February 28, 2023

Sat N Smooth - The Awakening (1993)

Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: P2 53869

© 1993 Priority/NewStyle/Flashpoint International
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 tags: sat n smooth, the awakening, 1993, flac,

Blackfield - Blackfield IV (2013)

Country: United Kingdom/Israel
Genre: Pop Rock
Label Number: KSCOPE226

© 2013 Kscope
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

 tags: blackfield, blackfield iv, 2013, flac,

Blackfield - Blackfield V (2017)

Country: United Kingdom/Israel
Genre: Pop Rock
Label Number: KSCOPE360

© 2017 Kscope
In 2014, Steven Wilson announced he was leaving the Blackfield project he co-founded with singer/songwriter Aviv Geffen because his solo career claimed the majority of his time. He'd already scaled back his participation on 2009's Welcome to My DNA and 2013's IV to the degree that he was a featured collaborator rather than a full participant. Nonetheless, Wilson announced in August 2016 that he and Geffen had re-formed a full recording partnership. Blackfield V was cut over 18 months in Tel Aviv and London. The pair re-enlisted drummer Tomer Z and recruited Eran Mitelman on keyboards, as well as the London Session Orchestra to handle string charts; they even coaxed Alan Parsons to produce three tracks.

The set's 13 songs are loosely centered around an ocean theme. First single "Family Man" is a rocker with Wilson on lead vocals. Its offers fine guitar work and a dynamic hook that recalls the musical gold this pair mined on their first two albums. His vocal on "How Was Your Ride?" offers lush orchestration against a David Gilmour-esque slide solo and stacks of acoustic guitars, a swirling B-3, and dreamy backing vocals. "Sorrys" is one of Geffen's vocals, with wafting organ, fingerpicked acoustic guitars, and ambient effects; it offers a grittier lead vocal that suits its dark lyric. "Life Is an Ocean" is a drifting, dreamy number with lovely acoustic piano, a near processional pace, and fat guitars. Geffen's "Lately" is one of the hardest-rocking tunes here (even if its riff could have come from U2 circa 1982); the hook is ferocious, with thrumming basslines and cracking snares buoying the electric guitars and an anthemic chorus. The lone stinker is "October." It sounds like Geffen wrote it for a musical theater production, not Blackfield. He gets back on track with "The Jackal," which melds post-psychedelic blues-rock with dreamy pop. Another instrumental, "Salt Water," blends fingerpicked guitars, another lyrical Gilmour-styled lead, synths, strings, and a shuffling snare beat. The female lead vocals on the lithe, Euro-pop-cum-R&B tune "Lonely Soul" are offered by Alex Moshe adding a nice diversion. (She also sings backup on the polished rocker "Lately," and the even slicker, highly stylized indie pop tune "Undercover Soul.") Closer "From 44 to 48" carries an unmistakable early ELO flavor in its production -- and yes, that's a good thing. Wilson's vocal is framed by a wash of analog synths, strings, strummed acoustic guitars, and a stereo electric six-string. The melancholy lyric is fortified by a multidimensional instrumental attack with an arresting hook -- even if its pace is leisurely. While Blackfield V is not as exciting as their first two studio recordings, it is measurably better than the last pair. Perhaps it's because Geffen has far more confidence and authority as a vocalist. His songs are, mostly exceptional and matched overall by fine arrangements and excellent playing and singing from Wilson. The album's tempo could have been more varied, but that's a small complaint; there's plenty to enjoy here.

 tags: blackfield, blackfield v, 2017, flac,

February 27, 2023

Cherry Ghost - Thirst For Romance (2007)

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: HVNLP 59CD

© 2007 Heavenly/EMI Records
Yet another one of those indie rock bands arrived in the summer of 2007 named Cherry Ghost and fronted by Bolton resident Simon Aldred, who could have attempted a career as a singer/songwriter but preferred to immerse himself in a band format. Thirst for Romance could have been an album by Richard Ashcroft, except Aldred didn't quite possess that nasal vocal quality, or an album by Coldplay, but he also lacked the range, or by Badly Drawn Boy or Embrace, and the track "Roses" even had a sort of Neil Young feel to it. That was not to say that it was a bad album, but it wasn't sure whether it wanted to be an uplifting album as per the first two tracks, the title track, and "4AM," or depressing like most of the rest of the songs with observations on gritty life in the north typified by the song "False Alarm" and its often repeated line "I'm gonna drag you down with me." There are exceptions to the depression, as "Alfred the Great" sounded like a '70s rock track, and rather out of context with the rest of the material was "Mary on the Mend," a slow chugger that took nearly eight minutes to play out. Aldred co-produced the album with Dan Austin who had also worked with Massive Attack. Thirst for Romance hit number seven in its first week, showing that there was a reasonable market for this type of angst, but within six weeks it had vanished from the chart entirely.

