Album Review: Passenger- Songs for the Drunk and Broken Hearted

One of my favorite artists of the new century is Michael Rosenberg doing business as Passenger.

Rosenberg will always be overshadowed by his 2012 smash hit “Let it Go” as much as his friendship with Ed Sheehan.

Making the radio a slightly better place in the 201xs with artists like Vance Joy and George Ezra that made soft rock that played into the Mumford/Lumineers/Ray LeMontagne folk tinged pop trend of the day and drew off a tradition of everyone from Jack Johnson to Jamie Cullum to David Gray

Which is to say, Passenger isn’t very “hip”. But he is talented and for me the truest heir to the 70s songwriting of Cat Stevens and Paul Simon. All the Little Lights besides containing his hit is a complete album- sometimes funny as the closer “I Hate” and as poignant as “Let Her Go”.

I fell in love with that single early, when it looked to be an Adult Alternative hit and watched it bloom to a best seller. I’ve followed him closely since.

I thought 2014’s follow up Whispers was a strong statement -pretty much in the same vein- surely would have made him a hero in the coffee house genre.

Passenger has been prolific since and his quality has suffered with that output (in my eyes, there’s nothing on par with the two previously mentioned albums). With proper albums, streaming and fan-directed output, he’s put out at least one album’s worth of songs each year.

Perhaps the album title Songs for the Drunk and Broken Hearted gives it away. It is also probably cliche but it’s a post break up record, not to mention a ‘Covid’ record. In any case, it’s holds together quite well.

With an ear for melody, the songs are perfect for (some probably nonexistent) alternate Top 40 radio station. For fans, it is probably the best song by song statement he’s ever made.

Album Review- Alice Cooper- Detroit Stories

It might not be obvious, but I’m a big Alice Cooper fan. In fact, I am always interested when he releases a new album.

Cooper isn’t Bowie, but like peers like Iggy Pop, he has navigated a path that veers between his passions and possible chart success. I’m serious when I say I do look forward to all he does. I’m probably more disappointed than not, but especially the early oughts were fruitful for Cooper. Whether inspired by the garage rock revival or something else, he was returning to creative highs, particularly on ‘05s Dirty Diamonds. Which is to be expected for anyone in the business as long as he has been (say Prince, Lou Reed), in place of solid albums, you could find patches of good songs. 2011’s Welcome 2 My Nightmare was one of the better albums with some good songs done in by the expected size of albums that arrived with Compact Discs.

Which brings me to Detroit Stories- an album that has probably generated the most buzz of a Cooper album in 25 years.

It’s hard not to like just on principle. It’s a love letter to Alice Cooper’s hometown and he does it right. The main band here is a Detroit supergroup - Wayne Kramer of the MC5, Johnny Bedjanek who played on the classic Mitch Ryder hits and bass hero Paul Randolph.

Detroit is everywhere. The choice of covers by Outrageous Cherry, Bob Seger & the Last Herd and MC5 (as well as a cover Velvet Underground’s “Rock N Roll” - a big hit for Mitch Ryder in 1972) The lyrics of “Detroit City” which is a history of the city (from Iggy, Nugent and Suzi Quatro to Kid Rock and Insane Clown Posse).

Of course, Cooper is as much of that city’s history as well- so it’s noted that Bob Ezrin is producing and the living members of the classic Alice Cooper Band (Bruce, Dunaway, Smith) appear for two songs. Other guests include Steve Hunter (who played on so many classic Cooper singles, not to mention Ryder’s “Rock N Roll”, which Lou Reed liked so much, he took him for his band) Grand Funk Railroad’s Mark Farner (and not as far as I know Detroit related) Joe Bonnamassa Sister Sledge, and U2’s Larry Mullen Jr.

Buoyed by generally glowing reviews, I have to say I’m extremely happy to see Alice back in the news.

But the album? I don’t really love it. Ezrin does what he has always done for Alice which is make catchy songs. I will undoubtedly play it constantly for the next month and sing the songs in the shower. But I don’t love it.

Go Man Go is a big dumb rock song that Iggy could have recorded. Independence Dave is more formulaic Cooper. Neither quite hits the mark it should.

Cooper is the showman on $1000 HighHeel Shoes and the Faustian strut of Wonderful World. They’re fine but they really don’t have enough menace. Lead single Our Love Will Change the World does a bit better. As unlikely as it is, the psychedelic pop is a pretty good fit for Cooper. As is album closer, East Side Story. One of Seger’s early hits, this garage rock stomper pretty much needs to be delivered as written. The narrator a bit of a Cooper antihero to begin with. It’s as if Seger predicted the Cooper script in 1966.

For me, my other favorite song is the most unlikely- the Anti-suicide PSA “Hanging on a Thread.” Coincidentally, this is Steve Hunter’s biggest moment on the album. It is totally 80s Glam (it would probably fit easily on 91s Vai and Satriani augmented Hey Stoopid). Those are really the only songs on the album that really gel completely for me. Not a bad album then but like his last couple, falling just a bit short.

Overall, no disappointment from me that Alice is getting attention. Still, I’m already waiting for the next one.

