CD review: Noush Skaugen, Palomino (NSE Records)

By Bryan Cox

Noush Skaugen has had a great year since the release of her debut album, Palomino, in February 2007. Since then, she’s rocketed through the alternative circuit building name recognition – and critical acclaim. As the winner of the Los Angeles Music Awards’ 2007 Alternative Pop Artist of the Year and Hollywood FAME Independent Album of the Year, it seems she’s already to break through to the national scene at any moment. (more…)

CD Review: Poets and Pornstarts, self-titled (Wenzl-Hopper / Adrenaline Music Group)

By Jenny Gamble

I met them last April in Albuquerque, NM, when they came through as support for Veruca Salt. Veruca had a very larg dressing room rider I remember, and all Poets and Pornstars wanted was two cases of bottled water. Now, VS is one of your more demanding bands and rightly so. They have earned it in their career, but P&P were so grateful, so humble and so damn happy to have that water! I would have given them anything they wanted. (more…)

SHORT SCALE: CD reviews in 200 words or less

By Rachel Heisler

CD review: Caribou, Andorra (Merge Records)

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 geetars

Dan Snaith, AKA Caribou, has a colorful, playful personality and it shows in his music. Since the age of 14, the Ontario, Canada-born has been playing around with with electronic sounds and recording music that could easily have been released in 1965 London.

Psychedelic, whispy and at the same time precise, Andorra features the work of only two people. Jeremy Greenspan (Junior Boys) helps with vocals on “She’s the One,” besides that, the CD is solely the work of Snaith. Impressive that a legitimate doctor of mathematics had the time or energy to commit to this, his fourth album.

If you’re annoyed by the cute and peppy stylings made popular by bands of the ’60s (early Floyd, Beach Boys sans surf, etc.), Caribou won’t do much to stimulate the senses. But if sing-songy, bassy drum, flute-smattered pop makes your heart skip a beat, then this will have you on your way to a heart attack. Not as radio-eligible as The Shins, Caribou is instead a genre-specific experiment that will make you want to spark up a joint, heat up the lava lamp and pretend 2007 is still 30 years away.

CD review: No Age, Weirdo Rippers (FatCat Records)

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 geetars

i had a whole other review planned for this album. i was going to say that dean spunt and randy randall should stick to one thing: punk or ambient -PICK ONE – and be done with it. but, after listening to this insane cd a couple of times, i have fallen in love with it. maybe i’m just drunk. but drunk or not, no age has a lot going for them.

it’s so confusing to have a band open songs with the most magnificent organs and beautiful electronically created intros that make you believe you’re going to be smothered in gorgeous tones, stunning melodies and soft waves. then, without even the smallest warning, you’re hit with these ramones-type vocals that make you want to ram your head through a wall. how the two fit together is beyond my little brain’s understanding, but it does. it’s like putting mustard on ice cream and finding out it tastes fantastic.

art, punk and skateboarding don’t always go together, but they do this time around. fuck yeah.

CD review: Ruth, Secondhand Dreaming (Tooth & Nail Records)

Rating: 2 out of 5 geetars

“I have always been a sucker for melody,” said frontman Dustin Ruth. “Writers that inspire me the most are ones that are most honest with what they write.” Melody, it’s a good thing for music to have. Bands like The Killers and The Plain White T’s have a knack for creating songs with both extreme melody and numbing hooks, while others struggle to find either. Ruth has written a bunch of take ‘em or leave ‘em pop songs that have some ok melodies, but they definitely have to practice the hook part.

Ruth is much stronger when they step away from the nondescript indie stuff. Not until “Here To New York” comes pouring out of the speakers, with it’s pop base and semi-country twang, that Ruth’s dream of melody becomes reality. It’s a very Rhett Miller-like (Old 97’s) song and it’s sad that it’s the only song like it on the album. If you can write one great song, you can write two. Maybe even three.

There’s not much more to say about Ruth. I honestly could have written the word “pop” 200 times and everyone would have understood what I was trying to say. Shoulda, coulda, woulda.

CD review: The Voo Doo Organist, This Burning Hell (Voodoo Man Music)

By Jenny Gamble

Typically you will find my CD player filled with either Americana or hip hop. Those seem to be my musical drugs of choice. However, I decided to try it, something different and as I felt every muscle in my body tense up, aftraid of something new, I went into a sort of musicoma. I listened to every last note of This Burning Hell and when I ejected the disc, the magic that Scott Wexton, AKA the Voodoo Organist, I found that I was now a believer, a disciple to the man behind the fancy organ. (more…)

SHORT SCALE: CD reviews in 200 words or less

By Rachel Heisler

CD review: OTEP, The_Ascension (KOCH Records)

Rating: 4 out of 5 geetars

Anger and depression are so often the subject matter of songs that you eventually become immune to the singer’s sorrows. What’s worse, is that it’s difficult to write that shit well to begin with. OTEP, with their big balls and pissy attitude, have avoided the pitfalls of wearisome writing and have administered a stern ass-whooping that’s exceedingly enraged and saturated in despair.

