Within the first ten seconds of the opening track ("Take What You Need") of The New Mastersounds' eighty studio album, Breaks From the Border (Tallest Man Records, 2011), you know that this is a much different offering from the four-piece funk act from Leeds, England. For starters, there are vocals, which are like hen's teeth on NMS records. Majority of the eleven tracks feature harmonies reminiscent of Sly and the Family Stone ("Can You Get It," "Turn It Up") or Cream ("Free Man"), and even a few curses all layered nicely over the group's signature grooves.
Though the instrumentation has certainly changed from past albums as well. The sound here is much more aggressive as opposed to albums such as Ten Years On (One Note Records, 2009) or 102% (One Note Records, 2007), that can occasionally sound like the menu of some 70s blaxploitation DVD. Breaks From the Border does a good job at remaining silky-smooth without reminding the listener of a dentist's waiting room. It captures the energy of their live performances much more accurately than in the past which
The album can be purchased here. Or one of their live performances can be downloaded for free here.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
New Tom Waits' single "Bad As Me"
Legendary gravel-mouth Tom Waits is due to release his first studio album in seven years since 2004's Real Gone. The new album is titled Bad As Me and is scheduled for an October 25 release. The title track is available for preview and download here.
The track features classic Waits' elements such as dirty, distorted percussion and guitar leads. Though it does sound a bit more programmed than previous recordings. Perhaps he has discovered ProTools. His trademark songwriting style is in full force with imagery including flies floating in beer and a Mother Superior in her underwear, all delivered frantically desperate as we have come to love and expect from him.
The last time Waits returned after a several-year hiatus was after a break between 1993 and 1999 ending with the release of Mule Variations, which won a Grammy that year for Best Contemporary Folk Album.
The track features classic Waits' elements such as dirty, distorted percussion and guitar leads. Though it does sound a bit more programmed than previous recordings. Perhaps he has discovered ProTools. His trademark songwriting style is in full force with imagery including flies floating in beer and a Mother Superior in her underwear, all delivered frantically desperate as we have come to love and expect from him.
The last time Waits returned after a several-year hiatus was after a break between 1993 and 1999 ending with the release of Mule Variations, which won a Grammy that year for Best Contemporary Folk Album.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Return to Forever IV, The Venue, Hammond, IN
It is absolutely impossible for anybody to bring up jazz in the last fifty years and somehow neglect to mention Chick Corea. He and Return to Forever drummer, Lenny White, both appeared on the legendary Miles Davis album Bitches Brew in 1970 before Corea went of to form RTF with bass juggernaut Stanley Clarke. It's difficult to write a balanced review when the subject is such an unprecedented super-group that has also held on its roster names like Al Di Meola and Flora Purim.
One benefit of The Venue at the Horseshoe Casino is the large screens that bookend the stage. With well-placed cameras the audience is offered views of virtuosic fingers completely dismantling the expectation of what a human musician is capable of. Stanley Clarke handled an upright bass in a manner that very well might be illegal is some states. And I testify that a seventy-year-old man like Chick Corea shouldn't be allowed to play a piano with such tenacity and finesse.
They played Return to Forever compositions such as "Captain Senor Mouse" and "The Romantic Warrior" while also fitting in a Jean-Luc Ponty tune entitled "Renaissance," which featured the aforementioned mind-blowing upright solo from Clarke.
I'm not foolish enough to expect everybody to find the same amazement in the musicianship of these men, but to students of music and fans of what is truly masterful, jazz-fusion legends, such as RTF, are guaranteed to excite and inspire and astound and slay.
One benefit of The Venue at the Horseshoe Casino is the large screens that bookend the stage. With well-placed cameras the audience is offered views of virtuosic fingers completely dismantling the expectation of what a human musician is capable of. Stanley Clarke handled an upright bass in a manner that very well might be illegal is some states. And I testify that a seventy-year-old man like Chick Corea shouldn't be allowed to play a piano with such tenacity and finesse.
They played Return to Forever compositions such as "Captain Senor Mouse" and "The Romantic Warrior" while also fitting in a Jean-Luc Ponty tune entitled "Renaissance," which featured the aforementioned mind-blowing upright solo from Clarke.
I'm not foolish enough to expect everybody to find the same amazement in the musicianship of these men, but to students of music and fans of what is truly masterful, jazz-fusion legends, such as RTF, are guaranteed to excite and inspire and astound and slay.
