Review: Anarbor - Free Your Mind and The Bigger Lights - Fiction Fever

Label: Hopeless Records

Released: March 10, 2009


Label: Doghouse Records

Released: April 7, 2009

Thirty years ago, a subgenre of rock that had been building for a few years was just about ready to explode. AOR took the best elements of 70s rock, dummied it down, made it safe and sold millions of records whose broad appeal was based on the least common denominator. While what they did was generally meaningless, a few bands did it well, but for every Journey or Foreigner, there were a slew of Loverboys and Survivors (and don't even make me count the Honeymoon Suites). Just about every subsequent generation has turned its primal voice into a slicked up, safe facsimile of itself that embodies the spirit, if not the sound, of AOR.

Both Anarbor and The Bigger Lights embody that spirit, but the results aren't quite the same. On their Free Your Mind EP, Anarbor take a step forward in songwriting. While they still won't be remembered years from now, their songs are catchy and draw from influences that expand their basic power pop sound. Each song is catchy enough to be memorable and "The Brightest Green" and "Halfway Sober" both have clear single potential, with the latter tapping into power ballad territory worthy of Aerosmith. All in all, not bad for today's version of AOR. It may not have staying power, but it's a good listen in the moment.

The Bigger Lights have bigger problems. While Anarbor have trouble creating a consistent, distinctive sound, their songs do manage to maintain some personality in their own right, but The Bigger Lights can't even establish that on a song by song basis. Not only could their Fiction Fever EP be played by any number of bands, but the songs themselves could be interchanged with literally thousands of others glutting the current rock market. Where Anarbor struggles to find a voice of their own, The Bigger Lights struggle to find something worth saying.

Anarbor - Free Your Mind

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 6/10
Aretha: 6/10
Overall: 6/10

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The Bigger Lights - Fiction Fever

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 4/10
Aretha: 4/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Mötley Crüe - Saints of Los Angeles

Label: Motley Records
Released: June 24, 2008

What should we expect from Mötley Crüe at this point? They're 25 years past their prime and they certainly didn't continue to release material worthy of their recent resurgence over the years. On the other hand, they did manage to bounce back once and make a decent album with 1989's Dr Feelgood after a pair of stinkers (despite those albums' fantastic commercial success). The recent Carnival of Sins live album showed that they had enough life to put together an entertaining live set, but there they thrived on old material. At this point, Saints of Los Angeles is a crap shoot. It could go either way.

The reality is that it goes both ways. While the Crüe never even comes close to their prime, they do manage to come pretty close to their late 80s second wind at times. Maybe I'm just grateful that "Welcome to the Machine" isn't a Pink Floyd cover, but it's the first time on the album that I think the band sounds energized. Following it up with "Just Another Psycho" isn't a bad one-two punch and for a few minutes, the album really seems to be on track. They release that energy on a few tracks down the back stretch, but none more so than the closer, "Goin' Out Swingin'," which comes close to the calculated energy of "Dr Feelgood" or "Kickstart My Heart." Most of the time though, the songs just never get a good head of steam to give the impression at least that the album matters to the band. Vince Neil is particularly guilty as his voice is erratic at best. He does sound good at times, but just as often, his voice is thin and hollow.

They do attempt to incorporate some of the things that have happened since they were a good band, but the updated sound does them no favors. "Mutherfucker of the Year," for instance, incorporates a lot of the electronic effects that have been adopted by more recent rock and metal bands, but it's kludgey and unnatural. Creatively, there's simply not much that works, leaving the Crüe at their best when trying to recreate the past.

Lyrically, songs like "Chicks=Trouble" find the band at the very pinnacle of their stupidity while the we-have-to-fight-our-way-to-the-top theme of "What's It Gonna Take" couldn't even be believed by the most naive fan. While the reminiscences of "Down at the Whiskey" may have some roots in the truth, it's a rosy recollection of behavior so moronic that it simply couldn't have been that good.

In the end, Saints of Los Angeles has a few moments that aren't bad for four old guys, but the reality is still that they are way past their prime. When they try to update their sound, they fail, and when they try to relive their past, it's just a reminder of how much time has passed.

