==== ISSUE 115 ==== CONSUMABLE ======== [July 15, 1997] Editor: Bob Gajarsky Internet: gajarsky@email.njin.net Sr. Correspondents: Jeremy Ashcroft, Tim Kennedy, Reto Koradi, David Landgren, Sean Eric McGill, Tim Mohr, Al Muzer, Jamie Roberts, Joe Silva, John Walker Correspondents: Daniel Aloi, Tracey Bleile, Lee Graham Bridges, Scott Byron, Patrick Carmosino, Janet Herman, Bill Holmes, Eric Hsu, Tim Hulsizer, Stephen Lin, Scott Miller, P. Nina Ramos, Linda Scott, Scott Slonaker, Simon Speichert, Jon Steltenpohl, Simon West, Lang Whitaker Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, Dave Pirmann Also Contributing: Jim Flammia 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 | `------------' INTERVIEW: XTC's Andy Partridge (Part 1) - Joe Silva REVIEW: Oasis, "D'You Know What I Mean" single - Tim Kennedy REVIEW: Monaco, _Music For Pleasure_ - Bob Gajarsky REVIEW: Dandy Warhols, _The Dandy Warhols Come Down_ - Tracey Bleile REVIEW: Banco de Gaia, _Big Men Cry_ - David Landgren REVIEW: Grateful Dead, _Fallout From The Phil Zone_ - Jim Flammia REVIEW: Soundtrack, _Batman & Robin_ - Sean Eric McGill REVIEW: Primal Scream, _Vanishing Point_ - Tim Kennedy REVIEW: Maggie Estep, _Love Is A Dog From Hell_ - Lang Whitaker REVIEW: Paul Rodgers, _Now_ - Linda Scott REVIEW: Made, _Bedazzler_ - Jon Steltenpohl NEWS: London Suede, Scorpions, Mike Watt TOUR DATES: Baboon, Backsliders, Boston, Brad / Verbow, The Clarks, Cordelia's Dad, Dots Will Echo, Furthur Festival (incl. Black Crowes and many more), G3 (Joe Satriani / Steve Vai / Kenny Wayne Shepherd), Government Mule / Sweet Vine, Irving Plaza, Junkster, Lollapalooza (Tool/Prodigy/Korn/many more), Mindset, Walt Mink, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult / Radio Iodine, Professor & Maryann, Sister Hazel / Cowboy Mouth, Size 14, Supertramp, Thin Lizard Dawn, Vallejo, Verve Pipe / Tonic / K's Choice, Volebeats / Ditch Croaker, Warped Tour Dates (Reel Big Fish, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Social Distortion, Sick Of It All, Less Than Jake, many more), World Party, Young Dubliners Back Issues of Consumable --- INTERVIEW: XTC's Andy Partridge (Part 1) - Joe Silva Some five years after they last released an official LP, XTC are now free from their career-long indentured servitude to Virgin Records. Holed up in his "shed" in Swindon England during the interim, Andy Partridge is now faced with new label concerns, remaining firm about avoiding excessive public exposure, and engineering what may be the dawning of the band's second wind. Geffen has just released a collection of their more universally palatable platters under the monicker _Upsy Daisy_. Revved up and ready to shed his mantle of pop virtuoso emeritus, we did the trans-atlantic chin wag to get at the details... Andy Partridge: Yeah, Hello. So, tell me, are you like poised over a keyboard as we speak? Consumable Online: Oh, no. But I could be if it was necessary, I guess. I do this the standard way. I just type it in and send it off later on. AP: I hope you don't type at my speed T...H....hmmm now where's the E? Now that's my kind of speed. CO: Are you still taping musical notes over keyboards and stuff like that? AP: No, I now have a sequencer which, I still only play like one or two notes at a time but this has to remember them. You get them in a sequencer and you can see what you just hit and it remembers that chord's just going to pass so get ready with the next chord. So I don't have the cardboard hand principle anymore. I have a cardboard sequencer instead! CO: Do you use it like a computer for much of the stuff you do out back (in your home studio)? AP: No, only the instruments I can't really play. If I need any drumming I have to do that a couple of bonks and a bash at a time through the sequencer or I can't play keyboard of any description or any keyboard-generated sounds. My playing with drums and keyboard is appalling but I can manage guitar, bass, harmonica and any singing. I can shake a few things, you know like empty vitamin C tablet bottles full of rice for shakers n stuff. I can do any of that kind of thing but the real swish musical stuff, I need a sequencer to help me out. CO: Well, you guys have had a pretty extended vacation, I guess. AP: Well, enforced legal vacation. We finally got out of Virgin and since Christmas really we've been seriously looking at other labels. I mean, we were looking at other labels before, but we couldn't do anything cuz we were still contractually tied to Virgin even though we couldn't and wouldn't work. But since Christmas we've really been looking seriously at other labels. We're just about ready, hopefully, to make a decision on one of them. I can't tell you which one yet cause we haven't decided. But, it's one of three. And (we're) just desperate to record this mass of material we've built up. CO: How have the relationships held up during this time? It must have been frustrating for you and Colin to sort of withstand this sort of forced exile. AP: Yeah, it's been very tough. It's been especially tough, I think, on Colin whose wife has been going through all sorts of weird phobia stuff where she can't leave the house and she can't let him out of her sight and stuff like this so he's kind of the man in the iron mask. He's really felt imprisoned in the last couple of years being involved with all this. And I think his songwriting has suffered and also the heavy psychological blow of being on strike and not being able to record. He hasn't written a fraction of the songs he used to write but, he's written a couple of real crackers. I think that once we get going, once we get in the studio and the little red light goes on he'll probably be coming in the next morning saying "I've been working on this chord change and I've been working on these lyrics". He can create once the thumb is squeezed down. It's been tough with his wife's...I don't know what the medical book says...extreme weirdness that she's suffering from. It's kind of held him prisoner. CO: You guys got on more or less well? You get the impression that even though you live in the same town, you probably have somewhat separate lives. AP: I saw Dave - admittedly Dave is working in Los Angeles on some of these sessions - for the first time in about three weeks and he came over and we ran through some bits and pieces. I guess I see Dave more but, because of the situation that Colin's got himself caught in, I don't see him that much. I