Late Review: Freebass Two Worlds Collide EP

Frustrated by the lack of progress of their respective projects Peter Hook (New Order) and Gary "Mani" Mounfield (Primal Scream) dreamed up an all bass group as the solution to their problems. Drafting Andy Rourke (The Smiths) the trio formed the core of Freebass, the least conventional supergroup ever convened.

This six track EP, released in 2010, collects the early efforts of the group as they were auditioning vocalists and producers.  Details are difficult to find but the group's line-up was fluid at the point this was recorded, likely around 2005, notably featuring more of Rourke's guitar work than on their proper album and Lionrock's Roger Lyons, at the time handling programming for New Order's live set-up, who takes control of synths and production on three tracks.

Bookended by sound effect tracks that add a touch of atmosphere Two Worlds Collide offers a glimpse of what could have been in a project that easily could have gone a bit Spinal Tap.  The first proper song "You Don't Know This About Me" finds Tim Burgess (The Charlatans) in an uncharacteristically lower register channeling Peter Murphy over a post-punk inspired backing track.  Despite an odd middle-eight key change and a very familiar riff from Hooky the song is a contender as the group's finest moment.  Fittingly it was issued as a single in it's own right.  "The Milky Way Is Our Playground" changes gears to a slower, heavy take that is a bit Madchester-gone-space-rock with Pete Wylie (Wah!) bringing bonkers lyrics to the party.  Things go off the rails with "Dark Starr" as the infamous UK drug dealer Howard Marks attempts to shock with a spoken word performance where he claims to be a pagan and a sinner.  At best he comes across as an aging, rambling stoner which is hardly shocking at all.  It is the longest track of the bunch featuring a riff which the group liked enough to reuse with a new vocal on "She Said", found on their It's A Beautiful Life album, but in this form everything wears thin.  "Live Tomorrow You Go Down" is a different beast, a blast of raw dance music with a shouting Hook taking a turn on lead vocals asking us "which way do you want to go now" when the answer should be obvious to any New Order fan.  More of this dance rock thing, please.    

Late Review: Client Zerox Machine EP

(note: the following review was written ages ago)



Zerox Machine
Loose Talking
Zerox Machine (IDC Mix)
Zerox Machine (Jonny Slut/Atomizermix)
Zerox Machine (Robert Görl Strange Pistol Mix)
Zerox Machine (Club Mix By Covenant)

In a conspicuous break from the purely electronic pallet that colored their previous material Client have gone rock with their spunky version of Adam & The Ant's "Zerox Machine". Sarah Blackwood's vocal delivery reflects a consciousness that one does not expect to find in a run through a genre chestnut as she breaks up the phrasing of the word "copyright" so it becomes "copy, right?" turning the song into a response to the band's detractors that claim they simply imitate. The lyrics also touch upon ideas that Client have explored before such as identity, masking and control which further suggest the band's personal investment and ownership of the song. Despite the familiar lyrical touches the track's producer Youth plots a new course for the band musically as he brings a focus on "live" elements highlighting the work of Client's new bassist Emily Strange, the sharp rhythms of Blur associate Simon Tong's guitar and the machine-free drums laid down for the track. Even with the shift in style it is the theremin synth lead of Client's sonic architect Kate Holmes that brings the track to life during the chorus providing the link between old and new directions for the band.

"Loose Talking" finds the band using a lot more synths as they rework a number of familiar elements into a song that toys with sweet sadness. There are some promising bits but the song fails to follow through making for an unsatisfying listen.

Remixes of covers are always a dicey proposition because the distance from the original source material makes it difficult to find an unique angle but that problem is danced around here as parties from different scenes are given mixing duties. IDC play things straight incorporating much of the original while the confusingly named Jonny Slut/Atomizermix (thus named because they couldn't settle for just listing one alias that he records under) brings stutter edits and an electro flavor to the table. Recruiting D.A.F. member Robert Görl for a mix must have been quite a moment for Client as they list them as a major influence but Görl turns in an oddly unmusical mix that adds a bit of occasional 16th note trance synths to an uninspired beat leaving the affair a lost opportunity. Ultimately it is Covenant that bring the goods with their EBM flavored mix that takes the liberty to ignore much of the original as they form an effective dark dance track.

