Album Reviews

ORANGE GOBLIN
Thieving From the House of God
(Rise Above/TMC)
Being shorn of a guitarist hasn't slowed Orange Goblin down one bit. If anything, the English hard rock outfit is even more brutally effective than ever on its fifth album. Balancing the psychedelic stoner melodies of its early work with the hammer-down precision of its previous album Coup De Grace, the Goblin kicks out the jams on "Some You Win, Some You Lose," "Lazy Mary" and "One Room, One Axe, One Outcome" with the sharpest riffs and burliest muscle of its career. The best thing about Orange Goblin has always been the band's tendency, as embodied in its bear-voiced giant of a frontman Ben Ward, to play this ugly heavy rock as if it was the most fun job in the world. Joy isn't a word one might associate with a song called "Crown of Locusts," but it permeates every power chord and makes Thieving From the House of God a pure pleasure. Michael Toland [buy it]

MATTHEW PARMENTER
Astray
(Strung Out)
Parmenter is the auteur behind Discipline, one of the most distinctive progressive rock bands in the U.S. His solo album Astray explores much the same territory as his band's records, namely lengthy, melodic tracks that are deeply angst-ridden searches through the darker recesses of the human soul. Though Parmenter's multi-instrumental capabilities and powerful vocals keep the sound full and lush, this record isn't as (deliberately) claustrophobic as Discipline's masterpiece Unfolded Like Staircase. Despite lyrics like "We're all down here/Living with the fear" ("Some Fear Growing Old"), it's almost as if Astray is poking holes in the clouds to let in some sunlight. "If there is love/Let us love always," he declares at the end of the 20-minute opus "Modern Times;" that Parmenter even acknowledges the possibility pushes the darkness back a few more inches. Michael Toland [buy it]

JOHN PETRUCCI & JORDAN RUDESS
An Evening With John Petrucci & Jordan Rudess
(Favored Nations)
Guitarist John Petrucci and keyboardist Jordan Rudess are the instrumental driving forces of progressive metal titan Dream Theater, but don't expect that kind of bombastic drive here. Working in front of an audience and without a rhythm section, the pair instead go for sweetly, almost sentimentally melodic pieces that push their dual virtuosity into easy listening fuzak directions. It's nice to know the pair have more on their minds that crushing all comers with intricate power metal fantasies, but the overly generous length of most of the tracks here tends to wear out the music's welcome a bit quicker than it probably deserves. Michael Toland [buy it]

JON REGEN
Almost Home
(Jon Regen)
Jazz pianist/singer Jon Regen takes a left turn into pop with his latest disk Almost Home. Staying within the confines of a piano trio is a wise move; it not only provides a link to his previous work, but keeps the melodies from riding the triple-A line too closely. It also keeps him from sounding too much like other piano pop icons; without the full-on production of a Bruce Hornsby, Elton John or Billy Joel, Regen sounds more like himself than anyone else. Songs like "Better Than Before," "What am I Supposed to Do From Here" and the bemused "Only My Credit Card Remembers Where I've Been" won't rewrite the rules of pop, but they're solid tunes with instantly appealing melodies and soulful vocals. Best of all, none of this record feels like slumming; Regen is no jazz snob dabbling in pop for the money. If Regen can sustain as fertile a career in pop as he has in jazz, he'll be set. Michael Toland Michael Toland [buy it]

RHYTHM OF BLACK LINES
Human Hand Animal Band
(Gold Standard Laboratories)
Austin's Rhythm of Black Lines raise the art rock banner on Human Hand Animal Band. Multiple time signatures, contortionist arrangements, uncommon chord progressions and a multi-part tune called "PJS" all proudly proclaim "progressive" without evoking specters of 70s dinosaurs or rocked-up classical music gone horribly awry. Leader Clint Newsom is an extremely skilled guitarist, but doesn't display that fact in lengthy solos; he's as expressive with arpeggios and changes as most guitarists are with lead breaks. (If only the same could be said for his strained singing.) The band distinguishes itself in composition and arrangement, rather than performance—this is a showcase for songs, not solos. Fans of early 80s King Crimson will find RoBL to be most pleasing. Michael Toland [buy it]

