Jakobinarina The First Crusade As Requested By Filip

Jakobinarina The First Crusade

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Few of the current indie brigade sound like they’re having much fun. Look at Razorlight, for example: in the midst of taking themselves ultra-seriously Borrell and co. seem to have forgotten about the inherent fun of being in a band and become mighty miserable. In complete contrast, Icelandic loons Jakobinarina are having a ball on their debut record The First Crusade. Led by firebrand vocalist Gunnar Bergmann and fuelled by a tangible frustration and desire to get out of the boring mundanity of their hometown (the tongue-twistingly named Hafnarfjörður), Jakobinarina’s debut album spills over with potential hit after potential hit, all grand ideas wrapped up in frenzied punk spirit. Taking aim at pop culture with a healthy dose of cynicism and biting lyrical barbs, the sextet are a refreshing antidote to the kitsch obsessed malaise of the new rave, no hoper set. From the opening prattle of the rabble-rousing ‘It’s Monday’, Bergmann is ranting like a madman about kick-starting a dance revolution and never really lets up for the next twelve tracks. While ‘It’s Monday’ isn’t quite the nifty toe-tapper it might fancy itself as, the following surge of ‘His Lyrics Are Disastrous’ certainly is, coming off like Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hutz fronting The Libertines (this is a more appealing prospect than it may seem in theory, promise). The band ratchet the ire and tempo with each progressive track but always with one eye on the melody - ‘(I’ve Got A Date With) My Television’ sounds like a futuristic bar-band and recent single ‘This Is An Advertisement’ is a deliciously drippy, self-deprecating pop trinket. While it’s far from infallible, The First Crusade is a raw, blustery cornucopia of firecracker indie-rock tracks that spit and seethe as much as they exhilarate. If they shaved two or three off (the sketchy intermission of ‘End Of Transmission No.6’ for one adds nothing of worth to proceedings), this would be a bubbling little gem of a debut. But we’ll forgive their occasional foibles and the suspiciously familiar melody lines sprinkled throughout because Jakobinarina make indie music sound fun again.

The Compact 2 Tone Story As Requested By Jbinjapan

Various The Compact 2 Tone Story

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Understandably, the Brits got the better box, the four-CD The Compact Two Tone Story, while the U.S. had to make do with the abbreviated two-CD The 2 Tone Collection. Compact compiled the A- and B-sides of every single released by the 2 Tone label, plus bundled in a bumper crop of rarities and live material, as well as George Marshall's definitive book The Two Tone Story. Obviously, Collection is going to pale in comparison to all that. However, one does get all the label's A-sides, and the flips as well in the case of double A-sided singles, with the sole exception of the two songs accompanying "Ghost Town." In their stead are Roddy Radiation & the Specials' "Braggin' and Tryin' Not to Lie" and Neville Staple's "Rude Boys Outa Jail," originally paired on a free single included with early copies of More Specials. There's also the Specials' "Raquel," the only other rarity here, which was the flip of the Dutch "Concrete Jungle" single. Since the majority of the singles' B-sides were culled off of studio albums, their omission is at worst inconvenient, but it does mean you have to shop elsewhere for the Selecter's live "Carry Go Bring Come" (the flip of "Missing Words"), as well as for a wealth of later B-sides. Then again, only the most fanatical will find these latter tracks much of a loss. Today, 2 Tone is synonymous with the genre it helped invent; however, in their later years the label left much of that sound behind, signing the likes of new romantic wannabes the Apollinaires and the Higsons, and Northern soul lightweights the Friday Club. Even the later Special A.K.A. material left much to be desired, as their chart placements reflect. But for all its eventual flaws, 2 Tone was one of the beacons of Britain's music scene, and at its peak a glittering success story of indie defiance and inspired creativity. Even in this truncated form, The 2 Tone Collection makes that glorious past come back to life.