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 4/10
Dylan: 6/10
Aretha: 3/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Hit the Lights - Skip School, Start Fights

Label: Triple Crown Records

Released: July 8, 2008

From the piano pop of the opening track, it's clear that rock n roll isn't high on the agenda for Hit the Lights. Somewhere in the last decade or so, pop punk and emo took a wrong turn and Skip School, Start Fights finds itself pretty far down that unfortunate detour.

There's no doubt that these guys are tight, even after adjusting to guitarist Nick Thompson taking over vocal duties after the departure of Colin Ross. They have the formula nailed. The vocals are just a hair shy of smooth, the guitars are just a tad cleaner than crunchy and the rhythms are just short of driving. Underlying Hit the Lights' pop punk exterior are hints of artists like the Gin Blossoms and Rick Springfield, both of whom were masters of making hollow copies of the real music of their respective times.

If you enjoy your pop a little on the raw and/or whiny side or your punk a whole lot on the safe side, Skip School, Start Fights is a great album. The songs are catchy even if they don't stand out in the emo/pop-punk crowd and the energy level is consistently high, bolstered by plenty of whoa-ohs to which to sing along. The trouble is, if you prefer something with teeth, it doesn't take long to recognize that there's no bite to go along with this bark.

Ratings
Satriani: 7/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 6/10
Aretha: 3/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Switches - Lay Down the Law

Label: Interscope Records

Released: March 18, 2008

Lay Down the Law is a collection of songs that is perfectly good in the moment. Their catchy 80s power-pop (filtered through more recent times via the Strokes) is pleasant enough, but it can't hold on to what it's caught. Even after multiple listens, there isn't a single melody here that sticks with me. Switches are the kind of crafty yet middling band that could probably play in any genre, yet truly succeed in none.

They have some very good moments like the vocal interplay on "Need to Be Needed," but more often they're simply shallow. "Drama Queen" is Switches taking on the Stones' awkward attempt at new wave a la Some Girls/Emotional Rescue. It's appropriate, because, like the Stones of that era, Switches are just plugging their songs into the genre-of-the-month. They try to plug in some credibility and edginess as well with a few drug references, but it's very superficial and disingenuous, just reinforcing how light the band really is. Lay Down the Law is just another example of how craft without heart is the perfect recipe for bad rock n roll.

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 6/10
Aretha: 2/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Bushwhack - s/t

Label: self-released

Released: 2007

These kids can play. There's no doubt about that. They're outstanding technicians and, at their age (all 18 and 19 years old), almost unparalleled. Beyond the technical though, they really struggle.

Their sound eases its layers back and forth between airy and heavy, but neither conveys anything meaningful other than that they've practiced. Hints of life in "Guacamole" are quickly stamped out by senseless complexity. Stabs at incorporating Middle Eastern and Latin influences too often devolve into bad jazz fusion. "Sirens" almost finds a groove, but it's too little to save it from horrendous synth parts and overuse of the phaser. They spend too much time showing off as individuals and not nearly enough making music together. The big keyboard swells have all bombastic arrogance, but without any punch. Acoustic guitar parts don't even sound acoustic. The rhythms are stiff and icy and the over-processed production robs any richness that the songs might have by overdosing on cheap, clichéd electronics. It's one thing to make a record that is intentionally cold. Those records still have life, however desolate and desperate that life might be. Bushwhack on the other hand have created something whose life, if it ever had any, has been subjugated and ultimately destroyed by technique that gives us the worst of both worlds, being neither interesting nor moving.

A young band usually struggles with technique or songwriting to get their own sound, but makes up for it with passion and excitement. Bushwhack is the opposite. They're textbook musicians and textbook writers, but they play like old men who've spent their days honing their skills rather than honing their souls. They play as if rigor mortis has already set in. Nothing is loose. There are no chances, no improvisations. It is safe and sterile and those are two traits that never make up great rock n roll.

Ratings
Satriani: 9/10
Zappa: 4/10
Dylan: 4/10
Aretha: 2/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: New Found Glory - Hits

Label: Geffen Records

Released: March 18, 2008

A New Found Glory has always been a bit long on sappiness and short on edge, but when I bought Nothing Gold Can Stay, an album whose title is probably more a reference to S.E. Hinton than Robert Frost, it connected with me. It was an album that was geared toward kids 10 years or so younger than I was at the time, but rather than missing the 28 year-old that I was, it connected with the 18 year-old that was still within me. Sappy or not, that album will always be amazing to me for that reason. I sing along rather than cringe at its pop culture references.