mean we get along okay. I'm not sure how bands are supposed to get on after they've been together for this long. I was never in a band that was together for longer than five minutes or a year. CO: But, you guys are in the strange situation that you always hear bands falling out from the stress of being forced to press on but, you guys have had a bunch of slack time where you could let the relationship breath. AP: Yeah, well. certainly when you're touring and you're living in each others pockets and you're in the van and you think "If he blinks like that one more time, I'm gonna shove this guitar up his arse". It gets like that, so if you're not rammed down each others throats, you actually think, "Well, I really want to see so-and-so or I really would like to get together with so-and-so" as opposed to "I'm gonna kill them at breakfast because I can't stick stand them anymore. That's what it gets like when you're stuck... It's like a roving prison center and they're your cellmates. And that's not healthy. CO: Like marriage. Oh, I didn't say that. AP: Oh..can be...can be. CO: As far as the shopping went for record labels, was there any sort of pressure put on you guys as far as "We'd love to have you but, you're gonna have to get under the spotlight for us for at least the first couple of... AP: Yeah, a lot of labels said "You know, are you gonna be touring?" and we said "No" and you could just see the icicles starting to form. They have no imagination. We've existed longer as a non-touring band than as a touring band and our best material came when we stopped touring and is still coming. They obviously have a set way of doing things, a set pattern and they can't turn their heads at all, they've got a fixed gaze. So I'm not interested in any label that that's just as far as they can see. CO: And there's other options now even with the technology and stuff. You can be in many places at one time without having to leave your living room. AP: I still have trouble with people who have to see the person who is making that music. I still have trouble with that. CO: Especially with you guys. You guys are now getting to that mythic sort of legend status. AP: Yeah, me and Thor! CO: Like my mechanic the other day, I was you know, taking the car in and he said something like "Oh, yeah I saw XTC there just before he cracked..." or something like that and every one sort of started gathering around to hear the tale. AP: Well, I suppose they probably think I'm in a little village somewhere like they had in 'The Prisoner' and I'm in a wheelchair with a blazer on and a captain's hat kind of dribbling over a chess board and there's Sid Barrett opposite me. He's dribbling on the white pieces and I'm dribbling on the black pieces. Yeah, people get that kind of impression. CO: And the reality is you've got children to raise just like anybody else. AP: Yeah, that was part of the reason for coming off the road. I wanted a normal life. I was sick of hotels. I was sick of worrying about where the money was gonna come from because we never saw a penny from the live show. Very corrupt management. I just wanted a normal life. I just wanted a house to live in because before then I'd only lived in rented accommodations. But, I mean really scummy places because I had no money. The worst it ever got was two rooms next to a shunting yard at Swindon Station and it went down to one room because the damp got so bad in the other room and it was [like] so stupidly cold, I used to go to sleep with my feet in the oven. You know, I'd sleep on the kitchen floor with my feet in the oven. That was hell. So you see, I've done my artist garret suffering stuff and I wanted a house with four walls and kids and I wanted to be normal and I was sick of the rock'n'roll circus thing. CO: Which is understandable. AP: Yeah, it was just getting to me. I guess I was too loyal to say,"I want to stop doing this" and I kept doing it even though I wanted to stop. And my body just said "Uh-oh, we don't want you to do this, we're gonna make you ill" and it did. But the upshot of it was great cause I had more time to think about the songs and they really did get a hell of a lot better. You can see, from _English Settlement_ onwards; that was the first one written with a bit of time to spare. The graph went right up for me after that. CO: And that's one of the major, major high points as far as my appreciation of your stuff goes. But, you know, I heard you made some sort of comment about playing for a truck. AP: Yeah, I'd really like to do that and I can't tell you why. I know some of the cheesiest...I know the Stones have done it. I know U2 did it. I don't want to do it in that big kind of grandiose way. U2 were kind of manipulative about it. I think it was kind of "Don't tell anyone we're turning up" and then they had it broadcast all over the radio stations. You know, it was kind of like a fake myth. I would just like to get a little flat bed truck and put some tiny little amps on it and then call the radio station and tell them "We're coming for an interview, we'll plug an album and we can chat and we'd like to make a row in your car park." I don't know how many people would come and see it. It could be anywhere from a dozen to God knows how many. I don't really want to make it like a show. I don't want to do the lights, the smoke, the lasers, the bustling. I hate all that stuff. CO: That would be interesting. AP: Well, maybe, it might be fun. It'd probably be a lot harder work that me imagining all dewy-eyed that it's gonna be easy. But, even the acoustic radio stuff that we did, we were doing two or three stations a day and that was really tough. CO: Was it really? You guys sounded surprisingly fresh. AP: Well, the first couple were really appalling. We sounded like three old assholes with their hands caught in the wires. It was strange, live on air. We were all dying of embarrassment but after all that, we sort of got used to it. By the time we ended up, it was very smooth and we very relaxed about the whole thing. Yes, man it can be done. I just don't want to go back to the kind of treadmill situation. CO: I have a copy of the KROQ show you did in Los Angeles. AP: Oh, yeah, that was good fun. CO: That seemed like good fun because it seemed like they didn't want you to stop playing and it seemed like you didn't want to stop playing. AP: Yeah, we'd actually run out of numbers, I think, that we rehearsed. We had so many bunches of