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THE COHN
TUCKER BAND
1.000 Years
Kill Rock Stars
"Why did I tail/ Why did I (alter 7 '
asks Conn Tucker in the title track
trom her new record 1.000 Years It
sets the stage tor an album full ot selt-
retlection and doubt Sleater-Kinney’s
final record, (as it stands, anyway) The
Woods, was chock-tull ot huge, angry-
sounding chords and wild bombast
It seems in hindsight a product of the
bandmembers' increasingly perilous
creative relationship—the last heaving
gasp, in a way. of a great band that
didnl quite know what it was anymore
The Woods was a study in con
tradiction: hard-hitting jams like 'The
Fox' were among the most rocking the
group had done while "Modem Girl*
found vocalist Tucker exploring a new,
more introspective side of her song-
wntmg She continues this effort on her
solo debut Now married with children,
the riot-grrrl steez Tucker exhibited on
early S-K records is bul a dot in the
rearview, discarded in tavor ot media
tions on real adult life. Tm on a phone
call 10 years long/ Is our connection
breaking down?* she wonders in the
longing "It’s Always Summer'
The release 1,000 Years ultimately
lacks cohesiveness Many songs find
Tucker effectively exploring !he ultra
personal This meditative theme ts lost,
though, on tracks like Thrift Store
Coats,' an unsubtle, Tori Amos-esque
song about the economy (buh) And
per the press release, Tucker wrote a
handful of these songs for the Twilight
New Moon soundtrack (they ultimately
werenT used). As such, it* not as
strong a statement as. say, S-tCs One
Beat. Can we have a reunion, already 7
GabeVodicka
Though from Venus (um, by way
of Nolh C*otin*), Ms perty-metal
juggernaut is one of the best live acts
on Earth . Besides hair, sweat and
denimvans, true beaef is whtilutis
its performances wd <ifts its songs to
gimwi it person, wen inorr*
conMion.
mNng you beiifw •** the or*y Brings
awdbegwdteud wltertucfctng
rock and roll. It is—no shit—cock-out
revelry elevated to church revival But
despite the Truth of the band's live
show, its recordings have always been
subservient and occasionally faceless
Stranger, thankfully, is a solid
capture of Valient Thorr's hard-kicking
sound Tough chest-thumpers like
‘Gillionaire’ and ‘Sleeper Awakes' let
their burly hardcore side shine Other
highlights include the hard-nosed rum-
bler "Sudden Death Is Nothing’ and
the full-throttle thrasher 'Habituary'
But the band is at its best in heart
pounding, roof-punching anthems like
"Disappeared and 'Double Crossed.'
which, swear to God. will turn everyone
in the room into a head-banging Jack
Black
No one expects the classicist
Valient Then to rewrite the book of
hard rock Bui in honor of its legend
ary live shows, the least the band can
do is rock hard enough on record to
kick down a door or two. And Stranger
is one ot their hardest-hitting collec
tions yet
Bao Le-Huu
If I'm Ancient
Double Phantom
The name It Tm Ancient deliber
ately misleads. The grammatically con
ditional title of this sophomore record
trom Atlanta's Carnivores, who. inci
dentally. are far from aged themselves,
communicates a tentativeness the band
seems wholly without Appropriate,
perhaps, that a group so committed to
pop disguised deftty beneath layers of
psych-punk anarchy tools us yet again
Pleasant deception is what its best at
Accordingly, the members of the
four-piece switch lead singing duties,
seeming to incorporate similar but
split personalities Listeners keep
guessing as they slide effortlessly
between heart-pounding, quick punk
('Feral Children*), psychedelic ballads
(Tremble*) and atonal washes of noise
("Creeps') Bassist Philip Frobos.
guitarist Nathaniel Higgins and key
boardist Caitlin Lang ail take point on
a tew of the record’s songs ("Sleeping
in a Burning House,' 'Planet Dream*
and 'Summer Shades,* respectively).
Higgins’ mellow, nostalgic croon and
Lang* manic shriek and demented wail
pop up in nice counterpoint to Frobos’
frequently tuneless rasp and shout .
But as noisy as they can be.
Carnivores prove expert both in
their pervasive use of melody and
men restraint wen it. remaps me
record* stand-out, *Georga Power
Company’ features creepy theremm
over a Higgins-sung, bass-heavy rout
When the brief, tuneful chorus comes
around only twice with Lang* soprano
layered over its top, it* Ihti much
more satisfying tor Hi sorrily. Aided
oy inmrmmenwy asanny percus
sion from drums ftoee PoW) (The
Florentine'), Cwdeoni ampMi luir
oxplogion of Rtabwl in short-song
egression, f On,tartar* mesh aff
these obhque egecMem, somehow
both effusive and reined-in, punk and
pop. hopefully psychedelic and ruefully
realistic.
