Sound City: Real to Reel (ST)

  

I'm not a Dave Grohl fan.  I do not own anything by Nirvana or Foo Fighters.  I don't think he's much of a songwriter or singer/screamer, but I do admire his passion and energy, which was why I was intrigued by this project.  You don't need me to rehash the particulars as this soundtrack and documentary have been around for months with plenty of press and sales.  From the first fifteen years of Sound City Studios existence, I own over half of what was recorded there.  I started late, too, four years after it went into business with Elton John's "Caribou."  Multiple albums by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, REO Speedwagon and Pat Benetar; the only album I own by the Grateful Dead, "Terrapin Station," Cheap Trick's tremendous "Heaven Tonight," War's iconic "Why Can't We Be Friends?" Foreigner's 7x platinum "Double Platinum," RJ Dio's "Holy Diver."  In the 90's, besides "Nevermind" in 1991, came albums by Kyuss, Masters of Reality, Blind Melon, Tool, Slayer, RHCP, Weezer, Tonic and QOTSA.  Yes sir, that's a mighty fine lineup...   All-digital recording put the squeeze on the studio this century and when it closed a couple of years ago, Grohl bought the custom analog board and set it up at his home studio.  The premise of bringing any interested artists who recorded at Sound City over the forty years to his home studio for 24-hour recording sessions on the old Neve was a grand idea.  Too bad all that major-league talent couldn't save the majority of the weak songs Grohl brought to the room to play around with.   I had to get to the halfway point, track #6 (of eleven), to find the first worthy offering... 



That's legendary Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Neilsen.  The singer was in Slipknot, which I never had an affinity for.  You wanna wear masks so I don't know who you are?  Fine, I'll dismiss you all together.  He went on to front Stone Sour, which I suppose is where he's most known.  Not bad.  The next track features Josh Homme (Kyuss, QOTSA, Them Crooked Vultures), Chris Goss (Masters of Reality, QOTSA) and Alain Johannes (Walk the Moon...you're lying if you said you've heard of them..., Eleven, QOTSA, Them Crooked Vultures).  After writing that, I don't think I have to say any more.  Of course, the highlight of the project...



The whole thing was produced by Butch Vig, who basically defined alt-rock in the 90's manning the boards for Nirvana, Smashing Pimples and Sonic Youth.  And there is nothing wrong with the audio quality of this project...it sounds fantastic. 

It should have been a four song EP, though...

Josh Rouse "The Happiness Waltz"

I discovered him in 2003 fulfilling a "new music" requirement for the playlist of my wildly popular Wednesday morning drive slot on WPRK.  Wonderfully smooth adult-pop melodies, aka James Taylor or "Come Monday"-style Jimmy Buffett, the kind you hear when you walk into a Starbucks.  He lost me after four albums when he went Spanish for half a record (he had been living in Spain for five years with his wife).  That's not intended as a swipe at foreign language music (hell, I own many albums by Spanish, German, French, etc., artists and sing along blissfully, not having the slightest idea what I'm reciting), I just didn't need it from him.  When I learned of this release and read of its return to the sound of the years of which I was a fan, I added it to my May 3rd purchase.  Sadly, I will not add this complete album to the other four.

If you are one of the many (females) who recently discovered him through the soundtrack to "Eat, Pray, Love," you will enjoy this record...



That's the opening track and first single.  Two songs further in is the album's highlight...



Jeez, don't get so excited, Josh...  Unfortunately, there was just one other keeper on the record.  It's all starting to sound the same to me.  I'll go back to "1972" if I want to hear an entire disc of his quality work.     

Be that as it may, give me this guy over Jack Johnson every day.

Deep Purple "Now What?!"

Dear me, I said "Deep Purple" in the previous post on Riverside.  Look what was next in the rotation.  Happenstance, per chance (is that redundant?)?  Maybe, but there was no doubt I would get this upon release once the rumors from two years ago proved true.  BKP delivered a copy ten days ahead of the domestic drop, so it was a win-win situation. 

Just a brief recap for you who do not know me:  Deep Purple are in my Top 5 Bands of ALL-TIME and Ian Gillan may be the best rock vocalist ever.  OK, let's move on...

"Now What" sounds exactly like DP should sound like in 2013.  There are plenty of nods to their past while making the record current.  Are there enough fans like me happy to have new DP music?  Sure (landed on sixteen charts that I know of, #1 on two of those, top 10 on five more, still ranked on seven this week).  Did we have to have it?  No.  Will this album earn them new fans?  Doubt it.  That said, it will still become the 17th entry on my Deep Purple sheet. 

