She & Him - Classics (2014)

American indie pop singer-songwriter duo She & Him have gone down the covers route on their latest studio offering Classics. An album that features 13 covers of old standards, some which date back to the 1930s. The duo which is made up of guitarist and vocalist M Ward and vocalist Zoey Deschanel have released a covers album before, 2011s “A Very She and Him Christmas”. But I was very curious when I found out they were trying their hands at old standards, songs which would have no doubt influenced the material on their first two albums and the sweet pop melodies they have come to be known for.

The sound on this release is classic She & Him, excuse the pun and features a mix of vintage pop, country, jazz, and folk. Lumped together She & Him’s sound has often been described as indie pop, or indeed alt-folk. The instrumentation on this album is quite simplistic despite the duo being backed by a 20-piece orchestra, but it aids beautifully the tenderness of these old songs and the melodic pop sensibilities which She & Him aim for. M Ward’s delicate country jazz guitar playing shines throughout and is a standout feature on the album, while Zoey’s sweet melodic vocals are gorgeous as always, adding in many respects an authentic touch to proceedings. The orchestral arrangements do a fantastic job in complementing the main vocal track without being overbearing in any way, with the subtle strings and horns moving between a jazz and pop style to delicately support the centre piece of the tracks and that is Zoe’s voice and M Ward’s guitar. The horns in particular are a highlight and give the recordings a vintage feel, making them sound like they could have been recorded when the originals were.

As for the tracks themselves, well the album kicks off with a cover of the old jazz standard “Stars Fell on Alabama” which the duo turn into a nice duet all be it low-key. Thing pick up a bit on the Goffin and King track “Oh No, Not My Baby”, which is one of the album’s standout tracks with its shuffling guitar and drum track and Zoe’s sweet vocal flourishes, and a sweet melodic interpretation of “It’s Not for Me to Say”. This great start to the album continues with a stellar cover of the Dusty Springfield track “Stay Awhile”, one of the more up-tempo tracks on the record. This rendition has a country-pop vibe to it sounding completely different from the Wall of Sound-like original and features some cool rockabilly guitar playing from M Ward. Next up is the classic Bacharach and David track “This Girl’s in Love with You” of which the duo do a very understated and melodic take on. The instrumental track is a standout on this one, with a very delicate orchestral performance, trombone solo and yet more fantastic jazz playing from M Ward. The first half of the album then comes to an end with a beautiful duet, Frank Sinatra’s “Time After Time” and an absolutely stunning “She” which M Ward take the lead vocal on. A midst a wonderful jazz arrangement that includes some splendid trumpet playing, I would say M Ward steals the limelight off Zoey with this rare solo vocal performance in what is arguably the cornerstone of the album. Moving into the second half of the record, things kick off positively with a very jazzy “Teach Me Tonight” in what contains a bubbly Deschanel vocal, before the album then begins to labour a bit with “It’s Always You” and a very disappointing version of the classic track “Unchained Melody”. Thankfully, the album does not end this way, and concludes with some solid renditions of “I’ll Never Be Free”, “Would You Like to Take a Walk” and the war-time standard “We’ll Meet Again”. A rendition which has a nice folk vibe to it.

All in all I think the duo to a more than adequate job in their take on these old standards. Zoe’s vocals shine through as they always do, but it is M Ward who steals the show on here, more so than on other She & Him records. His guitar playing is nothing short of brilliant as he moves between jazz, folk, country and rockabilly, while he also has more of a role vocally on this album, something which culminates in his fantastic vocal performance on “She”. There is nothing new, or indeed unusual sound-wise on here, although the added dimension of an orchestra spices things up a bit and the fact they recorded live with the orchestra does make things quite interesting as a listener in terms of hearing how the vocals and guitar fit in and combine with the other instruments. Classics is a solid job by this unlikely combination and puts an indie pop/alt-folk slant on some very old, but classic songs. 

A-

- Sam 

2014: A Year in Review

The year is coming to an end, and usually at this time music writers and the like are prepping their best of lists of the year for albums and singles etc. Many of these lists are just carbon copies of each other and at the end of the day can be quite subjective. So instead of following the pack I have decided to reflect on 2014 and what went down in the music world by compiling a list of the ten things that stood out for me in 2014 music-wise.  

·         The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame remains a bit of a farce as an institution, and a charade when it comes to the inductions. This comes with the shenanigans this year around KISS’s induction, and the debate that occurs every year around who should be inducted and who is ultimately passed over, with the list of eligible inductees and those passed over growing every year. Expect this to continue to be the case in 2015.

·         The issue of streaming and music distribution online continued to be debated this year with YouTube and Spotify at the centre of industry, artist, and fan debate around how people get their music and what this means in terms of artist royalties. YouTube threatened to take down content from independent labels from the platform, while Spotify has had its fair share of detractors, especially when it comes to how much artists receive from having their music on this very popular streaming site. The issue of music distribution will not go away any time soon, especially when you consider the rise in online streaming and the decline of physical sales of music.

·         2014 was going to be the first year that there had not been a newly released album go on to sell a million copies, until Taylor Swift’s 1989 saved the industry from what could have been a significant moment. Despite TayTay’s saving grace, does 2014 signal the beginning of the end for physical album sales? Or will the odd international release and constant flood of re-issues save this failing commercial model? My crystal ball is telling me to continue to wait and see on this one.

·         It was quite a news-worthy year for the music scene in New Zealand with Lorde reigning supreme at the Grammys, the Big Day Out festival closing up shop for good now it seems, and Eminem suing the New Zealand National Party for copyright infringement.

·         2014 was a year of hellos and final goodbye’s, with Pink Floyd bowing out with the release of what they say will be their final, final album “The Endless River”. On the reunion circuit Outkast reunited for a series of concerts and festival appearances, while Christine McVie is back with Fleetwood Mac after a 17 year absence.

·         In 2014 the music world sadly witnessed the passing of Jack Bruce, Bobby Womack, Tommy Ramone and Pete Seeger, Bobby Keys, and Ian McLagan among others. Rest in Peace.

