Yes, as Mathan said in his year-end piece, we’re well into the new year, but like him, I’d be remiss to not share with you some of what I thought were the highlights of 2007 in the music world (big ups to Tom D’Errico for being the onl on e to get his in on time). Thanks to the mini-series, The Wednesday Review Roundup, I ended up reviewing close to 80 albums last year, and while there was a lot of crap strewn about in there, I heard enough good stuff that I still have faith in the music industry.
The Good, the Bad & the Queen
Breaking up with Justine Frischmann seems to have been the best career move that Damon Albarn’s ever made, as ever since then (and the subsequent 13) he’s had the cajones to embark on completely new musical adventures. After doing some strange-yet-prolific things with Blur, he vacated that post and picked up two-thirds of Deltron 3030 for the wacky new Gorillaz, later enlisting the help of the now critically-acclaimed producer/Grey Album mastermind Danger Mouse.
Enjoying what Danger Mouse did with Gorillaz’ second album, Albarn retained him for the new band. Although they’ve been billed as The Good, the Bad & the Queen, that’s actually the name of the album, and the band itself is unnamed. With Danger Mouse producing, Albarn brought together Fela Kuti’s Africa 70 drummer Tony Allen, The Only Band That Matters bassist Paul Simonon and The Verve guitarist Simon Tong for one of music’s most unassuming supergroups.
Silverchair – “Straight Lines”
While Silverchair first gained fame in 1995 with the post-grunge single “Tomorrow”, the band has greatly matured since then, which is only natural seeing as they were 15 years old when the debut was recorded. Their newer material is bit more pop-rock, but it beats a lot of the other stuff in that genre by combining Daniel Johns soaring vocals with the band’s talented use of different rock and alternative elements. The premier single off of Silverchair’s latest album, Young Modern, carries a positive message of staying power in the face of adversity and personal conflicts. Yes, I sound a bit like like Bambi Weavil, here, but for someone who’s battled a lot of the same problems as Johns did around the same time (we also happen to be roughly the same age), it’s actually rather inspiring. The track has edged out “Tomorrow” for the band’s biggest hit, and won several awards and flew to the tops of the charts in the band’s homeland of Australia.
Vanessa Hudgens nude photo
I guess technically this was a bad thing, because the hundreds of thousands of little girls who idolize High School Musical‘s Vanessa Hudgens—at least the ones who caught wind of this story—will now grow up thinking it’s OK to send naked photos of yourself to your little twink boyfriend in an effort to turn him straight. She was 18 years old when she took the photo in question, so technically it is OK, but this probably wasn’t the best thing to do as a role model for children everywhere. Nonetheless, from the standpoint of myself (and the majority of our readers), I’ve never seen High School Musical and I’m old enough to do things such as vote, buy smokes and appreciate such adult delights as a nubile young girl showing off her wonderful little body. Of course, these things almost always come back to bite you in the ass, no matter how fine it is. (see also: Barba, Antonella)
The Horrors – Strange House
I’d been hearing a lot of things about these blokes—both good things and bad things. Yes, they do look like a bunch of Siouxsie and the Banshees groupies, but being partial to goth, horror and surf-rock, I am in pizzaface paradise listening to this album. The opening track, a cover of Screaming Lord Sutch’s “Jack the Ripper” is translated well, with equal parts Iggy Pop and The Cramps. “Count in Fives” uses the ’60s mind-expansive, punkadelic garage rock that is the band’s modus operandi, and it kicks ass. Another common element in most of the tracks is the use of the organ, of which I just cannot get enough, especially on the chaotic “Horrors Theme”.
The band’s currently touring with Black Rebel Motorcycle club, though they would be much more appreciated, I reckon, as the supporting act for The Cramps or the Misfits. The band’s flagship single, “Sheena Is a Parasite”, is a nice little nod to the Ramones while sounding like it could have been an out-take from demos collections of either Bauhaus or Alien Sex Fiend. I give it a thumbs way the f*ck up. I was certain that I wouldn’t be giving a 4.5 rating, after DJ Jazzy Jeff, for at least a few months, but lo and behold, I had two in one edition of The Wednesday Review Roundup. Maybe the music industry isn’t doomed after all. The Horrors seriously make pretty much everyone else in rock look like pussies. Even Metallica. Wait… they already were.
