Four Year Strong - Rise Or Die Trying (Hassle) 28/04/2008

T: That might have seemed an original title at the time, but seeing as 50 Cent released an album not so long ago called "Get Rich Or Die Trying", they clearly haven't been paying attention. Not that it matters a great deal; after all they sound like a poor man's Sum 41 anyway. That's not exactly a compliment either...

N: I'm listening and getting the impression that they are holding tight on the reigns, and never fully letting themselves go, and recording the music that they truly have in their hearts. Almost but not quite.

T: That's the closest I've heard you get to saying "This is shit" for some time...

N: ...but they do at least have a sense of humour having researched the link for their web-site, click and you'll get the joke. 4/10

web site - myspace

Jamie Lidell - Jim (Warp) 28/04/2008

N: Another artist paying homage to a great lost youth, in this case Tamla Motown or Northern Soul. This is how the album starts and makes no signs of stopping, in dreadfully authentic rewriting of this gospel; not bad for a white boy.

T: I have to admit, I wasn't all that struck with Jamie's latest single, but being a recent convert to the cream of Northern Soul, it's hard to disagree with you. Whilst Lidell occasionally lapses into his Wonder Wall (ouch, sorry!) he does actually mix it up a bit and is all the more appealing for it. If I had to describe this album as anything, I think I'd say it was just a perfect record for a summer day. He's won me over quickly after a false start.

N: It's funny, as I would have pigeonholed the label on which Jim has released this as electronic or ambient from what I had encountered a number of years ago, yet with this and other releases we have recently been in receipt of, Warp are opening their minds to quite a variation of styles, and one would feel this can only be a good thing. 8/10

web site - myspace

dEUS - Vantage Point (V2) 28/04/2008

N: A welcome return from Northern Europe's dEUS. For me, this was more of an interesting project, in that I was unsure that the band would eclipse their mighty debut "Worst Case Scenario". Releases since this have, I'm afraid, failed to meet expectations, so I was hopeful that "Vantage Point"would fill this space in my psyche. Certainly if you were just to dip your toe in this album, the listener might be disappointed, but given enough of a chance, you might find those corners and intricacies that I am sure the band hope might be their trademark.

T: It's an interesting album, I agree. It actually starts not dissimilarly to the Fun Lovin' Criminals circa "Loco", but then navigates its way through the maze of noise that is the tremendous "Oh Your God", some slick and slender ballads like "Eternal Woman" and the confusingly titled - but rather gorgeous - "The Vanishing Of Maria Schneider", which could have been a Bob Mould composition. When did the "Last Tango In Paris" starlet ever go missing? Answers on a postcard please...

N: Described as "awe inspiring", this band from the heart of Europe have produced an album that displays the complex twists and turns both lyrically and musically that have gained this band a loyal following. 8/10

web site - myspace

The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age Of Understatement (Domino) 21/04/2008

N: A band who have come from a surgical procedure performed on three bands, Arctic Monkeys, Rascals and Little Flames and listening to this, it would appear that it was agreeable, yet painful from what has been born from these three. Scott Walker certainly walks these passages and like a headless horseman, wails and moans throughout that such young pretenders are no longer pretending, and have captured his spirit and taken it hostage.

T: You make it sound like he's dead. And even if he WAS dead, it wouldn't matter, because he clearly isn't dead.

N: I'm well aware of that, but when did you last see Scott Walker straddling the cover of the NME?

T: When that happens I'll KNOW he's dead. Anyway, you've summed things up quite nicely. Clearly Alex Turner is a freak of nature. Not a great deal of teenagers - or folk in their early twenties - have made such a drastic pilgrimage to their forefathers' record collection and the result is more than impressive. That over the top vocal echo works perfectly with Arcade Fire associate Owen Pallett's arrangements and earmarks it as a strong contender for album of the year so far.

N: An album in which those musicians have proved their credibility even more by producing such an affectionate homage to sixties Britain. 10/10

web site - myspace

Whitesnake - Good To Be Bad (SPV/Steamhammer Records) 21/04/2008

N: Not so much the reinvention of cock rock, more a return with gusto. as great grandaddies of the genre crash back onto the scene with their first new album in over a decade. This has to beg the question...was it worth the wait?