Julia Reidy
SCREAMS
FEMALES
Castle Talk
Don Giovanni
The term 'guitar hero' gets thrown
around a lot. but enigmatic Screaming
Females axetress Marissa Paternoster
will shred harder and taster than
anyone out there, period Just try to
remember the equally massive chops
displayed by her male counterparts.
Michael Abbate (bass) and Jarrett
Dougherty (drums)
For instance, you expect any heavy
album to kick off with devilish guitar
feedback, bul 'Laura ♦ Marty' really
picks up when an eerily similar bass
line to Jane's Addiction’s 'Coming
Down the Mountain' quickly morphs
into something Mike Watt would envy
White Paternoster may sing 'tt*
easy and generic/ So I can meet the
beat’ on *1 Don't Mind It.’ the song is
anything but, as it* constructed around
an off-beat bass line, intense pauses
and increasingly reckless guitar play.
The album only gets better from here
with catchy tracks like *A New Kid* and
"Wild* leading the way Paternoster*
vocal talents shine on *Nothing at All,*
where she maintains her punk tone
but climbs up and down in scale as
expertly as a trained opera tenor The
album takes a welcome detour back to
the band* DIY roots on 'Ghost.' which
might be a B-side anywhere else with
its lo-fi recording and nearly inaudible
vocals but becomes a glimpse into
the recording process when we hear
Paternoster giggling over their inability
to keep in time. The whole album is
unified with a simple mission: play
rock and do it with some soul
Patrick McGinn
Pyramid of the Smt
Temporary Residence
This is the final completed
Maserati album wMh Influential drum
mer Jerry Fuchs btiove Ns tragic.
untimely detih. But. bsMsB*
doting tad&Mfc ("Bye MTriend,
Goodbye'), to taMmls a nutieti
wo* art sumtitaad tab dbNy is
M ***** of atari* hat wtil
coma only boa the totaner. Mds
their trademark finesse and dynamism,
this is perhaps Maserati* most melodi-
cally crystallized effort ever.
From the spacey dawn-of-man
intro “Who Can Find the Beast?.* it’s
already clear they’re aiming lor the
heavens A reactive fusion ol heavy
post- and kraut-rock with electronic
dance music sensibilities (the trance-
rocker They'll No More Suffer trom
Thirst'), everything afterwards is an
organic perpetual-motion machine built
for interplanetary travel. The thrusters
ol the elevating title track gracefully
move the towering hulk from stasis
to kinesis. By “We Got the System to
Fight the System.* you're lifted past the
pull of earthly gravity and now glide
effortlessly past twinkling stars But
nu other emoodies the album's clar
ity better than the silvery elegance ol
‘Oaxaca’
In delivering an album so articu
lated and alive without a single word.
Maserati has provided the ultimate
reason for celebration ol a group at the
top of their game rather than sorrow for
a fallen mate
Bao Le-Huu
Maserati is playing the 40 Watt
Club on Saturday, Nov. 20
Elements
Haunted Lake
Perpetual survivor Bruce Joyner
has upped his ante significantly with
Elements. The Georgia native* broad
musical palate serves him well on this
album whereas, with most folks, blend
ing styles usually winds up as a pile of
unlistenable mush
The highlights here are the psy
chedelic garage *Swamp Fox Foxy* (at
least I think that's its name; the track
listing is ail kinds of screwed up on the
artwork) which really should have been
the album* opening trade Joyner*
voice is clear and strong and retains
a good amount of range for someone ,
who has been recording for over 30
yean. The Brian Jones-ish lead guitar
complements Joyner* mitd-Eric-
Burdorv-ish delivery. Indeed, the whole
album is about as authentically 1960s
as possible in 20ia Heavily influenced
by British pop-blues as well as very
early pro»-rock.it* a surprising treat
that it* as good sits given toss
beat-to-dsti Muencs Joyner retiws
it at! somewhat fresh agtin.
Sometimes, thouQh, even lit only
11 tracks, It taels a litte long, and not
every song is a winner. "Evil Smile’
leeis kindi forced, ton, ml seems orty
htiMWtitid. Alto. the sequencing of
the record could have been much bet
ter N dosnl (tow swell si should
20 FLAGP01E.C0M NOVEMBER 3,2010