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KERANIEBDEN&
STEVE RED
The Exchange Session Vol. 2
Domino
Four Tel’s last record Everything
Ecstatic a return to folk strum
ming/ laptop doodling lorm following
the faintly sterile, rurining-in-ptace
Rounds I'll likely always preler Pause,
Kieran Hebden's lirst release under
the Four Tet name It* a wondertul
thing, though, when a respected artist
branches out and completely redefines
perception. Hebden's recently fallen
head over heels tor jazz drummer/
percussionist Steve Reid, and already
the second volume ol The Exchange
Session is hitting shelves
Reid's best known tor his friendship
and drumming with Coltrane and Davis
during both legends' artsier fusion
periods, although his resume contains
session worlr with Sun Ra. Feia Kuti
and James Brown More impressive
is his fluidity behind the kil, and this
volume more than the first illustrates
what a perfect kinship he shares with
Hebden's knob-freaking Completely
improvised with no overdubs, the three
lengthy tracks meander like Billy trom
'Family Circus.* but rarely does your
attention follow suit 'Hold Down the
Rhythms. Hold Down the Machines*
does exactly that, whirring, snaring and
hi-hatting along, not going anywhere
extraordinary but just locking into an
effective cyclical groove. *No£mie*
is to these ears the highlight Kind ol
like if Can were on Kranky Records, an
Eastern flute melody breezes through
wind chimes, layering and layering
until noise takes over "We Dream Free*
finishes off the set and is essentially the
lazzier sequel lo *No6mie.*
Seriously exciting stuff. Obviously
improv isn't everyone's bag. and many
Ians ol Four Tefi records will be bored
stiff. But you can tell Hebden's tar more
inspired in this context with Reid, who
sounds like he's having the lime ol
his life.
Michael Wehunt
REGINA SPEKTOR
Begin to Hope
Sire
There's no question Regina Spektor
has talent, and she appears to be
getting closer to making a cohesive
album without down spots but Begin
to Hope is more what its title describes
a reason to look forward to what comes
next, but not to be satisfied with the
present The first song on the record.
'Fidelity.* is different trom anything
she's done before—bigger, and driven
by a strangely hip hop beat based on
rough pizzicato strings—but it's not the
single, which seems like a mistake.
The song that is being released
lirst is "Better.* which isn't. It* also
something different, but in a much less
interesting way. though it steals some
trom the Beatles (you'll hear those
influences again in ’On the Radio.*
which echoes *1 Am the Walrus* in its
chorus ol chanting backing vocals).
What it does do is show off Spektor s
strong and distinctive voice, which
skips among octaves like it* fun and
easy and conveys sort ol the same
thing as opera; she can! sing like
Maria Cailas. but she does sing with
her whole body in that way. and she's
powerful enough (almost) to make it
not sound silly when she drags out the
word ‘boobs* lor syllable after syllable
in *20 Years of Snow *
Tracks alternate between more
piano-driven, simply produced songs
that sound like what we've heard
previously from Spektor and ones that
are as much of a grab-bag as Gwen
Stelam's solo stuff is 'That Time.* lor
example, is straight-up New York ga
rage rock, with no piano in sight, and
'Edit* slips in a beat that's right oft one
ol Diplo's productions None of these
works as well as ’Fidelity,* but they're
always at least interesting, and it’s fair
to say we re farther along the path than
just the beginning Solidly into hope,
let* call it.
Hillary Brown
SNOWGLOBE
Oxytocin
Makeshift Music
There is clearly something in ail
ol us that longs for harmony, whether
it's expressed in the beauty ot a math
ematical proof, a perfectly phrased
sentence, a pattern composed just so
or. as in this case, songs that hum
with a deeply buzzing force Nothing
about the name ot the band or the CD
or the cover of the CD will quite let you
know what you're in (or. but maybe the
photograph on the back does a picture
ol Brad Postlefhwaite as a kid. buried
in those colorful plastic balls they have
at Chuck E Cheese That is. it is bright
and multifarious and wants to swallow
you whole
Elements ol the Elephant 6
crowd—tons ol different instruments,
mostly—show up. but so do those of
The Magnetic Fields (pilch, commit
ment lo melody, the darkish tone ol the
lyrics). Imogen Heap (the barely sepa
rated harmonic vocals on 'Hide and
Seek’) and Magical Mystery Jour-era
Beatles (most evident on ’Dry*). But
none ol it feels druggy or sell-indulgent
except in the way it makes you need to
listen to it over and over again, creat
ing a self-sufficient cocoon ol sound.
There is almost too much to delight the
ears on some songs, like ’Rainbow.*
which causes addiction with its *da da
da* chorus, and ‘Happy.* which piles
on instruments and vocals in a hook
that makes you want to do nothing but
breathe it in.