T: Well, basing the answer to that question on the fact that most metal and rock fans I've ever known dismiss any other style as music as "shit", I'd say that for them, yes it is. For the more open minded music fans, however, it is apparent that Coverdale and his cohorts have been cryogenically frozen - Austin Powers style - for the past 10 years or so and missed out on an almighty chunk of musical development along the way. Let's be honest here, the 'snake boys are too proud to change what they do, and they do belt out some decent melodies, but it's unlikely this album will be gracing my CD player too often!

N: Certainly with power chords a plenty, and Coverdale's familiar vocal at times smashing through the previous silence like a sledgehammer, whilst at others acting in a constrained fashion to put across those inevitable ballads, "Good To Be Bad" does indeed make a welcome return for one of rock music's giants; however as Tone points out, this album is almost a parody of itself, and to use one of my favoured analogies, "...music by numbers".

T: He still looks like a girl though. 7/10

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White Williams - Smoke (Double Six Records) 21/04/2008

T: Like Hot Chip performing Andy McCluskey compositions...

N: Cleveland born Joe Williams is said to produce nostalgic, colourful art pop, and certainly from just being introduced to this album, I get a feeling that the king of art pop, Brian Eno's influence certainly comes at the listener full frontal.

T: Full frontal? I wouldn't like to see that. Anyway, don't you think "In The Club" sounds rather like an electronic version of T.Rex?

N: It's a whole retro sound that I'm hearing from this album, and being it Eno, Bolan, Neil Arthur, or how he's described on his MySpace, this being "Happy Hardcore", this is an educated album...

T: ...with a bloody good sound to boot. 8/10

myspace

Elliot Minor - Elliott Minor (Repossession Records/Warner Bros) 21/04/2008

N: This reminds me a little of Ash...

T: NO! I'm going home.

N: You're taking that completely out of context. What I meant to say was that I think this band has gained an influence FROM Ash.

T: Well, just as long as you're not suggesting they sound like them...

N: But the guitars do take off into almost a state of guitar masturbation, a la Brian May. I'm not quite sure where this band are going.

T: I think they're just trying to impress a load of nineteen year old girls in an effort to get in their knickers.

N: You cynic.

T: Yup. And can I just reinforce the fact that this sounds absolutely nothing like Ash. It's more like a string led version of Blink 182. 5/10

web site - myspace

Alabama 3 - Hits And Exit Wounds (One Little Indian) 21/04/2008

T: They've been more than consistent, this band, having never actually released anything that I haven't at least quite liked. Sure, I could name a handful of tracks that I thought a little average, but over a decade's worth of music, that's not much of a criticism. Now comes a kind of mini-anthology, featuring the band's best known, best loved tracks from their distinguished career. The obvious ones, like "Woke Up This Morning" (famous for its use as the theme tune to "The Sopranos") and their token top 40 hit "Ain't Goin' To Goa" (reaching the heady heights of number 40 itself) are included alongside classic album tracks and lost gems such as the cruelly overlooked single "Too Sick To Pray" and the brilliant "Woody Guthrie". It has to be said, this is a comprehensive compilation and the selections are top notch. An album which shows the true quality of a great band who also hold the added appeal of being the nicest guys you could wish to meet. Standout track though, and probably my favourite ever by them, is the sublime "Mao Tse Tung Said".

N: You've not left me with a great deal more to say, other than their long and distinguished career has seen them work with the likes of Arthur Baker to Orbital, and has even seen them collaborate with John Carter Cash that will result in an album of remixes. Possibly the love for the man himself is summed up in the track "Hello...I'm Johnny Cash", also featured here. If you've not heard this band, or are just a casual observer, then this is the album that might just change the course of your life. 9/10

web site - myspace

Four Tet - Ringer (Domino) 21/04/2008

T: Although this is classed as a mini-album, there are only four tracks here. True, the lead number lasts just over ten minutes and the remaining three have a combined duration of twenty, but this would have still qualified as a single if my memory serves me correctly. Anyhow, I think this would actually drive me clinically insane if I had to listen to it all the way through. It's more your bag, I know, but with the absence of any weed, what do you think?

N: Somewhat flat, to be honest. I have heard more exciting, more textured techno albums, although I think the duration of the opening track, "Ringer", I would consider a little uninteresting, and not representational of the remaining three tracks.

