== ISSUE 214 ==== CONSUMABLE ONLINE ======== [July 11, 2000] Editor: Bob Gajarsky E-mail: editor@consumableonline.com Managing Editor: Lang Whitaker Sr. Correspondents: Daniel Aloi, Joann D. Ball, Chris Hill, Bill Holmes, Tim Kennedy, Jon Steltenpohl Correspondents: Michelle Aguilar, Paul Andersen, Christina Apeles, Niles J. Baranowski, Jason Cahill, Matthew Carlin, John Davidson, Andrew Duncan, Matt Fink, Krisjanis Gale, Jade Hughes, Paul Hanson, Scott Hudson, Jianda Johnson, Steve Kandell, David J. Klug, Reto Koradi, Robin Lapid, Wes Long, I.K. MacLeod, Al Muzer, Wilson Neate, Linda Scott, Don Share, Scott Slonaker, Kerwin So, Chelsea Spear, Simon West Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, David Landgren, Dave Pirmann Address all comments to staff@consumableonline.com ; subscription information is given at the end of this issue. ================================================================== All articles in Consumable remain (C) copyright Consumable and their author(s). ================================================================== .------------. | Contents | `------------' NEWS EVENT: Consumable Online to close effective August 1. REVIEW: Johnny Cash, _Johnny Cash at San Quentin (The Complete 1969 Concert)_ - Don Share REVIEW: Nina Gordon, _Tonight And The Rest Of My Life_ - Paul Andersen REVIEW: Sgt. Rock, _Live the Dream_ - Wilson Neate REVIEW: Blue Spark, _Transmitter_ - Daniel Aloi REVIEW: Mott The Hoople, _Rock 'n'Roll Circus: Live_ - Bill Holmes REVIEW: R.B. Morris, _Zeke and the Wheel_ - Matt Fink CONCERT REVIEW: Marah, _Kids In Philly_ - Daniel Aloi REVIEW: Calexico, _Hot Rail_ - Chris Hill REVIEW: King Crimson, _The Construkction Of Light_ - Wes Long REVIEW: Tarwater, _Animals, Suns & Atoms_ - Chris Hill REVIEW: Anne Summers, _Very Classy_ - Bill Holmes INTERVIEW: Chuck Wagon and the Wheels - Al Muzer REVIEW: Admiral Twin, _Mock Heroic_ - Christina Apeles REVIEW: Clare Quilty, _Strong_ - Niles Baranowski REVIEW: Chet Delcampo, _The Fountain_ - Paul Andersen REVIEW: Quick Fix, _Get Yours_ - Linda Scott REVIEW: Chris Brown and Kate Fenner, _Geronimo_ - Paul Andersen TOUR DATES: Cravin' Melon, Dandy Warhols, Del McCoury Band, Drunk Horse, Foreigner, Goldfinger / Eve 6 / Dynamite Hack, Indigo Girls, Kansas / Yes, Alanis Morissette, Phish, Sister Hazel, Soulpreacher, Splender, Sally Taylor, 3 Doors Down, Warped Tour Back Issues of Consumable --- NEWS EVENT: > Consumable Online will be closing its doors effective with the farewell August 1 issue. More details of the closure can be found on our website at http://www.consumableonline.com . --- REVIEW: Johnny Cash, _Johnny Cash at San Quentin (The Complete 1969 Concert)_ (Columbia/Legacy) - Don Share It's hard to improve upon perfection, the old saying goes, but Columbia/Legacy have certainly done so here. _Johnny Cash at San Quentin_ was, with its immediate predecessor, _Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison_, perfect proof of Cash's legendary talent, courage, humor, and faith. Cash, who'd seen the inside of a jail himself, had frequently performed for prisoners (one of whom, pardoned by California Governor, Ronald Reagan, would become a star in his own right: Merle Haggard) - talk about your tough audiences! The original album, issued in 1969, was filled with ready-to-snap tension, an air of palpable danger which made the album seem more rock than country. The reissue gives us the whole show, and what a show it was. Nowadays, if you put Johnny Cash onstage with the likes of June Carter Cash, the Carter Family, Carl Perkins, and the Statler Brothers, you'd have a country Woodstock, a major event. But in '69, these stars put on a show for society's outcasts without hoopla, just the desire to give the badguys a break for an hour, and maybe supply some inspiration, along the way. June Carter Cash's harrowing notes superbly document the terror and conviction it took to accomplish this; but, of course, the music tells it best. After a string of fine tunes like "Big River," "Wreck of the Old 97," "I Walk the Line," and "Darlin' Companion," Johnny fusses around and someone fetches him the sheet music given him the day before to a song written by an inmate in the crowd. Johnny allows as how since he couldn't read the music, he came up with his own. The result is the amazingly moving, "I Don't Know Where I'm Bound." Identifying with the crowd, he sings about his own incarceration next, in "Starkville City Jail." It cheers everyone up. But when his notebook is brought to him, and he unleashes the newly-composed "San Quentin," this very real hell finally breaks loose. "San Quentin, I hate every inch of you!" He has to play the song twice. The second time, the prisoners are really roaring. He changes a word in one of the lines, and this time he sings, "San Quentin, you've been livin' hell to me. / You've galded me since 1963." An incredible moment, amazing as the famous "Judas" taunt made to Dylan in 1966. A song he co-wrote with Dylan, "Wanted Man," is next, and it's sublime. And then... "A Boy Named Sue." A novelty hit when the album came out, today, because it seems less funny, you can really hear what the song must've meant to these men: it's all about justified anger and tough love. Then Cash slips in a few inspirational songs - "Peace in the Valley," and some tunes with the Statler Brothers singing like heaven's choir. There's a rip-roaring version of "Folsom Prison Blues," and "Daddy Sang Bass," a nod to the heroic Carl Perkins, modestly lurking in the band, and at last, a closing medley which features a snippet of a TV theme called "The Rebel," to leave 'em on their feet. Cash performed all this with infinite rage and tact. He asks a guard to get him a glass of water, knowing that the men will hoot. He thanks the warden for letting him perform, knowing that the men will jeer. He gives everything, anything, just to connect, to give