Anniversary Albums: Edition Nine - Manic Street Preachers "Everything Must Go"

This weeks anniversary album is the Manic Street Preachers “Everything Must Go” which turns 20 next month.

Released in 1996, "Everything Must Go" was the Welsh rockers fourth record, and first since the disappearance of the band's song-writer and rhythm guitarist Richey Edwards. To this day Edwards has never been found and is presumed dead.

Musically speaking, this record represented quite a change for the band, who up until that point had played quite dark punk-inspired rock. This album goes down a more anthemic stadium rock route, with big rock ballads and more of a commercial feel.

This change of direction might have had something to do with the band trying to fit in with the very popular Britpop movement of the time.

Although in terms of guitar music, this record was quite different from Britpop, taking more of an influence from both hard rock and glam rock.

"Everything Must Go" also marked a shift for the band lyrically speaking, mainly due in part to Edwards disappearance. Gone were the introspective and autobiographical tracks of their previous work, and in came more historical and political themes of which they would go on to become well known for.

Nicky Wire in an interview put this down to the band feeling timid and nervous in the wake of Edwards departure.

The album also features five tracks with lyrics by Edwards. 

"Everything Must Go" was a critical and commercial success upon it release, It reached number two in the UK and also marked the moment the band went from a cult band to a commercially successful mainstream group.

The band won two awards at the 1997 BRIT awards in the wake of the albums success. Best UK album and best British group.

In terms of its legacy and place in British music, "Everything Must Go" is considered the groups best record alongside "The Holy Bible", and a classic mid-90s record.

Q Magazine voted it the 16th best album in the magazines lifetime, while Kerrang! Ranked it 24 in their list of the 100 best British rock albums.

"Everything Must Go" helped establish the Manic’s position as one of the best bands to come out of Wales, as well as one of the best guitar bands to come out of the UK during the 90’s. 

- Sam 

Is Guitar Music Dying? (2015)

Is guitar music dead? This seems to be a never ending question for music critics and scholars alike. This exact question was asked when disco arrived on the scene, when house music took over, and when pop music reigned supreme at the turn of the century. The good news, was that the answer was no with each of those three examples. However, I am asking the question again, this time in 2015, and at this point, to be quite frank I am not optimistic.

I will give my reasons as to why I think guitar music is in a precarious state right now, but just before you think I am an anti-rock type, I will declare my biases straight away. I love rock music, I love guitar music, I am a guitarist. In fact, there was a time in my teen years when I refused to listen to anything that didn’t have a guitar solo in it. Thankfully I have evolved and expanded my musical tastes since then, but I have always had a love for great guitar music. So why then, do I think it is “endangered” so to speak?

Here are my reasons...

Well, firstly, I think guitar music has failed to evolve musically, and since grunge and alternative rock, it has continued to rely heavily on quite a one-dimensional template of distorted guitars, very simple drum patterns, and overall not leaving much room for experimentation or exploration musically. This is especially the case I find with American, Australian and New Zealand groups. The same thing could also be said about British indie rock, with bands in this style seemingly stuck within the Strokes/Libertines formula which was big twelve years ago. In comparison, at the same time, other genres seem to be evolving and moving forward more quickly than guitar-based forms, especially alternative, indie pop and electronica.

Secondly, I think more so than other genres, guitar music or rock seems to be tied more heavily to its past. Nostalgia is big with guitar music and you see it in the music press with Rolling Stone, Mojo Magazine and the like, and the booming popularity of the live nostalgia circuit, “dad rock” to use a favourite cliche.  The rock nostalgia think rakes in the cash every year with high profile reunions, sold out tours and re-issues. While at the same time most of the attention gets given to dinosaur bands which refuse to die such as the Rolling Stones and U2. With this, in turn, less attention is given to the new bands on the scene. Part of this also comes back to identity and how guitar music, or rock is significantly linked with its past rather than trying to create a new and fresh identity for the 21st century. Now I know that music was great and will always be great, but surely it is time to move on?  

Along with this, a valid question could also be asked that the best of guitar music is done. Guitar forms such as rock are quite simplistic musically and what started sixty years ago with rock and roll, what more can guitar bands do that hasn’t already been done before? And, at the same time, realistically speaking how can anyone top the music that was written and performed between 1968 and 1978 especially, and then again with revivals in the 1980s and 1990s. Is it just because this form of music is so simple musically that it automatically limits itself in terms of what can be done, hence why it is failing to match what is being done with others styles.

Thirdly, I don’t think you can underestimate the role of the music industry in the situation guitar music finds itself in. After championing rock for decades, for the past fifteen years the industry and big label executives have neglected guitar music in favor of an obsession with churning out a lot of shit pop music and at times quite average R&B and hip hop. With this, guitar music has been left floundering and has fallen off the charts and out of sight for a lot of people. So when the industry doesn’t even care about it, what hope is there for it.

