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July 1997
"I am the fountain of affection, The opening lines of "When I'm Up" summarizes perfectly what this band is all about...FUN!! This Great Big Sea of Newfoundland humanity follows up their previous disc, "Up", with a new album teeming with energy and enthusiasm. The disc's title, "Play," gives further insight into this band's overriding philosophy that people were put on this earth not just to live, but to have a goddamn good time while doing so! Great Big Sea takes old Newfoundland standards and transforms them into infectiously catchy, commercially viable tunes, all of the while remaining true to their Newfoundland roots. Great Big Sea draws from many traditional Newfie influences to put this generous musical offering together. There are songs built around reels, a shanty and even a Kerry polka thrown in for good measure. Each song is meticulously built, often engaging a variety of traditional instruments and powerful vocal harmonies, but at the same time it retains that simple down home feel that seduces the listener into the musical tale being told. Newfoundlanders are proud people, and I am sure they must be proud of the job Great Big Sea are continuing to do as ambassadors to their unique corner of the world. ...Bruce Bassett The Tragically Hip - Live Between
Us The Tragically Hip is one of the finest rock bands in the world today, live or recorded. It is live, however, when The Hip become more than music - they become an experience. Seeing them play live is invigorating, rejuvenating, inspiring, and sometimes, downright odd. Credit, in this regard, goes mainly to lead vocalist Gordon Downey who commands the stage with his patented awkwardnesses and incoherent banter. Making sense of Downey, his movements and his speech, is like making sense of David Lynch's latest film Lost Highway. It may be frustrating as hell, but it just isn't going to happen no matter how many times you listen or watch. The liner notes proudly proclaim - "This album was recorded live at Cobo Arena in Detroit, Michigan, Saturday November 23, 1996. No alterations or over-dubs have been made to the recording." (sonically this is readily apparent, for better and worse). As a result, Live Between Us becomes a document of one moment, one night, one time with The Hip. It is because of this minimalist approach that it works perfectly. As expected, "New Orleans is Sinking" and "Blow at High Dough" are here, as are their latest hits from the last two disks - "Grace, Too", "Nautical Disaster", and "Ahead by a Century". Fans will also be delighted and surprised by the inclusion of lesser known tracks, including my favorite ,"Scared" from their 1995 release Day for Night. Serious fun also comes from the moments live concert fans treasure. You get to hear Downey's far-fetched, usually meaningless, song introductions. And careful listening throughout will also highlight his messed up and "fucked up" song interpretations as he sprinkles his own lyrics with pieces, seemingly chosen at random, from Bowie, Lennon, and others. Live Between Us is not a replacement for owning any of The Tragically Hip's previous six albums, instead, it is welcome addition to an awesome collection. ...Doug Schneider Ottmar Liebert - VIVA! As a teen growing up in the late 60s and early 70s, I pretty much enjoyed rock and roll. It was “our” music. Having played trumpet in the school’s concert band from elementary through high school, I was exposed to and learned to classical music and jazz as well. By my late teens and twenties, jazz, particularly fusion, became my primary source of musical enjoyment. I, like many of you, spend a lot of time listening to music, but I started to grow tired of the same rock/classical/jazz routine. Where to turn? Rap? Grunge? New Age?.....NOT!!!! Memories of 70s “disco” flooded my mind. Was another musical “Dark Ages” approaching? Thankfully publications like Downbeat, Stereophile, The Absolute Sound and others, offer reviews of music that isn’t typical of the mass marketed pap we find on most radio stations. After reading a short review of Ottmar Liebert’s VIVA! in Guitar Player Magazine, I bought a copy. I liked it! A neo-flamenco style on the good side of New Age or World music. I played VIVA! at a couple of our monthly meetings and had several members comment on the sound quality and content of the album, so maybe a review is in order. Ottmar was born to a German-Chinese father and
Hungarian mother in Cologne, Germany. He started playing
classical guitar at the age of 11 and had formal study
through the age of 18 at which time he started traveling