·         In another weird and wacky way of releasing your new album, U2 released their new album “Songs of Innocence” for free through iTunes much to the annoyance of most iTunes subscribers and much to the ridicule of the music press in particular. In the end, this episode really only resulted in bolstering Bono’s ego even more [if that is even possible] as he attempted to defend the move in the wake of the waves of publicity that came the bands way as a result, negative of otherwise.

·         Band Aid came back in 2014, this time in support of Ebola, with Bob, Bono and many others singing [not] for snow in Africa this Christmas time, with major lyric changes made to make the song more suitable I guess. At least they got rid of that horrible line “well tonight thank god it’s them instead of you”.

·         The Rolling Stones continued their 50^th anniversary jaunt, finishing with a concert in Auckland, New Zealand. We shall wait and see as to whether this final show will go down in history as their final ever show, 52 years after their first.

·         In 2014, live music continued to boom at the expense of the album among others things, with major festivals and sell out tours dominating all over the globe. This is now the major money earner for artists the world over and arguably [as it probably always has been] the most popular way to listen to music.

- - Sam  

Return of the Rockumentary (2014)

I feel we might be re-entering an age of good music documentaries again. This comes after what could be described as a bit of a dip in the late-90s and into the 2000s. Now obviously the classic age of rockumentaries was the 60s and 70s, with great films like “Dont Look Back” and “Gimme Shelter”, but now, looking round, it appears there seems to be so many good music documentary films doing the rounds.

The last few years has seen the release of some fantastic films. I think of “Twenty Feet from Stardom” that looked into the role of the backing vocalist, “Searching for Sugarman”, the outstanding film about the so-called lost folk singer Rodriguez, while I have also stumbled across some great films about Bob Marley “Marley”, John Lennon “Lennon NYC” and Paul Simon “Under African Skies”, celebrating twenty-five years since the release of his album Graceland. There have also been some very good television music documentaries. The BBC in particular are the masters of this, and have produced some great series on the history of rock “Seven Ages of Rock”, and their “Britannia” series which explored amongst other things different periods and genres in music such as prog rock, synth pop, and Northern soul. This to me is wonderful as a music historian and geek, and to be brutally honest beats your run of the mill concert film or biopic any day of the week. The biopic in particular really rankles me, probably because most of them are very bad, with poor acting.  While I always look at biopics about musicians and think what really is the point of this exercise aside from an attempt to get an insight (whether accurate or not) into the lives of musicians.

So with the rockumentary back in vogue it seems, I am hoping that there are many directors and producers out their willing to get on with the work of making some films that I consider to be in desperate need of production. Just some of the artists who are crying out for a good doco to be made about them include Warren Zevon, Nick Drake, Tom Waits, The Kinks, Steely Dan and New Zealand’s very own Fat Freddy’s Drop. I would also like to see some films which follow in the “Twenty Feet from Stardom” mode, namely films on famous sidemen and producers. Finally, also, given the current climate and changing nature of it, it is high time a good investigative piece into the workings of the music industry is undertaken. This might suit a Michael Moore type figure, or some director who is willing to be daring and take no prisoners.

So, in conclusion, the return of the rockumentary film can only be a good thing, bringing the history and stories of popular music back onto the big screen, and, hopefully, destroying once and for all this at times obsessively horrible infatuation with biopics. Here’s hoping anyway. 

- Sam 

The Age of the Reissue (2014)

Right now we seem to be living in the age of the reissue, the re-release, the deluxe edition, the box set. What do I mean when I say this you might ask, well I am referring to albums from years, and even decades gone by being re-packaged, re-mastered and ultimately re-released for our twenty-first consumption, often complete with fancy packaging, bonus tracks and long lost demos. But why is this happening? Is this a good thing? And what does this mean in terms of the music industry itself, and ultimately the artists themselves?

The year 2014 much like the last few years has witnessed a suave of reissues arrive both online and in stores, well when I mean stores that is those that still exist, which incidentally is not many. Bob Dylan’s Basement Tapes, the complete version, and Paul McCartney’s Wings at the Speed of Sound are just two recent examples. These reissues, or re-releases are usually marketed to celebrate some historical milestone such as twenty years since this happened, or whatever, while people are encouraged to buy albums they already own by being promised much nicer, re-mastered versions of songs they have already heard, as well as somehow undiscovered b-sides and demo recordings which ultimately, on the most part are crap and poor quality. To use a horribly overused cliché at the end of the day these songs and demos remained unreleased for a reason, they were shit then, and time probably has not done them any favours either meaning I would not hold my breath for a remarkable career defining moment amidst these particular “new” tracks.

Interestingly enough also, another phenomenon is emerging along with the reissues plague, and that is classic bands using the album format to promote a handful of supposedly new material and making fans fork out money for a full album just so they can hear three new songs. Queen are guilty of this and are about to release an album of largely old material to promote three new songs, while Pink Floyd has used the idea of a “new” album, as well as declaring it their last to promote what is actually old left over material from their 1994 Division Bell sessions on their to be released “The Endless River”, with their really only being one “new” song “Louder than Words” on it. Incidentally early reviews of this album have been mixed.

So what does this all mean? Well, there are a probably a number reasons why such exercises to take place. Firstly, the music labels themselves seemingly drive this, forcing bands and artists to release material as part of long-standing record contracts, even if it involves reissuing old material. So essentially a last cash cow from music dinosaurs within a dying industry. It can also be put down to the artists themselves, many of whom are striving for relevance and in need of making a quick buck before the well truly goes dry. Album releases are getting more and more gimmicky, even for actual “new” material, and it is fair to say that U2’s decision to release their “new” album for free on iTunes was an unmitigated PR disaster, with the group gaining criticism from within and outside the industry.

