Mister G ~ Pizza For Breakfast (album review) ... Pizza in the morning, dogs & ponies, courtesy of Mister G!

Style: humor, folk-rock, children's music
Label: Coil Records
Year: 2010
Home: Massachusetts

Members: Ben Gundersheimer "Mister G" ~ vocals/guitar
n/a ~ other instruments

Bluesy beats, thick bass, wah-wah guitar, organ & pizza in the morning everyday with a little ice cream ... I mean, you don't have to be a kid to enjoy that combination! Though, if you are that's better as that's who MG is reaching out to. When I was younger I always had this feeling that children's music had to be as rockin' as Peter, Paul & Mary, i.e. not rockin', or music you normally would never listen to, or even really want to share with kids. Maybe it was Garcia & Grisman's successful bluegrass album focused on kids, but today it's a fact that kids like the same music that big people do. You don't start dancing to a beat when you become a teenager, you always grooved. MG fuses common musical styles of a mellow mood with fun lyrics either talking about things kids like, such as breakfast choices & animals, or teaching lessons about taking care of yourself. The musical styles are incredibly diverse, from the bluesy title track, to the recycling song "Don't Waste Stuff" that is accordion flavored country, while Fleetwood Mac-esque pop a la Christine McVie glides through "Run" about meeting wild animals, calypso in "Sneaky Chihuahua", bluegrass via "Dogs Don't Fly" & some imitatively perfect Mellencamp in "Pony With A Problem". The secret to great children's music is wanting to listen even when children aren't around or if you're not a kid yourself. It's like listening to the Christmas themed albums of Trans-Siberian Orchestra during the summer ... you want to do it & you do do it & who cares what anyone thinks. Check out "Pony With A Problem" & I'm willing to bet you'll listen twice if not more, while you'll have visions of bluegrass mandolin king Bill Monroe following "Dogs Don't Fly." Go ahead, I dare the kid in you. MG's songs might be cute, but they're not overly saccharine or looking down on kids like they're not smart, but just the opposite. Even when churning out a blues solo over "Bath" about the horrors of taking a bath, only to be turned to interest by the bubbles, its all top notch playing, as bluesy as Eric Clapton even, & MG doesn't cut corners or aim for making cheesy music. Pizza For Breakfast is MG's debut & follows spending a few decades in the music world as an indie songwriter, getting the first songwriting scholarship in the history of Berklee. Ben "Mister G" Gundersheimer went back to school for a secondary degree in elementary education following a part-time day gig bringing roots music styles into schools balancing out his evening gig that at one point found him sharing the stage with Phish. The songs on this album were inspired by his former students. MG's other albums include English & Spanish bilingual albums.

Rod Stewart ~ Foolish Behavior (album review) ... Not all behavior is foolish, some is just best left forgotten!

Style: pop rock, soft rock, dance, blues-rock
Label: Warner Brothers
Year: 1980
Home: n/a

Members: Rod Stewart ~ vocals/harmonica
Jim Cregan, Gary Grainger, Billy Peek ~ guitars
Phil Chen, Tom Bogart, James Haslip – bass
Carmine Appice, Colin Allen, Roger Bethelmy ~ drums
Kevin Savigar, John Jarvis ~ keyboards

Additional: Paulinho Da Costa ~ percussion
Phil Kenzie, Earl Price, James Gordon ~ sax
Billy Lamb, Jim Price ~ trombone
Lee Thornburg ~ trumpet
Sid Page ~ violin
Susan Grindell, Valerie Carter, Tony Brock ~ b. vocals