comfort but also strength. As Haggard said of the prison show he'd witnessed, Cash "captured the entire prison." This is a remarkable album, and while there's plenty of essential Cash music available, this is the one that shows what his wife, June, meant when she said of that night that she could feel the electricity in his hands. --- REVIEW: Nina Gordon, _Tonight And The Rest Of My Life_ (Warner) - Paul Andersen If the name Nina Gordon sounds familiar to you, it is because she was a co-founder of Veruca Salt, the quartet best known for the smash hits "Seether" and "Volcano Girls," both of which were penned and sung by Gordon. But if you are familiar with that band's work, you'll be in for a surprise here, because the Gordon on display within this album shows more of a singer/songwriter's heart than any seething rocker's vibe. But that is not to say that her former group doesn't have a part in the music here. According to Gordon, the band disintegrated (though they've just released their own album with a new line-up on Beyond Records) amidst a "highly charged atmosphere," and that break-up is part of what caused Gordon to look within and change the way she writes. For once, she is writing for herself, and no one else. The thirteen songs here (12 originals, and a wonderfully rendered version of the classic "The End of the World," which is a perfect closer to the album) reflect a cathartic release of tension and a renewed wonderment with the world in general. Surprisingly, the result is a work teeming with pop rather than rock, and much of the wordplay is teasing rather than edgy. Gordon always had a centerpiece voice that was pleasing to the ears, and unlike a lot of her compatriots in the feminine side of rock, her vocals sound wonderful in her new pop-like framework. It's a voice that could easily lend itself well to the singer/songwriter ranks of the Lilith brigade. All in all, it is a surprisingly uplifting debut well worthy of a listen. I heartily recommend it. --- REVIEW: Sgt. Rock, _Live the Dream_ (Wiiija/Beggars Banquet) - Wilson Neate Sgt. Rock is the nom de guerre -- or more accurately, the nom de spin -- of Tooting-based DJ Jim Burke. On active duty since the early '90s, Burke is the veteran of numerous campaigns: a bid to put Cheam on the map with Skank Thing; a stint as vocalist with Collapsed Lung, who scored a Coke commercial spot on TV with "Eat My Goal"; and work with Junior Blanks, whose "All About Beats" (DJ Scissorkicks Remix) was featured on the _FIFA 2000_ CD. Along the way, the Sergeant has received commendations from Norman Cook (Fatboy Slim says, "Sgt. Rock is going to help me make the floor mine") and was even enlisted to DJ for a 60-year-old man's birthday bash recently -- the old-timer in question being another DJ of some note, John Peel. The world of Sgt. Rock is more cartoonish than that of his comic-book namesake. And it has nothing to do with "Sgt. Rock (Is Going to Help Me)" by XTC -- or ecstasy for that matter. Rather, the theme drug here is something slightly older: with a smiley-face logo bearing the number of stripes commensurate with his rank, the Sergeant's first CD, _Live the Dream_, is all about acid beats cooked up with funk, loops, breaks and samples. Those lucky enough to witness the spectacle of Sgt. Rock live on the recent Brassy tour describe his appearances as "a cross between the Lo-Fidelity All Stars and an Eastern European game show." While the Sarge mans the decks, large foam Sgt. Rock smileys dance and wrestlers parade around the stage to entertain the troops. And listening to the often goofy disco/club jams of _Live the Dream_, it's easy to imagine it as the soundtrack to such an event that captures the spirit of an earlier acid scene so affectionately and accurately. "Supadickie" sets the tone for the proceedings on _Live the Dream_. Consisting largely of squelching noises and a sampled voice saying "fuckin' 'ell," it makes for compulsive listening. During the Sergeant's live extravaganzas, the vocal tag has been provided by an individual kitted out like Kendo Nagasaki, the masked martial artist who -- with Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks -- formed the legendary triumvirate of wrestlers during the golden years of '70s British grappling. It all makes perfect sense, really. "Yeah Word Party" is a more funked-up affair, its groove evoking a kind of Parliament-lite vibe. A debt to George Clinton is also suggested by "Dada Struttin'" -- that's "da da (da)" as in Trio rather than Dada as in Tristan Tzara -- as it incorporates a catchy guitar sample that sounds uncannily like the opening of Funkadelic's "Funky Dollar Bill," albeit accelerated to almost chipmunk speed. "Deeper 'n' Deffer" -- a cut about which Norman Cook himself has enthused -- is an energetic party-friendly track, as is the digitized disco funk of the next single, "We're in Heaven." The more mellow and melodic "Emma 18" is another loopy outing, spiced up with what appear to female, er, "dialogue" fragments borrowed from a porn movie. Sgt. Rock has been described as ideal for listeners for whom Fatboy Slim is a just little too high-brow, but it's precisely the frequently silly, cartoon quality of _Live the Dream_ that sets it apart from a lot of DJ-based stuff which doesn't quite have the legs away from the dancefloor. While it might not have the kind of hooks that make viable single fodder of Cook's material, it still makes for infectious and mindless listening. In the liner notes Sgt. Rock thanks both Sly Stone and Leonard Rossiter -- the comic actor honored on "So Many Reggie Perrins in the Arse End of Space." That gesture nicely sums up _Live the Dream_, an album that combines funky beats with a healthy dose of silliness. --- REVIEW: Blue Spark, _Transmitter_ (Good Ink) - Daniel Aloi Fans of the Seattle band Goodness shouldn't despair that lead singer-songwriter Carrie Akre decided