Finally, probably the most simplistic reason for the average state guitar music is in is that every genre has its time in the sun. Rock and guitar music peaked years ago and now you could argue is the time for other genres such as alternative, indie pop, electronica, as well as funk and soul revivals to have their moment. The evidence for this is probably clear in how a lot of the best music from this year has come out of these genres. In line with this, you could argue it is up to guitar bands and musicians to lift their game and match what is happening with other styles. This could also involve maybe taking elements from other styles and using them to create more fusion-like guitar music, or hybrid genres, something which a lot of the best guitar music from the past did.

In conclusion then, this opinion peace has painted a pretty bleak picture for guitar music in 2015. However, all is not lost and it is not entirely all doom and gloom. There are at least a few acts continuing to wave the flag for guitar music. Anything by Dan Auerbach is worth paying attention to, and his new collaborative project The Arcs have just released a very good album “Yours Dreamily”. Meanwhile, acts such as Alabama Shakes and Gary Clark jr have made some terrific music with their soul and blues-infused style of rock, including a couple of very solid albums this year. So, these acts do offer some hope. But, alas, they are the exception rather than the general rule and it will take more than a small handful of artists to keep guitar music afloat. Unless more artists come out of the wood-works and offer something different to standard indie or alt-rock, then guitar music could go from endangered status to extinct very quickly, something guitar and rock fans the world over squirm at the prospect. Now of course you might think what I have just hypothesised is all bullshit and that’s fine to, but from my own perspective knowing how good guitar music and rock forms can be, I feel there is so much more that can be done to move these forms out of the 20th century and into a fresh new direction. 

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 

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 

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 

Bruce Springsteen - Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)

Released in 1978, Darkness on the Edge of Town was Bruce Springsteen’s fourth studio album, and the first release following his breakthrough album Born to Run, an album that took him to levels of superstardom to the point that many critics declared him as being the savour of rock. However, Springsteen suffered somewhat from a three gap between releases as he was involved in a bitter dispute with his former manager for the rights and control of his music. This impacted on his new found momentum following Born to Run, meaning that “Darkness” in many ways was a make or break album for Springsteen and a record where he needed to prove that he wasn’t just a flash in the pan one album wonder.

Musically, Darkness is quite a step away from Born to Run and is not as full on in terms of its overall production and sound. Gone is the wall of sound style that was a constant on his previous album and in its place comes a sense of maturity I guess, musically, with Springsteen spending more time in the studio crafting songs and developing ideas instead of following rigid musical arrangements. Just one of the musical casualties from the Born to Run sound aside from the layered production, was the heavy sax presence of Clarence Clemons who definitely takes a backseat on this album, while the band as a whole are much tighter on here. This comes as no surprise as Springsteen himself has said subsequently how he wanted a leaner and less grand affair than Born to Run. The song-writing is also quite a departure from Born to Run and thematically looks more at Springsteen’s life growing up in small town America, while taking influence from his managerial struggles of the time.  Many of the song titles reflect this sense of tension, while also portraying a sense of doom descending, with “Badlands”, “Streets of Fire” and “Darkness on the Edge of Town” being just some examples of this. Springsteen was also so intent on keeping the overall thematic feel of the album and its essence intact to the point that many of the 70 odd songs he wrote and recorded around this time were left off the album as they did not fit in with the overall concept. Many of these songs would subsequently appear on future releases instead.

Darkness on the Edge of Town is full of standout tracks, starting with the anthemic opener “Badlands”, one of Springsteen’s most loved tracks and what he traditionally plays to start his concerts. Out of all the tracks on the album this one probably resembles the Born to Run sound the most with its chiming piano, pounding drums and a rare sax solo. The album then takes a slightly different turn on the following track “Adam Raised a Cain”, an aggressive raw guitar track which also has a punk attitude about it when compared with what was going on elsewhere musically at the time. This track is then followed by the quite emotional rock ballad “Something in the Night”, a beautiful song that begins with some soaring moans from Springsteen himself before transitioning into quite a powerful and reflective song. “The Promise Land” is a harmonica laden rock number that also has a thunderous sing-a-long chorus and a brilliant sax solo, while “Prove It All Night” is quite an interesting song musically, containing different things that jump out at you throughout like the slightly Asian sounding piano opening and the tracks subtle overall rock and roll dance feel. Finally, album closer “Darkness on the Edge of Town” pretty much sums up the album both lyrically and musically, as well as capturing the essence of its message. All of the musical elements seen on the album are pretty much at play on this song, while it also contains somewhat of a gospel feel in the vocals. A great track to end what is on the whole a great sounding album.

