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VARIOUS ARTISTS
Million Dollar Hotel Soundtrack
Universal Island
This should have been brilliant: U2
teams up with uberproducers Daniel
Lanois and Brian Eno tor a soundtrack
to a lilm from German director Wim
Wenders. What we get is an occasion
ally atmospheric but more often than
not dull collection of mood pieces.
The Bowie-esque lyrics to "Ground
Beneath Her Feet* are actually by
Salman Rushdie. Well, he dionl exactly
write lyrics. The words were just
adapted from his book of the same
name. As one of the three U2 cuts here,
this falls squarely in the middle of the
quality level. The mystical building
track is fine for album filler but
would've certainly been a throwaway it
it was pre-Pop. As for the other U2
contributions. "Stateless* is simply
lacking the chemistry that .he g r oup
used to deliver just by hitting the
‘record* button. The band just sounds
uninspired.
Luckily. 'The First Time’ almost
makes up fo r it. Bono's haunting, dry
delivery of the not so subtle Christian
lyric moves the slow, repetitive number
into a trance mode that captures the
passion of belief.
Bono's three solo cuts are akin to
Sting's current mediocrity. These songs
are just watered down typical moody
soundtrack fare, nothing more and
nothingless. I just hope he's not testing
the waters for a solo career full of this
boring stuff.
t have to admit that I enjoyed
model-actress-singer Milla Jcvovich’s
cover of Lou Reed's “Satellite Of Love."
This tune never ages, and Jovovich's
sultry (if slightly off-key) voice is at
once watery and playful, t especially
appreciated the distorted cat-in-heat
caterwauling near the end.
Otherwise, the instrumentals are
fine for relaxing in a dimly lit room full
of incense or napping on a rainy day.
but they don’t realty stand out. Stick
around for the reggae-Latin-punk
"Anarchy In The USA’ that closes the
album. At least the collection ends wilh
a little life. Even U2 fans don't need to
rush out for this; it'll be in the bargain
bins soon enough. (10900 Wiltshire
Blvd., Ste. 1230 Los Angeles. CA
90024)
Chris McKay
□G LG SOUL
DE LA SOUL
Art Official Intelligence:
Mosaic Thump
Tommy Boy
For a group long noted for its inno
vation and unconventionality, De La
Souths latest is disappointingly familiar.
This is not to say it's a bad album; it's
just not going to mow down anything
else out there. Mosaic Thump fits right
alongside the kind of contemporary hip
hop that uses endlessly recycled beats
and lazy delivery.
What's missing is imagination and
energy: impact. The music doesn't
reach out and smack you. and many of
the songs blend into one another indis
tinctly. There are few melodic rhymes
and samples to make individual tracks
stand out. One of the highlights comes
from guest Busta Rhymes on "t.C.
V all." his motor-mouthed growling
injecting personality into the track as he
lets everyone know who’s in charge.
Another is Chaka Khan's appearance on
“All Good?.’ her soulful voice riding on
a bouncing guitar figure, one of the rare
funky moments of the album, and then
Mike D and Ad Rock shouting and
stomping on "Squat!* followed by Busy
Bee on the brief "Words From The Chief
Rocker." These guests bring a little
more out of Posdnuos, Dave and
Maseo than they summon by them
selves.
Mosaic Thump is the first of a
planned A.O.I. trilogy, each exploring
different iacets of De La Soul with a
large supporting cast. There may be
more exciting things to come as the
project unfurls, but it's ofl to a bit of a
slow start. (902 Broadway. NY. NY
10010)
Jay Nagy
SINEAD O’CONNOR
Faith And Courage
Atlantic
From controversial Catholic priest
to lustful Bill Clinton groupie to lesbian
Rastafarian—all in the last 12 months
alone—Smead O'Connor persists in
dropping one ludicrous personal
bombshell after another. A cynic might
suspect that all the sound and fury is
simply a clever means of distracting
attention from the fact that Ms.
O’Connor hasn't released a truly oecent
album since her commercial break
through. I Do Not Want What I Haven't
Got, way back in 1990. That she enjoys
any following whatsoever, not to men
tion a lucrative mega-deal with Atlantic,
is a tribute to the power :nd vision of
her first two albums. Plus, she pos
sesses one of the most incredible
voices in all of pop music.
Although a definite step up from
1994’s Universal Mother -her last full-
length release—Faith And Courage is
something of a disappointment. (Of
course, nothing fuels expectations like
allowing six years to pass between
albums.) Lyrically. O’Connor sticks with
love and relationships and spiritual
renewal, which is probably a good idea.
And. musically, she and her all-star
team of producers skillfully integrate
generous servings ot electronics, pro
grammed drums, and Irish low whistle
with the usual guitar-bass-drums thing
with remarkable success. As a result,
the whole album boasts a wono jtuily
warm, multi-layered sound.
Unfortunately, many of the songs just
aren't particularly memorable, tune-
wise.