It* all very much like being hit with
a ton ol super gorgeous bricks in slow
motion, which is the feeling I'm always
looking lor from music and which
makes it one ot the best things out so
tar this year
Hillary Brown
MOJAVE 3
Puzzles Like You
4AD
Mojave 3* Neil Halstead has made
a career out ol singing dreamy, coun
trified chamber pop songs perfectly
suited for rainy-day contemplation
On Puzzles Like You. the band's tilth
release, Halstead isn't afraid lo lighten
up and get a little cheesy With opener
'Truck Driving Man.* Halstead lays
down a challenge for himsell—to cre
ate an album that gets loose and stays
loose throughout—and for the most
part, he succeeds.
The rock vibe that was so muted
on Mojave 3* last effort (the eloquent
but meandering Spoon and Rafter) has
come back with a vengeance on this
one. with nods to the Byrds and the
Jayhawks Mojave 3 differs from those
bands and their followers in one glar
ing regard, however whereas the Byrds
(et al) are prototypically American.
Halstead and crew sound British, and
unabashedly so On 'Most Days.'
Puzzles Like Yods only real downer
(and paradoxically, the most brilliant
track on the whole album), Halstead
summons Nick Drakes ghost, singing
with only slightly more lyrical clarity
than that iconic folk singer
On most other tracks though, the
boys and girl ol Mojave 3 arc rocking
instead of moping, and more impor
tantly. are enjoying the process
Mark Sanders
VINYL STRANGERS
The Vinyl Strangers
New DNA
It no longer means much to say that
a group is influenced by the Beatles,
you have lo get specific. In the case ol
Athens' Vinyl Strangers. 1965* Help' •
serves as their Beatles touchstone The
boy-girl subject matter rules, though
the lyrics delve a little deeper than *1
wanna hold your hand.* More impor
tantly. from a sonic point of view, the
Vinyl Strangers' songs don't bombard
you with psychedelic trickery. It*
refreshing to hear pop songs that stand
on their own. embellished only with
tambourine and occasional show-ofly.
three-part harmonies.
All ol this is not to say the Vinyl
Strangers come off as a twee relro
act. Though the album* opener The
Slightest Chance* sounds as peppy as
a receptionist on that first day at work,
it still unfolds naturally and. despite
its influences, doesn't sound dated
And. as on most of this record* songs,
singers Joe Guerzo (also ot Flood City
Shootout) and Reid Howland (The High
Caliber) weave their vocal lines togeth
er until you can! fell where one ends
and the other begins, all backed by the
bass ol Sieve Cox and the drums ol Ian
Werden (Slackdaddy. Jackpot City. The
High Caliber).
'Patriotic Girl* is another standout
a complex piece of power pop delivered
at a breakneck pace The only song
that seems out ol place on the record
may be the last: 'Letting it Ride * It* as
cool and catchy as they come, but the
song's rolling groove and ever-present
wah-wah guitar recalls 1975 more than
1965. Then again, this may be done by
design Perhaps the Vinyl Strangers
were leap-frogging over the heavy stuff
and taking you from one bubblegum
era into another
TomBavis
The Vinyl Strangers are playing al
Tasty World on Wednesday. June 21
and at Transmelropohtan on Friday.
June 23 as pari ot AthFest
GOTAN PROJECT
LunJlico
XL
French (what? isn't tango
Argentinean?) trio Gotan Protect has
done the ever-popular take something
that rules and put cool beats in it’ trick,
and on its second aibum. Lunahco. the
group succeeds a little more than on
its debut. La Revancha del Tango The
reason lor this is simple: tone back
the dub and kick the always fascinat
ing tango up a notch The synthesis
is more pure Opener ‘Amor Portefio*
scores extra points immediately due lo
the presence ol Calexico, indiedom*
most amazing llarnenco-rock ad Guest
vocalist Cristina Vilallonga provides
vocals on the majority ot these 12
tracks, and I’d rather it be only a hand
ful Her voice is a Spanish sort ot
Letitia Sadler and often detracts from
the wonderful environments swirling
around her As a tango record. Lunatico
works fairly well. No way will anyone
be saying 'Piazzolla who?*—but it*
pleasant il a bit too jazzy
My advice would be to skip this
and pick up violinist Gidon Kremer s
Hommage a Piazzolla or Tango: Zero
Hour by Aslor Piazzolla himself. His
music wilt always be the high point of
the genre, and neither ol those albums
sounds at all dated or cheesy. But il
beats are your selling point, you could
do far worse than this.
Michael Wehunt
32 FLAGPOLE.COM-JUNE 21.2006
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