==== ISSUE 110 ==== CONSUMABLE ======== [May 28, 1997] Editor: Bob Gajarsky Internet: gajarsky@email.njin.net Sr. Correspondents: Jeremy Ashcroft, Reto Koradi, David Landgren, Sean Eric McGill, Tim Mohr, Al Muzer, Jamie Roberts, Joe Silva, John Walker Correspondents: Daniel Aloi, Lee Graham Bridges, Scott Byron, Janet Herman, Bill Holmes, Eric Hsu, Tim Hulsizer, Stephen Lin, Scott Miller, P. Nina Ramos, Linda Scott, Scott Slonaker, Simon Speichert, Jon Steltenpohl, Courtney Muir Wallner, Simon West, Lang Whitaker Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, Dave Pirmann Also Contributing: Neil Kothari Address all comments, subscriptions, etc. to gajarsky@email.njin.net ================================================================== All articles in Consumable remain (C) copyright their author(s). Permission for re-publication in any form must be obtained from the editor. ================================================================== .------------. | Contents | `------------' PROFILE: Tiny Lights - Al Muzer REVIEW: David Bowie, _Earthling_ - Stephen Lin REVIEW: INXS, _Elegantly Wasted_ - Neil Kothari REVIEW: Frank Zappa, _Have I Offended Someone?_ - Bill Holmes REVIEW: Sneaker Pimps, _Becoming X_ - Simon West REVIEW: Kyle Vincent, _Kyle Vincent_ - Bill Holmes REVIEW: Jane Siberry, _Teenager_ - Reto Koradi CONCERT REVIEW: BR5-49 - Al Muzer REVIEW: Son Volt, _Straightaways_ - Scott A. Miller INTERVIEW: Latin Quarter - Reto Koradi REVIEW: Various Artists, _The World's Best Power Pop Compilation...Really!_ - Bill Holmes CONCERT REVIEW: David Wilcox - Lang Whitaker REVIEW: Various Artists, _Beyond Life With Timothy Leary_ - Simon Speichert REVIEW: Exp, _Exp_ - Johnny Walker NEWS: Jam Tribute Album TOUR DATES: Bobgoblin, Buck-O-Nine, Camber, Capercaillie, Johnny Cash, Cellophane, Cheap Trick, Walter Clevenger & The Dairy Kings, Cowboy Mouth, Cravin' Melon, Descendents / Less Than Jake, Mary Ann Farley, Five For Fighting, Gene, Hoven Droven, Indigo Girls, Irving Plaza (New York concert hall), Don Lewis Band, Lunachicks, John Mayall, Moxy Fruvous , My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, Ozzfest, Iggy Pop, Prodigy, Professor & Maryann, Q-South, Sevendust, Sister Hazel, U2, Vallejo, Vasen Back Issues of Consumable --- PROFILE: Tiny Lights - Al Muzer Hoboken's Tiny Lights have made a career out of being in the right place at exactly the wrong time. Despite five record labels, six truly outstanding original albums, one amazing compilation disc, a long-running musical relationship with various members of the Bongos and the dBs, and having had 10,000 Maniacs open for them at one point in their career - Tiny Lights' biggest claim to fame thus far has been as a training ground for cellist-in-demand Jane (Richard Barone/Nirvana unplugged/R.E.M.) Scarpantoni. Formed in 1983 around the nucleus of guitarist/vocalist John Hamilton and vocalist/violinist/drummer Donna Croughn (who married each other a few years ago) with bassist/trumpet player Dave Dreiwitz and drummer/percussionist/saxophonist Andy Damos sharing the duo's vision and adding a solid rhythmic pulse - Tiny Light's eighth album, _The Smaller The Grape The Sweeter The Wine_ (Bar None), is quite possibly the group's finest collection of music since their 1986 debut, _Prayer For The Halcyon Fear_. "I think that when you start getting too nervous about making money with your music," Croughn says with a self-deprecating laugh during her six-month-old son's dinner hour, "is when it can get in the way of you making your music." "The key to having a successful, happy band, I feel, is to be successful on your own merit. You know, if you try to be something other than what you are, or," she adds, "if you try to sound like whatever's 'hip' or popular at that particular moment, well, I think people generally see right through all that." "We like to keep things exciting for ourselves as a band by going in as many different musical directions as we can," Croughn says of her group's distinctive sound. "So I really hope that people like the new album. So far, the response has been very positive." "You know," she offers before pausing to switch the phone to her other ear and pick up her son, "we've toured a lot over the years, so, in each little place we've been, in every town we've ever played, we've made a little 'nest' for ourselves where we can always go to play, meet fans, make friends and sell a few records. But," Croughn says earnestly, "I really think that if other people actually heard this record, if people who weren't already fans gave it a chance, they'd really like it." "I don't know, I guess the main reason we never really fit into any one 'scene,' " she says of the group's run of frequently brilliant albums that never quite found the mass audience they deserved, "is because we never really had one particular sound. I mean, I guess we do sound like ourselves, we sound like Tiny Lights, but, we've never really fit, or even attempted to fit, for that matter, into any one category," she concludes with a happy chuckle. Experience _The Smaller The Grape The Sweeter The Wine_ and _A Young Person's Guide To Tiny Lights_ (both on Bar None Records, the latter being the compilation disc) for yourself by visiting a music store near you. --- REVIEW: David Bowie, _Earthling_ (Virgin) - Stephen Lin It is simply amazing how well certain artists are able to cross musical boundaries and genres without losing quality or artistic integrity. In the same sense, it is no surprise that others fail horribly while attempting similar metamorphoses to stay current with changing trends. Perhaps most notably in recent years, the trend frequently followed is that of venturing into "Electronica." Ah yes, "Electronica," the buzz word of today. The confines of this "genre" (has it truly reached genre status?) are fuzzy at times. But many attempts have been made to incorporate characteristics of Electronica into artists music whose prior repetoire consisted mostly of more organic based music (ie: live instrumentation). Two minor examples come to mind as non-successes. A few years back, Love & Rockets "_Hot Trip to Heaven_ was, in my opinion, a horrid attempt at a techno-esque album. Around the same period of time, Peter Murphy used a techno producer for his album _Cascade_; a better album than _Heaven_, but still not commercially successful. Now, the time is right for artists to reap the rewards of the ever-encroaching rage of Electronica. U2s _Discotheque_ is a fine (yes, I know, this is up to debate) example of a smooth crossover. Smashing Pumpkins' "Eye" is