to leave for Los Angeles last fall. Her move didn't exactly leave her bandmates with nothing to do. The band's family tree extends far and wide, including all the projects Akre (pronounced "ACK-ree") participates in -- she's a prime candidate for a left-of-the-dial "Six Degrees of" game. Among Goodness' many spinoff bands are The Pin-Ups, Sweetwater (not the Woodstock-playing, VH-1 movie of the week band), Miracle Baby, and now, Blue Spark. Goodness guitarist Garth Reeves and drummer Chris Friel's side project has produced the kind of record that fans of melodic, thoughtful, guitar-driven roots rock should eat up. Reeves' songs are intelligent and sincere, exploring a landscape of love found and lost. The rocking "Better Me" finds him bettered, not embittered, by a relationship; while the flip-side of that sentiment, "This Town," is about how everything changes and previously familiar places are avoided when a love affair is over. Reeves and company change tempo and mood from exuberant to reflective, while keeping all on a romantic even keel. Mandolin, keyboards, vocal harmonies and pedal steel are added for taste on most of the seven-song album, but a basic trio carries off "Parks of Olympia," a solid, driving modern rocker (think Goo Goo Dolls) about some favorite public spaces to hang out. _Transmitter_ is an album for those who appreciate the fact that once upon a time the BoDeans cracked the Top 10. Highly recommended. For more on Blue Spark and related bands, go to http://www.goodinkrecords.com. --- REVIEW: Mott The Hoople, _Rock 'n'Roll Circus: Live_ (Angel Air) - Bill Holmes Recorded at the Civic Centre in Wolverhampton (a favorite venue of many bands of the era), this CD features the classic lineup of Mott The Hoople in April 1972, just after their legendary meeting with David Bowie and his donation of his "All The Young Dudes". Although that track had yet to be recorded (and the band's global popularity had yet to explode), Mott The Hoople sounds revitalized and plays this sixty-six minute set with great enthusiasm. Perhaps that's why "The Ballad Of Mott" sounds especially poignant here in its rare live appearance. "Just lately we started to do what we wanted to do again", says Hunter at one point, and you can sense that this almost-defunct unit once again truly believed in themselves and their future. Like the Stones before them (albeit only once) and Ronnie Lane afterwards, the band headlined a "Rock And Roll Circus"; musical concert as part of a variety/vaudeville format. Knife throwers, comics and animal acts took the stage in addition to other groups, which made life on the road especially chaotic, but also a lot of fun. In the liner notes, the band speaks highly of the late comic Max Wall and dedicates the release to his memory. Ironically, the opening band Hackensack featured future Mott member Ray Majors on guitar in a performance that obviously impressed Buffin and Overend Watts. The sound quality on _Rock 'n' Roll Circus_ is merely bootleg plus, but once your ears settle in, it's hard not to get caught up in the energy of the performance. Hunter's voice is in prime form, Verden Allen's Hammond B3 sounds positively sinister and full, and Mick Ralphs is chock full of spirited leads and chunky rhythms. "Angeline", later played at a much faster tempo, here retains the spirit of the original, while early staples like "Darkness Darkness" and "Thunderbuck Ram" (with Mick Ralphs' vocals sounding a lot like Dave Davies) get solid workouts. Ian Hunter's "Mr. Bugle Player" admittedly robs "Mr. Tambourine Man" blind (so thoroughly that Dylan's lack of a co-write is criminal) but gives due props on their blues-based take of "Honky Tonk Women". Ralphs' "Until I'm Gone", the Who-like "The Moon Upstairs" and the manic "Rock And Roll Queen" are standouts, along with the encore of "Midnight Lady". It's a great aural snapshot of Mott The Hoople at a critical point in their history. Like all releases on Angel Air, the packaging is outstanding, featuring well-written liner notes and rare photos in the twenty-page booklet. Angel Air is distributed in USA/Canada by Allegro Corp. and more information about the release is available online (http://www.angelair.force9.co.uk). --- REVIEW: R.B. Morris, _Zeke and the Wheel_ (Koch) - Matt Fink With the 1000's of albums released every year, music reviewers, like the music buying public, often find themselves appealing to an old friend known as hearsay in order to streamline the process and find the discs that could possibly appeal to them. You could literally listen to music every waking moment of every day and there would probably still be five to ten excellent albums that would fall through the cracks, so every scrap of evidence that can be found is added into the final verdict on whether you want to invest your time and money into the album in question. This brings us to the new disc by singer-songwriter/poet R.B. Morris, which caught my eye with words of support from Steve Earle. Now it should be pointed out that Earle's quotes can be found on quite a number of albums, as it appears that either he runs with a fantastically talented crowd or he's a little too generous with his accolades. Of course, it should be noted that Earle's tastes are not above reproach, seeing that he is the same man who volunteered to take over the lead singer gig for Lynyrd Skynyrd before they declined. Either way, he has yet to let me down. From the very first track of Zeke and the Wheel we see why Earle would be drawn to R.B Morris' songwriting. Morris is visceral, gritty, honest and very literate. In short, he has many of the qualities that Earle can boast himself. Alternating between darkly swinging roots rock to melodic country-folk, Morris is quickly gaining a reputation for his philosophical and highly descriptive musings. He doesn't write a bad hook, either. Sounding like Bruce Springsteen with the