stuff and then we had some separate numbers and we just ran out of stuff. CO: I've heard that you've been busy collaborating with people like LLoyd Cole. AP: I haven't been able to work as us really. So, I've been co-writing with anyone who will ring me up and say "Do you want to write?" I've just said "Yeah". So, it's been Terry Hall. I did three numbers with a girl called Nicki Holland. I just got to hear them. One of them sounds great. A real little popstress. what's her name? Oh, yeah, Cathy Dennis. We wrote a couple of songs. Anyone who was ringing me up I was saying yes to, but now people are calling me up because their careers are sort of flagging or they are stuck for song idea or another. CO: Does that bother you? AP: Well, it's kind of a challenge. I suppose if it was just non-stop, that sort of thing, then I would sort of get pissed off. I'm doing one, next week or the week after with and Australian fella called Ivor Davis who has a band called Icehouse. CO: Are you going down there? AP: No,no, no, no. He's coming up here. I hope we got on. It's a long way home. CO: Actually, I think I heard the stuff you did with David Yazbeck. AP: Oh, yeah. Some of that was co-playing but that was more of a production thing. He's a great writer actually. CO: Yeah, he's a nice guy. I've talked to him a couple times. AP: He's had a weird sort of background. He came as a gagwriter for Letterman. That was one of his previous professions. Another person I know from the same neck of the woods is Jamie Block. He's got a band named Block. It's him and two other guys. He's great. He's cut his own album, _Lead Me Not Into Penn Station_. I know this sounds appalling but, I mean it complimentary. He sounds like a 1997 Dylan with a band. CO: Did you not get any calls to produce anything or has it been strictly songwriting? AP: Mostly songwriting. I just did an album with Stephen Duffy. He did an album with Stephen Street, the Blur man, and he didn't like it. And the record company said "You don't have any singles". So, he called me and said "Look, I've got some songs. Can we get together and can you shape them up for me and so on." And that ended up in me kind of restructuring these songs. Well, actually, I had to turn down the songs he brought and tell him to go away and write some more. But, he wrote two pretty good ones and then we went into the studio and I sort of produced the whole thing and played bass because he didn't have a bass player, got to do my McCartney impression. The second part of this interview will appear in the next issue of Consumable Online. --- REVIEW: Oasis, "D'You Know What I Mean" single (Creation UK) - Tim Kennedy Oasis break their '97 duck with a brash stadium sound that is light years from their last 1996 single - "Don't Look Back In Anger". The production is more heavy-handed than before, though it is the by now usual team of Noel and Owen Morris at the controls. In the mix there is backmasking, and various percussive effects which continue for some time before launching into the song. The drumbeat is loud, loping, almost hip-hop, but the tune bears distinct hallmarks of Noel in upbeat mood. It is a strident, almost marching type of tune. With its dance beat and use of samples, this could be the start of a new direction for the band. The second song on the CD, "Stay Young" is a more traditional Oasis number which seems to be something of a personal anthem - "Stay young and unstoppable, cos we know just what we are". The structure is more simple and straightforward, and more fun. Next up is the almost-obligatory acoustic demo by Noel, "Angel Child", which gets better with each listen - one of his best. His ability to write great songs is undimmed. Noel also sings on a cover of Bowie's "Heroes" which unlikely as it sounds is the most immediate work on this CD. It is a rework very much in the mold of Oasis, and could become a live favourite. --- REVIEW: Monaco, _Music For Pleasure_ (A&M) - Bob Gajarsky With the status of England's New Order on an indefinite hiatus, and band members taking up other side projects such as Electronic and The Other Two, it's no shock that Peter Hook has pursued his own fortunes and formed the group Monaco. What may pleasantly surprise fans is that the Monaco debut disc, _Music For Pleasure_, could comfortably slide next to any established New Order on the shelf - and compete favorably for play in the disc changer. On the leadoff single, "What Do You Want From Me", fans of New Order will instantly recognize the hook as that of bassist Peter - pun intended. Surprisingly, Hook's vocals aren't too far removed from those of N.O.'s lead vocalist, Bernard Sumner. The "sha la la" backing chorus comes off as an updated male counterpart of Motown, vintage 1960s, while the bassline is vintage New Order, played to absolute perfection. Monaco is Peter Hook and David Potts; Hook found Potts while recording the _Gun World Porn_ EP for Revenge, on which Potts contributed some guitar work. The seeds of a successful relationship were born, and the pair started to work together after New Order's _Republic_ album was complete. Despite New Order's success, however, Hook was unable to parlay that quality work into his side project. "My last thing (Ed. note: Revenge - two non-descript albums with one good single, "Pineapple Face") played down the New Order and bass elements because I felt I should get away from them. I was very self-conscious, and the album suffered for that. I feel much happier and more comfortable doing this than I was before." And 'this', as he dubs Monaco, isn't too far removed from his New Order past. "Shine" and "Happy Jack" could have emanated from any New Order album, while "Tender" has a riff which seemingly comes straight out of "Love Vigilantes" - but unlike John Fogerty, Hook won't get sued for taking a peek at his past. And "Under The Stars" could easily become a football (soccer, for the American fans) anthem for some F.A. team - possibly Manchester United? - just as New Order paired up with a nation of football players for "World In Motion". Hook has perfected the pop trails he blazed in New Order, but he has a few tricks up his sleeve to show this isn't a one trick pony. "Buzz Gum" is a holy alliance incorporating the influences of the Beatles, circa _Magical Mystery Tour_ (or Oasis with a horn intermission, if sick of every band being comparead to the Fab Four), and Ian Broudie (Lightning Seeds) and the alterna-techno dance