The Specials- Singles

The initial career of The Specials was from 1977-1984. This compilation- one of many released by the band- was released in 1991, a few years before they reformed.

Firstly, a quick mention of recording quality. While it may be sacrilegious to criticise the "character" of the bands' sound, I do wonder if a remastered version would be more enjoyable. By today's standards, the sound is very thin. On the bright side, the balance between instruments is good.

For me, Gangsters is simply a timeless classic. Quite a simple song, but enjoyable from start to finish. Rudy A Message To You evokes similar reactions. Objectively there isn't much exciting about it these days, but it's a classic two-tone anthem which I will always enjoy.

Time has not been so kind to Nite Klub. It might have been a unique new style of ska, these days I find it pales in comparison with The Toasters etc. Similarly, Judge Dredd and others have taken the skinhead ska sound of Too Much Too Young and refined it into a style of ska of its own. Similarly for Stereotype, the concept of which has been taken to far greater heights by Madness.

The melody of Guns of Navarone is fantastic, making this another timeless classic. However, towards the end it feels a bit drawn out, so it could have used some more musical ideas to complement it.

While I must respect the band for trying new sounds with International Jet Set, Why, War Crimes and (What I Like Most About You Is Your) Girlfriend, unfortunately the songs themselves leave me cold (perhaps this means I prefer formulaic ska?!) While I'm being harsh, Do Nothing sounds to me like awkwardly sped up reggae, and Nelson Mandella is a fundamentally bland song hiding behind overdone glitter.

On a positive note, Ghost Town is wonderfully moody, thanks to its Arabic influence, and the horn melody in Racist Friend is a highlight. Friday Night Saturday Morning is also one of my favourites. The strangely lonely and isolated feeling in a hedonistic social setting is captured brilliantly. And the organ part is also fantastic.

Favourite songs

Gangsters, Rudi A Message To You, Guns of Navarone, Ghost Town, Friday Night Saturday Morning, Racist Friend

Worthwhile?

On its own merit, this album probably just scrapes across the line. However, it represents a major influence to the countless ska bands I've enjoyed since, so I gotta respect that!

Incredible Dead Goons- La Rumbla

After a few years hiatus, Incredible Dead Goons reformed in 2006 to release this album. Departing from their previous ska/jazz style (see In Chronological Order), the best description I've heard of this album is "Tim Burton soundtrack".

I would also describe it as "deranged circus music", similar at times to Dresden Dolls and early No Doubt. This should serve as a warning, if you play this album to anyone, they'll probably think you're bonkers! The lyrics are fantastically batty and full of strong imagery. For me, the album feels like a concept album, so it is quite strange to analyse the songs separately.

The recording quality is passable, but not polished. The double-bass is often woofly. Also, often the horns sound a bit amateur in the way they are recorded, although arguably this could suit the style of the album. Kudos for the excellent composition, all the instruments of this large band have been very well integrated. It cleverly walks the line of controlled chaos and no instrument's part ever feels "tacked on".

Pirate's Kitchen immediately declares that this is a Mad Hatter's Tea Party of an album! The song jumps all over the place, but still manages to feel cohesive. The faster parts are perhaps a bit twee, although the excellent lyrics make up for it. The slower "beer mug swinging" sections have a wonderful swagger. Falling and Big Green Thrash are similar and also great.

School Again uniquely combines funk with dixieland, and the results are strangely catchy. Is there such thing as ska without an offbeat guitar? If so, Tonight I'll Make You Mine is it. The eclectic verses are perfectly complemented by its catchy chorus. Also, I'd like to mention The New York City Baby Awards Were Rigged. The song isn't a highlight for me (a bit too eclectic and structureless), but what a great name for a song!

In shock news, Grinding Gears, Dynamo and Money on My Mind could almost pass for normal songs! The former is a fun high energy combination of ska, funk and hints of rockabilly somehow. With a great horn line. Dynamo is a brilliant assault of dirty funk-rock, like a badass Stevie Wonder. What a great riff, too. Lastly, Money on My Mind is a well executed jazz song in the style of  Squirrel Nut Zippers.

Summer Goes is a bit of a filler for me. It provides welcome respite on the album, but doesn't appeal much in isolation.

I feel silly for saying this given the rest of the album, but This is Your Captain Speaking feels a bit disjointed to me. The bebop influence gives an interesting dimension, but I don't think the sections fit together very well.

What's the Point brings us gently back to reality with a great vocal/piano song. Reminding me of The Dresden Dolls, I really like the way it ebbs and flows.

Favourite songs

Pirate's Kitchen, Tonight I'll Make You Mine, Grinding Gears, Dynamo, Money on My Mind, What's the Point

Worthwhile?

What a fantastically bonkers album!

Millencolin- Kingwood

The sixth album from pop-punk-rockers Millencolin, this album was released in 2005 and follows Home From Home in 2002... which leads me straight into a rant!

Home From Home often gets a bad reputation from Millencolin fans as the sell-out album featuring bland commercial Foo Fighters inspired stadium rock. Personally, I actually like this style; but more importantly, the fans were running around like the sky was falling down just based on a handful of songs amongst a varied album. As the first album to deviate from the much-loved style of Pennybridge Pioneers and earlier albums, it seems Home From Home took a hit for introducing the idea that Millencolin weren't going to continue writing songs in this style until the day they died.

And how is this related to Kingwood, you may ask? Well, this album was hailed as a "return to form", but I think this is a misconception. Home From Home merely debuted a new style on a couple of songs and Kingwood just continues this theme, by which time people's outrage to the change had run its course.

When looking up other reviews of this album, interestingly I found a wild array of opinions about how this album fits stylistically in Millencolin's catalogue, musical influences for this album and what the best songs are. It's similar to polarising, but actually inspires a wide range of reactions- perhaps a "fragmenting" album?! Anyway, here's my take on it...

The recording quality is terrible for about half of the songs. Sorry for another rant, but it actually had me wondering if my stereo was broken! Many of the songs are clipped (perhaps that is the "evil" Foo Fighters influence at work, after all!), causing terrible distortion, especially for the cymbals. Also, the bass guitar is sometimes really boomy, with certain notes being barely heard and others standing out like a sore thumb.

Most times when I'm chin scratching about recording quality, it is something I have to actively keep an ear out for. But this album is the opposite, it is something that requires effort to ignore. Thankfully it doesn't affect all songs; the worst afflicted are Farewell My Hell, Birdie, Cash or Clash, Biftek Supernova (this one can be excused, it kind of suits the song), Stalemate and Hard Times. Rant over, onto the songs...

Farewell My Hell is a competent opening song, quickly establishing the energy and style of the album. The chorus of Cash or Clash is perhaps "too" pop-punk, sounding like a cheesy ditty. But they nailed it for Birdie- its catchy pop-punk style is vintage Millencolin goodness. Combined with the headbanging verses, this is one of my favourite songs on the album.

Millencolin can't resist a big rock ballad from time to time, and Shut You Out is a wonderfully polished example. The layering of guitars throughout and singalong chorus are highlights for me. Stalemate is similar, and also features a fantastic chorus.

Biktek Supernova and Simple Twist of Hate are just fast-paced moshpit thrashes. They're fine for this purpose, but personally I'd rather just listen to an earlier Millencolin album instead. Ray is also quite similar to their older fast-paced punk-rock. As per the earlier albums, the combination of guitars at maximum attack with humble lyrics baring the softer side of humanity works a treat.

Speaking of lyrics, while most songs feature interesting lyrics, I note the lack of any tongue-in-cheek songs about motorbikes, falling in love with a plant, etc. It's a bit sad to see they've "grown up" in this aspect.

The riff-rock style introduced by Home From Home makes an appearance in My Name is Golden (the eggcorn of the title is brilliant!). I'm pleased to report decent recording quality for this one, and the headbanging chorus is a treat. Hard Times is similar.

Favourite songs

Birdie, Shut You Out, My Name is Golden, Ray, Stalemate 

Worthwhile?

In isolation, I enjoy enough of the songs to make it an album that is this worth owning. However, it doesn't really bring anything new to the table, so it doesn't quite meet the (admittedly very high) standard set by Pennybridge Pioneers, Home From Home and Machine 15. So the recording quality sins cement this CD's place as a forgettable Millencolin album.