T: I've heard more exciting political party broadcasts...

N: Now come off it! This album is like getting you into a certain headspace and the further we play this, the more apparent this becomes. Hardly the likes of the top 40 techno bands, but this is more a niche sound and possibly the fact the founder here, DJ Kieran Hebden, has worked previously with legendary jazz drummer Steve Reid, might suggest that this artist is more comfortable with this side of music. The further you listen here, the more engrossing it becomes.

T: Zzzzzzzzz. 6/10

web site - myspace

iForward, Russia! - Life Processes (Cooking Vinyl) 14/04/2008

N: Now, remembering that this band's latest single, "Breaking, Standing", we were less than enthusiastic about, will "Life Processes" prove that iForward, Russia! are more an albums band?

T: Well, I like the dramatacism of the opening track, and there's a certain level of intensity that's upheld throughout, so I'll give them brownie points for that. Not sure about Tom Woodhead's sudden bouts of screamo during "We Are Grey Matter", but it's definitely far more appealing than I anticipated. You can see why Steve Lamacq is a fan.

N: A band more concerned with achieving their art than any image that might come along with it. The last single was a disappointment from a band that I thought more highly of. This album, however, is going some way to dispelling than disappointment. 7/10

web site - myspace

The Accidental - There Were Wolves (Full Time Hobby) 14/04/2008

T: We've not had a massive amount of contenders for Album Of The Year in 2008 so far, but make no mistake, The Accidental will most certainly be near the top of the pile. Sam Genders is an Atomicduster favourite anyway, due to his work with the mighty Tunng, and this latest venture, a collaboration with a member of The Bicycle Thieves, the co-founder of Trunk Records and vocalist Liam Bailey, is a triumph of extreme proportions. Staying true to the kind of electro-folk that Genders cut his teeth in, The Accidental serve up a trifle comprising of eleven ingredients that not only taste great, but go down well too.

N: Last year's "Good Arrows" from Genders' other band was truly remarkable, and that this work has been timed such sets to show just how much of a force this artist will become. It's not just another record, but as my colleague has suggested, it's a damn good one. 9/10

web site - myspace

Irmin Schmidt & Kumo - Axolotl Eyes (Mute) 14/04/2008

T: If you attempted to recreate the artwork from Lennon and Ono's "Two Virgins" album after quaffing a substantial amount of absinthe, you'd quite probably come up with this. A naked male and female with what appears to be jellyfish for heads. And trust me, I'm only presuming this is correct. Then again, what else would you expect from a man steeped in avant-garde history since Can first appeared on the music scene, delighting and confusing us in equal measure. Sounding musically somewhere between Gary Numan and...

N: The Art Of Noise?

T: Yes, exactly, anyway this is a fairly appealing dreamscape from which Schmidt and Kumo build their own apparitions and nightmares and it seems to work.

N: Kumo's hand at producing an album with shimmering phrases of breakbeat, bolster this album's "avant-garde" approach and make even more interesting compositions that seat well on an album of soundscapes aplenty. 8/10

web site - myspace

Blood Red Shoes - Box Of Secrets (V2) 14/04/2008

T: You can actually tell they're a V2 band already can't you? Lots of crunching guitars, lots of shouting and, like you just said to me off-record, rather akin to Placebo. This has started in a very promising fashion. I hope it keeps it up.

N: Earlier this morning, I was listening to the soundtrack from "The Crow" and certainly this band have an urgency in keeping with the dark rock on that album (Rage Against The Machine, Machines Of Loving Grace, Nine Inch Nails), and even the band's name suggests a dark nature.

T: Funnily enough, like iForward, Russia!, we were less than enamoured with their most recent single, but are again pleasantly surprised with the other tracks held within. This is an exciting, fast paced album that, whilst unlikely to make my top ten of the year, is certainly enjoyable enough.

N: In the context of the album, this band's compositions sit well. 7/10

web site - myspace

Clinic - Do It! (Domino) 08/04/2008

T: Our favourite Scousers have long been putting out innovative music of a high standard...

N: ...again I wouldn't immediately recognise this as an album from the aforementioned band; that is on first introduction to this release. How about you?

