Dudley Perkins - Expressions (2012 A.U.)

80%
A genius producer teams up with a rapper-turned-singer-who-can't-really-sing for an album that's a clear throwback to the 70's. No, it's not Gnars Barkley, it's Dudley Perkins's new album, "Expressions (2012 A.U.)". Some may remember Dudley from when he got his start as MC Declaime on the Liks' breakthrough "Coast II Coast" album. Now under his government name and signed to indie rap's premier label, Stones Throw Records, he takes a stab at singing, with decidely interesting results. And who's the genius producer? Well, it's Stones Throw's in-house maestro, Madlib.

So how's his singing? Technically, pretty terrible. It's pretty obvious he has had no formal training of any sort. On the other hand, he's got something in there, maybe it's just loads of charisma, maybe it's his carefree attitude, maybe it's best described by words we cannot define but we know them when we hear them: funk and soul. You hear it in Eddie Hazel's guitar and Maceo Parker's horns and Bootsy Collins's bass, and you hear traces of it here. Actually, maybe Bootsy's singing is the best comparison, it's not so great in a lot of contexts, but in his Rubber String Band, it was incredibly appealing. It makes even Perkins himself ask, "Dudley, how'd you get so funky?", on the album's first track, "Funky Dudley".

As far as Madlib, he's only here to cement his reputation. Madlib's name might not be on the cover, but truly, this is his album. From the magnificently funky licks of "Funky Dudley" or the creeping keys and seductive bassline of "Come Here my Dear", it's all pretty incredible. Dudley wouldn't sound nearly as good over anyone else's production.

The lyrics are either sung or rapped or somewhere in between. Dudley manages to be appealing if not techinically incredible at any point (his rapping technique is by no means bad, but he's not Rakim). The lyrics revolve around different aspects of life - sadness, love, god, weed, so on. The truth is that Dudley's not an amazing lyrcist. Competent? By far. Amazing? No. However, he has a knack for honesty which works well for his delivery.

And as previously mentioned, weed plays a big part here. There's the sound - even the skit, "Domestic Interlude" has speakers which the people seemed to have intentionally lowered their pitch and appear incredibly high - and then there's direct references just in case you didn't get the clues.

Madlib has a knack for unpredictability. His beats stutter and samples come through at unexpected times. However, it doesn't sound random, just carefree. It really only adds to the whole feel of the CD. It's like he's driving a car and you're in the passenger seat: first he goes slowly, speeds up in a straight line, and just as you see your destination, he takes a sharp right turn and suddenly you're sent out flying, and just as soon as you feel like you're going to hit the ground, he's there again to pick you up, and you're at your destination. Sorry for the odd metaphor, but what I'm trying to say is this: he sets up an expectation in your mind with what he's going to do, then he does something completely different, but then somehow he always ends up where you thought he would.

While Perkins's previous album came off as a mess, "Expressions" has enough focus and organization to seem unified enough. Of course, it's by no means tight - it's way loose, actually, but there is at least focus throughout.

Although teaming up with a really capable singer with really great lyrics would have been awesome, part of the charm here is Dudley's everyman voice and his carefree honesty. Some songs, however, really suffer from a lack of a really well-sung hook, an example of this is "Inside". Then there's the "Domestic Interlude" and "The Last Stand", which have music but are not really songs, and although they're not entirely without merit, they do seem kind of pointless.

At the end, the album begins to lose focus a bit, but thankfully "Dear God" is a really strong closer, funny but at the same time touching. There's even a conversation with God about weed thrown in there.

"Expressions (2012 A.U.)" works best as a whole, and it probably sounds best while under the influence of marry-wanna. Madlib's musical recycling, cut-and-paste genius cannot be overstated here - he's really cemented his position as hip-hop's most creative, consistent producer. Dudley complements the music well, and manages to overcome technical shortcomings to sound appealing and especially entertaining. It's really just a fun, well-made, funky ride.

- Luis

Peeping Tom - Peeping Tom

71%
"The truth kinda hurts, don’t it motherfucker?"

If I gave you a hundred guesses to figure out which guest vocalist sings those words on this CD, you would probably never guess Norah Jones. There probably isn't an easier way to underscore how different this album is to what your expectations may be for it.

But to call Mike Patton different or unpredictable would be an understatement. Best known as the lead singer of alternative metal outfit Faith No More, Patton split into several projects - everything from heading avant-garde bands like Mr. Bungle and Fantomas to singing with metalcore/jazz-fusion band The Dillinger Escape Plan to collaborating with the foremost DJ group in the world, The X-Ecutioners. After getting to more avant-garde extremes musically, his vocals were less sung words but more screams, growls, and sound effects.

Perhaps the last thing anyone expected Mike Patton to do then, is to tone down his experimental nature and announce that he was making a pop album. Or perhaps we should have all expected it, considering Patton has a track record of doing the unexpected.

Either way, Peeping Tom is Patton's new project where he collaborates with a guest artist for every song. According to him, it's his attempt at making a pop record, or what he would put on the radio if he controlled it, but it's by no means Patton singing along to your average pop-rock music - for the most part, actually, it has a strong trip-hop bent. Patton is almost unmatched in terms of pure vocal talent, and here he cuts down on the weird vocal stylings for more straight-up singing.

Despite advertised as a bit of a pop album, "Peeping Tom" is hardly accessible. As an example, I could barely bring myself to really listen to the trip-hop/D'n'B of "Don't Even Trip" (featuring Amon Tobin).

The second song, "Mojo" opens with the world's foremost beat-boxer, Rahzel, doing a jungle-type beat. The beat, no doubt constructed by the other collaborator, Dan "The Automator", keeps on with the eeire electronics with a little beatboxing from Rahzel mixed in.

Old-school innovator turned indie rap hero Kool Keith guests on "Get Away", although it seems the other way around: Keith does all the verses while Patton handles the hook. Although being reduced to hook singer on your own album might not be such a good thing, I actually did enjoy that song a bit.

