Saturday, October 23, 2004
'FROM A BASEMENT ON THE HILL'
Elliott Smith
(Anti-)
sss Although signs pointed to suicide, the official cause of Elliott Smith's death a year ago is still a mystery. That leaves the veiled confessions and snarling invectives found throughout "from a basement on the hill" prime for close inspection. Written and performed almost entirely by Smith in the years leading up to his death, the somewhat uneven songs that comprise his last studio album vividly tie Smith's aching tenor to the circumstances, perfectly echoing the sentiment of the albums title: being high and low at the same time.
A minute and a half in, a feistier Smith rattles off the contradictory line "I've got no new act to amuse you," before showcasing the record's stylistic breadth. Ranging from sparse acoustic pop to sprawling mope rock, at times "from a basement ..." comes off as not completely finished, which is somehow fitting and makes it even more devastating.
"A Fond Farewell," perhaps the prettiest song Smith ever penned, eerily cements his legacy. Seemingly written about someone else, it's a haunting lament for someone who's died, and not necessarily physically. Depicting "a man dying in the living room, vomiting in the kitchen sink," and repeating (as if to convince oneself) "this is not my life/ It's just a fond farewell to a friend/ It's not what I'm like/ It's just a fond farewell to a friend/ Who couldn't get things right." It plays as a teary goodbye to one his generations finest songwriters.
'THIS ISLAND'
Le Tigre
(Universal)
ss You'd have to be deep into the current careers of former riot grrrl bands to really "get" Le Tigre and the band's latest release "This Island." But you're still not getting much.
Le Tigre features ex-Bikini Kill bandmember Kathleen Hanna. But all she appears to have done is parlayed a modicum of success into a new, misguided and unfocused experiment.
Le Tigre is electronica music with punk girl vocals, and the questionable components make an awful marriage.
When the band takes audio from a 2003 anti-war protest in New York and incorporates it into a dance mix, the result is pointless sonic exploration. Hokey drum machines beats back the shouts "This is what democracy sounds like!"
The band doesn't go the extra step and explain in song how peace is going to resonate in a post Sept. 11 world. Le Tigre's blind repetitive call for unity rings hollow and shallow.
Other tracks depend on amplitude to no avail, as on "We're On The Verge." There's so much production here, that raw rock edges are glaringly absent.
'THE REST IS HISTORY'
Jin
(Virgin)
ss Many people are keen on Miami-born rapper Jin for many reasons. He's young, he's Chinese-American, he's a good freestyler. These components could translate into short-term sales, but his debut release "The Rest Is History" offers little long-term hope.
High production value courtesy of the Ruff Ryders team helps get the most out of Jin's considerable talents. But listeners need not kid themselves for long: Jin is Eminem light, without quite the bite. How long can self-deprecating rhymes about ethnicity last? A couple at best, we soon find out.
The track "Learn Chinese" is top-notch stuff, and it's hot when Jin pre-empts his detractors who might latch onto to ethnicity as a tool to disrespect him. "Everytime they harass me I wanna explode/ We should ride the train for free/ We built the railroad," Jin raps on his breakout song.
But too easily he slips into formulaic, Marshall Mathers-like nasal rap. Same rhyme schemes and patterns, same contrived recklessness at times when honesty would play better.
'WALKIN' IN THE SHADOW OF LIFE'
The Neville Brothers
(Neville Nation Records/Back Porch Records)
sss "We been around since be-bop ... we been around since the doo-wop ... now we around for the hip-hop" The Neville Brothers sing on the enlivening track "Can't Stop the Funk" on the album "Walkin' in the Shadow of Life," their 16th album in their four-decade career.
The album has a raw youthful appeal, featuring the rapper and fellow New Orleans native B.G. Listening to the brothers' vocals, it's hard to imagine some of them are pushing 70; however, the wisdom in their lyrics is telling.
At times their mission seems a bit obtrusive with songs like "Junkie Child" and verses like "stop acting a fool if you want to grow old." But aside from the overbearing moral message the album is a stunning representation of the brother's versatility and talent dabbling in various genres. Their funky New Orleans energy is represented throughout, particularly on the title track "Walkin' in the Shadow of Life" and "Kingdom Come."
'STILL HUNGRY'
Twisted Sister
(Eagle Rock)
ssss One of the best albums in the history of heavy metal just got better. The Long Island quintet has re-recorded the entire 1984 classic "Stay Hungry" album that included their two biggest hits, "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock." But they also re-did four classic nuggets from the late '70s and early '80s when they were the kings of the New York area bar circuit: "Come Back," with its pounding rhythm section; "Plastic Money," an ode to credit card debt; "You Know I Cry" with its twin guitar attack, and "Rock 'N' Roll Saviors," which used to be their signature tune in the disco days.
Also included are two 1984 outtakes that weren't finished until 2001, "Blastin' Fast And Loud" and "Never Say Never" that alone are worth the price of the disc, even though they previously appeared on "Club Daze" CD, and the band's 1998 reunion single, "Heroes Are Hard To Find."
The new songs are only half the appeal: the sound quality is so much better on this remake, with meatier bass, more bashing drums and sharper guitars than the poppy 1984 version that was aimed at MTV and commercial radio.
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