Gillan may not scream anymore, keeping his vocals in the mid-range, but they are solid and clean.  Don Airey's keyboards/organ are outstanding (Jon Lord should be smiling, R.I.P.) and up front in many of the mixes.  The rhythm section of Mr. Paice and Mr. Glover is as solid as ever.  Getting the short shrift, IMHO, is the young pup (58 years old) of the group, guitarist Steve Morse.  He's been working with the band nigh on twenty years yet his substantial contributions are buried in most places.  I had to really concentrate (difficult as it is at my age) to distinguish the fretwork.  I lay the blame on the old fogey producer, Bob Ezrin.  Believe me, that's a joke.  One must not argue with this man's pedigree (Alice Cooper's 70's albums, Kiss "Destroyer," The Babys debut, Berlin "Count Three and Pray," and...oh, yeah, "The Wall").  I'm sure it wasn't an intentional snub, but Ritchie Blackmore would have never allowed it!



Although I'm keeping the complete album, it comes with a caveat.  There isn't one specifically memorable tune amongst the entire proceedings, evidenced by the fact that the first official video is track #11 of 12...



...but it's a great video, nonetheless.  Judging by some of the recent live clips across the 'net, I'm speculating they spent a substantial amount of time in Ezrin's Nashville studio getting Gillan's vocal tracks down.  Years of amazing screaming will do that to ya. 

"Now What?!" sure beats the hell out of recent releases by veteran bands Aerosmith and ZZ Top.  I have the new Black Sabbath but only sampled it so far (fifteen Top 5 chart debuts around the world, including #1's in the US and UK, means it's probably pretty good).  Sure would like to hear some of your thoughts...

Riverside "Shrine of New Generation Slaves"

 

This was one of those RIYLs, or "customers also bought" items found at the bottom of the page.  I believe I saw it listed on the Spock's Beard first and then the Steven Wilson page.  Looked for it on my favorite digital store and there it was.  I get 90 seconds of each track to preview and it was good enough to purchase despite its release date three months earlier (I don't have time to go back any earlier for product right now...I have 29 new releases since April 1).  It's been in the auto's rotation for six weeks, getting better with each listen. 

For the initial spin I noted it as Porcupine Tree-light, saying the vocals were almost pretty and the music itself not as heavy.  As I waded through spin #2, I dictated a Deep Purple vibe on a couple of tracks...



...and Heavy-Metal-Grammy-winner-era Jethro Tull (older readers should get the joke).  So you see the "not as heavy" remark beginning to fade in meaning.  The third spin yielded vintage Utopia and some Alan Parsons Project as well as the usual suspects of Pink Floyd, etc..  And now I LOVE it, enough so to give it a fourth listen for pure enjoyment.  There is one track with radio "hit" potential all over it...



The band is Polish and this is studio album #5.  It's their most successful yet as it has charted in six European countries, going gold at home.  Every now and then, I think the vocalist sounds a little like Jim Kerr of Simple Minds, but mostly I hear all forms of Steven Wilson, be it PT, solo, Storm Corrosion or Bass Communion.  The last two of those mostly arise from the two-song extra disc, twenty-two instrumental minutes completely different from the eight-track main album.  Part One takes on a Kraftwerk vibe early then sweeps into a William Orbit-styled piece.  Different, but not bad. 

You American prog-rock fans need to drop the $9 on the main disc.  I'm already looking forward to the next project. 

The Black Angels "Indigo Meadow"

 

 

I must be brutally honest here and admit I had zero clue who this band was.  This is album #4 since 2006 and the previous release actually made it into the Top 200, peaking at 52.  Guess that's why I kept seeing the name pop up a couple of months ago when "Indigo Meadow" dropped.  The style "neo-psych rock" was being bandied about.  Made it worth the sample listen...which made it worth the purchase...which mandated three spins...which culminated in adding a new band sheet to my inventory.

 

I do not perform much research on records such as this until after I've gone through the plays and proffered my notes.  Did not know they were a domestic band (Austin, TX) with a female drummer.  Did not know this record was a change from their previous sound, and it apparently has left disgruntled fans in its wake.  What I do know is that my beloved WPRK has been playing a few cuts, which makes me very happy.

 

There is absolutely nothing here that hasn't been done before.  The album's pacing is slightly uneven, ranging from this century all the way back to the late 60's.  There is a heaping helping here of what Black Rebel Motorcycle Club does (though their past few records were too stale to purchase) and I heard a smidgen of The Hives, which throws back to garage rock anyway.  Another track made me consider a heavy-ish Killers while a couple others made me scream into my recorder, "Love & Rockets, dammit!" 