enticement of the off-titled "Junk", already coming in at a DJ-ready mix 9 minutes long, shows Monaco could easily take their music away from the chic clubs and bring it to the underground - if Hook and Potts desired. The second UK single, "Sweet Lips" delves deeper and mixes the 70's disco scene, down the street from Gloria Gaynor, with the 80's digs which Hook frequented. Fulfulling the promise that was left untapped after Electronic's self-titled debut, Monaco's _Music For Pleasure_ delivers a knockout punch as Peter Hook proves that the compelling force in a band isn't always *only* the lead vocalist. --- REVIEW: Dandy Warhols, _The Dandy Warhols Come Down_ (Capitol/ Tim/Kerr) - Tracey Bleile The leap the Dandies have made from their self-titled debut seems small, in that the overall sound is the same, but the development in musicianship is huge. They've graduated from long droning keyboard noodling to long droning keyboard noodling that is thickly layered with repetitive guitar jangles and a heavy rhythm section. Most of the songs start deceptively lo-fi, just the solo strums, or the simplest drum beat for a measure or two, and then the rest piles on until it's lost like a fine thread in the weave. Strap in kids, because the full-frontal sonic assault begins now. It's the kind of music that gets the most mileage at a big party - a bass line to shiver the floor, synth pop with a whitenoisewash of guitar buzz - "Every Day Should Be a Holiday" cuts somewhere between the Pet Shop Boys and ZZTop (!?). And then there's those long weird keyboard solos that somehow your mind half turns off while the lower half of your body is undulating against its will. What you get in the end is a great scary subversive feeling like you get listening to the Pixies, where a song can be so happy and bouncy on the surface, yet so grainy and evil in composition - David Lynch, eat your heart out. It's just as well that if we start to lose the great British shoegazer bands, we gained one American trailblazer of our own. What sets them apart, is when it isn't all giddy, it really is dirty shoegazing, like they skipped the deep introspection and went directly to the drugs, and they want you right down there rolling around on the ground with them. Songs like "Orange", "Green" (hmmm, look at all the pretty colors) and "Good Morning" sound like the soundtrack (this is my imagination, not personal testament) to a long slow nod-off. But then to enter a vein (sorry) of irony, Taylor confesses his sorrow to a counterpart for their choice of addiction (but not necessarily the behavior) in "Not If You Were The Last Junkie On Earth" - 'I never thought you'd be a junkie / because heroin is so passe'. This is the track slated for first ups as a single, and boy, I can just hear the chorus being howled out the window on that one. And if you thought "Dandy Warhols' TV Theme Song" from the debut dripped with insidous good humor - the almost-too-cute Jan & Deanesque harmonies and handclaps are an even better fit for this album in "Cool As Kim Deal" . The pacing of the disc is right on target, although the last two offerings drag out the white noise aspect out just a tad too far - I feel like I'm sitting too close to a fan blowing in perfect pitch with one of those environmental sounds players. Minor gripe aside, this release is thoroughly hypnotic and draws you farther in with every listen. This is one for the good headphones, but be warned, every time you unearth another chunk of pattern in the weave, you'll be ever more snared in the Dandies' web. It's like the fruit-flavored wallpaper of Willy Wonka - it may just seem like background sound until you get close enough to truly appreciate it (I think the Dandies know what a snozzberry tastes like). This is where the winners in the sonic battle currently being waged will be putting their efforts - pay attention... --- REVIEW: Banco de Gaia, _Big Men Cry_ (Ultimate/Mammoth) - David Landgren Those of you who have been following the music of Banco de Gaia can be assured: _Big Men Cry_ is an important record. Indeed, it's his best to date. The basic precepts of, retro-postmodern pop remains, although this latest album is a very different beast to _Last Train to Lhasa_. It places Banco farther away from the dance scene of earlier albums. This is a more personal journey, thus, uncompromised. Take "Drippy", the opening track, for instance. One cannot accuse him of tailoring his music to easy radio airplay. Clocking in at almost nine minutes, the song just starts to get into high gear by the time a standard three minute pop song has finished. The departure from previous albums is plain: a more tribal, industrial sound. From there it is into the heartland of Olde Europe, with a sample of tolling church bells on "Celestine". Then, as the song builds up, think of Pink Floyd, circa _Animals_ with its Hammond organ sound, and you'll be on the right track. Amazingly enough, Banco has managed a minor miracle in digging up Dick Parry, the saxophonist who played the definitive 70's sax solo, on "Us and Them," on Pink Floyd's _Dark Side of the Moon_; he can still cut it today. Bear in mind though, that this is the 90's, and so the song is finishes up in a kitsch disco groove. The album reaches a high point with "Drunk As A Monk". A swelling chorus of industrial clanking, chanting (the Tibetan monk connection), jackhammers and sliding synth notes crashing together. In their wake arises a gloomy, post-apocalypse rhythm, the closest comparison I can make is with Sydney avant garde 80's band Scattered Order (which, I admit, isn't going to help everyone). From here the song shifts abruptly into a uplifting, euphoric melody that basically pulls you out of your chair and makes you want to leap around the room. This is Banco de Gaia at its/his finest. Next up is the title track, "Big Men Cry" which starts off with a jungle atmosphere (i.e., jungle as in "rainforest after the downfall"). A mellower, ambient track, again Floydish in feeling, leaning towards The Orb, accompanied by an atmospheric violin. Makes me wonder if any film-makers have contacted Toby Marks regarding a film score. His music has always been, and still is, panoramic in nature. Blink and you'll miss the joke track on the album, "Gates Does Windows", lasting as it does all of thirty seconds. Nothing to do with the devil in Redmond, the Gates in question is Fred, a window cleaner, in real life. The song segues straight into "One