The Soup Dragons Lovegod

The Soup Dragons Lovegod

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The Soup Dragon's only commercially successful release, Lovegod was a definitive album of a short-lived but blissful movement in alternative dance that began in the late '80s and ended in the early '90s. Lead with fellow Scotsmen Primal Scream and other proto-trip-hop bands like the Happy Mondays, the Charlatans U.K., the Stone Roses, and the Farm, the scene revolved around community--masses joined in various forms of often chemically enhanced euphoric states, dancing till breakfast and beyond. Like Primal Scream's Screamadelica, this album follows a path clearly cut by the Rolling Stones. Their hazy, blues-on-Ecstasy psychedelic grooves fueled the club-going shoe gazers swaying in place for what could have been forever, while at the same time uplifted souls (and soles) with money-maker shakers like "Backwards Dog" and a cover of the Stones' "I'm Free." Because of its combination of timeless rock influences and its preturntablism dance sensibility, Lovegod has aged well, losing little of its capacity for elation.

The Brit Box (UK Indie, Shoegaze, And Brit-Pop Gems Of The Last Millennium)

The Brit Box (Uk Indie, Shoegaze, And Brit-Pop Gems Of The Last Millennium

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How does one begin the arduous task of defining British music after punk and the splintering styles of post-punk dispersed and transmogrified into something completely different, something meant to rebuild the concept of rock and roll? The answer came in all forms during 1980s and 1990s Britain. The Brit Box, a boxed set compiled by Rhino Records, documents various transformations of Brit rock and Brit pop during that time, providing some 78 entries to that initial definitive question in the form of different artists at some of their most promising moments. First off, The Brit Box is a smart concept. It was initially envisioned as a two-disc compilation, but the sales folks at Rhino didn't see a market for the product. Who would really go out in 2007 and buy a hastily sketched compilation with acts like The Mighty Lemon Drops, The Telescopes, Echobelly, and Dodgy? The most devout anglophile can sympathize with the suits in this case. The initial idea wasn't fully fleshed out, but John Hagelston and the folks at Rhino recognized its potential. They had an embarrassment of riches that sold once in England and could sell again Stateside - that is, if they had the right marketing approach. As it turns out, they found the right package. First and foremost, the music covers a lot of ground. It works equally well as the perfect hit-thehigh-points companion for the Brit-fanatic's collection and as the perfect quick and dirty summary guide for first-timers approaching a genre as dauntingly broad as "UK Indie, Shoegaze, and Brit-Pop Gems Of The Last Millennium." Secondly, the packaging is downright charming. One of the UK's picturesque red phone booths stands on the cover, original stickers from the bands featured within tacked on the box. The top of the phone booth flashes, with an on/off switch on the back (no more dead batteries, right Pink Floyd fans?), and the cover art within the box features all things British. If that wasn't enough, the collection's booklet features photos of the bands, write-ups on the tracks, interviews with those parenthetical to the scenes, and a feature by journalist Andrew Perry: "Sea Changes And Snapshots From Indie Britain." All bells and whistles (and pictures of tea-bags) aside, the music in The Brit Box exists on a continuum. It links the magnetizing force of the UK's late century movement to the British Invasion of the 1960s, and this is without acknowledging many of the artists who paid homage to that aesthete. The Brit Box captures an equally important "moment" in music where anyone with a band and a single could make a splash somewhere along the Atlantic, taking listeners through the particular trends that made up the era. Disc 1 is when alternative became "indie." It begins with the Smiths' most popular and least likely tune, "How Soon Is Now?" Other artists appear who began to distance themselves from the melancholic trudge of post-punk, such as The Cure ("Just Like Heaven") and Echo & The Bunnymen ("Lips Like Sugar"). Further highlights include the shoegaze pioneers The Cocteau Twins ("Lorelei"), The Jesus & Mary Chain ("April Skies"), and the druggy, inward-looking mayhem of the Spacemen 3 ("Walkin' with Jesus [Sound of Confusion]"). The disc even reaches the heights of the rave movement with bands like Happy Mondays and Primal Scream. Each collection groups similar artists, but it's the ones that find their place between each ensuing craze that makes this collection particularly appealing. The discs to follow chart, respectively, the rise of shoegaze, the reign of Brit-pop, and the comedown from that sweet height. And for every household name (My Bloody Valentine, Oasis, and The Verve), The Brit Box delivers a slew of lesser-knowns (Inspiral Carpets, Curve, and Hurricane #1). What is particularly intriguing are the classics intermixed with the somewhat marginalized tracks that capture the British vibe. "Tracy Jacks" (Blur) and "Live Forever" (Oasis) couldn't be further apart, yet they rub shoulders on Disc 3. Both songs epitomize the moment and they speak volumes about the original impetus of each band. On the other hand are the indelible groupings that, if they were once inseparable, no longer are. Disc 2's opening trifecta of "Vapour Trail" (Ride), "Sight Of You" (Pale Saints), and "Only Shallow" (My Bloody Valentine) falls into this category. None of the collection's choices follow a consistent, logical pattern, but they are nonetheless all right on. If nothing else, they say a whole hell of a lot over only four discs worth of material. Another thing to point out would be the collection's humility - Hagelston and company willingly concede that there's a great bit of worthy Brit music left out of the collection, either due to choice or limitations that were beyond Rhino's control. Thankfully, they give us what they (rightfully) consider the "cool" Britannia, and only a few acts are really missed (Slowdive being a prime example). Maybe not a comprehensive guide so much as a jumping point for future purchases - finding that band you really should have known but didn't - The Brit Box will provide hours of entertainment, something long overdue from this underappreciated pool of charm and talent.