 tags: cherry ghost, thirst for romance, 2007, flac,

Porcupine Tree - Lightbulb Sun (2000) ☠

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Progressive Rock, Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: SMACD827
 ☠: Selected by Lass
© 2000 Kscope
Some older fans looked askance at Lightbulb Sun, feeling it was verging on overt commercialism (and admittedly, the near power ballad solo on "Where We Would Be" is a bit odd!). Then again, given Wilson's own explorations of avant-garde pop with No-Man, who's to say why a slightly more radio-friendly stance can't work? "Shesmovedon" may have been a single, but there's no question who wrote and performed it -- the elegant cascade of backing vocals on the chorus shows that much. Certainly Wilson hasn't turned into Max Martin or anything -- it's still very much Porcupine Tree, in its lyrical turns of phrase and general sense of exploration. One of the best tracks on the album is the brilliantly titled "Four Chords That Made a Million," a barbed cut on some unnamed "emperor in new clothes" beset by a "moron with a cheque book." The lead riff is a majestic hit of flange and feedback, while the hints of sitar and Indian percussion give the song even more attractive heft. But there's a definite bent towards calmer art pop throughout Lightbulb Sun -- those who preferred the sheer surge of Stupid Dream will find this album tamer in comparison. Still, it's hard to resist the beautiful, understated tension about a fractured friendship or relationship on "Feel So Low" or the gentle, string-touched roll and build of "The Rest Will Flow," flat out two of Wilson's best tunes anywhere. Those who prefer the lengthy explorations won't be disappointed, though -- "Hatesong" unfolds its sharp message over eight minutes and the string-swept, slow time explosion of "Russia on Ice" over 13. Slyest title of the bunch -- "Last Chance to Leave the Planet Earth Before It Is Recycled," which samples the videotape made by the leader of the Heaven's Gate cult before its mass suicide in 1997.

 tags: porcupine tree, lightbulb sun, 2000, flac,

Blackfield - Blackfield (2004)

Country: United Kingdom/Israel
Genre: Art Rock, Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: KSCOPE125M
 
© 2004 Kscope
Producer, bandleader (No-ManPorcupine Tree) and multi-instrumentalist Steven Wilson joined forces with Israeli singer/songwriter Aviv Gefen in 2000, when Gefen invited Wilson to play with him for a series of concerts in Israel. Their first album as a duo, recording under the name Blackfield, does betray their mutual love of 1960s and 1970s classic rock, but it also contains more than a hint of an '80s influence -- at times the band sounds like a cross between Tears for Fears and a more organic-sounding Pet Shop Boys. Lyrically, they throw down the gauntlet early -- the first line of the first song goes "Here's a song from an open mind." Everything else is no big surprise: scars are mentioned more than once, as are nightmares, pain, death and sorrow. But Blackfield's sound is anything but morose. The music isn't exactly chipper, but it's always rich and pretty, and at times (as on the album-ending "Hello") it's downright grandiose. There are also quite a few sonic surprises thrown into the mix, such as the almost subliminal found-sound experimentation on "Lullaby" and the sudden incursion of Middle Eastern reeds and a drum'n'bass breakbeat in the middle of the otherwise sweet and dreamy "Scars." The bonus disc with video content makes the deal that much sweeter. Recommended.

tags: blackfield, blackfield album, 2004, flac,

Blackfield - Blackfield II (2007)

Country: United Kingdom/Israel
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: 100360