Album Review- The Alarm- WAR

The Alarm came up in discussion on a vinyl group and I felt I was being clever when I said they occupied the space metaphorically and literally between London Calling and The Joshua Tree. This will sound like feint praise, but every band (particularly those with a political bent) falls under the shadows of those titans. To the Alarm’s credit, they had a strong run of singles, and it’s quite possible that songs like “The Stand” sound even better today. The heyday of The Alarm ended with one of their most accessible singles “Sold Me Down The River”. In the days where college rock was dominated by a certain Joshua Tree-era U2/REM influenced anthemic Americana rock, this new Alarm sound likely should have taken over the airwaves, but only lent bands like the Alarm, the Call, and the Smithereens a dedicated cult following. The Alarm never really went away as Mike Peters seemingly took a break in the mid -90s but hasn’t rested much since. As someone who writes criticism of music, WAR is hard to hate. It is quite obvious intended as an album for the fans. For those who preordered, the Alarm mailed out blank CDRs so people could download the songs as soon as they were completed The album was started in January 7 and released on February 25. So it’s a very quick, very topical record. Personally, I think that is quite risky. Even with a talented artist such as Neil Young dropping his “Living With War”- you have those risks. So, it’s really hard to criticize this album, which is dedicated for the diehards. Pitchfork isn’t going to spend much time on a 40 year old band and it’s not like I’m not going to drop “Rain in the Summertime” on the occasional playlist. I will just stick with saying this one isn’t going to be an album I am likely to revisit. The lyrics already sound a bit dated (“2020 problems”) and the bands shout out loud anthems seem closer to Bon Jovi than anything that was played on 120 Minutes. Still, albums like this are always nice to see musical talent still kicking and another classic Alarm single could still show up around the corner.

Album Review- Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!- New Fragility

I’m nostalgic for the music of 2003-2004.

It’s not supposed to be like that. Music is youthful nostalgia, maybe even rediscovering history. It would be a stretch to call me a youth in 2003.

But it was an exciting time for music and the two bands at the top of the list for me were The Arcade Fire and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah.

It wasn’t just those two. A quick glimpse back reveals many interesting debuts- some monumental, others sleds celebrated but equally noteworthy.

The Killers. Franz Ferdinand. Bloc Party. The Editors. The Thermals. Danger Mouse. British Sea Power. Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The Go Team. The Rapture. The Darkness and undoubtedly some I have forgotten.

Then too, many artists who seemed to be at the height of their powers (White Stripes, Green Day, Radiohead, Wilco, The Strokes, OutKast, Interpol, Peaches, The Libertines, etc)

But those two bands I first mentioned really symbolize that time for me. Both seemed to be fairly universally loved and both seemed very ambitious and different from most anything else.

While Arcade Fire has remained acclaimed, CYHSY! quietly has disappeared. Follow up Some Loud Thunder got mixed reviews (and an unappealing cover) but I did enjoy it, and most everything else has been off most people’s radar until 2021’s New Fragility.

Perhaps even then, it may have gone unnoticed had it not been released in music-starved February and was preceded by a ton of the band’s early bonus tracks released to streaming services (including the worthwhile 2009 Flashy Python album).

Initial listens may thrill the listener with nostalgia, but quickly, it becomes apparent that Alec Ounsworth was probably never going to be a pop star. This album feels different because it is different. The band is largely Ounsworth now and critics will point out setbacks in his personal life, but what that means for the listener is an album that is more in the mold of the great intimate indie singer-songwriter album, and less a bid to be the next Talking Heads.

None of which is to imply it isn’t an accessible album (it is quite accessible) or it will have an appeal to everyone. Or it doesn’t get loud (check out Innocent Weight) or go the traditional ballad route (Mirror Song).

Maybe more than most records, mileage will truly vary, and with perspective, this disc is probably closer to the more recent work of Ezra Furman (raw lo-fi and punk inspired folk) than it is to some of those heroes of ‘04, but it is a worthy listen and a nice return of a once again vital artist.

Album Review- Steve Earle - JT

 

I was late to Justin Townes Earle. There’s probably two reasons- neither good. First, I am admittedly resistant to famous children of musicians. A dumb prejudice that I started to break with Harper Simon. Second, I was expecting JT to be similar to his dad. 

He couldn’t be more different. Both are definitely “alt country” but different styles completely. Whereas Steve came through Nashville radio and trailblazers a genre created by Willie Nelson and David Allen Coe, JT inhabited a genre that is closer defined by Whiskeytown and Drive By Truckers, adjacent to musicians like Colter Wall and Hayes Carll and drawing more modern esoteric influences like Tom Waits 

Ironically, JTs music sounds older. He seems to draw from Hank Williams as well as old bluesmen, roots rock and certainly his namesake Townes Van Zandt. 

It is selfish and trivial perhaps to mourn a lost artist and the loss of any potential new art (selfish and trivial compared to the real pain of the family and friends dealing with the loss) but it is also real. 

You can’t really review an album like this. One can and one does, because it’s what we do but critiquing for example, Nick Cave or Mount Eerie’s output seems a bit crass. 

As a Steve Earle fan, having seen him do tributes to Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt, the JT tribute seems obvious. Of course, you would want it to be under different circumstances (and it’s hard to imagine what those would be without being patronizing to the sons career while it was still on the ascent). 