breathy vocals and spooky reverb on the title track, quickly giving way to the simple understated Earle-esque folk in "Maybe the Soul," Morris seems capable of wearing several hats well. Morris sounds positively like Bob Dylan with the ringing organ and philosophical/spiritual themes of the blues-rock groove of "Distillery." Shimmering waves of electric guitar wrapped around the vivid imagery of lonely cabins and icy winds, "A Winter's Tale" is a fine example of the thematic qualities Morris brings to his music, as he has also been a playwright when not making music. Only four songs into the album, Morris definitely has the listener on the ropes, but he never quite delivers a finishing blow to push this set to the next level. The muscular Jayhawks-like country-rock of "You My Love" and the sharp country-soul of "Lest We All Lose" are highlights, but the noisy dissonance of the strange rap "Call Me Zeke" and the distorted rockabilly growl of "Long Arm of the Law," which sounds a little too much like the Reverend Horton Heat, don't work nearly as well. R.B Morris might have a quintessential album in him. He obviously has all the tools. He is a rare breed of songwriter who actually has the talent to deliver on the ambitions that he wears on his sleeve. My prediction: one more album and he's golden, two more and he's divine. Steve Earle was right again. --- CONCERT REVIEW: Marah, _Kids In Philly_ (Artemis / E-Squared) - Daniel Aloi Definition of pure professionalism for an indie band, slogging it out on tour: Forget the hype, the career moves, the road fatigue -- just put on a rocking show. Marah ended a month-long zig-zag tour of the country just that way recently in Buffalo. Tired beyond the point of caring about their growing notoriety, they gave their all to a loving-it crowd at the Rust Belt city's dedicated roots-rock club, Mohawk Place. Such shows are worth driving three hours to see. "We just did a tour with Gov't Mule -- great band, great guys... poor, poor planning!" guitarist/songwriter Serge Bielanko said. "Like, L.A. to New York in one day. Get there, boy!" The band opened with a new unreleased song, "I Can't Hide," a powerhouse rocker full of Serge's and brother/lead singer Dave Bielanko's trademark imagery. Over the next few numbers, from their just-released album "Kids in Philly," their beloved city came alive -- "Christian Street," the good-time tour of "Point Breeze" and "The Catfisherman" (about dropping your line in an unsafe South Philadelphia neighborhood, something the Bielanko boys do regularly). Lap steel player Mike Brenner is a monster, pulling a full horn section out of those strings, laying down funky, greasy backing thicker than any Memphis studio muscle could. The new rhythm section, bassist Joe Hooven and drummer Mick Bader, is a perfect fit with Marah's powerful swagger; they were energetic or subtle at all the right moments. The band showed fine interpretive skills throughout the hourlong show. A Marah version of Lou Reed's "Can't Stand It" came fourth in the set. They worked The Who's "Magic Bus" into "The Catfisherman," and Brenner played Santo & Johnny's "Sleepwalk" as an intro to "Reservation Girl" (a great unreleased original, raging with desire and self-doubt; it's available on the band's Web site). On "The History of Where Someone Has Been Killed," another gritty Philly snapshot, we all gladly took the hearing loss from Serge's psychedelic harmonica solo, which he later admitted was "our own little touch of Rolling Stones." The somewhat more acoustic "Faraway You" was a welcome change-up. For an encore, a surprise: The Replacements' "Can't Hardly Wait," letter-perfect and coming to a dead stop midsong, a funny pause for the musicians to walk around the stage, puff on smokes and swig their drinks (beer bottles in convenient holders on the mike stands). Raised on Philadelphia radio stations like WMMR, the Bielankos were steeped in blue-collar rock, a strong influence on their inner-city songwriting and balls-out playing. Local content abounds on the new album, from the wistful acoustic "Barstool Boys" to the bopping "My Heart is the Bums on the Street." Radio personality Hy Lit has a cameo on "Christian Street," and Serge's lyrics for "Roundeye Blues" (which also nods to "Be My Baby") were inspired by a local writer's harrowing Vietnam memoir. Shepherded by Steve Earle, their second album is a tour de force that absolutely defines Marah as a band that matters. Even more than their debut, "Philly" is filled with a sense of place, very much like Bruce Springsteen's early records. Many comparisons have already been made between the Bielankos' Philly-centric imagery and such touchstones as _The Wild The Innocent & the E Street Shuffle._ They are admittedly huge fans -- the brothers saw the Boss at least seven times over the past year. Between albums, they covered "Streets of Philadelphia" live on WXPN's World Cafe as a stomping hootenanny; it's included on their "Point Breeze" single. They can live with the critics, however, as long as no one says they're ripping anything off in their music. And all of their dreams are coming true. They'd just been booked to play on Conan O'Brien, and Letterman was interested, Hooven said after the show. They had tour dates lined up with some of their heroes, including The Jayhawks and The Who, and there was a rumor of supporting Lou Reed. Marah may be the greatest (and, as their bumper stickers say, "the last") rock'n'roll band in America. Even with that stated, I won't go so far as to say "I've seen rock and roll future." I've seen a band in love with rock and roll, and for that, they deserve glory. For more information, check out http://www.marah-usa.com and http://www.artmeisrecords.com . --- REVIEW: Calexico, _Hot Rail_ (Quarterstick/Touch&Go) - Chris Hill Calexico's third, their follow-up to '98's _The Black Light_, sets out again for the desert badlands