The exceptions/highlighis include
“The Healing Room.’ the catchy-but-
heavy-handed 'No Mans Woman," and
'Daddy I’m Fine." the most raucously
joyous song O'Connor has ever
recorded. If nothing else, these three
tracks are enough to keep the O’Connoi
faithful (myself included) hanging on
until her next release, i just hope we
won't be hanging on for another six
years (1290 6th Ave . NY. NY 10016)
Paul Chastain
BAD LIVERS
Blood And Mood
Sugar Hill
Yeah. I know. It seems like a big
copout for a music critic to say that any
album is undefinable in terms of the
style of its musical content, but you're
just going to have to resist that ali-too-
human need to categorize things in
order to appreciate this one. Blooo fad
Mood is one of the most eclectic
albums I have ever heard. Danny
Barnes and Mark Rubin serve up the
sounds of punk, techno, bluegrass,
gospel, hip hop. and twangy country all
rolled into one. Hillbilly-meets-hip hop
seems an apt description.
The album opens with a challenge
to the listeners to figure the music out
for themselves: "Now whut the deal is,
is you go r na have to git over thar and
figger out what that's all about". Nope,
those aren't typos, just classic hillbilly
enunciation. My mind's eye sees a
character like that of Billy Bob Thornton
in A Simple Plan, and when the intro
rolls into "Fist Magnet.* I can hear the
sound of the same actor's character in
Sling Blade in Barnes’ vocals. "Fist
Magnet’ is banjo-laden and quite
amusing, as it is about a guy whose
'kinfolk found a rat in their yard*.
"I’m Losing* brings ferocious,
punky guitar playing paired with pedal
steel guitar and a background of "D-l-
V-O-R-C-E* a la Tammy Wynette. See
what I mean? "Little Bitty Town* could
be about any small town in America
while ‘Looky Here" is a colder, techno-
ish track that makes heavy use of a
sampler and includes feathery hints of
gospel.
'Legend Of The Sawdust Boogers’
is one of several tracks that teatures
pedal steel guitar and so jnds like a
gospel hymn sung in a tiny church in
Appalachia. Another compelling track is
the closer, interestingly titled "Man Vs.
Fate-2 Out Of 3 Falls. 10 Round Limit",
which is a chilling, reverberating tune.
Barnes is the musical wizard (or the
mad scientist) who mixes up all the
loops, samples, piano, banjo, guitar
and synthesizer while Rubin provides
the plunky and reliable bass foundation.
The iinished product is one that breaks
new ground, which cannot often be said
of any album. (P. 0. Box 55300.
Durham. NC27717)
Dawn Maynor
TOD EYE FOUNDATION
Little Lost Soul
Merge
It's funny how a little suggestion
can taint your whole perception about a
piece of music (or any art. for that
matter.) In the case of ex-Flying Saucer
Attack-er Matt Elliot (who goes by Third
Eye Foundation), it appears that the title
ot his latest album. Little Lost Soul,
may or may not be a reference to the
death of his beloved cat James, who he
credits in his liner notes as having been
"a good cat "
01 course, the title of the opening
track. I’ve Lost That Loving Feline.* is
a deao giveaway to this notion. While
the sounds of mournful meowing are
(thankfully) absent from the tapestry of
sampled sounds and highly un-dance-
able beats that Elliot weaves together
with such mastery, the song, like much
of the rest of Little Lost Soul, is
somehow beautifully intoxicating and
yet more than a little bit creepy. It
sounds as if Elliot i' more of a medium
than a musician, channeling spirits
from the ether directly into his sampler.
Not only has he made field recordings
of the spirits of fondly remembered pets
on ti<e album he has also seemingly
been able to stick a boom mic over the
entire world of the undead. In doing so
he creales a son twisted dance party for
the ghosts that haunt his imagination
and the departed souls that still exist in
his soul and psyche, little James being
perhaps just one of many.
Skittering beats and twisted jungle-
isms are nothing new to fans of Aphex
Twin. Sauarepusher or Autechre.
However, unlike so many of his con
temporaries. Elliot's electronic wash of
sound is completely enveloping without
being pretentiously spacy and futuristic
or rhythmically over-involved. Rather, it
is a wholly organic-sounding sheet of
noise that wraps around you like a
warm. cozy, wool blanket. But don’t get
too comfortable, mind you; remember,
there are restless spirits here. A quiv
ering voice from a floating specter in
“Lost* reminds you (among a sym
phony of guitar feedback from the
nether world) that however comforted
you are in the notion that your loveo
ones have returned to you in some form
or another, if you're not careful, you
might end up like the rest of these pur
gatorial dwellers. Your more cynical
dead relatives wearily and sarcastically
chant "Jesus!" throughout "Are You
Still A Cliche?"
They were opera singers, silent film
actors, pianists, and yes. even loyal
animal friends. Elliot lets us hear their
song just one more time before they
have to retreat back to wherever it is
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art you surf
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ED FLAGPOLE AUGUST 23, 2000