Darkness on the Edge of Town remains one of Springsteen’s most highly regarded albums and is even rated as high as 150 on Rolling Stone magazines top 500 albums of all-time list. Its enduring legacy is also seen through how it was re-issued as part of a box set titled “The Promise” in 2010, a very expansive and expensive set that also included an album made up some of the tracks left off the original album that had not been released, as well as an accompanying documentary which gave a very insightful look into the making of the album and Springsteen’s methods in the studio. In conclusion then, I would say that “Darkness” is a very honest record with a more focussed sound than seen on other Springsteen releases. It may lack the stylistic diversity of some of his other more seminal albums, but this is made up for by some solid song-writing as well as some interesting musical moments. This album definitely features in his top five and in many respects is an underrated late-70s rock classic. 

A- 

Sam 

The Black Keys - Turn Blue (2014)

The Black Keys have done it again. Wow, they truly are on an amazing run of form musically and have completed a hat trick of fantastic albums with their latest release Turn Blue. This come on the back of two of their best records 2010s Brothers and 2011s El Camino. After changing things up musically on those last two albums, bringing in soul, pop, glam and R&B influences, a move which is fair to say alienated many of their traditional fan base which has been with them since their early blues rock days, the band have again changed things up on this album, which too my ears sounds unalike anything else they have done.

Turn Blue has to be the grooviest album the Keys have recorded yet and has to dance written all over it that is if you can take your eyes off the brilliantly mesmerising album cover. Turn Blue has a strong soul and R&B vibe across its eleven tracks, as well as a slightly subtle hip-hop influence, a stylistic direction that is largely thanks to Danger Mouse who is again producing. Danger Mouse’s influence on here is significant and he puts his production stamp across the whole album, dictating the musical sound and direction of many of the tracks. He gives the material a slickness that is far removed from the dirty blues rock of the early Keys albums, but it works well for the soul/R&B vibe the band have going on here. He also contributes to what is a psychedelic rock direction for the band on several tracks, with explosive guitars and wailing keyboards. This man certainly knows no bounds when it comes to production and there are definitely no boundaries on here. Dan Auerbach again is the showpiece, with all due respect to Patrick Carney’s powerful drumming, and it is his dirty energised guitar and falsetto vocals which dominate the tracks on the album much like as they did on El Camino. It is again these features of the Keys music which make it so good to listen to, music which at times sounds quite gorgeous like a good old 60s and 70s R&B, or soul track.

As for the tracks, well there are some goodies on here, some that are already surely up there with the bands best work. The album kicks off with the fantastic epic “Weight of Love” a psychedelic trip of blazing guitars and soulful vocals. This song is a great way to kick off the album, especially when it begins with two minutes of swirling Pink Floydish Dark Side of The Moon guitar before any vocals hit in. Definitely up there in the bands cannon. This is followed by “In Time” a psychedelic soul track that features Auerbach’s now trademark falsetto vocals and a pounding drum backbeat. Its more psychedelic rock on the title track “Turn Blue” which again retains the two styles most prominent on this album, soul and psychedelia and does it well, while “Fever” the first single, is more like the garage rock in a pop style seen on El Camino, but it still kicks some and is also now accompanied by a snappy video which features Auerbach playing a preacher in a church. “Year in Review” is another storming soul track with a massive rhythm section, complete also with female backing vocals that gives the song a modern Motown feel, one of the standout tracks on the album. This is followed by “Bullet in the Brain”, another psychedelic track which has a Cream feel to it and would have sounded good in 67. Then there is “It’s Up to You Now” which although has a rockabilly/Bo Diddley jam going on, is my least favourite track on here and strikes me as being a bit of a studio warm up track rather than an album track. Heading in to the back end of the album “Waiting on Words” is probably the most unalike Black Keys song of all time and is a bit of a slow pop ballad, which although pleasant enough does not really possess any notable redeeming features. “10 Lovers” on the other hand is another brilliant track that has been kidnapped by Danger Mouse and his production wizardry. This track features a pounding bass line, something that features strongly on this album more so than their other work. The album closes out with “In Our Prime” a Lennonesque track which concludes with a minute plus guitar solo, and heavy rock and roller “Gotta Get Away” featuring a slide guitar solo that would have made Elmore James proud.

So, in conclusion I believe this is quite a massive artistic statement by the Black Keys and showcases their diversity as a music act. They could go back to being a blues rock duo and I do hope one day they return to their roots, but I am not sure that would entirely fit in with what they are trying to achieve at the moment. Turn Blue is a very eclectic album full of surprises and very good moments and again represents another step forward for the band after two very good albums. Early reviews have been very positive from the hard to please music critic establishment and I have a slight gut feeling that in ten years or so people will look back at this period for the Black Keys and conclude that they were very much at the peak of their career as one of the twenty-first century’s great rock bands. 