Billion Miles Out", which is my least favourite track. Which is not to say I dislike it but, only that Alan Parsons Project's _I, Robot_ was a good album when it came out but I wouldn't be caught dead listening to it these days... And then there is "Starstation Earth", a twenty minute opus to close the album. Reminds me a lot of a couple of different tracks from the t:me stable of musicians. Toby Marks explains that at the incept, all he had was a sample "This is starstation Earth". His imagination took it from there. Listening to this album, and _Live at Gladstonbury_, it becomes clear that Marks is moving away from the one-man-behind-the-keyboards, towards collaborative efforts with other musicians. On his web site, which is now at http://www.banco.co.uk, he mentions that he is working with a five piece band, rehearsing for a summer tour that will take him through Europe (including WOMAD at Reading) and the US in August for the Big Top. The surprising thing after having listened to this album is that over an hour passes from start to finish. It's hard to see where the time goes. All of the tracks are very long, far too long for commercial radioplay; and yet, nothing seems superfluous, there is never the feeling that the songs drag on for too long. All in all, for people who want to get to know Banco de Gaia, now is a good a time as any to get on board. If you already own one or more of his other albums, this album is a fine addition. I'll be playing it for a while yet. --- REVIEW: Grateful Dead, _Fallout From The Phil Zone_ (Grateful Dead) - Jim Flammia Since the passing of Grateful Dead leader/guitarist Jerry Garcia almost two years ago, the remaining members of Rock 'n Roll's longest running musical caravan have remained relatively busy. Singer/guitarist Bob Weir and his band Ratdog, along with one half of the Dead's percussion team Mickey Hart, have been on the road with the Furthur Festival for the past two Summers. Keyboardist Vince Welnick has his group The Missing Man Formation, and drummer Billy Kreutzmann seems to be on an indefinite diving expedition. In the meantime, the elder statesman of the band, bassist Phil Lesh, (yes, older than Garcia), has been quite busy himself. Lesh, a classically trained musician before joining the group in the mid-1960's, had mentioned publicly that, among other projects, he was going to spend some time rummaging through some old tapes to see what he would come up with. Well, the long-awaited result is a unique collection of live Dead entitled_Fallout From The Phil Zone_. This 11 song collection is the first "official" Grateful Dead release that contains live tracks that were recorded from different time periods. The liner notes in this package are even exceptional. As well as the obvious information, they include a paragraph for each track, written by Lesh, describing the significance of each song, the band members on each track, when it was recorded, where it was recorded, and who recorded it, with an interesting little omission in the recording credit for the two cuts from '89. Each track was hand-picked by Lesh from the years 1967, '69, '70, '71, '77, '89, and '95. Although the strongest material on the album is from '71 and before, each song is its own special entity for different reasons. Disc One opens with the Dead's cover of the classic '60 romp "Dancin' In The Streets" recorded in 1970. This may be a shocker for those of you who have never heard anyone "expand" on this one before, but the band pulls it off as the "poppiest" cut on the album. Other highlights from the first disc include a version "New Speedway Boogie" that, as Lesh tells, "was found in a box of old stuff marked 'unknown' in the bowels of the vault". What is known is that it was recorded in 1970, and Bob Weir is playing acoustic guitar, which gives the Garcia/Hunter tune more of a blues-country feel. Also included is a stellar "Viola Lee Blues", which is one of the quintessential Dead improvisational standards from the early days of the band. This 1969 version from Chicago holds nothing back. It's raw and dirty, complimented by Garcia's aggressive leads, and Lesh's thick bass lines that lead the others from a blues filled jam into a chaotic frenzy. Closing out Disc One is a powerful 1971 performance of Otis Redding's "Hard To Handle". This was consistently one of the band's best cover tunes of that period. The band is tight, funky and mean. Pigpen's soulful delivery is complimented perfectly by the rhythm section, and Garcia's fluent picking. As you'll hear, the audience agrees. Disc Two has some serious high points as well. The highest being "In The Midnight Hour" from 1967. I highly doubt that Wilson Pickett and Steve Cropper ever thought their classic, covered by many, could ever be transformed into an epic thirty-one minute and forty-nine second psychedelic circus. Pigpen is at his soulful best preaching to the audience with a commanding grit. The band takes it far past any ordinary boundaries with, what sounds like, Garcia and Lesh both playing leads that interweave in and out of each other. The band then takes it back down as Pigpen blends in some bluesy harp before stretching it out even further. You'll need to strap in for this one. "The Music Never Stopped" one of my personal favorites from the Dead repertoire, is one of the band's funkier tunes. Although this 1989 recording is by no means the best version I've heard, it is definitely a good one. The band is pretty solid all the way through, especially during the spacey interlude before they segue quite smoothly back into the song's finale. Another cut to pay particular attention to is "Jack-A-Roe". This 1977 arrangement has a slower tempo with more of a "kick" than the Dead's usual 'Western" style, which is sort of refreshing. Before listening to this set, I found it interesting that Lesh chose to include "Visions Of Johanna", until I heard it. The beautiful semi-rarely played Dylan song, recorded during the Dead's last run in Philadelphia in 1995, showcases Garcia's sincere and touching delivery in that grandfatherly tone that melts many of us. The band is sharp, the sound is crisp, and this is a jewel. Perhaps it was a bit self-indulgent, three decades of live show to choose from, to close out this collection with the Lesh/Hunter classic "Box Of Rain", even if it is one of the best songs the band created during their 30 year run. Maybe it was even a bit gutsy, considering it's one of the few Dead