But we discuss music here, so I’m going to discuss music. JT is a really enjoyable record.  Yes, without a doubt, Steve is a veteran who knows his way around a song, but I think the real hero is Justin who crafted some classic songs. In just little over a decade of recorded music, he was able to write more than a few gems. 

At first listen, the styles of father and son are different and that seems like a strike against the project. 

That impression clears pretty quickly. Maybe it even becomes a strength. The cover of Harlem River Blues sounds like a celebration. The original a descendant of No One Gets Out of This World. Both are deceptively upbeat, but Justin Townes is a folky jaunt worthy of his namesake. Both versions are incredible and timeless. 

The Saint of Lost Causes works well as a traditional country song. The real shame that it was written too late to be covered by Johnny Cash. It is the kind of song that Steve can lean into. Once again, the original exists in this spot that transcends genre. Is it alt country? It could very well be indie. Or appeal to Adult Album Alternative. 

As recounted in the press for Ghosts of West Virginia, the son wrote a John Henry song before the father did. That’s here of course. 

Musically, the album reminds me of Train A Comin. Whether others will hear that, I’m not sure, but that album is a collection of early Steve Earle songs and a few covers. It hangs together as a beginning to end piece, and I think the JT album does too. 

The album ends with the original Last Words. Regardless what you think of Steve, he had reconciled with his son, and this song which recounts their last conversation is raw. It’s a fitting tribute to a lost talent. 

Album Review: Lee Rocker - Gather Round

 I’m a rockabilly fan and The Stray Cats are the most successful rockabilly artist of my lifetime. I’m a fan, of course, and generally like Brian Setzer’s solo albums (more big band than rockabilly). But if you really want to get me going, talk to me about Lee Rocker’s solo career.

Rocker, of course is best known for playing bass in the Stray Cats. He had a detour with band mate Slim Jim Phantom and Bowie guitarist Earl Slick (the two Phantom Rocker and Slick albums have been re-released. They’re ok. They just couldn’t sound anymore 80s).

Rocker’s career includes a stint on Alligator Records, and like many in the genre, he’s dipped heavy into classic cover songs. That said, I can’t think of many albums better (rockabilly or otherwise) than 2007’s Black Cat Bone.

Gather Round is the first album of Rocker original songs since then. Not that he hasn’t been busy. 2019’s The Low Road was a CD/DVD combo of the Cats greatest hits recorded at Daryl Hall’s famous studio. That same year, the Cats reunited and released ‘40’, their first new album in 26 years. Hardly essential, it was fun, and a reminder that music is better with the Stray Cats around than the alternative.

I should avoid comparisons with the Cats’ recent disc, but Gather Round at least seems like the more interesting album. Lead single “Pickin and Grinnin’” is a dig at a charismatic recent ex-President. Graceland Auction is the Elvis homage. When Nothing Goes Right is off the recent Cats album and Everyone Wants To Be A Cat sounds like it could have been (it’s the Scatman Carothers song from The Aristocats, I believe retrofitted as a cousin to Stray Cat Strut). Ophelia is the Band song with a bit of a 1920s jazz swing vibe. The Last Offline Lovers has novelty lyrics but swaggers like a barroom classic. A Dirty Martini is an instrumental that might be closer to what solo Setzer is doing.

For a genre that is fairly straight and narrow, Rocker has once again put together a record that has a lot of variety and fairly ambitious; if nothing else, truly enjoyable.

Album Review- Destiny Street Complete

It wasn’t that long ago that I was talking about Richard Hell, but they have reissued his second album Destiny Street with a lot of extras, and so that’s where my ears are at.

You know I have to admit that I am a big fan. Hell is probably best known for creating the image of punk rock more than anything, but Blank Generation is a classic of the genre.

I never got my hands on the Destiny Street album, but I knew the title track from a compilation and I had gotten his two ROIR cassettes which featured a lot of the songs off of that album.

I was drawn to Hell. It was the 90s so Blank Generation had been easy to find on CD and Hell joined with members of Sonic Youth and Gumball and made an album with Dim Stars. He wrote a novel, too.

The idea of a punk poet is an appealing one to me. That’s surely what Hell is. His best friend adopted the name Verlaine and Hell saw himself as poet. He was not the first or last punk poet (I’m a big fan of people like Patti Smith and Jim Carroll too). One can spot the influences in Hell’s choice of covers through his career - Kinks, Them, Fats Domino, Exile-era Stones, Dylan, Iggy, Howlin Wolf, T Rex, Hendrix, CCR, even Sinatra.

Blank Generation is a fantastic album with two fantastic guitarists - Ivan Julian and Robert Quine, and as mentioned by Clinton Heylin, a unique bass sound from Hell himself.

Destiny Street is an album, like other punk albums (LAMF, Raw Power) that the artist felt wasn’t delivered to the masses correctly.

Hell was farming out bass duties in his live performances and the band had effectively broken up a couple of years before, so when Hell went into the studio the Destiny Street band swapped Julian for “Naux” Maciel.

But Hell had not been a fan of the blurry production. He spent years to this end, that in 2009, although the original tapes were missing,he had what he needed and went about remaking it.