a great representation of Billy Corgan's ability to work with a sound completely different from that found on _Siamese Dream_. Conceivably, the most tastefully executed crossover is David Bowie. Bowie's 1995 release, _Outside_ basically blew my ass out of the water. Dense layering of sounds, rich textures, fantastic dynamics, and grim moodiness permeated the album. That, along with the futuristic sci-fi murder story running through the songs, made the electronic based album extremely Bowie. Traditional Bowie theatrics blended with the modern conveniences of technology made the transcension of styles very tasteful and convincing. _Earthling_ represents another step into the realm of Electronica. However, _Earthling_, in some ways, surpasses _Outside_ in that the album touches a greater variety of sub-genres within electronic music. A few years ago, I never would have been able to guess that Bowie would have had jungle beats underlying his songs in 1997. Lead-off single, "Little Wonder" is clearly quirky enough to be classic Bowie. But the herky-jerky feel for the song combined with a jungle beat and the contrastly in-your-face bridge/chorus make "Little Wonder" a modern-day Bowie masterpiece. Now imagine a neurotic, obsessive-compulsive barbershop quarter being backed by a groovin dance beat. If you could, you would have the opening to "Looking for Satellites." If everything, except for guitar and vocals, were removed from "Battle for Britain" you WOULD have a classic Bowie song. It's as if he simply continued to write in the old vein and then re-orchestrated to an extreme. As a bonus, there is an extremely cool reverse-effect break toward the end of the track. "Seven Years in Tibet" is like a bad mix of old-school R&B, low budget horror film score, and Nine Inch Nails "Closer." You've got the slightly cheesy horns, the beat from "Closer," and the irritating trebly organ from old-school horror flicks. Immediately following on the album is "Dead Man Walking." It honestly sounds like Bowie locked himself in a small room with a large collection of KMFDM CDs for a month! Basically, through the nine tracks comprising _Earthling_, Bowie appears as if he has multiple-personalities with similar interests. How's that for a selling point, eh? At any rate, in a time where the Chemical Brothers, Prodigy, and Underworld are all gaining recognition, it is wonderful to see that the "old-timers" can more than adequately keep up. --- REVIEW: INXS, _Elegantly Wasted_ (Mercury) - Neil Kothari In the late 1980's, bands like U2, INXS, Poison, and Def Leppard dominated the musical landscape. With the arrival of Nirvana's _Nevermind_ in 1991, though, the old school formula for success disintegrated. 'Hair bands' and musical showmanship fell out of favor, replaced by a return to raw, hard-hitting, punk-inspired music. Thematically, songs moved away from love and sex to the more dark emotions of alienation and rage. Through clever marketing, some 80s bands like REM and U2 not only survived, but thrived in the new grunge-influenced market. INXS, on the other hand, fell on hard times. Due to a rift with their then label, Atlantic Records, promotion of the band altogether stopped in the early 90s. In 1992, the band released their most experimental and powerful album, the critically-acclaimed masterpiece _Welcome to Wherever You Are._ Without Atlantic actively promoting the album to MTV and radio, though, the album fell flat, and INXS became unfairly labeled as an "80s band." 'When we finished _Welcome,_ we really believed in that album, but we knew that it would be the end of us in the United States for awhile. But you gotta do what you believe in. You gotta roll with the punches,' lead singer Michael Hutchence recently said. A year later in 1993 the band released _Full Moon, Dirty Hearts,_ an album recalling their ska/punk roots and R&B influences. Though considered a flop, INXS refused to allow current trends to dicate terms to them. Whereas other bands were busy ripping off the latest style, INXS maintained their artistic integrity, while still managing to remain relevant. INXS' new LP, _Elegantly Wasted_, the band's first effort in four years, is a stirring and passionate album, filled with experimentation. It also, of course, maintains INXS' trademark sound. The album opener, "Show Me (Cherry Baby)," is as hard-rocking as the band has ever been, with screeching guitars and heavy drums. The title track is reminiscent of the band's number one hit, "Need You Tonight," while "Everything" recalls such hit ballads as "Not Enough Time." Though an undeniable feeling of familiarity surrounds the new album, there is also a sense of the band having a new sense of purpose and fresh outlook on the future. Hutchence's vocals have never sounded better in his career, and combined with the rich, hook-laden music of the Farriss brothers, the album assuredly takes its rightful place as one of INXS' strongest efforts ever. Stand-outs on the album include the experimental "We Are Thrown Together," an intriguing mixture of sitar and guitar, the gospel-inspired "Searching," and "Shake The Tree," a song other rock bands like U2 can only dream of ever writing. On "Don't Lose Your Head," written for Liam Gallagh er of Oasis, Hutchence angrily cries, "You wake up in the morning with a starf*ck for a friend, the things you do are so in tune with what you said you hate," and on the album finale, "Building Bridges," INXS delivers an emotional closer that leaves the listener gasping for more: "Are you comfortable in your skin? When does the strip begin?" INXS has sold over 20 million records in its 20 year career and _Elegantly Wasted_ shows the band is as vibrant and relevant today as ever. --- REVIEW: Frank Zappa, _Have I Offended Someone?