songs that has always been better in the studio. But, ya know, even though Lesh was not blessed with an angelic voice, this 1989 version could even make the most skeptical music fan stand up and yell "Let Phil sing". Way to go Phil; keep 'em comin'. --- REVIEW: Soundtrack, _Batman & Robin_ (Warner Brothers) - Sean Eric McGill Ah, to be a fly on the wall when they came up with the soundtrack album to _Batman & Robin_. Of course, even though I wasn't - that doesn't mean I can't pretend (insert dream sequence fade-in here). SCENE: An office at Warner Brothers. Present are Batman & Robin director Joel Shumacher, Danny Bramson and Gary Le Mel (executive album producers) - and a fly on the wall. Bramson: OK, here it is. (Ohhs and ahhs abound at the sharp packaging). Shumacher: Does it have everything we wanted? I mean, we've really got to please everybody with this thing, ya know! Le Mel: Well, we got alternative covered pretty well. Two songs by The Smashing Pumpkins that sound like nothing they've done before, some R.E.M., Soul Coughing and a couple of others. And we went ahead and threw Goldenthal a bone and put a track of his score on there so he wouldn't whine about not getting a whole album. Shumacher: What about this "electronica" thing I keep hearing about? Were you able to get The Dust Chemical Method, or whatever they're called? Le Mel: Well, no. But, The Smashing Pumpkins tunes were produced by Nellee Hooper and we did get Underworld - they gave us a song called "Moaner" that sounds pretty damn good. Shumacher: Did they sing about the movie? I really like it when people do that. Bramson: No, they didn't. He just talks about a city or something, but the beat kicks. Shumacher: What about women - we need some women on the album. Bramson: Well, we got Lauren Christy, and MeShell Ndegeocello. You'll like this Joel, MeShell sings a song called "Poison Ivy". Shumacher: Oh goody! Does it talk about her poison kiss? Bramson: Um - no. It's an old Leiber & Stoller song - but it is seductive sounding, like Uma. Le Mel: (muttering) OprahUma. Shumacher: What about Jewel? I just love her. Bramson: Well, she re-did "Foolish Games" from her album. Put a lot of extra arrangements into it - sounds pretty good but I like the original better. Le Mel: (still muttering) Sounds perfect for this movie then. (Bramson cuts him a sharp look) Shumacher: (jumping up and down) Oh, oh - what about rap? We just gosta gosta have some rap on there! Did anyone sing about the movie? I just love that. (Shumacher starts to hum "Ghostbusters") Le Mel: (muttering) Why bother? The only major role by an African-American was by Billy Dee Williams, and you didn't even ask him back for Batman Forever to play the character he originated. (Bramson starts to get a tad upset) Bramson: R. Kelly did do a song called "Gotham City" - we're even going to do a video! And we did get Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - they're rap. Their song is called "Look Into My Eyes". It's good, but not as good as some of their other work. Le Mel: (muttering again) Yeah, kinda like this movie. Looks like the Adam West series without the "Pows" and "Bangs". Bramson: Gary, could you excuse us, please. (Security comes in and starts to drag Le Mel out of the room. Before the drag him out the door, he starts screaming) Le Mel: You wanna know about the album, Joel - you really wanna!! It's like your goddamn movie - all flash and no real substance!!! Sure, it's good in parts, but in the end it's just another piece of Bat-crap that nobody really needs!!! (A security guard brains Le Mel with a blackjack as the door slams shut) Schumacher: (To Bramson) So, you think we can get someone to sing a song about the movie for the sequel? --- REVIEW: Primal Scream, _Vanishing Point_ (Reprise) - Tim Kennedy _Vanishing Point_ is a return to the dance/trance direction formerly travelled by the band on their early '90s _Screamadelica_ album which was judged a milestone in this decade's musical history by many critics. Since then they have done one oddball heavy rock/funk fusion album _Give Out But Don't Give Up_, and acquired the services of one Mani, ex of the Stone Roses, on bass. The name of the album and the theme of many of the tracks and samples is from an old 70's psych road movie. Having not seen the movie I can only guess at its content; the majority of the work here being mutant hiphop psychedelia and often instrumental dub reggae. The results are eminently listenable, especially with the flashes of early seventies cop-show style melodies. The voice of Bobby Gillespie is by no means the strongest of musical vessels, but he manages to make it count where required. Having said that his lyrics range from the banal to the bizarre. Strangely track 8 "Medication" is one of a pair of rock songs. It takes its beat from NF Porter's "Keep On Keeping On" (a Northern Soul classic of the 70's) and leans on the Stones circa "Let It Bleed". "Motorhead" has more of a mutant 70's new wave sound - it doesn't sound anything like the original. "Trainspotting" appeared on the soundtrack of the film of the same name, and is a laid back hiphop instrumental. The final track "Long Life" is similarly paced, sounding like an early Floyd psychedelic soundscape. This is probably one of the best albums of the year, and is far more original and challenging than, say, Beck's _Odelay_. It is probably better than its illustrious predecessor _Screamadelica_. One to recommend. --- REVIEW: Maggie Estep, _Love Is A Dog From Hell_ (Mouth Almighty / Mercury) - Lang Whitaker Being a revolutionary isn't always the easiest way to reach mainstream success, and even though Maggie Estep has been swimming upstream her whole professional life, she's still making pretty good headway. Estep is probably most memorable for her spoken word rants that were sandwiched between videos several years ago on MTV. She went on to appear on MTV's forgettable "Spoken Word" edition of "MTV Unplugged", and she then took a spot on Lollapalooza's side stage doing poetry readings. Along with her backing band I Love Everybody, Estep released her first album, titled _No More Mr. Nice Girl_ in 1994. After touring in support of _Mr. Nice Girl_, opening for bands including Hole, Estep has regrouped with her second effort, _Love Is A Dog From Hell_. _Love Is A Dog From Hell_ is a terrific and deliciously crazy album full of weird arrangements and powerful vocals. I can't remember ever hearing anything like