Whatever the reasoning, the question remains is this a good thing? Well I would say overall yes, to a certain degree. If there is meaning given behind such releases whether it be historical in terms of canonisation, or creativity then such re-issues and re-releases have a place. But if it is all just about milking the cash cow like we have seen somewhat unfortunately with dead musicians in particular, Michael Jackson and Jimi Hendrix come to mind immediately, then I remain sceptical and cynical. I think it also comes back to quality. Are fans getting value for money in paying for a re-issue of an album they already own? Are the demos, and bonus tracks of varying quality worth it? Some of the time it is. The Beatles re-mastered albums were truly spectacular and superior sound-wise anyway to the original horrible 80s CDs, while 2013s bootleg re-release of Bob Dylan’s “Self Portrait” sessions was full of quality un-released tracks and demo versions of old material, so in the end, it can be done well.

This situation also raises some interesting thoughts around the future of music distribution, and especially when you consider more and more shall I say “older” artists are going to pass-on, and/or retire. With physical music sales in decline, and other formats such as streaming and digital radio taking off, without such re-issues, will music from the past go out of print, and heaven forbid subscribe many artists to the dustbins of history. In time, re-issues and re-releases of old material from the past might yet serve a purpose given the changing times of the music industry and music distribution in keeping music from the past alive and help to introduce subsequent generations to that music. I guess we can only wait and see, trusting that the powers that make the decisions around such things are making them for the right reasons and for historical preservation. However, given the nature of the music industry, I do have my doubts as to whether this is the case. 

- Sam 

Sounds for Summer

Summer is coming here in Aotearoa New Zealand, and with summer comes BBQs, drinks, days at the beach and general relaxing with friends and family over the summer holidays. What one always requires with such occasions is good music, and thankfully there is always plenty of good music out there across all styles and indeed from all decades to complement such times.

So in preparation for the summer I have selected some of my favourite summer albums that are perfect for those sunny days on the beach, or deck with beer in hand, good food and good people. Now I know some people might be thinking albums, do they still exist? Well shock horror, yes, albums still exist, and as a format are perfect for gatherings where you can just put the needle on the record and let it spin, or pop that CD in and press play before lying back and chilling for a good forty minutes without having to get up and skip through a bunch of tracks on an iPod, or playlist.

Al Green – Let’s Stay Together (1972)

Soothing soul from the reverend, perfect to relax to as the sun sets.

Bob Dylan – Nashville Skyline (1969)

Country in the sun. Bob puts his crooner voice to good effect on this country folk classic.

Buena Vista Social Club (1997)

An oldy but a goody, and always a must have on hand for summer gatherings, bringing a fantastic Latin American flavour to proceedings.

The Byrds – any greatest hits collection

It would not be summer without the jangly guitars and psychedelic harmonies of The Byrds, bringing the sweet sounds of 60s LA to the beaches and suburbs of New Zealand.

The Clash – London Calling (1979)

This punk rock classic is perfect for summer with its mix of reggae, dub, jazz, and punk rock.

El Michel’s Affair – Sounding Out the City (2005)

This American collective’s unique fusion of jazz, funk, and R&B is perfect to chill out to in the sun.

Elvis Costello – My Aim is True (1977)

Who would have thought new wave would sound good for the summer season. Well Costello’s rock and roll-fused debut does the trick.

Fat Freddy’s Drop – Blackbird (2013)

It just would not be summer in New Zealand without these guys, and their last album was simply superb so it has to be here.

Gil Scott-Heron – Pieces of a Man (1971)

Gil Scott’s jazz tinged masterpiece would suit any summer gathering, but would go especially well if cordial worldly discussion was on the agenda, given this albums social and political commentaries.

Herbie Hancock – Head Hunters (1973)

This jazz fusion masterpiece does the trick for chill out sessions, with its funky instrumentals and epic jazz improvisation.

The La’s – The La’s (1990)

The sweet melodies and jangly guitars go down a treat on this underrated masterpiece.

The Meters – Rejuvenation (1974)

If you are into funk then this mid-70s classic is perfect for your summer party. Influenced everything that came after it within this style, including among others The Roots.

Nick Drake – Bryter Layter (1970)

People often associate Nick Drake’s music as being quite reflective and moody, which it is, but this jazz-influenced album would not feel out of place during summer, with its more optimistic outlook, something incredibly rear for Nick Drake’s music.

Primal Scream – Screamadelica (1991)

This album brought acid house into indie rock and its mixture of rock and roll and electronica combine perfectly to make a great summer album.

Rodriguez

Anything by the Searching for Sugar Man star would be perfect for summer gatherings. Cold Fact, Coming from Reality, or the film soundtrack would do.

The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses (1989)

The debut masterpiece by the Manchester group is just made for summer listening with its strong melodies, psychedelic guitars and swirling harmonies. If you can get a copy with Fools Gold as a bonus track even better.

Velvet Underground – Loaded (1970)

One would not normally associate Lou Reed’s music with summer, and this album is pretty much the closest you will get. But it is a goody and contains such summer classics as Who Loves the Sun and Sweet Jane. 

- Sam 

Sola Rosa - Get It Together (2009)

Summer’s coming in New Zealand, and I have found the perfect summer album. It is five years old, released in 2009, but as a music blogger things often come to my attention late, especially when you consider the vast amount of music there is floating around. But in the case of this seriously funky album by New Zealand collective Sola Rosa, the late coming has definitely been worth it.

Sola Rosa, led by Andrew Spraggon, as a collective has been around the music scene in New Zealand for over ten years exploring and creating a vast array of melodic and groove based sounds. Their music tends to follow a fusion pattern, mixing together more styles than you can count on two hands, including hip hop, jazz, reggae, soul and funk, something that features strongly on this album Get It Together. New Zealand seems to be a melting pot for these types of musical collectives, especially in the past ten years with bands such as Sola Rosa, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Trinity Roots and the Black Seeds pioneering an experimental fusion style of music, but also a no fear approach to composing music where anything is possible and any style can be mixed together. I guess this is also why many of these acts have had great success outside of New Zealand and why their music can often relate to many different types of music fan.

