IRON & WINE & BEN BRIDWELL
SING INTO MY MOUTH
2015 – BROWN / BLACK CRICKET
Produced By SAM BEAM
1. This Must Be The Place (Naïve Melody)
2. Done This Before
3. Any Day Woman
4. You Know Me More Than I Know
5. Bulletproof Soul
6. There’s No Way Out Of Here
7. God Knows (You Gotta Give To Get)
8. The Straight And Narrow
9. Magnolia
10. Am I A Good Man?
11. Ab’s Song
12. Coyote, My Little Brother
This is a pretty sweet pairing. Iron & Wine (Sam Beam) makes beautiful records of folk rock, and Ben Bridwell, who is the face of Band Of Horses, got together to make a country folk album of covers in 2015. The two sound great together, but the album is not without its issues. The songs are very slow, making it more atmospheric than interesting. And while the song choices are good, these covers will not turn many heads. Everything here is pretty obscure. The most recognizable song is the opener, “This Must Be The Place (Naïve Melody)” from the Talking Heads 1983 album Speaking In Tongues. And the album title, which comes from that song, could be a lot more inviting. But there is, surprisingly, a hefty dose of twang which lifts the material from the level of flatlining.
The artists covered here are from a wide scope. Everyone from Ronnie Lane to Spiritualized to The Marshall Tucker Band to John Cale to Sade gets a song here, all well played but arranged in a far too lazy manner. Songs from much lesser known artists like Unicorn and El Perro Del Mar are here as well. Beam and Bridwell stick to their theme here, and while it sounds great, it becomes invisible after so many consecutive songs at the same slow tempo. This is the only album to date by this pair, both being quite busy with their own careers. If they do decide to do it again, my hope would be that they would bring more beat to the proceedings. Sing Into My Mouth is good, but it could have been much better. Still worth at least a listen.
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MICHAEL LILLE
MIDDLE CHILD
1996 – DOWNSTREAM
Produced By MICHAEL LILLE
1. That’s The Spirit
2. Christopher And Freddy
3. The Middle Child
4. The Blessing Of His Birth
5. Another Dream Come True
6. Perfect Strangers
7. Walkin’ Away
8. Our Family Name
9. Before You Know
10. Big On Big
11. Jesse Wells
12. Ships
13. The Middle Child (Reprise)
Michael Lille is a singer – songwriter from Fairfax, Virginia. He’s played just about everywhere, including Nashville, where he made some friends being just about everybody’s opening act in the nineties. He’s spent time in a trio of lesser known bands, and made a go at a solo recording career between 1991 and 2000, when he released three of his four albums. Middle Child is the second of that trio of records, and is notable mostly for having a guest harmony singer on one song named Alison Krauss. Many of his songs have Christian themes, and his music is more along the lines of adult contemporary folk than country. Which you may find enjoyable, but won’t result in a lot of record sales outside of folk music festivals…where Lille can easily be found.
Lille is a fine guitarist, in the most laid back style. He’s a good enough singer as well. Some of the songs here aren’t as strong as he’s capable of, and he emphasizes his desire to be as mellow as possible with the use of flutes, horns, and brushes instead of sticks on those drums. The result is that Middle Child is pretty. It’s well played, well sung, and will most likely put you to sleep. If that’s what you’re looking for, that’s fine. Even the Krauss vocal (“The Blessing Of His Birth”) is not remarkable. Lille’s albums are interchangeable, each with different guests (Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Valerie Carter) and similar sounding songs. But none of them will grab you and shake you. Have you ever been mellow? If you’ve listened to this, then the answer is yes. _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
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BIG BLACK
SONGS ABOUT FUCKING
1987 – TOUCH AND GO
Produced By BIG BLACK
1. The Power Of Independent Trucking
2. The Model
3. Bad Penny
4. L Dopa
5. Precious Thing
6. Colombian Necktie
7. Kitty Empire
8. Ergot
9. Kasimir S. Pulaski Day
10. Fish Fry
11. Pavement Saw
12. Bombastic Intro
13. He’s A Whore
Yeah. The good old days. When nobody was offended. Right. When the radio would bleep out single words on songs by controversial bands like Pink Floyd and The Steve Miller Band. In 1987, Big Black released their second and final album called Songs About Fucking. It’s a short and brutal album of hardcore punk that you most certainly could not bring home and let your parents see it. Guitarist Steve Albini (who passed away earlier this year) spits dark lyrics about everything morbid, and the music here is fast, unrelenting, acidic and relentlessly terrifying. Yes, the album title is a shocker. It needs to be, because the tamest thing about this record is its title. One of the last great punk documents before the genre turned soft, pop and mainstream.