Destiny Street Repaired was Hell’s attempt at fixing the damaged product. With Quine and Maciel passed, Hell brought in Julian, Bill Frissell and Marc Ribot to add guitar sound and his own vocals over a rough mix of the original.

Now, over a decade later, some of the original session tapes have surfaced and Hell brought in Nick Zinner (best known as guitarist for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and had him remix the songs (and rework where necessary).

Destiny Street Complete is the collection of most all of this - the album as Hell intended, the Repaired songs and even a few of the original demos.

Although it lacks anything as compelling as the track “ Blank Generation”, Destiny Street is a pretty solid follow up. Even with the counts against it- Hell was doing it for money for drugs, Hell never again would revisit the Voidoids- it works in the same ways the predecessor had- Hell as charismatic poet over inventive and soulful guitar.

I don’t really find any filler in the ten original songs. John Lydon disputes that he stole anything from Hell (and that may be true) but Hell can hold a listeners attention. A bit Iggy, a bit Dylan, and a bit Allen Ginsberg.

The album’s lowest moment is the title track- a meandering jazzy track with some cringey tracks a la “The Plan” that doesn’t quite stand up to repeat listenings.

Adding the 2009 tracks brings redundancy, but are nonetheless enjoyable. The talent of all involved shows through and most of the songs turn into guitar workouts (of the “Blank Generation” kind). The songs don’t need that, but it’s not necessary a bad thing either (think of Lou Reed augmented by Wagner and Hunter).

Like the second Television album (Adventure), Destiny Street is overshadowed and a bit forgotten, but this collection corrects that and is a good starting spot for new Hell fans and the diehards. 

Album Review- The Stars We Are

If you have read my reviews for awhile, you know that I am a big Marc Almond fan (and you are probably reading this review I wrote attributed to a Almond influenced Nom-de-Internet). I just think he is very unique and talented. He has a deep love for pre-rock pop music and while that’s not unusual- think Bryan Ferry, Morrissey, et al- it’s usually an affectation or intertwined into rock. It’s not just Almond loved the idea of old time crooners. He loves old time crooners. Of course, if that is all, he would be nothing more than Celine Dion. There is a certain theatrical element. His touch points are well known- Brecht and Weill, Walker Brothers, Jacques Brel. His flair for drama is something you might find in Tom Waits or a list of people Marc worked with over the years (Nick Cave, Lydia Lunch, Matt Johnson, JG Thirlwell, Siouxsie, Current 93, Psychic TV). At times, Marc evokes the image of a matador, perhaps it’s sea shanties. Even, the cabaret clown image has appeared on his album covers. The last element though is the great wild card. Marc has had a run of chart success in the UK. A fairly serious run with twenty singles in the Top 40 either solo or with Soft Cell. Eight of which were Top 5. While there are some similar artists, no one really has that unique mix. Artists like Adam Lambert, Lady Gaga, and Robbie Williams have added a certain mix of those elements to the pop charts while Rufus Wainwright, Stephen Merritt and Anohni have tried to make the masses come to them. Freddie Mercury, for sure had those elements throughout his career. Bowie, of course, though he had the masses. Kate Bush though not as prolific. In any case, there are few discographies like Marc’s. In recent years, his albums bounce between albums still with an eye to one last pop chart run (these albums usually pair Marc up with Sia collaborator Chris Braide) and non commercial vanity projects, with various Soft Cell callback records and standards collections. One suspects in this most difficult of times for musicians, Marc is able to make a living and make the records he wants. His run in the 80s felt like an oscillation of commercial and non commercial records. Marc says he just makes the records he wants. Perhaps he is correct. I became an Almond obsessive in the 90s. Thirsty Ear was reissuing his catalog and in the golden era of compact discs, it actually was quite easy for me to pick up nearly everything. Although I like both the ambitious and the pop sound of Almond, I tend to think his best records are where he can pull from both sides. Last month, Almond released an expanded version of 1988’s The Stars We Are. As an album, it hits that sweet spot. For me, it and 1991’s Tenement Symphony are high watermarks in that era of Almond. The latter album was produced by Trevor Horn and has some stronger songs. It’s a song cycle whose highlight is a cover of The Days of Pearly Spencer. But given time to reflect, The Stars We Are is danged near perfect. It’s also not a particularly commercial album as it could be pegged as. It opens up with the anthemic title song which is as good as anything Almond has done. Bitter Sweet and Tears Run Rings were both released as singles and are pulsing danceable tunes. The latter would be a live powerhouse. Bob Kraushaar (a protege of Horn- known for serving as engineer for Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, Bowie and McCartney) is a perfect conduit for Almond’s vision here. Of course, the most compelling track is Almond’s version of the much covered Something’s Gotten Hold of my Heart. Almond’s original version was so good that Gene Pitney joined to duet and the two took it to #1 on the UK chart for four weeks, denying the spot to Mike and the Mechanics’ “The Living Years”. (As with his most famous song, Marc missed the financial opportunity to stick an original B-side with the A-side cover). The rest of the album follows in this manner- theatrical torch songs. Yet, still plenty of unusual sounds for pop music when you dig in - the exotic She Took Amy Soul in Istanbul, the Weimar Republic style CD bonus track Kept Boy (featuring German cabaret singer Agnes Bernelle and the duet with Nico (her final recording) - Your Kisses Burn. The expanded 2021 reissue doubles the size of the record, adding two fantastic B Sides (King of the Fools and Real Evil- both also on 95’s Treasure Box compilation) and a variety of remixes (also most found on Treasure Box). The Stars We Are is not a bad answer to the question ‘Where do I start with the Marc Almond discography’.