The next song, "Your Neighborhood Spaceman" (his second collaboration with Odd Nosdam) has keys eerily reminiscent of Aerosmith's seminal power ballad "Dream On". Patton does deviate from singing a little on this song, doing a quasi-rap. It actually works quite well, and the song is one of the album's high points. He does deviate at points from his singing throughout the album, from a vocal freakout on the opener "Five Seconds" to a whisper on "Mojo".

His collaboration with Massive Attack, "Kill the DJ" isn't as good as it could have been, given the amount of talent involved. Going from eerie electronica/hip-hop/metal type sounds, I was suprised to hear "Caipirinha". It features Bebel Gilberto (João Gilberto's daughter) to a bossa-nova-tinged backing. Semi-suprisingly, the song shifts to chunky synths on the chorus before returning to the acoustic guitar-driven verses.

"How U Feelin'?" features Doseone, and it may be good as far as Anticon goes, but then again, Anticon sucks. Then there's the bizarre Norah Jones duet "Sucker", which is as weird as the rest of the album. Norah's breathy delivery of the "motherfucker" line comes off as awkward, but then again, it might kill the point if it wasn't. The album closes with another eeire number: the "We're Not Alone" remix featuring the Dub Trio. Patton sings in a falsetto for a bit, then briefly two hard rock guitar chords and two crashes are hit and he's in a full-on scream. Then he goes back to the falsetto and the music relaxes again. Then the chorus hits hard again. Mike Patton is about the only guy who can pull it off as well as he does here, and the song is about as close as pop/rock this album comes to.

Although there were claims that Mike Patton had made a pop record, those claims are pretty much untrue. Although Mike reigns in a bit (this isn't the "metal dadaism" of Fantomas nor the chaos of the Dillinger Escape Plan), it'd be a real stretch to call "Peeping Tom" "accesible". Patton flirts with electronica and hip-hop about as much each, resulting in a trip-hop vibe. The real star here though, is Mike's vocals: few can pull off what he does so effectively throughout the album. "Peeping Tom" is Patton's most accessible project since Faith No More, so both Patton fans and Faith No More fans will eat it up. That being said, however, it doesn't make enough of a grab to a more accessible sound to appeal to a mainstream audience to garner too many new fans. Of course, that to many is commendable so it hardly seems like fair criticism. On the other hand, I didn't find enough compelling music to justify that. In other words, Mike's attempt at a pop record seems half-hearted, which only ends up weakening his own experimental nature and doesn't add enough in the way of accessibility to make up for it.

- Luis

Les Claypool - Of Whales and Woe

78%
Les Claypool is definitely not your average rock bassist. Best known for his stint in the funk-metal band Primus, Claypool has won legions of supporters not only for his virtuosity, but for his quirky sense of humour. At the same time, some find his playing overly self-indulgent and his humour too weird or out of place.

Claypool's bass playing is intricate, complex, and yet always groovy. He combines elements of heavy metal, funk, and progresive rock into his own unique style - his main inspirations are Geddy Lee of Rush and Larry Graham of Sly & the Family Stone.

With Claypool's new solo outing, "Of Whales and Woe", he doesn't set out to change those opinions much. Instead, he does what he does best: he plays the hell out of the bass guitar and he makes unapolageticaly odd music with odd lyrics.

While Claypool has always been the dominant force in his many bands (usually playing bass and doing vocals, even in supergroups like Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains and Oysterhead), this dominance is much more pronounced on his solo album, which is logical, being that it is a solo record. Not only is there less guitar than in his other bands, but when there is a guitar, it's Claypool playing it. Not only that, but he also plays drums. To support him, he brings in saxophonist Skerik and vibraphonist Mike Dillon (both from Colonel Les Claypool's Fearless Flying Frog Brigade) and multi-instrumentalist Gabby La La.

The opener, "Back Off Turkey" is an interesting song which serves mostly as an introduction. His 2 children play on it, which is also interesting. In the end however, it's not something you would want to hear more than once.

Which brings us to the second track, "One Better". The cut opens with a funky bass groove which Claypool seems to be constantly changing throughout the song. It has all sorts of weird instrumentation, but it doesn't sound just weird for the hell of it. It actually works pretty well. Even still, the focus remains on the bass.

"Lust Stings" features more guitar work and some really odd singing from Claypool. It's the kind of odd work some will adore and others won't "get" (count me in the latter group for the most part). The title track doesn't do much for me until Claypool breaks into a full jam, where he displays his considerable chops. The Indian-tinged "Vernon the Company Man" features Gabby La La on sitar. Les's vocals are mostly spoken, and it sounds like a poem set to music. Gabby La La actually takes center stage for the most part, with her soloing and Claypool providing a pulsating rhythm with his bass.

"Phantom Patriot" returns to another funky bass riff with quasi-rap vocals and an intentionally over-the-top chorus (made to the reflect the superhero-ish vibe of the subject matter) that grows on you.

A lot of these songs sound like Captain Beefheart or Frank Zappa and the Mothers, especially due to the vibraphone work and Claypool's sillyness and narrator vocal style. However, a lot of them sound like Graham Central Station due to the funky bass playing.

"Iowan Girl" has very little else but Claypool playing bass (I've heard people do that with a six string guitar, but not wit a bass guitar). The vocals are made up of quirky singing about girls from Iowa. Finally about halfway through a bassdrum and a tamoburine kick in and Claypool makes the bass guitar melt with a ridiculous solo. It's probably the best song on here.

Included in here is the theme song to the goofball "Robot Chicken" series on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. The fact that it doesn't sound out of place on here should speak volumes about just how quirky Les can be.

To me, alot of times Les's vocals can get in the way of his playing. Sometimes they can add to it, but a lot of times they are just odd additions that the song could do without. Perhaps acknowledging this slightly, Claypool ends the album on the instrumental "Off-White Guilt" (I chuckled at the song title - how often does that happen? Not often enough since the days of the days of Sheik Yerbouti, I say). It's another interesting musical composition, even if Claypool doesn't get to shine too much on it.