Museums make a living sharing relics that in their day might not have been that important, just a book or a tool or a picture. Yet, today we gaze on them like these were once prized possessions. Some were, yet some were as disregarded as that broken picture frame kept in the box in our attic is. In more than a few cities one might find a museum dedicated to less than relics, but monuments & legacy making items of the past. Cleveland's Rock'N'Roll Hall of Fame is one such place, preserving the heights that music has climbed & the changes that have been brought. But, is there a museum in the world that displays the lows music has reached, the albums forgotten, the music never listened to more than once, the moments in a musician's career best forgotten in hindsight? "Passion" might be the lead-off single, but that's what this album lacks - passion. It's name Foolish Behavior is a better fit, as its a weak foolish outing right up there with early 80's Rolling Stones ... everything but what we want from the Stones or RS. Touching on Blondie-esque ska (i.e. "So Soon We Change") to rockabilly blues (i.e. "Better Off Dead") to dance (i.e. "Passion", "Git Me Wings"), the later picking up from the previous outing Blondes Have More Fun but less in your face & without the disco ambiance that both was addicting & atrocious, welcome to RS's tour of musical styles & not really doing much for any of them. Welcome to RS being lost in which way he should go, lost in time, lost to what is popular on the charts. & lest we forget "My Girl" & "Somebody Special" that are big synthesizer, shimmering guitars, sax solo included, ballads that perfectly set up the sound RS would cleave to throughout the 1980's. On one hand it's good nobody at the time knew these two tracks were the future, on the other hand these two are some of the few good songs here. RS killed the blues belter RS years earlier replacing him, beginning here, with synthesizer soft rocker RS. Soft synth RS is better than what originally replaced bluesy RS, i.e. raunchy disco RS. Though, it's not really that great of a sound as his lack of success in the next decade would come to show, along with the poor showing of the immediately following albums. Thus, this is a relic of a low. Is there a museum where albums like this go to die at least with some honor? I hope so, just for the fun of it. At the time this was a successful album, but probably due to the punch created by the hit "Do You Think I'm Sexy?". It got on the coattails. Recorded in 1980 this was RS's hello to the new decade. It's not a good hello & it wouldn't be a good decade. Some musicians entered with an equally bad hello but found themselves able to get back on board ... but many went the way of RS & never really did. There is one standout track, outside of the obvious "Passion", in "Oh God I Wish I Was Home Tonight" with a classic RS sound of piano, slide guitar, violin & raunchy lyrics. It's a last hurrah for the bluesy street kid rocker who doesn't take himself too seriously ... time to grow up, boy. There is a historical note for the museum display in that "She Don't Dance With Me", that sounds like a reject from RS's old band the Faces, was the third video to be played on MTV. But, history & good music are not the same thing.

The Kalling ~ 3 (EP) (album review) ... 3 is the abbreviation for 'low-fi death metal stomp'!

Style: black metal, heavy metal
Label: self-released
Year: 2013
Home: Texas

Members: Bryan 'B-Ray' Ray ~ guitars/vocals
Gerald 'G-Man' Barnett ~ drums


In their third release, following two back to back 2011 releases, the duo of the Kalling have gone for a wider more exploratory palette of sound, or at least it feels different on the whole even if the changes aren't essentially too drastic. The Kalling have always created a "low-fi death metal stomp", as I've previously described them, but 3 feels like the boys have decided to slow things down even more at times, got some new studio effects at their disposal & played with the vocals a lot more, which is the most obvious change. Opener "Snake Charmer" features reversed vocals, screaming & perhaps a Mercyful Fate ambiance to the vocals, while "Abomination Man" includes growling/screaming for the chorus with the more talking/singing vocals of past albums for the verses. In addition to the new vocal workout the songs feel that they plod much more than the earlier albums. "Abomination Man" crawls while "Snake Charmer" drones, a technique they'd always found their greatest successes with, yet this is a reinvention not a repeat of the past. Essentially, the music feels stripped back, but there's no loss as the new vocals make up for it, the texture has moved from the guitars & drums to the vocals. While at first it sounds like the Kalling has gone more mainstream metal in their approach ... one wonders what inspired this change ... the following four songs throw out all expectations. The most dynamic track "Hypnotizing The Masses" has everything put into a blender to come out as a swirling musical kaleidoscope that brings a psychedelic feel into play. "The Number" is the most straight forward song, more heavy metal than black metal & reminiscent of traditional 80's metal. But, this is the calm before the storm, with the gnarly Slayer-esque "Wizards Of War" that truly fuses old Kalling with the new Kalling sound. Getting a facelift is the theme of 3 & it's an exciting facelift that makes the album a great addition to what the Kalling has already done. Also needing mention is the concluding track "Coma", more of a bonus track or coda as it's only vocals & guitar, of a guy talking from a coma. A very creeping ending to a great album & drawing upon B-Ray's lyrical prowess when it comes to first hand storytelling. Though, it's really not a coda as lyrically much of the album looks at things that are coming to an end or in a breakdown & obviously this last song is thus the perfect ending, because death isn't pretty.

