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May 8, 2008
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2008-05-08 
Reviews - CD
The B-52s
Funplex
(Astralwerks/EMI)

C

The B-52s

Everyone's favourite rock lobsters are back! Not much has changed musically for this wacky quartet and even though it's nice to know it's still around, one wonders why it needs to release albums - especially if they are as monotonous as Funplex. The best part of this combo has always been the powerfully idiosyncratic vocals of twin bouffants Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson. That hasn't changed, but the metronomic arrangements that rely on soulless programmed drum beats and the always super-histrionic yelp of talk-singer Fred Schneider verges on barf-inducing.
— Jeff Monk
Bryan Adams
11
(Polydor)

C+

Bryan Adams

Returning to his rock roots, Bryan Adams gives us 11 new songs on this, his 21st official album. All are well-written and recorded employing the great Colin Cripp on lead guitar, Mickey Curry on drums and Gary Breit on keys. Adams is in fine form, but listening to his voice, I still get the feeling that I've been teleported back to 1984. He and Tom Cochrane are mining the same territory and have even begun to sound a bit alike. So, if you love either artist, you'll enjoy 11.
— Chris Brown
Cancer Bats
Hail Destroyer
(Distort)

A

Cancer Bats

No sophomore slump here. With Hail Destroyer, Cancer Bats has created another full metal racket, an album more than worthy of hanging with 2006's fan-fucking-tastic Birthing the Giant. Like that album, Hail Destroyer relies on the almighty riff, the band delivering more crispy goodness than a big bowl of Cap'n Crunch. Tunes such as Let it Pour and the title track hammer and pound more unremittingly than your favorite porn star, but Lucifer's Rocking Chair sees the band slowing it down into Sabbathian territory, an aptly titled number that I could certainly see Satan relaxing to. Four horns up.
— Jared Story
Dave Gahan
Hourglass
(EMI)

A+

Dave Gahan

Do we really want to hear one note from the Depeche Mode frontman's solo offering? Astonishingly, yes. Even if you're not a DM fan or into electronica, Hourglass is so eclectic in sound that you may enjoy more than a few tracks. Gahan conducts the distinctive musical themes which range from ambient to more forceful songs that use hard industrial production. 21 Days, with its slow haunting groove, could even be a lost Tricky B-side. Hourglass has a mysterious dark vibe that floats throughout the CD, but doesn't leave you wanting to slit your wrists.
— Ashley McCurdy
Dirty Tricks
Sauve Qui Peut!
(Blue Skies Turn Black)

B

Dirty Tricks

Montreal's Dirty Tricks pull an ace from its sleeve with SauvÈ Qui Peut!, a belligerent dose of in-yer-face guitar rock. DT's first two indie EPs consist of ferocious barn-burners and on SauvÈ Qui Peut!, the band ups the ante with four-on-the-floor metal/garage rock and more alternative flourishes. Part Motorhead, part Hot Snakes, the Tricks feel right at home next to fellow Montrealers C'Mon or Tricky Woo. If you want to visit the wrong side of the tracks, SauvÈ Qui Peut! is the perfect music to fight, screw and drink away your sorrows to.
— Ashley McCurdy
Various Artists
Our Side of Town: A Red House Records 25th Year Celebration
(Our Side of Town: A Red House Records 25th Year Celebration)

A

Various Artists

Just a little bit south of here, in laconic St. Paul, Minn., is where a modest record label lives. The unpretentious Red House Records has spent the last quarter century releasing some of the finest, straight-ahead folk and roots music around, and this 17-track artist sampler is a true gem. From the mournful, bluesy folk of Cliff Eberhardt, to the country charm of Lynn Miles, to the more established grind of Greg Brown and Ray Bonneville, it's obvious that label mastermind, the late Bob Feldman, had excellent ears and the smarts to give these artists a truly sympathetic house to play in.
— Jeff Monk
The Parlor Mob
And You Were a Crow
((Roadrunner))

B

The Parlor Mob

My bell bottoms! And my hookah! I must have them if I'm to listen to The Parlor Mob. And perhaps fetch me some scissors so I might trim myself a nice, thin '70s-style moustache. Now then, let's have a listen to this retro rock. Hmm. Sounds a lot like Deep Purple and Zeppelin, but not in that wanking Tea Party sort of way. Let's call it 'old school done right' and then crack a case of stubbies. Highlights include Hard Times, Everything You're Breathing For and passing out on the couch.
— Mike Warkentin
No No Zero
Rough Stuff
(Signed by Force)

A+

No No Zero

Rough Stuff is pure porno rock. Ass Commando, Brown Shower, Penetrating Insights - if record stores had a little curtained backroom, these titles would be in it. But No No Zero isn't just a dirty joke. The Toronto band would be credible sans the sex. It's irresistibly catchy, grubby garage rock, with singer Prius Priapus possessing a Jello Biafra-like voice. Unlike the former Dead Kennedys' frontman, however, Priapus isn't too drunk to fuck. On Ushchi, he sings, "I wanna see you milk a cow, then I'll show you how I plow." Sex and rock 'n' roll. Drugs are optional.
— Jared Story
Pennywise
Reason to Believe
(MySpace Records)

B+

Pennywise

While its California contemporaries are busy writing rock operas and wearing eyeliner, Pennywise chooses to hone its craft. Since 1988, the band has consistently delivered some of the best socially conscious punk rock this side of Bad Religion, and on Reason to Believe, Pennywise sounds as vital as it did 20 years ago. And really, how could it not? From the heavy metal-infused One Reason to the 'whoa oh whoa's' on Die For You, Pennywise proves that no-nonsense, melodic punk-rock anthems aren't going out of style anytime soon.
— Jared Story
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