New Found Glory not only dropped that charmingly awkward "A" from their name, but they also dropped everything else that appealed to me. Their self-titled album did include "Hit or Miss" and wasn't completely devoid of their special ability to make silly emo and pop-punk songs seem real, but it was waning. Beginning with Sticks & Stones, New Found Glory was just another band swimming in the overdramatic sea that had grown out of a promising genre. Whatever was special before was now entirely gone. They had succumbed to the formula.

Unfortunately, Hits culls its tracks from the days when there was nothing new about New Found Glory. Sure, "Hit or Miss" is there, but the real best of A New Found Glory is still Nothing Gold Can Stay. Hits may be aptly titled as it draws from their commercially successful period, but it is far from their best work.

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 4/10
Aretha: 3/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Howe - An Evening of Yes Music Plus

Label: MVD Entertainment Group

Released: February 19, 2008

After a brief introductory piece, this live recording from the 1989 ABWH tour moves into solo medleys by Anderson, Howe and Wakeman. While these clearly demonstrate things we already know (Wakeman and Howe are top notch technicians and Anderson is likely the not-so-distant descendant of an elf), there is little of real interest aside from a version of "Owner of a Lonely Heart" that feels quite different without Trevor Rabin. Things pick up with the group material, running through both Yes classics as well as new ABWH material. The album does lack the pristine sounds they created in the studio which would be a happy trade-off to capture the electricity of a live show. Instead, it's a trade-off for some alternate arrangements and a bunch of noodling, some of which are more interesting than others, but none of which is particularly compelling. Essentially, this is yet another live Yes recording, because ABWH is the first line-up since Tormato to even approach that of the classic Yes. The problem is really two-fold: First, Yes was a studio band that never offered much in the way of live energy on their live recordings even if they often reproduced the quality of their studio work and augmented that with alternate arrangements. Second, they were way past their prime. If a live Yes album is what you really want, stick to 1973's superior Yessongs or even 1980's Yesshows, because they capture the the band (along with their old friend Chris Squire) at a better time. The ABWH material on An Evening of Yes Music Plus is fine, but a step down from the studio versions as well as previous live recordings. This is essential (or even enjoyable really) for serious Yes fans only.

Ratings
Satriani: 8/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 7/10
Aretha: 3/10
Overall: 5/10

Review: Lead Belly Sings for Children

Label: Smithsonian Folkways

Released: March 23, 1999

Lead Belly is widely considered one of the greatest influences on modern American music, yet I know few who actually listen to him. That doesn't diminish his influence, but it does call into question whether he is directly relevant today or a generation or two removed. The follow-up question would then be, if he is no longer directly relevant, is that his flaw or ours? Lead Belly Sings for Children is able to answer the first question and at least hint at the answer to the second.

When I listened to this album for review, I deliberately did so with my kids present. If Lead Belly is singing for children after all, they may catch things that I, despite a strong distaste for adulthood, would miss at my age. I was hoping for some insight from them, unencumbered by life experiences, pretensions and soul-dulling pragmatism. What I got was...well, nothing. Perhaps my kids were just a little too young (they're four and one) or maybe they just watch too much TV to be engaged by this album, but I doubt it, because they both love music. My four-year-old likes Johnny Cash, Led Zeppelin and Soul Coughing, not Barney. My one-year-old is mesmerized when I play guitar (and believe me, he's the only one who thinks it's a treat). I think it's really just that these naive little shows that mesmerized kids in person 60 years ago, have lost their effect. If Huddie Ledbetter was still alive, surely he could keep the ear of even the worst case of ADHD in person and his lessons would not be lost, but not on a recording, not today. So, his relevance may be a generation removed, coming to us through the intermediaries of 60s folk and blues, but who's fault is that? Perhaps, no one's. Perhaps, as one of those he directly influenced said, the times are a-changin'. Or maybe our generation is still waiting for a music video.