Bloc Party- Silent Alarm

This CD needs no introduction, the blockbuster debut album from UK indie-rock band Bloc Party. Interestingly, the band had been kicking around since 1999, giving themselves six years to put this album together.

Time well spent I reckon, since the album shows great polish and maturity. It starts in a pop-friendly style of party rock (pun not intended) for Like Eating Glass, Helicopter, Positive Tension and Banquet. Like Eating Glass's verses establish Bloc Party's eclectic style (particularly the drumming), with interesting sounds coming from all directions. While the chorus feels a bit tacked-on, it is wonderfully catchy and bouncy in its own right.

Similarly, Helicopter reminds me of Franz Ferdinand's Take Me Out as a series of very catchy sections barely hanging together as a song. But its fun, so who am I to judge! And before the "weirdness" turns away casual listeners, another infectious catchy pop chorus comes in to keep everyone happy. It's the same story for Positive Tension, which also has a style that reminds me of The Killers somehow.

As someone hopelessly addicted to guitars playing on the offbeat (translation: I'm a ska tragic...), Banquet is a highlight for me. The guitar riff in the verses sounds quite inspired by The Clash I think. And the other ingredients are similarly high standard- another chorus achieving singalong greatness, the breaks work well, and this is one song where the sections flow into each other very well.

The album then ventures into other directions, starting with the stripped back Blue Light. Musically it's a mixed bag for me, sometimes feeling beautiful in its simplicity, other times feeling a bit aimless. The lyrics are a highlight, with some great imagery and also nicely abstract. And, no, I haven't the faintest idea what "You are the bluest light" is supposed to mean either!

This Modern Love also uses a gentle yet uplifting theme, this time with a variety of musical voices and a driving forward motion. Gentle, yet uplifting and catchy. Very nice.

Perhaps because 80s Eurupop isn't my cup of tea, She's Hearing Voices doesn't really appeal. Although I do really like the pre-chorus. The Pioneers has some great moments, but leaves me yearning for a vintage Bloc Party catchy chorus to tie it all together.

While I'm ranting... the recording quality. Ok, so it's indie rock and the sound is meant to have "character". However, I really wish it had just some bass to fill out the sound a bit. Otherwise, it's very well recorded, particularly the crispness and detail. This is critical for the songs not sounding messy, since there are often  several different intricate parts being played simultaneously.

So Here We Are sits nicely on the album, although in isolation I don't think it's a very interesting song. Goes nicely on album, nothing special in isolation. Catchy choruses and feelgood lyrics are traded for an industrial and aggresive feel on Luno. I quite like it, however I think this is another song where the sections are a bit disjointed. Plans is also a bit experimental and I must admit it's not really to my taste. This is a bit of a conundrum for me, since I really admire the band for their experimentation and not producing a whole album to the pop-friendly formula of the first few songs. But on the other hand, those catchy pop ditties are the songs I enjoy the most, which is a bit embarrassing.

Luckily for me, the formulaic super-catchy hits return with Little Thoughts! The chorus doesn't hit the heights of some of the others, but the song does build up nicely throughout. The synth-pop sound of Two More Years doesn't appeal to me, but the story of the lyrics makes for a fantastic song.

Favourite songs

Helicoptor, Positive Tension, Banquet, This Modern Love, Luno, Little Thoughts

Worthwhile? 

Rediscovering this album was quite a surprise: I remember it being quite good, but forgot just how enjoyable it is. Perhaps even more so, if I had the sophistication to appreciate it on a deeper level than "just" the catchy pop highlights. Regardless, it's a great album.

The Red Eyes- Live at the Evelyn 2003

(this isn't the album cover, which is nowhere to be found on the internet)

This live EP was released in 2003, about a year before their High Place EP.

It features the 3 songs from the EP, plus 4 other songs. My opinion of High Place and Babylon Calling on this live recording is unchanged from the EP versions. Which is a complement in itself, since the recording quality is on par with the studio EP, which itself is of a high standard. It's astounding how they achieved such a full, yet detailed sound on this live recording.

However, Ultra Magnetic begins with a long intro, taking almost 4:30 to drop into the groove. Even after this, it still meanders along aimlessly, in my opinion. My People combines lyrics almost entirely consisting of hollow platitudes with a bland reggae style. Not impressed.

On a brighter note, Tribulation is one of few Red Eyes songs where I like the lyrics. While there are still many reggae-dub elements (with a slow, menacing bassline that has a hint of rocksteady) it also reminds be of hiphop. Thieving Hands has great drive, and comes together nicely as one of my favourite songs on this recording.

Favourite songs

Thieving Hands, High Place

Worthwhile?

Kudos for the great live sound, but unfortunately the style of songs doesn't appeal to me.

The Red Eyes- High Place

Here is an album from the days were "dub" wasn't necessarily preceded by "step". So there's no need to fear an overload of cheesy wub-wub here! The Red Eyes were a reggae-dub band from 2002-2012, with this EP being released in 2004.

Ultra Magnetic quickly establishes a trace-like groove. With it's relatively quick tempo and brilliant rocksteady groove it is wonderfully mind-altering! It reminds me of Massive Attack, if they'd taken more stimulants in their mix of drugs.

The recording quality is great, featuring wall-shaking bass and an array of trippy sounds flying around.

The chorus of Babylon Calling is a deal-breaker for me, for some reason I detest it, both musically and lyrically. The verses are ok, with a strong hint of Bob Marley. While I'm whingeing, the remix B-sides basically add a dollop of drum'n'bass to Ultra Magnetic and High Place. This is, ahem, not my cup of tea.

Inane lyrics are unfortunately a bit of a trend, as they also feature on High Place. Thankfully, again the groove (at a slower tempo in this case) is more than enough to compensate.

Favourite songs

High Place, Ultra Magnetic

Worthwhile?

Despite a few gripes, this album is a wonderfully oddball part of my collection.

The Reverend Horton Heat- Holy Roller

By 1999, psychobilly trio The Reverend Horton Heat had been around for about fifteen years. This mid-career compilation features songs from Smoke 'Em if You Got 'Em, The Full-Custom Gospel Sounds, Liquor in the Front, It's Martini Time and Space Heater.

As a compilation, this CD flits back and forth between various styles without any real overall trend. Similarly, the recording quality is quite mixed, unfortunately the a messy hi-hat sound (like a badly compressed mp3) and the lack of a solid bottom end (double-bass and kick drum) are common themes. The vocals and guitar sound very nice, though.

Starting with the duo of Big Sky and Baddest of the Bad is the perfect intro; the former oozing with spaghetti western style, leading into headbanging psychobilly with great lyrics.

Wiggle Stick is a great "stroller" song with a dirty, sleazy edge. Perfect grinding music! I wish it weren't so distorted, but I guess this is part of the style.

The band are in their element for Big Red Rocket of Love, the perfect combination of rockabilly and psychobilly with fantastic energy and style. 400 Bucks is more straight psychobilly, which would be perfect for a moshpit. Sitting here chin-scratching in an armchair probably doesn't do it justice, but the lyrics are so passionately vehement yet amusing at the same time. It made me feel like a naughty kid trying not to break out laughing because he's made his parents so angry!

Lie Detector goes further into cock-rock territory. The poor recording quality of the double bass is most obvious here, because the bass laying the foundations of the groove is sorely missed. The groove itself, though, is fantastic. Great headbanging stuff. Similarly, Jimbo is pretty mindless psychobilly- that's both a criticism and a compliment...

Bales of Cocaine is an amusing treat, a song in the early rockabilly style telling the tale of an accidental druglord. The final track is a terribly messed up version of Scott Joplin's The Entertainer. Terrible in a good way- it's clearly the result of a drunken session in the studio which is quite amusing. Also, it features the crispest recordings of burps I have ever heard!

Bath-water Blues is a bit of an interlude- a solo guitar song heavily inspired by Chet Atkins. Although technically a blues, it's quick tempo and whimsical lyrics make it more a lighthearted interlude than a typical blues song. An interesting listen.

