Depending
on where your tastes lie, 2004 has been a pretty good year for music so
far. Foamboy have been gathering momentum for some time.
‘Try Again Tomorrow’ (Thewhitelabel) is their second album
within six months. If you are partial to Jesus & Mary Chain, My Bloody
Valentine, or Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, point your attention in Foamboy’s
direction.
‘Meltdown’ (Infectious) from Ash has been receiving some mixed reviews. Without reservation, the band’s latest material is some of their strongest. The album sits somewhere between 1998’s ‘Nu-Clear Sounds’ and their last record ‘Free All Angels’. The best advice is, disregard the critics and judge for yourself – you won’t be disappointed!
‘Wave Of Mutilation’ (4AD) is The Pixies’ second best of album, but who’s counting. This is considerably more comprehensive than their 1997 ‘Death To The pixies’ compilation, and features their cover of Neil Young’s ‘Winterlong’.
Mundy’s third album ‘Raining Down Arrows’ (Camcor) is as catchy and likeable as you’d expect. It’s very much a record of extremes – deep heartfelt ballads, and bright upbeat pop tunes. It’s definitely a step in a more commercial direction, but that isn’t a bad move in this case.
There’s hype, and then there’s music that misses the bull’s eye. It’s hard to decide which of these ‘Into The Spotlight’ (Booney Tunes) from Elaine Palmer falls under. She’s got a great voice, some nice tunes, but the record has what seems like a cold northerly breeze blowing right the way through it. Maybe it’s an album you have to come back to, or perhaps one to forget?
Juno Falls have put out one of the early contenders for debut of the year. ‘Starlight Drive’ (N8) has everything that a debut should – passion, power, and more importantly some cracking tunes! You can’t help but think of acts like Crowded House and The Byrds when you’re listening to this record.
If you’re after Lou Reed’s definitive live recording, stay away from ‘Animal Serenade’ (Sire/Reprise). It’s not that it’s a terrible album, there’s just very little that encapsulates you – Reed is capable of much better than this.
After the disintegration of Queens Of The Stone Age, Josh Homme is back with another project. ‘Peace Love Death Metal’ (AAA) from Eagles Of Death Metal is definitely going to be one of 2004’s highlights. Those who loved QOTSA and Desert Sessions are going to fall for this immediately.
‘Likes…’ (K7) from Dani Siciliano is one of the more unusual records to surface of late. The sometimes Matthew Herbert collaborator has put together an album that slips between genres. Along with some highly infectious pop/jazz numbers, she covers Nirvana’s ‘Come As You Are’ – interesting!
Juliana Hatfield’s ‘In Exile Deo’ (Zoe) is a mixed affair. The former Blake Baby and Lemonhead has tendencies to slip into Avril Lavigne territory at certain points (Lavigne’s producer David Leonard co-produces two of the tracks). In fairness there’s nothing particularly evil about Lavigne’s music, but Hatfield would do herself more credit by staying away from guitar pop fashions, and being her usual individual self.
In the mid 90s, The Crystal Method were
dubbed ‘a poor man’s Chemical Brothers’. The duo’s
latest album ‘Legion Of Boom’ (V2) further underlines
RECOMMENDED: |
IN BRIEF: Cork act Sunday Morning have been busy recently. The band are releasing a single a month – the latest ‘Valentines’ (Last Serenade) is definitely worth a listen. Lastly, Fairuza have released a new singe ‘The Champagne Industry’ (Fairuza Music). The extra track is a cover of Nirvana’s ‘Something In The way’ – both tracks are available for download from www.fairuzamusic.com |
ESSENTIAL LISTENING
Fingathing ‘Big
Red Nebula Band’ (Grand Central)
Fingathing’s third album contains some of today’s most interesting
and inventive music. Much like ‘Talkin’ Honkey Blues’
by Buck 65, ‘Big Red Nebula Band’ sets a new standard, and
pushes the boundaries that little bit further.
www.fingathing.com
Baby
Dayliner ‘High Heart & Low Estate’ (Brassland)
Gary Numan and Mircrodisney come to mind when listening to Baby Dayliner’s
debut. Don’t be fooled though, this is much more than an 80s retro
record - it’s 12 tales that have been beautifully synthesised and
vocalised.
www.babydayliner.com
Magnus
‘The Body Gave You Everything’ (Anti)
For want of a better term, Magnus are a super-group. Featuring Tom Barman
of dEUS, and CJ Bolland, the mixture has explosive results. There is little
to measure Magnus against, you have to hear them to appreciate their eminence.
www.magnusmusic.com
Stanley
Super 800 ‘Stanley Super 800’ (Bingo)
It’s taken some time, but the Cork four-piece have come good with
their debut album. They’ve been hailed as “musical mavericks”,
and this record illustrates why. Highlights include ‘Summer In The
City’, and the beautiful ‘Moonlight’.
www.stanleysuper800.com
SOUNDS OF THE SUMMER
With the nice shiny and bright weather rolling in, live music by the festival-load
is coming right behind it. Here’s a look at some of the best bits
that June and July have to offer.
