Adem - Love and Other Planets (Domino) 24/04/2006

Fridge magnate Adem returns with the follow up to his celebrated debut album "Homesongs".

T: Is it just me or does this sound like a cross between pre-electronic Radiohead, The Divine Comedy and Cat Stevens?

N: That was something I'd never really truly associated with this artist, or more directly this album. I can hear why you would make the association, but Yusuf Islam?

T: Er...I think we can discount the Ronan duet, if you don't mind! Anyway, even if Adem HAS been listening to the artists I mentioned, he couldn't have chosen a much better set of performers to take his cues from. This is a terrifically pretty album, very understated - refreshingly so - and perhaps this is what Leya SHOULD have sounded like.

N: You forgot to mention it's an "absorbing" album.

T: And I would also say it's an absorbing album. 8/10

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Sandy Dillon - Pull the Strings (One Little Indian) 24/04/2006

Avant Garde American blues songstress releases new album, inspired by carnival rides, hospital wards and the confessional box.

T: I thought the days when I got a boner from the slightest glimpse of a woman's nipple were long gone, but to be honest I definitely felt a bit of a stirring downstairs when I first saw the nip slip on this sleeve. What? There's a Cd inside? Oh yeah of course we're in the front room doing reviews. Er...I'll just go put these tissues away. I was miles away there. Sorry. Anyway, the title track here sounds like it's burst free from the shackles of hell and embodied itself in a cute gremlin that you can't help but be charmed by. By the time we reach track two, she has taken the form of Kate Bush and metamorphs between bluegrass songstress, mentalist rock chick and hippy stoner. No sane man would ever want to sleep with her after hearing this, for fear that she may elect to chop off his penis on a whim.

N: Avant garde, they've certainly got that right in the pre-amble! Describing this album as a carnival of bizarre may be more fitting. 6/10

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Imperial Vipers - Searching : Falling : Silence (EMI) 24/04/06

"Guns N Roses meets Soundgarden meets Free". Well, it must be true, because that's what they said in The Sun...

T: This is without a doubt the best band I have ever heard that hail from Dunstable. Not that I can name you any others.

N: Dunstable, Bedfordshire is not a place that you immediately associate with a rock 'n' roll band. For me, it's a place that schoolfriends and families relocated back in the late seventies, but now I can add to that list the Imperial Vipers.

T: Anyway it's inoffensive, formulaic, straightforward rock. I'll give 'em their dues anyway, at least they LOOK how they sound, unlike a lot of these horrendously cheesy pop bands who kit themselves out like they were one of the original punks. If you throw away the wrapper of a Twix, you still have to eat the chocolate to taste the benefit, and the same could be said of Imperial Vipers.

N: A band who rip through the calm like a Harley Davidson through Dunton Bassett.

T: So you understood my Twix thing then? Even though it was completely nonsensical? What does it mean then? I just said the first thing that came into my head without thinking...

N: (deadpan) So did I. Wasn't that the point? 6/10

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The Church - Uninvited, Like the Clouds (Cooking Vinyl) 17/04/2006

Would you believe it's yet ANOTHER album by The Church...

T: and what's more, it's another GOOD album by the Aussie superheroes. I can't honestly remember one they've released that wasn't average at worst. "Block" is a blinding opening, using the very satisfying trick of using just one melodic hook throughout the song whilst the scenery changes colourfully around the vocal. It's devilishly effective when it's pulled off well, and that is undoubtedly the case here. The band seems to sound a lot less like U2 than they used to and there is a loose element of Talking Heads creeping into their work at times, which all makes for an entertaining listen.

N: An album that just goes to show what can be achieved without the obligatory drugs problem, sexual deviance and media glare. A record that has come about over 26 years as a band, and one that shows just how strong and original a band can still be after all this time. 8/10

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Doll By Doll - Revenge of Memory (Cooking Vinyl) 17/04/2006

As founder member and now respected solo artist Jackie Leven says of Doll By Doll now, "Punks didn't like us because we weren't a punk band - there was a certain sense of violence to the live shows which was at odds with the cartoon violence of punk, but we delivered excitement by the yard, which is what we set out to do". Anyway, this live album from 1977 is an attempt to recapture the atmosphere from those gigs.