with a passenger car full of disparate individuals. Mixed in among the laborers, gunfighters, and matadors are a varied musical troupe: jazz and Tex-Mex brass players, a violinist, mariachi & surf guitarists, and a sultry French torch singer. Joey Burns and John Convertino, conductors and fellow travelers on the train, carry an impressive amount of instrumental baggage on this journey that pauses in ghost towns and oases, as it follows the setting sun to the west. The trip's five stations featuring Joey Burns' saguaro & lime vocals have eleven cinematic instrumental stops for contrast. The heavy maracas of "16 Track Scratch" make it my favorite destination, but each of the eleven has its particular charms. An accordion sadly wanders barren, wind-scoured streets on "Untitled III", then reappears in lush, hymn-like fashion on "Untitled II". Burns and Convertino shift the musical backbones around with grace, as you'd expect from multi-instrumentalists. "El Picador" marches the album in with trumpeting flair, "Ritual Road Map" sways with short, wind-chime notes, and "Muleta" intertwines a dancing, flamenco guitar, a rose-clutching, romantic violin, and several harmonizing trumpets: one of a trio of matador-themed songs. Given the eclectic roster of talented folk that have crossed paths with Burns and Convertino outside of Giant Sand (and Howe Gelb) - Barbara Manning, Richard Buckner, Lisa Germano, to name a few - it's unsurprising that _Hot Rail_ evades quick categorization. If a single word was necessary, then I'd choose "filmic". The first single, "Ballad of Cable Hogue", is a dose of western film noir. Pulling its title from a 1970 Sam Peckinpah movie, the song follows a man lured inevitably to his doom by a femme fatale. Held fast by her foreign allure (voiced in wonderfully sibilant French by Marianne Dissard), the hero meets his Butch Cassidy end with a grim fatalism: "She promised me that she would be there when I'd return/she didn't say she'd have an army there as well/She whispered 'je t'aime, baby'/as she fired that gun at me". Beautiful. The film noir air continues on "Fade", guided by a smoking cornet and drums by Convertino that first shape the song's suppleness, then define its chaotic, pinwheeling conclusion. Lyrically, it's as cinematic as the music, with tangible details like "He starts the car and he's driving away/hearing her voice/ and tasting their last kiss" peppered throughout the track. For completists: if the 7:45 "Fade" appeals, track down the UK import _Loose - New Sounds of the Old West Volume 2_ for "Tripple T", a 9:47 travelling narrative with guest Paul Niehaus from Lambchop winding his pedal steel in the song like an approaching train heard through a darkened tunnel. The train metaphor is spelled out on the final, title track. A staccato jackhammer introduces the cut, followed by a worker crying out "Hot Rail! Hot Rail!", a distant train whistle, and a lonesome, echoing guitar that serenely carries the song the rest of the way. Closing with such a contemplative track is inspired. The world ends with not with a whimper or a bang, but with peaceful reflection on a landscape met on its own terms, not wholly conquered, yet understood and open for co-existence. Joyfully, there's territory still to explore. But that will have to wait for Calexico's next album. --- REVIEW: King Crimson, _The Construkction Of Light_ (Virgin) - Wes Long The notion of a Belew era King Crimson recording without the formidable talents of Tony Levin and Bill Bruford is almost absurd. Of all the incarnations of this ever-changing band it was the 1980's troop which toted the most weight. Tony, Bill, & Robert Fripp created otherworldly prog landscapes for Adrian Belew to romp around freely in with his Beatle-ish pop sensibilities and daring guitar swagger. The pinnacle of their achievements was _Discipline_, one of those rare albums that makes such an impression it scribbles the where and when of the initial listening experience in the brain with permanent ink. It's not as if _The Construkction Of Light_ features no-talent hacks on bass and drums. Trey Gunn (bass) and Pat Mastelotto (drums) are the obvious heirs to Levin's and Bruford's thrones, having served time with the double trio version of Crimson on 1995's _Thrak_. To hear this leaner version in conjunction with Fripp's polyrhythmic layering and Belew's most inspired playing in years is a hair raising potion more potent than a prescription dose of Propecia. "Prozakc Blues," the splendid "The Contrukction Of Light" and the polar opposite of briefly titled "The World's My Oyster Soup Kitchen Floor Wax Museum" are all worthy of the songs on the 1980's color albums: (red/1981) _Discipline_; (blue/1982) _Beat_ and (yellow/1984) _Three Of A Perfect Pair_. All three feature Belew vocals reminiscent of his greatly under appreciated early 80's solo efforts, _Lone Rhino_ and _Twang Bar King_. The vocally impaired songs are equal parts rock and left field jazz-fusion fury. "Larks' Tongues in Aspic - Part IV" is a modern day "The Rite Of Spring" which ranges from Denny Elfman fairyland dreaminess to meticulously controlled chaos as frightening as awakening to find yourself wired to a Kavorkian device eagerly fingered by a grinning Dr Jack. King Crimson is doomed in that they've already created their Belew era masterpiece. While any subsequent release would effortlessly sprint to the finish line if allowed to stand alone, it's going to pale in comparison to _Discipline_. Thankfully King Crimson's not concerned with recreating the past, and the new lineup has enabled Robert Fripp's chameleon to once again successfully change it's colors. --- REVIEW: Tarwater, _Animals, Suns & Atoms_ (Mute) - Chris Hill Electronically viscous and fluidly organic, Tarwater's follow-up to 1998's critically embraced _Silur_ is a living work of art, its lungs expanding in slow, dubby inhalations, and its