Still, Smithsonian Folkways, as always, provides some excellent information about the recordings, Lead Belly's goals and how he mixed the silly with serious to teach real life lessons. As an education, the albums is fantastic. But as children's entertainment, it is lost in time.

Rating: (kids) 4/10; (adults) 8/10

Review: Ringo Starr - Liverpool 8

Label: Capitol/EMI

Released: January 15, 2008

Can Ringo Starr do anything without seeming like a goof? He was the comic relief for the Beatles and he's continued in that role during his solo career, including his latest release, Liverpool 8. It's a bit of a sentimental journey for Ringo it seems, but not one with a lot of depth. It benefits from being a band effort which includes ex-Eurythmic Dave Stewart once again and in it's best moments, the album produces some fun pop music with hooks simple enough for Ringo's flat voice to carry. Even when it relies too much on range-deprived Ringo's vocal skills, it has a light-hearted nature that makes it far less offensive than it could be, though not nearly as charming as he was on "Octopus's Garden" and the the like. It's pretty clear that Ringo learned more from McCartney's pop approach than he did from John's sarcastic wit. There's nothing here we haven't heard from Ringo before and the album, like his naive world-view expressed throughout, is best described as a well-meaning flop.

Rating: 4/10

Review: Seizure Crypt - Hello My Name Is Madness

Label: 316 Productions

Released: 2007

At their best, Seizure Crypt is a rehash of 80s New York hardcore, wavering between its earlier thin punk and later more metallic veins. Those high points are energetic, aggressive songs with the typical trappings of the genre: unbridled speed alternating with slow churning grooves, metallic riffs, growls, infectious anger. Both "The Deadend" and "Thankless" channel at least a little bit of Age of Quarrel-era Cro-Mags, but these are the exception. Most of Seizure Crypt's songs are mediocre hardcore tunes that fall well short of those they are emulating. Their dual vocal approach should serve to add some depth and color, but frankly, it's hardly noticeable. Sure, there are two voices, but they don't work together as a sum greater than its parts. There's just two separate singers, but nothing dynamic that results from them. To make matters worse, they throw in a bit Black Sabbath heaviness on "Herein the Problem Lies," but the song is so flat that it's stagnant next to the fast pace of the rest of the album rather than being a successful change-up. Inexplicably poor production courtesy of Don Fury, who's worked with a hardcore who's who from Agnostic Front to Youth of Today, may have hidden some strengths, but not likely enough to make this a must hear album even within the purist hardcore community. If Seizure Crypt were just a small scene local hardcore band, they might be a stand out, but not on the NYC or national stage. There's just too much competition and Hello My Name Is Madness doesn't offer enough to compete at that level.

Rating: 4/10

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Review: The Mystix - Blue Morning

Label:

Released: October 9, 2007

While the resumes of some members the Mystix may look impressive (Jerry Lee Lewis, Ben E King, Peter Wolf, even studio work at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals), don't be fooled. This is a group of session players, not a real band. They do play well together as session players often do, but there is little originality or real heart in the music.

Sure, Jo Lily's voice is perfect for their light blues and it's hard to find any technical fault in the guitar parts or the rhythm section. The trouble is, the blues shouldn't be perfect. That's its beauty and the Mystix rob it of that. A few tracks do come off better than others. "Change in Jane," for instance, is more of a ballad than it is straight blues, but they drop a bit of emotion on it and it's believable. Then they follow it up with "New Orleans," a song so chock full of cliches that I suspect they've only been there as tourists. That really illustrates their biggest problem: They do what's expected of them. There are no surprises on Blue Morning. Even though everyone in the band plays at a level where they could take off at any time, they choose instead to play it safe.

For those that have some fondness for bluesy pop and don't want any challenges, the Mystix are for you. They're the Fabulous Thunderbirds without the heart or the charm. They're George Thoroughgood without a sense of humor or a real appreciation for the emotive nature of the blues. I'm sure this album is for someone, but not me.