As for the songs on Get it Together, well the album kicks off with the very funky “The Ace Of Space”, a song which has an infectious bass groove, some pretty cool scratch work, as well as splattering’s of strings and horns. This is followed by “Turn Around” which features Iva Lamkum on vocals who does a nice job on this up-tempo R&B track. “Del Ray” is a sort of middle-eastern sounding track, especially in the horn riff which dominates the song, as well as the guitar part which has a slight Spanish flamenco feel to it also. “Humanised” which features Bajka on vocals is a soul-jazz track, with jazz-inspired horns and a raunchy vocal, while “Love Alone” featuring Spikey Tee is a fusion of dub, reggae and hip hop, although the results I find on this track are mixed. Thankfully, things get back on track with the brilliant six minute epic title track “Get It Together”. This instrumental has a Curtis Mayfield vibe to it, especially in the horns and percussion and represents an album highpoint with all the ingredients that make up a good fusion track in the form of jazz, funk, electronic and plenty of groove. I also love how out of nowhere the song transitions into a sort of samba for the last minute, showing that the band can also throw up plenty of surprises when you least expect it. “I’ve Tried Way’s” features Serocee and is a hip hop/electronic track which I thought failed to measure up to some of the other tracks, feeling a bit like a come down, especially after the previous epic. This mini-lul in proceedings unfortunately continues on next track “Lady Love”. However, things get back up and running on “All You Need”, which is another six minute track that has an experimental jazz funk vibe to it, while again showcasing the talent on display here when it comes to composition. I find that on listening to this album the instrumentals really stand out and the band do a great job in experimenting with different rhythms, textures, as well as moulding together different sounds, with this track being a prime example. Finally, the album closes with “Bond is Back”, the hint into what this one sounds like is in the title, and album closer “These Words, These Sounds, These Powers” which is probably the most reggae sounding track on the album.

All in all I found this a great album to listen to, and a perfect album to be played outdoors in the sun with a beer in hand and good food. The instrumentals on here really shine through and showcase just what you can do when you mix different styles of music together across one track. The results are quite simply stunning and in some cases quite mind blowing especially for musical nerds like myself. The rhythms of this album really stand out especially in the bass and percussion, rhythms which do a great job in driving the album along from track to track, just like the great experimental funk and R&B records of the early-70s. In conclusion, I may be five years late to the party but the wait was certainly worth, especially when the results are this good. 

A-

- Sam 

Various Artists - Country Funk 1969-1975 (2012)

What is country funk? Well that is the first question I asked before I had even listened to a single track off this 2012 compilation. As a style label, country funk has been coined years later probably by the people who conceived this compilation, and musically speaking is meant to encompass a range of different styles including gospel, blues, county, and roots rock which many American artists in the late-60s and early-70s were experimenting with and blending together in their music. At this time, artistic experimentation in music was rife, with many artists mixing things up and crossing over into different musical territories, something you can certainly here on this album with elements of country, gospel and funk featuring within a single track. So although country funk is not exactly a precise stylistic term musically, and I would argue has been used more so as a selling point for this compilation, the term does a nice job of describing the types of musical merging’s that were taking place in the States during this period.

Aesthetically I would also say the music termed country funk is linked together by the fact that the songs which fall under this umbrella term as witnessed by the material on this compilation tend to have groove, boogie, and an underlying rawness about them. I would say it is music from the country but with the feel of the city. Spiritually I also think the themes of the songs are coming from a southern perspective, and you can certainly see that in some of the song titles on this album, with things like “Georgia Morning Dew”, “Lucas Was a Redneck” and “Bayou Country”. As for the artists that feature, well they are not big names by any stretch, something that I actually find a good thing and is one of the reasons I find these sorts of stylistically-based compilations quite intriguing, as I come to listen with no real pre-conception of the artists themselves and what sort of music they play. This in itself can often make the listening experience that much more enjoyable. With this in mind, just some of the standouts for me on this compilation included Johnny Adams “Georgia Morning Dew” which is a sort of slide guitar country blues, Bobby Charles “Street People” which has a Band feel to it, the playful kick of Larry Jon Wilson’s “Ohoopee River Bottomland”, the southern soul of Bobbie Gentry’s “He Made a Woman Out of Me”, and finally a storming blues cover of Dr John’s “Walk on Gilded Splinters” by Johnny Jenkins.

This compilation for me represents a melting pot of those Southern styles of music that were often mixed and moulded together into completely new sounds, sounds which came to dominate the music scene of the late 60s and into the 70s. Artists might have been country at heart, but were filling to throw in a funk rhythm or bass line, or they might have been a gospel singer but the country came calling. This sort of musical freedom reigned supreme for a slight moment in time there, and for a fleeting second was the norm in the music industry until the corporates of LA came calling and one had to be pigeon-holed into a box to be sold. It is hard to pin country funk down, let alone describe it, so perhaps in conclusion it is best to simply acknowledge country funk for what it represents, and that is music which is fun, playful, and experimental. So credit to the folks at Light in the Attic Records for releasing this neat little set, and I certainly look forward to hearing volume two “Country Funk 1967-1974” which itself has just been released. 

B+

- Sam 

El Michels Affair - Enter the 37th Chamber (2009)

El Michels Affair started life as a house band for a small record label Soul Fire Records, before transitioning into a recording 9-piece musical collaboration led by saxophonist and organist Leon Michels. With this, Michels also started his own record label the Brooklyn-based Truth & Soul Records, a record label dedicated to producing and releasing soul and funk material. El Michel’s Affair play only instrumentals, and their style is a fusion of 60s and 70s soul and funk, Afrobeat and jazz, with some coining this mix of styles cinematic soul, something I completely understand as their music does sound very much like the soundtrack to the movie you have never seen. Their sort of loose, raw playing style is very much Meters-inspired, and perhaps also the Roots, something which I guess keeps with their house band origins and suits very much the sorts of instrumentals they play.

