Lotek- International Rudeboy

This is the 2010 debut album from Lotek.

I was drunk when I bought this album... both alcoholically, and high on the buzz at the end of a great gig. It was the first time I'd heard of Lotek, and out of the blue this band delivered an infectious set of bouncy dancehall goodness. So I duly purchased their album.

Rebel Hifi kicks things off with a very nice groove, but the over-the-top dubstep flourishes aren't to my taste.

Don't Want No is similarly very heavy dub, although the ridiculous bass-quakes are hilarious. It was about this point I started wondering what on earth was going on with this album! I was expecting the feelgood dancehall style from the gig, but this was turning out to be more like Skrillex...

Dub Makes Fools Of Us All is more like it. Bouncy, danceable rocksteady; life is good. But then it descends into sparse dub, which I found very disappointing.  (warning: rant incoming!) For me, the appeal of dub is the endless repetition, while slowly making subtle changes. A slow-burn journey, but when you look back you realise how far you've come. But dubstep trades this evolution for instantaneous flashes of effects, and it's not my cup of tea.

Dreader Than Dub also is exactly what I was hoping for, and thankfully it holds that style throughout the song. (although I do find it very similar to the groove of The Herd's We Can't Hear You on The Sun Never Sets).

And let's end the review here, because I have nothing nice to say about the remainder of the album...

Favourite songs

Dreader Than Dub

Worthwhile?

Well it has a niche place in my collection for when some ridiculously over-the-top dubstep is needed. But in the end, the answer is no.

Eskimo Joe- Black Fingernails Red Wine

Eskimo Joe's third studio album is Black Fingernails Red Wine. It was released in 2006, two years after A Song Is A City.

The opening semi-instrumental, Comfort You, sets a great mood and high standard of nicely layered instrumentals for the album, in a similar manner as the opening track on Placebo's Sleeping With Ghosts. The occasional lyrics are more like a tag-line from a club remix, lacking of any real meaning. But that doesn't matter at all in this context, so it's a great introduction to the album.

Unfortunately, New York does have "proper" lyrics, but they feel emotionally distant and bring nothing to the experience. Which is a real shame, because musically the song is very good. The backing ebbs and flows very nicely, and it is intricate yet subtle. If only the narrative was up to the same standard. How Does It Feel and This Is Pressure suffer the same fate. Beating Like A Drum goes one worse- the lyrics are not just uninspiring, but actually painfully simplistic. Like U2 at their worst (eg Elevation), it is terribly literal lowest-common denominator music, which is an offence to an intelligent audience.

I won't go into specifics on how I find Breaking Up, Setting Sun and Reprise to be devoid of any redeeming features whatsoever. In general though, I somehow find the band's mood and art-rock intentions to be similar to Howling Bells. Yet the Howling Bells builds on the beautiful landscapes with a strong emotional appeal. Eskimo Joe... does not.

The title track, Black Fingernails Red Wine, is a fantastic quirky headbanging disco-rock number. In this case the lyrics are vivid and nicely obscure and vivid lyrics. I've got no idea what message they are trying to convey, but that never matters!

Similarly, Sarah is a great oddball pop song. Using a very similar recipe to Garbage's Bleed Like Me album, it has also perfected the art of snappy wall-of-noise explosions. The chorus is a treat, and somehow the drumming particularly stands out. Like Garbage at their best, it is pop-rock perfection. If I can continue the shameless name-dropping, there also seems to be a bit of Roy Orbison in the mix (e.g. Pretty Woman).

Finally, the chorus of Suicide Girl provides interesting between the bouncy music and the sombre lyrics. However, the rest of the song limps along, waiting for the next chorus to resuscitate it.

Favourite songs

Black Fingernails Red Wine, Sarah

Worthwhile?

Back in 2006, I found this album to be a moody and edgy masterpiece with enchantingly obscure lyrics. Sadly, time has not been kind to it at all. The pop hits are still enjoyable, but otherwise it is somehow lacklustre these days.

Meat Loaf- Bat Out Of Hell II

Bat Out Of Hell II is Meat Loaf's sixth album. It was released in 1993, sixteen years after the original Bat Out Of Hell album.