Heineken Green Energy Festival– June 3rd-7th:
This year’s event has some cracking shows, however one or two of
these are already sold out. Josh Ritter pays another
visit to Ireland for his biggest gig so far– you can catch him at
Dublin Castle on June 4th, with special guests Bell X1 and mark Geary.
Morrissey’s concert at the castle the following day is sold out–
begging or bribing is the only way you’ll get into this!
The rest of the dates are:
June 3rd:
Jet & La Rocca– Ambassador
Alice Cooper– Olympia
June 4th:
The Revs & Walter– Temple Bar Music Centre
Amy Winehouse– The Village
Hal & Fionn Regan– Whelan’s
June 5th:
Supergrass– Olympia
The Dead 60’s– Temple Bar Music Centre
I Am Kloot– The Village
HIM– Ambassador
June 6th:
The Distillers– Ambassador
Iggy & The Stooges– Dublin Castle
June 7th:
The Streets– Dublin Castle
Peaches– Temple Bar Music Centre
Sun Kil Moon– The Village
Dogs Die In Hot Cars– Whelan’s
Red Hot Chili Peppers– Phoenix Park– June
12th:
It’s been billed as the year’s biggest one-day event, and
it is… by a considerable margin! Along with the Chili Peppers, you
can catch The Thrills, Groove Armada, and the mighty Pixies, for what
is (until we hear otherwise) their only Irish date since reforming.
Metallica – RDS Arena – June 25th:
This isn’t a festival, but on a hair-standing-up-on-the-back-of-your-neck
meter reading, this is going to hit boiling point! If Metallica weren’t
a big enough draw on their own, then the addition of Slipknot and Lost
Prophets should prove irresistible.
Oxegen – Punchestown Racecourse – July 10th
& 11th:
The festival formerly known as Witnness has a frighteningly good line-up
this year– frightening because you’re unlikely to be able
to catch all the bands you set out to see!
Headliners include David Bowie, The Strokes, The Darkness, and The Cure.
Other acts include PJ Harvey, Snow Patrol, Chemical Brothers, The Rapture,
N.E.R.D, Future Kings Of Spain, Ash, and many others. The line-up is growing
so quickly; it’s pointless trying to keep up!
You’re better off logging onto www.oxygen.ie or www.mcd.ie for updates
and stage line-ups. Oxegen will also be the last time Irish fans will
get to see Orbital– they plan on splitting soon after.
News • News • News • News • News •
News • News • News • News • News
Rumours of a Whipping Boy reunion have been ruled out
by former band member Paul Page. Speculation started after the band’s
1995 album ‘Heartworm’ appeared back in record stores last
month. A number of sources had suggested that the band had booked venues
for live dates this Summer, but Page commented that there are no plans
to reform the band at any point in the near future.
One Whipping Boy-related story that can be confirmed is regarding Fergal McKee. The band’s former vocalist is currently laying the foundations of his solo career. The musical direction that McKee is taking is unclear, but one source likened the McKee’s new outing to that of An Emotional Fish’s Ger Whelan after he mutated into Jerry Fish.
New York’s Interpol are back in the studio recording their second album. The follow-up to ‘Turn On The Bright Lights’ is scheduled for release in September. No title is known at present, but new songs include ‘NARC’ and ‘Length Of Love’.
The Hives are also working on new material. The band performed a number of new tracks at the South By Southwest music festival in the US recently – these included ‘Abra Cadaver’ and what many believe will be their next single ‘Idiot Walk’.
Sandymount band Tokai (Conan Brophy, Neil Brophy & Evan Kenny) released their debut self-titled EP last month. The band performed on RTE Network 2’s ID Plus programme two weeks ago, and have been compared to acts as varied as Gomez and David Bowie. The ‘Tokai’ EP will be available nationwide shortly.
RTE 2FM will be celebrating its 25th birthday with a special broadcast day on Monday, June 7th. Each of the station’s presenters will host an hour-long show highlighting their favourite music from the past 25 years. For more, go to www.rte.ie/2fm