this before. Estep talks/speaks on all the songs except one or two. The songs where she sings, her low alto voice sounds amazingly like Courtney Love (before her Oscar makeover). The poetry is set over an ever changing background of sounds, from the drum and bass of songs like "How To Get Free Hamburgers", which details the workings of the entertainment industry, to the sparse setting of "Jenny's Shirt, a lovely tale of a girl finding long awaited companionship in Paris. The label publicity stuff that came with the CD doesn't ever specify whether or not Estep's old band I Love Everybody is involved with _Dog From Hell_, but whoever the backing band is does a pretty good job of not overwhelming Estep's stories, which are really the center of this album. Estep's sense of humor is so dry that it is danger of becoming dehydrated. If Janeane Garofalo ever put out an album, it would probably sound a lot like this one. Estep laces every song with humorous barbs, mostly directed towards the men who have treated her (apparently) pretty badly. Being of the male persuasion, I generally don't relate too well to the Alanis/Liz Phair/Fiona Apple genre, but Estep's overriding sense of humor about everything makes it hard to take any of her digs at men too seriously. On "Emotional Idiot" for example, she recites several standard male pickup lines, but with an irony in her voice that makes the listener appreciate Estep having to sit through the original pick-up attempts. I found myself wondering what happened to the men after they delivered the lines. I could almost picture them being reduced to dust by a glare from Estep. The most compelling thing about _Dog From Hell_ is the unsettling nature of the whole project. It is cool to finally see someone ready to shake things up a little bit. Uncontent to rely on the tried and true ways of her predeccessors, Estep sets out to blaze a new trail, and blaze she does. --- REVIEW: Paul Rodgers, _Now_ (Velvel Records) - Linda Scott After 30 years of performing and recording, Paul Rodgers still has that ultradistinctive voice and near-perfect delivery that has made him a star in his native Britain, the US, and around the world. How to describe a voice that is seemingly untouched by time and the trials of the rock and roll life? Words fail, but do yourself a favor and pick up _Now_, Paul Rodgers first solo recording in 12 years. Rodgers is best known for his work as frontman for Free, Bad Company, and The Firm. His songwriter skills resulted in smash singles such as "Feel Like Makin' Love", "All Right Now", "Shooting Star", and on and on. The three bands all show Rodgers' love of the blues-rock band and his success in this genre. In 1973, Free broke up with 8 albums to its credit, but the single "All Right Now" has become a classic rock song that is heard on TV or radio somewhere in the world every 45 seconds. Rodgers set up Bad Company which recorded six multiplatinum albums in 9 years. A noteworthy single was Grammy award winner "Feel Like Makin' Love". Rodgers moved on to satisfy a creative craving he couldn't satisfy in either band. The Firm paired Rodgers and Jimmy Page for two albums. In his search for creative control, Rodgers moved on to a series of solo albums with pickup bands. In 1993, he began recording with various artists for one-off bands. Recently he did _Muddy Water Blues_ with Jeff Beck, Slash, Richie Sambora and others. Then came a track on _Stone Free: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix_ with Slash and the Band of Gypsies, and he appeared at Woodstock '94 with Jason Bonham, Slash and Neal Schon. Rodgers has evolved from lead vocalist/frontman of the typical rock band to a solo artist whose name is in itself a drawing card. During this period of 30 years, Rodgers has sold 125 million albums world wide. There seems no doubt he can do quite a bit on his own with the backing of hand picked musicians. Not surprisingly, _Now_ was written entirely by Rodgers. The songs are the blues rock he is famous for done in that distinctive voice that gets classic rock fans up and moving. "Soul of Love" is the first track and is such a representative Rodgers' song that you could throw away the cd liner and know it was him. This track has wisely been chosen as the first single. There are ballads, rockers with guitar solos, a mixture of what Rodgers likes to write and perform. The final track is "Holding Back the Storm", a fast-paced, upbeat song that is just an excellent ending for _Now_. If you are lucky enough to get the first pressing of _Now_, you get a free second Paul Rodgers cd called _Live_. These tracks were recorded live at the Rockpalast Open Air Festival, Loreley, Germany on July 8, 1995. The 13 tracks span his career with selections from Free, Bad Company, and recent solo projects. Each of the Free catalog selections ("Little Bit of Love", "Be My Friend", "All Right Now", "The Hunter", etc.) are revisions of these old favorites. The Loreley tapes also include new versions of Bad Company's "Can't Get Enough of Your Love" and "Feel Like Makin' Love". Rodgers selected blues songs to highlight his solo work ("Muddy Water Blues", "Rolling Stone", etc.). _Live_ encompasses three decades of Rodgers' career. _Now_ shows where he is today, a place where other rock vocalists wish they could be after that timespan. If you want to hear some classic blues rock, this is one for your collection; singer / songwriters that can still rock the crowd after 30 years are worth listening to - you never want to miss that wonderful voice! --- REVIEW: Made, _Bedazzler_ (MCA) - Jon Steltenpohl Canadian newcomers Made leap from the tundra to major label with their new album _Bedazzler_. It's a collection of bouncy, guitar driven pop songs that sound like typical 90's alternative fare with a little 80's pop thrown in to boot. Dinosaur Jr. comes to mind on the first few tracks. Jason Taylor's vocals crackle and warble, and fuzzy guitars layout like a curtain of slacker destruction behind the melody. Most everything is upbeat though, so the effect is more like Dinosaur Jr. on happy pills. _Bedazzler_ takes a few mainstream cues from the Cars, and even Bryan Adams, but they put an alternative spin on it. Maybe writing plain pop songs scares them a bit, but by trying to make conventional tunes sound alternative, Made loses something in the process. "Fun of You" starts out like a great alternative ballad, but they can't leave well enough alone. Made