Epic is such an over-used word these days. But this album is features some truly epic music, and I'd Do Anything For Love is an excellent example. It is also intensely passionate, yet wonderfully cheesy at the same time. The song structure is magnificent and features so many wonderful elements, such as the chorus "ahhs" and the use of piano. The icing on the case is the incredibly powerful female vocals.

The recording quality is sometimes quite 1980s sounding, despite the album being released in 1995. But it does a great job of bringing together the multitude of voices to create span the intensity range from a soft whisper to the Big Bang, so I rate it highly.

Life Is A Lemon And I Want My Money Back is dominated by a hypnotic groove, which feels like it could go on forever. Also, I quite enjoy the silly lyrics of the bridge (eg "What about X?", "It's defective").

The opening of Rock And Roll Dreams Come True is soooo 80s. Yet it builds on this soft-focus opening to create a wonderfully layered masterpiece. Again, the backing vocals and piano works a treat. And again, the lyrics are both wonderfully cheesy and passionate:
I treasure your love, I never want to lose it
You've been through the fires of hell
And I know you've got the ashes to prove it

Not to mention, the wonderful notion that the religion of rock'n'roll can solve any problem in the world:
Once upon a time was a back beat
Once upon a time all the chords came to life
And the angels had guitars even before they had wings
If you hold onto a chorus you can get through the night

...I could go on all day raving about the poetry, imagery and truisms of this song, suffice to say it's an all-time favourite for me.

On the other hand, It Just Won't Quit is a bit of a letdown. The chorus is super catchy, but otherwise I find it drags on aimlessly. The ballads of Good Girls Go To Heaven and Lost Boys And Golden Girls are also nothing to write home about.

Out Of The Frying Pan is a return to the typical Meat Loaf brilliance. It is dripping with vivid and powerful phrases, including my favourite "the sun is just a ball of desire". The key ingredient though, is the endless build-up throughout the song. Meat Loaf is a master of the pre-chorus and manages to capture this wonderful anticipation throughout an entire 8-minute song Everything Louder Than Everything Else also works this to perfection.

Favourite songs

I'd Do Anything For Love, Life Is A Lemon And I Want My Money Back, Rock And Roll Dreams Come True, Out Of The Frying Pan, Everything Louder Than Everything Else

Worthwhile?

Very much. What a legendary album.

Blondie- Greatest Hits

Blondie's Greatest Hits mostly features songs from their heyday of 1977-1982. I've never been a fan of the band, but have enjoyed the odd single from time to time. So at some stage, I ended up buying this Greatest Hits album.

Kicking off with Dreaming, I just can't get past the terribly literal and twee lyrics, which are drowning in over-production (hmm... an attempt to mask fundamentally bland songwriting perhaps?!). The chorus is better than the rest of the song, but that's not saying much...

Call Me is Blondie at their best: irresistible pop perfection. The key ingredients are a fantastic groove and catchy, singalong chorus. A timeless choice for late-night drunken karaoke.

Many people would consider Heart of Glass in the same league as Call Me, but somehow it fails to appeal for me. The novelty of the chipmonk lyrics has long since worn off, exposing an otherwise pretty bland song.

One Way Or Another injects some variety to the vocals, with a snarly (*cough* non-autotuned, for a change...) vocal style. Unfortunately, it doesn't sit well with the song's bouncy groove, so the result ends up feeling contrived. While I'm moaning, the band should have left Caribbean music well alone! The Tide Is High is cringingly plastic and over-produced, and Island Of Lost Souls is also terrible.

Also, the vocals of X Offender don't suit the music, in fact each section of music doesn't even suit the next. What a trainwreck!

The oddball funk-hiphop hit Rapture has always been a favourite of mine. In particular, the very strange narrative (men from Mars eating bars and then cars??) during the rapping. Speaking of funk, The Hardest Part funk injects some great variety into proceedings. In fact, it's a fantastic pop-funk song in its own right. My favourite elements are the nice build-up with the pre-chorus, and the bouncing groove in general.

