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26 April 2006

Jake Stigers, Comin Back Again (Jake Stigers Music) Rating: 8
Jake Stigers has a great voice that seems to blend the pipes of front men of rock's glory days with the swagger of more contemporary artists. Radio-friendly and note perfect, songs like the John Mayer-meets-Tom Petty "Do You Feel High" take off from the start, while "Another Negotiation" is a fine piece of pop rock with some Keith Richards-like riffs to boot. Meanwhile, the slow Southern-tinged soul of "Only Wanna Be With You" sounds like Chris Robinson (who has nothing but praise for the artist) on a Beatles binge. And don't for a minute think "We Don't Need Anybody" isn't something that wouldn't fit on The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion. Even less than outstanding tracks such as "Flys on Your Skin" bring to mind an American version of Oasis. One surprise is the soulful "Marlena" that has him hitting notes on guys like Prince should be able to reach. And if the first nine didn't knock your socks off, then Stigers ups the ante with the no-BS of "That Ain't Livin". If only they all came this great... [Amazon | Insound]
      — Jason MacNeil
"Do You Feel High": [MP3]
"Only Wanna Be with You": [MP3]
"Flys on You Skin": [MP3]
"That Ain't Livin": [MP3]

The Colonies, A Shipful of Chandeliers (Shipwreckords) Rating: 4
You come across these strange discs from time to time. The four members of The Colonies are cobbled together from South Africa, New Zealand, England and France but there's nothing unique about the sound, a sort of college-rock/arthouse swagger without much by way of a recognisable hook. You sense attempts at humour, too, but the swooning lyrics are more narrative-driven, not as smart as Art Brut's. Instead, we get a nautical conceit, and wildly varying styles -- from the sing-along shanty "Sister Ship" to college rock "Green Is For Go" to psychedelia in the throwaway "Something's Going to Give". The disconcerting thing is that the songs are so short, hardly giving you time to reorient yourself before a new song, practically a new genre. A Shipful of Chandeliers could be at least a very interesting record, if the band sat down and patiently worked out all the ideas into some sort of coherence. [Amazon | Insound]
      — Dan Raper
multiple songs: [player]
"C'mon Chief": [MP3]
"Done Got Died": [MP3]
"Beauty Be Booty": [MP3]

Jane vs World, 56k Hearts (Popboomerang) Rating: 6
Kate Duncan and Jadey O'Regan's indiepop album has the chirpy teen-adult sound of some 1960s girl groups -- they made me think of The Angels singing "My Boyfriend's Back" -- but their subject matter is specific and modern. The Canadian friend Duncan sings about in "Boy From Canada" and Sebastian in "Sebastian Says" sound like real people, not the generic everyboys that sometimes crop up in lyrics. "I told you about what's in Vegemite," she sings in "Boy From Canada." "You said that it was totally gross and foul / Boy from Canada is kinda cool. / We met on the net last year.../ I've waited online for the past half hour." They sing about the internet in such a matter-of-fact way, that by the end of 56k Hearts I was wondering why more musicians don't do the same. We know that bands have blogs and message boards. When are more of them going to be willing to work "lol" into a lyric? And when they do, will it sound as cute and giddy as this? And will it come with na na nas? [Insound]
      — Deanne Sole
multiple songs: [MySpace]

Tigercity, Tigercity (Forge) Rating: 5
So I put Tigercity's new self-titled EP in the player, and immediately there were very obviously electronic beats and repetitive chords. Despite the fairly pleasant vocals that followed, I was sure I was hearing the next band to ride the electro-clash wave. Then the slappy bassline of "Cloakrooms" hit, and I thought maybe I was listening to a New Order tribute band with David Byrne handling the vocals. Then "Landline to Germany" happened, and suddenly I was hearing a cheesy '80s synthpop ballad. Toss in a track where the trio's Michael Jackson infatuation gets the best of them and a closing tune that finds a lot in common with neo-retro artists like Franz Ferdinand, and we have an EP that has no consistent identity, but sure is fun to listen to. The one common thread that can be said for every song on this EP is that they will absolutely make you dance. Without more of a sense of its own identity, Tigercity will never establish its own name without inviting comparisons to others. As a slice of digital dance, however, the Tigercity EP is a fun little one-night stand. [Amazon | Insound]
      — Mike Schiller
multiple songs: [MySpace]

.: posted by Editor 8:42 AM