compounds it with an overly whiny voice and overbearing guitar, and by the end of the song, you're left with a decent ballad twisted into a distorted mess. Part of this problem seems to come from poor production and mixing, but that can't account for all of the problems. Unfortunately, most of the album suffers from the tension between pop and alternative. Still, a few tracks really shine. "Hippies" and "Stella" recall another Canadian band, Twenty Four Gone. They are swirling, blurred songs with a monotone bass that drives the rhythm. Both songs starts slow and quiet and entice you to close your eyes until they build momentum and wake you up stirred and moving. On the pop side, "Half an Hour" does have the slacker chic down perfect with it's little chorus "We went to the high school dance / put my hand in-side your... nevermind". A catchy guitar riff keeps pumping "Half an Hour" along, and it's probably this album's best chance for a hit. All told, _Bedazzler_ is a promising debut. Even when the execution is off a bit, Made writes decent alterna-pop. Drummer Alison Maclean adds soaring vocals that are reminiscent of Kim Deal when she was a Pixie, and with better production and mixing, you might have a classic on your hands. Luckily, Made is a young band, and this album foreshadows a bright future. Either way, if you just can't get enough slacker music in your life, take the 5 best songs on the album and have a ball. --- NEWS: > The London Suede will release a cover of the Pet Shop Boys' "Rent", with contributions from PSB Neil Tennant, on the flip side of their UK single "Filmstar". > The just-released double CD compilation from the Scorpions, _Deadly Sting_, has been released with two different album covers; one with a naked woman, her arms positioned to cover her breasts, with scorpions crawling up her legs, and an alternate one, for more conservative stores, sans female. > Mike Watt is currently in New York City playing bass on a side project "The Wylde Ratttz," a one-off line-up featuring Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore on guitar and Steve Shelley on drums, Ron Asheton of Stooges fame on guitar and an as-yet-undisclosed vocalist; earlier recordings by this line-up featured Mudhoney's Mark Arm on lead vocals and yielded two tracks tentatively to be included on the soundtrack to the film _Velvet Goldmine_. The new sessions are being undertaken with an eye to releasing a full album. Don Fleming (ex Gumball and Velvet Monkeys) is producing. --- TOUR DATES (Please confirm with site before travelling): Baboon Jul. 17 Chico, CA Juanita's Jul. 18 San Francisco, CA Boomerang Jul. 19 Oceanside, CA TaKilyaz Backsliders Jul. 16 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom Jul. 18 San Francisco, CA Last Day Saloon Jul. 19 Hollywood, CA Jack's Sugar Shack Jul. 21 San Diego, CA Casbah Boston Jul. 16 Hartford, CT Meadows Jul. 18 Tinley Park, IL New World Jul. 19 Cadott, WI Chippewa Valley Jul. 20 Milwaukee, WI Marcus Jul. 22 Columbus, MD Merriweather Post Brad / Verbow Jul. 16 Boston, MA Paradise Jul. 18 Philadelphia, PA Theatre of Living Arts Jul. 19 Washington, DC 930 Club Jul. 21 Atlanta, GA Cotton Club The Clarks Jul. 19 Baltimore, MD BWI Sheraton Cordelia's Dad Jul. 16 Lebanon, PA Acoustic Cafe at On Stage Jul. 19 Bethlehem, PA Godfrey Daniels Jul. 20 New Hope, PA John & Peter's Dots Will Echo Jul. 19 Summit, NJ Common Ground Furthur Festival (incl. Black Crowes and many more) Jul. 18 E. Troy, WI Alpine Valley Jul. 19 Chicago, IL World Jul. 20 St. Louis, MO Riverport Jul. 22 Indianapolis, IN Deer Creek G3 (Joe Satriani / Steve Vai / Kenny Wayne Shepherd) Jul. 16 Morrison, CO Red Rocks Government Mule / Sweet Vine Jul. 17 Tuscaloosa, ALA The Varsity Music Hall Jul. 18 Biloxi, MS The Zoo Jul. 20 Nashville, TN WRLT radio show (w/Big Back 40) Jul. 22 Columbia, SC Elbow Room Irving Plaza (New York concert hall; http://www.irvingplaza.com) Jul. 16 Space Junkster Jul. 17 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's Jul. 18 New York, NY Arlene Grocery Jul. 20 New York, NY Club Chaos Lollapalooza (Tool/Prodigy/Korn/many more) Jul. 18 Cleveland, OH Blossom Music Center Jul. 19 Pittsburgh, PA Starlake Jul. 20 Columbus, OH Polaris Jul. 22 Cinicinnati, OH Riverbend Mindset Jul. 18 Wilmington, NC Jake's Walt Mink Jul. 16 Madison, WI O'Cayz Corral Jul. 17 Milwaukee, WI Shank Hall Jul. 18 Minneapolis, MN First Ave Jul. 19 Chicago, IL Double Door My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult / Radio Iodine Jul. 17 San Diego, CA 4th & B Jul. 18 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Jul. 19 Santa Ana, CA Galaxy Theater Professor & Maryann Jul. 19 New York, NY Hotel Galvez Sister Hazel / Cowboy Mouth Jul. 17 Boston, MA Paradise Jul. 19 New York, NY Irving Plaza Size 14 Jul. 15 Oklahoma City, OK Boar's Head Jul. 18 New York, NY CBGB's Jul. 20 Asbury Park, NJ Saint Jul. 22 Richmond, VA Twisters Supertramp Jul. 15 Holmdel, NJ PNC Arts Center Jul. 18 Philadelphia, PA Mann Music Center Jul. 19 Wantagh, NY Jones Beach Jul. 20 Buffalo, NY Darian Lake Jul. 22 Quebec City, QC Coliseum de Quebec Thin Lizard Dawn Jul. 16 Boston, MA Axis Jul. 17 Providence, RI Met Cafe Jul. 18 Philadelphia, PA Upstairs at Nicks Jul. 19 Baltimore, MD Fletcher's Jul. 20 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop Jul. 22 Chicago, IL Double Door Jul. 23 Pontiac, MI 7th House Vallejo Jul. 18 Fort Smith, AK River City Saloon Verve Pipe / Tonic / K's Choice Jul. 16 Sacramento, CA Crest Jul. 17 San Francisco, CA Fillmore Jul. 19 Portland, OR Roseland Jul. 20 Seattle, WA Moore Theatre Volebeats / Ditch Croaker Jul. 16 New York, NY Knitting Factory Warped Tour Dates (Reel Big Fish, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Social Distortion, Sick Of It All, Less Than Jake, many more) Jul. 16 Milwaukee, WI Eagles Ballroom Jul. 17 Minneapolis, MN Midway Stadium Jul. 18 Chicago, IL United Center Jul. 19 London, CT Western Fairgrounds Jul. 20 Montreal, QC Hippodrome Jul. 21 Buffalo, NY Le Salle Park Jul. 22 Cleveland, OH Agora Complex World Party Jul. 16 Toronto, ON Phoenix Jul. 18 Boston, MA Avalon Jul. 19 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory Jul. 20 Baltimore, MD Bohager's Jul. 22 New York, NY Irving Plaza Young Dubliners Jul. 19 Solana Beach, CA The Belly Up --- Founded in August, 1993, Consumable Online is the oldest continuous collaborative music publication on the Internet. 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