Album Review - CYR

My relationship status with the Smashing Pumpkins: complicated. There was a time in the 90s where they were in the conversation as biggest bands in the world and I didn’t share that fervor. That said, I am a fan of the band. For me, like many of the big bands of the era, they have become “of the time”. When I go to define the band, I actually think of the “Adore” album. Adore in 98 seemed to be in every friend's CD collection that I knew. After releasing a towering double album, Adore was considered a disappointment. In retrospect, it seems like a moment in time. The end of an era. Grunge was handing the baton to NuMetal. Bands like Korn and Marilyn Manson would top the album charts in 98 and Limp Bizkit and Creed would top the charts in 99. Those CD changers were also likely as much to contain discs by Jay Z, DMX, Nelly and Eminem. Heck, even CDs themselves were going to be on their way out before we knew it. I always had a soft spot for the otherwise unloved disc. Adore at 16 songs and 73 minutes is preposterously too long. That said, the influence of synth pop, electronic music and goth rock gave some moments that from a personal point of view. It also came out a year after the band had appeared on the Lost Highway soundtrack and there’s a certain Lynch-ian quality inherent in the album as well. It has been re-evaluated and re-examined (Pitchfork gave it an uncharacteristic 8.5 in 2014) but the truth is at the time - everyone bought it and few liked it. In a few years, ambitious rock would be personified by Radiohead, System of A Down and Tool. Other rock fans might look to Dave Matthews or Staind. The Lollapalooza era was dead. The Pumpkins never really ended but although I watched their every move, there doesn’t seem to be much worthwhile to discuss whether it was billed as such, or alternately billed as Zwan or Corgan solo. Although occasionally being billed as ‘return(s) to form’, none of the newer releases ever much interested me. The Corgan story is an unusual mess with Iha and Chamberlin floating in and out, cameos from the likes of Rick Rubin, Paz Lenchantin, pedal steel legend Paul Franklin (probably best known for his work with Randy Travis and Barbara Mandrell) and Motley Crue’s Tommy Lee, a stint playing a few dates with New Order and nothing as particularly notable as Corgan’s new role as pro wrestling executive/on-air talent. Nothing seems to have changed in recent months. Corgan recently announced a reissue of Machina which will contain “at least 80 songs”. A bounty of Pumpkins that no one seems to be asking for. On November 27, the Pumpkins released CYR- another 72 minute-20 song opus. With a core group of Iha, Chamberlain and Schroeder (once Iha's replacement, he is now a member with 13 years in) backing, it does have the authenticity of the bands name, but once again panned by many critics. That is if you were paying attention, when I bring it up to people, I think it went mostly unnoticed. I don’t expect people to get too excited, but if they would choose to take a listen, I think they would be pleased with what they heard. While given in to Corgan’s indulgences, with some paring, there is a quality album in there - and I would think it would be hard to argue that it isn’t their best work in a long time. The band is still stuck in the synthesizer rock sound. Corgan has went in debt with his influences lately, and it’s pretty evident here. For me, I think that’s a good thing. All of the criticisms are valid, it's too long, it suffers from sounding the same throughout, but I'm fine with that- for the first time in a long time, the band is back.

Album Review: Michael J Sheehy - Distance is the Soul of Beauty

One of my favorite under appreciated artists of the recent years is Michael J Sheehy

Sheehy has recorded under various guises and names. His smoke and whiskey style conjures up images of musicians like Nick Cave and Tindersticks. Critics tend to focus on the latter part of ‘goth country’ and compare his voice to Chris Isaak and Howe Gelb.

I am well acquainted with two albums of his. My favorite is 2009’s With These Hands, a song cycle about a boxer named Delaney. Backed by the fabulously named Hired Mourners, the album really lets Sheehy embrace his strengths with a bit of Tom Waits eccentricities. Similarly, 01’s Ill Gotten Gains, more loose in theme, is a solid combination of late night melodrama and dramatic brooding.

As he’s been on a few labels, you will find his work streaming online but not in one place.

Distance is the Soul of Beauty released in October shows up from Covid- inspired creativity and there’s a bit of that melancholic mood throughout the album. If it was released a bit earlier, it would probably have wound up on my Year End best of.

It’s not an “immediate” album, though. It’s an album for late nights and introspection. It’s a good showcase of Sheehy’s talents though. For me, it feels like this great ‘hidden find’, a feeling I felt over a decade ago when I first heard him.

Album Review: Blue Oyster Cult- The Symbol Remains

 Blue Oyster Cult are an iconic band. A hard rock ‘metal’ band before Metallica, before Motley Crue, even before the New Wave of British Metal. Like Thin Lizzy, Rainbow and Hawkwind, even Rush, they set the roots down.