This is one of Claypool's more consistently good non-Primus outings. This is a must for all that love Claypool, and fans of Primus will not be dissapointed. Bass freaks will probably thoroughly enjoy Claypool's solos and bass lines. People more in the middle (like me) will find things to like - namely some groovy basslines and some awesome solos, and things that don't work as well - like the vocals or the oddball instrumentation. For the rest and the uninitiated, it will likely fly way over their heads (this is probably not the place to start). Claypool is an acquired taste, but for those who have acquired it, "Of Whales and Woe" is highly reccomended.

- Luis

Busta Rhymes - The Big Bang

56%
Ever since exploding on the scene on A Tribe Called Quest's posse cut "Scenario", Busta Rhymes had a knack for stealing the show through his sheer manical energy. In recent efforts, however, we all became accustomed to it. Suddenly, his unmatched voice felt tired. The relatively low sales of his last album, "It Ain't Safe No More" furthered this point.

At the same time, New York, the birthplace of hip-hop and it's most dominant city commercially has been experiencing a slow decline. Currently, Southern hip-hop is reigning, at least in terms of sales. Busta Rhymes has envisioned a comeback - not only for him, but for the whole New York scene. His album titles have a tendency towards hyperbole (example: "Extinction Level Event (Final World Front)") and irrelevancy ("Anarchy") but "The Big Bang" is neither. It's exactly the kind of impact he wants to make.

Now signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath label, he has the monetary and artistic backing to attempt such an important record. From the opener, "Get You Some", there is a wealth of talent working together. Not only is it produced by Dr. Dre, it features Q-Tip (ex-ATCQ) and Marsha from Floetry (no, not the one with the fucked up teeth. The fat mannish-looking one.) Dre's production has weird keyboard work and booming drums, and it wouldn't have sounded that out of place on a 50 Cent album. Busta uses it as an expression of purpose. In the end, it's alright, but it's no big bang.

The big single, "Touch It" is produced by Swizz Beatz and samples Daft Punk. Busta does an admirable effort, switching from a relaxed rap to the full madman shouting in seconds. Unfortunatly, the chorus is annoying and it doesn't have much musically going on. However, credit must be given for not including any of the 87 "Touch It" remixes that have popped up randomly here and there.

"New York Shit" is an attempt at an accompanying anthem to Busta's planned New York revitalization. Swizz handles the chorus, but it's produced by DJ Scratch who takes from a Diamond D beat pretty much entirely.

In case you're missing the trend, there's an average of more than one guest star per song. "Been through the Storm" even brings in Stevie Wonder, but only to sing. It's a wasted shot however - not only because of the generic (although not bad) production (courtesy of Sha Money XL and Dr. Dre) but because he sings generic lyrcs in manner like he's imitating Wyclef Jean imitating Bob Marley.

To further prove the point, not only does he bring in Stevie, he brings in Rick James back from the dead on THE NEXT TRACK (by heavily sampling "Ghetto Life"). The song ("In the Ghetto") is produced by DJ Green Lantern with help from Dr. Dre, and it works for the most part except for the alternatively super high pitched and super low pitched voices that sing "In the Ghetto", which come off as either laughable or irritating or laughably irritating.

I actually enjoyed the next 3 songs (to varying degrees) - "Cocaina" (featuring Marsha, produced by Dr. Dre), "Goldmine" (featuring Raekwon, produced by Erick Sermon) and especially "You Can't Hold a Torch" (featuring Q-Tip and Chauncey Black, produced by the late J-Dilla). "Torch" has a throwback vibe, accentuated by a nice guest appearance from Q-Tip.

The roll is interrupted by the cliche of "I Love my Bitch" featuring Kelis and Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am. Thankfully, the album returns to better songs with "Don't Get Carried Away" featuring a pretty good guest shot from Nas and a somewhat over the top but still entertaing beat from Dr. Dre.

The next song is "They're Out to Get Me", produced by "Mr." Denaun Porter (member of D-12, or is it D-10 now?), who has been playing keyboards all throughout the album, and it actually works pretty well. He also sings (perhaps deliberatly) off-key, which should have been re-thought. After the kinda meh "Get Down" (produced by Timbaland), we end on 2 odd songs. First, there's "I'll do it All", (featuring Laitoya Jackson), with all sorts of weird keyboard work and no bassdrum. Lastly, there is "Legend of the Fall Offs", an utterly bleak end to the album with a weird sound effect for a snare and some crickets chirping. It also kinda works for what it is.

To Busta's credit, he delivers pretty well and manages to shine through the slew of guest stars. It's weird when Busta has to steal even his *own* show, but it shows how good he can be that he's mostly successful at it.

Inexplicably, 3 songs which are better than most of what's on here that had already been released are not present. First, there is "Rough around the Edges", featuring Nas over a haunting choir-based beat. It's slightly better than the Nas featured song on the actual album. Then there's "I'll Hurt You", a song that features Eminem and a stop-and-start violin-based beat courtesy of Scott Storch. Lastly, there is "Where's Your Money?", another beat supplied by the late J-Dilla featuring the late Ol' Dirty Bastard working his usual genius. Those last 2 songs are better than anything on the actual album, so I have no idea why they were cut.

Ultimatley, for all the lofty goals and the amount of money funneled into this project, "The Big Bang" is mostly a disappointment. Loyal Busta fans won't be all that dissapointed, since he brings his usual style with enough twists to not sound too tired, but the rest of us won't find much to like. My advice: run your Soulseek or your Limewire or whatever it is you have (and I know you have it, you internets pirates), and get "You Can't Hold a Torch", "I'll Hurt You" and "Where's Your Money?". 'Cause a "Big Bang" this is not.

- Luis

Graham Coxon - Love Travels at Illegal Speeds

79%
After a string of solo albums as side projects, Graham Coxon enters his sixth as only his second after being a member of Blur. While ex-bandmate Damon Albarn may be drawing the most attention for his Gorillaz group and electronic/trip-hop work, Coxon direction remains on what brought him here: Britpop with loud guitars.

Coxon main role is guitarist, and he still is admirable. He performs all the instruments on the album, and it's hard to complain. As a singer, he does a good job even if you could replace him with a dozen other British singers and it wouldn't do much of a difference.

