Expect another ear-splitting album of speed metal laced with raging, hated-filled rap lyrics. Sounds like fun, eh? Hailing from Des Moines, Iowa, this nine-piece band could actually be a really nice bunch of farmboys beneath their evil clown faces and pointy-nosed goalie masks. But don’t tell that to their legions of fans, who obviously have a fondness for the terror of it all.
Many people tuning into this year’s Oscars barely knew what to make of the pixie in the strange swan dress who warbled her way through a song called “I’ve Seen It All,” backed by a 55-piece orchestra. Few had caught the Icelandic singer’s acting debut in Lars Von Trier’s film Dancer in the Dark, in which she played an east European girl who goes to America with her young son. Fewer still were familiar with her recordings, avant-pop albums that make Canada’s quirky pop princess Jane Siberry seem positively conventional. Little is known at press time about this next Björk album, but it’s bound to confound all but her most ardent supporters. An acquired taste.
Breaking out of the country-music straightjacket has proven tricky for the native of Sydney Mines, N.S. He’s tried singing with the Scottish band Runrig. On his latest album, he’s employed producers as diverse as Malcolm Burn (Emmylou Harris), John Hampton (Gin Blossoms) and Cracker’s David Lowery. For all that, the talented singer-songwriter still sounds most convincing when crooning blue-collar ballads with a twang like “Factory Line,” the album’s first single.
Scottish-born Shirely Manson is a red-haired force of nature who favors short skirts, big boots and swears like a drunken sailor. But she also howls like a hellcat and fronts this stylish electronic rock group from Madison, Wis., whose self-titled debut and followup, Version 2.0, sold over eight million copies. Judging from the buzz, this will be one of the season’s most eagerly anticipated releases.
Fans of clever, mellifluous pop mourned the 1996 loss of Australia’s Crowded House, a trio that created more memorable music over the course of four albums than most artists can dream of producing in a lifetime. Two years later, the man behind those songs got back in the game with Try Whistling This, an overlooked solo debut than contained at least two instant classics: “Addicted” and “She Will Have Her Way.” With One Nil, Finn has scored another winner. Featuring guest appearances by ex-Prince girls Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman, the album contains such melodic gems as “Anytime” and “Secret God” and again proves Finn a pop genius with few equals.
The bonus here: two Coles on one album. Having paid tribute to Ellington on 1998’s In Honor of Duke, the celebrated jazz pianist and his group (bassist Roland Guerin and drummer Jason Marsalis, younger brother of Wynton and Branford) pay homage to the music of Nat King Cole and Cole Porter. It makes for a dandy package, including tasty versions of such beloved chestnuts “Mona Lisa” and “I’ve Got You Under My Skin.”
That scene in High Fidelity, where Rob (John Cusak) hooks customers in his Championship Vinyl record shop by playing an album of trippy pop, has done wonders for this cool, unassuming Scottish quartet. On its second full-length disc, the once-obscure band delves deeper into dub, electronica and other dreamy soundscapes. While most of it has a sunny vibe, one tracks cleverly turns Harry Nilsson’s “One” into a nightmarish rap about “virtual reality.” Serious headphone music.
How to ensure your solo career doesn’t threaten the stability of your band? If you’re David Usher, you co-opt fellow Moist men Mark Makoway and Jeff Pearce to co-produce. Usher also wisely enlists rapper Snow and My Brilliant Beast singer Julia Galios and employs lush strings and operatic voices on the seductive “Black Black Heart.” The album’s best cut, the anthemic “Alone in the Universe,” may even become a bigger hit than Moist’s own singles. What then?
Since coming out in 1993, Etheridge’s music has been overshadowed by her lesbian lifestyle. Parenthood with partner Julie Cypher (and children sired by David Crosby) further fuelled a “lesbian chic” trend in the media. Cypher’s now a thing of the past and Etheridge’s latest album deals with heartbreak and hope. But the record is mired in the sort of romantic cliches and pop mediocrity of “I Want to Be in Love,” the album’s first single.
Following the Rankins’ breakup and John Morris’ tragic death, Jimmy resurfaces with an assured solo debut. Produced by Tim Thorney, who brought in singers Cassandra Vasik and Joel Feeney (Blue Rodeo’s Greg Keelor and sister Cookie Rankin also lend vocal support), the album places Jimmy squarely in the Canadian singer-songwriter tradition, with music more country than Celtic. In fact, perhaps in deference to John Morris, there’s not even a fiddle to be found.