 © 2007 We Put Out Records/Atlantic
The sophomore release for this melodic duo (actually a five-piece band, but the leads are Steven Wilson and Aviv Geffen) based to some degree on the progressive bent of Porcupine Tree covers much of the same ground as their debut. The sound is still firmly in the realm of progressive rock, with hints of Radiohead and Oasis. Unlike Blackfield's previous album which was recorded off and on over a two-year span, this one was recorded in one short stretch, and shows somewhat more consistency in tone as a result. The album-opening "Once" has a particularly Radiohead-like vibe and a bit of heaviness, but the development of the album works into other veins as well, with large string movements, light piano accompaniment, and a generally melodic guitar approach. Somewhat '80s-influenced sounds come and go slightly, a touch of Pink Floyd comes through now and then (particularly on "Christenings"), and a general melancholy hangs over the album as a whole. Aviv Geffen has taken a larger role in lead vocals here with good effect (particularly in a handful of tracks he had composed, eventually translated from Hebrew). The overall effect is a fine one -- Blackfield II has more of what fans of the duo will enjoy and makes a fair introduction for newcomers, although debut album would serve them better as a first listen. The short nature of Blackfield II (coming in around 42 minutes) will almost certainly have some of the fans wishing for more.

 tags: blackfield, blackfield 2, 2007, flac,

Blackfield - Welcome To My DNA (2011)

Country: United Kingdom/Israel
Genre: Pop Rock
Label Number: kscope168

© 2011 Kscope
On Welcome to My DNA, their third studio album, Aviv Geffen and Steven Wilson of Blackfield continue to pursue their neo-progressive Pink Floyd-meets-Tears for Fears sound, overlaying it with doom-ridden imagery. The Pink Floyd influence is overt in the slow-paced soundscapes and echoey vocals, though at times Blackfield pick up the pace and even rock a bit, notably on "Blood," which has a Middle Eastern rhythm at times. The lyrics can be philosophical, as the singer ponders existence, but they also can be simple and repetitive, if still negative. "Go to Hell" has only two repeated lines, one of which is the title and the other another familiar putdown that puts the album in the explicit language category. The only lyric to "Blood," when the vocal appears nearly two minutes into the three-plus-minute track, is "Here comes the blood." The album is, thus, something of a downer, but the music aims toward a majestic simplicity that it sometimes achieves.

 tags: blackfield, welcome to my dna, 2011, flac,

February 26, 2023

Drugstore - Songs For The Jet Set (2001) ☠

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Pop
Label Number: GLOB CD6
☠: Selected by Lass
© 2001 Global Warming
Another fertile row of blanched, mistreated buds of remorse finds Drugstore crafting their bleak strategies because of -- not despite -- a foreknowledge that they know their way around inspirational, well-worn transatlantic isolation sung by Brazilian-born Rosie Perez impersonators better than anybody else in Britain's post-Urban Hymns landscape. Which is a glib summary, of course, but like the nervous titters at midnight movies, the uneasiness lurking inside each and every extended moment here is powerful enough to bring down the defensive shields. Isabel Monteiro has a heartbreaking voice. An amalgamation of Mazzy Star's lonely whispers and a WTO protestor's rallying cries. And when she takes off in the quietly anthemic "Song for the Lonely" or the William Blake reinterpretation of "Perfect Day" that is "Thin Air," it's all you can do to not shut the lights off and write letters to old high-school sweethearts. Fact: Songs for the Jet Set was recorded in little over a week and its immediacy, its untouched decompression -- shorn of the sometime bluster of the past -- results in a powerful, unlawfully underappreciated accomplishment.

 tags: drugstore, drug store, songs for the jet set, 2001, flac,

Swollen Members - Armed To The Teeth (2009)

Country: Canada
Language: English
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: BAT136

© 2009 Suburban Noize/Battle Axe Records
After their 2006 release, Black Magic, underground favorites Swollen Members took an unexpected break. Member Mad Child had some addiction and legal issues to work out, and while the latter isn't the best fuel for a hip-hop song, the former can be -- and is -- in the hands of the Members. Mad Child's anti-pill track "My Life" is arguably the most moving track here, and not so arguably, the most revealing track the crew has recorded to date, and the rabid fans will no doubt cherish this look inside the rapper's head. The pleasing creeper "Lonely One" is of the same ilk, but the rest of Armed to the Teeth is bragging, boasting, partying, and thugging. In other words, familiar territory and with the usual quirky production from Rob the Viking but with three years off and the MC getting back on his feet, it seems callous to complain that this one doesn't innovate. Fans hungry for SM material won't mind at all, since after three years a redundant track beats no track, and while all of it seems familiar, the crew deliver the material with new life, suggesting they're mad happy to be back on the grind.