Devo – “Watch Us Work It”
While the members of the band have released new material in the past few years under the respective names of The Wipeoutters and Jihad Jerry & the Evildoers, we haven’t seen a new album by Devo since 1990. Amid chatter after “Watch Us Work It” was featured in a Dell commercial near the end of the year, the band is reportedly in the process of recording a new studio album. If the aftermentioned track is an indication of we’re in for, said album is very likely to kick ass.
DJ Jazzy Jeff – Return of the Magnificent
Hip-hop is still alive and well. Don’t let the sea of mediocrity—spearheaded by such hacks as Soulja Boy, Hurricane Chris, Dem Franchise Boyz, et al.—fool you into thinking otherwise. DJ Jazzy Jeff just goes to town with this, his second full-length solo album of original material. While his buddy Will has moved on to feature films, Mr. Townes continues to stay true to the medium that made him big in the first place. If you consider yourself a fan of hip-hop (it doesn’t matter what kind), you owe it to yourself to buy this album.
Compared to the original The Magnificent, which, in its own right was a good album, this one is at least twice as good. “Hold It Down” (featuring Method Man) uses a slick sample of Love Unlimited Orchestra’s “Love’s Theme”. Of course, it doesn’t stop there, as we’re treated to a hefty set full of good-as-gold beats and cameos by artists like Posdnous of De La Soul, J-Live, Big Daddy Kane, CL Smooth, Kardinal Offishall and Rhymefest (I commend Jazz for eschewing the usuals like Kanye West and 50 Cent, especially since they would have been all about it, had he asked). I could play “She Was So Flyy” (featuring the aforementioned Kardinal Offishall) on a continuous loop and I don’t think I’d get tired of it. And you can never go wrong with Big Daddy Kane, as “The Garden” is probably the best Kane cameo since Marley Marl’s “Three’s Company”. If you haven’t already, buy this. Now.
Nine Inch Nails – Year Zero
You know (to borrow a phrase from Mathan), I’m really going to be glad when Bush is gone, not only because he’s a blithering fool who’s screwed the country six ways to San Bernardino, but because it’ll also mean (I hope) the end of these damned politically charged albums by musicians trying to get their heat back. I didn’t like it when Green Day did it, I didn’t like it when Springsteen and Mellencamp did it, so I went into this one with low expectations, but that was premature. Year Zero paints a picture of a not-so-distant future where the country has fully succumbed to a 1984 scenario, complete with a “US Bureau of Morality” warning on the back, which reads: “Consuming or spreading this material [on this album] may be deemed subversive by the United States Bureau of Morality. If you or someone you know has engaged in subversive acts or thoughts, call: 1-866-445-6580 – BE A PATRIOT – BE AN INFORMER!” Well, I’ll give it points for creativity. At least the album’s not one big bitchfest.
While most of the other aforementioned albums are purely anti-government, Trent Reznor attacks the use of Christian values (yep, it’s still Nine Inch Nails, all right) to justify violence and injustice (the liner-note design features one arm holding a Bible and the other a machine gun). Combine that with the fact that the production on Year Zero is silky smooth and damn near flawless, and we’ve got ourselves here one fine album. The first single, “Survivalism” (which I reviewed in back in February), was enough to incite fans, and while I personally received it sort of coolly, it works a lot better amid the rest of the composition, following the hard-edged instrumental opener, “Hyperpower!”, and the mellower “The Beginning of the End”, which has just the right touch of angst.
We get some solid chill-out tracks, too (my favorite being the brooding “The Greater Good”, which, as evidenced by choice tracks off of the band’s last two albums, Trent can pull off very well (see, “La Mer”, from The Fragile. Of course, we get the obligatory anti-Bush song in “Capital G”, which, while corny at times, is actually pulled off pretty well, as is most of the material on the album. “Meet Your Master” is about as vintage Nails as you’ll get, though it’s obviously clear that Trent has no problem making good on slower, churning beats with a message. As far as concept albums go, this is excellent; as far as political albums go, this is excellent; and as far as Nine Inch Nails albums go, as long as you can realize that they’re an evolving band, the album is quite excellent, indeed. I’m still pretty interested to see what the upcoming remix album, Year Zero Remixed, is going to sound like, as it’s rumored to contain mixes by Bill Laswell, Ladytron, The Faint and… Saul Williams. Oh yeah, and “The Great Destroyer” reminded me of “Block Buster” by Sweet. Listen to it and you’ll know what I mean.
