High Bias aural fixations
October 7, 2001

PAT HANEY
Ghost of Things to Come
(Freefalls Entertainment)
At the core of every art, be it writing, painting, dancing or whatever, is one unshakable criterion: One must have something to say. More than one young person, gifted only in the mechanics of their art, has spun his/her wheels and spun out crap, frustrated and white-knuckled at the undeniable scent of pointlessness. Pat Haney, however, has something to say. Ghost of Things to Come is the Kentuckian's second CD, and it listens like a Larry Brown novel. "I felt an old man starin' deep inside me," he sings on the title track. "When I turned around, it was me." In "'Licts," over the steady ascension of mandolin and twangy electric guitar, he sings, "She ain't able to eat a thing since Daddy ate his gun/If I knew how, I guess I'd just run."

It goes on like that; the very notes are saturated with emotional resonance. Haney's voice is reminiscent of a young Steve Earle, or maybe Kevin Deal. Whoever you care to compare him to, just know that Haney is as important a Southern songwriter as you're likely to encounter in the post-Townes Van Zandt era. Brian Briscoe [buy it]

For fans of: Robert Earl Keen, Joe Ely, Dave Alvin

JAMES LABRIE'S MULLMUZZLER
Mullmuzzler 2
(Magna Carta)
The singer for progressive metal deity Dream Theater, James LaBrie possesses a supple but powerful tenor perfectly suited to his music of choice, though he's not allowed to exercise it much in the muso-heavy DT. His Mullmuzzler side project allows him to show off not only his vocal chops, but his writing as well. Unsurprisingly, he favors the same heavy side of prog as his primary band, but here he's not forced out of the spotlight by endless guitar solos. Co-writing the songs with Dali's Dilemma's Matt Guillory and Shadow Gallery's Gary Wehrkamp and Carl Cadden-James (both groups that started as DT clones, interestingly enough), LaBrie comes up with an album's worth of solid prog anthems that put his clear, streamlined pipes and introspective lyrics front and center. "Venice Burning," "A Simple Man" and "Afterlife" (co-written by Magellan's Trent Gardner, LaBrie's partner on the remarkable Leonardo: The Absolute Man project) equal if not surpass anything from his parent group. The only real departures are the airy, pleasant "Falling" and the moody "Listening," catchy pop songs DT would never let him get away with. Only the overly Journey-like ballad "Believe" (which, unfortunately, DT would encourage) goes too far into bathos. There may not be anything earthshattering on 2, but there's also nothing less than enjoyable, except for the overly Journey-like ballad "Believe," which goes too far into bathos. That's better odds than LaBrie gets with his day job. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: Styx, Shadow Gallery, Cairo

MADREDEUS
Movimento
(EMI)
On their fourth album in fourteen years, Madredeus creates a shadowy, very Portuguese and beautifully modern vision of the fado, Portugal's sweet and sad traditional folk music. At the heart of these sixteen songs is Teresa Salgueiro, with her lilting, colorful soprano dancing across the palette of nylon-string guitars. The lyrics, thankfully provided in English, are just the sort of stream-of-consciousness heart cries one might have supposed from the very sounds of the songs. On "A Liro—Solidão No Oceano" ("The Lyre—Loneliness on the Ocean"), Salgueiro could be the siren on the rocks, casting her song westward into the Atlantic. "Where is that joy I once dreamt to reach? It was forgotten for the sake of love," she sings, and the listener longs to be that lover.

The sonic backdrop of classical guitar and subtle synth treatments (which serve only to hint of the ambience of strings), combined with Salgueiro's enchanting voice, creates an atmosphere unique unto itself. Cast yourself into the sea and drown in the beauty of Madredeus. Brian Briscoe [buy it]

For fans of: Mary Coughlan, the Gipsy Kings, Billie Holiday

PAT MARTINO
Live at Yoshi's
(Blue Note)
Outside of a cadre of jazz aficionados and guitar magazine geeks, Pat Martino is better known for his admittedly inspiring comeback story than for his music. Having literally forgotten how to play after a nasty brain aneurysm in 1980, he taught himself to pick again by listening to his old recordings. He's now as good as he ever was, if not better, setting standards and making would-be ax gods' jaws drop as in days of yore. Need proof? Listen to Live at Yoshi's, a sort of life in music drawing on all facets of Martino's illustrious career. Joined on stage by young Hammond B-3 lion Joey DeFrancesco and veteran drummer Billy Hart, Martino plays a relaxed set of mostly originals in a style somewhere between hard bop and soul jazz. The six-stringer is known for fiery solos and lightning fast runs, and those are here in abundance, ably supported by DeFrancesco's sympathetic comping and Hart's consistently swinging pulse. But Martino's sense of melody is such that even his most burning solos never go too far out, always keeping the tune in mind, if not necessarily in easy reach. His bandmates stay right in the pocket with him at all times. Funky takes on Sonny Rollins' "Oleo" and his own "Recollection" and luscious slithers through the Miles Davis ballads "Blue in Green" and "All Blues" will bring a goofy grin to any jazz fans' face. "El Hombre," one of his signature tunes, is simply astounding, bursting with excitement but never getting out of control; it's a model of virtuosity held in check by taste. Powerful song sense, a tight group interplay and Martino's peak-of-his-powers performance make Live at Yoshi's a triumph. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: early George Benson, Herb Ellis, John Scofield

QUASI
The Sword of God
(Touch and Go Records)
Here's a paradox for ya: sometimes divorcees make the best rock 'n' roll. That seems to be the case with Quasi, which consists of former married couple Sam Coomes and Janet Weiss. Whatever disharmony that led to their personal dissolution isn't even remotely evident in their professional liaison. After four albums and several tours together, drummer Weiss and multi-instrumentalist Coomes play together like two bodies connected to the same brain. Combine their almost supernatural tightness with the finest set of songs they've written to date, and you've got The Sword of God, a near-masterpiece. Bright, sparkling hooks that owe as much to 70s pop as 90s alt.rock simply gush from Coomes' keyboards and guitar, while the vastly underrated Weiss stays sympathetic to the melodies while relentlessly driving them forward. The record continues the band's well-oiled formula of adding upper tunes to downer lyrics, though this time around the words sound less melancholy and sad than irritable and agitated "Greener than the clover, whiter than the snow/Pass your little judgments on a world you'll never know," Coomes croons in "From a Hole in the Ground." His high, boyish tenor suits the songs perfectly, and when Weiss adds sweet harmonies, the effect is irresistible. The tense "A Case of No Way Out," aching "It's Raining," appropriately petulant "Little Lord Fontleroy" and nearly majestic title track are simply some of the best pop tunes anywhere at the moment. Meanwhile, the heavy electric harpsichord riffs of "Goblins and Trolls" and power poppin' guitars of "Rock & Roll Will Never Die" prove they can rock ass whenever they want (something to which anyone familiar with their breathless live shows can already attest). The edge of this Sword is sharp. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: Built to Spill, Ben Folds Five, Elliott Smith

Copyright © 2001 High Bias