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 tags: swollen members, armed to the teeth, 2009, flac,

Thirteen Senses - Crystal Sounds (2011)

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: BSIRIUS020CD

© 2011 B-Sirius Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

 tags: thirteen senses, crystal sounds, 2011, flac,

February 25, 2023

Sir Lord Baltimore - Kingdom Come/Sir Lord Baltimore (1994)

*Contains remastered audio
Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hard Rock
Label Number: 314 522 241-2

© 1994 Mercury Records
Rumbling, generic hard rock/metal, the record's primary distinction being that it was one of the first of its kind. Touches like the harpsichord on the ballad "Lake Isle of Innersfree" made it clear that the band was interesting in more than bombastic boogie. But these weren't frequent or imaginative enough to make the album memorable. The group expanded to a quartet for their second album, with the addition of multi-instrumentalist Joey Dambra. The compositions were somewhat stronger and more ambitious, reflecting a heavier progressive rock influence, although not enough to elevate the lumbering approach and material to anything especially notable. The reissue combines both of their albums onto one CD, with the tracks rearranged in the order in which they were originally intended to be heard.
 
tags: sir lord baltimore, kingdom come, 1994, flac,

The Ill Saint - Subterranean Hitz (Vol. 1) (1997)

Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: WSCD014

© 1997 WordSound
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 tags: the ill saint, subterranean hitz vol 1, hits, 1997, flac,

The Ill Saint Presents Subterranean Hitz, Volume 3 - The Ill School (2000)

Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: WSCD036

© 2000 WordSound
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 tags: ill saint, subterranean hitz volume 3, vol 3, hits, 2000, flac,

February 24, 2023

Expect No Mercy - Steelbreed (1984)

*First pressing. 
Contains 8 tracks total.
Country: Germany
Language: English
Genre: Heavy Metal
Label Number: 704147.2

© 1984-1994 Mausoleum Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

 tags: expect no mercy, steelbreed, 1984, flac,

Family Tree - Planting Seeds (2001)

Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: AN-012

© 2001 All Natural Inc.
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 tags: family tree, planting seeds, 2001, flac,

Thirteen Senses - The Invitation (2004)

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: 9866910

© 2004 Vertigo
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 tags: thirteen senses, the invitation, 2004, flac,

Thirteen Senses - Contact (2007)

Country: United Kingdom 
Genre: Alternative Rock
Style: Post Britpop
Label Number: 1714217

© 2007 Vertigo
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Chris Martin and co. must be feeling pretty good about themselves. In becoming one of the biggest bands of the decade, Coldplay have spawned a seemingly never ending supply of acts (Snow PatrolKeanethe Fray) that combine heartfelt, emotive lyrics with soaring anthemic rock. But whereas most of these bands have attempted to distance themselves from the copycat tag with subsequent material, Cornish four-piece Thirteen Senses seem unashamed by it. So much so, that they've recruited Danton Supple, producer of X&Y, for their second album Contact. It's a move which will no doubt raise a few eyebrows. But it's an inspired move, with Supple's punchy production giving the band an urgency that was sometimes lacking on their more introspective debut. Lead single "All the Love in Your Hands" sets the tone, its rock-driven atmospherics pushing the guitars to the forefront amidst frontman Will South's falsetto vocals. The new beefed-up sound continues on the fuzzy basslines and sirens of "Animal," a festival anthem in the making, while "A Lot of Silence Here," with its dreamlike synths, is the kind of swoonsome, melancholic pop they're renowned for, but with a slightly darker edge. First album The Invitation failed to set the charts alight but later found an audience thanks to use of its songs on high-profile TV shows both in the U.K. (Big Brother) and the U.S. (Grey's Anatomy). This could well be the plan again here. The likes of the title track, with its trippy guitars, stomping piano, and haunting chant-like chorus seems tailor-made for a dramatic season finale, as does the emotionally charged piano-driven epic "Ones and Zeroes." The often repeated quiet verse/loud chorus formula does wear a bit thin over the course of the album and the Coldplay comparisons are entirely justified, but thanks to South's majestic voice and ever-improving songwriting, Contact is far more than just a carbon copy.

 tags: thirteen senses, contact, 2007, flac,

Various Blends - Levitude (1999)

*A photo of the disc is included in the RAR file.
Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: BKA 0015

© 1999 Baraka Foundation
MCs/producers Friz-B and EBF are Various Blends, an alternative rap outfit formed in 1991 and finally issuing their first full-length, Levitude, in 1999 (minus founding member MC Rasco). It's an impressive record, highlighting the duo's ample lyrical skills and skewed perspective, while featuring a number of mostly West Coast guests: Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Saafir, the Mystik Journeymen, Pizmo of Burnt Batch, Rashinel of Hobo Junction, and members of the Coup and Invisibl Skratch Piklz.