Big Black had already decided to break up before this was recorded, so it also works as a big farewell for the band. Any hits here? The closest thing was a single that included the two covers from the album: “The Model” is a Kraftwerk song from 1978, and “He’s A Whore” (only on the CD version) was from the debut album by Cheap Trick in 1977. Big Black was not about hits…Big Black was about loud, fast and honest, and that’s exactly what you get here. A perfect farewell album. Albini had a long and fruitful career with Shellac, and as a recording engineer. Songs About Fucking got hardcore and punk music right, and should be remembered for more than the album title. This is one to crank up and destroy some of the furniture in your house to. Highly recommended.
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TYLER CHILDERS
BOTTLES & BIBLES
2011 – SELF RELEASED
NO PRODUCTION CREDIT
1. Hard Times
2. Junction City Queen
3. We’ve Had Our Fun
4. Coal
5. Good Thing Windin’ Down
6. Play Me A Hank Song
7. If Whiskey Could Talk
8. The Harvest
9. Detroit
10. Bottles And Bibles
11. The Gospel (According To Fishermen)
12. Silence
13. Long Hard Road
Since 2017, Tyler Childers has had a successful career in country music. This is not that story. Six years earlier, the then 19 year old Childers self- released his first album. It was not a success. It is, however, somewhat rare to find a physical copy, making it one of the more valuable cd’s in my collection. Childers is adamant that he does not sing Americana music…it’s country. He’s become an interesting voice, and this is a great way to hear the talent he was developing at an early age. It’s a true solo album…Bottles & Bibles is mostly all Childers with voice and guitar, with only sparse accompaniment. His haunting Kentucky voice is perfect for the setting, and you could tell here that this young man was going to become a songwriting force. This is country, folk, traditional southern music, done the right way.
Not every song here is a winner, but the ones that are…look out. “Hard Times” and “Coal” are well written, mature beyond their writer’s years, and should have been hits. “Play Me A Hank Song” is pure country genius. Bottles & Bibles foreshadows the success that Childers would have with albums like Purgatory and Country Squire. It’s surprising that it’s never been actually reissued…it was available on cd for awhile only by Amazon, who would print you a copy when you ordered it, but that’s been reduced to digital only sales. It’s easy enough to hear this album, you just have to really dig to get it on cd. And it’s never been available on vinyl. Tyler Childers is a fine artist, always worth hearing. If you do run across a copy of this one…snatch it up!
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TARAF DE HAIDOUKS
BAND OF GYPSIES
2001 – CRAMMED DISCS
Produced By STEPHANE KARO & VINCENT KENIS
1. Dance Of The Firemen
2. A La Turk
3. Sorrow, My Only Sorrow
4. The Return Of The Magic Horses
5. A Gypsy Had A House
6. A Stork Crosses The Danube, In The Company Of A Raven
7. Absinth I Drink You, Absinth I Eat You
8. Caciruca Dances
9. Carolina
10. Green Leaf, Clover Leaf
11. I’m A Gambling Man
12. Little Buds
13. Bride In A Red Dress
14. Back To Clejani
Better sit down to listen to this…these guys can flat out play! This band of traditional Romanian musicians is pretty incredible, and they’ve been recognized as such. The word gypsy is no longer considered correct…they are now better known as Romani. This band comes from the Romanian village of Clejani, a place long renowned for their musical abilities. Known in Romania as Taraful Haiducilor, they are known in the rest of the world as Taraf De Haidouks. They released their first album in 1991, and have been revered ever since. Several of the band’s members have died, many in their 70’s and 80’s, but the group lives on. This traditional music is something to behold. It’s mostly fast and exhilarating, and it’s definitely not something you hear from day to day.
Band Of Gypsies is a live album played at different locations in Budapest (“Little Buds” is a studio recording). It includes a number of guest musicians, and is staggering in its pure musicianship and the quality of the songs. Many are instrumental, where this group really lets go and tears the roof off. The vocals that are here are sung in the Romani language, so you won’t likely understand them, but that’s okay. This group is excellent enough to have been embraced in the west by the likes of the Kronos Quartet, Johnny Depp and Danny Elfman. Band Of Gypsies is their fifth album, sitting right in the center of their discography. If you like this, there are nine other official albums to explore. This is truly great music, and should be heard at least once.
