Reviews

Weekly Reviews For August 12, 2006

Review Index

I am Managing Editor at Metal4Life

I also contribute reviews to getreadytorock

I am also featured reviewer at spacerock.co.uk

I was Editor & reviewer at MetalUK.

New Reviews

Juergen Reiter Orkaan Orkestra - No Trespassing

The Orkaan orkestra developed out of a Charles Mingus show where Juergen Reiter first put together musicians from the world of jazz, classical and electronica.

After a period of whittling down and consolidation, this CD, "No Trespassing" is the first fruit of their labours. An album of all original compositions, it really is an exiting set of new jazz, with an almost trip-hop feel to some of the music, especially on the outstanding "Head Beatz".

If you like people willing to push at the boundaries of your conventions then you should give this a try.

Jus Nyce & Orkaan Orkestra - Let's Get It On Tonight


As is it wasn't enough that the Orkaan Orkestra are trying to push the boundaries of jazz fusion, now they turn their hands to a dancefloor Latino hiphop / pop crossover.

And it really deserves to be a huge summer hit, sparkling, perky and full of life. Even a hardened old cynic like me was moved into tapping a toe or two.

Bound to infuriate the jazz purists out there, it's collaborations as fresh and as good as this one that will ensure the medium has a future..

Big Life Desire - Your Love Is

We like Whimsical records. They have a postcode only one digit away from mine and have an unquenchable thirst for melody.

And so it is with Keith Harbottle who has wisely moved away from his Goon like real name to trade as Big Life Desire, a name setting himself up for a fall. He's also not a very good singer, choosing to enunciate in tune instead, but it just fits with his oddly affecting pop music. There's no normal reason why this should be good - it just is. And that's one of the beauties of music. It's not supposed to make sense.

One for the Robert Wyatt / Kevin Coyne fans out there, methinks.

Various - Scotia Mix Vol 1

Well that title probably dragged in a few tartan botherers. A lion rampant / saltire sporting cover will have fooled a few more. But these seeking Harry Lauder like abominations are in for a surprise.

For this is a compilation of up and coming r'n'b and hiphop artists from, wait for it, Nova Scotia. Yes, you read that right. Now I hadn't pictured Nova Scotia as a seething hotbed of simmering racial tension and inner city conflict, but I must be wrong. Either that or there is a tad of artistic licence / exaggeration going on.

But there is one out and out star here which should have record majors salivating, and that is Jamie Sparks who could mop up the R.Kelly market without further ado. Of the others, the dark, dense, orchestral beats of Teardrop is a real gem.

There are no real clunkers here, but it's the aforementioned twosome that really stand out head and shoulders from the generic hiphop vibes surrounding them. So, if you want to hear what may be the next big thing first, click on the link below.

Hey Negrita - Abandon Ship

Hey Negrita are a band who've often threatened to become great but who seem to brake at the last minute. It was almost as if they were slightly scared of the prospect.

Well there's nothing like a good dose of heartbreak to stop all that kind of nonsense. As Felix Bechtolsheimer (or Felix as he will henceforth be known) takes us through the betrayal and abandonment of the breakup with his long term girlfriend he ends up with Hey Negritas first great song.

Musically, it's still roots rock / Americana with a hint of folk tucked away, but there's a raw passion that lifts it on up. The other songs on this single are also no slouches with the video added for your visual pleasure..

Hey Negrita - The Buzz Above


Now I know that most of the songs here were influenced by mainman felix breaking up with his long term girlfriend but, for goodness sake, lighten up! I enjoy misery as much as the next man but there's not a hint of a smile in the land of Hey Negrita. Roy Harper can get away with an hour of unrelenting doom and gloom, but few others can.

And the whole poor me schtick works fine when the songs peak, and Hey Negrita have come up with some absolute peaches. "All About Me", the single "Abandon Ship", "Good Times" and others are exemplary roots rock numbers. The three named here are the finest work Hey Negrita have produced yet, and should be rightly hailed from on high.

It can be hard going, wallowing in someone elses misery, but there are enough rewarding moments down her in the depths to make this release of value.

Peter Grant - Joanna

Not the late, legendary Led Zep manager. Although, if anyone has a recording of him doing a Scott Walker impersonation....

No, this is teen prodigy and swinger Peter grant. That is to say he sings swing. And I say teen, he could easily be a 50 year old with arrested development if the suit / polo neck combo is anything to go by.

But he can sing. The problem is he's no Frank SInatra or Scott Walker. He's not even Michael Buble. So when he rattles through "Joanna", "The Best Is Yet to Come", "On Days Like These" and "You're The First, The Last, My Everything", it's the familiarity of great songs that gets the toes tapping, not the performance.

But he is young and pulls out all the stops on "The Best Is Yet to Come", the best performance by a mile and a sign of encouragement. But whoever arranged "You're The First, The Last, My Everything" as a Mike Pops Orchestra number should be taken out and...well, given a stiff talking to.

Joseph Patrick Moore - Decade 1996 - 2005

As the title kinda, sorta says, this is a kinda, sorta celebration of a decades worth of work from contemporary jazz bassist Joseph Patrick Moore, not to be confused with the lizard like astronomer. Technically, he's right, it is a decade. But not aesthetically.

His is a world where funky jazz touches on the world of the jamband. Hence the inclusion of a track called "Jamband Express ", and it's a mighty addictive brew. And when you can bring in the likes of Yonrico Scott (Derek Trucks) and Jummy Herring (Allmans / Dead) to enhance your music then you've got a head start. It may be no coincidence that the two contribute to the album highlight "Datz It".

It's nearly all original material with a couple of strange covers thrown in which don't really serve any purpose (Men At Work and The Police). But when JPM gets the groove right as he does on the aforementioned "Datz It" and "Jamband Express" as well as on numbers like "Chief Dagga2 and "Groovemessenger", then its exemplary.