_ (Rykodisc) - Bill Holmes To say that Zappa pushed the envelope would be an understatement. Before it was in vogue to do so, Frank thrilled audiences with theatrical rock shows in residence and issued concept albums. His perfectionist nature led him to discover, nurture, and support talented musicians like Lowell George, Steve Vai and Terry Bozzio. His music encompassed orchestral movements, rock, jazz, and featured everything from classical strings to funky horn sections. When label support would be unavailable (as it usually was from Warner Brothers) Zappa would finance his own tours, usually at a loss, to present his music in a form he felt it deserved. And, politically he suffered no fools, as evidenced by his long time campaign against the PMRC and their proposed rating system - again, at his own expense and for the issue, not the glory. During his 1988 tour - a phenomenal series of performances that has still not been fully documented - he made arrangements with the League Of Women Voters in each city to set up a booth to register voters. For all his idiosyncrasies (and truth be known they were mostly perceived), Zappa was a brilliant and prolific musician and orator with a biting wit and a generous heart. He never told people what to think - he merely asked them to think for themselves. Yet to many, Zappa was a man feeding toilet humor to the masses in place of music, a crass and disgusting artist who made fun of gays, blacks, Jews, Catholics...oh hell, everybody. Crass? Well...maybe. Zappa used his satire to pop the balloons of many targets, but never with hatred. What Frank did so well was to take matters like homophobia, racism, sexual prohibition and especially intellectual repression, and let them bask in their own hypocritical bright light. _Have I Offended Someone?_ brings together most of the songs that got under the skin of the politically correct set, those who unfortunately missed the humor and sarcasm. Of course, you also have the closet hypocrites, too. (You can spot them in a second - they're the ones who laughed at "Jewish Princess" but got pissed when "Catholic Girls" came out a couple of years later.) Zappa was offended too, but by phony televangelists, slimy record executives, two-faced politicians, drug-addled air heads, and especially apathetic whiners. But rather than sit back and complain, or - worse - do nothing, Zappa stood up for what he believed in, in song, and in deed. These witticisms were only a small fragment of a recording career which comprises hundreds of hours of music that spanned the full spectrum of music. But for those new to the Zappa world looking to get a clue to his satirical side, this is as good a place to start as any. Although each of the fifteen pieces on _Offended_ is available in some form on previous releases, eight are remixed or reconstructed and two are previously unavailable live versions - "Tinsel Town Rebellion" and "Dumb All Over", the latter featuring some stunning guitar work. Other highlights include the driving "Disco Boy" and the hilarious "We're Turning Again", Frank's dead on shot at aging hippies: 'Now I see 'em tightnin' up their headbands / On the weekend and they get loaded when they came to town / They walk around in Greenwich Village buying posters they can hang up / In those smelly little secret black light bedrooms on Long Island / Singing JIMI COME BACK!...' There are enough extras here to please even the Zappa completists, and as usual, Rykodisc has done their usual stellar job with sound quality and packaging. Fittingly, the cover art is from outlaw artist Ralph Steadman and the liner notes from ex-Fug honcho Ed Sanders, both of whom know something about artistic repression. Frank Zappa was the Curt Flood of rock and roll, the man who took one for the team and said out loud what many others did not have the courage to voice. When he took on the Senate Committee and the PMRC equipped with only wit, intellect and the Bill Of Rights, it was a slaughter. The suits never stood a chance. "Have I Offended Someone?" God, I hope so. --- REVIEW: Sneaker Pimps, _Becoming X_ (Virgin) - Simon West Sneaker Pimps' debut album _Becoming X_ is an inventive blend of triphop and indie guitar, with the occasional gothic flourish. More pop than Portishead, singer Kelli Dayton sings with a distinctive vocal that has a tendency to sound rather squeaky and twee in places when you first put the disc in the player, but sounds fine after about five or ten minutes. The band is currently garnering airplay and attention for the single "6 Underground", played on MTV and included on the soundtrack to _The Saint_ . A triphop beat backing Dayton's ice cool vocals, the song is included here twice: the original mix, and a Nelli Hooper remix that dirties up the beats, bangs up the backing vocals and adds a little texture to the track. The title track lays a whispered vocal and occasional piano over an ominous keyboard line and trippy drum loop. "Spin Spin Sugar" has a touch of the Garbage about the vocal, while "Post-Modern Sleaze" finds a lazy acoustic guitar playing over the beats. The variety continues throughout the album. The trip-hop beats are pretty consistent, but the guitar emphasis on several tracks and a stronger lyrical sensibility than most of the beat-heavy acts around at the moment make _Becoming X_ one to pick up. "Just your average smoking beats/punk/torch/drum n' bass/folk/rock n' roll band", says the publicity blurb, and that's really not a bad description at all. --- REVIEW: Kyle Vincent, _Kyle Vincent_ (Hollywood) - Bill Holmes Ex-Candy vocalist Kyle Vincent looks like a man out of time on the cover of his new self-titled CD. Red bellbottoms, shag haircut and Beatle boots adorn the man as he walks pensively through a woodsy nature scene. The picture suits the lyrics perfectly, as Vincent dreams of days gone by, lost love and happier, innocent times. But the only thing retro about the music is the influence, as these twelve songs glean the best elements of pop greats like The Rubinoos and Eric Carmen and plant them squarely into 1997. If parts of the record have the sunny, jangly essence of classic power pop bands, it's no accident - Vincent co-wrote a few songs with two of pop's best purveyors of that sound. Ironically, although Tommy Dunbar is all over this record, it's the songs written with Parthenon Huxley that sound like great lost Rubinoos songs. "Arianne", the kickoff track, starts off with a riff not unlike Jules Shear's "If She Knew What She Wants" (speaking of pop gems) and features Vincent's effortless and impressive upper range. This is by no means a "power" pop record, though. Half the songs are feathery light and are reminiscent of some of Eric Carmen's solo work ("One Good Reason" is Carmen incarnate, right down to the strings). Technically, Vincent has one of the sweetest, purest voices in pop, and it is especially evident when laid bare against piano and strings or a similar sparse arrangement. An avowed lover of pop music, Vincent's songwriting reflects what must have been thousands of nights falling asleep listening to an AM radio under his pillow. Unabashedly a fan of some artists considered lightweights (we're talking about a guy who sneaked out of school to attend Karen Carpenter's funeral!), he eschews what's "cool" for what he truly enjoys. Although there's arguably not a bad song on the record, Vincent shines best when