This brings me to the album itself, which aside from containing some amazingly good sounds, is also as a concept quite a clever idea and something which definitely caught my eye. This album Enter the 37^th Chamber is quite a unique album, as it’s a cover album of instrumental versions of Wu Tang Clan and Raekwon tracks, with the band putting their own jazz-funk slant on the backing tracks and beats of some of hip hop’s classic tracks. From my perspective, this is such a cool idea and something I have often contemplated when listening to hip hop. Leaving aside the amazing lyrics which you can get with hip hop, the one thing about this style of music which I have always been sucked into is the quality production, and amazing backing tracks and samples you can find on hip hop recordings, beats that I have often thought would sound amazing just on their own. This makes El Michels Affair’s attempt to recreate such tracks on this album even better, as they are recreating them by playing them live within the confines of a soul-jazz ensemble; and boy do the band do a more than adequate job in covering such classic tracks as Wu Tang’s “CREAM” and “Uzi (Pinky Ring)” and Raekwon’s (who incidentally helped oversee the production and recording of this album) “Criminology”.  

This is such a dope album both concept-wise and musically speaking. It’s music to chill out to, to relax to, to entertain with, and enjoy summer with. I am a big fan of artists who play instrumental music across all styles and these guys with their own unique interpretation of Wu Tang certainly hooked me. I look forward in seeing what else they have up their sleeve, and what they might put their funky, jazzy touch to in the future. DOPE. 

A-

- Sam 

Queen - Live at the Rainbow 74 (2014)

Queen Live at the Rainbow 74 is a newly released live album of Queen’s two 1974 shows at the famous Rainbow theatre in London, shows which took place during the bands Queen II tour in March which forms the basis of disc one, and the Sheer Heart Attack tour in November which features on disc two. The recordings capture the band at their hard rocking and theatrical best, when they were really just unknown novices and before they had broken through into the mainstream. The concerts were originally supposed to be released as a live album at the time but instead were put on the backburner with the band deciding to focus instead on the recording of their seminal album A Night at the Opera. Now forty years later, the original tapes have been re-mastered and polished up and boy oh boy do they sound good, with a crystal clear sound and fantastic mix which means you can actually here the individual instruments. This is something you don’t always get with live albums where often the sound is a bit muddled and not always the best. I am sure some pitch correction and other such things have gone on to get the sound up to a modern standard, but this is all in the name of getting a great sounding modern day historical release.

As for the material on this album, well the focus is the band’s first three albums Queen, Queen II, and Sheer Heart Attack, albums which if you know anything about early Queen are very heavy and quite progressive, something which may surprise people who only know Queen through their big late-70s and 80s hits. There are big vocals a-plenty as Mercury flexes is range, theatrics and banter with the crowd, something that occurs between each song and is a pleasure to listen to, heavy guitars, and a thunderous rhythm section courtesy of John Deacon and Roger Taylor, a somewhat underrated pairing. Song-wise, the highlights are for me mostly on disc one, the March concert with the band playing some stellar versions of tracks from their first two albums. There is the anthemic “Father To Son”, the early metal of “Ogre Battle”, the Sabbath-esque sounding “Son And Daughter”, along with two great versions of “Seven Seas Of Rhye”, “Liar” and a fantastic rollicking cover of rock and roll classic “Jailhouse Rock”. Disc two for me is the lesser of the two discs, but still captures great versions of the likes of “Keep Yourself Alive”, “Stone Cold Crazy” and “In The Lap of The Gods Revisited”. What is amazing about the material overall is how heavy Queen sounded in their early years, a sound far removed from what they became most-famous for later on. I would go as far in saying as a new band on the scene in 1974 following in the footsteps of the likes of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Who and Black Sabbath, they certainly were footing it with the big boys of British heavy rock that had come before.

In conclusion, Live at the Rainbow 74 is a fantastic sounding record and offers up a great insight into early-Queen, a period in their career which has not really received much attention, especially in terms of re-releases. People forget Queen started as a hard rock band and this album does a great job in capturing their early sound. For people not familiar with the early part of the bands career, some of the material might fall a bit flat at times just because of their often theatrical and progressive nature both lyrically and musically, but this does not get in the way of what is a great 70s rock and roll show, featuring a band throwing everything they had in their arsenal out there on the stage. Little did they know that this was just the start of something much, much bigger to come, but as this albums shows, the marker was being laid down in a big way. 

A

- Sam 

T Rex - The Slider (1972)

The Slider was the seventh studio album released by 70s UK glam rockers T Rex. Released in 1972, it was the second of their releases which showcased their new found glam sound, after releasing their first few albums as a folk outfit in the late-60s. The timing was perfect for the band to completely change their image and sound, with Britain in the midst of a glam rock revolution in the early-70s with artists such as David Bowie, Slade, and Roxy Music tearing up the charts. But aside from Bowie, it would was Marc Bolan and his merry men who would blow all others out of the water with their often hard-edged and incredibly catchy pop/rock style.

Sound-wise, well The Slider tends to follow on from the bands previous effort, the very successful Electric Warrior album in what is a mixture of anthemic bubble-gum rock, downer folk, and glam ballads. Vocally there is plenty of high-pitched falsettos, while lyrically the songs move from sort of mystical folk themes to often overtly sexual lyrics. The songs are held down by a very sturdy rhythm section of Steve Currie on bass, Mickey Finn on percussion, and Bill Legend on drums, but it is clear from the outset that Bolan is the star attraction out front and centre with his vocals, guitar playing, and overall theatrical take on pretty much everything. It is also pretty clear throughout the album that Bolan loves a good groove as there are plenty on here, with the guitar and bass providing the impetus on many of the tracks with some great rock and roll riffs.

As for the tracks themselves, well the album kicks off with the Bowie-esque glam anthem “Metal Guru”, the albums single which ended up topping the charts in the UK at the time. Although it’s a nice rousing sing-a-long start to the album, musically speaking it is nothing special and tends to be a wee bit repetitive, but hell, at least it gets you in the mood for what’s to come. “Mystic Lady” is next, a slow folk ballad which again fails to capture my imagination, while “Rock On” ends what is a very slow and un-exciting start to the record. However, thankfully things being to pick up from here starting with the slow riff rocker “The Slider” and the catchy bubble gum rock and roller “Baby Boomerang” with its 50s guitar and falsetto-laden vocals. After another blip on the radar with “Spaceball Ricochet” the band turn things up a notch again with heavy rocker “Buick Mackane”, a stomping guitar track which would notably be covered by Guns n’ Roses years later. Then there is perhaps the album standout “Telegram Sam”, a song that epitomises glam rock with its riffs, falsettos, elicit lyrics and even some cheeky sax thrown in for good measure. “Rabbit Fighter” is another ballad, but this time the band do a better job with a song that also showcases Bolan’s rough and ready guitar playing, proving that he was also a pretty good guitarist in his own right despite being not technically great. Things move along with more riffage on “Baby Strange” with its somewhat playful and explicit lyrics “I want to call you, I want to ball you”, I guess it is glam after all? And the album finally winds down with the best of the folk ballads on the album “Ballrooms of Mars”, “Chariot Choogle” and the double-tracked falsetto album closer “Main Man”.

