“PAS NET!” True Love (Main Man) ***
True Love’s 4th album is finally here after 4 years of writing, overdubbing, redoing, remixing- you get the idea. “Pas Net!” is what Cheap Trick might sound like if they were a little more punk.
Hailing from Sinatra’s hometown, tracks from True Love’s first three albums have appeared on movie soundtracks. The bio describes this as “death-obsessed to the max (while shining) the cheerful light of pop melodies and Queen-inspired vocal harmonies on the least sunny of subjects”, a quote I use because there’s no better way to describe this album- happy sound, hard subject matter. This is guitar-driven rock & roll, more melodic than hard, and more impressive the louder it’s played. The overdriven drum sound adds an unsettling vibe to an otherwise cheerful sound, an oddly compatible mix. I’ll be listening to this for awhile.
KEY CUTS: “The Future”, “Bitter Wine”, “Ice”

“THEM CROOKED VULTURES” (DGC) ****
Them Crooked Vultures is a ‘super group’ that actually lives up to that title.
TCV is Josh Homme (Queens Of The Stone Age)- guitar/vocals, Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) on drums, and John Paul Jones (Led Zep) on bass. Initiated by Grohl after a proposed Led Zeppelin reunion tour failed to materialize, this rambling, beautiful mess isn’t the second coming of Zep, it’s more like QOTSA. It’s the sound of three skilled musicians having fun. Jones and Grohl are surprisingly adept at locking in together on any given groove, and Homme’s riffs wander from workmanlike chunk to hypnotic psychedelia. “Them Crooked Vultures” is a throwback to sprawling 70’s rawk. As John Paul Jones has famously said “I didn’t need the work, but I needed to play”. Thank God for that!
KEY CUTS: “Elephants”, “New Fang”, “Warsaw Or The First Breath You Take After You Give Up”

“I DREAMED A DREAM” Susan Boyle (Sony) ****
Placing 2nd in “Britain’s Got Talent” hasn’t hurt Susan Boyle’s career. Since its release November 24th, this album has topped the charts in Canada, the US, and the UK.
Like you, I was moved nearly to tears by Boyle’s You Tube clip. The easy description of her as a singer is Barbra Streisand meets Jewel, but let’s call her a classic crooner. These twelve songs were carefully to showcase Susan’s considerable gift, and some of these are inspired choices. Her languid version of The Stones’ “Wild Horses” is breathtaking, and the gospel numbers do what they should do- inspire. The graceful torch ballad vibe here isn’t suitable for heavy lifting but it soothes the soul. PS- Boyle may be tapped for the next James Bond theme song.
KEY CUTS: “I Dreamed A Dream”, “The End Of The World”, “Wild Horses”, “Amazing Grace”

“OUT STANDING IN THEIR FIELD” Steve Morse Band (Ear/ Eagle Records) ****
I have a tough time digesting fully instrumental albums but this is a rare exception, too delicious to ignore.
You might know Morse from The Dixie Dregs, his solo work or, most likely as the current guitarist for Deep Purple. His trio, including bassist Dave LaRue and drummer Van Romaine, is gifted, hence the punny album title. They actually are outstanding at their jobs, and on the back cover photo they’re outside, standing in a field. This recalls early Joe Satriani, muscular but melodic, and easy to dig. Steve keeps his instinct to excessively wank in check, resulting in fewer ‘weedly-weedly’ moments than other guitar-based instrumental discs. I’ve already spun this 3 or 4 times and I’m ready for more- that should tell you something right there.
KEY CUTS: “Name Dropping”, “Here And Now And Then”, “Time Junction”

“SHERLOCK HOLMES SOUNDTRACK” Hans Zimmer (Sony Music) **
It’s the soundtrack for one of the best movies of ‘09. Zimmer’s score captures the playful yet adventurous tone of the film- but was this album necessary?
For a soundtrack to reach hugeness it needs hit songs, or songs from established artists. Alas, this will not do big numbers. Hans Zimmer’s score is in step with the flick, particularly Robert Downie Jr.’s portrayal of Holmes as a quirky, loveable rogue just this side of insanity, as opposed to Basil Rathbone’s effeminate snob. This feels like slightly unstable psychotic classical music, with a recurring melodic theme. I’d have to watch the movie several more times to match each piece with the scene. I will buy the DVD not for that, but because this is a damned entertaining film.
KEY CUTS: “Marital Sabotage”, “I Never Woke Up In Handcuffs Before”, “Panic, Sheer Bloody Panic”