Arctic Monkeys - Suck It & See (album review) ... What I unexpectantly see!

Style: post-punk, alt rock
Label: Domino
Year: 2011
Home: England

Members: Alex Turner ~ vocals/guitar
Jamie Cook ~ guitar
Nick O'Malley ~ bass/b. vocals
Matt Helders ~ drums/b. vocals

Guest: Josh Homme ~ b. vocals

How bands get advertised, promoted & written about has a tendency to put into your head a preconceived notion of the music that may or may not be true & very well might give the wrong impression & stop a potential fan from investigating the music further. Due to their write-ups I never figured the AM were a band I'd be interested in much & never heard anything from them nor gave it a second thought. Having their 2011 release pushed my way I almost was forced to listen or maybe I was just having a good day & in a willing mood to say sure. Maybe the PR for the AM has been a little off or directed to a different audience or maybe I've misinterpreted it, but I feel the result is that I've gotten the AM wrong, or at least their 2011 release Suck It & See. Now, I'll say right now that this is the only album I've heard from them, so some fans might say I'm not getting the right perspective or have the wrong album or not their best album or a very different album or what have you. Those would all be potentially valid arguments, but at the same time you can't expect every person to always get the right album first. I'm sure I'm not the only one whose introduction to the AM was through Suck It & See. I can't count how many bands I've discovered through the wrong album. Sometimes that's hurt as I didn't go farther, other times I liked the worst ... & surprisingly didn't like the best of. As they say, you can't change the cards fate has dealt you ... well, I can't change the CD fate has passed to me. So, if anything, make this review of AM according to Suck It & See ... & if you don't like what I write, then suck it & see another reviewer's blog. Obviously, this is not the band I expected to hear when the CD started playing. A few immediate things come to mind: 1. No song really stands out as a big single, but there are a lot of great songs here primarily driven by enjoyable memorable lyrics, if at times anti-climactic, 2. The music is far more melodic & not at all the cluttered alt rock I thought the AM played, 3. Can you say retro 80's flashback with a flow that feels more like new wave meets Iggy Pop, rather than any 2011 musical style. I've seen the AM described as neo-punk, which was what I was expecting, not something that sounds like Dave Edmunds or Paul Weller ... so I either saw some bad PR or confused the band with another one, while both options are likely. If the AM were punk in the beginning they certainly aren't here by any stretch of my definition of punk. On the other hand, I'm not a big fan of punk in any past or present form, so maybe they are punk but it's my luck I find them at their least punkish. The angsty lyrics, angry music or fast songs I equate with punk aren't here, so maybe this is post-post-punk ... don't quote me on that, though. The highlight for me is the singing, without a doubt, & essentially the biggest thing I can recommend about this album, besides its flashback retro feel. The music doesn't go really anywhere for me, never really getting me too excited or providing any background that really grabs me as interesting, but the singing is solid, heavily melodic & not screaming, shouting or untuneful gargling. This is a far better album than I expected, with a solid though anti-climactic set of songs, & I would even venture to say that anyone who says new music isn't very good might change their mind a bit with a listen here. If nothing else they would realize that the classic days of music hasn't been forgotten but simply updated.

Koji ~ Crooked In My Mind (album review) ... The angry young man strikes again!

Style: alt rock
Label: Run For Cover Records
Year: 2013
Home: n/a

Members: Andrew Shiraki "Koji" ~ guitar/vocals

Guests: Matt Warner, Brad Vander Lugt ~ n/a
Ron Gilmore ~ keyboards
Colin Gorman ~ guitars
Ned Russin ~ bass