T: You have to bear in mind when you listen to live albums the resources the people recording them had, and let's remember that this was not made by professionals in any shape or form - it was made by a fan, and I think you have to give that punter the utmost credit for a very accomplished recording. You can hear the early development of the talent Jackie would bring to the underground music scene over the subsequent years and the songs on aural display here are packed with intensity and delivered with the ultimate craftsmanship. It's worth having as a musical document if nothing else. Impressive.

N: In fact, less a bootleg than it is a mixing desk recording. This is a unique slice of history, and one that impresses the music fan in me. Before playing this, I knew nothing of this band, but as music recorded around the time of the queen's Silver Jubilee, and in irony the Pistols were screaming "God Save the Queen", the music found here has a ggreat deal more to do with the earlier seventies than the days of punk and protest. 7/10

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Leya - Watch You Don't Take Off (Rubyworks) 17/04/2006

Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol recently proclaimed that "Ciaran Gribbin has one of the most extraordianary voices I've heard in a long time" and the band recently won the Best New Band category at the Meteor Awards.

T: An album that is almost as exciting as slightly moving your arm. Like Starsailor but ten times less interesting. Did they mention which drugs Gary Lightbody was taking, and is he selling any cheap?

N: I have been trying desperately to catch something more creative than my colleague described about this band, but other than Gribbins indeed possessing great vocal ability, the music to which this is placed IS as interesting as movingh my arm ever so slightly. Sorry, could be so much better.

T: Makes the Funeral March sound like "The Birdie Song". 3/10

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Dresden Dolls - Yes, Virginia (Roadrunner Records) 17/04/2006

Third time lucky - this time the CD actually plays...

T: What a massively appealing opening track! It's like Hazel O'Connor performing at a London stageshow as written by Rado and Ragni (Hair). Wonderfully theatrical.

N: A band whose musical drama competes with the stage set by the clever wordplay.

T: and it's nice to have a non-faulty version of this band's output for a change. I had previously only been able to play about 30 seconds of one single and never found it particularly inspiring, but hearing it now in all its full glory my opinion has changed. These are thumping showstoppers and I'd definitely pay to see the musical.

N: Vocally I first heard elements of Siouxsie Sioux in her presentation, but in vocalist Amanda Palmer, the more I heard - and on reading, the artist was responsible for the piano here - I felt this was more likely a Tori Amos, and quite stunning with it. 8/10

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Get Amped - Postcards From Hell (Strong Like Bull Records) 10/04/2006

A forthcoming UK tour bizarrely interrupted by 8 gigs on the streets of China in May is next on the agenda for Get Amped, following the release of this, the band's debut lp.

T: Big, meaty rock tunes that are in fact quite memorable sometimes become sadly spoilt by some over zealous vocals, but hey, you can't deny the obvious stadium filler prospects of these guys once their songwriting becomes a little more sophisticated. I'm not sure what it is, but they do appear to have that spark that leads me to believe they have a bright future, despite my own reservations about them.

N: Described as "a rock band not obsessed with hair straighteners and eyeliner, as they are with writing big, fat, intelligent rock songs with guts...", well that all went well until they crucified "Walking on the Moon". I observed this number on the trackllsting with bemusement but this reworking came across as just too cluttered, as if trying to prove something they had no need to. Otherwise a fairly steadfast rock album with a solid musical grounding. 5/10

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Laroca - Friends in Far Away Places (Just Music) 10/04/2006

According to the press release, this is a "heady mix of lush electronica, world flavours and muted beats" and is a "sonic adventure embarked upon by the Laroca duo, known to their respective mothers as Rob and Olly". Sounds interesting...