T: Well, it quite clearly is Brian singing, that's pretty unmistakeable; however, the musical accompaniment seems more industrious than usual, possessing a more percussive, off kilter kind of bent. That made me sound like a really pretentious prick didn't it?

N: Well, I was going to say perhaps Brian had shined his shoes for the occasion, but it's clear it's NOT that, and I think the percussive nature we both arrived at is closer to the mark.

T: The dirty guitar intro to "Free Not Free" gives way to a delicate vibrato sound part way into the album before we are woken with a start by the noisy, ferocious "Shopping Bag", and I think that's a prime example of what we were discussing before. Never afraid to experiment, Clinic, now in their eleventh year, are showing no signs of ill health just yet.

N: So there's no need to call Doctor and the Medics then?

T: At least my pun was valid.

N: Very true, it was only yesterday I was singing "Spirit In The Sky", and not the Norman Greenbaum version.

T: No, it was the Gareth Gates one, which is even more alarming.

N: Definitely not (produces picture disc copy of "Laughing At The Pieces").

T: You sad twat. 8/10

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Roni Size & Reprazent - Best Of New Forms (Recall) (Mercury) 07/04/2008

T: Essentially a re-edit of Size's 1997 album, but bearing further new tracks for the connoisseur's delectation. Bizarrely though, three of the original tracks appear to have been removed. Can you shed any light on this enigmatic puzzle Nick?

N: This release appears to be the album Size sees as that which would be released today. The first embracing the technology available to the artist in 1997, and this showing exactly what is available today. It's great to hear this classic of albums wearing a new coat and shoes and walking the block, head held high, shaking off any criticisms as just being a retro trip.

T: But don't you wish he hadn't thrown some of his old clothes away? He could have utilised them as hand-me-downs...

N: It does seem slightly inextricable why he has binned three of the original tracks, but that's artistic licence I suppose. The album loses none of its essence, but could be referred to as a more cohesive, streamlined version, although I would hardly see this as an alternative to the original release. 7/10

web site - myspace

The Triffids Re-issues - Treeless Plain (1983), The Black Swan (1989), Beautiful Waste and Other Songs 1983-1985 (2008) 07/04/2008

T: To me, the Triffids are rather like an Australian version of Echo and the Bunnymen, encapsulating that dark, moody atmosphere perfectly, with sublime arrangements of splendidly written songs, and "Treeless Plain", the band's debut album, is certainly an indication of the greatness that was to follow in this legendary, yet sadly often overlooked group's career.

N: It's great to see the band's work collected and released in this nature. The debut does in fact contain more than the obligatory additional tracks, six in fact preceded by an interview with David McComb refusing to agree with the compere that although originally from Perth, can now be adopted as a Sydney band! These six live versions were in fact those that preceded the release of the debut, and were a form of trailer for the album "Treeless Plain". In this wave of releases by the band, their sixth album, "The Black Swan", this time round sees a release as the double album it was always intended to be, drawing comparisons as this being the band's "White Album".

T: Although it's not really as diverse as the sixties mop tops' career high (depending on your perspective). You know exactly what you're getting with The Triffids - gorgeous compositions that lift your soul and tug at your heartstrings in equal measure. David McComb was something of a genius when it came to writing sentimental tunes, not least because the songs never turned into sugar saturated mush, instead retaining bucketloads of integrity and a beauty rarely heard since.

N: Originally released in 1989, the listener, with a reference to the past, can hear exactly from when this album was recorded. The spirit of this decade - and of McComb himself - seems to be blatantly present. 9/10

web site - myspace

South San Gabriel/Centro-matic - Dual Hawks (Cooking Vinyl) 07/04/2008

T: This Texan collective, or members of it, operate under two different guises - the melancholic, downbeat Americana of South San Gabriel and the rockier Centro-matic, hence the naming of the album "Dual Hawks" featuring a disc full of music by either act. Now, Centro-matic released a fine album in "Fort Recovery" a few short years ago, and their slightly offbeat country soaked melodies have made a welcome return, again having been clearly influenced by Neil Young, and possibly even Mark Lanegan. It's the laid back drawl of the band's alter ego though which impresses the most. It is positively drooling with beautiful classical guitar tunes not too far removed from Nick Drake concoctions (especially on "Emma Jane"), and this pretty, restrained production is perfect for a lazy summer day.