I honestly can't say that the music on Crooked On My Mind does much for me, as for my 30-something old ears it sounds like the typical modern angsty quasi-romantic or at least heart torn alt rock that lands far too often at my doorstep & repeatedly fails to arouse much of my interest. If it was a step closer to the post-grunge movement I might take more interest. The biggest problem I have with so much of this genre, & Koji is no exception, is bad singing & cliched lyrics that are trying to be poetical but without lasting substance. Now, some might say one needs to give his music time to let it sink in, but I argue against this PR stance. If I'm not grabbed in the first listen what's the chances I'm going to give it ten or twenty more listens before deciding if I like it or not? I'm already giving it at least four or five listens just to write this review. Or, put it another way, how many times is someone going to stream a song on itunes before deciding to buy or move on? Not many. I know one guy who wrote off Christina Aguilera's entire Stripped album, I was with him at the time, because the first song opened with an extended keyboard part that he didn't like & he never got beyond the intro as he was looking for dance music not keyboards. & this guy is a professional funk bass player who downloads stuff on itunes without paying much attention. There's too much music out there to give something repeated listens to let it sink in before deciding it's not right to buy. So, I've already found this style of music not grabbing me through numerous bands, so Koji has an impossible wall to climb. Okay, sometimes a band throws out a witty lyric, but for the most part I find this music over emotive & in the end empty. But, I feel compelled to review Koji because he is doing something different on his debut & that I can wholly appreciate & support, even if the result isn't to my interest. I've tried to review things on this blog that are different, even if that means its not music I personally am going to listen to again. I'll give the kudos where I see them, explain why I don't give more applause & leave the rest to other reviewers. Some of you may know Koji from the Warped Tour & without doubt his music is hard to forget because he takes the current alt rock style & transforms it to acoustic guitar with intricate rhythmic textures. It brings a whole new ambiance to the music. It may not be any more textured or more rhythmic than any other band, but when every note comes through uncluttered by solos & distortion that puts the music on its head for a new listening experience. I just sadly don't think the singing or lyrics are that interesting. The whole album is kept musically simple with the acoustic guitars always prominent & accessory instruments adding sparse texture without clutter, lifting this up from a coffeehouse moment, including a few electric solos, violins, funky basslines, backing vocals & keyboards. Providing the array of sounds is a cast of players from La Dispute, Balance & Composure, Title Fight, Gypsy & Lauryn Hill's band. For those curious Koji describes himself as a Japanese-Filipino-Spanish-Portuguese-American.

Elton John ~ Breaking Hearts (album review) ... For those that want to hear Sir Elton sing about his lil 'fridgerator!

Style: soft rock, pop rock
Label: Geffen
Year: 1984
Home: England

Members: Elton John ~ piano/vocals
Davey Johnstone ~ guitar/b. vocals
Dee Murray ~ bass/b. vocals
Nigel Olsson ~ drums/b. vocals