A

- Sam 

Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band - Concert Review (High Hopes Tour 2014)

He came, he performed, and he definitely conquered Auckland’s Mount Smart Stadium on Saturday night. What a show! Bruce Springsteen’s reputation as a live performer like no other has followed him round since his high-octane late-70s shows, shows which often ended with Springsteen collapsing from exhaustion and being dragged off. Thankfully that didn’t happen this time, but “The Boss” as he is known still managed to pull out of the bag a three hour live extravaganza like no other I have ever witnessed.

Walking on stage alone, equipped with just a harmonica and acoustic guitar, Springsteen started the show with an acoustic folk take on Lorde’s “Royals”, continuing this current tour’s tradition of starting the concert with a cover of a local song. Recent shows in Australia included his take on AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” and The Bee Gees “Staying Alive”, while this earthy harmonica driven version of “Royals” was unique as it was risky, but it so worked and caught the audience a bit of guard when you consider artist’s usually start concerts with big anthemic numbers. If that was surprising, what followed was simply mesmerising to say the least, as Springsteen backed by an eighteen piece line-up of his well travelled backing band the legendary E-Street Band performed songs off ten of his albums that also included a mid-set complete performance of his 1984 smash album “Born in the USA”. Springsteen’s set-lists change every night depending on how the man himself feels at the time and includes the odd-occasion where The Boss will reach into the crowd and collect a sign with a song listed on it of which the E-Street Band will then proceed to play. Nothing in a Springsteen concert follows to script, with anything a possibility. Amazingly enough, apparently the band rehearsed around 120 songs for this tour, a number of songs which most artists don’t even have in an entire back catalogue let alone who are then able to perform at a minute’s notice, of which at times the E-Street Band only have before their off on a completely different direction that was originally planned for the concert.

After a solid start to the show that included rousing versions of “Badlands”, “High Hopes” and a beautiful rendition of the 1980 track “The River”, the concert reached its zenith when Springsteen announced to the crowd that him and his band would be performing the entire “Born in the USA” album, continuing a trend of Springsteen concerts in performing albums in their entirety. One knew you were at a serious concert when the opening keyboard riff of the title track came through the speaker system and the crowd were transported back to the mid-80s in one glorious moment of stadium rock. By this point the crowd would be up and dancing to up-tempo rockers such as “Cover Me” and “Darlington County”, and the rock and roll stomper “Working on the Highway”, while sitting back in the odd moment of reflection with “I’m on Fire” and “My Hometown” in what were a handful of the more tender moments of the show. The album set came to an end with 80s hits “Glory Days” and “Dancing in the Dark”, of which on both songs Springsteen pulled several lucky people out of the audience to sing and dance on stage, something which he traditionally does during the performing of the latter track.

The main set concluded with a powerful rendition of “The Rising”, a Tom Morello guitar fireworks-laden “The Ghost of Tom Joad” which was one of the show’s high points, and a lovely gospel version of “Land of Hope and Dreams” that also included a segue into the classic Impressions track “People Get Ready”. What then followed was a fantastic encore which represented the icing on the cake and continued on the energy that was shown throughout. “Born To Run” sounded as great as ever, Springsteen concert staple “Rosalita” of which Steven Van Zandt gleefully took from a crowd sign as a request had energy and musicianship, while I got to here one of my personal favourites “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out”. The encore then ended with an extended cover of the classic Isley Brothers track “Shout” which had the whole crowd on its feet wanting more. At this point the E-Street band left stage leaving Springsteen alone again with his guitar and harmonica ending the show as he started, but this time he performed an acoustic version of his classic 1975 anthem “Thunder Road” in what was a great way to go out on.

From start to finish this show was absolute value for money, with The Boss and his simply amazing band giving one hundred percent in their performance and then some, while also looking like they were enjoying themselves on stage throughout the concerts duration. Often artists come to New Zealand and appear like they would rather be somewhere else with New Zealand shows often being the last stop of a tour. This can lead to lack-lustre appearances and a case of the fan being robbed. Not Bruce Springsteen, who treats his audiences to the full monty every night. He cares about his fans and goes out of his way to ensure they are having a good time, establishing a connection with the audience very early on in the show, engaging with them, talking to them and smiling throughout. This has to be one of the best shows going around at the moment and based on what I saw on Saturday night in Auckland, justifyingly well deserved of being voted the best live act of 2013 by Rolling Stone Magazine. A must see for anyone into live music. Long live The Boss. 

A+

- Sam 

Paul McCartney - NEW (2013)

Paul McCartney’s new album “NEW” is his sixteenth solo studio release and his first album of new material in six years. This release sees McCartney trying different things and experimenting a lot more than he has done in recent years both in terms of the recording of the album, as well as the overall sound. What is different about this album is that McCartney used four different producers to help him produce this record, after he initially set out to trial his favourite producers before eventually deciding to use them all. Giles Martin (son of George), Mark Ronson, Ethan Johns, and Paul Epworth all appear on this record helping Paul behind the mixing desk, with their presence being highly noticeable and having a significant impact in the creation of the overall feel and sound of the album.