heart pulsing with sure, unhurried passion. The German duo of Bernd Jestram and Ronald Lippok (also a member of the splendid To Rococo Rot) have created eleven cuts that move with delicate, sensual grace from the initial landing beacon of "K.R.?.L.E.G." to the carnival music enchantment of "Seven Ways to Fake A Perfect Skin". Thanks to Lippok's poised spoken-vocal cadence, there's the air of an artist strolling among his audience, commenting on the surroundings with both an insider's jaded nature and an outsider's wonder. Lippok saturates "The Trees" with Druidic magic and an unnerving observation that "The forest knows how to confess/you should hear the trees/It wasn't me you hear/only furniture lives here". He then rewards the listener with a tersely delivered admonition, "don't/ever/antagonize/the home!". Guitar loops tangle branches with multiple synth rhythms to create leafy spring lushness, while the mystical presence is intensified by layered vocals chanting indecipherably on top of each other. Spotting a breadcrumb trail left in the shadowy woods, there's an eerie sample that resembles the approaching Id beast from "Forbidden Planet". Moving on to "At Low Frequency", lines like "Man is the most adaptable machine in the universe", delivered with Lippok's Germanic Lou Reed aplomb, sound like shamanic wisdom. Backed by notes that come in bell curves, smoothly rising and falling from center points, the song eventually wanders into David Lynch territory: "'Have you any questions before we return to the lounge?'/I could think of none, and shook my head". Continuing the Lynchian oddities later, Lippok adds a distorted Munchkin mimic vocal double to his natural, laconic vox on the dub-soaked "Early Risers", making the song an unusual standout. "Noon" challenges the yang energy of the album by adding Justine Electra's singing and speaking vocals. Her voice, also charged with Lippok's reserved patience, augments the singer wonderfully. A looped piano riff plays against a repetitious snare, before the song dissolves into hand-slapped tablas and an insistent sitar. The sitar, appearing just on this track, is one example of the creative risks Tarwater takes in establishing an overall presence without lapsing into predictability. The instrumentals are peppered throughout. "Dauphin Sun" begins with languorous, foggy synths and a wandering guitar. A spectral vocal presence emerges to envelop the listener, until it gradually and unwillingly dissipates. "Babyuniverse" moves along with impressive stature, a scraped woodblock rubbing against majestic marching synths, for a brief, three-minute glimpse into the unknown. The playful "Song of the Moth", the gentle, oceanic "Somewhere", and the opener "K.R.?.L.E.G." complete the roster of instrumentals. As Lippok sings on "All of the Ants Left Paris", "Come starset, we sounded all right". Why wait that long to find out for yourself? http://www.mute.com for U.S. label info, and http://www.kitty-yo.de for their European web home. --- REVIEW: Anne Summers, _Very Classy_ (Beatville) - Bill Holmes A power pop trio, not a girl. With Don Fleming handling the productions chores on eleven band-penned tracks, Anne Summers retains its solid vibe as an unencumbered trio. Most songs are hummable from the get-go, and little tricks like the toy piano accenting the chorus of "Robots" help paste them into memory. Ditto the stop-and-go rhythms of "Ditch Digger". Nothing very complicated here, just forty minutes of indie-flavored pop songs that could settle comfortably in either 1979 or 2000. The drowsy vocals on "Vitamins" will call The Smoking Popes to mind, but most of the other leads (and background vocals) are more enthusiastic. The songs themselves sound like they come from three guys weaned on college radio staples from The Jam to The Replacements, although the acoustic foundations of "Octoberfest" and "King Of Disaster" leans more towards the Waterboys/Soft Boys/ Hitchcock area. This doesn't have a shot in hell at mainstream radio, and that's a compliment. (http://www.beatville.com) --- INTERVIEW: Chuck Wagon and the Wheels - Al Muzer So amazingly stupid it borders on utter genius, Chuck Wagon and the Wheels' release, _Off The Top Rope_ (Lyric Street), will own the country charts and have an illegal chokehold on the pop Top 20 by Labor Day if Carl "Cal" Pie, Sid Sequin and Chuck Wagon Himself have their way. Combining the gaudy grandeur and colorful posturing of professional wrestlers at a Texas rodeo with clever, Tommy Collins - and Hank Jr.- inspired country songs as performed by living cartoon characters -- there's no way such Disney-backed winners as "Country 2010," "The Jerry Springer Show" or "Play That Country Music Cowboy" can be ignored. Let alone stopped. Helped along, no doubt, by the fact that the CD's first single, "Beauty's In The Eye Of The Beerholder," had just debuted at No. 73 on Billboard's Country Charts, the group became instant semi-celebrities following a grin-inducing set during last month's weeklong Fan Fair celebration in Nashville. "Our mission?!?" ponders band namesake Chuck Wagon Himself from beneath a giant red cowboy hat that adds at least two feet to his already imposing six-foot-something frame, "well, now actually - Carl? Carl?!? Carl!!! [Carl, who is busy signing autographs, striking poses and mugging for an assortment of cameras, glances over] Carl, tell 'em whut our 'mission' is!" "Our mission," the less imposing, but identically "disguised" singer/athlete explains to the cute Japanese reporter that's been dogging the trio's footsteps all day, "is, uh, well [clears throat] to let everyone out there know [Carl's nasal, high-pitched voice rises in excitement] that Chuck Wagon and the Wheels are here and that things are gonna be a whole lot different from now on!" [all three strike fists-clenched, wrestler-poses and scowl menacingly from behind ever-present sunglasses