Additional: Andrew Thompson ~ saxophone


Who doesn't like EJ on some level? But, there's a problem when approaching his music - where do you start? There's the 70's EJ, there's the goodbye Bernie Taupin hello Gary Osborne era of the late 70's/early 80's EJ, there's the soft rock slick 80's EJ, there's the 90's even slicker EJ, there's the Broadway EJ & then there's the 2001 comeback Songs From The West Coast & later with Leon Russell EJ & I've probably missed a few faces in here. Everybody likes the classic 70's days, whether they like EJ on the whole or not, though I find I like his voice much better today as its gotten deeper, plus post-throat surgery, & some of the early songs are too quirky for my tastes. The Osborne albums I've always enjoyed & believe to be under-rated. The 80's/90's pop balladeer I have trouble with as every album sounds predictably same & just seem to work harder & harder as the years go on trying to ring out every ounce of emotion in turn killing any real emotion Taupin's lyrics might actually have. I like to think of Made In England where EJ & Taupin had gotten to the point where one word song titles was all they needed to make people swoon ... maybe. I expected the next album to be partial words, like the oh, ah, I. The Broadway EJ I've never cared about as his shows might have a different lyricist in Tim Rice, but the music doesn't do anything for me as it's as maudlin & predictable as ever. That might be the biggest problem I have with post 70's EJ - the music. He never pushes himself or steps out of himself & once he finds a particular sound he drives it into the ground & the result isn't that the trends finally come round to him as his savior but he just ends up sounding lost & tired & bored. But, that might be why I like his 2001 to the present comeback without abandon - EJ pushes himself, particularly evidenced in his country-tinged album with Leon Russell. These recent albums not just feature EJ experimenting like its the 60's again but Taupin is rejuvenated & inspired like he hasn't been in a long time creating some of his best songs that must be heard. For the first time in a long time both guys sound vibrant in their respective roles as lyricist & composer/performer. Let alone, the recent releases are anything but predictable mass appeal pop songs with no personality, like much of EJ's 80's/90's output. So, should one thus ignore two decades of EJ's career, or at least from 1983's Too Low For Zero on, the first album in a couple years of entirely Taupin compositions? Certainly not, but one should also know there's highs & lows, great songs & filler. Too Low For Zero is a great starting point as its not just Taupin's full return, previous albums split between Taupin & Osborne, but also finds EJ fully shedding the over-used disco mode feel, reunited him with his 70's touring band & churning out the hits "I'm Still Standing" & "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues" which seem almost autobiographical for the time. The follow-up Breaking Hearts continues to ride this high & might be EJ's last solid album for awhile that hits more than misses. It doesn't have the memorable songs of other albums, but is a solid release just the same lyrically & musically, or at least its an enjoyable release from start to finish & strong in its own ways if not the best album of his catalog. In many ways its a nice bridge between the past & present as it skips over the disco & pulls the best of EJ's pop 70's feeling, yet also finds the balladeer beginning to take shape with a slimmed down sound. In retrospect the album also is the first of EJ's 80's trademarkable sound, a sound that would he would not vary from as much as push to its limit, but at the time this was still a fresh sounding EJ having fun again & coming off of a successful tour. Thus, once one hears Breaking Hearts the rest of the decade become obvious musically & personally skip anything else, unless there's a song or two of interest, & go right for the comeback. Another incentive to take this jump is that this might also be one of the last albums before EJ went super polished, super commercial, super radio friendly & his musical explorations became largely limited to the soul of 1989's Sleeping With the Past. If there's any big problem with the album it's in the lyrics. They are some of the weakest most uninspired catch-phrase oriented lyrics of Taupin's pen (for example, "Restless", "Lil 'Fridgerator"), though on the other hand it works perfectly for EJ's new pop sound & doesn't let the album sink under its own emotional weight as Made In England does. Highlights include "Slow Down Georgie (She's Poison)", "Who Wears The Shoes" & the ballads the title track, "In Neon" & "Burning Bridges" that all find a nice space between the 70's & the 80's EJ. Two interesting experiments are "Passengers" which aims for Jamaican rhythms without actually having a island rhythm & "Did He Shoot Her" which is a fun little number made for the radio with its tambura background.

Asia ~ Aqua (album review) ... Trying hard not to drown!

Style: British, rock, prog rock
Label: InsideOut Music
Year: 1992
Home: n/a

Members: Geoff Downes ~ keyboards/b. vocals
John Payne ~ bass/guitar/vocals
Al Pitrelli ~ guitar

Additional: Michael Sturgis, Simon Phillips, Nigel Glockler ~ drums
Ant Glynne, Scott Gorham ~ guitar
Mats Johanson ~ guitar solo