 

 

Then there's the late 60's section towards the back of the album.  I jotted down Strawberry Alarm Clock and second wave British Invasion bands like The Zombies and maybe a little Status Quo...

    

As I said earlier, I had no preconceived expectations when I dove into this record, unlike their fan base.  No going backwards in their catalog for me.  I'll add this to the vault and look forward to their next one.

Bonnaroo 2013

 

Was holding out hope for the timing to work so I could go.  Even had my spot reserved on the volunteer roster for parking duties opening day.  Planned on bunking at my old homestead in Tullahoma...you know, air conditioning, shower, bed...and day parking at the farm. Sadly, it's not going to happen for me this year.  And I already had my festival itinerary ready to go...

 

In 2010, our volunteer shift was 2 PM Thursday - 2 AM Friday, totally scrapping the day.  The "powers that be" @ Bonnaroo have learned well from their problem areas of the past, i.e. allowing patrons to enter the grounds beginning Wednesday.  So just in case the shift this year happened upon Hump Day, I had options for Thursday ready...

 

5:30  Futurebirds  -  Get settled and get there because they may be headlining one night a few years

from now, much like Mumford & Sons.  Stoner/alt/folk/country

7:30  Walk The Moon   

10:00  Japandroids for half an hour and then Father John Misty @ 10:30.

If not asleep somewhere after FJM, would probably head over to Maps & Atlases and then Capital Cities for a minute.

 

Friday is the big day.  A former Beatle will play a concert three miles from the first house I ever owned...

 

Start the day with Trombone Shorty @ 12:30 then Calexico at 1:45.  The 3:30 slot is a double, having to split time between Glen Hansard and the band Of Monsters and Men.  Go see the rest of Passion Pit on the big stage afterwards.  Then it would be The Foals for the challenge, and if they are too much to handle, ease over to Grizzly Bear. 

 

The 6:30 - 8:30 slot is the absolute toughest choice to make as the lead-in to Sir Paul at 9.  I'd probably grab a spot at the What Stage for Wilco so I wouldn't have to walk over with the other 75,000 people when all the other stages/tents go dark.  Also starting at 6:30 in the That Tent is John McLaughlin with his electrified fusion.  He's guitar history, folks.  At 7 is Jim James in the This Tent.  His recent solo release is exquisite.  And for the rap/hip hop contingent, history takes the other stage (not tent) in the Wu-Tang Clan.  Once the Beatle is done, I'd have to stick around for the younger pups in ZZ Top. 

 

After the full day of Friday, I'd have to make a judgment call Saturday morning.  Raring to go?  Then I'd get there at 1 PM for the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.  Hungover, zoned and sleep-deprived?  Then it would be 2:45 for The Mule.  Cannot pass up Mr. Haynes.  Then I'd wander over to Portugal. The Man (new album post soon).  If I had one of those nice, tricked-out RVs as my campground inside the compound, then this would be nap time.  If it's a cat nap, then I'd slink over to Cat Power at 6:15.  If it's a power nap, then I'd wander back and forth between Björk (mostly to see what she looks like in 95° heat index) and Beach House before catching The Lumineers and then Mumford and the Boys on the grande stage.  Not sure if Billy Idol or Weird Al could keep me there after midnight, but again, it would be a call made at the moment.  Maybe that night's Superjam would be the way to go... 

 

If I started early Sunday, I'd check out Kacey Musgraves, otherwise you'd find me at Black Prairie @ 2:45, sliding over to get a whiff of The Sheepdogs at 3:30.  I'd go see The Swans for 30 minutes, Ed Sharpe for 30, and then Tame Impala for their set commencing at 6 PM.  David Byrne & St. Vincent would follow at 7:30.  Doubt I'd stay through all of Tom Petty closing the festival.  It wasn't too long ago that I saw this show and Lord knows I'd want to get a head start on the traffic out of there...(that's funny, I don't care who you are). 

 

I want to hear your stories when you return.  Have fun, but stay away from the brown acid...

Eric Burdon "Til Your River Runs Dry"

 

He's in the Rock & Roll HOF as a member of The Animals and his short stint with War from 1969-71 was what sealed it for me, even as a pre-teen.  God, how I was into "Spill the Wine" and "Tobacco Road" at the age of twelve.  I loved their take on "Paint It Black" better than the original!  To this day I've always preferred Burdon's voice to Jagger's.  Last year at SXSW, Burdon and The Animals received a substantial vote of praise from this guy...