“NEW” musically speaking is very varied and probably represents McCartney’s most diverse release in years. Although many of the tracks retain a pop/rock feel to them, some of the recordings are not typical of the traditional pop/rock style that has served McCartney well as a solo artist over the years, a style which instead has largely been replaced with a noticeably strong electronic pop sound and some unusual arrangements as well. The presence of four of the best producers in the business has also ensured that all the material whatever the style has a contemporary slickness to it and a heavily produced feel.

As for the material itself, well the album begins with a full on pop-rocker called “Save Us" which contains some Queen-inspired backing vocals in the chorus in what is a highly charged ferocious start to the album. This is followed by the alternative pop of “Alligator” and “On My Way to Work”, both of which are largely in the traditional McCartney mould all be it with a bit of contemporary pop production to spice things up. “Queenie Eye” is another stomping pop-rocker with a very catchy chorus, while “Early Days” an acoustic folk number is one of Paul’s best songs in recent years and captures him in a tender reflective mood as he sings about the pre-Beatle days and in particular his friendship with John Lennon. This is followed by title track “New” which is probably the most Beatles-sounding song on the album, with its psychedelic pop feel resembling “Got to Get You into My Life” and “Penny Lane”. This is definitely one of the standout songs on the album and captures Paul having fun musically with a brilliant acapella doo wop vocal outro. At the latter end of the record Paul returns to the guitar pop/rock which he is most familiar with in the form of “Everybody Out There” and “I Can Bet”, before he really begins to experiment with a more electronic pop sound. Songs such as “Appreciate”, “Road”, and “Looking at Her” are very adventurous in terms of their arrangements and overly produced electronic sound, but unfortunately it is here where this album falls down and begins to lag. I am sure he had the right intent and I applaud him for experimenting and trying new things, but these songs to me represent a bit of a bore considering some of the quality that appears on the first half of the album.

In conclusion then, overall I would say that this album represents a pretty ambitious offering from Paul and I compliment him for mixing it up stylistically when other established acts of a similar ilk would be more likely to stick with a tried and tested formula at this stage of their career. Although the injection of electronic and contemporary pop influences offer mixed results, there are definitely a few songs on here that show Paul at his strongest musically and represent some of his best work in years. Considering he is still recording and touring at age 71, as well as the fact that his last record was an indifferent collection of old standards this album is a pretty good effort. Paul’s attempt on “NEW” to rework his sound to suit a more modern audience, while also his decision to experiment with some more modern influences shows he at least still has plenty of musical ideas to play with, not to mention the energy and desire to turn those ideas into a reality, something that I applaud and marvel at.

B

- Sam

 

 

 

 

Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy (1973)

Released in 1973, Houses of the Holy was the fifth studio release by Led Zeppelin and in many ways was quite a significant moment in the history of the band. It was on this album when Led Zeppelin began to branch out musically and explore other musical sounds, as up until that point they had pretty much stuck within the confines of blues, hard rock and a bit of folk thrown in for good measure. On Houses of the Holy there is still hard rock and there is still folk, but there is also funk, reggae, progressive rock and even an eastern inspired song, with the band spreading their wings stylistically and experimenting with whatever they thought sounded good. Along with this somewhat change of direction musically, the band were also beginning to incorporate new production techniques into their recording which helped to evolve their sound more. Jimmy Page’s guitar playing for one on this album is more layered and less bluesy, while in keeping with the technological advances of the early-70s, keyboards and a mellotron also make an appearance. This combination of new styles and new sounds helped to make Houses of the Holy a completely different beast from the bands previous release, the classic Led Zeppelin IV. But despite this change in direction the results were just as good, all be it in a different way.

The album starts with fast-paced rocker “The Song Remains the Same”, a song which sounds more progressive than their previous work and contains heavy layers of multi-tracked guitar. This is followed by “The Rain Song” which is a progressive folk ballad that features a mellotron providing the orchestral baroque effects. This song was probably the furthest removed from Led Zeppelin’s traditional sound up until that point and was definitely a radical departure for the band at the time.  “Over the Hills and Far Away” is a folk rock track which starts with an acoustic folk section before transforming into a heavy guitar track much like one of their earlier songs “Ramble On”. This song highlights well how much the band was developing as songwriters, with many of their songs now beginning to feature different sounding sections as well as multiple genres.  