he fronts the more uptempo material like "It Wasn't Supposed To Happen" and especially the killer single "Wake Me Up When The World's Worth Waking Up For". The latter, with its jangly guitars, slapping drumbeat and infectious chorus, is tailor made for radio. Maybe if we all rolled down the car windows and turned this up really loud, more people would make great songs like this. --- REVIEW: Jane Siberry, _Teenager_ (Sheeba) - Reto Koradi With a recording career of nearly 20 years, Jane Siberry can well be considered to be a forerunner of the current female singer/songwriter wave. Her most recent release, _Teenager_, finds her zooming far into her own past, recording songs that she wrote as a teenager. Considering the age of the songs, it is not surprising that this album does not seem to fit into our time. Instead of reflecting our fast, complex and hectic world, the recording is completely acoustic, and there is hardly a single loud note to be heard. While this may sound dull at a first superficial glance, the album reveals its qualities after repeated listening. Suddenly, it looks like an oasis in a deserted world; the clean voice of Jane Siberry is filled with tenderness, and the songs that first seemed almost too simple reveal their sheer beauty, both in the poetic lyrics and the melodies. Even though the proof was not needed, _Teenager_ confirms Jane Siberry's outstanding talent - somebody writing such wonderful songs as a teenager is really gifted from above. This is the first release on Siberry's own record label, Sheeba Records; their web site can be found at http://www.sheeba.ca/ Also excellent are the unofficial pages at http://www.smoe.org/nbh/ --- CONCERT REVIEW: BR5-49 - Al Muzer As one BR5-49 song so eloquently puts it, "She done traded in her Docs for kicker boots, [her] safety pin T-shirts for Manwell suits, her punk rock records are gathering dust, Little Ramona's gone hillbilly nuts." Such was the case in New York and Philadelphia when Nashville's BR5-49 turned both big city venues into their own personal version of Billy Bob's back country road house and managed to convert enough Northerners to their cause to make Hank senior smile blissfully down on 'em from his baby blue '52 up there in country music heaven. As authentic as grits 'n' fresh-squeezed milk with a Jack Daniels chaser, the happy whine of Don Herron's pedal steel and fiddle sliced through the twangin' rush of Gary Bennett's acoustic and Chuck Mead's Gretsch hollow body electric as Hawk Wilson slammed out a boot-stompin' beat on his vintage drum kit and Smilin' Jay McDowell humped his upright bass as if it was honeymoon night in 'Vegas. Transfixed by the keening harmonies of Mead, Bennett and Wilson and responding as if the rebel flag hung high in their front yards, the audiences at both clubs displayed their appreciation for the simple warmth and driven beat of songs such as "Cherokee Boogie," "Honky Tonk Song," "Crazy Arms," "Hickory Wind," "One Long Saturday Night," "Ole Slewfoot," "Hillbilly Thang," "Knoxville Girl," "18 Wheels & A Crowbar" and "Me 'N' Opie (Down By The Duck Pond)" with wild versions of the two-step, broad grins, impromptu line dances, drunken rebel yells, shouted-out song suggestions, enough hootin' and hollerin' to actually drown out the music at times and an unprecedented and heartfelt demand for three extended encores and enough autographs to give all five band members writer's cramp after the lights were finally turned up. Look for BR5-49's self-titled Arista debut or the six-song _Live At Robert's_ CD at a record store near you or visit 'em on the web at: http://www.BR5-49.com --- REVIEW: Son Volt, _Straightaways_ (Warner) - Scott A. Miller I was playing the new Son Volt album _Straightaways_ in my office when a co-worker came in and asked about it. He liked the country-tinged arrangements and easy, worn-leather feel of Jay Farrar's vocals. "Where are they from?" he asked, because where a band calls home speaks to this guy. I said "nowhere in particular: the players come from all over." He seemed hurt. I mention it because Son Volt, the band that doesn't really have a hometown, has again come up with series of songs from and about the road, that "asphalt prairie" (from "Cemetery Savior") that takes you over two lane highways, through small towns and past the crumbled Americana of the Midwest. It's the thematic, if not the sonic, twin to the band's 1995 debut, _Trace_. Son Volt frontman Farrar wrote the songs on _Straightaways_ during short breaks from a two-year touring schedule. He and the band say the songs were less-polished going into the studio than those on _Trace_, allowing each player to paint the music with whatever brush they found appropriate. The result is a loose, easy-going feel to most of the songs. If you take the opening song, "Caryatid Easy," off of _Straightaways_, there's a relative dearth of Farrar's trademark crash-and-stop rockers like _Trace_'s "Drown" and "Route." But the increase in quieter, mid-tempo numbers gives multi-instrumentalist Dave Boquist and frequent Son Volt guest Eric Heywood a chance to shine. "Left A Slide" features Heywood on a gorgeous pedal steel ramble for the entire song. Dave Boquist's looping fiddle and Mike Heidorn's shuffling percussion give "Creosote" the same warmth and sentimentality of Neil Young's beauty "Harvest Moon." The album isn't without its rockers, but they don't seem as loud as those on _Trace_. "Picking Up the Signal" has the album's best electric hook. "Cemetery Savior" is an acoustic-based rocker that includes the classic line "No pain, no reason to blink, you say it's better when you don't think, you like to live on the dark side." Farrar's voice sounds more worn than it's ever been and that suits the road-ready themes perfectly. Bassist Jim Boquist provides the harmonies and most of the vocal emotion, a nice accent to Farrar's stoicism. Son Volt released _Trace_ to a legion of loyal fans and critics who were still ga-ga over Farrar's and Heidorn's previous band, the legendary insurgent-country group Uncle Tupelo. For some of them, _Straightaways_ may not be as exciting as Son Volt's debut. It has just two all-electric numbers - _Trace_ has five - and definitely covers familiar themes. But what it lacks in electric flash it makes up for with an inner fire that will still provide heat many listens down the road. And so what if Son Volt doesn't have a hometown to call its own. The band likes the road. --- INTERVIEW: Latin Quarter - Reto Koradi Some people may remember Latin Quarter from their minor hit "Radio Africa" more