Cabaret Voltaire ‎Code

Cabaret Voltaire Code

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1987's Code, co-produced by On-U Sound mastermind Adrian Sherwood, finds Cabaret Voltaire at their loosest and most accessible. Though its subject matter remains dark and paranoid, in sound Code is the closest thing CV ever made to a party record. Aided perhaps by Sherwood's rhythmic expertise, it achieved a genuine mechanistic funkiness reminiscent of late-'70s Kraftwerk. That didn't necessarily endear it, of course, to fans of the Cabs' harsher, more challenging material. Many of them dismissed Code as lightweight, but the rest of us can find much to enjoy here. "Sex, Money, Freaks" answers the eternal question, What would it sound like if Roger Troutman of Zapp joined Cabaret Voltaire? "Trouble (Won't Stop)" dips one toe into the blues, with harmonica making a surprising appearance and Bill Nelson providing atmospheric guitar. Code's most memorable song, though, is "Here to Go," a hook-laden and bass-heavy concoction that offers the paradoxical advice, "Sharpen up, relax/ Lighten up, get serious/ Stick with it, sit back/ Live with it, commit yourself."

Beth Gibbons & Rustin Man ‎Out Of Season Reissue

Beth Gibbons & Rustin Man Out Of Season Reissue

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Out of Season plays to Beth Gibbons' strengths as a vocalist and songwriter more than anything released prior by Portishead. On both Dummy and Portishead, her pained, worn, resilient voice was often made to sound as if it was as much an artifact as the Isaac Hayes and Lalo Schifrin samples. That voice of hers was perfectly suited for the backing provided by her bandmates, but more than a few wondered if it would sound even more perfect -- or in a better setting, naked and completely central -- if it were supported by the type of folk, jazz, and R&B recordings it could've been plucked from in the first place. That "what if" is answered with this album, made by Gibbons in collaboration with Paul Webb, several of his fellow Talk Talk alums, and numerous others. Brass, strings, reeds, organs, acoustic guitar, double bass, and lightly brushed drums are all part of the mix, which never threatens to take the spotlight away from Gibbons. The lyrical themes aren't much of a departure for the singer, who contemplates the passing of time and her love/hate relationship with existence throughout -- one song opens with "God knows how I adore life," and then one song later, she's "So tired of life." The icing on the cake is in the little details, like the sly Carol Kaye imitation snuck in by bassist Adrian Utley during "Romance" and the way the background vocals discreetly drift in and out, alternating between serene and spooky. The sticker that came affixed to the disc contains a quote that proclaims this to be one of the best albums of all time. While that is a stretch, there's no denying that the quote below that one -- "Quietly devastating" -- is 100 percent accurate