The middle of the album is where they really begin to mix it up stylistically, starting with “The Crunge”, a funk rock track that is a play on James Brown’s style of funk. As a track it is more a studio experiment rather than a complete song, and contains no bridge or chorus, something which Robert Plant is keen to point out in a tongue and cheek way at the end of the song. For me this is the weakest track on the album and I’m not sure whether their foray into funk was a good idea. They have better success in their stylistic experimentation on the next two tracks, firstly on “Dancing Days” which has a Middle Eastern feel to it, especially in the exotic guitar riff that makes the song sound so good. “Dancing Days” was actually inspired by an Indian tune which Robert Plant and Jimmy Page had heard in Bombay, an inspiration which can clearly be heard throughout the song and that gives it what I would describe as quite a hypnotic-like feel. They take their stylistic experimentation further on “D’yer Mak’er”, a reggae influenced track with a reggae drum beat and guitar riff. The title of the song is even a play on the word Jamaica leaving no doubt as to where the influence for this song came from.

The album concludes in explosive fashion with two of the better tracks on the album.
No Quarter” is a mellow progressive rock track which features John Paul Jones talent on the keyboards, something which in most unlike Led Zeppelin fashion dominates this song. This song more than any also highlights the changes the band was making in terms of song production, with studio effects and trickery featuring strongly. Things such as a compressed guitar track, as well as the use of the theremin and a moog synthesizer gives this track a magical quality and ensures it is one of the album’s standouts, as well as being one of the bands best songs. Finally, the album closes with heavy rocker “The Ocean”; a track which works well as an album closer with its heavy guitar and drum sound. This track also has the effect of reassuring the listener that the band still had the ability to rock out when they wanted to.

Although Houses of the Holy was a huge success commercially on its release, its critical reception was mixed, which leads me to believe that maybe the music press didn’t really know what to make of a traditional rock band playing reggae and funk. However, as time has passed it has generally held up quite well and has been acknowledged as a pivotal release in the bands career. In summing up I firmly believe Houses of the Holy is one of Led Zeppelin’s greatest albums and certainly is one of their most diverse musically. What this album showed was that this band was full of great musical ideas and that they were not just one trick blues rockers, while highlighting also their prowess as songwriters especially in their ability to mix up songs with different sections, tempos and rhythms. If you want to see how Led Zeppelin developed musically in the mid-70s Houses of the Holy would be the place to start, while if you ever thought that they were just a plain and simple hard rock band then this album I am sure will help to change your mind. Houses of the Holy for me is experimental and eclectic; it is full of magic, surprise and intrigue and captures strongly everything good about Led Zeppelin.

A

- Sam

 

 

Warren Zevon - Excitable Boys (1978)

Warren Zevon is one of the forgotten artists from the 1970s California singer-songwriter era and has tended to be overlooked in favour of many of his contemporaries. Part of the reason for this is probably because he is not your typical rock star with his very distinctive voice as well as what I would describe as his quite nerdy looks complete with Harry Potter glasses, not entirely keeping in line with the glitz and glamour of the mid-70s California pop world. However, despite this, his musical talents are undoubted and it was on his third album Excitable Boy where everything moulded together in what is one of the great albums of the period.

Released in 1978, Excitable Boy was Zevon’s third album and it would also become his best selling release. It was on this release where he combined his often humours lyrics and overall quirkiness with a California pop-rock sound complete with gorgeous harmonies, a formula which obviously worked well in appealing to a mass audience. The music on this album is a mix of up-tempo pop rockers and slightly mellower piano ballads, while it is the wonderful harmonies of the large array of backing vocalists on display including some of Los Angeles finest in the form of Linda Ronstadt and J.D. Souther that gives many of the tracks a laid back California feel. Opening track “Johnny Strikes Up the Band” is a stomping guitar rocker, while title track “Excitable Boy” has a Beach Boys feel to it and features a storming sax solo and a section of female backing vocalists. Excitable Boy also notably contains Zevon’s most recognised song “Werewolves of London”, a song that went on to become a classic rock radio staple and which in recent years was sampled by Kid Rock in his smash hit “All Summer Long”. “Accidently Like a Martyr” is a beautiful piano pop ballad in a similar style to the great singer-songwriters of the 70s period, while “Tenderness on The Block” features some of the most infectious harmonies on the album, harmonies that would give The Eagles a run for their money. This is definitely a standout track on the album and one my favourites, I guess I am just a sucker for good harmony vocals.

One of the strong features of Excitable Boy apart from Zevon’s wonderful piano playing and unique vocal style is his ability as a songwriter and in particular some of the themes he focuses on in his songs. On “Veracruz” he dramatizes the US occupation of Veracruz during the Mexican Revolution, while “Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner” is about a fictional character called Roland who gets involved in the Nigerian Civil War during the 1960s. The theme of war continues on “Lawyers, Guns and Money” which represents Zevon’s humorous take on Cold War paranoia. So not only are the melodies and harmonies infectious on this record, but the song-writing is varied, vivid and interesting, ensuring that the listeners are kept amused with characters such as Roland the gunner and lyrics talking of seeing werewolves with Chinese menus in their hand walking in Soho. This is just the quirkiness and unusual mastery of Warren Zevon, showing why he is such a good musician and how his music makes for such good listening.

