CDs 2002 (2)

Hello !

    It's been a long time.........here are some of the records you may or may not have missed from the last few months. Probably nothing will ever touch  these few weeks last year, when Björk, New Order, Mercury Rev,Spiritualized (....the Strokes, they're good but they can't quite strike the same chord) released their albums, but the music world is going on, and if the emotions can't run high anymore, at least there's still some decen tmusic being released.

Six-by-seven : The Way I Feel Today. Building on from their brilliant 'The closer you get' album, this is probably more accessible and melodic. The guitars are still at the forefront, the rage is still there in the Nottingham rockers, a solid rock album, you can't get much wrong with them. Speaking of guitar excess, Austin, Texas may not be that far from Nottingham now...

....and You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead : Source Tags & Codes. Take Six by Seven, add even more guitar rage, but keep the melodic aspect. More melodies than in their previous albums here again, but still some guitar mayhem. Maybe it's just the fact that I bought both these records the same day, but I think they've got the same kind of qualities and I think they're definitely worth a listen for guitar fans who like their music with a bit of tension without losing the melodies. Nothing new, but just what you need sometimes when in a fighting mood.

Rival Schools : United by Fate. Part of the new 'emo-rock' scene. Another rather traditional rock guitar band, reminiscent of Nirvana in sound, another solid rock album. I won't get mad about it, but it's another record that makes for pleasant listening.

The Chemical Brothers : Come With Us. I wouldn't have bought that if not second hand. I think it's poorer than their previous outings. Technoid stuff that never really peaks. Maybe if played very loud it will make you dance, and I've heard they are great live. But overall I think this is far from convincing. Only real highlight for me (although this is kind of easy-listening techno that does not put me off overall, so it's not an awful record by any means), the final track featuring Richard Ashcroft. Good and about 100 times better than his own album I think.

Super Furry Animals : Rings around the World. Another slice of psychedelicpop. Cool, easy on the ear (I think). Good pop/guitar music. Nevertheless I can still never get my head around thinking them as great. Maybe live they're better, I don't know. Maybe on drugs they're better, I don't know. For me they're just very good but not that amazing. (note, see live review from 2004, they are brilliant)

Scott 4 and Magic car : European Punks LP. Interesting stuff that verges a bit on the Mercury Rev ca. Deserter's song side. Another good listen that probably won't take you over the moon, but still quite good (sorry, but thinking back about all these albums, I can't think of anything that's really blown me away lately, I seem to be collecting good records but nothing extraordinary - maybe it's a saturation effect ?)

Cornershop : Handcream for a Generation. Another album that has been announced as a great comeback (remember the 'Brimful of Asha' single from a few years ago ?). Quite varied, a bit of sitar here, a rocking number there, I think I have to listen to it again. So far, it just goes again in the 'quite good' category, that's got a few great tunes, a bit of inventivity here and there, but again fails to really move me. 

The Streets : Original Pirate Material. Now here comes the shocker : this may just be the first garage/hip-hop kind of record I have ever bought (although I do really like some of the stuff in the field). But hey, the lad's from Birmingham, this has been critically acclaimed overall, and a quick listen on the headphones seemed to say 'why not ?'. So what is that all about ? Geezer gets drunk, takes drugs, gets off with a bird, gets dumped, etc. You know, the normal suburban life. But somehow this hasn't got the usual pretentious bling-bling ring of others who seem to deal with the same subjects. Maybe I'm biased (nice Brummie accent fits in well here) but this sounds more real. There's a bit of experimentation that is cleverly put into that (e.g. the 'you think I'm paranoid' bit in 'too much brandy'), the voice is clear and affirmative, it's an endearing record. And it's also nicely constructed : the best tracks here may well be the first and the last, the rest being just an interesting journey between these two. And any record that finishes with the words 'just try to stay positive' repeated over and over again is a record you've got to keep close to your heart. Nice work, Mr Skinner !

Badly Drawn Boy : About a Boy OST. Not a proper album then ? Well I don't know, this does sound like a BDB album (mind you, he's only recorded one so far !). Actually, it might even be better than his first album. This is highly enjoyable (mostly) acoustic music. Very peaceful, makes for an extremely pleasant record. The film may or may not be good (I think it's received good reviews, don't know when it's out in France though), but the soundtrack definitely is excellent.

Departure Lounge : Too Late to Die Young. Another quite good indie-like guitar-(but rather quiet)driven album. I don't know what there is to say about it. Not much. I think it'd just get 7 or 7.5/10 no problem. It's good (and yeah I'm a bit fed up reviewing albums that I haven't been into enough, so I'm not giving you much of a clue there........), nothing more or less.

The Cooper Temple Clause : See this through and leave. Why bother ? Well actually, despite having received their share of criticism (some saying it's over-produced, other saying it's lacking direction--which is indeed quite true), I think it's one of my favourite albums this year so far. It's got good screaming guitar bits, I'm fine with the voice too. So maybe thei rnext album will decide whether they're really good or not, but for the moment I'm happy with this one. (History showed that their next album was my top album of 2003. Funny how some of these reviews still make sense years after !!?).

Haven : Between the Senses. Another rather good guitar album that's got its fair share of decent tracks. Another one that goes in the 'very good albums' shelf. (note 3 years later, of course it is rubbish !)