T: It paints some fascinating landscapes and you are swept away to another world by the music here. It's a bit like watching a Michael Palin "Around the World" documentary whilst being pumped full of narcotics. A trip within a trip, if you like. It most definitely conjures up thoughts of scorching sunshine, endless deserts and women carrying baskets on their heads. Ultimately it's an enchanting album that you can't help but like. Splendid stuff. Reminds me a little of Azymuth actually.

N: As you've said, a kind of "New World" influenced trip, veering towards Trans-Global Underworld at times, whilst at other setting the scene for a Casablanca tinged affair. Would you agree?

T: I can see what you mean, but frankly my dear, I don't give a damn. Oh hang on...wrong film...let's just play it again Sam.

N: One of the most misquoted lines in movie history... 8/10

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Ludes - The Dark Art of Happiness (Double Dragon) 10/04/2006

"Exactly what the world needs right now", according the the NME. More importantly, what do the guys at AD think?

T: Sounding exactly like Dogs is no bad thing, as they put out some of the best material of last year if you ask me.

N: Excuse me, we HAVE a dog in the house, and it sounds NOTHING like her, especially when the doorbell rings. As an album, this has so far proved to impress me the most this year. Moving from an Afghan Whigs tinged "Badlands" - or Dogs in your opinion - we take quite an unprecedented step into the ska rhythms of "Never Had a Chance" (I'm certain they had Sting in to contribute to some of the backing vocals!) and with riffs so well executed, they'll blow you away.

T: Definitely a worthy album to part with your cash for, and taking their influences so obviously from the bands mentioned before as well as Wire, Rancid and possibly even Motorhead on one track, is really no bad thing. 9/10

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Seu Jorge - The Life Aquatic - Exclusive Studio Sessions (EMI) 10/04/2006

Would you like to hear David Bowie's back catalogue strummed acoustically and re-interpreted in Portuguese by a Brazilian actor? Er...look no further...

T: Bizarre and somehow hugely appealing.

N: As a soundtrack to Wes Craven's "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (a film, coincidentally, I have never seen although one I have always intended to catch - no pun intended!), the music offered here serves to further reinforce this view. The film's cast aside, Seu Jorge does his best to tribute the Thin White Duke at his musical best. Simply beautifully bizarre. 8/10

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The Zico Chain – The Zico Chain Mini-LP (Hassle) 10/04/2006

I’m surprised how much I like this, to be honest. It’s all screams and howls and bitterly spat vocals fused with suitably fuzzed up guitars, much like a male version of Hole, but ten times heavier.

Perhaps it’s because the songs here leave you little time to tire of them, not one of them even making it to three minutes long, but hell, sometimes minimalism holds a greater appeal, and that is certainly the case here. One thing’s for sure though – I don’t envy the band that practises in the next rehearsal room to them!

Apparently named after “the connection that all icons possess – from Maradona to Madonna, Monroe to Manson, Jesus to James Dean”…sound a bit loose? Well you’re right, but these guys are anything BUT loose. This is a blistering ride through six sharply constructed slabs of monster rock. Hugely appealing. 8/10

Tone E

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Jeff Klein – The Hustler (One Little Indian) 10/04/2006

We actually reviewed this last summer. Listening back, I haven’t changed my mind. This is what we said:

T: Little Jeff returns with his third album, the follow up to the quietly startling beauty of "Everybody Loves a Winner", and I'm beginning to think that Nick Drake must have been mightily pissed when he died. I mean, he's already possessed poor Johnathan Rice, but now he seems to have assumed control of Klein's human form as well.
Ok, I admit it's not quite as obvious here as it was on Rice's debut; in fact it's probably more reminiscent of The Eels in some places, with a bit of Weezer chucked in here and there and a double helping of Ryan Adams sprinkled on top (NB Add Afghan Whigs to that list now – deputy ed).
Anyway, I'm halfway through reviewing the album and, although I've quite enjoyed it, the missus is in a particularly maungy mood and has been moaning at me for playing music for far too long, so I'll have to attempt to review the rest of the album without listening to it...er....oh look! Here comes Nick!