Excitable Boy gave Warren Zevon a larger audience and saw him crack the top 10 on Billboard, but he would struggle to capitalize in the long term on the openings this album gave him in terms of exposure. Although he would continue to retain his cult following in music circles and would earn the praise of people such as Dylan, Young and Springsteen, commercial success would elude him throughout the rest of his career and he eventually died prematurely in 2003, age 56. Warren Zevon is to this day still in many ways a cult figure in music and you have either heard of him or you haven’t. The 70s California singer-songwriter period and the music that came out of it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and people often view it cynically as a coked up bland period for music where money ruled the roost. This might be the case in some instances, but this album Excitable Boy by a nerdy looking guy with a strange last name proved that there were exceptions, and that in the end some of the music did sound good.

A-/A

- Sam

 

 

Arctic Monkeys - AM (2013)

AM is the fifth studio release in seven years by the Arctic Monkeys, a pretty impressive feat for a band these days, while as an album it is their most diverse yet if not being the most un-Arctic Monkeys of their releases. On this new album the band have moved head first into a completely new area of music far removed from the indie rock sound which made them one of the best British bands of the 21^st century so far. The music on AM is heavily influenced by hard rock, contemporary R&B and even hip-hop which ensured the listening experience for me was in many ways one of confusion. At times I could have been mistaken for thinking this was the new Queens of the Stone Age album, with a strong current of heavy guitars, pounding riffs and high falsetto vocals scattered throughout the album. Interestingly enough Josh Homme does in fact make an appearance on this album as a guest backing vocalist, and of course helped to produce the bands third album Humbug.

The album stars in a very heavy fashion with opening track “Do I Wanna Know?” a guitar driven psychedelic rock track and “R U Mine?” a fast paced song reminiscent of classic Black Sabbath. The influence of Sabbath and hard rock continues on “Arabella”, a song that includes a seismic-like guitar riff during the chorus that thunders through the speakers at you. At this point I found myself thinking since when were the Arctic Monkeys influenced by heavy metal, an influence that continues on “I Want It All” which contains a very heavy guitar riff in the vein of early Metallica. After an incredibly fierce start to the album, the middle section is much softer and melodic. “No. 1 Party Anthem” is a John Lennon (circa 1974) sounding song that features acoustic guitar and piano accompanying what is quite a beautiful soulful vocal delivery from Alex Turner. I would bet my bottom dollar this will be a cigarette lighter in the air song during concerts. This song is followed by “Mad Sounds” which is the softest song on the album a midst a haze of heavy rock and R&B styled tracks. This song to me felt like it could have come from David Bowie’s “Young Americans” and has an underlying Philly soul feel to it complete with a chorus full of ooh-la-la’s. The final section of the album begins with my favourite track the poppy psychedelic stomp “Snap Out of It” with its hand claps and incredibly catchy chorus, “Knee Socks” which as a song has a new wave feel to it with echoey guitars and yet more falsetto vocals, and finally album closer the R&B laced “I Wanna Be Yours” which is my least favourite song on the album and where I had a what were they thinking moment.

As far as criticisms go, there are a few aspects of this album which did not do it for me namely the R&B/hip-hop influences which in my opinion did not suit them and hopefully will not be seen again on future albums. I also found myself at times getting annoyed by the falsetto vocals which are dotted across the album. Yes they work well on several tracks, but I do feel they ended up overdoing this a bit across the album as a whole. Finally, I also think this album is over-produced especially with the layers and layers of heavy guitars and multi-tracked vocals, which together at times feel like they are battling with each for supremacy on a particular song. There is a lot going on, on most of these songs and I feel many of them could have sounded better had they been a little less busy in places, and if the band had focussed more on getting the timbre right rather than the production.

So far AM has been well received by the critics on its release and has garnered plenty of positive reviews and ratings, with many in the music press commenting on the albums musically diverse nature and incorporation of styles that you wouldn’t usually associate with the Arctic Monkeys. Some have even gone on to say it is the bands best album, something I would not agree with as I still think their last release Suck It and See was better. However I do applaud the band for trying to evolve their sound and attempt new things on this release, even if the results are not always perfect. There are some very good songs on here and a lot of interesting things going on in what is by in large a consistent album, but all in all I am yet to be completely sold on the bands new sound. Despite this, I still think overall AM was an interesting listen and I would still recommend it if at least to see where the Arctic Monkeys are at after five albums, and what direction they could potentially be heading in the future.

