Ben Allison and Medicine Wheel
"Buzz" (Palmetto Records)
Sounds Like: Ornette Coleman and John Coltrane falling asleep while breathing into their instruments
C-
Somewhere in the studio session for "Buzz" there is a decent album yet to be cut. Bassist Ben Allison has more than proven his worth as an innovative voice in free jazz. However, his latest offering leaves fans of the avant-garde tepid and casual fans of jazz just plain bored.
The line-up on "Buzz" is exceptionally gifted with veterans such as Ted Nash and Michael Blake filling out the sextet format quite well. However, their execution is not the pressing issue. Allison's arrangements are only half developed and frequent fall into disarray. While the and West Coast Jazz rhythms are catchy they lead nowhere. The only two tracks with a definitive narrative thread are "Green Al," a tribute to the R&B Legend and a new arrangement of the Beatles standard, "All Across the Universe." But even these attempts at fusion run out of steam with overly long tracks that don't say much of anything.
"Buzz" had the potential to be as good as any of the progressive works that Ben Allison has executed with ease. Instead it serves as an example of a good set of sessions edited into a meandering and ultimately incoherent whole.
-NEAL FERSKO
Ani DiFranco
"Knuckle Down" (Righteous Babe Records)
Sounds like: Someone is putting Valium in the water of the DiFranco Household in Buffalo.
B-
"Knuckle Down" is the kinder and gentler Ani DiFranco album that fans have been dreading for no good reason. DiFranco's latest record has a smoother texture and is more rhythmically consistent then her revolutionary work of the mid 1990s. Yet it feels just as truthful, acknowledging the trappings of age and experience that no artist can duck without consequence.
There is no sense of palpable anger or desperate unrest in the tracks that make "Knuckle Down" a solid album. Instead, they each take a snapshot that captures a 34-year-old DiFranco coming to terms with climbing into her skin while facing an unforgettable past and uncertain future. The driving spirit within the songs "Callous" and "Sunday Mourning" do the best job reflecting this melancholy, while "Seeing Eye Dog" and "Minerva" use pure blues to capture the same sentiment. However, it is the singular spoken word track "Paradigm," which is perhaps the most effective track and easily a showstopper, defining the contradictions in the album's direction. The guitar work and lyrics that DiFranco has made her name from are up to snuff this time, serving once again as extensions of her personality rather then instruments meant to be tamed by it.
Each Difranco album is a miniature autobiography, written in the moment while reflecting on the fragility of it lasting. "Knuckle Down" lives up to this reputation while reflecting on its ramifications at the same time.
-N.F.
Bad Hotel
"No Vacancy" (Bad Hotel Inc.)
Sounds like: an excellent band to listen to all the time
B+
Bad Hotel comes out with its harmonious album, "No Vacancy," taking us back to the time when unknown bands actually play great music.
The highlights of "No Vacancy" are made possible mostly by its vocalist, Todd Managan. He possesses a dynamic voice capable of making the lyrics flow with the music. Managan does this particularly well in the first few songs on the album, such as "Maybe I Am." In addition to Managan's vocals, the drums played by Mike Cohn are superb in their intensity and rhythm. It is especially evident in the third song, "Bad Hotel."
Each song of "No Vacancy" flows together, not just because of Managan and Cohn, but also through its guitars. This is a great album if you are either starting to listen to this type of music or are a long time fan.
-JASON ALREDGE
Tegan & Sara
"So Jealous" (Vapor/Sanctuary)
Sounds like: a hint of Elastica, a hint of vulnerability
A-
Listening to 2004's "So Jealous," you would never know that Canadian sisters Tegan & Sara entered the music world in Lilith Fair angsty fem-rock marginality. But even then they had fans, hitting the road with icons like Neil Young and the Pretenders. Every two years these twins drop a new album, and every two years it seems they get better. 2002's saccharine power-pop of "If It Was You" was a quantum leap from 2000's "the Business of Art" in its unoriginal Ani DiFranco worshiping pollution. And now they present us "So Jealous," their finest and most ambitious work to date.
Emotion is still here, and Tegan & Sara sprinkle "So Jealous" with harmonies, keyboards, squeaky guitars and even more harmonies. Matt Sharp, former Weezer bassplayer (back when they didn't suck) adds the zippy keys that made the Rentals' debut so much fun. No growing pains here.
-COSTA CALOUDAS
Various Artists
"Dragging the Lake 3" (Sideonedummy)
Sounds Like: A bunch of bands chummy with Blink 182 on a comp together.
B+
Another year, another compilation from Atticus clothing company, publicly fronted by Blink 182's Mark Hoppus and Tom Delonge. As usual the comp features a somewhat exclusive Blink 182 song, "Not Now," a b-side from the band's latest self titled effort, along with a rack of bands associated with the band.
Atypically, bands like Death Cab For Cutie, VCR, and The Sounds are featured along with the usual pop punk, punk, hardcore, emo crowd who usually appear such as Fall Out Boy, MxPx, Taking Back Sunday, The Bled, Funeral For A Friend and Rise Against.
Some great exclusive new songs on the record such as "This is The Part" by Gratitude, which features ex-Far singer Jonah Matranga; "1000 Paper Cranes" by Motion City Soundtrack, whose upcoming record was produced by Mark Hoppus; and "Bury Your Head" by Saosin, who have been attracting a lot of buzz in the post-hardcore scene since last year.
Overall the 24-track record is a good sampler of a wide array of rock-based bands from several genres. There isn't that much exclusive content, but if you are looking to broaden your horizons a bit, "Dragging The Lake 3" is for you.
-JORGE DEL PINAL