than 10 years ago, but apart from that, their previous four albums never received the attention that the should have. Their catalog was deleted in most countries (except for Germany), and the two most recent albums have been released on small German record labels. What remains of a band of once around seven people are lead vocalist Steve Skaith and guitarist Richard Wright, with Mike Jones still writing most of the lyrics; all other instruments are played by session musicians. Considering the reduced lineup, it is only logical that the music sounds more stripped down. The keyboards, which played a major role in the 80's, have disappeared completely, and at least on some tracks the sound relies more heavily on the groove given by bass and drums. Also missing, and probably missed by old fans, are the female vocals by Yona Dunsford and Carol Douet. Still, the important qualities remain the same. Latin Quarter make fine and intelligent music that attracts both mind and soul. And Steve Skaith continues to be an outstanding vocalist with a lot of sensibility. The clear political statements presented in the lyrics of Mike Jones on previous releases have largely disappeared on their current release, _Bringing Rosa Home_ (SPV Europe). The lyrics still carry a message, but it has mostly gone from global politics to a more social and even personal level. All Latin Quarter albums will always have to live with the comparison to their first release _Modern Times_, arguably one of the best albums of the 80's. Even though _Bringing Rosa Home_ may not quite reach that level, it is still a fine album, and highly recommended to everybody with a sense for music that takes time and attention to listen to, and is more than just background noise. Consumable was able to catch up with Latin Quarter's lyricist Mike Jones, and find out what the group's been up to for the past decade... Consumable: Most people probably didn't hear anything from Latin Quarter for almost 10 years, and it seemed as if you had split. What happened in the meantime? Mike: What 'killed' the first Latin Quarter was the failure of the followup to _Modern Times_ - _Mick and Caroline_. Critics hated it and it sold less well than _Modern Times_. Perhaps all it lacked was a hit single, but there was more to our downfall than that. Partly it was a question of definition and identity - three vocalists was never a good idea, and neither was the 'non-playing' lyricist'. If you look at a band like The Beautiful South, they've done really well with the kind of line up and material we had on _Swimming Against the Stream_, but they present nothing to take a stance against. So, what I'm saying is, _Mick and Caroline_ may have been a good or bad, but it didn't matter. Not enough people were encouraged to buy it because no-one knew how to market Latin Quarter, and Latin Quarter didn't know how to market itself. Steve put up resistance against marketing, full-stop. The others had no real say; our manager wanted a kick-ass rock and roll band, and the record label wanted the new Fleetwood Mac (which is how they saw us). Me? I wanted to be famous. The transfer to RCA seemed like a good idea at the time. _Swimming_ has some great songs on it, although it tends to sound lifeless. We meant nothing at all by the time it was released and, again, there was no obvious hit single on it. (People left) and Steve hated being in a band that he felt musically out of control of, and Richard always insisted that the band had been formed too soon - this was especially a huge source of tension with our manager, Marcus Russell. It became clear that the band was not a joint enterprise between Steve and me. Because I don't play I had very little power. On the other hand, Marcus was my oldest friend and I found it difficult to side against him. He hated _Swimming_ and, by this time, he was managing The Bible, Johnny Marr and The The - he now manages Oasis. Basically, we sacked him but he could afford to go. C: Your role in the band sounds unusual; was it again the case that you wrote the lyrics on your own, and then sent them to the rest of the band by mail? Or was there a closer interaction, were you involved in the recording process? MJ: My role in the band always was unusual and yes, I did post lyrics to Steve. But when we had the money I always attended rehearsals and recording and I had no difficulty in contributing to the recording process or in making musical as well as lyrical changes when the occasion arose. C: What are you personally doing when you aren't writing lyrics for Latin Quarter? MJ: One of the things I've done in the past few years is to write a Ph.D thesis on popular music making and I've used _Mick and Caroline_ as one of my case studies. Many other things happened and I'd still like to be involved in the new National Centre for Popular Music which is opening here, in Sheffield, sometime soon. In the meantime as royalties dwindled I've had to take on more amd more teaching - and very little of it has any connection with music, it's more Media and Communication classes that I teach at the local college. C: The lyrics on the new album are less political than they used to be. What is the reason for this? Has the world improved so that you don't see hot topics any more, or did you give up on pointing them out? MJ: The lyrical changes on the new album are deliberate. Latin Quarter were so anonymous we felt that Steve should emerge as a human being, as someone that listeners could relate to - I encouraged him to do this so that's why there are songs like "Angel" and "Branded" on the album - they are songs about his love affairs. Also, I began to feel like an 'ambulance chaser' - 'look, there's some human suffering, let's write about it'. It was the war between Croatia and Serbia that finished me off. The Croats were Nazi sympathisers in the last war. As soon as they began their atrocities and the Serbs responded, I just gave up. In many ways, I've lost my enthusiasm for Latin Quarter and for song writing; ten years without success is far too long. That's partly why there are only eight out of twelve of my lyrics on this album - there will be even fewer on the next one. The songs on _Bringing Rosa Home_ tend to still be about injustice, but in a more individual way. C: Do you think that the clear political statements in your lyrics helped the success of the band, or could it even be that they were a problem? MJ: I think that Latin Quarter were ignored, ultimately, because all pop radio programming is about 'good times', about creating an artificial 'party atmosphere' day after