Tim Rayborn - Qadim

I recently finished reading The Middle East by Bernard Lewis, which is a "brief" history of the past 1300 years in the Middle East. Very interesting book about a place we could all stand to learn more about. Shortly after finishing it I came across Qadim by Tim Rayborn, which is a collection of pieces, each performed on a single instrument, each of Middle Eastern/African/Central Asian origin. And what artist do I choose for my introduction to this kind of music? A white guy from the San Francisco Bay area. Oh well, baby steps at first, I suppose. Nothing here to rock out to and I'm not going to suddenly start meditating or recounting past lives, but it's good stuff. Some of the pieces, such as the opener, Laylat, work well in the foreground. The album as a whole, though, is great in the background and pieces like Saïd are a welcome change to the usual orchestras I have in my background music.

Countach - Gasoline

Sacred Reich. Sugartooth. The Obsessed. Cathedral. You may not have heard of all these bands but they have something in common with each other. They all worship(ed) at The Church of the Mighty Riff, led by Minister Iommi. Today we welcome a new member to the congregation, Countach, who comes all the way from Minnesota. Fans of power metal and stoner rock should take a listen to these guys. They even remind me of Kyuss at times. Highly recommended music for driving down the highway, too (just keep the headbanging to a minimum).

Dr. Seuss - How the Grinch Stole Christmas

The true power of the iTunes Music Store revealed itself to me on Christmas Eve 2003 (sorry, I don't have a clever parody of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" ready). I knew that after watching my children open their Christmas presents and play with them a bit, we would be off to Grandma's house to meet up with the rest of the family. I thought it might be nice to have some Christmas songs to listen to during the three-and-a-half hour trip but, alas, my Christmas collection was non-existant. The lightbulb went on, though, and I realized I could get some Christmas songs from the iTMS. Would they have enough to last the trip, not drive me crazy, and bring back pleasant memories? In my case, the answer was a big "Yes!" and then some. They have Burl, Andy, Ray, Johnny, Charlie and Lucy, Nat, Karen and Richard, Gene, Alvin, Brenda, and Jose as well as ones I didn't grow up with but will be new traditions around here like Tiny, Louis, and Julie. The coolest purchase, though, was Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Now, I can't prove it but I believe the album came before the TV show (Boris does the voice of Cindy Lou Who here). It doesn't really matter, though, because it's all good. You even get You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" as a separate track. I bought a bunch of songs, loaded them up on the iPod, and we had the merry sounds of Christmas for the whole trip. Instant Christmas collection!

Moore - Bleed

In my most recent purchase from CD Baby I had a reissued CD from an eighties heavy metal band along with a bunch of other discs. I was in a hurry so I took all of them to my car and started listening to them on the road. One of the first I put in was Bleed by a band called Moore. After a song I two I was confused. I thought the eighties heavy metal band was another disc. The singing and guitar playing was a bit edgier than the eighties but maybe I was wrong. I took a look at the jewel case and I wasn't wrong at all. This Denver-based band plays straightforward heavy metal, don't let the powdered faces and black lipstick fool you. Check out Raise 'em High and Jackhammer Jesus for a taste of what I mean.

"Dimebag" Darrell Abbott - R.I.P.

I was never a fan of Pantera or Damageplan, but waking up to news of the on-stage murder of Dimebag Darrell in Ohio last night hit me like a punch in the gut.

Julie London - About the Blues

It took me a while to get a handle on this album. See, About the Blues is not a blues album. Sure, it has the word "blues" in the title and there are songs with "blues" in their titles but make no mistake, this is a Julie London album, not a blues album. Julie London was to the late fifties and early sixties what Barry White was to the seventies: great make-out music. Is there make-out music anymore? Julie's sang in an understated way that was sexy without being trashy (while her album covers were just sexy). A self-described "stylist", she was at her best when the musical accompaniment acted like an escort: by the lady's side but not the focus of attention, letting the lady be the star. A few times on this album the band is louder than they should be but most of the time they let Julie lead the way. Remember, when you listen to Meaning of the Blues and About the Blues, you need to put the blues out of your mind. Nobody is going to mistake the singing on this 1957 album for Koko Taylor, because Julie London made the songs she sang all her own.