The cover of Fulsom Prison Blues is competent, but nothing compares to the orginial version from the master, Mr Cash.

This post is getting very TLDR, so I'll skip to my favourite songs...

Baby I'm Drunk is also a long way from psychobilly. I find the lighthearted style perfectly suits the terrific drunken blitherings ("I'll explain in the morning, 'cos the kitchen bright's too light"). Silly fun.

The heartbreak blues Where in the Hell Did You Go With My Toothbrush ebbs and flows wonderfully. It does this to match the great lyrics, which spontaneously switch from despondant to furious, and vice-versa.

Crank up the sleaze to eleven for One Time For Me, Love Whip and In Your Wildest Dreams. Love Whip works well as either a serious sleaze-fest or tongue-in-cheek, it's up to you! However, there's no mistaking the highly explicit lyrics of One Time For Me, perfectly nailing (oops, poor choice of words there!) the peepshow psychobilly style. While I feel it would benefit from a slower tempo, that main riff is genius. In Your Wildest Dreams sees the Reverend channelling Barry Manilow. So cheesy. So good. There is no mistaking the ego and innuendo of "I'll see you... in your wildest dreams"!

My last favourite (aside from those on Lucky 7) is Big Little Baby. This furiously fast rock'n'roll is perfect for bouncin' around like a madman. Even when you're in your living room and meant to be chin stratching! While there are many aspects to The Reverend Horton Heat's style, this rock'n'roll on steriods is one of my favourites.

Favourite songs

Big Sky, Baddest of the Bad, Wiggle Stick, Big Red Rocket of Love, Bales of Cocaine, Lie Detector, Baby I'm Drunk, Where in the Hell Did You Go with my Toothbruth, One Time For Me, Now Right Now, Slow, Love Whip, Big Little Baby, Cowboy Love, In Your Wildest Dreams

Worthwhile?

Just look at that list of Favourite Songs above!

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes- Are a Drag

This 1999 album sees the cheesy skate-punk covers supergroup taking on some classic broadway songs. This concept appeals to me on two levels: as a connoisseur of punk-rock (if such a concept exists!) and for the immature enjoyment of hearing these classic songs stripped of their dignity...

Firstly a gripe though. Even in the scheme of skate-punk, the recording quality is very poor. There's no bottom end punch to the bass guitar or kick drum, the "cheese cutter" guitars sound hollow and the cymbals a mess. This is a real let-down since the instruments are well played throughout the album. Anyway, on to the songs...

Somewhere Over the Rainbow is a competent opening song, if a fairly generic effort. I do still like it though, such is the catchiness of the original. Don't Cry For Me, Argentina feels better suited to the punk-rock, with some enjoyment to be had in the very concept of an American frat-boy playing the part of an Argentinian heroine. Also, the 2nd pre-chorus works well (it's nice to hear another chord or two in a punk-rock song occasionally!).

Science Fiction Double Feature feels quite disjointed and the chorus somehow awkward. And I must shamefully admit I'm not very familiar with the original Rainbow Connection, so this song is lost on me.

Summertime is simply awesome. A fantastic adaption that is both a parody and a soaring punk-rock song. My favourite moment is the transition from the (relatively) gentle guitar in the first verse opening to "crank it up to 11" punk-rock soon after. It's the perfect combination of donor song and punk conversion. Brilliant.

Favourite Things frantically bounces along with fantastic energy. It seems they took some liberties with the lyrics:
When the dog bites,
When the bee stings,
I don't feel so fuckin' bad
Unless Julie Andrews really did sing that?!

The riff of Phantom of the Opera makes for epic punk-rock! Also, this song seems a bit more layered than others on the album (eg the backing vocals in the chorus), making this song a highlight for me.

While I don't know I Sing the Body Electric, the epic scale of the lyrics makes for a great punk song. A great case study in the improvements to be found in removing broadway fluff and stripping a song back to 2 minute Ramones-esque punk-rock ditty! Also, with an appropriate backing, the lyrics now reveal themselves to be quite epic:
I look back on Venus,
I look back on Mars.
I burn with the fire
Of ten million stars 

It's Raining on Prom Night suits the album art of trashy drag dress-up perfectly. Also it makes for a nice catchy skate-punk song. The lyrics in the bridge are wrong. So wrong. Therefore I can't admit to liking it...

I'm not familiar with the original version of What I Did For Love. <looks it up> Urgh. Turns out this punk-rock version is a huge improvement. But that doesn't count for much...

Cabaret uses a ska guitar beat to great effect. The hedonistic lyrics suit the punk style perfectly, and the build-up to the soaring punk ending is fantastic.

Favourite songs

Don't Cry For Me Argentina, Summertime, Favourite Things, Phantom of the Opera, I Sing the Body Electric, It's Raining on Prom Night, Cabaret

Worthwhile?

As expected, the enjoyment of theses covers is quite dependant on whether I liked the original or not. However there are plenty of covers I dig here, all fantastically re-interpreted. And, as a bonus, a couple of songs I never knew but am now a big fan of, at least in punk-rock form.

The Reverend Horton Heat- Lucky 7

This is the 7th studio album from The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released in 2002, 6 years after It's Martini Time.

Since there is no obvious stylistic difference between The Reverend Horton Heat's albums, I don't tend to remember which songs are form which album. So it will be interesting to focus on how this album differs from It's Martini Time.

The first track, Loco Gringos Like a Party is a great song, but a strange choice as opening track. More relaxed than many of the psychobilly songs on the album, the spaghetti western and jazz influences are a highlight for me. Trading off its great style rather than any specific musical hooks, it drags on a bit, however I'm totally happy to endlessly enjoy the groove! Also, I really dig the false ending, somehow making me appreciative that there is still a bit of this great song left to enjoy.

Regarding the recording quality, the double-bass and drums are often muddy and lost in the background, similar to It's Martini Time. Also, the cymbals sound disappointing (and that's when you can actually hear them). On a happier note, the bass has good meat to it and the variety of guitar sounds are nicely recorded.

There first two of the aforementioned psychobilly songs, Reverend Horton Heat's Big Blue Car and Galaxy 500 are quite similar musically, both featuring musically chaotic verses and simplistic repetitive choruses. The light-hearted story of absurd divorce settlements ("You take the fish, I'll take the bowl") and classic cars ("...but things ain't so bad, cos I've got a Galaxy 500") makes Galaxy 500 my pick of the two.

Suicide Doors continues the winning combination of psychobilly and talk of old cars. Remember Me is similar, but to me the song just drifts along without any musical or narrative progression to follow. Ain't Gonna Happen doesn't have any real instrumental highlights, so the enjoyment comes from the great story of determination against the odds:
An inch at a time, but it means a lot.
All I gotta do is play connect the dots.

Go With Your Friends is very similar to Ain't Gonna Happen. The chorus is a bit too simplistic and the song feels too long to me, but the twist in the bridge is great.

The lead-up to the finale, Sermon on the Jimbo, works well as an amusingly cheesy lead-up to You've Got a Friend in Jimbo. This last song has some funny religious references. Although it seems to drag on too long (seems to be a trend on this album), it works well as some comedy relief.

Two of my favourite songs are more high-energy rockabilly than psychobilly: Like a Rocket and What's Reminding Me of You. Both are infectious fast-tempo blasts, a great modern interpretation of Bill Haley and co. Despite their increased tempo, it actually feels like the songs are straining to go even faster. They feel frantic, yet perfectly controlled, a sign of great musicianship. Also, the solos of both songs feel like the band are egging each other on to keep going harder and faster. Brilliant. Both have great lyrics, although the topics couldn't be any different: Like a Rocket is talking about how fast his hotrod is, and What's Reminding Me of You is a tale of lovesick woe! Regarding the latter, the irony of such a sad tale being told in such an energetic, feelgood musical style is yet another highlight.

The Tiny Voice of Reason has interesting lyrics, but somehow the 6/8 musical style sounds... I dunno... daggy. Duel at the Two O'Clock Ball has great sparse spaghetti western elements, but it drifts on aimlessly for too long, and the faster section at the end doesn't appeal at all. Show Pony is a solid rendition of the Chet Atkins style, which unfortunately isn't my cup of tea.

