Steve Catanzaro (stevencatanzaro@sprintmail.com)
Wed, 8 Sep 1999 18:32:22 -0700
ok, just made a trip to Virgin, and, thought I'd check in with some reviews
of my own. The caveat is these discs are all new, and you never know how a
disc will sit with you after you live with it for a bit, still, here goes...
"grenique, black butterfly." Hey, you can pick this one up real cheap, and
after hearing about it on the list, i jumped at this female crooner from the
Kedar Massenberg (Erykah Badu) stable. Very disappointing. Her voice fails
to distinguish itself, in my book, and the songwriting, while definitely a
couple of notches above "Boom like an 808" or "No, I don't want no scrubs"
is far short of classic status. Despite a couple of real cool moments, the
disc generally leaves me cold. The programming is not nearly as "organic" as
the understated work on Baduizm, but hey, the voice is the thing, and this
voice is more, how you say... generique?
"macy gray, on how life is"... oops? my ex-roomate's joint.. so, I can't be
objective, but it's a LOT better than the demo tapes she used to make on my
MT2X 4 track, and like her voice or not, the whole vibe is definitely a move
on point for an Epic release. The production is top-notch, as would be
expected with a high stakes sony marketing push, and there are some nice
party grooves, including "Why Didn't You Call Me" and "Sex-O Matic Venus
Freak." Those looking too hard for the next Chaka Khan might be
disappointed, but this is an above average release, and certainly more
flavorful than... Mariah? Whitney? Jennifer? Christina? Mary?
well, hold on a minute! "mary j. blige, mary" is a real contender. By now,
you've all heard the Lauryn Hill produced "All That I Can Say," a very
catchy track with some far out chord changes. If you like it, you "may" like
the rest of the disc. Lots of ground covered, from guest appearences by Eric
Clapton and Elton John (yikes!) to Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis in their most
over-the-top superproducer mode. But the thing here is the voice... If you
think, like I do, that this is one of the most soulful singers in the public
eye today, you'll put up with most anything production wise.
the herbaliser, very mercenary... some dope trax, but overall, when a
bahamadia lyric fails to inspire, you know there's trouble. In all fairness,
haven't been able to get through this one all the way yet, so, thats "all
that I can say."
the innerzone orchestra, programmed... oh yeah, very cool. pass me that...
despite some crazy concept interludes I'm not to hip too, there are some
great sounds and great grooves on this disc. A lot of variety, and much of
it hits the bullzeye with me. Where else can we hear Sun Ra alum Francisco
Moira offering up excellent live drums synced up to real Detroit-city style
programming? Standouts for me include the tasty violin on"Blakula",
processed so it sounds a little like the oriental sound of the "Last
Emperor" soundtrack, and a remake of People Make the World Go 'Round,
complete with a big league string arrangement. Also some great 70's era
jazz-funk jamz (Timing, Bug In The Bass Bin), and some super-mellow
synthesized "texture" tunes (Architecture), that put me in mind a bit of the
ECM style solo work of Lyle Mays from the Pat Metheny Group. Overall, a real
nice combination of man and machine that should do a lot to chill you out
and bring your stress level down.
maceo parker, funk overload. This one shows you just how great James Brown's
bands sometimes were. The funk here is heavy handed, and it's a giant step
below imitators like Liquid Soul, certainly nowhere near as groov-a-licious
as the master's. I'll put the blame on the drumming of Jamal Thomas... for
this music to be super-special, you need a truly great drummer like Brown
alums Clyde Stubblefield or John "Jab-O" Starks. Also weak is Maceo's "rap"
tune "Elephant's Foot" and the completely disposable "Uptown Up." Maceo on
alto is great, of course, and his "real" vocals aren't bad either. I've
heard that Maceo's brother, another great James Brown drummer, is a hi-skool
guidance counsellor someplace. Can't Maceo get him to pick up the stix one
more time?
and, my favorite of the new buys? Hands down, it's the Blaxploitation comps.
I think there's 4 series of double CD's now and there are some fabulous real
deal trax from the old skool on every 1. If your idea of fun is chillin' to
Curtis Mayfield, Isaac Hayes, and the funky pre "Rockit" Herbie Hancock,
these are for you. Heck, even Grover Washington Jr and George Benson sound
good, and these imports go to show how the 94.7 Wave format of "Smooth Jazz"
that l.a. hipsters Elson and T-Bird love so much have absolutely RUINED
major label instrumental music.
One final note... heard the new Erykah Badu/Rahzeel track "Southern Gul.."
Are they really gonna release that as a single? Even Erykah's incredible
voice can't put this track over the top... I think that'd be a step in the
wrong direction... I guess I like the adventurousness of it, but then again,
what doez Rahzeel do that Take 6 and Bobby McFerrin didn't do 15 years ago?
And, I jus' smiled one time at the lyric (the bit about the fried food) as
compared to the laugh fest lyrics of "Tyrone"... I hope this is just the
first track, and not the best track.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b3 on Thu Sep 09 1999 - 03:38:26 MET DST