 



Later that same evening...



The man is in his early 70's and gets renewed interest...awesome!  Hasn't translated into many sales, which is a crying shame, because this album is far superior to the David Bowie release. 

One of EB's strengths is his songwriting, and there are plenty of fine examples to be heard here, even though there are a couple obviously written with "single" in mind, and that's OK, but they have a bit of that Joe Cocker-syndrome, somewhat forced and formulaic...



Opening riffs could have been a John Hiatt start...  Here is one of the superior tunes in a live setting...



A major plus for this album is the band, which includes the rhythm section from Backstreet Crawler, and after Kossoff died, just plain Crawler.  Now that may not mean much to you, but for me and a few others I know, that's a big deal.  Separately, the pair have since played/written/produced with/for artists such as Delbert McClinton, Paul Rodgers, Ana Popovic, Bette Midler, Bonnie Raitt and Buddy Guy.  They collaborated on six of the ten tracks Burdon wrote.  There are just two covers, one by Marc Cohn and the other by one of EB's idols, Bo Diddley.  This is probably my second favorite version of "Before You Accuse Me" after the CCR cover from Cosmo's Factory in 1970. 

If you love any of his songs from days gone by, like "House of the Rising Sun," "Sky Pilot," "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," etc., then pay your respects for the man and pay for the record.  You will not be disappointed, I promise.

Johnny Marr "The Messenger"

I was never a Smiths fan but it wasn't because of the guitar.  They always reminded me of R.E.M., which sold much, much better in southern middle Tennessee.  After moving to the tourist corridor of Orlando in April of 1989, we sold boatloads of Smiths CD's to the travelling Brits throughout the 90's, years after the band broke up.  I kept my opinions to myself and rang the sales. 

Going back to opening the very first Music 4 Less store more than 24 years ago, it was such a whirlwind of activity, constantly and quickly exceeding all expectations.  I worked every day for three months before finally scheduling myself an entire day off in late June.  I snatched up an unopened box of promos with plans for a belated "wake 'n' bake" birthday celebration (the store had its grand opening on the anniversary of my earthly debut).  Once establishing the proper mental environment the next morning, I popped open that box of freebies like the presents I never received (or would have had time for anyway), eagerly sifting through the titles in search of winners vs. re-gifts, and there it was...a pre-release copy of The The's "Mind Bomb."  The The, aka Matt Johnson, had released two of my favorite albums of the decade at the time, so into the player it went and the shift in musical style was immediate, perfect for my developing buzzon.  The accompanying release sheet detailed how the band was now really a band, and it included Johnny Marr on guitar and harmonica.  It wasn't a big deal to me at the time, but over the next few years, including the release of The The's "Dusk," I became a Johnny Marr fan.  Marr had also teamed up with Bernard Sumner of New Order to form Electronic (damn, I need to revisit some of their work), and they sporadically collaborated through the remainder of the century.  Marr did a lot of session work for the next few years, most notably with Pet Shop Boys, Talking Heads and Neil Finn's 7 Worlds Collide conglomerate.  I completely missed his band from ten years ago, The Healers, vaguely recall his involvement with Modest Mouse for a couple of years, and have no idea who The Cribs are/is/was/were.  When I heard he was issuing a bonafide solo project, I was intrigued since he's a collaborative soul and picked it up at first opportunity.



The title track has the The The (?!?!?!) sound to it I like.  Other bands this album reminds me of include The Verve, The Cure, Oasis, The Church and The Smiths with a happy vocalist.  Speaking of singing, Marr isn't great at it but effective, along the lines of an Ace Frehley or Marty Willson-Piper.  Since I've raised the Church reference again, here is my favorite song.  Man, I can hear Steve Kilbey singing it right now...

It's the middle third of this album that makes it a keeper.  After the decent opening track, the next three tunes are snoozers and the final third is 50/50, but it contains the next best song on the record...



Looks like Marr's domestic fans all bought this album the first week as it debuted on the Top 200 at #86 and completely disappeared the next.  His UK loyalists gave it a #10 debut and a couple more weeks of chart-worthy sales, but that was all, and I'll admit to mild surprise.  He's been hailed as one of Britain's greatest guitarists of the last 30 years and world famous music publishing/website NME calls him a "Godlike Genius," but they also called The Smiths one of the world's greatest bands (yeesh)...so one must take that with a few grains of salt. 

If you were ever a fan of any of the mentioned bands, you owe this a shot.