N: Ultimately a very listenable album. Doesn't strike me as anything particularly new, although I suspect Jeff would be a tad miffed at that, as this is after all his latest recording. But like Johnathan (Rice), I think this album too just begs to be going somewhere. 7/10

Tone E

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The Blue Aeroplanes - Altitude (Harvest/EMI) 03/04/2006

Yes you DID hear right - this is a NEW Aeroplanes album. Whether this is because of the success of the recently re-issued "Swagger" or not is not completely clear, but still, it's like having an old friend who you haven't seen for years pop round for tea.

T: Something of a revelation this. Gone are the whimsical rantings of yesteryear and replacing them is a new found sense of calm. Indeed, upon opener "Bristol Byzantine/Raise the Roof High", you could be led to believe it was a painfully omitted track from Primal Scream's legendary "Screamadelica" album, and it is clear that The Blue Aeroplanes have refused to entirely grow up and have chosen instead to move with the times. Perhaps it's down to the inclusion of Massive Attack's key player Angelo Bruschini or maybe it was the choice of John Mathias (Radiohead's "The Bends") as string arranger that tempered this with the necessary but not overbearing emotion. This is a very welcome return for Gerard Langley's boys and they can still show these young upstarts a thing or two.

N: I have to say, as a fan of The Blue Aeroplanes, this immediately sounded like an invigorated band, coming back as they have after such a long period of inactivity. This album contains those songs that might be considered more familiar, whilst others possess elements that are obviously new influences to the band. A group whose limited chart success belies their true influence, this album at times feels like you've had itching powder dropped inside your underwear, whilst others display a complete juxtaposition of feelings like those experienced just before dropping off to sleep. I think I would proffer that we like this album! 9/10

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Killing Joke – Hosannas from the Basements of Hell (Cooking Vinyl) 03/04/2006

Killing Joke have always been a viciously cutting edge “rock” – for wont of a better word – band, and it speaks volumes for them that they have been consistently been making music this good since the early eighties. In fact, with “Hosannas”, they have rather usurped me by leading me to believe that this is quite possibly the finest album they’ve put out in their entire career,

No sooner do you press “Play” on your CD player than you are confronted with the splendidly aggressive “This Tribal Antidote” and this is followed with March’s runaway “Single of the month” in these pages, the title track of the album.
Quite remarkably, “Invocation” manages to borrow heavily (though this is probably unintentional) from Led Zep’s “Kashmir”on arguably the album’s centrepiece, “Invocation”, and if any fans were disappointed with the brevity of the band’s debut album all those years ago, they need look no further than this album by way of making amends. After all, three of the tracks here exceed 7 minutes, and my personal favourite – “The Lightbringer” – clocks in at an almighty 9 minutes 38 seconds. Good job it’s a good un!

“Hosannas from the Basements of Hell” is an incredible accomplishment in every way. It’s a brutal, no holds barred, intensely theatrical recording that implants itself in your conscience like a particularly determined boa constrictor.

Just a superb album really. 9/10

Tone E

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Breaks Co-Op - The Sound Inside (Parlophone) 27/03/2006

Unusual line up this one, for it's an Anglo-New Zealand collective, and features Radio One's resident Kiwi Zane Lowe, along with fellow countryman Hamish Clark and the marvellously named Brit Andy Lovegrove. They take their influences from artists as diverse as Marvin Gaye, Sebadoh, Crosby, Stills and Nash and Tortoise. So, how does THAT mix come across?

T: To be totally honest, from what I've heard, it's absolutely gorgeous. Reminded me of Traffic at first, but then you move from one end of the musical spectrum to the other, where you'll find Stan Getz and Astrid Gilberto, bypassing Beck, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel and a whole host of other vibrant perfomers throughout the vast heritage of the past 40 years. This is a marvellous album that could easily find its way into my "Albums of the Year" list come the end of 2006.