Elton John - Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy

For a number of years I have had just one album by Elton John. Two things have kept me from buying more. One is that I knew they were going to be remastered and, sure enough, they finally have been so that point is moot. The second thing is that the one album I have had is Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. My fear is that any other album is going to be a big letdown. If you are not familiar with GYBR, it is simply a stunning album and I could not imagine Elton making another that even came close to it, though he was certainly capable of doing so. Silly, maybe, but that's how my mind works sometimes. I recently decided to take the plunge and picked up the remastered Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, considered to be one of Elton's best albums from the seventies. Well, I can report that, while not as good as GYBR, it is not the big letdown I feared. Songs like the exquisite Someone Saved My Life Tonight and the inclusion of bonus tracks including Elton's cover of The Beatles' Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds make this a keeper. Along with those songs, though, are hints of the overproduction that has plagued Elton for the past, oh, 25 years. Tell Me When The Whistle Blows is a good (sad?) example. I prefer Elton's music stripped down with room to breathe so I will be acquiring his earlier albums as I continue. Then again, I like what Hans Zimmer did with Elton's The Circle of Life so what do I know?

Buckethead - Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains

Now that Buckethead is out of Guns 'n Roses you say you don't know how you're going to get your Buckethead fix? Are you mad? Buckethead, the first guitar god of the 21st century, always has something going on...usually several things at the same time. He just finished up a tour with Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains, which is basically 3/4 of Praxis (Buckethead, Bernie Worrell and Brain) along with Les Claypool, in support of their recent release The Big Eyeball in the Sky. It's pretty much what you would expect from these guys if you are familiar with them: seriously offbeat tunes, exceptional musicianship, and Les's Zappa-esque "singing". Check out Thai Noodles and Ignorance Is Bliss. You can also buy recordings of the tour's shows from C2B3Live. If you want just Buckethead there is his latest album, Cuckoo Clocks of Hell, and you purchase a few of his live shows for download from BucketheadsLiveWedges.com. And if that isn't enough, you can spend New Year's Eve watching him perform. The man is busy, people! So break out your yellow windbreaker and stock up at KFC. If all else fails, it will make a great halloween costume.

Bubble - Rock n Roll Hell

Bubble is an uncomplicated band that is what they say they is: "No gimmicks. No novelties. Just rock n roll with noisy guitars, bass and drums." With former Vixen bass player Share handling vocals and guitar and her husband Bam on drums, this three piece gets right to it on their latest CD, Rock n Roll Hell. Bigtop is a great opener and sets the pace for the rest of the album. I have to admit that the singing falls into a tough rock chick cliché at times but on Deadender, she really hits her stride. A catchy tune with attitude-a-plenty behind the mic. As a side note, Bubble have done something really cool with their two previous albums. The albums are out of print but the band has made both how 'bout this? and Total Harmonic Distortion available on iTunes. At least I think it's cool...then again, I'm a nerd.

Nuggets - Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era

What's that? You say you're a fan of sixties rock but you're tired of the same old, same old? Feel the need to branch off from the usual crowd: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Mamas and The Papas, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Cream, et. al.? I have just the thing for you: Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era put out by Rhino Records. A four-CD set, it focuses on songs from the middle of the sixties. There are a handful of songs you may recognize, such as Incense and Peppermints by The Strawberry Alarm Clock and Journey To The Center Of The Mind by The Amboy Dukes (featuring little Teddy Nugent on lead guitar) but most of the songs I have never heard of, by bands I have never heard of. Included are such, um, nuggets as Put The Clock Back On The Wall by The E-Types, Live by The Merry-Go-Round (anybody know what swingin' eighties group covered this?), and the best Beatles knock-off of all time, Lies by The Knickerbockers. There is a Nuggets II that focuses on British bands from this same period but I think the first box is the better of the two. I wouldn't call all the music psychedelic. In fact, much of it sounds garage-y, so with low-fi bands currently in vogue this music might even be hip again (or whatever the current word is).

E.S. Posthumus - Unearthed

This one is a puzzler. I know next to nothing about classical music so I don't know if Unearthed, the debut album by E.S. Posthumus, is neo-classical brilliance or just cheezy new age fluff. It sounds good in the background, whatever it is. Has a cinematic quality to it, too, which CBS must agree with since the track Nara is the theme to the TV series Cold Case. Check out the lead-off track, Antissa, as well.