Favourite songs

Loco Gringos Like a Party, Like a Rocket, Galaxy 500, What's Reminding Me of You, Ain't Gonna Happen, Suicide Doors, Sermon on the Jimbo, You've Got a Friend in Jimbo

Worthwhile?

It's another must-have Reverend Horton Heat album!

The Reverend Horton Heat- It's Martini Time

It's Martini Time is The Reverend Horton Heat's fourth album, which was released in 1996.

It was also my introduction to the world of psychobilly. Having fond childhood memories of my parents Bill Haley records, this combination of rock'n'roll with heavier forms of rock was a revelation for me.

While most songs contain lyrics, the songs are very much instrumentals, with lots of instrumental breaks and solos. As far as sound quality goes, the double-bass and drums are often a bit muddy and lost in the background. But this may be a trade-off for the double-bass having a characterful sound, in which case I will happily forgive the muddiness. As per the bands style, the sound has a few rough edges and the menacing vocals mightn't be to everyone's taste.

But it certainly is to my taste! Big Red Rocket of Love, Generation Why, Now Right Now, Spell on Me all feature great guitar riffs, franticly buzzing verses and headbanging choruses. My pick is Spell on Me for the way its section seamlessly blend into each other. Also the semi-obscure drug references (eg "Louisiana Snowball") are kinda cool.

Slow reduces the tempo for a menacing "stroller" style which works a treat. The thrashing chorus seems a bit out of place to me, although it's quite a good psychobilly chorus in isolation. The pace is dropped even further for the psychobilly ballad (is that an oxymoron?!) Or Is It Just Me. This song has wonderfully touching lyrics and the simple riff is a highlight of the album for me.

The instrumentals (Slingshot and Forbidden Jungle) are wonderfully moody and feature surf-rock influences. They also add some horns into the mix, which are impressively well integrated.

Spoken word isn't my cup of tea, hence That's Showbiz doesn't really appeal. I shouldn't criticise it though, because the words and jazz backing are both interesting in their own right.

Now for the lighthearted cheesy songs: It's Martini Time, Crooked Cigarette and Cowboy Love. The elements of It's Martini Time are all excellent, but it feels a bit disjointed for the first minute or so. Crooked Cigarette is quite similar, and a bit catchier in my book. Cowboy Love is a tongue-in-cheek country/rockabilly homosexual love song. Hopefully this isn't a homophobic statment, but I find the gay cowboy euphemisms very amusingly cheeky.

Favourite songs

Big Red Rocket of Love, Generation Why, Slingshot, Time to Pray, Crooked Cigarette, Rock This Joint, Cowboy Love, Now Right Now, Spell on Me, Or Is It Just Me, Forbidden Jungle

Worthwhile?

The perfect introduction to psychobilly.

The Clash- London Calling

It seems The Clash were a punk-rock hit from the moment they were born. Following two highly successful and grunty albums predominantly featuring angry guitars, the band mixed things up greatly for this 1979 album. With a more sophisticated sound, it features influences of jazz, ska, soul, funk and pop.

Cutting to the chase, I rate London Calling as the best album I have ever heard. So let's break it down:

Surely opening with such a classic song as London Calling is raising the bar impossibly high for the rest of the album? It's a gutsy move, but this album pulls it off with aplomb. The song itself is rock perfection; with a catchy groove throughout and inspired lyrics, this song is pure bliss for me.

Brand New Cadillac is a great grunty rock version of the Vince Taylor blues song. It wonderfully oscillates between overflowing passion and cool restrained style.

In isolation, Jimmy Jazz probably isn't much to write home about. But it fits in perfectly on the album, to add another dimension in this series of landscapes of late 1970s London. Towards the end, it does feel like it could use some more lyrics and that it is a bit drawn out. As a wierd soul/jazz/punk hybrid, Hateful somehow works brilliantly. While it is quite eclectic, it is held together nicely by the chorus.

As a modern interpretation on the ska classic A Message to You Rudie, the song Rude Can't Fail works well to combine reggae and soul with the gritty Clash feel. The Right Profile is similar, with a strong connection to Madness, however I feel it isn't as cohesive as Rudy Can't Fail.

Said gritty feel is toned down for the gentle interlude that is Spanish Bombs. The soft folk-rock instrumentals contrast nicely with Strummer's bitter lyrics. And the Spanish lyrics in chorus are a great touch.

Lost in the Supermarket has a great infectious motif throughout the song and sounds like a big influence for the band Pulp. The poetic storytelling is also fantastic, such as the start of the first verse: "I wasn't born, so much as I fell out".

Clampdown sees a return to a gritty rock rock feel. I really like the staccato style, with snappy offbeat hits. The start of the bridge doesn't really fit, however the end of the bridge leads perfectly into the following verse. Death or Glory is quite similar, and features a fantastic singalong chorus. Interestingly, the bridge of Death or Glory has the same strengths and weaknesses as Clampdown.  

Kola Kola is also a similar style. While Kola Kola doesn't fit together as well as the other two songs, the contrast of Strummer's bitter vocal style with the Beatles-esque backing vocals is fantastic. Like any good punk band, The Clash weren't afraid to cause a stir with some obsceneties! However, the different is that their is more thoughtfulness behind it than usual. The following line must have raised some eyebrows back in 1979:
He who fucks nuns
Will later join the church

The Guns of Brixton brings in the reggae influence to create a gritty reggae-rock masterpiece. The false opening of Wrong 'Em Boyo is a nice lighthearted touch. Once Stagger Lee has wound up, the restart brings a fantastic happy bouncing ska tune.

Things get very serious and intense again with The Card Cheat. This song has an incredible sense of scale, interesting chords and a great bassline holding it all together. The piano and trumpet parts are not tacky addons, actually they are perfectly integrated and add to the drama.

Lover's Rock is horrid. A messy cruise-ship song with funk influences and terribly banal lyrics. And Revolution Rock seems to me like uninspired generic reggae. Train in Vain does a much better job at a non-punk pop song, although I must admit that I prefer The Clash when they have some spit in their eye. I'm Not Down is such a song- a great mashup of funk, soul and rock.

Four Horsemen is a great throwback to the style of their earlier albums, although the ending is a complete mess.

You may have noticed I've spared this album a lecture on recording quality. In short, it's definitely adequate... and audiophile-quality recordings would give a punk-rock album zero credibility...

Favourite Songs

London Calling, Brand New Cadillac, Jimmy Jazz, Hateful, Rudie Can't Fail, Spanish Bombs, Lost in the Supermarket, Clampdown, The Guns of Brixton, Wrong 'Em Boyo, Death or Glory, The Card Cheat, Four Horsemen, I'm Not Down

Worthwhile?

Best rock album ever. I must thank you for the opportunity to listen to it again!

Ramones - Anthology (disc 2)

This is the second disc of the Ramones Anthology review. See here for the review of the first disc.

This summary of Ramones' later stages of their career kicks off with The KKK  Took My Baby Away, a simple song very much in their early style. With tongue-in-cheek lyrics and a lot of great little hooks, it is catchy pop-punk bliss. She's a Sensation continues this trend, as a signature 1960s all-girl group tune but with distortion guitars and torn jeans. Four albums later, they returned to this style with Garden of Serenity, albeit with a heavier sound.

Their "new" style starts with We Want the Airwaves, which features nicely sophisticated composition (ok, relatively speaking!) and a much more polished sound. Fear not that they have sold out, because the lyrics are still wonderfully inane! Somebody Put Something in My Drink is quite similar, and a huge hit in my book. Sure, it's trashy (reminding me a bit of Twisted Sister), but it's the perfect drunken pub rock singalong.

Another style often visited later in their career was slower riff-driven cock-rock. Psycho Therapy (which has a terrible drum sound), Too Tough To Die and Mama's Boy are all examples of this. In my opinion, the choruses of these three songs are all a bit awkward. Mama's Boy is my pick of this style, featuring good recording quality (although the bass guitar is MIA) and a great swagger.

The tempo is further slowed for the great moody sound of I'm Not Afraid of Life and She Talks to Rainbows, the latter is a favourite for me. Poison Heart is somewhere between these two styles and is a solid "late Ramones" song.