That said, they have always had the reputation for being cerebral. In part to Alan Lanier’s relationship with Patti Smith, who would make significant contributions to the band, not to mention working with Jim Carroll, Richard Meltzer, Ian Hunter and even sci-fi writers Michael Moorcock and John Shirley. Not to mention Superfan Mike Watt and followers like Royal Trux and the Hoodoo Gurus

I got into the band from three angles- friends who were fans of the band, the obvious radio singles, and most of all, seeing the band live.

I dug into them, and I dug them. It was a nice diversion as I binged their records. I even picked up their last proper album Curse of the Hidden Mirror which is now 20 years old. It’s actually a quite good album though also quite forgettable as well.

So the new album comes with some expectations. We have seen a few late career resurgences and no reason why BOC wouldn’t have one. Although they have not been in the studio for awhile, they have stayed busy and for the diehard, there are a bunch of things to pick up including three live albums released last year.

The core of the band (Buck Dharma and Eric Bloom) are intact. Allen Lanier and producer Sandy Pearlman have passed. The supporting cast here all have at least 15 years with the band. Even drummer Albert Bouchard shows up on the opening track.  John Shirley returns as lyricist for a few songs- including both of my favorites listed below. 

This album will go down as a triumph. It will undoubtedly find an audience with the bands fans as well as fans of the genre- a group that is sizable and not always accounted for in the charts.

The question might be- what does a fan of the first three albums - think of it. Well, it certainly is a good album.

That said, one can definitely tell that this particular version of the band has listened to Metallica and Iron Maiden.

The album opens with That Was Me and although at various spots in the album reference different moments in their career, it always comes back to a certain anthemic crunch.

Like their contemporary Alice Cooper, you can’t really blame them for embracing their Metal side and no doubt, that should be pleasing to most.

For me, it works best when they go a bit off from that. Nightmare Epiphany is probably closest the band gets to something ground breaking. Florida Man is a cheesy title (there are a few clunker of lyrical ideas all about, though the band generally pulls them off) but a pretty fantastic song. It’s got a lot of the same ingredients that power Burnin For You.

Overall, not a bad album at all, just a bit out of my tastes. At 14 songs, you can probably complain that it could be pared as well. Here’s to BOC though for carrying on.

For the most of diehard fans, Eric Bouchard also has a solo record out now. It’s not my cup of tea, but should be checked out for fans of the genre.

Sylvain Sylvain, RIP

These are probably words I have written before but with the passing of Sylvain Sylvain, figured worth revisiting.

The New York Dolls hit me like few others. Interesting of course, they only had about three albums of material for most of my life. I suppose that’s not rare for a band to be that influential (Joy Division, Stooges, Sex Pistols). Still, it’s a pretty limited amount of songs.

Even then, it’s largely that first album, and as with seemingly every classic release, the band was unhappy with the production. They had ‘difficult second album’ syndrome though Too Much Too Soon is pretty great too- even with the covers and affectations.

The third album really only exists in the mind. It can be found on awful-quality bootlegs and bleeding into the first solo releases of Thunders, Johansen and Sylvain.

The band were legends by the time of the late 80s and early 90s. It’s biggest champions were the unlikely combo of Guns N Roses and the Smiths.

The Dolls had taken the Stones template and then doubled down on the influences from girl groups, Motown, blues and the early rock sound of Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley.

From there it created a fork in the road which all hard rock/glam rock and punk and it’s various mutations were all knowingly and unknowingly influenced. Directly in the case of actual interactions with KISS and The Sex Pistols, directly influencing the 70s NYC scene (the Mercer Arts Center residency and the aftermath, Thunders brief group with Richard Hell) and the 70s London scene (not only McLaren, of course but the Heartbreakers tour).

It’s hard not to roll off a list of names that were directly influenced by the band from Hanoi Rocks to the Wildhearts and arguably every band that lived like they were veering off The Cliff from The Replacements to BabyShambles.

Today’s tributes tell Sylvain as the glue of the Dolls. Like Izzy Stradlin and all of Keith Richards’s foils, there would be no way not to be eclipsed by that star. My favorite Dolls moments were the guitar epics that didn’t appear on my initial Dolls purchase- Night of the Living Dolls (I would buy both albums in quick order) - songs like Jet Boy, Frankenstein and Human Being.

I have since obsessed with Johnny Thunders (we lost Walter Lure five months ago, as well) and chased down the early David Johansson albums. I never did get into the reunited Dolls records, though they were critically acclaimed. I likely owe Sylvain that.

Sylvain did re-appear on my radar in 2010 when he did a four-song EP as the Batusis with Cheetah Chrome of the Dead Boys and two of Joan Jett’s Blackhearts. While otherwise unremarkable, is a fun slab of music and can be found on streaming platforms, if you are so inclined.

My 20 favorite albums of 2020 - In Alphabetical Order #16-20

Old 97 s – Twelfth (ATO)-  The Old 97s were an underrated (and my favorite) band of the 90s Americana scene. They seemingly too a post-2001 break but I don’t think they ever completely broke up.

In any case, it’s getting harder to separate the two and if it continues much longer, it will be confusing to say which is ‘classic’ 97s.

In any case, bands usually run out of steam. One would think the creative burst of the Grand Theater records (25 songs in 2 years) would lead to a long break. It didn’t.

2014s Most Messed Up felt like a look back (indeed opening with “Longer than You’ve been Alive” was pretty self explanatory) a kind of end-of-career statement- not that the band was going away, but certainly a landmark.