Guests: Steve Howe ~ guitar/mandolin
Carl Palmer ~ drums

This quasi-comeback album with a retooled line-up is not a bad step in new direction, it was good enough to initiate a new era, but it has some weaknesses. All of the weaknesses, which get heavily debated in Asia fan circles & has led to a division among fans over which line-up they prefer, largely get cleaned-up on the follow-up Aria. The result is this might be the more experimental album when it comes to its musical palette yet also more in line with the old Asia sound, while the follow-up has a stronger set of songs & is closer to what Asia would become. That being said, both albums are important moments on the Asia timeline & necessary purchases for any fan & will rise or fall largely dependent on what sound one wants to hear. While original member Geoff Downes had recruited singer/bassist John Payne to step into the shoes of John Wetton in the new line-up not all the material for this re-tooled line-up was written from scratch. Some songs were new, but others came from Payne's previous band while other came from an earlier reunion attempt & not written for Payne's voice. Payne enters his new gig shining with a strong vocal presence, but there are times the production feels like the band is trying to lesson the wide gap between his & Wetton's singing styles & vocal tones. Personally I find Payne the stronger & more textured singer & thus this cover-up approach on a couple songs ends up weakening the material as it tries to stand too much in the shadow of the past. Partly in response to this Payne's vocals would be up & center with no imitative moments on Aria. It also ends up making this feel like a transitional album versus a clear strong step in new directions, something also repaired on Aria where a majority of the songs were new. Payne's vocals is one of the most noticeable changes on the new album as traditionally Asia had somewhat of a focus around Steve Howe's guitar playing, but here he's only a guest on a couple tracks primarily in some intro/outro instrumentals & not involved with the songwriting. Unable to even begin to emulate Howe's style the remaining guitar playing on the album is in a completely different mode that takes Asia in a new hard rock direction away from the pop prog, all courtesy of famed session player & former Alice Cooper guitarist Al Pitrelli. Successive guitarists would come to find a fusion between Howe's pop prog & Pitrelli's rock for some hard rock & far more interesting prog. Pitrelli does contribute some strong playing by not over-playing, almost to the point of perfect under-playing for the biggest impact, but it leaves the guitar in an accessory position versus an intricate contributor. Though, while it might be some strong playing this is not an album to turn to for his best playing. His soloing skills are under-utilized for instead textured rhythms a la 80's power chords which is indistinguishable from countless sessions he was doing at the time, including Donny Osmond & Taylor Dayne. The fact he didn't write the songs, like Howe, but was called in later in their development, the same as would be done on Aria, would never really give him a chance to shine with Asia while the band would come to move into a more keyboard dominated direction. This lack of contribution & the thin line between member & guest makes Asia less of a band & basically a Downes/Payne outing with some hired hands. This might be the weakest link of both Aqua & Aria as it limits the potential, though in their defense at the time this was the most workable approach to moving Asia into the future. The drumming also deserves mention as this new line-up was touted as only partially new. Promotional material made it look like the new boys were only Payne & Pitrelli, while Downes & Howe had returned along with drummer Carl Palmer. But, this was far from true. Howe's tracks were recorded before Pitrelli was recruited, while Palmer contributed three tracks early on. The rest of the drum tracks would be done by three session drummers imitating Palmer's lines from previous recordings, one of whom was Michael Sturgis who had already been considered for an earlier reunion of Asia & on Aria would be credited as a regular member. So, those who gravitate to this new Asia hoping for Palmer & Howe are going to be greatly disappointed. But, if you put away that need this is a solid album with some good songs & some others you'll probably gloss over, but in the end not be disappointed as the material remains strong underneath its weaknesses & the guys do turn in a solid album even if it needs some tightening. As I started this blog saying, it's not a bad step in a new direction.

Joe Satriani ~ Black Swans & Wormhole Wizards (album review) ... When the swans & wizards come home to roost!

Style: instrumental, power metal
Label: Epic
Year: 2010
Home: n/a

Members: Joe Satriani ~ guitar/keyboards/bass
Mike Keneally ~ keyboards
Jeff Campitelli ~ drums
Allen Whitman ~ bass


A part of me just can't get into this album, but at the same time I can't say its a bad album or even that there's anything wrong with it. It's just not my thing. None of the songs jump out or excite me like the first time I heard JS's instant classic Flying In A Blue Dream, on the other hand it doesn't have any of the not so great singing that is both a good & bad blessing on that earlier album. This album also doesn't rock like I want JS to rock & feels very anti-climactic at times with more of a wandering feel than a building up feeling, but he is older & music has changed & he should be forgiven if he wants to slow things down & groove more than scream. I'm reminded of the last album by Jeff Beck which was a low flying affair that was more relaxing than what one might expect from Beck. I also think of Eric Clapton who has gone much more soft blues than pushing himself as he once did. Yet, I also can't help but think of all the other instrumental technical guitar albums I've heard. Here JS isn't showing off, isn't overly technical, isn't blasting the ear drums & paying more attention to developing the rhythm foundation than a lot of solo guitarists do. He's created here a guitar hero's album but without being an in your face guitar hero ... or, to put it another way, he turns in a technical album which doesn't sound overly technical, though it retains all the depth & feeling. Yet, even though I've listened to this numerous times over a couple days & don't hate it, I find the tracks don't jump at me like the earlier album & I come away feeling at a loss. This is probably more because it's not what I'm used to hearing from JS rather than anything about the album itself. Though, there is a lot less variety here which also is one reason it's not grabbing me. Flying In A Blue Dream verged on being too much all over the place, too unfocused, too much variety. This later release may play it too safe in the other direction. It's so safe that many of the lead lines tend to blend in the overall texture so the result is this doesn't sound always like a solo instrumental guitar rock album. But, while many of the tracks blend into each other in sound & feeling, if you work with this album & if it's what you're in the mood for the results you'll enjoy. JS is at a point where he doesn't feel he has to go to us, now its time for us to go to him.