Portishead Portishead

Portishead Portishead

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Portishead's debut album, Dummy, popularized trip-hop, making its slow, narcotic rhythms, hypnotic samples, and film noir production commonplace among sophisticated, self-consciously "mature" pop fans. The group recoiled from such widespread acclaim and influence, taking three years to deliver its eponymous second album. On the surface, Portishead isn't all that dissimilar from Dummy, but its haunting, foreboding sonic textures make it clear that the group isn't interested in the crossover success of such fellow travelers as Sneaker Pimps. Upon repeated plays, the subtle differences between the two albums become clear. Geoff Barrow and Adrian Utley recorded original music that they later sampled for the backing tracks on the album, giving the record a hazy, dreamlike quality that shares many of the same signatures of Dummy, but is darker and more adventurous. Beth Gibbons has taken the opportunity to play up her tortured diva role to the hilt, emoting wildly over the tracks. Her voice is electronically phased on most of the tracks, adding layers to the claustrophobic menace of the music. The sonics on Portishead would make it an impressive follow-up, but what seals its success is the remarkable songwriting. Throughout the album, the group crafts impeccable modern-day torch songs, from the frightening, repetitive "Cowboys" to the horn-punctuated "All Mine," which justify the detailed, engrossing production. The end result is an album that reveals more with each listen and becomes more captivating and haunting each time it's played

INXS Shabooh Shoobah

INXS Shabooh Shoobah

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Shabooh Shoobah is an example of a talented bunch of performers still finding their own identity. There's a smart, slick punch to the album that suggests late-period Roxy Music crossed with a younger, brasher energy, which perfectly explains the sly grooves of songs like "To Look at You" and "Here Comes." It's all very pleasant and a good listen, with all six performers showing the skill and energy that made their live reputation so strong at the time, but mostly the songs aren't really anything deathless. The truest highlights were at the start and end, with the group creating not one but two hands-down early-'80s rock classics that stand the test of time. "The One Thing" is a great way to start, a strutting number that gives Hutchence a real chance to shine as a singer, strong and commanding, while the combined synth/guitar/sax hook that drives the song is instantly memorable. But if "The One Thing" is grand, "Don't Change" is just flat out fantastic, one of the best album closers ever dreamed up. Soaring in on a just dreamy enough synth line from Andrew Farriss and then a quick guitar burst, the rest of the band then explodes into action -- it's some of the best rock-without-apology-or-quotes sound anyone could ever hear, crisp, fierce, and clean. Hutchence takes charge of that action like the vaunted frontman he was, delivering one of the more cryptic but still just right romance lyrics from that time with aplomb and fire. The chorus is simply killer, while the concluding, extended calls of the title phrase over the song's last notes make up the icing on the cake.

Deacon Blue ‎Raintown Deluxe Edition

Deacon Blue Raintown Deluxe Edition

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The first thing to say about these reissues: this is how it should be done. Reissuing the original albums with just a handful of bonus tracks wouldn’t suit Edsel and they have really come up trumps. In some cases, the original album comes with two bonus discs And a Dvd. It basically collects everything and anything you wanted to know about Deacon Blue from their debut in 1987 to 2001. Add in a running commentary from mainman Ricky Ross and a nicely produced ‘media book’ with memorabilia and lyrics and your Deacon Blue Life is complete. Until now I hadn’t realised how prolific the band were during this period and how well crafted the songs. In fact, to be truthful, in the pantheon of Scottish pop rock of this period I had altogether overlooked Deacon Blue in favour of Love And Money, Hue And Cry - even Simple Minds. But I found some connection with Ross’ tunesmanship and that of James Grant of Love And Money, so it was a good enough starting point. (By way of further connection the band’s original bass player Ewen Vernal now plays bass with Love And Money). Deacon Blue also had an appealing and distinctive sound with Lorraine McIntosh occasionally stepping out of her backing and harmonising role to deliver the main vocal. This was also a bygone era of big label budgets and bands exposed to excess in all areas, as recounted by Ross in his informative liner notes. And of course, labels were always looking for the next hit single and, of course, Ross duly obliged in the early days. In truth, the band never really achieved the creative consistency of their debut Raintown which yielded the band’s best-known songs such as ‘Dignity’ and ‘Chocolate Girl’. Now it is expanded with two extra discs featuring B-sides and the 2006 reissue extras whilst a DVD includes their promo videos.