Which made 2017’s Graveyard Whistling more notable. To me, this album felt different. A new producer and guests like Brandi Carlile and Caitlin Rose. In many ways, this album felt like a bid for more airplay, with the caveat that few radio stations would play this in the first place.

‘Which of those two albums is better?’ seems an impossible ask and comes down to preferences. In any case, two late career masterpieces seem improbable but there they are.

Any conversation about initial listening to Twelfth surely must include If an inevitable letdown has occurred. Though retaining producer Vance Powell (Raconteurs, Chris Stapleton, Jars of Clay, Buddy Guy) the album feels akin to the ‘looking back’ vibes from Most Messed Up- a feeling confirmed by the nostalgic photo of Roger Staubach used on the cover.

That said, while Most Messed Up felt like a Replacements style rollick (complete with Tommy Stinson cameo), Twelfth feels like Sunday Morning to MMU’s Saturday Night. There’s the latter day Westerberg-ian lyrical genius that comes with age and experience and yet has been there at least since 2001’s Satellite Rides.

None of these are bad things. These albums only go to cement a legacy that might have been otherwise missed. I would mark Twelfth down a slight notch from the two predecessors on initial listens, but not enough that it’s going to be that noticeable to someone who had never heard those albums. In any case, maybe I should assume that the band is going to continue to crank out one great album after another until I find evidence to the otherwise.

The Pretenders – Hate for Sale (BMG) - Like the X album from earlier this year, it feels good to say The Pretenders are back. Hate For Sale checks off all of those marks we were waiting for from a Band as iconic as the Pretenders.

I don’t quite buy the CW though. That Dan Auerbach didn’t get the band, and that Martin Chambers was a necessary part of having a good album. Yes, I do think the band benefits from Stephen Street’s (and Chambers) involvement.

But I don’t think this album came from thin air. Yes, I do consider the bands wilderness years in the 90s disappointing, the band has found their way back. While I don’t think 08’s Break Up the Concrete or 17s Alone to be better than the new disc, it’s a pretty slim margin. If you haven’t heard ‘Concrete’ in awhile, go back and listen. Also, Hydne’s Jazz- informer solo album from last year was a pretty solid platter as well.

That said, Hate For Sale does what you hope it would. There’s no killer single but songs like The Buzz come close enough to the feeling that it’s a minor complaint. Ballads served the band well in the 90s but are my least favorite part of the record. You Can’t Hurt a Fool has potential but is clunky and Crying in Public sounds like it was pulled from a Desmond Child reject list.

But those are exceptions, Maybe Love is in in New York City has the slow burn that only Chrissie can pull off. Overall, it’s a pretty solid beginning to end listen that should cement what we already know about the legendary Pretenders.

Bruce Springsteen- Letter to You (Columbia) - I go to Springsteen as my first ever musical purchase. Born in the USA (which was that purchase- on cassette) has suffered over the years as overplayed and slickly produced, though in the past few years, I have really been enjoying it again.

For me, Springsteen is someone who revisit a lot and can drop the needle anywhere between 75 and 93 and be happy (and often do). Even as I have heard them over and over, I often go back in particular to The River and some of the early 90s singles. Like Elvis Costello (who also has a new record), I have followed his every move but have been largely disappointed for the past 25 years.

For me, I can’t say Springsteen has made a record I love during that time (except We Shall Overcome, which I think is fantastic). There have been moments (Magic has some solid singles), but looking back, here is what I realized. As a deluge of live Springsteen performances has been released, I have come to rediscover some of these songs.

Bruce is made to be played loud. Bruce and producer Ron Aniello have an ear here for the anthem a la the previous collaboration Wrecking Ball. Recording it live in the studio with the E Street Band takes it to the needed next level. Letter to You feels like an important album. It seemed to me Bruce has always been close to that late era classic and was getting close on Western Stars, but he finally clinched it here.

It’s not perfect but Springsteen pulls it off by force of ego. “House of 1000 Guitars” is on the short list of my favorite songs of the year. But I will be honest, the lyrics are lost on me. Death? Politics? Probably both. What sells the song to me is a world weariness that is every bit as heavy as “Atlantic City”.

I would say that’s indicative of the whole album. While Bruce tends to stick to big,sweeping ideas - he has put together a string of anthemic singles. A record then, that only works when played loud.

(I don’t intend to say the lyrics are bad. They are good, just not Nebraska get-you-in-the-chest good)

Which is where I land with a lot of this album, but Springsteen plays to his strengths. Interestingly, after the Grunge musicians ignored Bruce, the next generation of indie rockers embraced him. Those early 21st Cent bands like The Hold Steady, Titus Andronicus and Arcade Fire dug deep into their inner Bruce.

This puts Bruce in the category of legends like Bowie and Prince. I imagine listening to Letter to You without context, one might compare and contrast to Brian Fallon’s 2020 disc Local Honey. At this point, is Springsteen inspiring Fallon or is Fallon (and similarly minded indie rockers) inspiring Bruce.

Of course, the question is does it matter. Springsteen loomed over the early careers of some great musicians like Steve Earle and Melissa Ethridge (not to mention Joe Ely, Steve Forbert, Iron City Houserockers and others), but it’s clearly been a two way street.