N: Boy, these aren't new boys, and this shows in the eloquence afforded in the compositions on offer here. Embarking with the quite stunning title track, we then proceed with the almost hip-hop tinged "Water", then settle back into a more conforming "The Other Side" and onto "Settle Down" a track with an almost Aboriginal melody. I hope you're getting the picture that Breaks Co-Op are not your average rock band. 9/10

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The Great Depression – Preaching to the Fire (Fire Records) 20/03/2006

Ah, now HERE we have something worthy of our accolade. You remember shoegazing? Hey, don’t run off! Come back! It’s not a dirty word you know?
Anyway, The Great Depression make that kind of music, but not quite as withdrawn. I guess what you COULD compare them with is an early Stone Roses. Occasionally there’s a touch of Portishead thrown in, and the deep, lush atmospherics are enough to keep you warm in the middle of winter.

So dim the lights, curl up on your bed – or sofa – and leave this playing at a high volume, and you will soon be transformed into another world – a fantasial uberworld – that is ultimately much better than the one you’re used to. Quite simply a beautiful, sublime album, and I’d be doing it an injustice to pick out any standout tracks. Marvellous. 9/10

Tone E

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The Like – Are You Thinking What I’m Thinking? (Geffen) 13/03/2006

The whole world and his cocker spaniel, it seems, have fallen for this band in a big way, including my partner in crime here at AD, but frankly they just sound like they’re pissing up the same tree as Mrs. Harrison’s Doberman pincher, and leaving a similar odour.

The bulk of the tracks on offer here resemble a rather half hearted Sleeper, and it’s only on “(So I’ll Sit Here) Waiting” that I felt they had anything else to offer. Even then they have to rely on ripping off a Pixies riff (“Where Is My Mind”) to accomplish anything approaching originality.

Well, looks like Nick and I will have to agree to disagree on this one! 6/10

Tone E

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The Concretes – The Concretes In Colour (Licking Fingers / EMI) 06/03/2006

I feel a bit sorry for The Concretes, because their releases keep falling into the wrong hands (i.e. me!) when it comes around to reviewing them.

The band is one of the most incredibly twee ones I have ever had the misfortune to come across. I guess they’re ok if you live in a world where you only have bright sunshine and colourful fairies come and visit you every night, but if, like most of us, you live OUTSIDE the sanitarium, the overly poppy, saccharine soaked tunes here begin to grate after very little time indeed. Be honest, “On the Radio” sounds like The Carpenters doing a musical version of “Mary Poppins”.

Thankfully, there is some respite when their more folksy influenced tracks come to the fore, which means that the Maria (Magic Numbers) assisted “Your Call” is by default the strongest track on the album by a street.

Excuse me for turning this album halfway through though. 5/10

Tone E

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Billy Bragg – Volume 1 (Cooking Vinyl) 06/03/2006

A boxed set featuring four of his earliest and most acclaimed albums, which includes a total of seven CDs and two DVDs with a wealth of rare and previously unreleased tracks.

I mean, how can you possibly chose between the classic “Life’s a Riot with Spy vs Spy”, “Brewing Up with Billy Bragg”, “Talking to the Taxman About Poetry” or “Internationale”, all delightful albums in their own right?
Much has been made of Bragg’s “political activist” status and many people believe all his songs deal only with that aspect of his life, but listening to these songs again now, he was (and is) so much more than that. Don’t forget the moving “A New England”, successfully covered (a rarity in itself) and twisted to suit the late, great Kirsty MacColl, or the nostalgic and charming “The Saturday Boy” amongst many, many other beautifully crafted reminders of why the eighties WAS worthwhile after all.

How can I possibly even mark this collection out of ten? I can’t. All I can tell you is that it’s well worthy of your attention.

Tone E

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