Coxon recalls punk-pop in the pre-Blink 182 era - it's fun and loud and catchy but not stupid. "I Can't Look At Your Skin" is a good example of this, a catchy, high-energy song with a pretty cool guitar lead. Then, on track 4, "Just A State of Mind" he slows down. Quite thankfully, Coxon delivers pretty solidly on these as well.

But the real point of the album are the rocking numbers like "Gimme Some Love". Despite this, some of the slower songs are needed or else it would get rather redundant.

Unsuprisingly, the lyrics in "Love Travels at Illegal Speeds" deal with love, and all aspects of it. Of course, 9 out of 10 songs ever written are about some form of love, so it's quite easy to fall into cliche. Coxon falls into a lot of cliches, but thankfully he doesn't repeat them very often. Some songs are pretty cliche but they are sung with enough feeling and with good enough music to excuse the lyrics - "What's He Got?" is a pretty good example of this.

The album doesn't have a lot of suprising turns. It's mostly all pretty solid Britpop. And it may be for the better - sure it's not much but britpop-punk, but it's good at what it does.

Fans of Blur will probably enjoy this, and fans of Coxon's previous solo work will no doubt like it (it's probably Coxon's best solo album to date). People looking for a good, energetic and catchy bit of Britpop will surely be satisfied. Just don't expect that much else, because it's not much else. And really, why should it be?

- Luis

The Coup - Pick a Bigger Weapon

79%
Radically political music has not found a platform for popularity in the modern day. Essentially, big record companies do not want to sign an artist that opposses "the system", because, well, the compaines are part of the system. More simply put, what CEO would sign The Coup, famous for their song "5 Million Ways to Kill a CEO", (sample lyrics: "you could throw a twenty in a vat of hot oil / when he jump in after it, watch him boil")?

Radically political, Oakland's The Coup has been making music since 1993. The group is compromised of rapper Raymond "Boots" Riley and DJ Pam the Funktress. They are perhaps unfortunatly best remembered for their infamous unreleased album cover (made before 9/11) where they are shown in front of an explosion going off in the World Trade Center. Their love for 70's funk mixed with contemporary politics, as well as their attempts to portray a hard political message while still creating invigorating music that would not sound out of place at a party recalls Public Enemy.

The Coup hires a few people to perform live instrumentation reminiscent of 70's music, particularly funk or soul. Also, some of the songs have a considerable Prince tinge to them (re-inforced by the more "sexy" lyrics offered on some songs by Riley). The live band features Tony Toni Toné's Dwayne Wiggins and alumni of Maze, Parliament and The Gap Band.

The album doesn't pick up until track 3, "Laugh, Love, Fuck", thanks to it's funky lead synth and slap bass. Track 4, "My Favorite Mutiny" tries an Issac Hayes-type soul which works really well, and features good guest verses from Black Thought (of the Roots) and Talib Kweli. The chorus doesn't work as well, but it kind of grows on you. The song takes on a suprising instrumental portion at the end, which is unexpected but also really cool.

Indie rap has a tendency to be overly pretentious and "intelligent and deep" (read: boring), something that this album's label, Epitaph (the most successfull indie label ever, I do believe) has been a stronghold for. Given this, it's nice to hear a group that still wants to have fun.

At the same time, given Oakland's now-semi-mainstream "hyphy" movement (advertised as the new "crunk" of 2006), it's also nice to hear a group from that area sounding so different (remember when everyone in Atlanta wanted to sound like Lil' Jon? Yeah, now everyone in Oakland wants to sound like E-40. It's a little ridiculous, if you ask me, but I digress). The group sounds smart and diverse but at the same time fun, which is a real plus (to quote Chris Rock: "some conscious rappers need some ignorant beats").

"IJustWannaLayAroundAllDayAndBeWithYou" has a sexy soul Curtis Mayfield-ish vibe to it, which is cool, but it doesn't really work as a rap song (and whoever sings on these choruses needs to get their act together). It also has a nice instrumental portion at the end. "Head (of State)" has a pretty good history rap from Boots Riley ("war ain't about one land against the next / it's poor people dyin' so the rich cash checks") with a terrible chorus ("Bush and Hussein together in bed / giving each other h-e-a-d, head!" Yeah. What?). It also doesn't have the kind of great enough music to excuse that chorus.

"ShoYoAss" has a Quiet Storm vibe (not really my thing) that works pretty well for what it is and but also has a nice funky keyboard solo at the end. "Yes 'Em to Death" is part of what I do believe is one of the worst trends to ever have affected hip-hop music. It's a "skit." 90% of these are horribly unfunny and a general waste of time, but thankfully this kind of serves a point - to introduce the next song. It's 1:17 long and 90% of it could have been cut to same the serve purpose.

The next song "Ass-Breath Killers" is kinda (but only kinda) funny (about fictional pills which make you stop kissing ass) and it has a pretty alright bit of keyboard and scratching and a real nice guitar at the end, although it's hardly special. "Get that Monkey off your Back" has a "Dirty Mind"-era Prince feel, which is a plus, but it kind of lacks really good vocals. The band keeps on a commendable roll with "Mindfuck (A New Equation)", although Boots tries his breathier, low-key flow which I'm not a big fan of. "Two Enthusiastic Thumbs Down!" features former Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra doing a spoken-word bit, but its 1:15 long and it's not entertaining.

Lyrically, the album is really diverse and at times almost confusing - there's "Ass-Breath Killers" , "I Love Boosters!" (a light-heartedly funky song celebrating people who steal from department stores and re-sell the products), "Tiffany" (a story about a woman which sends a message in a story without preaching), etc.

"BabyLet'sHaveABabyBeforeBushDoSomethin'Crazy" (no, I have no idea what the point of ridonkulously long song titles with no spaces in them is) features R&B singer Silk E doing all the vocals, and it's kind of slow and not all that entertaining.

