Album Reviews

NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS
Electric Blue Watermelon
(ATO)
NMA is back to their old selves on Electric Blue Watermelon, the trio's sixth record since bursting onto the scene with its promising Shake Hands with Shorty. On Watermelon, the group digs deep for the steamy Mississippi tone of this record. Hill country blues, the genre the group helped redefine, has never sounded so good. "Moonshine" is the emotional cornerstone of this record, moody and hopeful. But the very next track, "Hurry Up Sunrise," stands you up and pulls the rhythm through your body. Lucinda Williams lends her vocals to this track and her voice is the perfect compliment to this sunshiney bright melody. Scintillating, smoky and funky, the band has recaptured the attitude and promise of its early days and Electric Blue Watermelon will stand as a tribute to a lost genre. Lance Looper [buy it]

DAN PENN AND SPOONER OLDHAM
Moments From This Theatre: Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham Live
(Proper American)
Originally released in 1998 in England, Moments From This Theatre documents a U.K. tour from these venerable Southern songwriters as opening act for Nick Lowe. The list of great songs this duo has written, mostly together but sometimes separately, is fairly awesome: "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man," "The Dark End of the Street," "I'm Your Puppet," "Cry Like a Baby," "It Tears Me Up," "You Left the Water Running," "I Met Her In Church"—all of which are here. Delineated by Oldham's Wurlitzer piano and Penn's acoustic guitar and rich, impossibly soulful voice, these and more recent tunes like "Memphis Women and Chicken" shine like precious stones in this intimate context. Moments From This Theatre is true Americana, roots music at its best. Michael Toland [buy it]

PLAYERS CLUB
Coextinction
(Arclight)
Listen to the Players Club (né JJ Paradise Players Club) chug and roar and just have a rollickin' good time. It's been too long since 2001's Wine Cooler Blowout, but this EP is a fine stopgap until the expected release of another full-length CD early next year. For your hard-earned dinars you get a fistful of rock-your-ass tunes. "The EMP" is the kind of song that puts these guys on some stoner rock bills, but they're broader than that. "Safety Word" has genuine melody, and vocals more akin to singing than shouting. But don't lose faith, folks, as the Players aren't going soft. "Flux" will maul your skull like a rabid squirrel who thinks there are nuts inside of it. If Coextinction is any indication, '06 is going to be a good year for the Players Club. Brian Briscoe [buy it]

PRIMA DONNA
Kiss Kiss
(Brunette)
Punk poppin' down the avenue to a cock-rockin' beat, the Hollywood quartet Prima Donna epitomizes a modern take on the streetwise glam pioneered by the New York Dolls. Kiss Kiss is aggressive and dirty, but still fond of melody and unable to pass a mirror without checking for stray blemishes. Leader Kevin Preston knows from hunky hard rock hooks and sassy singing, and the rest of the band is right next to him on the runway—special air kisses to sax fiend Aaron Minton. "Miss Avenue," "Everything's Wrong" and "Double Crosser" will inspire as much posing as air guitar and chorus singalongs. File Kiss Kiss next to the Beat Angels, the Black Halos and later Makers, and pull it out for your next party. Michael Toland [buy it]

TERRY REID
Superlungs
(Astralwerks)
Terry Reid is best known in America as a rock footnote: the guy who turned down the lead singer slot in Led Zeppelin, then turned Jimmy Page on to Robert Plant and John Bonham. But the singer/guitarist has a 40-odd career behind him, and Superlungs presents its beginnings. Collecting tracks from his late 60s records Bang Bang You're Terry Reid and Terry Reid, the disk shows Reid to be adept at the blues rock you might expect from a guy tapped to be in the New Yardbirds, with a gritty voice perfect for emotive wailing. But soulful crooning is on the menu as well, as Reid is perfectly comfortable with blue-eyed soul ("Something's Got a Hold of My Heart," "Stay With Me Baby") and folk rock ("Without Expression," "Tinker Taylor"). The comp also includes the killer "Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace," later covered by Cheap Trick on its debut album. Michael Toland [buy it]

ROSETTA WEST
Illumination
(Rosetta West)
Quickly following up its fine release X Descendant, Rosetta West whips up an acid-fried blues groove on Illumination. Recording on a skimpier budget, the Midwestern trio makes the most of the dry, documentary sound by simply playing its tunes, no bullshit attached. There's no studio frippery on "Desperate Love," "Town of Tomorrow" or the brilliantly titled "Bible Bangin' Blues," just heartfelt performances and soulful songwriting. Give Rosetta West credit for savvy cover choices as well: the band does right by Johnny Kidd and the Pirates' "I'll Never Get Over You" and Howlin' Wolf's "Spoonful" (given an unusual, groove-driven reading), and if the takes on Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools" and Beck's "Fuckin' With My Head" don't leave as much of an impression, at least they tried something different. Illumination continues to advance the cause of being Rosetta West. (For details on acquiring a copy of Illumination on CD-R, contact the band at Rosettawest@aol.com.) Michael Toland