Devonsquare ~ Night Sail (album review) ... A little bit of rolk & roll!

Style: pop rock, folk rock, classic rock
Label: Blind Date
Year: 1985
Home: New Hampshire/Maine

Members: Herb Ludwig ~ vocals
Alana MacDonald ~ vocals/violin
Tom Dean ~ vocals/acoustic guitar

Additional: Michael McInnis, Chris Neville ~ keyboards
Bob Thompson ~ electric guitar
Teg Glendon ~ bass
Ron Bouffard ~ drums
Charlie Jennison ~ sax
Lenny Hatch ~ congas/triangle
Tom Blackwell ~ percussion

A major player in the New England contemporary folk music scene & once dubbed the "the original folk & roll band", Devonsquare with their shimmering keyboards, violins, guitars & slow warm ballads will be sure to drag a tear out of you if you're partial to the sounds of Dan Fogelberg, Stephen Stills or Art Garfunkel for starters. Devonsquare started off more folk oriented a la the Kingston Trio with Herb Ludwig with Jeff Rice & Steve Romanoff of Maine's premier maritime folk band Schooner Fare. Ludwig would soon follow music trends & take a retooled larger line-up into a broader musical spectrum before the Ludwig-MacDonald-Dean line-up solidified with a AM radio soft pop rock sound. This line-up recorded the group's first album & thus is the Devonsquare that most people remember & also became the most famous. Actually, the above mentioned bands might not be the best comparison. Think a slightly jazzier & more fluid Fleetwood Mac with Christine McVie taking the musical lead (for example, "Is It Over") & one will have good grasp on the musical pleasure of Devonsquare. Devonsquare is one of those little regional groups that might not have the big name but that doesn't mean they should be ignored. Quite the opposite, many will find them enchanting. Night Sail may not be the definite starting point but it's hard to beat. It can also be found reissued as a double CD, retitled (Devon)2, with their 1984 debut, which is good & very much the same feeling, but not so strong though it does feature jazz bassist Marcus Miller & late night TV pianist Paul Shaffer. Ludwig died in 2005 but the remaining two members have continued the group now joined by long-time bassist Teg Glendon & guitarist Robby Coffin.

Mudhoney ~ My Brother The Cow (album review) ... Sloppiness is the key ingredient of grunge!

Style: grunge
Label: Rprise
Year: 1995
Home: Seattle, Washington

Members: Mark Arm ~ guitar/vocals
Matt Lukin ~ bass
Steve Turner ~ guitar
Dan Peters ~ drums/marimba