Black Light Burns – Cruel Melody
For what it’s worth, this is more of a Nine Inch Nails album than the latest Nine Inch Nails album. … Whoa… hold your fire, kids… everyone knows I’m a big fan of Trent and Co., but for those of you who were chagrined by their new, more downtempo sound, the sound found on Cruel Melody may be closer to that for which you are looking. It just goes to show that while Trent decides to try new things, Danny Lohner and Josh Freese are moving on with Wes Borland. Yes. Wes Borland. And yes, I really, really like this album. Let it be known, however, that Fred Durst can still suck my f*cking balls. “Mesopotamia” brings in some System of a Down-type volatility, while still staying true to Lohner’s vision, and the whole album really does flow very well. I would be remiss not to mention that Borland’s vocals do sound an awful lot like Trent’s (on songs like “Animal” and “The Mark”), but he’s different enough (on songs like “Lie” and “Stop a Bullet”) for it to not seem like shameless plagiarism. Really, folks, I never thought it would happen, but I am strongly recommending something involving Wes Borland. At this rate, the Cubs might actually break the curse in 2008. Probably not, though.
The RZA Presents: Afro Samurai – The Soundtrack
Almost forgot about this one, since it came out in January of 2007, but it was easily one of the top releases of the year. Afro Samurai, which premiered earlier in the month, is a dojinshi manga mini-series that’s been receiving quite a bit of critical acclaim, airing on Spike TV, and featuring Samuel L. Jackson as the voice of the title character, Afro. Taking place in a futuristic version of feudal Japan, images for the series are strikingly elegant, and it would only seem natural for the producers to enlist someone with the ability to create music to dramatic enough to complement the series.
Enter one Robert Diggs, who’s had success over the years in producing soundtracks (most notably Ghost Dog and Kill Bill, which feature similar subject matter). He went out an enlisted the help of some hip-hop heavyweights (Q-Tip, Talib Kweli, Big Daddy Kane, GZA/Genius), but unlike so very many current hip-hop albums, RZA manages to keep control of the album without making it seem like he did the cameos just to do cameos, jumping in when he sees fit, and letting the instrumentals carry a lot of the album.
“Cameo Afro”, featuring the aforementioned Kane and GZA, is exactly what hip-hop has been missing lately. If RZA made himself more accessible to today’s rap stars (à la the Neptunes and Lil Jon), we’d be in really good condition, and there’d be a lot less pissed off hip-hop fans. Seeing more of this could possibly cure the disappointment and biliousness that Mathan and Mike Eagle have been feeling as of late. Well, at least Mathan…
But yes, back to instrumentals… they end up working incredibly well and playing a large part in the general composition, rather than getting lost in mix as with other albums, as many instrumental tracks (not to mention skits… oh, I hate f*cking skits) tend to do among seemingly stronger vocal tracks. “Afro Theme” works like a darker, less backpacker version of “Battle Cry” from Samurai Champloo, and many of the instrumentals carry a very dark, dramatic feel. Others are simply beautiful pieces of work, like the orchestral “Tears of a Samurai”.
So very many soundtracks end up being nothing more than a bunch of tracks thrown together without really having any continuity, or anything in common aside from the fact that they both appeared somewhere over the course of two hours. As a result, so many soundtracks end up being nothing more than an absolute fustercluck with the occasion gem thrown in to sell the damn thing. Unlike those, this album actually feels like one single entity—several tracks with such resonance that it actually feels more like an album and less like a compilation. Hats off to the RZA.
14 other albums from 2007 that are worth picking up…
Jay-Z – American Gangster (see Mathan’s column for more on this one)
Circus Maximus – Isolate
Amon Tobin – Foley Room
2Tall Presents Dudley Perkins and Georgia Anne Muldrow – Beautiful Mindz
VNV Nation – Judgment
Blaqk Audio – CexCells
The Chemical Brothers – We Are the Night
Kanye West – Graduation
Down to the Bone – Supercharged
The White Stripes – Icky Thump
Superbad Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Samantha James – Rise
Dave Gahan – Hourglass
Gorillaz – D-Sides