Zappa Plays Zappa, The Venue, Hammond, IN
I had been eager to see Zappa Plays Zappa again after seeing them at Summer Camp 2010. Dweezil Zappa, eldest son of the late, great Frank Zappa, started playing touring and playing his father's music in 2006 as an attempt to bring the sound to a younger audience. It certainly worked for me.
The set included songs mostly settling around Frank's work in the mid-to-late seventies including "Don't You Ever Wash that Thing?" and "Dancing Fool." The group also opted to play "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow" through "St. Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast" from the album Apostrophe('), which ZPZ played in its entirety throughout their tour last year. Luckily for me, I missed them on the last tour.
Electric violin great and member of Return to Forever IV, Jean-Luc Ponty, had played with Frank Zappa in the early seventies and came out to perform "Fifty-Fifty" from the album Over-Nite Sensation. There were some really incredible moments of playing as Jean-Luc and Dweezil went into a call-and-response kind of solo.
I first thought of Zappa Plays Zappa as a novelty act. After witnessing the really supreme ability of not only Dweezil, but every member of the group, they have established themselves in my mind as a truly incredible act to see.
The set included songs mostly settling around Frank's work in the mid-to-late seventies including "Don't You Ever Wash that Thing?" and "Dancing Fool." The group also opted to play "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow" through "St. Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast" from the album Apostrophe('), which ZPZ played in its entirety throughout their tour last year. Luckily for me, I missed them on the last tour.
Electric violin great and member of Return to Forever IV, Jean-Luc Ponty, had played with Frank Zappa in the early seventies and came out to perform "Fifty-Fifty" from the album Over-Nite Sensation. There were some really incredible moments of playing as Jean-Luc and Dweezil went into a call-and-response kind of solo.
I first thought of Zappa Plays Zappa as a novelty act. After witnessing the really supreme ability of not only Dweezil, but every member of the group, they have established themselves in my mind as a truly incredible act to see.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Greensky Bluegrass "Handguns EP"
Greensky Bluegrass is a quintet from Michigan that formed around the turn of the century. They have provided for a free download of an EP that features five new studio tracks from their forthcoming album "Handguns." It will be their fourth.
The half-hour sneak peek shows impressive diversity for a group that includes the genre in their name. All the staples of bluegrass are present: banjo, mandolin, upright bass, heartbreaking ballads. Most of the tracks are fairly straight forward, yet catchy and elevated examples of the form. "Don't Lie" and "Cold Feet" are particularly wrenching displays of loss and wonder that are essential to bluegrass.
But they aren't afraid to deviate from their namesake. "I'd Probably Kill You" is a really standout tune that starts like another hum-along about revenge, but as the track builds another familiar sound fades in. The horn section adds an incredible layer that takes the listener from Appalachia to New Orleans and blends jazz elements into the train-like rhythm.
The selection rounds out with a lengthy eleven minute that provides an excellent platform to display all of their talents. Featuring more rock-solid song writing as well as bouncy solos that are much more extensive and expected during their live performances.
Greensky Bluegrass does an exceptional job filling out the tracks in the absence of percussion instruments. The rhythm section comes from the various strumming and picking patterns that lays down a solid foundation to build around. I'd definitely recommend downloading the "Handguns EP" and look for the full-length album due out October 4.
The half-hour sneak peek shows impressive diversity for a group that includes the genre in their name. All the staples of bluegrass are present: banjo, mandolin, upright bass, heartbreaking ballads. Most of the tracks are fairly straight forward, yet catchy and elevated examples of the form. "Don't Lie" and "Cold Feet" are particularly wrenching displays of loss and wonder that are essential to bluegrass.
But they aren't afraid to deviate from their namesake. "I'd Probably Kill You" is a really standout tune that starts like another hum-along about revenge, but as the track builds another familiar sound fades in. The horn section adds an incredible layer that takes the listener from Appalachia to New Orleans and blends jazz elements into the train-like rhythm.
The selection rounds out with a lengthy eleven minute that provides an excellent platform to display all of their talents. Featuring more rock-solid song writing as well as bouncy solos that are much more extensive and expected during their live performances.
Greensky Bluegrass does an exceptional job filling out the tracks in the absence of percussion instruments. The rhythm section comes from the various strumming and picking patterns that lays down a solid foundation to build around. I'd definitely recommend downloading the "Handguns EP" and look for the full-length album due out October 4.
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