Late Review: Client Lights Go Out EP

(note: the following review was written some time ago)



Lights Go Out (Single Edit)
Northern Soul
Lights Go Out (Oliver Koletzki & Sebastian Meindl Mix)
Lights Go Out (Basteroid Mix)
Lights Go Out (Spetsnaz Mix)
Lights Go Out (Boosta Mix)

Client use "Lights Go Out" to tell the story of a woman who goes to extreme lengths to win the affection of an undeserving partner she finds herself "guilty of loving". Over the course of the song the narrator offers, in a pop friendly turn, to be the "guilty pleasure" of what we learn in the final verse is a promise breaking lover that forced her to "learn the hard way" that there are "no guarantees". Given the band's recent split with Toast Hawaii/Mute this redefinition of the band's mission statement, first laid out in Client's self-titled song that was their public debut, of "satisfaction guaranteed" suggests meaning for the band outside the song's narration. However as interesting as it is lyrically the song is musically a mishmash of ideas they have explored before. The swinging beat of "Pornography" and the ominous string sound of "Radio" are clearly echoed here but "Lights Go Out" lacks the clarity and melodic vision that was so vivid in Client's earlier material.

"Northern Soul" is better than average b-side fair flair despite noticeably recycling the riff from "Rock And Roll Machine". Really any song that had the audacity to declare "you need a bit of Northern soul" and that they "know the girls to give it" would be worth a listen and fortunately this tune has even more than that to offer.

If the original "Lights Go Out" lacks greatness then the single goes on to prove that a song cannot be saved with a little magic remix dust. Oliver Koletzki & Sebastian Meindl's deconstruction is full of stutter edits and vocals cut from the single version of the song which makes for some interesting moments but it is ultimately less than satisfying. Basteroid and Boosta flavor the song with their own respected arty electro seasonings but achieve uninspired filler at best. Spetsnaz begins his mix with enough promise that there is hope that a François Kevorkian-inspired spin on the song could develop but unfortunately the mix crashes and burns about a minute in quickly devolving into an amateurish mess. All in all it's the least appealing package that Client has assembled to date.

Late Review: Duran Duran Red Carpet Massacre

Today marks one year since Duran Duran launched their latest comeback album and to celebrate I bring you a late review that has been sitting in draft since February. Maybe I should have finished it:

Duran Duran's Red Carpet Massacre recently caught my attention again prompting me to finally gave it a proper listen. Their patchy self-titled wedding album was one of the first discs I bought back when I really started getting into music leaving me with doubt over their ability to fully bring the goods and it's reputation as one of their stronger efforts has put me off buying Duran Duran albums for ages. Sure there have been some strong moments over the years with "Electric Barbarella" and "Nice" coming to mind as relatively recent favorites, but I never seem to find much I want to revisit outside of the singles. When Red Carpet Massacre came out it simply slipped past me despite it being covered by many of my favorite blogs, talked up by some online friends and hearing some of it on the Bay Area's kinda top 40 radio station.

