High Bias aural fixations
September 15, 2002

BOBBY BARE, JR.
Young Criminals' Starvation League
(Bloodshot)
Having parted ways with his bandmates, Bobby Bare, Jr. joins members of his Nashville buddies Lambchop to create Young Criminals' Starvation League, a largely acoustic record that revisits the iconoclastic rocker's singer/songwriter roots. Unsurprisingly, the tracks are the same kind of songs he writes with his rock band. There's a passel of sad-sack romantic laments ("Bullet Through My Teeth," "I'll Be Around," the devastating "The Ending") that are the equal to anything he did on Boo-Tay, but with added emotional impact. (That's what happens when you don't hide behind a Marshall stack.) There are a couple of lonesome tunes about curious characters; while "The Monk at the Disco" doesn't really connect, the bracingly sad "Flat Chested Girl From Maynardville" quietly shoots its arrows directly into your heart. "Does anyone want to get high with me?" sings the lonely protagonist. "Cause no one is watching/For no one is worrying about me." "Dig Down," meanwhile, is a tribute/rant about the great rock artists whose work Bare, Jr. can only follow and never hope to surpass. To Pete Townshend: "Hey brother I write you to say thanks for nothin/Your generation used up all the feelings/And if we rock it looks like we're ripping you off." He also covers the Smiths' "What Difference Does It Make" so well he singlehandedly justifies Morrissey's existence, and he does a faithful take on "Painting Her Fingernails," from his mentor Shel Silverstein. While the songs may not necessarily be better than the ones he's already written, the stripped-down arrangements highlight the heart in Bare, Jr.'s tunes, the one he's previously obscured with feedback and power chords. Young Criminals' Starvation League is Bobby Bare, Jr.'s most affecting record yet. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: Robbie Fulks, Steve Earle, Willis Alan Ramsey

COUSTEAU
Sirena
(Palm)
England's glorious Cousteau returns to the end of the bar with the lovely Sirena, another sensually steaming slice of romantic melodrama that's a worthy follow-up to the band's self-titled debut. The quintet traffics in its usual array of saloon conversation and broken-hearted soliloquies, with lush tunes, graceful guitar/keyboard/flugelhorn arrangements and frontman Liam McKahey's aching baritone. Songwriter/producer Davey Ray Moor adds a subtle soul/jazz element to his melodies and arrangements this time out, letting a bit of air into the atmosphere of oppressive melancholy. Tunes like "Please Don't Cry," "Nothing So Bad" and "She Bruise Easy" are essentially R&B ballads; "Peculiarly You" crosses over into Tony Bennett territory. "No Medication" even has echoes of Kurt Weill. Of course, the group also includes several examples of its tortured pop, with "After the Fall" (which makes good use of a horn section and a soulful guitar solo) and "(Damn These) Hungry Time" being excellent examples. The single "Talking to Myself" may, in fact, be the band's best tune yet; McKahey and Moor know just how to handle an otherwise-awkward lyric like "This love's a certain omen, I warn you/When everything colludes to adore you." McKahey gives a particularly strong performance throughout, showing a bit more restraint than on the band's previous platter, but knowing when to blow the doors off for maximum emotional impact. Cousteau pulls all its elements together on Sirena for a beautifully realized paean to romantic angst; the only problem is its tendency to induce impassioned singalongs from those without a voice as appropriate as that of Liam McKahey.

The first round of copies includes a bonus DVD containing music videos for "Talking to Myself" and "Last Good Day of the Year," live radio performances and other goodies. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: the Blackeyed Susans, Simply Red's "Holding Back the Years," Leonard Cohen

DALEK
From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots
(Ipecac)
As From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots indicates, Newark's Dalek is a noisemongering hip-hop crew uninterested in pot, booty or gangsta posturing. The trio raps about Afrocentric spirituality and its place in the cosmos over deliberately low budget beats and harsh arrangements; voice and rhythm are everything here. Cuts like "Spiritual Healing," "Voices of the Ether" and "Trampled Brethren" cut to the heart of this band's matter, skipping crowd-pleasing chants or even obvious hooks to simply talk about what's important. The ten-minute "Black Smoke Rise" puts a socioapocalyptic poem over a squealing symphony of guitar feedback, while "Forever Close My Eyes" puts more personal ramblings over Hammond organ, a simple drum beat and skronky guitar filigrees. Samples of African American speechmakers augment the MCs now and again, but for the most part the emphasis is on the words and the beats, making From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots not only a testament to hip-hop's core values but also a glimpse at its artistic future. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: the Last Poets, Jurassic 5, the Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprosy

MAGELLAN
Hundred Year Flood
(Magna Carta)
The crown jewel of prog indie label Magna Carta, Magellan hasn't released an album since 1997, though bandleader Trent Gardner has kept busy with his Explorers Club and Leonardo: The Absolute Man projects. Hundred Year Flood is worth the long wait. Obviously even more of a labor of love than Leonardo, Hundred Year Flood opens with the nearly 35-minute opus "The Great Goodnight," which concerns the death of Gardner's brother in Viet Nam. Gardner was only four when it happened, so he barely remembers his sibling, yet he somehow manages to extract over half an hour of emotion and introspection out of an attempt to deal with his feelings for the brother he never got a chance to know. Musically Gardner has started moving away from a reliance on digital keys; the generous slathering of Hammond organ on "Goodnight" gives the track a warm feel in keeping with the familial theme. His other brother Wayne adds fiery guitar licks as needed. Gardner's knotty melodies come close to twisting his vocals in knots, but never do so; a tribute to his skills as a composer, perhaps. The other two tracks on Flood also stand as proudly, if not as magnificently, as "Goodnight." "Family Jewels" invites Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson to add his distinctive flute stylings to a solid instrumental, while "Brother's Keeper" puts social commentary about compassion to a 10-minute rocking prog tune. With Hundred Year Flood, Magellan raises itself to the first rank of American progressive rockers. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: UK, FM, Banco