THEE SHAMS
Sign the Line
(Shake It)
Thee Shams have been rocking stages in their homebase of Cincinnati (and beyond) for a few years now, culminating their experiences in their third album Sign the Line. Mixing 60s garage rock swagger with 70s blues rock tuneage, the quintet sometimes sounds like the Brian Jonestown Massacre minus the acid, others like the Black Crowes after too many Quaaludes. Tunes like "Something Happening," "I Want You Back" and "No Trust Fund Blues" are solid enough, but too much of this record sounds like a car stuck in second gear, wanting to charge forward but not quite able to do so. I suspect these songs probably rock ass live, but on record they've got enough hamstrings to go around. Michael Toland

BILLY JOE SHAVER
The Real Deal
(Compadre)
Billy Joe Shaver is getting more prolific with age. The Real Deal is his first studio album in a while. Earlier this year he released Billy and the Kid, an album of previously unreleased material written and performed by Billy's son, Eddy. But that was a rock and roll record that served more than anything as a final service from father to son. The Real Deal is vintage Shaver, poetic and thoughtful. The songs, such as "Livin'a Lovin' Lie" and "You Ought to Be With Me When I'm Alone," reflect his age and the degree to which he has lived life. He's joined on this record by some honky-tonk heroes old and young, including Big & Rich (who ruin "Live Forever," an otherwise brilliant song), Nanci Griffith and Kevin Fowler. The self-produced record is knee deep in brokenhearted love songs and does a good job of capturing one of Texas' genuine musical trailblazers. Lance Looper [buy it]

SIGUR ROS
Takk…
(Geffen)
Sigur Ros was the toast of the music scene a couple of years ago, garnering a ton of attention for its major-label bow ( ). The Iceland quartet has quietly stepped away from the spotlight since that release, sneaking back onto the racks with Takk…. Less amorphous than ( ), Takk… finds the band molding its signature symphonic style into simpler, more easily recognizable song structures. "Glósóli," the epic-length "Milanó" and the magnificent "Saeglopur" make stunning use of the group's sense of dynamics and gift for melody, and Jon Thor Birgisson croons like a lost angel. As usual, swirling strings and horns (dig the brass band ending of "Sé Lest") add ear candy to the band's lush dreamscapes. There's an almost palpable sense of joy to these songs; I've no idea what the band is actually singing about, but it sounds like Sigur Ros has left melancholy behind. (The moody "Gong" is an exception.) There's nothing here that would find its way to radio, but Takk… could certainly be considered Sigur Ros's pop album, and a damned gorgeous one it is, too. Michael Toland [buy it]

THE SOFT MACHINE LEGACY
Live in Zaandam
(Moonjune)
The Soft Machine Legacy consists of saxist Elton Dean, guitarist John Etheridge, drummer John Marshall and bassist/founding member Hugh Hopper, all former members of progressive fusion cult act the Soft Machine. The concert captured on this disk finds the band pretty much having abandoned the prog side of its personality in favor of its jazz face. Which is fine, really—from its landmark record Third on, the Machine was moving to this point, and the musicians certainly have the skill to pull it off. The dudes sounds like they're having a ball improvising around each other, as tunes like "Big Creese" and "1212" attest. Michael Toland [buy it]

SUPERGRASS
Road to Rouen
(Capitol)
There are two things that make Supergrass one of Great Britain's best pop/rock bands. One is the obvious: the band's love of and attention to melody. The other is the members' willingness to push themselves, never resting on their laurels. Road to Rouen uses elements familiar to fans of past 'grass records, but the album still sounds little like anything in the band's past. An increased keyboard presence and sweeping strings give the songs a lush cast, but Gaz Coombes' vocals and guitars still assert themselves. The rhythm section adds a bigger variety of grooves to its arsenal than ever before. "Roxy" and "Tales of Endurance (Parts 4, 5 & 6)" shift time signatures and moods as if they were progressive rock epics, though they keep the hooks at the forefront. Which is always the main thrust anyway: the melodies embedded in ballads ("Sad Girl," "Low C"), rockers (the title track) and those glorious pop songs ("Kick in the Teeth," "St. Petersburg"). Road to Rouen is yet another excellent Supergrass album. Michael Toland [buy it]