Rating: 4/10

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Review: Hellcity 13 - s/t

Label: Break a Leg Entertainment

Released: October 24, 2007

Going into this review, I was under the impression that Helsinki's Hellcity 13 was just another Scandanavian glam band, but unlike the rest, they don't just want to revive hair metal, they want to revive the 80s almost as a whole. There is hard rock bombast that runs throughout the album, but I thought of Dead or Alive as often as I did Def Leppard. In many ways, they are able to bring AOR, glam, goth and synth pop together into one retro package. The trouble is that this combination, as seemlessly as they pull it off, is making music out of the least common denominator. Sure, they occasionally muster up a little bit of swagger and once in awhile they might even make you want to dance, but mostly they're just a reminder that rock and pop had hit a creative low point in the 80s.

They capture the musical aspects of the Reagan-era at all levels, from the writing to the performance to the production, and for those who aren't bothered by the decade's shallow veneer, Hellcity 13 are entirely competent to help them live in the past. For those who want anything more, move along. That's as much as this album offers.

Rating: 4/10

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Review: Hanslick Rebellion - The Rebellion is Here (live)

Label: July 10, 2007

Released: Eschatone Records

The Hanslick Rebellion was once heralded as "possibly the finest band to ever call Albany home" (by a writer from the local paper). I suppose that might be true, but it's still not much of a case for greatness. Neither is the re-issue of this ten-plus-year-old live recording. Back in the 90s, the band established themselves as a regional college crowd favorite and for good reason. They play a loose, jam oriented brand of rock that seems to thrive in every college town. Their originals have that kind of inside-joke rapport with the crowd that makes a band very popular with the locals, but never seems to translate out in the big wide world. Like every local college favorite, they do their share of covers and they do them well. They add funky energy to the Modern Lovers' "Pablo Picasso" and do the B-52s doing Syd Barrett on "Vegetable Man." They throw in a medley that mixes the Archies and Mighty Mighty Bosstones into "Heroin" which has some tongue-in-cheek charm. The covers are certainly more fun than the originals, but not a single one is even remotely essential.

While the album does capture the live experience well, the Hanslick Rebellion merely manages to give their spin on the forced quirkiness of bands like Barenaked Ladies, just a little angrier and a little less clever. People who enjoyed the local scene around UAlbany in the mid-90s will probably find this to be a fond memory, because the show was clearly a fine time, but that charm is lost on the rest of us.

Rating: 4/10

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Review: The Sojourners - Hold On

Label: Black Hen Music

Released: September 24, 2007

When gospel music is on, there's almost nothing that can touch it, but when it's off, it's an awfully tough listen. When I first read about the Sojourners' Hold On, I was intrigued. Here was a trio singing traditional gospel in a traditional style rather than the R&B for Jesus that typically passes for gospel these days. In a sense, the album was all it claimed to be and that made it all the more disappointing when it didn't live up to my expectations.

There is no doubt that Martcus Mosely, Will Sanders and Ron Small can sing. They can harmonize well, but what they fail to do is to truly sing together. They lack the synergy that puts the punch in gospel music. To make matters worse, the backing band, although they do the right thing by sticking to acoustic instruments, have all the energy of a studio band, not a church band. The result is gospel music as it might come out of a barbershop quartet or a vaudeville show.

They do rise to the occasion on "Run On" and "Walking Up the King's Highway," but on "Jesus Hits Like the Atom Bomb," a song that should certainly have a bang, they exhibit the same lack of explosiveness that pervades the album. All the pieces are in place, traditional gospel, traditional instrumentation, traditional arrangements, good singers, but Hold On still feels like a lackluster sermon.

Rating: 4/10

Review: Turbo Fruits

Label: Ecstatic Peace

Released: July 17, 2007

Most of Turbo Fruits' self-titled album's strengths and weaknesses can be summarized by simply reviewing one song, their cover of the MC5's cover of "Ramblin' Rose." Both versions attempt to release enormous energy on the listener in the same way that an atomic bomb releases it's energy on a target. It takes a smaller explosion to create the exponentially larger one. The trick with the music as with the bomb is for the small explosion to keep it together to reach critical mass and detonate the real blast. The MC5, live, on the first track of their first album, are like freakin' Oppenheimer. They walk that very dangerous line, not sure that they can control the process, but they do and the result is brighter than a thousand suns. Turbo Fruits on the other hand have the energy of the small explosion, a pedestrian, conventional energy, an energy that has been harnessed and used for simple purposes by countless bands. But they never reach critical mass before everything breaks down, the real explosion never goes off and, next to the MC5's atomic bomb, theirs doesn't just pale, it's as imperceptible as a firecracker.