They also had a few attempts at a style similar to The Cure for songs such as Howling at the Moon (again, a terrible drum sound), Something to Believe In (which feels contrived and has a really cheesy synth sound), I Wanna Live and Pet Semetary. The execution is generally passable, but if I want to listen to The Cure, then I'll listen to one of The Cure's CDs...

Now, back to the immature stuff! It's Not My Place is probably quite weak objectively, with cliched name-dropping in the lyrics and not much going on musically. But the lyrics still seem to appeal to the inner teenager in me! Endless Vacation is terrible, like a bunch of untalented and stoned teenagers throwing something together for a Battle of the Bands. Similar to It's Not My Place, Merry Christmas is a generic song that's made very enjoyable for me purely due to the lyrics.

My Brain is Hanging Upside Down is incredible. It is one of my all-time favourite songs. For many years, I thought the lyrics were a random collection of interesting phrases without any meaning. But then I learned that it was a  political protest (about President Regan's visit to a Nazi cemetary) and my appreciation grew even further. The way the lyrics obscurely and poetically form a political protest about dancing with the devil for capitalist gains is incredible. The sophisticated songwriting deserves praise in its own right, it smoothly grows through the verses, pre-chorus, chorus etc. Like any good Ramones song, the good times are over before you know it, but the beauty of this song is that it makes 4 minutes disappear just as quickly and enjoyably as their early 90 second blasts.

Lastly, the tempo is cranked up for Tomorrow She Goes Away, I Don't Wanna Grow Up and R.A.M.O.N.E.S. All three are great songs. Tomorrow She Goes Away is simple, catch and fun punk-rock. The lyrics on I Don't Wanna Grow Up (originally by Tom Waits, by the way) are a highlight for me. On the surface, they're totally immature, but when you think about it, they actually are quite insightful:
I'm gonna put a whole in my TV set,
I don't wanna grow up.
Open up the medicine chest,
I don't wanna grow up.

Lastly, R.A.M.O.N.E.S. is a fantastic moshpit singalong. Just bouncing around like a lunatic for the hell of it- vintage Ramones!

Favourite songs

The KKK Took My Baby Away, It's Not My Place, We Want the Airwaves, Mama's Boy, My Brain is Hanging Upside Down, Somebody Put Something in My Drink, Merry Christmas, Tomorrow She Goes Away, I Don't Wanna Grow Up, Merry Christmas, She Talks to Rainbows, R.A.M.O.N.E.S.

Worthwhile?

As per the first disc: yes. In fact, this might be sacrilegious but I actually prefer the added polish of their later songs. So disc 2 is the pick of this anthology for me.

Kasey Chambers- The Captain

No-one ever would ever expect to see the Australian country music singer Kasey Chambers listed next to Ramones! But it turned out to be there perfect breather from the onslaught of 90 second pop-punk. Kasey shot to commercial success with her second album, thanks to the song Not Pretty Enough. This is her debut album as a solo artist, and it was released in 1999.

I must admit that country music isn't generally my cup of tea, but somehow Kasey Chambers is an exception, perhaps due to the folk influence? Then again, folk music isn't my thing usually, so there goes that rationale!

Let's start slightly in Ramones' spirit (ok, perhaps that's drawing a long bow!) with Last Hard Bible and We're All Gonna Die Someday. These upbeat tongue-in-cheek bluegrass hoedowns (??) are great fun, reminding me a bit of the Violent Femmes in its whimsical attitude. For example:
They can all kiss my arse, Lord.They can all kiss my arse.
If they wanna kiss my arse,
They'd better do it fast,
Cos we're all gonna die someday 

Last Hard Bible gives the fantastic impression of a barn party where Grandad has drunk too much moonshine and jumped up on stage with a banjo! The slightly discordant vocals are perfectly executed, which becomes obvious in the vocal-only outro.

At the other end of the spectrum, These Pines is a wonderfully lonesome acoustic guitar song. The vocals are perhaps on the verge of sounding whiney, but I think it is the perfect balance. And the lyrics themselves paint a rich emotional picture. The Captain is a bit less sparse, and uses a simple yet catchy guitar motif to tie the song together. Again, the lyrics are a highlight, with the gentle style used perfectly complementing the beautifully humble poetry of the story. It is deservedly the title track, and one of my all-time favourite songs. This Flower goes a bit too far with the flowers-in-the-hair hippy style, almost sounding like Christian folk. Personally I find the male backing vocals annoyingly lacking in any strength.

Returning to the "whiney" comment for a moment, I appreciate the vocals are polarising. There is definitely an element of whininess in there... but somehow I like her whining! The situation is exaggerated by the vocals being a bit too loud compared to the instruments. Otherwise, the balance between instruments is very good, also with sweet sounding cymbal and a range of great guitar sounds.

Finally, to the main style of this album: country rock, as heard in Cry Like a Baby, You Got the Car, Don't Talk Back, Mr Baylis and The Hard Way. All are very enjoyable songs. The lyrics in the chorus of Cry Like a Baby are a bit cliched, but the verses make amends for this. You Got the Car is a bit like The Captain with a nice dash of rock venom thrown in, and with fantastic storytelling in the lyrics. Normally I'd find the lyric "All the kings horses and all the kings men / Couldn't put me back together again" totally cringeworthy, somehow this genre makes it work perfectly! Don't Talk Back is quite similar, and is my favourite song in this style. While the chorus lyrics are a bit monotone, the rest of the song is fantastic. The background guitar and organ in Mr Baylis are a highlight, and somehow the simple and uplifting folk-rock style reminds me of the band The Eels. Meanwhile, The Hard Way feels derivative and uninspired by me, like "Country Style #8" was plucked off the songwriter's bookshelf and some generic lyrics were thrown in to fill in the blanks.

If this review is sounding harsh, that is unintended. Many of my criticisms are probably due to not appreciating the genre very well. It is very impressive that despite this ignorance on my behalf, there are many enjoyable moments on this album for me.

Favourite songs

The Captain, These Pines, Don't Talk Back, Mr Baylis, Last Hard Bible, We're All Gonna Die Someday

Worthwhile?

Yes. Even though country music isn't really my thing, it makes a wonderful backdrop in this case. The lyrics are also fantastic, and the songs cover a huge range of emotions- from timid ballads to country rock to whimsical bluegrass.

Ramones- Anthology (disc 1)

History's perspective of this pop-punk band is a strange one. Certainly their stripped-back style was a much-needed antidote to 7 minute prog-rock naval gazings of the era, and the band are cited as influences by a lot of successful artists. But as "pioneers of punk", it seems they get mixed up with the very politically and socially serious punks such as The Sex Pistols and The Clash. When, really, Ramones are just a bunch of guys who formed a band to play simple, loud fast music, just because they were bored of the long-winded ramblings most others were playing at the time.

Hmmm... I'm ranting already, and the review hasn't even started yet! Anyway, this is their double-CD Greatest Hits, released in 1999. To try to cover all 58 songs in one go would be death by 3 chords... so I'll do separate posts for the two discs. 

Trouser Press described one of their albums as "junky '60s pop adjusted for current tastes", to me this hits the nail on the head. It's just catchy fun tunes (like The Beach Boys or early Beatles), rather than rioting to try to change the world. Modern equivalents include The Hives and Guttermouth. Case in point with The Beach Boys comparison are Ramones' surf songs: California Sun, Surfin' Bird and Rockaway Beach. While the latter feels like an uninspired rehash, California Sun and Surfin' Bird are nice feelgood pop-punk tunes.

Recording quality? Pretty poor. It lacks any form of the Hollywood polish that give modern rock albums their "big sound". Arguably this sound is a defining characteristic about the band, so I'd best stop whingeing about it!

Many of their signature style songs are very similar, and at 33 songs long, one has to pick favourites. Looking through my list of favourites, it seems that whether a song made the cut or not often comes down to very subtle factors, due to the similarity of all the songs. My picks are Blitzkrieg Bop, Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue (due to the wonderfully immature lyrics, musically the song is a bit of a mess), Swallow My Pride (great creative annunciation of the title, and yay for handclaps!), Carbona Not Glue, Sheena is a Punk Rocker (drawing on the Beatles influence), Teenage Lobotomy (the title sums up the band!) and I Wanna Be Sedated (my favourite song on this CD).