day after day - and there is just so litttle room for music that doesn't conform to that programming be that Jungle, Einst. Neubaten, Consolidated or whoever. We were censored for being serious, not for being 'political' there's a difference. C: Let's talk about a few songs on _Bringing Rosa Home_. Who is the Rosa in the title track? MJ: 'Rosa' (after Rosa Luxemburg) is a pseudonym for Hilary Creek, a member of the British 'Angry Brigade' - a name the press gave to an unnamed Marxist terrorist cell in the early 70's. These were crazy times and it drove her crazy while in prison - maybe she's recovered now, I don't know. I don't agree with terrorism but there is a pathos in the way that young people find so much commitment inside themseves and work so hard for what they define as progress - yet nothing changes, that's my story as well. C: "Come Down And Buy" is about tourism to poor countries, and about the attitude that people show there... MJ: Yes, the 3rd World Tourism song is quite cynical. I wrote it after a trip to Tunisia. I had never been anywhere so poor and I felt so many contradictions about my privileged Western background and just touring such a poor place. Being anti-imperialist but turning up in people's towns and villages because I derived my power from that same imperialism. I felt the same way when Latin Quarter went to East Germany as we did, twice. C: "Smoking Gun" is about a professional killer? MJ: "Smoking Gun" is about the killings of the Kennedys and Martin Luther King. I still can't believe how the USA survived those assassinations, and how its system survived the obvious suspicion that people with power organised those killings. But I also wanted to consider the gumnan, how he (if it was a 'he') would feel satisfaction from 'a job well done'. C: "Older" is a song about getting older; is this a topic that worries you personally, or are you just observing? MJ: "Older" is about me getting older and about aging in general. When you set out to write songs that you expect to change the world, you are clearly driven by a lot of youthful adrenalin. The massive failure of Latin Quarter has crippled my life - but its also made me a far stronger person than I might have been. Its been a hard, hard lesson which boils down to, 'if you're going to commit yourself totally you'd better know what the fuck it is you're getting into'. C: Are you happy with what Latin Quarter achieved, or does it sometimes make you bitter that you didn't sell more? MJ: I don't really feel bitter about the Latin Quarter experience. Writing the Ph.D has really helped me because vastly more bands fail than succeed and I've interviewed people who have had a far worse time than Latin Quarter. Also, I can see where we went wrong and why it was always likely that we wouldn't succeed. I feel frustrated because I think I am a very good pop lyricist and hardly anyone, anywhere knows my work; meanwhile Tim Rice goes on getting Oscars, and Elvis Costello and Billy Bragg had ten years of praise for what they wrote. But pop isn't just about lyrics or about music, its about organisation for success and Latin Quarter never had that. The principal reason for the success of Oasis has been Marcus's organisation of them - and he learned all that through us. C: So is _Bringing Rosa Home_ the start of a comeback for Latin Quarter, or just a one shot project? MJ: As far as Steve and Richard are concerned, Latin Quarter has never been away. Also, they expect to make more albums after this one, SPV have given them the impression that they see Latin Quarter as a long-term commitment. I have mixed feelings about it. I don't believe that we can ever regain what we had, let alone go far beyond it. Basically, I think I'd like to close the book on Latin Quarter; it has brought me too much grief. I'd still like some pop success though - and no-one else is beating a path to my door. In fact, what I'd really like to do is to make my own album, I hate having to be so dependent on others and having to filter everything through Steve and Richard. I'm sure I know enough to organise a twelve track album with session players. I just need the budget! --- REVIEW: Various Artists, _The World's Best Power Pop Compilation...Really!_ (Not Lame) - Bill Holmes The oasis of pop for many an Internet surfer, the Not Lame Recording Company is a clearing house for power pop bands of all shapes and sizes - reissued classics and the best new hopefuls from around the world. Label head Bruce Brodeen is a pop fan first and foremost, and his passion for the genre has helped his business grow from a dream into a necessary conduit for many of the lesser known bands to connect with their potential audience. Not Lame also is a record label, home to a few of the brighter lights on the scene like The Rooks and Martin Luther Lennon. Bruce likes superlatives. Most of the releases in his catalogue are tagged with some variation on the phrase "EXTREMELY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED" to the point where you wonder about the few that don't get the over the top treatment. But ironically, he's right - most of the pop records in his catalogue are very good. So take the title of this CD with a grain of salt - while it isn't the best pop compilation in the world, there are twenty-two tracks by twenty-two different artists, and most of them are very good. Even the most die hard pop fans will find a track or two that they haven't heard before, but the average listener is going to be blown away by some of the best artists on the current pop scene. Brad Jones is an in-demand producer who's worker with artists like Marshall Crenshaw, but his own record _gilt-flake_ need not take a back seat to anyone. Newcomer Walter Clevenger's _The Man With The X-Ray Eyes_ is turning heads everywhere; and Atlanta resident Kenny Howes blends his 1960's pop influences into a delightful stew of pop nuggets that are as fresh as anything you're likely to hear in 1997. From Sweden we get The Moptops with their Tom Petty-ish "Plastic Moon Rain". Together with countrymen This Perfect Day they prove that Rickenbackers rule more than Britain and America. (Ditto New Zealand with Dead Flowers and Nova Scotia with Cool Blue Halo). Those familiar with heartland pop will be glad to see cuts from Darren Robbins (here under the guise of Time Bomb Symphony) and Brad Elvis of the Elvis Brothers (from the forthcoming _Big Hello_ CD). Probably the most ambitious tracks are contributed by Declan Young, whose layered sounds conjures up Jellyfish, and Willie Wisely, who somehow mixes falsetto vocals, dance