“SHE WOLF” Shakira (Sony) *
Shakira’s latest album has struggled on the charts and it’s no wonder- this is one of the most mind-numbingly dull discs I’ve heard in ages.
I’ve never been a fan of this hot Colombian babe’s music yet I was unprepared for how dreadful this is- even my wife hates it. “She Wolf” is a cross between a wannabe club album and lousy disco, and the beats seem to vary little from song to song. I liked the title “She Wolf” and hoped for something dangerous and exotic- no such luck. Production makes use of drum machines and subsonics, so at least it will sound thumpy in the few jeeps that dare play this. You’d be hard pressed to find a worse album out there than “She Wolf”.
KEY CUTS: Nuh-uh. I’ve listened to this creamy diarrhea twice, and that’s all I can stand.

“ELGAR: VIOLIN CONCERTO” Nikolaj Znaider (RCA Red Seal) *****
Classical music makes me feel the way jazz does- like a straw chewin’ Hee-Haw watchin’ Rube. But still, even to my untrained ears, this is beautiful.
Born in Denmark in 1976, Znaider’s violin playing is heralded in classical music circles as “extraordinarily intelligent, soulful and impassioned, yet without a hint of indulgence.” I can imagine grown people weeping openly while he plays. This concerto, written by Sir Edward Elgar and his last popular success, was commissioned by The Royal Philharmonic Society of London in 1909, and first performed in 1910. Znaider’s version is three movements over roughly 50 minutes. As with most music, I only asked one question; “Does this move me, or doesn’t it?” It really does. This disc has more soul than all the Jeeps and Honda Civics in North America combined.
KEY CUT: “Concerto in B-Minor, op. 61”

“MUDVAYNE” Mudvayne (Indoor Recess/ Sony) ***
Most black and/or speed metal is laughable- how can guys- and it’s always guys- listen to that crap? But I came away from this with a new appreciation for this brutal form of expression.
You know the saying “if it’s too loud you’re too old”? Looks like I still have some time. What grabs me most about “Mudvayne” is the drumming. Most speed metal guys sound like one of those mechanical chimps with cymbals wound too tight, but drummer Matt McDonough has incredible groove. “This is the best album we’ve recorded since our second album, The End Of All Things To Come” notes the skin basher. The packaging is odd, with every bit of art and text only viewable under a black light. “Mudvayne” is pure, unadulterated metal- and it’s very, very heavy.
KEY CUTS: “Scream With Me”, “Out To Pasture”, “I Can’t Wait”

“LIVE AT 65” Mendelson Joe (Old Bold Records) ***
This isn’t a ‘concert’ album, more an expression of surprise at still being alive. Just a man, his voice & guitar- very up close and personal.
A multi-media artist from Toronto, Joe taught himself to play guitar at age 11 and picked up painting in 1975. In the liners he says “the songs embodied herein are a tiny snippet of my story from the early 1970’s to the present.” If you need a genre tag for this album, call it “folk/ blues”. The dark truths lurking within these songs are colored by Mendelson’s sense of humor. He rails against showbiz on “They Will Take Your Pants”, then lightens up on “Dance With Joe”. He’s more storyteller than singer, the guitar a part of his vocabulary. “Live At 65” is cool company.
KEY CUTS: “They Will Take Your Pants”, “I’m A Folkie”, “The Canada Song”

“LESS IS MORE” Marillion (Eagle Records) ****+
Marillion- a name I’ve read in music mags a thousand times, yet a band I’d never made the effort to know. As their terrific new acoustic album plays on the headphones, I smack myself in the forehead for being such a witless tool.
Nearly a quarter century into a stealthy existence called a career, UK’s Marillion pause to look back, combing their old records for these dozen tracks (including 2 ‘bonus’ live performances) to strip nude and redress in minimalistic, intimate acoustic arrangements. The result is Coldplay-ish- languid and dramatic, but with an apparent difference- I really dig this, but literally cannot stand Chris Martin and his cronies. Now the work begins- the joyous task of tracking down the original versions of these songs and really discovering Marillion. “Less Is More” is, quite simply, excellent.
KEY CUTS: “The Space”, “Interior Lulu”, “This Is The 21st Century”