Away from their bread-and-butter style, the results are mixed. The ballad I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend sounds to me like a contrived attempt to cash in on the teenage girl market. Although it's nice to hear a forth chord added to the mix, and the inclusion does break up the monotony of the album. Their other attempt at a ballad, I Remember You, feels much more genuine, even if it does feel like they'd run out of musical ideas after about 90 seconds...

The less said about the awkward acoustic songs Needles and Pins and I Want You Around, the better. And Rock'n'Roll High School feels like a cash-cow ripoff of California Sun, even complete with terrible materialistic lyrics. The country music elements in the verses of You Don't Come Close are a noble attempt at trying something new, unfortunately I don't think they quite execute it  convincingly though.

On a happier note the psychodelic influences in the verses of 53rd and 3rd are a great addition. And I Don't Care pulls off the "Ramones, but slower" style excellently. Glad to See You Go sticks to their strengths of fast, catchy and fun, but adding a bit more sophistication in the structure, to create an excellent song. Strangely, the recording quality seems a lot better than most other songs from their early albums. Commando uses a fast-paced riff-rock style, which is executed quite well. More than any other song, it would have benefited from better recording quality though.

The following is probably shameful in the eyes of a serious Ramones fan... but I quite like Do You Remember Rock'n'Roll Radio. Sure it's full of unnecessary Hollywood fluff, but it provides some welcome variety to the album.

The last few songs on this CD are from the End of the Century album. Danny Says is okay once it hits its stride, but the opening is quite strange and the song is long-winded (oh, the irony! I blame Phil Spector...). Chinese Rock is the standout of the hard-rock style songs, with the drums in the chorus being a particular highlight.

Not knowing a lot about Ramones, it was only after reading the liner notes that I learnt this compilation is in chronological order. Previously, I'd assumed it jumped around the albums, since the more mature/commercial songs seem to be scattered throughout. But it turns out that throughout their career, the band mixed up the more varied styles with their trademark immature three-chord pop punk. For me, both aspects are highly enjoyable, although each in moderation.

Favourite songs

Blitzkrieg Bop, Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue, Glad to See You Go, California Sun, Swallow My Pride, Carbona Glue, Sheena is a Punk Rocker, Teenage Lobotomy, Surfin' Bird, I Don't Care, I Wanna Be Sedated, Do You Remember Rock'n'Roll Radio, Chinese Rock

Worthwhile?

Due to the thin sound, it took me many years to appreciate the Ramones. But the long list of Favourite Songs above shows that I'm now totally hooked!

The Offspring- Consiracy of One

The Offspring's 27 year (and counting) career has seen them transition from a darker, heavier punk-rock sound to a more radio-friendly pop-punk style. This album, released in 2000, is the follow up to Americana, which was hugely successful and debuted the more pop-friendly style.

For me, The Offspring's bread and butter is catchy pop-punk tunes, courtesy of the happy-go-lucky surfer guys in the band (perhaps a modern day version of The Beach Boys?). So the howls of protest at the alleged "selling out" of these later albums doesn't ring true for me. Having said that, there are still some fine moments when the lyrics of strong emotion and poignant lyrics hidden amongst the catchy riffs.

The mood is established perfectly by Come Out Swinging, and while its chorus is much better suited to a moshpit than critical listening in an armchair, it remains a solid effort. In many ways, it is similar to the closing track, Videos. The other "moshpit thrash" styled song is Conspiracy of One, of which the highlight is the great power chorus.

However, there are also some lowpoints on the album. Obviously, the "oo-ga-cha-ga" chorus in Special Delivery ruins an otherwise good song. Which is a real shame, because the bridge's refrain ("You can't kill a man when he's got no hope") is fantastic. One Fine Day's has a great Dropkick Murphys-eque high-energy style for the chorus. However the rest of that song, especially the verses, is cringingly amateur-hour. Finally, the ballad Denial Revisisted reminds me a lot of the clunky mess that is Blink-182's Adam's Song. On the plus side, Denial Revisited's chorus, although cliched, is very engaging.

Sadly, the audio quality is also often in the "gripes" department. Often the bass guitar and drums get messy in the chorus, both with a woofly bottom end and cymbals which sound like a badly compressed mp3. The bass guitar seems to drift in and out of some songs, and at times is quite boomy. The guitar sound is much better, and cuts through wonderfully. While the high-pitched lyrics are probably polarising, personally I really like them, especially after seeing them live and realising how much intensity is required to punch them out in real life. Listening to singers like this on CD, one perhaps becomes blase about the intensity required for this style of vocals, however it really is impressively hard work to maintain throughout a set.

Did I forget to include Original Prankster in the lowpoints paragraph above? Actually, no. Sure, it has a cheesy pop style which sounds similar to Pretty Fly For a While Guy (a ditty we've all heard a million times). But it's actually a catchy tune with some interesting lyrics. Speaking of the band's transition to the radio-friendly sound, it's a philosophical question: do they deserve praise for trying something new instead of churning out the same stuff year after year, or do the cheesy add-ons deserve criticism? I'll sit on the fence here, with Original Prankster falling into the former category, but Living In Chaos doesn't work for me at all. Then again, I've never really been a fan of the Linkin Park rap-punk combination, so perhaps that explains it.

Another slower song, Vultures, brings us back to the philosophical ponders of whether a band should seek to explore new styles. Vultures could perhaps be described as a reheat of Gone Away, which means I really like it. (Perhaps this means I was too harsh in my judgement of The Police for doing the same! However, The Offspring are less highbrow than The Police, so it would matter less for them...) Anyway, Dammit I Changed Again is also similar to their early albums, in its perfect combination of introspective lyrics and "tough guy" punk-rock musicality.

Now for my two favourite songs on the album: Want You Bad and Million Miles Away. These are both fantastic power pop-punk tunes with huge rock energy and fantastic choruses, somehow reminding me of Pennywise. A minor gripe is the weak guitar solo in Million Miles Away, however the guitar riff is fantastic, as is the beauty in their simplicity (ie just soaring rock'n'roll, without any fluff attached). And the way Want You Bad builds up through the bridge into the final chorus is a masterstroke.

Favourite songs

Want You Bad, Million Miles Away, Dammit I Changed Again, All Along, Vultures

Worthwhile?

This was an album that I thought I'd "grow out of", but it seems I'm actually warming to it more than ever. So, at this stage, the answer is still a resounding "yes".

The Superjesus- Jet Age

The Superjesus are an Australian band of the late 1990s and early 2000s, and Jet Age is their second album, released in 2000.

As for their genre, I challenged myself to avoid the cop-out description of "chick rock" (why is it that a female singer defines the genre of a rock band??). It turns out that being more specific than "rock" is quite tricky. Wikipedia says "post-grunge", which really could mean anything. Pandora provides a lot more detail: "electric rock instrumentation, punk influences, minor key tonality, a vocal-centric aesthetic and electric rhythm guitars", which is a technically correct if questionably useful description!

Enough pigeon-holing, onto the album. For their more stadium-rock tracks, The Superjesus feature big guitar riffs, interesting drum patterns, and creamy vocals. Over to You, Gravity, Enough to Know and Secret Agent Man are examples of this. When in rock-ballad mode (eg Second Sun and Fall to the Rescue) the gentle and flowing verses are a highlight.

The recording quality is pretty generic late 90s rock. The cymbals can be harsh at times, on the plus side the female vocals have nice subtle chorusing, which isn't over the top.

Kudos to the drummer for the unusual drum patterns throughout the album, I really enjoy the unusual style, especially on Over to You, Enough to Know and the way Everything Turns has swapped the rock styles typically for the verses and chorus. Another unique aspect is the use of minor keys, which works especially well as gentle verses of Secret Agent Man to contrast the big chorus.

Safer Emergency sits halfway between their "power" and "ballad" styles, and manages to walk the line very well. Checking In moves to a more electronic sound, ala Pulp, somehow reminding me of the film Mission Impossible. So Lonely is a solid rock effort, albeit a bit rough at times. The big guitar riff in Holy Water is fantastic, making it one of the standout songs on the album for me.