"Captain Sterling's Little Problem" features current Audioslave (and ex-Rage Against the Machine) guitar genius Tom Morello doing an OK wah-wah riff while the bass drum booms and the snare stutters. Unforuneatly it's nowhere near as cool as it should be, cause it sounds rather bare-bones (in an incomplete way) and the vocals aren't great either. At the end there's some weird sound which may or may not be a guitar solo (you never really know with Tom Morello). It's kind of interesting, but it's definitely no "Bulls on Parade". The album closes on a more D'Angelo-ish note with "The Stand", which is alright but not special.

Ultimately, The Coup does an admirable effort. Boots Riley never gets too serious and preachy but is able to deliver a message, and at times tries to be funny or silly. He's clever and good enough to almost make it all work, but it doesn't quite. The backing music is pretty solid throughout, although it kind of falters in the second half of the disc. The Coup draws heavily from Public Enemy and Prince, and despite not besting either's heydays, "Pick a Bigger Weapon" is a better album than any of those two's 2006 releases (think about that one). The Coup manages to be both smart and fun more often than not, and "Pick a Bigger Weapon" is largely a success.

- Luis

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium

66%
The Chili Peppers are back after a 4 year (damn, it's been that long?) hiatus. The band has been creating a funk-metal/alternative rock/rap/the kitchen sink fusion for quite a bit, and quite successfully so (both artistically and commercially). After their commercial success, perhaps they feel as though that they are at the top of their game and can't go wrong, and the ambition here is clear: it's a concept double album.

The first disc ("Jupiter") opens up with the big single: "Dani California", which has an addmittedly cool video where frontman Anthony Kiedis dresses up as Prince and then then they all dress up as the Sex Pistols and Nirvana and what have you. However, the actual song is rather unremarkable - not bad, but it's the expected Chili Peppers sound. It's also the millionth song dedicated to their home state. It seems that at the point in which they would want to step out of their mold, they go right back to it - not to mention it sounds suspiciously close to Tom Petty's "Mary Jane's Last Dance".

Guitarist John Frusicante gets more than a few solos his way and bassist Michael "Flea" Balzary also gets a few opportunities to to showcase his talents, and both artists for the most part deliver. Drummer Chad Smith performs well enough and Kiedis does the rapping/singing thing of his as expected, but it's nothing special.

Producer Rick Rubin sounds exactly what a big-name producer shouldn't sound like: undistinctive. The sound he gives the Peppers is rather flat - not bad, just unremarkable.

Slow songs like the title track just drag - that song in particular is more than 5 minutes long. It's pop-rock sound is broken up by it's true-to-roots funk metal songs like "Hump de Bump" - a decent enough P-Funk-inspired rocker but nothing they haven't done better before (the chorus is pretty bad too). However, Flea has a tendency to shine on these tracks.

"She's Only 18" is Kiedis's (46) ode to his girlfriend, 18 at the time the song was written. A little creepy much? Ah fuck, maybe it's just me. "Slow Cheetah" is another pop-rock acoustic type song, with a rather retarded song title which leads to a rather retarded chorus. "Strip My Mind" is another long slow song that could be skipped. "Especially in Michigan" is a decent rocker with a guest shot from Mars Volta guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez.

"Warlocks" is a pretty good funk-rock song especially due to the clavinet work from Billy Preston (R.I.P.), but the vocals get a little irritating, though thankfully it's short of three and a half minutes. The first CD cocludes with "Hey" another long (over 5 and a half minutes long) slow track that just comes off as boring.

And so we reach disc 2, "Mars". The opener, "Desecration Smile", is a slow 5-minute long song but it's the best one on here. "Tell Me Baby" opens up like it's another slow song but becomes another funk-rock song (with a nice bassline but otherwise irritating.)

"21st Century" is one of the better songs on here, with some nice work from Flea and Frusicante, although the lyrics could use some work.

The album maintains it's later-day RHCP sound of slow pop-rock mixed with a few rockers and some earlier-day funk-metal. When they try to reach out, it's actually rather uninteresting ("If") or a mess (the weird spoken word bit on "Death of a Martian")

"So Much I" has an exciting punk/funk kind of sound that the album is short on. The band goes on a long (more than 6 minutes) rocker with "Turn It Again" which is pretty good if a little too long. "Death" of a Martian" ends the album with a semi spoken word bit with guitar soloing going around.

Finally, after 28 tracks spanning over 2 hours, the double album is over. Flea is pretty much excellent throughout, John Frusicante is a bit hit-or-miss but good overall, Chad Smith is versatile and solid but not spectacular, and Anthony Keidis does a comptent if unispiring job on vocals.

It's really not much of a concept album, it's only vaguely so. But it's definitely a double album in that it's way too long and way too average for anybody but hardcore fans to like. There is no truly bad song in here, but there is no truly good song in here either. The repetitive themes, production, guitar tones, and style (which is kind of the same the Chili Peppers have been pushing for the past however many years) just addds to this. They fuse earlier days of the Chili Peppers, but they don't do them any better nor in any new way. It's listenable, and you won't hate it, but at the end of the day, it all seems rather unnecessary.

- Luis

The Derek Trucks Band - Songlines

91%
The Allman Brothers Band was a Southern blues-rock band that hit it's peak popularity in the 70's. The brothers were Gregg (vocals) and Duane (slide/lead guitar). Duane was known as a guitar virtuoso, possibly the best slide guitar player that ever lived. Tragically, in 1971, Duane died before his 25th birthday in a motorcycle accident. Then, bassist Berry Oakley died in a similar motorcylce accident just three blocks away from the site of Duane's accident.

The band continued with its other revered guitarist, Dicky Betts, taking most of the guitar duties. The band went through a couple of guitarists over the years, until finally, in 1999, the band found a new slide guitar virtuoso to replace Betts, drummer Butch Trucks's nephew Derek Trucks.

Trucks is 27 years old. He was the youngest guitarist to be on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Guitarists of All-Time list. He was born 10 years after the first Allman Brothers Band album. Derek Trucks is widely recognized as a slide guitar wizard - he has been since his teen years. He wants more than that.