N: "...to shake things up a bit..." was the explanation the band's chief singer/songwriter Will Johnson gave as the logic behind this release, "fan-friendly" and "against the grain" was part of the thinking and it is certainly a bold release. Tone has already suggested some of the comparisons that might be drawn when listening to both of these affairs, and it's certainly that; a memorable affair the band are having on two different levels. Certainly worth taking a chance on and falling in love all over again. 9/10

South San Gabriel: web site - myspace

Centro-matic: web site - myspace

Chris Difford - The Last Temptation Of Chris (Stiff Records) 07/04/2008

T: I'm not going to do it, but I bet you've said something like "former Squeeze frontman" in your notes you've just written down...

N: Difford's storytelling ability that worked so well in the pairing that brought Squeeze so much success...

T: AHA!

N: Well it's an aspect of his life I guess he wouldn't choose to shake off, as is his work with other songwriters, budding or already blooming, in the songwriting workshops he runs now in Italy. And so, if any indictment was needed to qualify this self styled teacher, this new work is just the latest in a long line of certificates.

T: The one we're listening to now, "Battersea Boys", sounds remarkably like Lou Reed during his "Transformer" period. This is clearly testament to the quality of the man's classic songwriting qualities.

N: And if I may say, this seed, thanks to his workshop, can be heard through much of music today. His work with Robbie Williams being just one testimony.

T: That's knocked the score down a notch.

N: I can't dismiss an artist which such obvious talent and "The Last Temptation..." should certainly NOT be dismissed.

T: Also worth mentioning is the nice homage to Tony Hancock on the album's marvellous sleeve. 9/10

web site - myspace

Counting Crows - Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings (Geffen) 24/03/2008

T: Well this has started a whole lot harder and heavier than I expected. It's a far cry from the relatively restrained aura that surrounded "August And Everything After", but then I guess that was over a decade ago. Nowadays it seems like they've taken their lead from Thin Lizzy, and that was probably a wise move.

N: This new album from the Crows, not of course to be confused with hose of the Black variety, certainly puts across a more forthright sound, and one my colleague has stated is not dissimilar in content to that of Thin Lizzy at times, although it should always be remembered where tis band come from, and later on during the album, a bluesy sound far more at home in a smoke filled club, one that's just off the Canadian border. The whole album, with its twists and turns, and doffing of Adam Duritz' cap to the strength of a seventies Jagger is a fine comeback, and one that might point to the future.

T: It's actually got Levon Helm stamped all over it on the slower tracks if you ask me. It didn't surprise me in the slightest when I saw that Gil Norton and Steve Lillywhite were both involved in the production of this album. The masterstroke here though was getting Brian Deck (of Modest Mouse fame) to produce the "Sunday Mornings" portion, as Counting Crows borrow the Foo Fighters idea from "In Your Honour" by releasing a half acoustic, half electric album that is surprisingly satisfying. 8/10

web site - myspace

Less Than Jake Re-issues - Losers, Kings And Things We Don't Understand (1995), Pezcore (1995), Goodbye Blue And White (2002) and The Peope's History Of Less Than Jake DVD(2002) (Cooking Vinyl) 31/03/2008

T: First things first, you have to hand it to Less Than Jake, they're supremely fan friendly. After all, they've formed their own record label and lovingly repackaged and reissued their first two albums in a format that their followers will treasure. It really is beautifully put together, each featuring a fold out sleeve, booklets paying attention to detail, and a bonus DVD disc with each. If I was marking these CDs on physical content alone, they would have passed with flying colours. Unfortunately, I'm rather underwhelmed by the band's music itself. They have their moments, I admit. "Down In The Mission" will no doubt always be a crowd favourite, and several others will make you want to dance, but the formula gets tired too quickly. Or at least, it does to my ears. I don't want to slag them off too much though, because they've crafted their art well and they've clearly got a lot of time and respect for their own fans.

N: Voluntarily emancipated from former label Warner Brothers, I see this as tidying of product and headspace. Picking up on what Tone has said, although perfectly able musicians, songwriting does err toward the repetitive, but what the band and label have done with this back catalogue, I will agree, is admirable. It is not a charity, but to see a band giving back to the fans in this way is heartening. 7/10

web site - myspace