and matching, color-coordinated Breathe Rite Strips(r)]. "From parts unknown," is the quick, deadpan, arms-folded, three-part response to another reporter's question about the origin of the always in character, shrouded in mystery group with the matching hats, shirts, shorts, scarves, wristbands, sneaker-boots and "World Entertainment Champion" belts."We all have families or loved ones," an apologetic Sid Sequin quietly half insinuates / explains to the unanswered reporter as a few verses of "That's Love" from the Off The Top Rope CD drift in through an open door. "Truck, girl, beer, Merle - Girl in truck with beer. / That's Love. That's Love. / Train, truck, beer, crash - Jail, girl, bail. / That's Love. That's Love." ~ from "That's Love" "I could only find, like, this itty bitty little scrap of paper when the inspiration [for the song] hit me," Sequin comments as a group of potential fans warily approaches the flexing, posturing, constantly-in-motion group in the borrowed Fan Fair booth, "so, I had to economize some on the lyrics." In addition to eliciting more than a few out-loud laughs during their Fan Fair set, the songs on Off The Top Rope also serve as a great introduction to country for folks who claim to hate country music. The goofy good humor of songs like "I Fell For You" ("like a turd from a tall horse"), "Play That Country Music Cowboy" (a redneck re-adaptation of Hot Chocolate's "Funky Music Whiteboy") or "Cupid" -- coupled with the fact that, behind all the G-rated guffaws are 10 well-written, well-rendered country tunes - should be more than enough reason to make _Off The Top Rope_ and Chuck Wagon and the Wheels major contenders in any market they choose. "It's the 'World Entertainment Champion' belt," Sid proudly explains to the Japanese reporter who has spotted the "Rising Sun" among "conquered" country flags on his belt and is jamming a television camera at his midsection. "That's W.O.R.L.D., World Entertainment Champion!" For the complete scoop on Chuck Wagon Himself, Carl "Cal" Pyle and Sid Sequin go to: http://www.chuckwagonandthewheels.com or: http://www.lyricstreet.com. --- REVIEW: Admiral Twin, _Mock Heroic_ (Mojo) - Christina Apeles Music for the mainstream should not be dissed since status quo appeal equals a good living for any rock band. Consider the pop stylings of Admiral Twin, providing the ear with catchy beats, singalong lyrics, and choruses exactly were you'd expect them. Opening track "Unlucky Ones" (as most of the tracks) has all these elements, with respective guitar solos and right on cue breaks to let you reflect on the lyrical timeliness of it all. Anyone recall Duncan Sheik or Crowded House? Take the songwriting skill of Sheik and couple that with the good-natured, feel good sentiment of Crowded House and you're right on cue with this Tulsa, Oklahoma band. There isn't anything innovative about the music of _Mock Heroic_ with their na, na, nas on "Better Than Nothing At All" or the relationship woes expressed in "No. 1 Fan," but their songs are sweet, the harmonies are in key, and if that's all people care about, then here's some pop for the masses. --- REVIEW: Clare Quilty, _Strong_ (DCide) - Niles Baranowski It's been about two years since our last great Garbage single, so maybe it's time to look elsewhere for our bad-girl pleasures. Clare Quilty (a band, not just a girl) summons the same chunky rock sound, albeit a little bit farther along the Veruca Salt power pop axis. Yet lead singer Jenn Rhubright is, despite her Lisa Loeb looks, a fierce Shirley Manson-esque presence whose voice can contain the massive appetites of her lyrics. On the single "Sleep With You," she sings coyly and then explodes into a fully-driven amazon who's proud of how "naughty" she feels. This sophomore effort flags and feels indistinct when they try to water down their intensity, as on "Dylarama" or the moody "655321." Yet for its entire first half, it's absolutely enthralling. The go-go beats of "Secret Sharer" provide a stage for some lightning-quick wordplay and it's pretty hard to turn down a song that says "you'll be on your knees when you get it on with me." "Comfort Me" writhes in agony that's done with all the intensity of method acting. It's on "Angel of the Odd," though, that the band really seems to come alive. Rhubright sums up a sort of dominatrix alter ego with lines about masturbation while showering and impure fantasies. Yet over the Pixies-style feedback flares, Rhubright sounds adoring of this creature she's singing about and when she asks "Don't you want to make this beautiful freak?" she's glowing with determination and brassiness. It's just this sort of clever, lip-smacking confidence that's going to take Clare Quilty places and distinguish them from competitors. They're only happy when they reign. --- REVIEW: Chet Delcampo, _The Fountain_ (Record Cellar) - Paul Andersen Chet Delcampo is a Philadelphia-based singer/songwriter with a flair for melody and no concern at all with what is driving the current musical marketplace. He is a poetic tunesmith, already garnering comparisons to Elliott Smith, with an inward eye and a DIY attitude, and it is all reflected here on _The Fountain_. Surrounded by a few like-minded friends and cohorts - the credits of the few sidemen and guest producers include the Pixies, Nick Cave and the Eels - this album is a personal journey through an outsider's soul. Surprisingly, there is nothing cold nor claustrophobic about this journey, because it is framed in shimmering production values and a tunefulness that would make Bacharach and Costello proud. With just the right tinges, he manages to evoke the perfect settings for each of the songs, whether it be the Chet Baker-like trumpet in the closing "To sleep" or the country-alt feel of "Coffee with Tom T. Hall." Mostly though, _The Fountain_ is an album to be savored over a few listenings, because it reaps