Erin Bode "Don't Take Your Time" (Maxjazz) Sounds Like: pop/jazz 3 stars
It was once said that it takes an artist's whole life to record her first album and only six months to cut the second one. That's the charming quality about debut albums - the influences of a lifetime seem to just pour out of the artist so joyfully with the added promise of much more to come.
Erin Bode's first album "Don't Take Your Time" is, unabashedly, an anthology of Bode's personal favorites. From more modern songs like Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" to the Irving Berlin standard "Counting Your Blessings," Bode's sweet Mid-western twang gives freshness to familiar standards. Her regional background comes more to the front on folk classics "In the Pines" and Bob Dylan's "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You." Both are effective in showing Bode's versatility, demonstrating that Bode can work rustic bluegrass as well as sultry jazz.
Despite Bode's considerable talent, the only track she is credited with co-writing is the title tune. "Don't Take Your Time" is catchy but a bit too pedestrian at times. There are also a few lesser tracks on the album such as Stevie Wonder's "If It's Magic" that don't fit her voice as well. On the whole, the album is a nice freshmen offering strengthened by a solid song selection and good musical accompaniment. Especially good are Steve Nelson's vibes and Bruce Barth's piano on the slower; more elegant numbers. If Bode keeps such good company on future albums she's bound to get better and better.
-NEAL FERSKO
Delays "Faded Seaside Glamour" (Rough Trade Records) Sounds like: an indie rock band with a lead singer who sings like a girl. 2.5 stars
There is just no way the lead singer of the Delays is a man. Singer Greg Gilbert sounds like Eliza Carthy - a pop-driven indie singer no one outside the world of adult contemporary radio has ever heard of - and it's not really a bad thing. Gilbert's high-range vocals are strikingly beautiful and airy, and offer a perfect foreground to the Delays' fragile pop music.
The slightly retro sound on the British-born Delays' new album, "Faded Seaside Glamour," evokes the best of delicate Brit-pop. The ethereal notes and sun-drenched vocals offer a much-desired escape from the monotony of everyday life. Songs like "No Ending" and "Long Time Coming" effortlessly uplift you with their calm and careful melodies.
The mellow nature of the album, however, has a slightly boring effect that suggests the Delays may work better in a mediation room than in your car. Indie hipsters who like low-key bliss-pop will be entranced by the Delays hypnotic sound, but those seeking crashing guitars and power chords may be sorely disappointed.
The Delays will be playing the 9:30 club on July 16. For tickets and more information, visit www.930.com.
-EMILY ZEMLER
Bumblebeez 81 "The Printz" (Geffen Records) Sounds like: nothing you have ever heard before. 3.5 stars
Bumblebeez 81 is the pet project of Chris Collona - an Australian musician who acts as DJ and rapper on his music. Collona's sister, Pia, who goes by the name ViLa on the album, also raps on numerous tracks. "The Printz," which combines Bumblebeez's debut EP "White Printz" and their United Kingdom single "Red Printz," is an eclectic mix of low-key raps and trip-hop beats that have a Beastie Boys-like effect.
"The Printz" uses various musicians to create the overall sound, but it is primarily the Collona siblings' vocals that are heard throughout, and there is no question that ViLa's are significantly more interesting to listen to. The raps, which really sound more like drunken party freestyles than produced tracks, are relatively flat and underproduced - a technique that skyrockets the band's sound far above that of Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg. Make no mistake, however - Bumblebeez's music is nothing like the pop-driven urban hip-hop that pervades the radio; it is electronic beats more along the lines of some early Beck.
The band, which is shockingly on Geffen - a label that has been picking up more and more alternative music acts - is original and innovative, and truly a refreshing alternative for those who can't stand the Beastie Boys.
- E.Z.