Additional: E.J. Renestair ~ sax
Jon Wahl ~ harmonica

For some of us grunge didn't start with Nirvana & Pearl Jam, though it certainly may have ended with the former's demise. While the musical differences between the two bands should make most wonder if there is an actual grunge sound that has something to do with more than just living in Seattle. There is, though its a slippery descriptive slope, & it was put into place not by these big guns but by some lesser bands that came earlier & didn't have any real mainstream international success until Nirvana made it big. Thus, those that are the flame holders might end up looking like the weaker imitators, particularly as some of their more popular albums came at the end of grunge though they'd been around longer. While once Nirvana broke through many of these little bands were already moving into new territories, or had broken up or were about to but hung on enough to ride the wave, in the end making the definition of grunge that much more difficult to understand. For such an elusive style there's so many faces & phases to the musical timeline, not to mention the non-Seattle based post-grunge movement. One of these little forefather bands, that deserves more credit than are given by some post-grunge factions who don't see the big picture of how grunge really started, is Mudhoney. They didn't invent grunge, if it was invented at all, but their music was an early influence & their album Superfuzz Bigmuff Plus Early Singles is considered the grunge shot heard around the world that paved the way for Nirvana's machine gun fire. Though, their later release My Brother The Cow is usually considered their best album, though ironically it was recorded after grunge was fading & after they'd taken a break from the style to go in other directions for awhile. But, be warned, if Nirvana & Pearl are your sole definition of grunge Mudhoney may not be for your tastes, though it's your loss. They are noisy where Nirvana was moody, punk where Pearl Jam was classic rock, let alone sloppy where Pearl Jam or Soundgarden were technically tight. What is here, outside of the heavily fuzzed drooling guitars is a lot of attitude, so if your definition of grunge is attitude then you'll enjoy this mudslide. It's the opposite of the rock swagger that ruled the charts for the previous decade. It's out of control into almost sloppiness while across the country other kids were leaning how to keep their Satriani chops fast & complicated. Essentially, that sloppiness is what grunge is all about. It's an attitude adjustment from what ruled the charts, but with more of a rock flavor than punk. Actually, punk is not that bad of a comparison as much of the album is reminiscent of the Stooges both in sound & feeling. "1995" even is homage to the song "1969" by the Stooges & includes a reference to the other Stooges song "L.A. Blues." Lyrically the album takes the same anti-social stance, but it doesn't hold back. This is an album of misery, selfishness, pain, social woes, crooked people including record labels & doctors, religion. It's an album that's a lyrical shotgun going around taking aim at all these targets in society. The lyrics drive the album, not the music. Highlight tracks include: "Judgment, Rage, Retribution & Thyme", "What Moves The Heart", "Today Is A Good Day", "Into Yer Shtik", "(F.D.K.) Fearless Doctor Killer" & "Crankcase Blues." Of note is the CD version which has a hidden thirteenth track which consists of all of the album's preceding tracks played backwards. That's the way to do it. If you're unsure about whether to check out Mudhoney or not pick up the superb soundtrack to the movie Singles to which they contribute a track. If you like that you'll like the rest of their stuff.

Huntress ~ Starbound Beast (album review) ... Jack & Jill went up the hill & Jill lived to sing about it!

Style: heavy metal
Label: Napalm
Year: 2013
Home: Los Angeles, California

Members: Jill Janus ~ vocals
Blake Meahl, Anthony Crocamo ~ guitars
Ian Alden ~ bass
Carl Wierzbicky ~ drums

I'll confess when I see a leather clad or at least some leg showing front-woman with a heavy metal band I'm expecting to hear a Nightwish or Within Temptation wannabe. I love those bands, but the opera metal template hit its tedium limit years ago & jumped the shark, as is the phrase, & my interest is more often lost sooner than its found. There's not enough truly metal with all the dirt under the fingernails Lita Fords or Arch Enemies or Doros out there. The later doesn't show any cleavage & kicks far more ass in spades & is far sexier because of it, while Ford's Livin' Like A Runaway isn't just a highlight from her but one of the most emotional & angry albums & completely real. But, I'm happy to say that Huntress, both on their debut Spell Eater & their newest release Starbound Beast is going the way of Doro not the way of Nightwish & results I proudly can recommend after numerous listens. Of course, I should say, I don't mind the cleavage in the least & front-woman Jill Junus is sexy & doesn't have a problem using what she has, but I'm not reviewing youtube videos here but non-visual audios where choice in clothing means nothing. The key to Janus is she just uses what she has & that includes a set of Juilliard trained pipes & some good writing skills I'm sure were also fine-tuned in the Manhattan environment. While behind is four gentlemen who cull their riffage, which counts more than cleavage in a recording, from the traditional metal sound more in-line with Judas Priest or a bit of Iron Maiden than the modern power metal trends. Actually Doro & her days with Warlock are a good comparison to Huntress, particularly with Junus's occasional rasp that is more similar than not ... though at times she goes a bit too much Arch Enemy, but they are brief moments (for example, "Blood Sisters"). The chorus's aren't as sing-a-long as Doro usually presents, though. If you like the comparison you will certainly like this new album by Huntress. Actually, in listening to it a couple times I've enjoyed it equally with each listen & that probably says more than anything.