forward sublime layers and melancholy colorings not readily apparent to a casual hearing. It is more a collective than a group of songs, and should be played as such. The rewards to be found within more than make up for the time spent. --- REVIEW: Quick Fix, _Get Yours_ (With A Gun) - Linda Scott Quick Fix roars out of Boston with a good, old time rock 'n' roll album. The band is rock and roll through and through, and it's rock with plenty of attitude. Think Guns N'Roses, AC/DC, T Rex, Thin Lizzy...you know, bands which follow - and live - the sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll lifestyle. From the opening chords of the first track, "Devil's Daughter", Quick Fix shows you how bad a bad rock band can be. If Guns N'Roses was "the most dangerous band in America", Quick Fix sounds like they're trying to take the title away. Singer/guitarist Jake Zavracky has the key position in Quick Fix, and the man is up to all challenges. His sensual voice is hypnotic and raunchy like Axl Rose or Jim Morrison. The band is a metal trio of Boston roommates. Their low down sound is just right for summer, with "Rampage" and "Bay of Pigs 2000" are perfect for shattering hot nights. It doesn't hurt that the singer has a sexy voice and wears tight red leather pants. If you love incendiary rock and roll, you're going to love the ringing guitars and thumping bass lines of Quick Fix. If these guys can live long enough and stay together long enough, they're going to make it to the top of the rock charts. --- REVIEW: Chris Brown and Kate Fenner, _Geronimo_ (b-music) - Paul Andersen Do you remember how, when you were a kid, you came across something that you couldn't wait to share with your best friend, something they didn't know about, something you felt like _you_ were the only one in the world who knew about it? It was a secret just bursting out waiting to be told. Well, I am now appointing you all my best friends. And have I got something really great to let you in on. Shh! Let me tell you 'bout it. Chris Brown and Kate Fenner have quietly put together their second absolutely wonderful album in a row, entitled _Geronimo_. It is the kind of record that invites you in, offers up a nice cup of java and sets you down in a barcalounger to take it all in. Wrap that Afghan around you and take a listen. Brown and Fenner make a kind of music that can best be described as an organic, coffeehouse kind of sound. No, not Starbucks - this is not what you'll find on every other corner, but rather kind of funky and threadbare, yet oh so comfortable. The lyrics are thoughtful and insightful, the music rich, varied and warm, but it is Fenner's voice, which envelopes and comforts the listener while at the same time shaking its finger in your face, entwining with Brown's more subtle counterpoints, that keep you coming back time and again. If ever there were two artists joined at the hip, it is these two. So, my friend, there you have it. Just point your net compass to http://www.chrisandkate.com, and skate on over. There's an easy chair with your name on it, just waiting for you. --- TOUR DATES: Cravin' Melon Jul. 13 Fayetteville, NC MOJOE'S Jul. 14 Charlotte, NC Visulite Theatre Jul. 15 Myrtle Beach, SC House of Blues Dandy Warhols Jul. 19 Philadelphia, PA Upstage Jul. 20 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom Del McCoury Band Jul. 14 New York, NY Bottom Line Drunk Horse Jul. 15 Los Angeles, CA Als' Bar Jul. 16 Los Angeles, CA Goldfinger's Jul. 17 San Diego, CA Casbah Jul. 18 Tucson, AZ Double Zero Jul. 20 Denton, TX Rubber Gloves Foreigner Jul. 13 Clear Lake, IA The Ballroom Jul. 15 Winfield, KS Winfield Fair Grounds Jul. 16 Cedar Rapids, IA Hiners Parkt Goldfinger / Eve 6 / Dynamite Hack Jul. 11 Dallas, TX Deep Ellum Live Jul. 12 Austin, TX Stubb's BBQ (no Eve 6) Jul. 14 Denver, CO Ogden Theatre Jul. 15 Salt Lake City, UT Promontory Hall @ Utah State Jul. 16 Pocatello, ID 20/20 Jul. 18 Seattle, WA Showbox Jul. 20 Sacramento, CA Crest Theatre Indigo Girls Jul. 14-15 Seattle, WA Peir 62-63 Jul. 17 Jacksonville, OR Britt Pavillion Kansas / Yes Jul. 11 Detroit, MI Pine Knob Jul. 12 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Amphitheater Jul. 13 Indianapolis, IN Deer Creek Amphitheater Jul. 15 Wantagh, NY Jones Beach Amphitheater Jul. 16 Saratoga Springs, NY SPAC Jul. 18 Camden, NJ E-Center Jul. 19 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center Alanis Morissette Jul. 11 Lucca, Italy Town Hall Jul. 12 Pula, Croatia Arena Jul. 14 Portugal Zelar De Mouros Festival Jul. 15 Zeebrugge, Belgium Beach Festival Jul. 16 Aachen, Germany Katschof Phish Jul. 11-12 Indianapolis, IN Deer Creek Music Center Jul. 14-15 Columbus, OH Polaris Amphitheatre Sister Hazel Jul. 13 Minneapolis, MN Quest Club Soulpreacher Jul. 14 New York, NY CBGB Splender Jul. 11 Cedar Rapids, IA Five Seasons Center Arena Jul. 14 Noblesville, IN Deer Creek Music Festival Jul. 15 Louisville, KY Gardens Jul. 17 Toledo, OH Zoo Amphitheater Jul. 18 Cleveland, OH Nautica Stage Jul. 19 Clarkson, MI Pine Knob Music Center Sally Taylor Jul. 15 Chicago, IL Schuba's Jul. 16 Toledo, OH Bottle Rocket Jul. 17 Buffalo, NY Tralf Jul. 19 Syracuse, NY Styleens 3 Doors Down Jul. 15 Peoria, IL Heart of Illinois Fair Jul. 18 Charlottesville, VA Trax Warped Tour (Green Day, Long Beach Dub All Stars, NOFX, Mighty Mighty Bosstones and many more) Jul. 11 Minneapolis, MN Metrodome Lot Jul. 12 Chicago, IL World Theater Jul. 13 Cleveland, OH The Flats at Nautica Jul. 14 Philadelphia, PA Corr States Lot Jul. 15 New York, NY Randall's Island Jul. 16 Asbury Park, NJ Stone Pony Lot Jul. 17 Syracuse, NY NY State Fairgrounds Jul. 18 Pittsburgh, PA IC Light Amphitheater Jul. 19 Buffalo, NY La Salle Park Jul. 20 Boston, MA Suffox Downs --- Founded in August, 1993, Consumable Online is the oldest music reviews publication on the Internet. 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