Luckily, most of the album doesn't have to live up to the MC5, but that doesn't change what Turbo Fruits do well and do poorly. Often the songs are loose to the point of floundering, because few of them have enough substance to keep the music on even a meandering path. A few do have moments that get into a groove and "Volcano" adds some quirky stops, making me wonder why they didn't focus on being a little odd rather than just being unrestrained. They do try to infuse the music with a lot of energy, but they're not strong enough as either players or writers to split musical atoms.

Rating: 4/10

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Review: D'Edwin - No Prognosis

Label: Action Rezults Records (Available from CD Baby)

Released: 2007

To some extent, D'Edwin can get away with his unabashed mimicking of Morrissey, because he hasn't graduated into the big leagues yet, but there has to be some substance to his music beyond a good Morrissey impression. On No Prognosis, that substance is erratic at best.

The opening track, "Secret Assassin," does have some of that substance with an Eastern influence and wind instruments providing an ambient backdrop. However, even this, the album's best song, falls into the trap that so many find themselves in when artists work alone in these days of inexpensive electronic effects. (It's the same trap that D'Edwin falls into as a graphic artist when he committed his Photoshop sins on the album cover.) If you're bothered by the double-tracked vocals, that's nothing compared to the birds singing in "I Don't Recall." The bottom line is that you can't fill out your sound with effects in lieu of a band. If in doubt, err on the side of simplicity and D'Edwin, albeit far from the worst offender, errs on the side of over-processing. He takes a decent song like the opener or the EP's more organic final track, "I Abhor," and makes it sound more amateur than it is.

However, most of the songs do remain listenable if you have any affinity for 80s alternative music and you're willing to grant D'Edwin a few indulgences for inexperience, lack of funds or any other excuse that seems plausible. There is one track though that cannot be excused. Anyone with any ear at all can recognize that "Lazy Train" should never have seen the light of day. D'Edwin's small foray into techno, the song displays a book knowledge of how techno songs are built and absolutely no ability to actually build one.

All that being said, I actually enjoyed this album on some level, partly because I like the Smiths and partly because it reminds me of some of the underground post-punk experimentation of the 80s. Plus, D'Edwin isn't without talent. The first and last tracks have real potential and assuming that his well isn't dry so much as it isn't fully tapped for a consistent flow, he certainly could grow. Still, none of these things actually make No Prognosis good.


Rating: 4/10

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Review: Underground Rebels - Insult to Injury

Label: self-released

Released: 2007

The Underground Rebels have a decent hard rock pedigree featuring former Faster Pussycat guitarist Brent Muscat and former Cult drummer Lez Warner, but the band is really the creative (or not so creative) child of singer/guitarist Kurt Frohlich. Those expecting the swagger of Faster Pussycat or gritty hard rock of Electric-era Cult, beware, because this album won't measure up to those expectations.

It actually starts off well enough, delivering good energy and at least some catchiness even if it isn't breaking any new ground. Unfortunately for the glam fans who might be drawn to this, the better of the two actually sounds more like pop punk than hair metal. Over the course of the album, there are a few tracks that repeat the semi-success of the first two, but most of the album gets bogged down in being bland and generic, borrowing from the likes of Def Leppard, Billy Squier and even Godsmack (yikes!). Toward the end they try to capture a bit of Stonesy swagger, but end up sounding even weaker than the Stones themselves these days. The Underground Rebels also offer a pair of covers, "Tainted Love" and "War Pigs." The former comes out okay, but largely due to the fun inherent in the song, not due to any compelling elements of their version. Their "War Pigs" cover is the real disaster though. If you're going to cover Black Sabbath, either make it heavy (like most bands) or make it different (like the Cardigans' excellent cover of "Iron Man"). They do neither, offering up instead what might as well be the elevator version. It's sad.

The Underground Rebels try to create their sound be bringing together the most generic elements of popular music and the result is fairly amateur. They (or Frohlich at least) don't seem to be in a good place as artists. They're trying to make a record that sells based on what has sold in the past rather than gambling on what may sell in the future or being true to an artistic vision. The result is an album that would have some appeal and perhaps a little more novelty value for glam fans, but little for the rest of us.