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R.E.M.
LIFES RICH PAGEANT
1986 – I.R.S.
Produced By DON GEHMAN
1. Begin The Begin
2. These Days
3. Fall On Me
4. Cuyahoga
5. Hyena
6. The Flowers Of Guatemala
7. I Believe
8. What If We Give It Away?
9. Just A Touch
10. Swan Swan H
In 1986, R.E.M. was still a not very well known college band, but that was about to change. Bringing in producer Don Gehman, the band’s fourth album, Lifes Rich Pageant, started the band’s turn towards a more commercial sound that would be rounded out on their next release, 1987’s Document. But even though they were still fairly obscure on this record, it’s kind of a perfect transitional album. They were moving from the strange alternative sound of their early records towards more mainstream rock, and this disc sits favorably right in between the two. Michael Stipe’s singing was becoming more intelligible, and the songwriting was showing more maturity every day. This is where the momentum of their huge success began. It wasn’t there yet…but it was well on the way.
You won’t find any hits here, but that’s okay. What you will find is a band growing up fast, and writing very good material. Highlights include “Fall On Me”, the banjo intro led “I Believe”, and the unlisted track “Superman”, a cover from a band called The Clique that is sung by bassist Mike Mills. This is the record where R.E.M. learns that they can easily rock, and the confidence they show over Fables Of The Reconstruction is huge. Life’s Rich Pageant is often overlooked because it is a transitional album, but that just means that it can be a fine discovery. Even though it has no hits, it is everything that made R.E.M. such a great band. Recorded at John Mellencamp’s studio in Indiana, this is a gem in the R.E.M. discography that you really shouldn’t miss.
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HEAVEN 17
PENTHOUSE AND PAVEMENT
1981 – VIRGIN
Produced By BRITISH ELECTRONIC FOUNDATION
1. (We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang
2. Penthouse And Pavement
3. Play To Win
4. Soul Warfare
5. Geisha Boys And Temple Girls
6. Let’s All Make A Bomb
7. The Height Of The Fighting
8. Song With No Name
9. We’re Going To Live For A Very Long Time
10. I’m Your Money (Extended Mix)
11. Play To Win (Extended Mix)
In 1980, Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh left Human League to form a new band, Heaven 17. Their debut album was Penthouse And Pavement, which did fairly well in their native England despite not having any notable hits. It is, like many of the early synth pop records, very quirky and experimental, and because of its close proximity to the late seventies British punk movement, it has politically charged lyrics that were, at the time, controversial. The band had actually began as a production company called the British Electronic Foundation, which Ware and Marsh soon abandoned in favor of making music as Heaven 17. The band did have some success in the eighties, but were unable to reach the heights of groups like Depeche Mode and New Order…or even Human League.
The most recognizable and memorable track from this album is “(We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang", which was banned by the BBC. “Play To Win” and “The Height Of Fighting” also got some airplay, but didn’t quite make it as hits. The strange corporate poster looking album art is oddly cool as well. But even though they made five albums in the eighties, Heaven 17 never really made it big, even though they continue on to this day. Much of the synth work sounds dated and clunky, and the production is pretty much the opposite of warm. Their biggest record was the next one, 1983’s The Luxury Gap. Penthouse And Pavement remains interesting enough, and it has enough good songs to hold your interest. An average album from a second level new wave band.
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LINKIN PARK
HYBRID THEORY
2000 – WARNER BROS
Produced By DON GILMORE
1. Papercut
2. One Step Closer
3. With You
4. Points Of Authority
5. Crawling
6. Runaway
7. By Myself
8. In The End
9. A Place For My Head
10. Forgotten
11. Cure For The Itch
12. Pushing Me Away
The 2000’s dawned with the genre of nu metal at its peak…and no one rode that wave more dynamically than Linkin Park. Their debut album was Hybrid Theory (which was once the name of the band), and it was a huge smash. Metal with major elements of hip hop and electronica, it was a perfect recipe for success. Led by the powerful vocals of Chester Bennington, Linkin Park became one of nu metal’s greatest bands, and they went on to become one of the best selling rock bands of the new century. This album sold a massive thirty million copies worldwide, and became a top ten record in almost every country in the world. Yes, the older listeners who grew up on classic rock didn’t get the appeal or the sound, but that’s okay. It’s the kids who know…and the kids who make rock bands big stars.