"Songlines" is an attempt to create something besides the Allman Brothers Band, something that exceeds what we perceive of Derek Trucks. It's so we can see Derek not only as an incredible guitarist, but also as a real bandleader and songwriter with diverse influences and sounds.

The Derek Trucks band has added a permanent vocalist in Mike Mattison, who has a strong voice reminiscent of Gregg Allman, but at the same time a suprisingly soulful falsetto. He brings some consistency to the songs and adds a more vocals-oriented approach to the band.

Trucks has set forth a wide variety of influences in this album. The band is both adventerous enough to try something different and good enough to pull it off. Take for example their version of jazz legend Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Volunteered Slavery" or Qawwali singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's "Sahib Teri Bandi/Maki Madni" or reggae founding father Toots Hibbert's "Sailing On".

The album gets a lot of depth from the strong percussive work of Count Mbutu. The band's base of slide guitar blues is strongly expanded towards jazz, soul, and Eastern music which the band has been known to play live. Even though the band has a distinct jam band reputation, the songwriting is tight enough to focus on songs and not loose jamming. The group never falls victim to endless doodling and sounds focused throughout.

Their take on the traditional "Crow Jane" features Mattison singing in a soulful falsetto with some incredible blues guitar work by Trucks. The instrumental medley of "Sahib Teri Bandi/Maki Madni" showcases what great slide guitar players do - sound thoroughly human through their instrument. Trucks manages to do that and at the same time adhere to the Pakistani sound (the songs are literally hundreds of years old and based around Sufi prayer). On keyboards and flutes, Kofi Burbridge comes in at crucial times to provide different aspects while bassist Todd Smallie plays "in the pocket" and around drummer Yonrico Scott.

The resonating delta blues guitar in "Chevrolet" sounds incredibly fresh coupled with the unusual percussion, while Mattison returns with his usual gruff tone. Their twist on Toots and the Maytals' "Sailing On" is mellow, with swooping guitar work from Trucks. The original tune of "Revolution" is slick and anthemic in a pop/blues/rock kinda way. On the soulful "I'd Rather be Blind, Crippled, & Crazy", the band manages to incorporate a reggae sound and a popping bassline. Meanwhile, Mattison switches from the gruff tone to the falsetto in the middle of the song. However, it all makes sense - the album never sounds confused in it's eclecticism. Instead it's variety is one of it's strongest points.

The band's take on "I Wish I Knew (How It Would Feel To Be Free)" has the unmistakable sound of 70's soul -with its rumbling bassline, piano work and handclaps -0 but has the addition of Trucks on guitar, soloing and working in tandem with the vocals. The album concludes with "The Sky", an original compostion which serves to close the album with a jazz/blues sensibility.

On paper, "Songlines" may come off as impenetrable, but in reality it's far from it. It's actually quite accessible, and if anything it's a tad too accessible for some. Some songs aren't as good, but in general the music is beautiful. Some of the lyrics could use some work, but the instrumentation is always superb. The mix of eclectic styles is also a strong draw.

Derek Trucks is one of the most humble guitar heroes ever. He doesn't approach his band as a way of creating some sort of backing for him to show while approaching songs as excersizes in guitar wankery, like far too many guitar virtuosos do. Rather, he works as a band crafting actual songs, with an emphasis on substance over style. Even still, Trucks can't help but to steal the show. Slide guitars are intended to sound like a singing voice and Trucks can make his sound like a soulful singer or a wailing delta bluesman or an Eastern mystic. He is perhaps rivaled only by Duane Allman and Dickey Betts as the best slide guitarist ever.

The album is triumphant. This is Truck's coming of age, from prodigy and guitar hero to full-flegded bandleader and songwriter. It's also the band's finest album to date.

-Luis

Rebel Meets Rebel - Rebel Meets Rebel

73%
On the 24th anniversary of John Lennon's death, guitar hero "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott was shot 5 times and killed onstage. He was a member of Damageplan, but he was best-known as a member of Pantera, one of the more talented rock bands of the 90's.

Sometime during the breakup of Pantera and the first Damageplan album, 3/4's of Pantera teamed up with outlaw country singer David Allen Coe to create a country/metal fusion album. The lineup consisted of Dimebag (guitar), his brother Vinnie (drums), and Rex Brown (bass) with Coe doing vocals.

Appropiatly, they titled the project "Rebel Meets Rebel". Though initially the combination may sound a little suprising, one can see the similiarities between the artists. Both share a penchant for drinking and possess tough guy, "outlaw" images. Both share cultural and geographic backgrounds - coming from the South, reffering to themselves as outlaws or cowboys. Pantera's signature song is called "Cowboys from Hell" (that's what the CFH on this album cover stands for) while David Allan Coe pioneered the "outlaw" country style.

Now, about a year and a half after Dimebag's death and over 5 years after recording began, the project has finally been released on Vinnie Paul's Big Vin Records. This may smack some as exploitation as it is the only album released so far on the label (the only other product is a DVD called "Dimevisions, Vol. 1" which focus on Dimebag Darrell). However, it seems that these supsiciouns are rather unfounded - it appears as though Dimebag would have liked to have seen this album released and it was in a state he would have wanted it to be (keep in mind that he died a year after they had finished recording).

The album opens up with "Nothin' to Lose", containing a suprisingly funk-metal-ish vibe, with a popping bass. The oddball country/metal touches aren't suprising - check the fiddle solo on the title track (yes, the song, album, and artist are called "Rebel Meets Rebel") - sure, it's weird to have fiddling in metal but that is expected in this kind of a fusion album. The unexpected turns are stuff like the funk touches or the piano or the acoustic 30 second instrumental "Panfilo".

The whole drinking, we're-from-Texas, eagles-and-confederate-flags, redneck-y vibe can be a little tiresome. For some, it may be part of the whole charm, but to me, it's a tad overdone. Both Coe and Pantera, and more generally metal and country, have a tendency to go with the drinking/partying/outlawing themes, and it's definitely still prevalent here.