Rating: 4/10

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DVD: Various Artists - SXSW Live 2007

Label: Shout! Factory

Released: August 21, 2007

John Lennon once said, "If there wasn't a fight, it wasn't a good gig." So, what is it if no one even moves? Lennon was clearly arguing that a sterile show is never good and sterility is exactly the problem with SXSW Live 2007. The DVD is a collection of songs from shows at two Austin venues, the Bat Bar and the Lonestar Lounge, during SXSW back in March. While some of the artists offer decent performances the clubs and the crowds hardly have a pulse.

The Bat Bar was certainly the lesser show space. The stage was right out of Dick Clark's New Years Rockin' Eve and so was the crowd. Most of the performances were stiff, likely dulled by the lifeless audience. The Automatic Automatic's Alex Pennie jumped down into the crowd, but even this failed to invigorate them as he returned to the stage almost untouched. An impressive performance from Aqualung, pushing the boundaries of pop, didn't fare any better. Bowling for Soup, a band I'm sure well used to a rowdy crowd, had a few people jumping up and down, albeit carefully as not to crowd their neighbors. Even Polyphonic Spree's revival-fueled show got nary a heartbeat from the crowd. I have to wonder, do those people even like rock music?

Things got a little better at the Lonestar Lounge. It's really a sad comment on the Bat Bar that a place that looks like a Texas Roadhouse restaurant is a step up. The filming is much better during this segment, because it focuses on the artists rather than this lackluster crowd. Marc Broussard hits his groove with no help from the audience. Annuals push the envelope as if everything depended on their set. Mando Diao feed off of each other for an energetic performance. Joe Purdy manages to separate himself from time and place and lose at least a little control. But Lee "Scratch" Perry seemed as old as he is even if his message was current. His band, though younger chronologically, seemed even older. Kraak & Smaak had a soulful groove, but their stage presence was almost non-existent. Mostly, the artists lacked any of the edge that you'd expect them to have in the make-or-break environment that an event like SXSW supposedly is.

With all the hype surrounding SXSW each year, I expected that it was a great event, but if this DVD is indicative of what it's like, and worse yet what the future of rock and roll holds, we're in for some lean years. Most of the bands probably expected to make an impression with the right clothes and a safe set rather than taking the chances that have traditionally driven rock music, and all art, forward. The best I can say about this collection is that you might find a few artists to check out if you can try to picture what they would they be like at a real show.

Rating: 4/10

Review: The Residudes - Welcome to the Suck

Label: Locomotive Records

Released: July 17, 2007

For a genre that has produced some of rock's most creative movements, punk has also produced more than its fair share of covers. From cover albums to cover bands, it seems that every time I turn around, there's another punk cover out there. While some of these have been very clever, most of them have relied solely on speed and power chords and that got old awfully fast.

The Residudes' Welcome to the Suck is a whole album of punk rock-ified covers that pretends that we haven't had enough yet. True, they do nail several of them. Their version of the Kinks' "Coming Dancing" makes me think of slam dancing, not the dance halls of post-WW II England. The irony of playing John Denver's "Country Roads" at a breakneck pace isn't lost, because they somehow still capture some small part of the original. Their "Oi! Oi! Oi!" chant in the "Cheers" theme makes me wonder why it wasn't in the original. Sadly, these tracks run back to back, so the best the album has to offer comes in one burst.

Unfortunately, for every one they hit, they have another one that misses. Simon & Garfunkel's "The Boxer" loses all it's form and would be almost unrecognizable without the lyrics. "Mothers Little Helper" ends up being a jumbled mess in their attempt to stir it up. If you ever wondered why anyone would bother covering Tommy Tutone, the Residudes cover of "867-5309 Jenny" won't answer that question. Perhaps worse still is their cover of the classic ode to drinking, "Alcohol," which sounds like a Gang Green tribute band.

Most of the album though is made up of renditions that fall somewhere in the middle. In the right mood, they might be fun, but none are essential. Perhaps if you just can't enough of Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Welcome to the Suck has a lot to offer, but personally I can't imagine being in that position. Most of the covers are competent and taken piecemeal they will provide some entertainment value, but as a whole, it's a tedious listen.

Rating: 4/10