rhythms, pumping piano and acoustic guitar into one of the most infectious tunes you'll hear all year. My pick to click? Stellaluna, produced by Spongetone Jamie Hoover, with the energetic "Nervous Man". If you are a pop fan at all - if songs by the Raspberries, Big Star, Badfinger and Dwight Twilley bring a smile to your face and make you reach for that dial - you will love this disk. Not Lame has kept the price way down as an enticement because - let's face it - they want to sell records. They figure that if you hear these bands, you'll like a lot of them, and you'll probably get that wallet out and drop a few bucks. They're right. You will. So what do I think about this collection?. It's wonderful. It's a great deal at twice the price. Oh, hell....it's EXTREMELY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! --- CONCERT REVIEW: David Wilcox, Variety Playhouse / Atlanta, GA - Lang Whitaker Finding an artist who can speak directly to the soul of his audience is a daunting task, but David Wilcox *is* such an artist. Watching Wilcox play live is akin to watching Picasso finessing the canvas or watching Ken Griffey Jr. unleash on a fastball. Wilcox radiates a warmth and talent that is unattainable through practice. Rather, Wilcox has a gift that comes from within. Drawing mostly from his major label debut _How Did You Find Me Here?_, his last major label album _Big Horizon_, and the just released _Turning Point_, Wilcox crafted together a show that left heads spinning. David Wilcox's fans are a rabid group that devour everything he releases, so it's hard to surprise them. However, an early rendition of "Hold It Up To The Light" played at a loping pace was a nice change. Older songs like "Eye Of The Hurricane", "That's What the Lonely is For", "Chet Baker's Unsung Swan Song", and "Rusty Old American Dream" brought the crowd to their feet. New songs like "Kindness", "Western Ridge", "Show Me The Key", and "Spin" were all equally well received. Wilcox also included the raucous "Blow 'em Away", a song by Chuck Brodsky that has become a live Wilcox staple. What makes Wilcox so unique is his rare gift for combining his storytelling skill with his remarkable insight into relationships and life. Wilcox throws out metaphors like he's tossing pennies into a fountain, causing ripples that go out and touch his captive audience deep within their hearts. Wilcox's tenor voice rings sweet and clear. Even with his full band playing with him, his voice still soared up and over the room. As if Wilcox's lyrics and vocals weren't enough, he plays the guitar with a touch that borders on divine. Despite occasional technical glitches, he made his guitars sing all night. Rotating between his Olson acoustic, a different fuller-bodied acoustic, a Telecaster, and some sort of jazz electric guitar, Wilcox picked and strummed incredibly all night. His backing band was basically the same cast that appears on _Turning Point_. Drummer Brian Kelley played a spare kit that added to the naked sound of Wilcox's music. David LaBruyere's fretless bass laid a smooth, supple footing for Wilcox to stand on, and Ric Hordinski and Newton Carter contributed a warm variety of hums and howls from their guitars. Wilcox has been touring around the last 4 or 5 years performing solo, so the backing band made for a different sound than most of the audience was used to. It was the first time live that most of the songs he played have sounded like they do on his albums, so it was interesting to hear the songs from that direction. The band did appear to be a bit tentative all night. Hopefully, playing together more often will make for a tighter sound. If you've never heard David Wilcox, run to see him. Getting to see a master craftsman at the top his game is rare. The sheer beauty of his art will blow you away. --- REVIEW: Various Artists, _Beyond Life With Timothy Leary_ (Mouth Almighty/Mercury) - Simon Speichert Many people might remember Timothy Leary as a man who encouraged them to "tune in, turn on, drop out". Some might think of him as "that freaked out drug guy", but David Silver and Jim Wilson, the producers of this album, encourage us to think of him as a ground-breaking philosopher and scientist with his own take on life. _Beyond Life With Timothy Leary_ is primarily dance/trance music set to Tim talking about various subjects. Some of the music is performed by producer Jim Wilson, and some is taken from Tim's late-60's album. The rest of the album features astrophysicist Dr. Fiorella Terenzi guesting on a spoken-word piece with Tim, The Moody Blues, Allen Ginsberg, and Ministry's Al Jourgensen and friends. Dr. Timothy Leary died on May 31, 1996, of terminal prostate cancer. He will forever be remembered as one of the most influential and inspirational people of the twentieth century. The purpose of this album is to preserve his thoughts and ideas for generations to come. If you'd like to take an intellectual trip, give this album a listen. --- REVIEW: Exp, _Exp_ (Hollows Hill / Triple X) - Johnny Walker The big secret about most of this newfangled "electronica" of today is how conservative it is: add a few disco beats to the noodlings of 70s Dinorock bands like Yes and Gentle Giant, sprinkle with a bit of neo-hippie, pagan philosophy gussied up for the millennium, and shazam!: you've got "electronica," the great new movement designed to make the world a better place, or at least a better place for those with the cash to buy the new Orb CD. While there is never a shortage of people out there on both sides of the music biz ready to try and profit from the public's gullibility, certain types really *are* keeping the light of true musical experimentation burning. Thus we have the appropriately named Exp, whose leader, the singularly named keyboardist Paris, treats us to a bit of truly 'alternative' music in the sense of the term before it became synonymous with jangly guitars and goofy grins. Paris, a frequent collaborator of decadent dark-rock dandy Rozz Williams (who returns the favour here by playing bass), pays homage here to truly experimental music ranging from Throbbing Gristle, Ornette Coleman, Whitehouse and Dead Can Dance with this challenging debut CD. Like all truly experimental music, _Exp_ veers between the sublime and the obnoxious, risking the alienation of the audience in a way all too seldom attempted in these user-friendly, corporate days when most rock bands seem indistinguishable from Wall Street bankers. More often than not, however, I find myself being drawn in here by the mantra-like rhythms which help lend order