The lyrics (entirely written by Coe, Dimebag & Vinnie wrote all the music) get a little tired and immature, especially on songs like "Cowboys Do More Dope" ("Country music stars like to catch a buzz / They like to smoke alotta weed...Cowboys do more dope than rock and rollers!" Um, yeah. Whatever.) There's a few breaks from the genre cliches, including the somewhat confusing "Cherokee Cry", where Coe sings "Get off our sacred grounds, won't you leave the dead alone? / Let the eagle fly and the buffalo roam, and give us back our homes!". As far as I know, none of the band members are Cherokees of any sort (but I could be wrong) and they don't intend to give up their lands to any Cherokees any time soon. On the other hand, the subject matter is a lot more substantial, which is a welcome break.

Coe's voice is distinctive but it may be tough for Pantera fans to get used to (although the vocals have a tendency to grow on you). Fans of Coe's work will probably find it even tougher to adjust to the abrasive musical attack. Rex Brown delivers some of his better moments while Vinnie Paul has a pretty tight performance. But the real star here, of course, is Dimebag. Fans of Pantera (and metal in general) will no doubt, if nothing else, appreciate Dimebag's strong riffing and distinctive sound. His solo on "Get Outta My Life" (featuring Hank Williams III) is what air guitars were made for.

This album is a rather bold experiment, and it works as an album a bunch of guys would get together and drink beer to. Pantera fans should take a listen before buying, and David Allan Coe fans should be especially cautious. However, it is a must for Dimebag completists.

"Rebel Meets Rebel" is likely (barring the release of demos from the incomplete second Damageplan album, something Vinnie has discussed doing) the last we will hear from Dimebag Darrell's guitar. Which is a damn shame. Dimebag was a very talented muscian, and, more importantly, we have heard time and time again how much of a good man he was. Riff in peace, brother Dime.

-Luis

Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions

84%
When the general population heard of the new Bruce Springsteen album, the news wasn't exactly met with unanimous anticipation. Firstly, it's Springsteen's second non-E Street Band album in a row. Secondly, it is The Boss's first all-covers album (interestingly, he covers songs sung by and associated with Peter Seeger, but none were actually written by him). It all doesn't sound very promising.

Suprisingly, it works. "We Shall Overcome" was recorded quickly, with a band with limited experience playing together. The band plays loosely, resulting in a rather invigorating record. Like any good folk music, it has it's share of social/political commentary, but at the same time it never beats anybody over the head with it - it's subtle, relying on stories about the people with politics as an inevitable result. For example. it's hard to hear "Mrs. McGrath", where Springsteen laments a mother's loss of a child in a war, without thinking about the current stiuation in Iraq.

The album epitomizes a few aspects of folk music in it's fun, sing-along atmosphere. It's quite suprising that an acclaimed songwriter with a rockstar image could work so well, indeed better than he has in a while, playing covers as a down-to earth folk singer. Although on the other hand, maybe it shouldn't - after all, Bruce is firmly rooted in American tradition and firmly ingrained in contemporary American culture ("Born in the USA", anyone?). It was Pete Seeger himself who said "plagiarism is the basis of all culture." So maybe a tribute to Pete Seeger covering songs he didn't write is quite fitting.

"We Shall Overcome" manages to offer a nice chunk of variety by exploring the wide spectrum of styles included in the catch-all genre that is folk - including Zydeco, bluegrass, etc. At the same time, the album is influenced by different - although still decidedly American - genres: gospel, rock 'n roll, etc.

The band is made up of relative unknowns instead of the much more famous E Street band. Of the twelve musicians listed, I know only three. I know Mark Pender (trumpet) and Richie "La Bamba" Rosenberg (trombone) but only from TV, playing with the Max Weinberg 7. The other artist I know is Patti Scialfa (backing vocals), but only because she's married to the Boss himself. Bruce sings with a raspy, Tom Waits-ish voice, helping the songs differentiate themselves from both the Seeger versions and Springsteen's previous work pretty nicely.

The music tends to rock, going for a joyous sounds perhaps best accomplished on "O Mary Don't You Weep" - thanks to it's rather unexpected mix of sounds (violin, trombone, fiddle, etc.) and some really effective backup vocals. The album slows down for a much different effect every now and then on songs like "Shenandoah"

Springsteen and his band sound loose, relaxed, and (most of all) just having fun when they play (alcohol was definitely a factor). The album was recorded in 3 day-long sessions, with no previous rehearsals (perhaps what Bruce refers to when he talks of music being "made" instead of "played"). The result is an uplifting, fun album. It's folksy sound may be derided by some (you know who you are) but in the end it's hard to find too much fault in the execution. Sure, personally I could have done with less banjo and more piano, but that's besides the point. If there's one knock against this this album, is that it sounds a bit contrived at times (especially these banjo parts) - its everyday atmosphere a little hard to believe when you realize the prices he's charging for tickets at his concerts.

In the end, however, it's about the music. It's hard not to enjoy an album that was put together by people who enjoyed putting it together so much. The joy is infectious.

-Luis

Tom Zé - Estudando o Pagode: Na Opereta Segregamulher e Amor

75%
Tom Zé is 70 years old. He is a legend, having secured a high place in Brazilian culture, with probably nothing left to prove. Even so, he is by no means stuck in the past - well into the second half of his life, he still attmpts to sound cutting-edge and avant-garde. Zé feels a need to stay relevant in the present times and deliver a message, perhaps best explained with his most famous quotation: "I don't make art, I make spoken and sung journalism."

The title, "Estudando o Pagode: Na Opereta Segregamulher e Amor", reveals alot about the album. Firstly, "Estudando o Pagode" literally means "studying the pagode." Pagode is a Brazilian musical style which fuses Samba with African rhythms, performed electronically in its modern incarnation. The subheading reveals the central themes of the album, one being women's struggle against oppression and the other being love, while the word "opereta" ("operetta ", a small opera) hints at the scope and unity of the record.

The album is driven by its message. This, ultimately, is a disadvantage for those who do not speak Portugese. It is a shame, since the message may the album's strongest and more important aspect. Zé manages to contain classical elements of drama, female empowerment, typical pagode machoist attitudes, and so on. The overriding theme, however, is the oppression of women throughout history, and thus, the album's focus time travels quite often.