In conclusion, The Slider is probably T Rex’s most complete album considering they were on the most part a singles band, with there being plenty of standout tracks mixed in with some lesser moments to. It’s the folk ballads where the album tends to fall a bit on the way side, with these tracks not really living up to the more up-tempo rockers in intensity and what I would describe as overall zing. Despite containing mixed results there is still plenty of good material on here to remind that Bolan was a star lyricist, vocalist and overall showman, and as an album certainly The Slider ranks well within the glam rock canon. Definitely worth a listen if anything as an example of early-70s glam rock in the UK, and also in hearing how T Rex could marry the folk of their early career with the glam rock which they became more well known for. 

B 

- Sam 

Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings - Naturally (2005)

Naturally is the second studio album by soul-revival combo Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, a band whose style is a nod to classic 60s and 70s soul, funk and R&B. The band formed in 1996 and are spearheads of a revivalist movement which aims to bring the classic soul sound of that period to a more modern audience, and my word do they succeed at this mission.

I discovered Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings quite by accident when I was listening to student radio here in Auckland and one of their tracks came on. My immediate reaction to put it simply was wow! Who is this amazing singer, what is this sound?  This prompted me to do some research, leading me to dive into their back catalogue, a move that ultimately led me to this album Naturally. There’s swing, there’s swagger, there’s plenty of soul, while R&B and funk make their presence felt in many of the arrangements, arrangements that often include a full horn section just like it was at the likes of Stax records and FAME studios. The Dap Kings rock as a band and are clearly pros at what they do, with their sound and obviously their name taking influence from the classic soul bands of the period whose music they play, think the Booker T & the MGs, think the Funk Brothers, think the Mar-Keys. And then there’s the women herself, Sharon Jones, the face of the band, the leader of the group and the amazing singer and front woman that steers the ship and holds everything together. Her voice is quite simply stunning on all of the tracks on here and my word she does justice to a style that is fifty years old. Aside from the great playing by the Dap Kings, Jones is the reason anyone into soul music, or even just good singing should pick up this album and take a listen. It is also briefly worth noting how the band in recording this album decided to shun modern day digital recording technology and instead decided to use more traditional analog recording equipment. The result is a real earthy, lo-fi sounding record, something which I feel is highly appropriate for the music they are playing and it really comes across nicely on the record.

Which brings me to the songs themselves. The album kicks off with a killer track “How do I let a Good Man Down?”, a song that is very Motown-esque sounding with a stellar vocal from Jones, some sizzling guitar and some popping horns. A standout track straight off the bat and a great way to kick things off. Things follow on nicely with “Natural Born Lover”, a song that has more of a contemporary R&B flavour and is quite laid back, while “Stranded in Your Love” is a slower track that has an Otis Redding feel to it and includes a little spoken word section with Jones and guest vocalist Lee Fields to start it off. Things get back in the groove with “My Man Is a Mean Man”, a track which showcases some pretty groovy bass playing in the James Jamerson style, while “You’re Gonna Get It” is a slow ballad, which although contains some nice singing tends to labour a bit. “How Long Do I Have to Wait for You” is a breezy soul number which on first listen drew comparisons with some of New Zealand’s very own modern soul songstresses namely Aradhna and Ladi6. I feel now having listened to the album a couple of times that it is on these more up-tempo soul numbers where Jones is at her best vocally and really shines. As we get into the back end of the album, Jones attempts the one and only cover on the record, a version of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land”, all be it a soul take on this folk classic. Her version is completely unalike the original and you wouldn’t even know it was a cover, which is a good thing as it clearly shows she has made it her own and is not simply imitating what is a very recognisable song in its own right. The album finally wind down with the funky Stax-sounding “Your Thing is a Drag”, the bizarrely titled blues number “Fish in the Dish”, and album closer “All Over Again” which is a soothing soulful way to go out on.

Overall, this is a fine record with the only real gripe I have being in some of the song-writing which can go astray at times. Sharon and the band do a fantastic job in paying homage to what is one of the greatest styles of music in history from one of the greatest periods in music, and are uncompromising in applying their own contemporary but retro take on soul, funk and R&B. Having listened to a couple of their other records now, I feel you could pick any one of them and enjoy it, no one album really stands out from the rest.  At times some of the material does come across as a bit repetitive or laborious, but this does not by any stretch take away from the amazing music of this group, a group who I definitely recommend you check out. 

B+

- Sam 

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - CSNY 1974 (2014)

CSNY 1974 is the newly-released, retrospective live album of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s infamous 1974 stadium tour, a tour which many rock historians consider to be the first major stadium rock tour. This live retrospective is being released in several formats, something which is pretty standard these days for nostalgia releases like this one. I managed to get my hands on the cheaper single disc release, although you can upgrade to the more expensive deluxe and super deluxe editions which contain multiple discs of the entire set-list, as well as god knows what else. What’s the point I say unless you are a collector, or like to look at photocopies of old tickets. For me anyway a standard one disc version does the trick just nicely.

The tracks on this album were recorded at various concerts across the tour and according to Graham Nash who supervised and helped produce this release, some cutting and pasting of songs took place, although you wouldn’t know from listening as the production and sound quality is pretty good I must say. This comes as a relief as there is nothing worse than a live album with poor sound quality, something which is often the case with live albums, especially from decades gone by where the technology was not as good.