Letter to You is likely better for all of this- including Springsteen on Broadway and digging into the archives for three early songs as he does here. Though he has never left and his reputation has never been in jeopardy, it’s good to have a disc like this.

Whyte Horses – Hard Times (CRC) -Whyte Horses is a "band" and Hard Times is their third album.

But Whyte Horses is really a project by Dom Thomas, who produces Whyte Horses, and is most well known for being the guy behind the Finders Keepers record label.

Allmusic and others name some of the influences in Thomas's work as French pop. folk, psychedelia, tropicalia, lounge and space rock.

It reminds me a bit of what Mark Ronson has done by bringing in vocalists and making mix tapes of a certain sound.

Hard Times is a mix of well known, more obscure and barely known. Ca Plane Pour Moi and Bang Bang (My Baby Shot me down) are here, as well as covers of Todd Rundgren's "I Saw The Light", the Bee Gees "Mr Natural", and songs by Baby Huey, British 60's Psych pop multi-instrumentalist Phil Cordell, Welsh glam band Bran and 70s soft rockers The Alessi Brothers).

Thomas has assembled a top notch group of vocalists- Damon Gough (Badly Drawn Boy), Elly Jackson (La Roux) Tracyanne Campbell (Camera Obscura), Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals), Melanie Pain (Nouvelle Vague), John Grant (the Czars) and Chrysta Bell (frequent David Lynch collaborator)- as well as a couple of his own in-house vocalists Lucy Styles and Natalie McCool.

It's the kind of album that gets bad reviews, but I don't care. I can put this on over and over again. best track? I'm partial to Traceyanne of course. La Roux may be unrecognizable as a soul singer, but is powerful. "Seabird" lacks the big name star on vocals, but is beautiful.

I will put in a good word for Badly Drawn Boy's "Satellite of Love". It's a song that doesn't really need to be covered (Sorry U2, Morrissey, Perry Farrell and the Eurythmics). He takes it back to its Loaded-era Velvet Underground roots, and I dig it.

Heck, I didn't even know it was a VU song before it was a solo Reed song (BDB does the original lyrics too) but it works as a Velvets-style rocker. Lou would of course re-invent it as a live concert mainstay. It is an epic almost gospel powerhouse on one of its best versions on Take No Prisoners. On Live in Italy- it's a guitar heavy affair with Quine and Reed.

As Thomas probably sees his Whyte Horses as a modern day version of the Exploding Plastic Inevitable, it feels just right.

X – Alphabetland (Fat Possum) What a great and underrated band X is. We tend to marginalize punk bands, but they were something special- like every American influence blended together- Chuck Berry, Elvis, Gene and Eddie, Hank, Loretta, the Doors, the Ramones.

No doubt, that energetic band who did “Los Angeles” is loved dearly. Which is better, the debut or the follow-up “Wild Gift”. Impossible to decide (and they had been packaged together in the CD age). Some might make the case, the third “Under the Big Black Sun” is then, even better- a valid enough argument. ( I guess I am a “Wild Gift” guy depending on the day).

The latter days of X don't get fond treatment these days, but for a time, they were considered among the greatest rock recordings ever. For a time, “See How We Are” was considered a classic, and now, it and “Ain't Love Grand” are casualties of ambition and 80s production.

Then, somewhere between fiery punk and reflective acclaim is “More Fun in the New World” The mid-point, and damn near perfect album.

I got into X in the 90s, when they tried a comeback. They had only been gone for 6 years, but it seemed like an eternity. “Hey Zeus!” is not a great album. We can probably stop there. Nothing could replicate X. John Doe's work is fairly acclaimed, but nothing really stands out. “Meet John Doe”, the 1990 debut is good enough, and 2016's The Westerner finds a sympathetic ear in producer Howe Gelb.

So Alphabetland is a bit of a revelation in that is as it as good as it is. This isn't “Wild Gift”, but it at least feels like the same band who gave us “Wild Gift”. That makes it well worth it. Come to read on it, many of these songs are from the early days, which may explain why it succeeds.

“Cyrano De Berger's Back” is a perfect example of what we love about X. From the “Los Angeles” days, it's done well in a mature “New World” style, and is easy to append to the band's best songs.

“Delta 88 Nightmare” is 97 seconds of the band replicating their “Decline of Western Civilization” days. “Water and Wine” is a bit more thought out, but recalls those glory days with Exene taking lead and John chiming in.

Those are the highest points, but it does hang well. I am tempted to compare it to the recent Damned reunion and question if this will be a disc that will get revisited. Still, there's plenty of depth -check out “I Gotta Fever” and “Good bye year Goodbye”, and really no filler. Exene does go spoken word at the final two minutes with “All the Time in the World”, but it's the kind of a song X might have added as a coda in the good old days.

A quick reaction would be this won't hang will all those great X albums, but it is a great listen and will be one of the better records of this year, so perhaps I am being hasty. I also feel compelled to mention that some people are less enamored of Exene's worldview these days. She is the rare musician who defends, even embraced Donald Trump. I have talked about this in the past, but a friend made the point that there was a certain 'don't trust anyone' logos in the punk scene, and perhaps she is not too far removed from that; and I will leave that there.