As for my challenge to not categorise them based on "rock band with female singer"... well I was trying to think of similar bands with which to compare them. Unfortunately the only ones that come to mind are Garbage and Magic Dirt. D'oh!

Favourite songs

Over to You, Gravity, Enough to Know, Secret Agent Man, Second Sun, Everything Turns, Safer Emergency, Holy Water, So Lonely

Worthwhile?

Yes. In fact, it's a hidden treasure.

The Killers- Hot Fuss

Ahhh, this is much easier! You may have noticed my procrastination with the review of The Police's CD. It took me quite a while to get into it, and in the back of my mind was the idea that if I didn't like such a highly respected band's Greatest Hits, then I'd better have a damn good reason for it!

Anyway, this is the debut album from the American synth-rock band The Killers. Has it really been almost 10 years since I saw the video clip for Somebody Told Me on Video Hits (similar to MTV) and was instantly hooked on the band? Yikes!

Sooo... how does it stack up these days?

Firstly, there's some gripes to get out of the way. Firstly, the "retro sound vocals" curse strikes again... Since this fad has long passed, it just sounds really thin these days. While the stories and imagery is often fantastic, the vocal delivery itself (distorted and often monotone) is something I need to turn a blind ear to, in order to enjoy the songs. Secondly, in general the recording quality is a dog's breakfast, with the variety of styles across the album translating into a frustrating variety of flaws. It's like each song was mixed by a different person, and means that trying to compensate for it via EQ settings is a fruitless task. On a brighter note, Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll is really well recorded (aside from overly processed vocals, but that seems like a necessity to compensate for the weak lead vocals), with great balance, punch and sizzly cymbals.

The big "power synth" sound is used to great effect on Somebody Told Me and Midnight Show, which both remind me a bit of Franz Ferdinand, perhaps due to the disco influences. Even after hearing it so many times, Somebody Told Me remains a fantastically infectious song, with many pleasing elements. From the cheeky lyrics to the interesting background fill in the verses to the great power chorus, it is a super-slick combination of many great ideas. Midnight Show is also superbly executed, with the synth elements leading to a great sci-fi feel.

... But even though the band was best known for this style, these songs are actually in the minority. The majority of the album is slower and more introspective, like Jenny Was a Friend of Mine, Smile Like You Mean It, All These Things That I've Done, Andy You're a Star, On Top and Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll. I find it strange that Jenny Was a Friend of Mine is the first song, to me it somehow feels more like a mid-album track. Smile Like You Mean It and On Top are solid executions of this style, but without any real highlights for me. Similarly, the verses of Andy You're a Star are a bit ho-hum, but things improve dramatically with the cracking chorus.

I started writing gushing praise for All These Things That I've Done, but eventually I realised that the first half of the song is merely passable, similar to the songs described above. Much of the enjoyment is anticipation of the bridge. It feels the whole song is leading up to the fantastic refrain of
I've got soul,
But I'm not a soldier
which is truly uplifting. This leads into a massive final chorus and outro, which maintain the energy and bring the song home.

Similarly inspiring is the rock ballad Glamerous Indie Rock & Roll. With some nice variety thanks to the piano, it contains many great ingredients: intricate verses, a great singalone chorus and the epic sense of scale throughout. In my opinion, there is a heavy influence of Oasis in this song. The icing on the cake for me is the wonderful layering of vocals in final chorus. Wow.

Everything Will Be Alright sounds to me like the 1980s "new romantics" style. Not my cup of tea.

Mr Brightside is somehow a hybrid of the band's power synth and rock ballad styles. Ignoring the terrible recording quality of the bass guitar, the swirling synth sounds throughout the song are very interesting. Finally, the story of the lyrics is also told with great illustration, making for a great song.

Favourite songs

Mr Brightside, Somebody Told Me, All These Things That I've Done, Glamerous Indie Rock & Roll, Midnight Show

Worthwhile?

Yeah, I totally dig it. A quirky pop-rock gem with great substance.

The Police- Greatest Hits

With their debut album in 1978 containing the massive hits Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You and So Lonely, The Police burst onto the scene in a massive way. Far from being a one-album wonder, their career continued with many further hits right up until they disbanded in 1984.

This compilation album was released in 1992 and features most of their singles in chronological order.

Due to this track order, it is interesting to see the band's development over the years. Throughout their career, they seemed to alternate between trying new approaches and pandering to the masses with songs very similar to their early hits.

As far as recording quality goes, the band's signature sound consists of high-pitched vocals, light-touch bass guitar and sparse lead guitar in the verses. While it may be sacrilegious to criticise this characteristic sound, many of the songs off the first two albums (eg Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You, Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon) do suffer due to the lack of a punchy bottom end. I wouldn't normally describe myself as a "bass head" but I found these songs much more enjoyable after a clockwise twist of the bass knob.

Roxanne is a timeless classic classic in my book. The sparse verses with twangy reggae guitar perfectly contrast the catchy upbeat chorus. And while the upbeat mood of the music doesn't really suit the sad tale of the lyrics, they work together brilliantly to create an artwork which is both enjoyably and poignant.

This fantastic recipe is repeated, with just enough variation to keep things interesting, for Can't Stand Losing You, So Lonely (adding some punch to the bass guitar and kick drum- hallelujah!) and Walking on the Moon.

Don't Stand Too Close to Me would have been on the above list, if it weren't for the very creepy Lolita-esque lyrics. While I'm whingeing, De Do Do Do is spoiled by woefully inane lyrics for the chorus and Spirits in the Material World smells strongly like a cynical crowd-pleasing rehash of their early style.

Message in a Bottle is one of my favourite Police songs, due to the stronger "pulse" in the verses. I get the feeling the chorus is a bit tacked on, although perhaps it's more that the song jumps around a bit in general.

Every Little Thing She Does is Magic is also a highlight of this album for me. In isolation, it's probably a bit twee, but within this brooding album its chirpy nature provides some great feelgood contrast.

Invisible Sun and Tea in the Sahara show a sparse, industrial sound used towards the end of their career. These songs are a bit dark for me, but on the other hand, Synchronicity II is brilliant. I find it has a great balance of pop accessibility and interesting experimental bits. Also, the lyrics have great imagery yet remain nicely obscure. For example, the following leitmotif scattered throughout the song:
Many miles away
Something crawls from the slime
At the bottom of a dark
Scottish loch
I have no idea how this relates to the other scenes described in the song, but this tale of Scottish evolution certainly brings a grand scale to the song!

At 16 songs long, there's certainly plenty of material here. Still, it's interesting to note the omissions of the title tracks Synchonicity (with it's interestingly upbeat tempo) and the instrumental Reggatta de Blanc. But these are no great loss, in my opinion.

Finally, Every Breathe You Take is absolutely brilliant. Where other Police songs venture into creepy territory with the lyrics, somehow they made the stalker-esque lyrics not seem creepy at all, rather a beautiful tale! A classic rock ballad.

Favourite songs

Roxanne, Can't Stand Losing You, So Lonely, Message in a Bottle, Walking on the Moon, Synchronicity II, Every Breathe You Take

Worthwhile?

I can appreciate the band in a historical context, and their unique style is definitely a great counterpoint to the saccharine pop charts. But, on the other hand, I don't think I've ever thought "I'd really like to listen to The Police right now".

The Living End- Modern Artillery

Welcome to my favourite band's worst album! This third album- released in 2003- is a bit of a black sheep, perhaps due to a perception that it was dumbed-down in an attempt to crack the US market. Its cause isn't helped that it followed the richly layered and highly complicated Roll On.

Firstly, some gripes. The recording quality isn't great, often sounding a bit muddy and without any punch to the kick-drum or vocals. On the plus side, the grunty guitar sound is great and the sound is wonderfully enveloping at times.

However, the big gripe is often the lyrics; despite telling interesting stories, the rhyming can be simplistic and lazy. A particularly cringeworthy example is in So What: "You're really somethin' /  I'm nearly jumpin' ". Urgh. Also afflicted by this problem are Who's Gonna Save Us, Jimmy, One Said to the Other and Maitland Street. In the End is ruined for me by poor rhymes, which is a shame because it's quite interesting musically.