through Often, live performance recordings are wasted due to poor engineering of the recording. No problem here! VIVA! is the best “live concert” recording I have heard in years. An excellent balance of guitars/ keyboards/percussion complement a wide deep soundstage. One thing that impresses me with Liebert’s playing is it’s broad appeal. Classical lovers to rockers should find his style quite enjoyable. His band, Luna Negra (Black Moon), does a fine job completing the performance. Songs, like “Snakecharmer”, show Ottmar’s and accompanist, Calvin Hazen’s, cohesion. My favorite track, “Blackstone Buleria”, starts with an intense guitar solo intro followed by the tight playing of bassist, Jon Gagan. On “Duende Del Amore”, each member of the band including the excellent percussionist, Mark Clark, and keyboardist, Domenico Camardella, highlights his talents. The final track, “Dream”, showcases Liebert’s nimble hands. As a long time guitar enthusiast, I can appreciate the skill he possesses. Get this album. You won’t be disappointed. Also, check out his excellent new album, Opium. Here Liebert expands the scope of his music by the addition of a MIDI guitar and incorporating elements of African and Asian music to his unique style. Hope you like it. ...Mike Masztal Knucklebones - Knucklebones What are Knucklebones? Other than the obvious, it is the name of an ancient Roman game played with the knucklebones of goats, a song off David Lee Roth's Skyscraper disc and most relevant to this review, a four piece heavy metal band hailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Heavy metal? Did I say heavy metal? I didn't realize anyone was still banging out good ole fashion heavy metal anymore. You remember the kind, classical music of the late '70s and early '80s, Judas Priest, the Scorpions, Van Halen, Black Sabbath etc... So you can imagine my surprise when I spun the Knucklebones for the first time. This power quartet offers music which will appeal to the "traditional" heavy metal aficionado. This is straight forward hard rock, no wimpy keyboards here, just the occasional obligatory in your face double bass kick, power chords with some lightening fast lead riffs, and powerful vocals with the requisite vocal harmonies during the choruses. They do have the formula down pat and although the most of the music is sonically booming and entertaining, it is not new or creative enough to capture anything but a small cult following. If you want to hear a fewsound bytes you can visit their web site at home.istar.ca/~knuckle and then you can judge for yourself. These guys are without a doubt very respectable
musicians in their own right, unfortunately their musical
influences shine through too readily. I am not suggesting
that musicians should not have influences, that would be
preposterous, not to mention impossible, and I am a
devout believer that the best ideas are borne from
building upon other people's ...Bruce Bassett Talvin Singh Presents Anokha: Soundz
Of The Asian Underground Like many other pop genres, Electronica has had its major voice come from England. Beginning with such grandfathers of the movement as The Orb, Future Sounds of London and Aphex Twin, and on to the newest groups such as Sneaker Pimps (thanks John), nearly every wave of Ambient, House, Techno and Rave music has started or been best expressed by a London based group. The majority of these groups have used either Detroit House or German electronic music as their model, yet Britain also has a thriving Asian population, so it was inevitable that Electronica would eventually take on a curry flavoring as well. The best example of that particular cross fertilization is the recent compilation album, Talvin Singh Presents Anokha - Soundz of the Asian Underground. Composed of 12 tracks by 10 different artists, Anokha makes a strong case for the unusual but natural blend of Indian rhythm, raga-like drones and British House. The opening track, Jann, by Talvin Singh (with vocals by Amar), sets the perfect tone. Over a spare, tight house beat a female Hindi vocal floats like the mist from a river - untouchable, ethereal, yet full of cloaked meaning. Talvin Singh's second track, Distant God, featuring the vocals of Leone, is the most conventional track on the disk, but while the lyrics may be in English, the feel is still more Sheila Chandra's ABoneCroneDrone than Everything But The Girl's Walking Wounded. As for the other artists on the album, State of Bengal contribute two of the best tracks on the disk. Flight IC408 uses ambient sounds, highly processed vocals and a pulsing drum track to create the sense of the foreign that a new Indian arrival would feel in London, while Chittagong Chill twists and turns through several rhythm and textural changes in a show of technical and musical brilliance. Shang High, by Future Soundz of India, features a tricky, subtle and snaky bass track that recalls the Orb at their best. Accepting Trankuility, the track by The Milky Bar Kid, floats on a soothing bass track while strings bestow a sense of peace. Each of the remaining tracks, by Lelonek, A. R. Rahman, Amar, Asmani Soundz and Kingsuk Biswas are unique, melodic slices of the rich soundz of this superb disk. In short, if you have any interest in Electronica or in modern pop, you need this disk. It's going on my (very) short list of the best disks of 1997. ...Todd Warnke Copyright © 1997 SoundStage! |
![[Various Contributors]](../titles/evenmr.jpg)
Great
Big Sea - Play