Sonically, "Estudando o Pagode" is ambitious and complex. That said, however, some listeners will no doubt find the sound off-putting at times. As is the case with a lot of artists who attempt to break the mold, most people will likely either hate it or love it (think of The Mars Volta, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Fanotmas, etc). Unusual instrumentation is plentiful - I'm pretty sure I heard leaves used as wind instruments and typwriters and kitchen utensils as percussion.

However, there is certainly some level of accesibility here - a suprising amount, to be honest. For every rather bizarre song like "Pagode - Enrredo Dos Tempos do Medo", there's some rather accessible songs like "Canção de Nora" or "Duas Opiniões."

Although the concept behind the album is very important, the songs do stand as their own entities. None are too long or over-indulgent (as is the case too many times in experimental, concept albums).

In the end however, I still feel the message is very important. People who do not speak the language will be missing a lot of it. Which brings us back to how it stands as music: the sound can either strongly appeal to you or not at all. As such, it's very hard to quantify this review. This album deserves a chance from just about everyone. It accomplishes what it sets out to do, and really it's up to the listener to decide whether those are goals to be set out for in the first place.

-Luis

Rosanne Cash - Black Cadillac

86%
Rosanne Cash's new album opens up with a faint sound. Upon close listening, we recognize it: it is the legendary Man in Black, Johnny Cash, Rosanne's father, urging her to "come on." The sad reality of Rosanne Cash's current life is that she lost her father, her mother Vivian, and her step-mother June Carter in a period of less than 2 years.

The album reflects the dichotomy of the sadness of mourning for them, and the occasional joy of their memories. While the album may sound darker and colder than other releases, it is by no means utterly depressing.

The lyrics are personal without ever sounding self-pitying or artificial. They hit strongly by being open and honest, with no need for ,amy elaborate metaphors or the like. On the opener, "Black Cadilac", Cash sings: "Now one of us gets to go to heaven/While one has to stay here in hell." These kinds of reflections are common as Cash sorts out her feelings throughout the CD.

While generally the album will be considered alternative country, its sound is by no means dominated by country. Indeed, some songs don't sound very much like country at all. Cash is willing to experiment - and most often when she takes a chance, it works. For example, "Like Fugitives" has a drum track that sounds... Trip-Hop-ish, oddly enough. Although, for the most part, the album has soft sound, Cash knows when it is appropiate to rock. "Dreams are not my Home" hits with fury but at the same time doesn't sound out of place.

On the piano-driven "I Was Watching You", Cash sings about her parents relationship. Cash begins with a description of their marriage, where Cash sings to her parents: "I was watching you from above / 'Cause long before life, there was love." The song comes full circle at the end, where Cash says she hears her father say, "I'll be watching you from above / 'Cause long after life, there is love." This last line perhaps serves to illustrate the central theme of "Black Cadillac".

Although some songs, including "I Was Watching You", have some religious connections, Rosanne, unlike her father, has been noted as not very religious. Indeed some songs have Cash realizing that they're gone, and questioning her own mortality. Sometimes she comes out with an outright indictment of organized religion. This mix of ideas probably arises from the normal mourning process which very often involves confusion and uncertanity, including questioning of one's own religious beliefs. If there is a God, why did He let them die? But if there isn't a God, does that mean they are gone for good?

Some songs on here are not as good as others. However, with the deep personal meaning attached to each song, it's hard not to pay attention. That's not to say that Cash relies on the listener's sympathy - on the contrary, she has grown quite a lot as a singer and songwriter and achieves her highest point so far in her career.

The last song of the album, "The Good Intent" opens with another home recording of a young Johnny Cash. One can hear a baby, presumably Rosanne, and then, the father saying "bye, bye bye." Home recordings on an album would normally sound out of place, or gimmicky, but here, they reinforce the message.

After 45 and a half minutes of music, we get to the last track, simply titled "0:71". It is 71 seconds of silence. A time to reflect, perhaps. Perhaps it is the best way to end an album that is so moving, bittersweet, and just beautiful.

-Luis

Aceyalone accompanied by RJD2 - Magnificent City

68%
A trend that has been arising in underground hip-hop is one which invovles two renowned artists teaming up for a full album, often with these two artists having limited previous experience working together. This happened with 9th Wonder and Buckshot, MF Doom and Danger Mouse, Madlib and JayDee, etc. Perennial undergound favorites Aceyalone (ex-Freestyle Fellowship) and RJD2 have gone through a similar course, and the premise, as always, is exciting.

RJD2 has created some of the more intriguing instrumental hip-hop since debuting in the new millenium. Meanwhile, Aceyalone's peak occured more than 10 years ago. Not that Acey has completely lost it, but he's now a veteran, a proffessional. A little bit of the magic is lost.

RJD2 manages to deliver some diverse, compelling work - "All For U" has ample funk, "Fire" sounds like 80's soul, "High Lights" sounds like classic West Coast rap, "Heaven" relies mostly on a piano and strings but adds a grinding electric guitar for the chorus. Meanwhile, in almost every song, Aceyalone sounds uninspired. Not bad - not bad at all. He just sounds like he lacks direction or any real purpose.

When RJD2 falters - as is the case in "Supahero", a synth-driven beat that sounds like a demo on a Casio keyboard - Aceyalone is not there to pick up the slack.

Acey is talented, and that carries him through the album. He manages to stay away from being too cliched, but he never sounds that fresh either. And while the album is billed as "Aceyalone accompanied by RJD2", Aceyalone doesn't take command much. "Caged Bird" is one of these intances, where the beat is mostly made of percussion. Other than that, Aceyalone seems to be adapting to what RJD2 does - and he suffers from it.

There are some instances where both RJD2 and Aceyalone deliver, and the lofty expectations set for the duo are filled - such is the case with "Here and Now", but that doesn't happen often.

"Magnificient City" is almost never really bad. It's also almost never really good. For the most part, it's unremarkable, and it's periods of greatness are balanced by periods of just the opposite. Not bad, but they could have done much better.

-Luis