Rip Her To Shreds features nicely jangly instrumental. Unfortunately, the superficial and bitchy lyrics ruin it for me.

Maria was born of Blondie's late 90s reformation and, surprisingly, it works a treat. The highlight are the lyrics, which- usually for Blondie- are nicely poetic and imaginative. And they're well supported by a catchy pop tune.

For me, Atomic represents Blondie in a nutshell: a simple yet brilliantly catchy groove, vocals which are auto-tuned beyond all recognition and lyrics with no depth whatsoever.
Make it magnificent,
Toniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.
Your hair is beautiful,
Toniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight
On second thoughts, perhaps it's working on a deeper level to make some kind of profound social commentary. Or perhaps it's just Blondie...

Favourite songs

Call me, Rapture, Atomic, The Hardest Part

Worthwhile?

Not is a long-term sense. It has its moments, but at the end of the day it's just throwaway pop.
(Why am I so harsh on this band? It's probably got little to do with the songs, and more to do with the over-intellectualising and post-justification associated with the band, for example the notion of Blondie being part of the punk movement. So it's not really about the songs. Sorry.)

Sin City- self titled

If I may kick things off with a rant...
For a "typical" rock band (i.e. three guys on guitars and one on drums), there are an enormous variety of sub-genres by which they can be described. However, if the singer happens to be female, then somehow everything from No Doubt to The Divinyls to Paramore gets lumped together as "chick-rock". What's the go with that?? So, if I happen to mention the phrase chick-rock in this review, please feel free to point out my hipocracy

Anyway... on to the review. Of Sin City's 2009 debut EP.

This CD is wall-to-wall infectious rock hooks. It is also very punchy, and somehow has an 1980s feel to it (Jon Bon Jovi, Billy Idol, etc). The vocals are quite unique, even notwithstanding the whole 2nd chromosome thing. Looking at them technically, the standard is quite poor; due to a strained tone, wavering at times and often inconsistently switching between singing and yelling. But I actually prefer it this way. The technical flaws give great character and a really strong sense of raw emotion which perfectly complements the lyrics.

Therefore, God Damn, Don't Eat Your Heart Out and Sweet Lies are bouncing rock perfection.

Dating The Undead injects some variety with a blues-esque ballad, and it works a treat. The verses plod along nicely, and it winds up to a great centrepiece chorus. Again, the vocals are pretty rough-and-ready, but it actually adds to the song.

Favourite songs

God Damn, Don't Eat Your Heart Out, Dating The Undead, Sweet Lies

Worthwhile?

Absolutely. A hidden treasure.

Smashmouth- Fush Yu Mang

Fush Yu Mang is Smashmouth's highly successful debut album, which was released in 1997. On a personal note, I purchased it purely on the basis of the song Padrino.

Exploring the rest of the album unfortunately reveals it to be a bit of a stinker. In general, the lyrics fail to convey any emotional impact, and the light-hearted moments quickly wear thin. Musically, it's a better story, with many nice hooks and catchy sections. But many songs- such as Heave-Ho, The Fonz and Disconnect the Dots- are a disjointed collection of sections, lacking any overall cohesion.

And then Let's Rock and Why Can't We Be Friends are simply annoying, immature ditties. Since I quite enjoy Guttermouth, Offspring and similar inane pop-punk, I don't think it's a case of looking down my nose at an immature style. It's just that Smashmouth's attempt somehow misses the mark. 

Walkin' On The Sun is thankfully free of these vices, and a wonderfully oddball lounge-pop hit. The verses are quirky and fun, and the chorus is very catchy. Unfortunately, I've heard it too many times, which has dulled its impact.

Padrino also hits the nail on the head. It also features some great sections, such as energetic, fun verses and a snappy chorus. But the important difference is that the band has managed to craft these sections into a song which flows very nicely. Also, the humour is well supported by a wonderfully moody intro and an interesting narrative. It all makes for tongue-in-cheek fun that has lasting appeal. Great stuff.

Favourite songs

Padrino

Worthwhile?

Overall, it's a pretty lousy album. However, the brilliance of Padrino single-handedly drags it into my good books.