigate country music alongside a tribute to The Minuteman’s D. Boon, it’s also fascinating to hear the growing pains of what would become alt country’s guiding light. Still Feel Gone is an extension of No Depression, and is the weakest of the four Tupelo studio albums. But it’s still got some great moments, and it’s still worth having.
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GOLDEN SMOG
WEIRD TALES
1998-RYKODISC
Produced By BRIAN PAULSON
1. To Call My Own
2. Looking Forward To Seeing you
3. Until You Came Along
4. Lost Love
5. If I Only Had A Car
6. Jane
7. Keys
8. I Can’t Keep From Talking
9. Reflections On My
10. Making Waves
11. White Shell Road
12. Please Tell My Brother
13. Fear Of Falling
14. All The Same To Me
15. Jennifer Save Me
Easily the most fun of any supergroup in history, Golden Smog began life in 1987 as Take It To The Limit, when they played a show of Eagles covers and “Walk Like An Egyptian”. Their next show was as Her Satanic Majesty’s Paycheck. The original recording band was Dan Murphy (Soul Asylum), Gary Louris and Marc Perlman (Jayhawks), Kraig Johnson (Run Westy Run) and Chris Mars (The Replacements). Mars was eventually replaced by Big Star drummer Jody Stephens, and the band added Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy. After an EP of covers called On Golden Smog, they released their first album, Down By The Old Mainstream, in 1995.
Weird Tales came next. Part of what makes Golden Smog so appealing, their sense of fun and not taking themselves too seriously, is what makes most of their albums a disappointment. And while the Louris and Tweedy material is fine, the songs by Murphy tend to be a downer, and Kraig Johnson is a pretty awful singer (you’ve got a band full of lead singers, Kraig…give it up!). You get the feeling that they could have taken their time a bit more and come up with a better finished product. Plus, on Weird Tales, there’s nothing as fine as the previous album’s “Radio King” or “Pecan Pie” to hold it up. Weird Tales is a good sounding album with nothing that will stick in your head to enjoy later.
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HOTHOUSE FLOWERS
PEOPLE
1988-POLLYGRAM
Produced By CLIVE LANGER & ALAN WINSTANLEY
1. I’m Sorry
2. Don’t Go
3. Forgiven
4. It’ll Be Easier In The Morning
5. Hallelujah Jordan
6. If You Go
7. The Older We Get
8. Yes I Was
9. Love Don’t Work This Way
10. Ballad Of Katie
11. Feet On The Ground
12. Lonely Lane
13. Saved
After the success of U2, there was a long line of Irish bands signing record deals and trying to make a serious mark in the music industry. But none came as close to Bono & Company as Hothouse Flowers did, if even for only one album. The band impressed Bono so much that he had their first single released on U2’s label. The subsequent debut album, People, became and still is the best selling Irish debut album ever made, and its success was worldwide. Even though the band is still together today, they quickly slowed down and have recorded sporadically, with nothing near the success of their debut.
Ah, but there is People. Almost lost in the confused musical world of 1988 was this positively great album. “Don’t Go” was a breath of fresh air in the dying world of New Wave and the height of hair metal power ballads. The unique Hothouse Flowers blend of American soul and traditional Celtic was never more evident than on “Don’t Go” and “I’m Sorry”, maybe the best out of the gate one-two punch of the decade. “Love Don’t Work This Way” is the song that got Bono’s attention, and it’s superb. “It’ll Be Easier In The Morning” and “The Older We Get”…and, hell, everything else here, is outstanding. One of the better albums of the 80’s, and an almost forgotten gem…which is really a shame.
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LOUIS ARMSTRONG & KING OLIVER
1992-MILESTONE
Produced By ORRIN KEEPNEWS
1. Just Gone
2. Canal Street Blues
3. Mandy Lee Blues
4. I’m Going Away To Wear You Off My Mind
5. Chimes Blues
6. Weather Bird Rag
7. Dipper Mouth Blues
8. Froggie Moore
9. Snake Rag
10. Alligator Hop
11. Zulu’s Ball
12. Workingman’s Blues
13. Krooked Blues
14. Mabel’s Dream (1st Take)
15. Mabel’s Dream (2nd Take)
16. Southern Stomp (1st Take)
17. Southern Stomp (2nd Take)
18. Riverside Blues
19. Texas Moaner Blues
20. Of All The Wrongs You’ve Done To Me
21. Terrible Blues
22. Santa Claus Blues
23. Nobody Knows The Way I Feel This Morning
24. Early Every Morn
25. Cake Walking Babies From Home
This is a collection of some of the greatest jazz recordings of the early 1920’s. Louis Armstrong came from New Orleans to Chicago to play with his idol King Oliver in 1923. The result was this compilation of recordings which consists of everything they did together. Oliver and Armstrong both played cornet, with Oliver as the lead player. Their improvisational two part interplay was revolutionary, and is still the standard to this day. Despite the poor quality of these 90 year old records, these sessions produced some of the greatest jazz of the 20th century. Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band with Armstrong on board was a force to be reckoned with: these are serious players making some of the most amazing music you’ll ever hear.
Armstrong left for New York with the piano player Lil Harden, who he would soon marry, and formed the famous Hot Fives and Hot Sevens bands. He remained a legend until his death in 1971. Oliver’s band declined, and he ended up quitting music and becoming a janitor before he died in 1938. All of the musicians here are long gone, but for one brief moment in 1923, they were all a part of a very special musical history. These amazing recordings bring a lost time and lost music back to life, and should not only be heard, but treasured.
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