B

- Sam

The Beatles - The White Album (1968)

The Beatles self-titled 1968 release, known most famously as The White Album due to its white cover was one of the first double albums to be released by a prominent artist in popular music. This album was recorded during a turbulent period for the group, with the sessions dominated by in-fighting and disinterest, while Ringo Starr also quit the group for a brief period before being enticed back. Despite the recording of this album being un-harmonious and tense, the music was in no way affected and in fact what the band lay down on this album was some of their best work, resulting also in one of their best albums.

The White Album is an incredibly diverse album musically, containing a whole range of different styles across the two sides. There is seemingly something for everybody on this album with the genres on display including folk, rock and roll, alternative, avant-garde, music hall, pop, country, blues, heavy metal and even a child lullaby, and that’s not even everything. This album probably more than any of their others also highlighted strongly their overall musical talents, as on this release they played most of the instruments on the album relying on session musicians only on the odd occasion. The band would taken turns playing lead and rhythm guitar, bass, drums, percussion, keyboards, piano, harmonica and even saxophone and flugelhorn, interchanging across all sorts of instruments. Part of the reason for this was because many of the songs were recorded as solo pieces with minimal effort from the other band members. This highlighted the tension that was building within the band, as well as the desire for each individual to have their own song recorded and recorded the way they wanted.

The majority of the songs on The White Album were written on acoustic guitar while the band was in India studying transcendental meditation. Although the songs as usual were credited to Lennon-McCartney, this is by no means correct with most of the songs individually written and only a few co-written. When listening to the album you can even get a clear picture of who wrote what based on the different styles of each song. John Lennon tended to write more experimental and heavier tracks, while Paul McCartney wrote more pop oriented and somewhat softer songs, although there is the odd exception such as McCartney’s “Helter Skelter”. What makes this album an incredibly enjoyable listen and a very interesting album is the themes and ideas on display within the songs, of which many contain a subtle quirkiness and underlying humour. Just some of the themes that appear include a hunter named Bungalow Bill on “The Continuing story of bungalow bill”, Paul McCartney’s dog on “Martha My Dear”, the Maharishi on “Sexy Sadie”, and of all things Eric Clapton’s chocolate addiction on “Savoy Truffle” – weird I know. Interestingly enough in connection with the song themes, the band helped to fuel Paul is dead conspiracy theorists on this album with subtle clues appearing to stoke this infamous conspiracy. These included the famous line “the walrus was Paul” on “Glass Onion”, as well as the supposed hidden message on the end of I’m So Tired” which if played backwards sounds like “Paul is dead miss him miss him”.

I just love the satirical and ironic nature of some of the songs on the album where they appear in many ways to mock the very style or theme of the song, something which critics derided them for after the album was released. “Yer Blues” is in many ways a pisstake of blues rock with its heavy reverb and distortion, as well as the all out solo where the band just let rip. On “Rocky Racoon” a country styled track, McCartney starts the song in a mock fake American country accent, while on “Piggies” a song about corporate greed, Harrison sings the chorus in a posh English accent. It’s these little things which make some of the weaker songs on the album musically an enjoyable listen. Despite this, incredibly enough some of the contemporary reviews of the album slated the band for not being serious enough and not writing songs about the political and social climate of the time. In one especially ridiculous comment, critic John Landau said that ‘the band used parody on the album because they were afraid of confronting reality and the urgencies of the moment’, a bizarre comment if there was one considering the previous year they were on a global telecast singing “All You Need is Love”. At the end of the day if they felt like writing social or political they would have done, and in fact three songs “Blackbird” “Revolution 1” and “Piggies” all had underlying political/social ideas in them, which then makes you wonder if people like Landau were expecting an all out protest album or something in a similar vain.

Although there is occasional filler material such as “Wild Honey Pie” and “Don’t Pass Me By”, while the less said about “Revolution 9” the better, I find it hard to criticise much about this album. It has great diversity and an eclectic mix of styles across both discs which keeps me interested throughout, from the opening track “Back in the USSR” to the final track on side two “Good Night”. Double albums often end up failing because a lot of the material is second rate and is simply there to fill a side meaning the listener can lose interest very quickly. This is not the case on The White Album with the really good tracks such as “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” evenly spaced out with what might appear to be weaker tracks musically but often more quirky and satirical such as “Bungalow Bill”. And in fact it is many of those lesser tracks which make this album such a quirky mix throughout, from half songs to unfinished songs of which anything less would take away the albums uniqueness and magical qualities.

The White Album is one of The Beatles best albums and certainly one of their most successful. It has gone on to sell over twenty million copies and was listed as the tenth best album of all time by Rolling Stone magazine. It is one of my favourites Beatles albums and is definitely to me their most diverse and interesting offering musically, with its range of styles and song themes ensuring that it is a standout album from The Beatles back catalogue and a must listen.  

A+

- Sam