So what is the music like? I for one was quite intrigued when I heard this album was coming out as I have always thought about how CSNY would sound live, given how good they sound on record. Thankfully there is plenty on here to satisfy and interest the listener and there are little moments which do make the listener take notice. For example, one thing I did like was hearing Young’s backing vocals on tracks he did not originally appear on. So obviously I am talking CSN tracks here and some of the solo material from the other three. Likewise, it was great hearing Crosby, Stills & Nash sing in harmony together on Young’s solo stuff, “Only Love Can Break Your Heart” and “Old Man” were two particular standouts. The ending to “Only Love Can Break Your Heart” provided one of the high points of the album when the four of them sang the final verse a cappella in what can only be described as a spine tingling moment. The version on here of “Teach Your Children” was also another great moment, with the voices moulding so well together, something which in itself amazes me considering the noise that would come from playing in front of fifty-plus thousand people. Album closer “Ohio” was the icing on the cake. A stellar version which included some amazing guitar dulling between Stills and Young, two six-string maestros going at full tilt in what really was a moment of 70s rock ecstasy and the perfect way to end on.

All in all a very interesting retrospective look into CSNY live as they were in 1974, and as they could have continued to be if they actually liked each other. As a live recording it’s not going to blow any of the great live albums out of the water, but there were some nice moments amidst some lesser ones as well, something which maybe comes down to song quality and the difference between Stills and Young, who are frankly better song-writers, and the other two. In the end definitely worthwhile as an historical exercise and worth a release, all be it forty years later. 

B 

- Sam 

The Moons - Mindwaves (2014)

Mindwaves is the third studio album by relatively unknown British band The Moons, a band I stumbled upon quite by accident when I heard one of my favourite British musicians Paul Weller sing on a track off their last album Fables of History. After releasing two very, very good albums, where they have explored everything from baroque pop to mod pop, the band have decided to go down a more experimental psychedelic rock route with Mindwaves, all be it, with mixed results.

The overall sound of Mindwaves is high on psychedelic’s and the band experiment with tone, layers of sound, as well as what are often quite complex rhythms at times. There is an explosion of sonic guitars, ferocious drums, and synths coming at the listener from all directions as if like Rick Wakeman had infiltrated proceedings. While the seed that sows the sound all together is the now trademark Moons sound of double-tracked pop vocals. So, this all sounds very intriguing to potential listeners like myself, but how does the music actually stack up on the record?

Well the album does not start well in its quest to impress me, with a pointless instrumental called “Luna Intro” arghhhhhhhh!!! I hate one minute instrumentals. Luckily though next track “Society” is a psychedelic rocker with a harder edge to it than has been seen on previous Moon albums, while “Body Snatchers” is an experimental Kasabian-like neo-psychedelic number, which pushes things along nicely. “Fever” is next, and apart from the songs intro sounding like the intro to the Black Keys “Howling For You”, this song really takes the album up a gear with its Sgt Pepper synths, psychedelic guitar and interesting chord changes. One of the album highlights for sure. “Vertigo” I would describe as being a kind of psychedelic dance track, with its sick drum pattern and buzzy psych sounds. Songs like this show how much more the band are experimenting on this record and their willingness I guess to try new things without feeling the need to settle on any particular formula for recording. “All in My Mind” does not set the world alight, but “Heart and Soul” definitely does and for my mind is the best track on the album. It kicks off with a glam rock guitar riff, think Slade, think T Rex and pounds its way to an epic finale. This is glam pop at its best, and it is literally music to my ears. “You Can’t Slow Me Down” is basic filler, while “Sometimes” is a bore, but thankfully the energy and attitude comes back with “Time’s Not Forever”, and “Rage and Romance”, the latter which contains a wonderfully surprising violin solo and a moment which I would describe as being the albums Frank Zappa moment. Finally, the album comes to an end with the six minute ballad “On the Moon”. Here the band were setting themselves up for that big anthemic finale, you know, the moment at festivals where everyone puts their ciggie lighters in the air. However, in actual fact, this song is a massive disappointment and plods along as if the band are simply trying to use up the last bit of space on the record.

So, all in all, in summing up the album, I would say that Mindwaves is not as good as their last release which in my mind was a super album, with there being some good songs on here sprinkled in amongst some lesser tracks. The band clearly go for a more experimental sound on this release which I applaud them for, and move away from the baroque pop and psychedelic pop of their first two albums, but, in the end, I was kind of expecting something more out of all of it as a result. In conclusion then not a great disappointment, but in no way a towering achievement either.

B 

- Sam 

Big Star - #1 Record (1972)

#1 Record was the debut album by American power pop group Big Star. Released in 1972, this album was quite a landmark record, why? Well it brought power pop, a style of rock made popular in the UK by bands such as The Kinks and The Who during the 60s into the 70s, and into the US, while simultaneously taking the style down a completely new path musically to boot.

The line-up for the recording of this album was the classic Big Star line-up, Chris Bell on guitar and vocals, Alex Chilton on guitar and vocals, Andy Hummel on bass guitar and Jody Stephens on drums. So pretty much your standard rock four piece. Musically, power pop was a style that nobody else was really doing in the States at the time and stylistically consists of a big guitar sound with lots of power chords and heavy rhythms, complemented by some big anthemic pop hooks in the melody and vocals. This was far removed from the hard rock, blues rock and psychedelic music that had dominated for five to six years stateside, and to achieve this very authentic sound for its day, the band in their recordings tended to always play for the song and not for individual virtuoso performances. The songs themselves were the main centrepieces, not the players, and it was all for the purpose of sounding distinct and different from everyone else, something they definitely achieve on this album.