SNAKEHIPS
Monster Bars
(Twister/Feralette/Horizon)
Every few years Mark Harrison's Snakehips reappears with another album of roots rockin' power pop. Or is that power poppin' roots rock? Whichever, it's a fairly common blend, but Harrison's version—sort of that Marc Bolan/Keith Richards collaboration some of us wistfully dream about—makes it seem dazzlingly fresh. He invigorates the grooves the old-fashioned way, with equal parts melody, passion and craft. Applying elbow grease to catchy songs that veer from jangling pop ("Down & Out") to soulful balladry ("Along Way") to roughcut rock & roll ("When I Bend"), Harrison performs each cut as if it was the only song in the world that mattered. In a music biz that ping-pongs between self-conscious experimentation and slavish genre identification, it's nice to know someone makes the traditional virtues sound alive again. Michael Toland [buy it]

SOUR DELUXE
White Noised
(Sour Deluxe)
Ass-kickin' power pop from the Windy City. Frontperson Jamie Jacobs (along with lead axe Greg Jacobs) pen almost ridiculously catchy melodic rock tunes and sings them in a strong, appealing voice that could get her a gig on American Idol—fortunately she prefers loud guitars to snide judges. Fiery, fun cuts like "Here Comes Honey" and the title track would make radio a hip place to be (which means they haven't a chance in a Clear Channel world), and the quartet even makes power ballads sound good again with "Sleeper Car." My only complaint about White Noise is that it's only five songs long. Such a tease. Michael Toland

ULTRAVIOLET MAKES ME SICK
…no freeway, no plan, no trees, no ghosts
(Camera Obscura)
Italy's Ultraviolet Makes Me Sick makes enigmatic improvisational rock not unlike that of Australia's much-vaunted Dirty Three. The trio (plus occasional guest keyboardist/vocalist Andrea Ferraris) draws on psychedelic and progressive rock traditions, but doesn't fit comfortably into either narrow slot. With occasionally jazzy chords and a definite indie rock sensibility, UVMMS's tunes are about space as much as chords, as the airy arrangements and languid rhythms leave room to walk in between the notes. That's not a bad thing for tunes like "Overexposed," which make the point when the power chords kick in even more effective. That's almost an aberration on this otherwise sedate album, however.. Michael Toland [buy it]

THE VEILS
The Runaway Found
(Rough Trade)
There's always room for another Big Music British rock band; we can't let Starsailor have all the fun. The Veils have the prerequisite sweeping melodies, melodramatic songs and widescreen arrangements down, with leader Finn Andrews (son of Shriekback keyboardist Barry Andrews) selling it with his achingly wavering voice, which seems about to break into pieces with overwhelming emotion. The Veils don't yet have that one absolutely undeniable cut that will rally the world around its cause, but tightly scripted and unabashedly performed tracks like "The Leavers Dance," "The Tide That Left and Never Came Back" and the single "Guiding Light" suggest they'll find it soon. Michael Toland [buy it]

DOC AND MERLE WATSON
Sittin' Here Pickin' the Blues
(Rounder)
Sittiin' Here Pickin' the Blues is actually an expanded version (eight additional tracks) of the Watson clan's 1985 album Pickin' the Blues. Though known for the breadth of both his talent and his repertoire, for my money Doc Watson is at his best with the blues. Accompanied by his son Merle on slide and second guitar, Watson hits just about every permutation you could think of, from sophisticated (the standard "Stormy Weather") to traditional (Leroy Carr's "How Long Blues") to primal (Dock Boggs' "Honey Babe Blues"). Drawing as well on the catalogs of Jimmie Rodgers, Sleepy John Estes, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee and that prolific bastard "traditional," Watson proves his easy facility with one of America's oldest art forms. Sittin' Here Pickin' the Blues is simply a delight from start to finish. Michael Toland [buy it]