Their form of nu metal is pretty ferocious but has a twist – female vocals by Otep Shamaya. Damned if she doesn’t keep up with the boys that call this wicked genre theirs with her raspy scream and disconcerting lyrics. It’s fun to watch chicks bust through barriers that have been dubbed by society as guy’s only, especially in the field of rock and roll - Kittie did it and Shamaya has done it, too. Alongside the full-throttle metal of songs like “Eet The Children” and “March Of The Martyrs” is the hushed, melodic, somewhat out-of-place but radio-friendly “Perfectly Flawed” and a great version of Nirvana’s “Breed.”

For the most part, The_Ascension is a musical beat down, and it hurts so good. When OTEP bitch slaps you, you turn your cheek and beg for another.

CD review: Johnny Bennett, Red Light Room (False Momentum Songs)

Rating: 3 out of 5 geetars

Johnny Bennett’s five-song EP does a decent job at showing off what the professionally trained musician is trying to do and where he’s trying to go with his music. The singer/guitarist has penned piano-driven songs (piano by Tim Veazey) that incorporate much more than pop, (though if he’s going to be featured on the radio he’s going to be added to pop and contemporary station set lists) and has obviously been influenced by the more traditional crooners, funk, R&B and jazz. Bennett is an old soul trapped in a young man’s body.

Bennett’s songs lack robust hooks and will be more suited for those who enjoy the funky jam to the catchy refrain. Having only five songs on which to showcase his work may be limiting for the Nashville-based (originally from Los Angeles) songwriter. Only a full-length will stand to prove if his talents exceed bouncy, feel-good music and envelope the more mellow and sentimental aspects of songwriting. But the EP is good enough to at least get him signed and working on the obligatory 12-track album.

CD review: Dave Patten, Fly Away (Clark Records)

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 geetars

Talk about hands on. Dave Patten has his fingers dipped in practically every area of the CD process. Not only does he write every song with barely any outside influence, sing and play guitar, he also produced, engineered and mixed the album and created/designed the cover art. Hey – if you want something done right do it yourself.

The straight-laced, baby-faced, 20-something white boy’s voice sounds more like that of Hootie & the Blowfish’s Darius Rucker – raspy, nasal and baritone. The manly singing makes the fact that all he sings about is relationships a tad more acceptable, though by the eighth song about love you’ve got the gist.

“My emotions drive my song writing,” Patten said. “When I‚Äôm really enveloped in a particular mood or feeling, I like to sit down at the piano and just bang out chords … After awhile something always comes together and I almost always have some idea how to get started on the lyrics.”

Patten still has a ways to go. He needs some help cleaning up the production quality and he could make a few tweaks on his arrangements. Otherwise, it’s a decent second album from a guy whose still taking college courses.

LOCAL SHORT SCALE: CD reviews in 200 words or less.
FEATURED CITIES: Columbus, Ohio and Albuquerque, NM

By Rachel Heiser

CD review: Earwig, Center of the Earth (LFM Records)

Rating: 2 out of 5 geetars

Earwig (Columbus, OH) has been getting lots of airplay on many radio stations over the past year, and their pop song “Used Kids” has provided the trio with a nice amount of beginner fame. But I don’t get it. Basically, it sounds like a local band being a local band. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, everyone’s gotta start somewhere. It’s just that the exact same thing is being done in every city in America by bands that think they’re the shit.

Maybe if Earwig didn’t write completely dorky lyrics, like these from “Japanese Girlfriend”: “I don’t want to sleep with your sister, she’s not my kind at all / No, I don’t want to sleep with your sister, I just wanna kiss her,” they’d be easier to digest. Maybe if every song didn’t sound the same there would be something goading me to give Center of the Earth another spin.

It’s got a good beat, it’s got strong (enough) vocals and I’m sure their live show is a blast … as soon as these guys let the power of music seep into their pop-loving souls it’s possible that something will click and the music will morph into something irresistible.

CD review: Daniel Ward, After the Storm (Self-released)

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 geetars

He’s trained in jazz, Flamenco and a variety of world music styles, and he’s been performing for more than 20 years. Cedar Crest, NM’s, Daniel Ward has worked not only with Flamenco artists such as Pablo Rodarte and Eva Encinias, his playing can also be heard on various soundtracks, television specials, commercials and CDs.

Not surprising then that his recent release, After the Storm, sounds as expert and professional as it does. Quality, no matter what the genre, is obvious when it’s dished out in such a huge quantity as this. Whether he’s fingering strictly Flamenco, Spanish, Native American, jazz or other, the guitar is seamless – full of power when it needs to stand out and gentle when it wants to voice feeling. Ward is a musician who makes love to his instrument and the connection between him and the strings is undeniable. He is the reason nylon strings were invented.

CD review: Vertigo Venus, Run For Your Lives (Self-released)

Rating: 3 out of 5 geetars

Jeff and Chris, brothers who started their musical collaboration in Detroit and eventually moved it to Albuquerque, have created a sound that is so odd it’s unnerving. There’s nothing weird about the instruments they use or anything, just your regular old guitars and keyboards, it’s the vibe the music gives off. After bathing in their electronica pop-punk for 20 minutes you really feel the need to take a shower. Maybe two.