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 tags: various blends, levitude, 1999, flac,

February 23, 2023

Sorcery - Sinister Soldiers (1978)

*First pressing. 
Contains 9 tracks total.
Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hard Rock
Label Number: MONSTER 002

© 1978-1995 Monster Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

 tags: sorcery, sinister soldiers, 1978, flac,

Various Artists - Wu-Tang - Soundtracks From The Shaolin Temple (2008)


Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop 
Label Number: TLG-CD-007

© 2008 Wanderluxe
Right in line with 2005 compilation Wu-Tang Meets Indie Culture -- and even sharing a couple of the same tracks -- 2008's Soundtracks from the Shaolin Temple is a sampler focusing on the Wu-Tang Clan and their ever-growing gang of affiliates. Here the multitude of solo efforts released between 2005 and 2008 are represented, along with the ever growing importance of affiliate producer/rapper Bronze Nazareth, who appears on multiple tracks. It's hardly a "soundtrack", and while hardcore fans of the group might be disappointed by the lack of exclusives or the way some recent and very necessary tracks are skipped, there is a killer bonus for the collector. Packed into the slipcase and making the accompanying CD secondary is a 90-page booklet featuring photos of main Wu man RZA on his first pilgrimage to the Shaolin Temple in the People's Republic of China. It sits in the hands prayer book-style and features beautiful sepia-toned photographs of RZA and his 34th generation Shaolin Monk guide Sifu Shi Yan Ming as they visit the Temple and join in prayer. Consider it a coffee table compilation in the style of Kruder & Dorfmeister's G Stone Book where loyal fans re-buy music to get to the bonus, which, in this case, is very attractive.

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 tags: various artists, wu tang soundtracks from the shaolin temple, 2008, flac,

Yall So Stupid - Van Full of Pakistans (1993)

Country: U.S.A. 
Genre: Hip-Hop
Label Number: 75444-37000-2

 © 1993 Giant Records 
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 tags: yall so stupid, van full of pakistans, 1993, flac,

Alison Moyet - Essex (1993)

*European first pressing. 
Contains 13 tracks total.
Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Pop Rock, Pop
Label Number: 475955 2

© 1993 Columbia
On her fourth solo album, Essex, named after her home county, Alison Moyet continues to search for valid alternatives to her natural gifts. A singer with a remarkably forceful voice and emotional delivery, she had succeeded both as a jazz and blues interpreter and when her singing was inventively contrasted with Vince Clarke's synthesizer tracks in Yaz. While her solo work at first showed promise of combining those styles with contemporary Brit-pop and produced some hits, by this point she is struggling to sound distinctive against the overeager production style of Ian Broudie, whose work is somewhat offset by the more sedate tracks produced by Pete Glenister. "Whispering Your Name," the first single, written by Jules Shear, with a lyric intended to be sung by one man to another, sounds curious coming out of Moyet's mouth, but at least the words are about something definite, which is more than you can say for Moyet's own elliptical expressions of anger and romantic discord. Musically, the album veers from the Revolver-era Beatles sound of the second single, "Falling," to the Motown rhythm of "So Am I" and an unnecessary remake of Yaz's "Ode to Boy" arranged to sound like "Pinball Wizard." The best song, the Glenister-produced ballad "Satellite," is buried in the middle of the record -- what makes it the best is that the arrangement actually allows Moyet the space to sing and to be as moving as she can be.

 tags: alison moyet, essex, 1993, flac,

February 22, 2023

Alison Moyet - Raindancing (1987)

*U.K. first pressing. 
Contains 10 tracks total.
Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Pop Rock, Pop
Label Number: CBS 450152 2

© 1987 CBS
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

 tags: alison moyet, raindancing, rain dancing, 1987, flac,