ALAN MERRILL
Cupid Deranged
(MEC)
American-born Alan Merrill was a star in England during the 70s glam era with his band the Arrows, but he's never made much of an impression in his home country. That is, his name isn't well-known, but one of his songs certainly is. In 1975 he wrote and recorded a little ditty called "I Love Rock 'n' Roll," which has since provided Joan Jett with her biggest hit (not to mention generated a cover by, of all people, Britney Spears). He's also had tunes cut by Rick Derringer and Lou Rawls. Cupid Deranged is a resumé of sorts, a collection of recently-recorded versions of old Arrows song, work-for-hire tunes, songs from his Japanese pre-Arrows combo Vodka Collins and some new tracks. While it would be nice to report the rediscovery of a veteran singer/songwriter operating under the radar, the evidence on Cupid Deranged doesn't make that case. He's a solid tunesmith with a nicely burnished voice, not unlike latter-day Eric Clapton, but he's never more than listenable. You'd think a guy with his glam background would play up those aspects of his music, especially since it's a style in such short supply these days. He does do some of that—"Automatic Pilot" has the familiar Glitter Band-style drums, while "My Last Night With You" and "Touch Too Much" (penned by the hitmaking Chapman/Chinn team) remake Arrows tunes. But most of the songs traffic in limp R&B-flavored adult contemporary balladry ("When the Night Comes," "Miles Away," "You Don't Know What You Want," "Sands of Time"), along with some mediocre arena rock ("Shake Me," "Move It") and a truly horrendous attempt at funk ("Action to Reaction"). And, of course, there's "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"—the song is what it is, and you either love it or you don't. At this point, Merrill is barely a footnote in rock history, and Cupid Deranged presents little evidence to prove that status undeserved. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: Tony Carey, Dave Mason, Eric Clapton

NO. 2
What Does Good Luck Bring?
(In Music We Trust)
When Portland's premier modern rock band Heatmiser broke up, singer/songwriter Elliott Smith went on to a certain degree of (well-deserved) stardom. But there was another frontman in Heatmiser who is just as talented: Neil Gust. His band No. 2 is on its second album What Does Good Luck Bring,? and hasn't received nearly as much attention. Too bad, as this record proves it deserves it. Gust is just as familiar with variations on catchy guitar pop as his erstwhile bandmate, though Gust prefers a rawer, more basic sound than Smith. "More, More" and "For the Last Time" are sterling, distortion-ridden rock songs with strong hooks and soulful harmonies, while "Stranger's March" and "8:45" do the folkie country rock thing as well as any roots rock band. "Traveling" and "Is It True?" move from wistful pop to passionate rock choruses with grace and aplomb. The band works well with any approach called for by the song, and Gust's everyman vocals leave no room for irony or bullshit. What Does Good Luck Bring? may be an open-ended question, but hopefully the talent displayed by No. 2 on this album will bring success. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: Soul Asylum, Citizen's Utilities, Quasi

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Dressed in Black: A Tribute to Johnny Cash
(Dualtone)
"Johnny Cash," notes Dressed in Black co-producer Chuck Mead, "is the only artist I know of who elicits respect from artists of all genres." If that's the case, then it's a mystery why BR-549 leader Mead would hamstring this tribute collection by setting up strict genre boundaries around the performances. Every artist here, from Mavericks frontman Raul Malo and psychobilly wildman the Reverend Horton Heat to Los Straightjackets leader Eddie Angel and alt.country iconoclasts Robbie Fulks, Damon Bramblett and Hank Williams III, plays his or her chosen tune in the way Cash himself might've played it in the 60s, in a straightforward, barebones arrangement that emphasizes the distinctive "chicka-chicka" rhythm popularized by Cash's late lead guitarist Luther Perkins. Admittedly, it's a classic sound that hasn't aged a bit, and the song selection ("Ring of Fire," "I Walk the Line," "Ballad of a Teenage Queen," "Jackson," etc.) makes this practically a greatest hits selection. But no one is allowed to truly bring his or her own talents to bear on what Mead admits is timeless material, irrespective of genre. Heat should've been allowed to go wild with "Get Rhythm," but instead sounds constrained, like a tiger in a small cage. Rosie Flores gets kudos for resurrecting the oft-forgotten Cash classic "Big River," but you could replace her vocal with Cash's and no one would notice the difference. Only Malo, with a soulful vocal on "I Guess Things Just Happen That Way," Kenny Vaughan, with a wicked slide solo on "Train of Love" and Redd Volkaert, who livens up the rampant Perkins cloning with some expert chicken-pickin' on "Luther Played the Boogie," really put their own stamp on the material. Cash has always been adventurous, recording songs from outside the C&W arena, reinterpreting them to suit his own sense of artistic style. In order to be true to the Cash spirit, you'd think Mead would've have allowed the artists gathered here to do the same. Michael Toland [buy it]

For fans of: Johnny Cash, Junior Brown, Bastard Sons of Johnny Cash

Copyright © 2002 High Bias