to the internal chaos of tracks like "The Cannibal Banquets" and "A Brummal Hare." There is an addictve, creeping sense of dread which gnaws at the edges of this stuff, even when at its most seductive: one of the album's high points is an inspired, appropriately eerie and unsettling French-language reading of Jacques Brel's "Ne Me Quitte Pas," a lounge standard often inaccurately translanted into English as "If You Go Away." Here, then, is a truly adventurous, eclectic listening experience, one which rewards the listener looking for something far more than mere passive and predictable "entertainment." Quite frankly, I'd rather listen to the transporting neo-classical strains of "Jackal," featuring the haunting, ethereal strains of vocalist Dorianda interwoven with some booming, echoed grand piano playing from Paris, than to anything from Daft Punk. _Exp_ demands involvement on the part of the listener, not mere acquiesence to some ill-conceived, passing fad. Cheers to Paris and company for keeping the spirit of musical invention alive. --- NEWS: > A Jam tribute album, _Fire & Skill_ , is set to be released in Britain in August of 1997. A few of the acts who will appear on this compilation include Oasis' Noel Gallagher ("Carnation"), Beastie Boys ("Start"), Dodgy, Everything But The Girl, Gene and Primal Scream. --- TOUR DATES: Bobgoblin May 30 Fayetteville, AR JR's May 31 Ft. Worth, TX The Aardvark Buck-O-Nine Jun. 3 Lawrence, KS Bottleneck Jun. 4 Springfield, MO Attic Jun. 7 Wilmington, NC Forum Camber Jun. 6 Baltimore, MD Laff & Spit Jun. 7 Wilmington, NC River Club Capercaillie May 29 Vancouver, BC Centennial Hall May 30 Portland, OR Aladdin Theatre Johnny Cash May 30-31 Myrtle Beach, SC House of Blues Cellophane May 29 Omaha, NE Range Bowl May 31 Boulder, CO Boulder Reservoir (ESPN Extreme Games) Jun. 2 Denver, CO Lion's Lair Jun. 5 Sacramento, CA 815 L St. Cheap Trick May 30 Boston, MA Avalon May 31 Mansfield, MA Greeat Woods WXKS Radio Event Jun. 1 Camden, NJ Blockbuster-Sony E Centre Jun. 3 New Haven, CT Toad's Place Jun. 4 Providence, RI The Strand Jun. 6 Allentown, PA Lupo's Jun. 7 Old Bridge, NJ Birch Hill Night Club Walter Clevenger & The Dairy Kings May 30 Anaheim, CA Linda's Doll Hut May 31 Huntington Beach, CA Fitzgerald's Cowboy Mouth May 29 Savannah, GA The Zoo May 30 Charleston, SC The Music Farm May 31 Charlotte, NC Tremont Music Jun. 1 Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Amphitheatre Jun. 6 Fairfax, VA Fairfax County Fair Jun. 7 Des Moines, IA Anveny Airfield Cravin' Melon Jun. 1 Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Jun. 5 Atlanta, GA Cotton Club Jun. 6 Augusta, GA Red Lion Jun. 7 Charlotte, NC Sound Factory Descendents / Less Than Jake May 29 Las Vegas, NV Joint May 30 San Diego, CA Soma May 31 San Bernardino, CA Citrus Building Jun. 1 Palo Alto, CA Edge Mary Ann Farley May 29-30 Boston, MA Charles Playhouse Bar Jun. 6 Montclair, NJ Page One Five For Fighting May 31 Cleveland, OH Odeon Jun. 3 Cambridge, MA Middle East Jun. 4 Portland, ME Zootz Jun. 5 Burlington, VT Club Toast Jun. 6 Albany, NY Paully's Jun. 7 New York, NY Mercury Lounge Gene May 30 Vancouver, BC Richard's May 31 Seattle, WA Club Moe Jun. 3 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall Jun. 4 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Jun. 7 San Diego, CA Cane's Hoven Droven Jun. 7 Toronto, ON Northern Encounters Festival Indigo Girls May 30 Philadelphia, PA Mann Music Center May 31 Hartford, CT Meadows Jun. 3 New York, NY Madison Square Garden Jun. 5 Holmdel, NJ PNC Arts Center Jun. 6 Mansfield, MA Great Woods Jun. 7 Saratoga Springs, NY Saratoga Performing Arts Irving Plaza (New York concert hall; http://www.irvingplaza.com) May 29 Supergrass W/ Pulsars May 30 Israel Vibration May 31 Bettie Serveert W/ Versus Jun. 3 Prodigy Jun. 4-6 Steve Winwood Jun. 7 Poi Dog Pondering Don Lewis Band May 30 Middletown, NY Rugby's May 31 Tannersville, PA Thirsty Camel Jun. 6 Salisbury Mills, NY Loughran's Jun. 7 Newburgh, NY Driscoll's Jun. 27 Newburgh, NY Driscoll's Lunachicks May 29 New Orleans, LA Monaco Bobs May 30 St. Petersburg, FL State Theatre May 31 Miami, FL Cheers Jun. 2 Jacksonville, FL Moto Lounge Jun. 3 Atlanta, GA The Point Jun. 4 Columbia, SC Rockafella's Jun. 6 Norfolk, VA Riverview John Mayall Jun. 3 Kansas City, MO Grand Emporium Jun. 4 Minneapolis, MN Cabooze on the West Bank Jun. 5 Madison, WI Barrymore Theatre Jun. 6 Chicago, IL House of Blues Jun. 7 Detroit, MI Majestic Theatre Moxy Fruvous May 29 Montreal, PQ The Cabaret May 30 Ottawa, ON National Library Auditorium May 31 Clinton, NY Kirkland Arts Centre Jun. 7 London, ON COCA Conference My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult Jun. 4 San Francisco, CA Trocadero Transfer Jun. 6 Portland, OR La Luna Jun. 7 Seattle, WA Fenix Underground Ozzfest (Ozzy Osbourne / Type O Negative / Machine Head / more) May 31 San Antonio, TX Alamodome Jun. 1 Dallas, TX Starplex Jun. 3 Cleveland, OH Blossom Music Center Jun. 4 Indianapolis, IN Deer Creek Jun. 7 Pittsburgh, PA Starlake Iggy Pop May 30 Kansas City, MO Sandstone June 2 Cleveland, OH Blossom June 3 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend June 5 Detroit, MI Pine Knob June 6 Indianapolis, IN Deer Creek June 7 Columbus, OH Polaris Prodigy May 30 Chicago, IL Metro May 31 Washington, DC RFK Stadium Jun. 2 Boston, MA Avalon Jun. 3 New York, NY Irving Plaza Jun. 4 Atlanta, GA Masquerade Professor & Maryann May 29 New York, NY Arlene's Grocery Jun. 7 New York, NY Hotel Galvez Q-South May 29 Albany, NY Valentines May 30 Boston, MA Mama Kin May 31 Rockaway Beach, NY Boardwalk Festival Sevendust Jun. 1 Davenport, IA Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds Jun. 3 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center Jun. 5 Clarkston, MI Pine Knob Music Theatre Jun. 6 Columbus, OH Polaris Amphitheatre Jun. 7 Noblesville, IN Deer Creek Music Center Sister Hazel May 30 New York, NY Elbow Room U2 May 29 Raleigh, NC Carter Finley Stadium (w/Fun Loving Criminals) May 31 East Rutherford, NJ Giants Stadium Vallejo Jun. 4 Houston, TX Fabulous Satellite Lounge Jun. 6 Mobile, AL Monsoon's Vasen May 30-31 Minneapolis, MN Cedar Cultural Center (traditional dance) Jun. 1 Madison, WI Edgewood College Chapel Jun. 2 Chicago, IL Scandinavian Club Jun. 3 Ann Arbor, MI The Ark Jun. 4 Bloomington, IN Lotus Festival Jun. 7 Toronto, ON Northern Encounters Festival --- Founded in August, 1993, Consumable Online is the oldest continuous collaborative music publication on the Internet. 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