Their fans have made some interesting comparisons whilst trying to pinpoint Vertigo Venus’ sound: “Bjork featuring Slayer,” “Hardcore Depeche Mode,” “This is what Nine Inch Nails would sound like if Trent Reznor had a sense of humor,” “If Wierd Al played death metal, that would be it.” Sound strange? Well it is. But it’s nice to see electronic music being pushed in a new demension – I mean direction. There are a thousand bands whose key work sounds the same, but Vertigo Venus doesn’t have to worry about falling into that trap. They’re as unique as any band could wish to be without being down-right stupid.

SHORT SCALE: CD reviews in 200 words or less

By Rachel Heisler

CD review: Carolyn Mark, Nothing Is Free (Mint Records)

Rating: 3 out of 5 geetars

Singer/songwriter Carolyn Mark hails from Victoria, British Columbia, but could just as easily have grown up on the Appalachian Trail with her largly bluegrass direction. Because she jumps from bluegrass to surf to country to pop, there’s always a surprise sneaking around the next corner.

Nothing Is Free has moments of vivid clarity, like on “1 Thing.” Mark’s witty side makes an appearance there: “O I could never pick just 1 thing / it’s why I don’t have a tattoo … How do you choose just 1 tree / when you’re in love with the whole woods?” And a disgruntled Mark sings, “Does True Love exist and if so what the fuck are you supposed to do with it?” on “Pink Moon and all The Ladies.”

Mark has the same power of voice as Neko Caso (with whom she has worked in the past and at times sounds just like), but lacks the same believability. Case’s music is bam! in your face, while Mark’s sits back and waits for you to find your footing. But it’s worth a few moments of extra time to find said footing just for the moments of purity that Mark’s music eventually stumbles across.

CD review: Brittney Elizabeth, Breathe In (Desert Sunrise Records)

Rating: 1 out of 5 geetars

Brittney Elizabeth has a weird thing going on. Though she’s only 20, she’s got a great voice – not her physical singing voice per se, but her poetic voice. At such a young age she seems to have a delicate understanding of life and love and possibly even lust. But having recorded an album that sounds even more blase than one by a solo Nina Gordan (the sappy half of Veruca Salt), one has to ask whether she would have been better off writing a book of poetry rather than recording a CD.

Here Brittney has nothing more than over-produced crappy pop music that could only be loved by 12-year-old girls with braces and crushes on boys who will never notice them (Ah, a toast to my past). Sad considering the exquisite potential. Happy because she’s trying and that’s more than most people can claim. With any luck she’ll keep testing waters and experimenting until she finds the perfect medium for her creativity. There will be no stopping her if and when she does.

CD review: Fiona Joy Hawkins, Angel Above My Piano (Little Hartley Music)

Rating: 4 out of 5 geetars

It’s better to listen to Fiona Joy Hawkins’ Angel Above My Piano without first reading the CD’s liner notes – one peek at those shows that she is one of those really “out there,” artsy-fartsy people. She’s included written descriptions of her songs in her notes, odd things: “I was completely mesmerised by an Albatross gliding across the tips of the waves, he flew just outside the window from the piano … as if he knew I was writing his portrait” (about “Flight of the Albatross”).

But what matters is the music. And the music is absolutely gorgeous. Hawkins is a fantastic composer who has a sensitive ear for detail and transition. The opening four songs make up “Antarctic Interludes,” and are soulful works on piano and keyboard. Her trio of songs “Love in Winter,” “Love Forever” and “Love in Spring” are breathtaking and three of the nine songs that make up “Opus for Love.”

Compared to “Antarctic Interludes,” the Opus has a much less earthly, spiritual demeanor and could easily be featured on a soundtrack of any romantic movie at it’s most poignant moment. But both groupings have their merits, and Hawkins knows how to make the keys sing.

CD review: Gina Gershon, In Search of Cleo (P+C Records)

By Rachel Heisler

Rarely on a CD is every song worth talking about, but everthing on Gina Gershon’s In Search of Cleo is stunning in its uniqueness, its texture and its character. (more…)

CD review: KT Tunstall, Drastic Fantastic (Relentless Records)

By Rachel Heisler

Though Tunstall’s monster success with her 2004 debut album, Eye To The Telscope, most likely gave her every opportunity to fill her music with lots of studio musicians, overzealous producers and more non-relevant, extraneous overdubs and the like, she instead chose to keep her sound real, and in so doing, the songs on Drastic Fantastic are some of the most accessible ones released by any artist this year. (more…)

CD reveiw: Black Tie, Goodbye, Farewell (Socyermom Records)

By Rachel Heisler

The first time I met Roger Apodaca I knew straight away we’d either get along famously or despise one another. Luckily the first is true, even though we didn’t ever spend enough quality time discussing music, life or anything else of any real import. Now, three years after I moving away from Albuquerque, NM, Apodaca’s home sweet home, I’ve learned more about him then I ever did then. And it’s all by listening to his music. (more…)