Speaking of musically, despite the album's reputation as dumbed-down, songs like Jimmy, In the End and The Room wouldn't be out of place on Roll On! At the other end of the complexity scale, What Would You Do is a pop-punk ditty opener with great energy but not a lot of substance. Who's Gonna Save Us is a favourite for me, thanks to its description of Australian political situation at the time (lack of a credible opposition to the conservative government). But without those rose-tinted glasses it turns out to be an awkward stew of a song with some weak sections. However, it has a great singalong chorus.  

One Said to the Other also has a great chorus, catchy verses and my favourite element is the pre-chorus. It is quite "radio-friendly" and formulaic, but I like it. Similarly, the distorted opening to Short Notice is a bit contrived, but overall I find it an enjoyable pop-rock ditty with a nice bite to the lyrics. Hold Up cranks up the silliness to Guttermouth levels. The simple rhyming lyrics suit this song well, making it a bit of a throwback to the simpler Prisoner of Society days.

The Eagles-esque easy-listening style of Maitland Street, Putting You Down and So What was a shock to many fans, but I think they're interesting and well-executed songs. Maitland Street would make a great theme song for a TV show. And if you drop the notion that The Living End are meant to be an angry punk bank, Putting You Down is an interesting ride, especially the subtle guitar parts in the background. So What adds a relatively rebellious chorus to remind us they haven't completely abandoned the punk style...

I've saved the best till last: my three favourite songs on the album. Tabloid Magazine has a fantastic grunty guitar opening and chorus. Some might say its at odds with the pop-friendly verses, but I prefer to focus on the brilliant build-up to the final chorus. In the punk tradition, it highlights an important social issue but in a more sophisticated musical style.

End of the World. Wow. Brilliant. From the guitar frantically scratching in the background, to the contrasting smooth and snarling lyrics, this is an all-time favourite song of mine. The guitar solo and instrumental breakdown are also brilliant. The very notion of the end of the world is a pretty epic concept, and if you listen to this song in the dark at maximum volume, you'll find the song lives up to this promise and makes you feel like you're actually there!

Like Bohemian Rhapsody, 8 minutes disappears very quickly when listening to The Room. Some of the transitions are as subtle as a sledgehammer, but the sections themselves are brilliant. Like The Godfather movies, sometimes it is slow moving with very little happening, but the genius is that you never feel this is the case and are happy to be along for the ride. The lyrics beautifully tell the tale, a particular highlight of mine is:
If I lent my arms to you-
Would you hold me and embrace me?
Or replace me?

Favourite songs

Tabloid Magazine, Who's Gonna Save Us, End of the World, One Said to the Other, Maitland Street, Putting You Down, Short Novice, So What, Hold Up, The Room

Worthwhile?

From the perspective of a wannabe pretentious music critic, it must be noted that Modern Artillery is a pretty simple album. So should we appreciate that there is beauty in simplicity? Or is it just dumbed-down? Actually, I really don't care either way! Because, despite a few flaws, over 70% of Modern Artillery's songs appear in my favourites list below. This makes it an excellent album in my book.

Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals- Live From Mars (disc 2)

This is the second disc of Ben Harper's massive double-album. (disc 1 review here)

Regular readers of this blog (hi, Mum!) might have noticed my procrastination posting a review of this 2nd disc. So maybe it isn't a surprise announcement that it's not to my taste at all. Best not read on if you're a Ben Harper fan...

The instrumental elements work well, but I'm not a fan of the vocal style. To me, it feels weak and defeatist, both in the words and their delivery. For example, Please Bleed sounds like a castrated Nirvana- curling up and crying in the corner rather than thrashing around in anger. Maybe this is more of a reflection of my preferred mode of misery than anything else!

The Drugs Don't Work is my most favoured song on this disc, but it's still faint praise. The Verve's original is such a fantastic song that this version is still enjoyable, despite Ben's vocal style.

Favourite songs

None, sorry.

Worthwhile?

Nope.

Houston's Dilemma - Live at Corner Hotel

Houston's Dilemma? Who on earth is that?? Only those totally obsessed with Australian ska will recognise this name. The Adelaide band did not produce any recordings and only played a handful of gigs. In fact, the only evidence I could find of their existence is here. Plus this bootleg recording from a friend in the crowd at their performance in Melbourne on 4 January 2003...

Due to this obscurity, I hereby proclaim this is the best band you've never heard of. Please stand by for a gushing review, because this little bootleg recording is one of my all-time favourite CDs. (by the way, I'm not sure if the song names are correct, aside from the songs where the lead singer introduced them by name)

As the production process consisted of a guy standing in the crowd with a handheld MiniDisc recorder, one must be willing to accept it's going to be pretty lo-fi. The trumpet is a lowlight, both regarding the tinny sound and many split notes. Also, the vocals, while loud enough, somehow sound very distant. On the plus side, the balance between instruments is very good.

Despite how I've labelled this post, I don't know if it is really a "ska album". Ska is certainly a constant throughout the album, yet it also contains many other ingredients. Surf rock is used for Intro, a spaghetti western feel for Shame on Me and Four Steps, and early rock'n'roll for Rocketship, Lock Your Door and Got the Wrong Number. These are all genres I really dig, and their integration here works fantastically well.

There are a couple of outright ska songs: King For a Day slows things down for an early ska style, while Zombie Skank ends their performance with a fast-tempo third-wave ska number (ie The Toasters). It manages to nail all of the elements (verse, pre-chorus, chorus, hiphop-esque half tempo breakdown) perfectly, without sounding generic or cookie cutter.

Favourite songs

Intro, World Gone By, Rocketship, Shame on Me, Lock Your Door, Got the Wrong Number, King For a Day, Four Steps, Zombie Skank (yes, every single song!)

Worthwhile?

An all-time favourite!

Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals - Live From Mars (disc 1)

This live recording was released in 2001, two years before the highly successful Diamonds on the Inside. It is a huge album, cramming 25 songs (all quite long, too) onto 2 CDs.

In fact, it's a bit of a marathon for me, so I'll split it into two posts. Because, as much as I want to like this album, unfortunately it often leaves me cold. It's quite strange, I do believe it's an excellent album, but often I just can't get into it.

The recording quality is excellent, especially considering it's a live recording. All the instruments sound nicely crisp, and kudos for the meaty kick-drum sound.

The funk and psychedelic influences on Glory and Consequence, Ground on Down, Forgiven and Faded/Whole Lotta Love remind me of Red Hot Chili Peppers, with a dash of Led Zepplin thrown in.

At the other end of the intensity spectrum are the gentle "adult lullabies" of Excuse Me Mr, Alone (except for the out of place heavy guitar solo section), Sexual Healing, Woman in You (if you skip the grating psychodelic 2nd half) and Welcome to the Cruel World. These are all nice, relaxing songs with some nice spice in the lyrics.

My favourite songs tend to be the folk(ish) ditties, which perhaps says a lot about my maturity level! The cheesy rap interludes of Steal My Kisses are a particular highlight (and it is also a great catchy song). Mama's Got a Girlfriend Now is similar but doesn't do it for me somehow.

For a campfire singalong, Burn One Down works a treat, mainly due to the lyrics.

Favourite songs

Excuse Me Mr, Steal My Kisses, Burn One Down

Worthwhile?

I'm ashamed to admit it, but it's not really for me.

Black Eyed Peas - Elephunk

Argh, the embarrassment! This one is definitely a skeleton in the closet! So, to avoid giving this album a "proper" review, I decided to throw it out instead.

Some of the songs have a strong and catchy groove (Hey Mama, Smells Like Funk, Latin Girls, Sexy, The Boogie That Be, The Apl Song), but the lyrics are brain-meltingly inane.

And while I expected their hit Let's Get Retarded to remain a catchy party tune, it turns out to have no appeal any more. So I guess you had to be there...

Ummm...cough... I must admit that I somehow enjoy the trailer-trash mini-opera that is Shut Up. Oh, the shame!

Worthwhile?

Allegedly, the Black Eyed Peas were a respectable band at one stage. That must have long before they released this album.