As for the songs, well the album kicks off with “Feel”, a track which showcases the Big Star sound right from the get go. There are big booming drums and powerful vocals, while a horn section and some blues guitar playing adds a nice tough to proceedings. “The Ballad of El Goodo” is a ballad of the power pop kind and quite simply oozes melody. This track also has a slight Graham Parsons feel to it, especially in the choruses with their country-like harmony vocals, a definite album stand out. “In the Street” is Big Star’s most well-known song and probably the a-typical power pop track to the point that if I was to introduce someone to power pop I would probably play them this track straight off the bat. This track simply makes you want to get in a Cadillac or mustang convertible and road trip across the US, it’s got that kind of free feel to it. The band slow things down a little on “Thirteen”, an acoustic-folk track which is a step down from the in your face explosion of some of the other tracks, but things are quickly back up and running on “Don’t Lie to Me” which has a sort of CCR/rock and roll vibe to it, showing that the band could rock out when they wanted to quite easily. After the forgettable “The India Song”, the troubadour rock of “When My Baby’s Beside Me” and the retrospective “My Life Is Right” carries us on to side two of the album in style, however it is at this point that the album loses a bit of its gusto and intensity with tracks such as “Give Me Another Chance” and “Watch the Sunrise” lacking the quality of some of the earlier tracks. But thankfully the album does not end this way and ends instead with the reflective rock ballad “Try Again”, a song that could easily put many Californian singer-songwriter to shame, while emphasising the song-writing talents of Bell and Chilton as a pairing, a pairing that unfortunately would not be seen on Big Star’s future releases.

#1 Record and Big Star themselves would go on to influence many alternative rock and indie bands in the US and elsewhere, especially bands like REM and The Replacements in the US 80s college rock scene. This despite the fact that at the time of its release #1 Record suffered from very poor sales, even though it was universally praised by critics. This album certainly set the band in motion and despite Bell’s departure, would spring board them nicely into their carefully crafted and melodic follow up Radio City. Big Star was one of the 70s most underrated bands, but they did release one of the more heavily acclaimed albums of the decade. #1 Record stood out from the rest of the US rock scene in its uniqueness and was probably ahead of its time with its power pop sound, a style that became more popular in the late-70s and 80s. Seemingly America in the early-70s were still hung over from flower power and just weren’t ready for this more melodic, poppy rock sound. Still, all these years later, I am glad we get to marvel at the songs on this album and enjoy it just as much as I am sure the 10,000-odd people who bought it in 1972 must have done.

A- 

- Sam 

George Ezra - Waiting on Voyage (2014)

Waiting on Voyage is the debut album by twenty-one year old British singer/songwriter George Ezra, yet another in a long list of twenty-something year olds breaking through in this very in vogue acoustic-folk style. However, at the same time, this guy is quite different stylistically from the likes of Ed Sheeran and Jake Bugg largely thanks to his very distinctive singing voice.

George Ezra’s voice when you hear for the first time is a voice that you do not immediately think belongs to a twenty-one year old, and sounds more so like someone in their sixties, someone with years of singing behind them. With this in mind, I must confess that I don’t think I have heard a voice quite like this one on someone in the early stages of their career, and Ezra certainly has a voice way beyond his years. Sound-wise I would describe his voice as being a cross between Eddie Vedder and someone in the ilk of Robert Johnson, or other delta blues musicians, with its warm bluesy tone and deepness. It is this unique and very mature voice which more than anything ensures that Ezra’s music stands out within what is quite a saturated singer-songwriter market, and after hearing a couple of singles, made his debut album Waiting on Voyage that much more intriguing to find out if the songs themselves could match up to the singer.

Ezra’s music is very much acoustic-based (he uses a semi-acoustic guitar and occasionally a resonator) and contains a blend of folk, skiffle, blues, and pop. Yes the song-writing at this stage is quite simplistic and the music definitely owes a lot to Ezra’s unique voice and the overall sense of melody it portrays, but often when you have such a distinct sound in your armoury whether it be a distinctive guitar, or singing style, simplicity can work best, with complex arrangements or experimental sounds only working to distract the listener. With this in mind, at times the music on here does suffer a bit from over-production, with whoever is producing trying to give some of the tracks a modern pop kick to them, something which is totally unnecessary. Some of the tracks could do without the synths, sequencing and electronic backing as they do not add anything, and quite frankly do not work well with the style of music Ezra is playing.

So what tracks stand out on the album? Well the album kicks off with a great opener “Blame It on Me”, which contains some skiffle influences in the guitar playing and also has a great sing-a-long chorus, something most of the songs on here contain. “Budapest” is one of the singles on the album which began to get Ezra noticed in the music world, and is more a mellower folk track with a slight calypso feel to it especially in the vocals and guitar. It is on tracks like this one that you really get to hear the unique quality of Ezra’s voice and his very distinctive deep tone. “Cassy O” is the second single, and although lyrically it is a bit throw-a-way, it has a very nice country shuffle to it and does a good job in highlighting Ezra’s efficient rhythm guitar playing, a style that is quite experimental when it comes to different strum patterns. “Did You Hear the Rain” musically is perhaps the most interesting track on the record and begins with a very haunting delta-blues like moan, before Ezra begins singing a cappella in a deep bluesy voice which sounds as if it could have come straight from the cotton fields in the Southern states of America, it is truly something. The track then transitions into a bit of an alt-folk track full of mood and feeling in what is definitely one of the album highlights. “Drawing Board”, “Stand by Your Gun” and “Barcelona” are also other noteworthy tracks on what is a very varied album stylistically and one which keeps the listener guessing as to what will come next, with Ezra bouncing from style to style across each track. There are a few dud tracks on the record, namely “Leaving It Up to You”, “Breakaway” and “Over the Creek”, but on the whole these are the exception to the rule and do not really diminish the overall quality of the album.

Waiting on Voyage is a very interesting and eclectic first up effort from George Ezra. There are a lot of things going on here musically which stand out and the fact he is willing to move from style to style across the album is quite daring for a debut. At times the production does get a bit too much and sees some of the songs lose their focus a bit, with the production team going dangerously down the pop for pop sake road which tends to be employed a lot in this day and age. Despite this, there is definitely plenty to work with here and if anything his quite remarkable voice will ensure he has a future in the industry. It will be very interesting to see where he goes from here musically, especially as he begins to mature as a song-writer, while as the voice itself, maturity-wise is already there. 

A- 

- Sam