Without a doubt the defining buzz around the album was super producer Timbaland's involvement suggesting this is Duran Duran's hip hop album. The group have shown an interest in the genre before covering "White Lines" and bringing Missy Elliot on board for a track on their last album but Timbaland co-produces three tracks and his apprentice Danja, who the Wall Street Journal note "typically charges $50,000 to $100,000 per track", has his hands over the all but one of the remaining tracks demonstrating the group's willingness to jump into the deep end of a foreign genre. Well almost. After listening to the album I can now safely say that they didn't jettison all their new wave roots but rather polished them with a different production style. Opener "The Valley" is a great example coming on as strong as any of their recent material but far enough away from their usual mode of operation that my first listen had me checking my car stereo's EQ to see what happened to the missing mid-range. The title track pushes the band further into unexplored territory as the album's biggest lyrical statement, some sort of take down of vapid celebrity culture which must disgust the yachting members of Duran Duran, finds the common ground between punk and the sounds of top 40 hip hop. Timbaland makes his first appearance on "Nite-Runner", the album's biggest hip hop moment and the most obvious choice for a single, lending his signature beats to a song that sounds so little like anything Duran Duran have touched before that that Simon Le Bon's vocals are easily mistaken for those of the track's co-producer Justin Timberlake. The remaining Timbaland tracks allow more of the band to shine through but both don't hit the mark of radio friendly pop with the same force.
Elsewhere in the album the band primarily focus on their strength at crafting mid-tempo ballads. The first single "Falling Down" finds Timberlake alone in the producer's chair steering the band towards "Ordinary World" territory with enough to success to that it got the band back on US radio. Well at least for a few weeks. They strip down the production to simple strummed guitar on "Box Full O Honey" which is an earnest attempt to portray heartbreak that is a highlight despite sounding a bit overworked. "She's Too Much" also hits some sweets spots as LeBon demonstrates why he has such a way with the ladies as he bares his sensitive soul.
Those looking for some old school new wave jams won't be disappointed. "Zoom In" has it going on musically but lines like "I'm zooming in and out on you" seem like an odd pickup line for the new millennium. A bit of research reveals the song was premiered in the game Second Life which give the lyrics a quite literal twist but it's still odd to hear the band wooing a sexy lady by praising her "avatar". You really have to be at a certain stage in your career to have that the confidence to so boldly go where your lyrical muse takes you.
Over all the band really have it together on this out as even the instrumental "Tricked Out", which has a touch of a rocked out Halloween magic, seem essential to the album. It may have taken some time, but Duran Duran have finally found the right mix of new ideas and consistent songwriting to draw me into an album that I want to revisit. Hopefully their label will wake up realizing that they gave up way too early on this strong album and finally release a second single soon.

Late Review: Madonna "Jump" MCD

(The following review was intended for a site that continues to have maintenance issues well over a year after this was written)

Madonna - Jump MCD



Jump (Single Edit)
Jump (Jacques Lu Cont Mix)
Jump (Axwell Remix)
Jump (Junior Sanchez’s Misshapes Mix)
Jump (Extended Album Version)
History


One year after “Hung Up” stormed charts worldwide Madonna has finally released the obvious pick for the immediate follow up single from “Confessions On A Dancefloor” as the album’s fourth track to receive the honor. Lyrically focused on the importance of family and the need to grow by being in new situations “Jump” is an instantly familiar up tempo track that borrows a bass rhythm, synth strings and a few chords from Pet Shop Boys “West End Girls”. Is this just a rip off? No. There is an undeniable similarity that had been acknowledged by co-writer and producer Stuart Price even before the PSB gave the song their blessing but there is much more to “Jump” than a simple recycling of “WEG“. It has it’s own unique melodic ideas and structure that are perfectly capable of standing on their own making the familiar arrangement a tribute rather than a blueprint for Madonna’s song.

Stuart Price’s “Jump” mix, credited under his Jacques Lu Cont alias, marks the sixth song he has remixed from “Confessions” and the fatigue is showing. While effective at times with a sense of tension and menace the mix lacks the impact and vision that Price often brings to the table creating something of a mess instead of dance floor perfection. At first it appears that Axwell‘s mix is a by-the-numbers club reworking, but closer listening reveals just how remarkably assembled the mix is with subtle touches that evolve from the original. The surprise success of the single comes from dance veteran Junior Sanchez who finds a unique approach with multi-pitched vocals edits in the style of 80’s extended mixes while creating a build that only the finest club tracks achieve.

“History” is the first b-side of Madonna‘s “Confessions”-era and it is a disco friendly track that could have fit comfortably on the album. As another Stuart Price production his fingerprints are all over the track but the lyrics are the real star of the song. Apparently Madonna is “so sick and tired of fighting” that she has decided to use the platform of this b-side to present the solution to ending global conflict. If this sounds a tad grandiose and silly to you then this might be a sticking point in enjoying the song but you have to admire Madonna’s willingness to put herself out there and really give her fans something to think about.