Four singles were released from Hybrid Theory, with the big hit being “In The End”, which became the band’s biggest selling song. “Crawling”, “Papercut”, and “One Step Closer” were also hits. The vocal interplay between Bennington’s soaring and sometimes frightening high notes and the rapping of guitarist Mike Shinoda works very well, and a metal band with a turntablist is actually kind of cool. This album can be grating at first, but let it sink in, and there are plenty of rewards. Their next album, 2003’s Meteora, was actually a bigger hit, but their sales declined slowly as the years went by. The band has been on hiatus since the suicide of Bennington in 2017, with so far no new music on the horizon. Hybrid Theory is heavy and loud…if that’s your thing, give it a shot.
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DEPECHE MODE
MUSIC FOR THE MASSES
1987 – MUTE
Produced By DEPECHE MODE & DAVID BASCOMBE
1. Never Let Me Down Again
2. The Things You Said
3. Strangelove
4. Sacred
5. Little 15
6. Behind The Wheel
7. I Want You Now
8. To Have And To Hold
9. Bothing
10. Pimpf
11. Agent Orange
12. Never Let Me Down Again (Aggro Mix)
13. To Have And To Hold (Spanish Taster)
14. Pleasure, Little Treasure (Glitter Mix)
In 1987, Depeche Mode was just starting to catch on in America. It was their sixth album, Music For The Masses, along with the following tour, that made this happen. But while mostly ignored in the States (except for on Los Angeles radio station KROQ), they had built quite the following in their native United Kingdom as a consistently very good band. In fact, every one of their fifteen studio albums has reached the UK top ten. This record is the follow up to 1986’s Black Celebration, and it’s just as good. They had their sound really down pat, and the songwriting was improving from one record to the next. They were becoming better known not just in the US, but in multiple countries. Slowly but surely, Depeche Mode was becoming one of the better bands anywhere. Taking over the world, if you will.
Music For The Masses is led by the fine “Strangelove”, but there’s much more here to love. “Little 15”, “Never Let Me Down Again” and “Behind The Wheel” are great as well…there is no longer anything tinny or thin about their sound. Dave Gahan’s vocals are strong, and the songwriting of Martin Gore just keeps getting better. Being sandwiched between Black Celebration and 1990’s exceptional Violator means that Music For The Masses is sometimes forgotten, but it’s as solid as anything else in their catalog. Depeche Mode is now just Gahan and Gore, but they are still going strong, having released their fifteenth album (Memento Mori) in 2023. Their output from the eighties is important and always worth listening to, and that absolutely includes Music For The Masses.
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ERYKAH BADU
BADUIZM
1997 – KEDAR / UNIVERSAL
Produced By MADUKWU CHINWAH, BOB POWER, JABORN JAMAL, IKE LEE III, ERYKAH BADU, THE ROOTS, RICHARD NICHOLS, JAMES POYSER, TONE THE BACKBONE, JAIFAR BARRON & ROBERT BRADFORD
1. Rimshot (Intro)
2. On & On
3. Appletree
4. Otherside Of The Game
5. Sometimes (Mix #9)
6. Next Lifetime
7. Afro (Freestyle Skit)
8. Certainly
9. 4 Leaf Clover
10. No Love
11. Drama
12. Sometimes…
13. Certainly (Flipped It)
14. Rimshot (Outro)
Erykah Badu falls into the classification of neo soul. It’s basically soul music that borrows more from jazz, hip hop and African music than traditional R&B does. Baduizm is her 1997 debut album, and it made her an immediate and surprising star. It also still stands as her best selling and most important album. Baduizm has drawn comparisons in style to Billie Holiday, but her music is much more modern than that. The album brought the genre of neo soul to the forefront in the late nineties, and also helped to trigger a renaissance of 70’s style soul. She shows here that she has a variety of influences that she is not afraid to use in her music. She has a strong voice, but sometimes falls a bit too far into the loungey side of things.
Her breakthrough single was “On & On”, with “Appletree”, Next Lifetime” and “Otherside Of The Game” being very fine as well. There’s some filler, but overall, this is worthwhile for the groove and the voice of Badu. It won the Grammy for Best R&B Album, and remains her best work. The next album, Mama’s Gun, sold well, but each album since has been less impactful. In fact, she has not released a studio album since 2010, despite her saying that her next one will be out soon for years now. However, she is still active with touring, occasional singles, guest appearances on songs by others, and a 2015 mix tape. It’s not known if that elusive sixth album will ever come out, but there is still Baduizm. It’s well worth checking out. It does groove!
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