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Spin Cycle is a biweekly roundup of the latest music releases selected by our editors.
This Edition: Feb. 15
Stephen Malkmus |
Rodney Crowell |
Low |
V/A "Studio One Rockers" |
Dusty Springfield
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Stephen Malkmus
"Stephen Malkmus" (Matador) |
Stephen Malkmus' former band, Pavement, set new standards for intelligent indie-rock—standards Malkmus surprisingly doesn't even attempt to reach on his self-titled solo debut. "Stephen Malkmus" isn't a bold break with the past, any more than a Robyn Hitchcock album is a refutation of the Soft Boys' catalog; it's a refinement rather than a reinvention. He replaces Pavement's snark-pop sculptures with engaging, if generic, classic-rock guitar structures, most notably on "Discretion Grove" and "The Hook." No problem, except that many of the lyrics they support are equally sanded down. "Jennifer and the Ess-Dog," a story of doomed romance, is bleached of all bite until you don't know if Malkmus wants you to care for these characters or laugh at them. Still, "Jo Jo's Jacket" (rumored to be a dig at Moby) and the pirate's life memoir "The Hook" are buoyantly infectious, while "Trojan Curfew" boasts a beautiful slice of Sunday morning slide guitar. These touches redeem an accessible, if far from revolutionary, work.—Kevin Forest Moreau
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Rodney Crowell
"The Houston Kid" (Sugar Hill) |
Rodney Crowell's new album—sometimes rollicking in recollection of eventful youth, otherwise mournful for wasted years—is reportedly a memoir in musical form. On those terms, it should appeal to a culture that's made literary stars of Frank McCourt ("Angela's Ashes") and Susanna Kaysen ("Girl, Interrupted"). But songs don't necessarily serve the autobiographical impulse. Pop lyrics tend to be elliptical, and Crowell's are no exception. For all his singing about jail time and alcoholism, robberies and fights, we don't learn much about him. In fact, a memoir-minded listener might find the bad-boy reminiscing to be self-mythologizing. Better to imagine country music itself as the focus of Crowell's nostalgia. The jaunty opening cut memorializes a concert by Sun Studio legends. Midway through the album one Sun hero, Johnny Cash, sings on a smart re-write of his own song, "I Walk the Line." Tasteful instrumentation further distances the proceedings from garish contemporary country radio. All for the better. —Marc Weidenbaum
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Low
"Things We Lost in the Fire" (Kranky) |
For a molasses-paced band from Duluth, Minn., Low lucked out this past Christmas. That's when the Gap used Low's slowcore cover of "Little Drummer Boy" to hawk primary-colored holiday knitwear. Fans shouldn't fret. Financial success hasn't amped up the band's shtick on its new album. The usual ingredients pervade: gloomy atmospherics, crumbling chord work, glacial pacing and unruffled ease. Producer Steve Albini, who served Low masterfully on 1998's "Secret Name" album, returns as well. Here Low constructs the spun-sugar ornaments (see "Whitetail" and "Laser Beam") and monuments to feedback (the crushing "Dinosaur Act") that define its half-decade career. Especially lovely is the harrowing "July" delivered by co-captains Mimi Parker and Alan Sparhawk. The result: as unhurried and sonically majestic a slab as Low has ever produced. It's been argued that you either love or loathe Low. Music this pensive makes for a strong case of amore.—Scott Henkemeyer
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Various Artists
"Studio One Rockers" (Soul Jazz Records) |
Few musical pastimes pay off as consistently as digging into the sounds of '60s Jamaica. That musical magic land's legend teems with stories of epic DJ battles, rival sound system engineers and the stylistic development of what would come to be known as reggae. "Studio One Rockers" is an endlessly rewarding introduction to the story. Focusing on singles cut for the landmark Studio One label, "Rockers" traces the musical evolution of horn-happy ska, through the mellower rhythms of rocksteady, to the low-end fixation of reggae. Featuring well-known stars (the Skatalites, Horace Andy, Jackie Mittoo) and lesser-known artists (Freddy McGregor, Brentford All Stars, Marcia Griffiths), this collection pays faithful tribute to Jamaica's grandest musical ambition: to have us all simmer down in a bath of bass. The dense one-disc volume comes with an interview booklet devoted to Studio One figurehead Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, who traces his roots from record-spinning selecter to one of the biggest myth-making magnates in the reggae biz.—Andy Battaglia
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Dusty Springfield
"Beautiful Soul: The ABC/Dunhill Collection" (Hip-O) |
The queen of blue-eyed soul, Dusty Springfield had a voice that could enliven the most mediocre songwriting. Unabashedly sentimental but rarely melodramatic, her singing avoided the follies of many white R&B singers. The '80s saw a renewed interest in her work, which was cut short by her death in 1999. This collection combines two of her '70s records, and though it features her velvet voice at its peak, it's also a reminder that she rarely got the material her talent deserved. Her long-out-of-print record "Cameo" serves up a few gems—on "Easy Evil" she shows off a seldom-heard sexiness—but, mostly, her voice is buried in slushy, busy arrangements. And even though the slow, sparse tracks from the never-released "Longings" nicely highlight her understated ache—especially her heartbreaking reading of Janis Ian's "In the Winter"—the best place to get acquainted with Springfield remains the 1969 classic, "Dusty in Memphis."—Justin Hartung
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Previous Spin Cycles:
Feb. 1: Double Trouble, The Donnas, Frank Black and the Catholics, Cliff Martinez and Talib Kweli & Hi Tek
Have a comment or question? Send a message to the editor:
Don Harvey.
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