Purr Machine - Ging Ging

I was watching Monster House with the kids the other night and on that night's episode they had some misfits from earlier shows come back to try and redeem themselves by making a dog house. They show the owners, a man and a woman, and I wasn't really paying attention until the woman spoke. "Wait a second, I know that voice. What did she say her name was? Hey, I have their album!" This gives me a great excuse to write about Betsy Martin, her old band, Caterwaul, and her new band, Purr Machine. Arizona-based Caterwaul released three albums in the late eighties that featured Betsy's distinctive voice. I don't know how well they did but Caterwaul seems to have a small cult following out there. Check out the song Good For You to hear what you missed. There was one more release, Killer Fish, that came out several years after the band had disbanded. Sigh. In 1996, Betsy hooked up with Kevin Kipnis and formed Purr Machine, which released Ging Ging in 1999. Less guitar and more electronics than Caterwaul but that is definitely Betsy singing. Check out The Moon and My Head are Full and Keep Calm. Betsy and Kevin are hard at work on their follow up so I will be on the lookout for it in the next several months.

Gibby Haynes and His Problem

I have to admit that I'm writing this with the distinct disadvantage of ignorance. See, I've never heard any Butthole Surfers songs. None. Sure, I know of the Butthole Surfers and I know that Gibby Haynes is their lead singer but I haven't actually listened to them before. The closest I've come is Gibby's guest vocals on Ministry's Jesus Built My Hotrod. Why? Well...um, you know...I mean, come on; they're named the Butthole Surfers. When I saw Gibby Haynes and His Problem on the list of new releases, though, for some reason I wanted to give it a listen and I can report that, once you get past that nasty cover, it's not bad at all. It's off the beaten path, which is always a good thing. Gibby's reputation for lyrics from another dimension is well-deserved ("Let's all go to Superman's house. Everything is stolen.") but not distracting. Check out Woo and the hilarious Redneck Sex. Nothing wrong with taking the path least travelled. Now I'll have to check out some of that surf music he's done :-).

Faith and the Muse - The Burning Season

It's the rare artist who can really rock hard as well as really make pretty (for lack of a better word) music. I don't mean a mellow act that does the occasional uptempo number. I mean musicians that can create beautiful music that stops you in your tracks; the same musicians that just a few songs earlier were making you play air guitar. Faith and the Muse achieve just that with The Burning Season. The album opens up with full-on rocker Sredni Vashtar. A few songs later In the Amber Room wafts out, a 180-degree turn. Many artists talk the talk of expanding their sound. Faith and the Muse walk the walk.

Blitzkrieg - A Time of Changes

Of all the cover songs Metallica has done, my favorite still is Blitzkrieg by New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) band Blitzkrieg. I had heard the original song years ago and I recently decided to take the plunge and get A Time of Changes, which collects pretty much everything the original incarnation of Blitzkrieg put on tape. Harder and faster than the seventies hard rock of Kiss and Deep Purple, bands like Blitzkrieg opened the door for the thrash of Metallica and Megadeth to take things even further. During the NWOBHM of the late seventies and early eighties heavy metal was back underground, in the U.S. at least, so there was a lot of material that was overlooked. Decent songs, including Inferno and four different versions of Blitzkrieg and a singer with a Halford-quality scream make this an archetype of NWOBHM and an excellent place to start if you are interested in it.

Adam West - Right On!

Washington, D.C. rockers Adam West are in that nether region which Mötorhead fans are all too familiar with: too good to be a bar band, too hard to get airplay. Take a listen to C'mon and Bludgeon Me to hear what I'm on about: 1 minutes and 55 seconds of no frills, full-throttle rock and roll. They are exactly the kind of band that should be opening for Mötorhead on a regular basis. Hey, Lemmy! Check out Shield Your Eyes if you're still not convinced. Sometimes you just have to rock out. For those times, there is Adam West.

Israel Kamakawiwo'ole - Facing Future

I learned the story of the late Israel Kamakawiwo'ole from a news article a few months ago but I thought, "That's a nice story--too bad I don't like Hawaiian music." Recently, however, somebody asked me about getting some Hawaiian songs for a party they were to provide music for. Remembering Iz's story, I went over to iTunes, played samples from his album Facing Future, and then sent my friend the link. The songs weren't so bad. Pleasant and, at times, even catchy. I figured with 18,000 songs in my iTunes collection, shouldn't I have some Hawaiian music, too? I'm no expert on the genre but this is definitely a good place to start. Listen to Hawaii '78 and Ka Pua U'i. You'll also want to check out Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What A Wonderful World, the song that sparked the Iz revival.

Jeffrey Naness - Frenetic Passages

I swear I found out about Jeffrey Naness from an email he sent me but I can't find it anywhere. I even have an unreleased track of his in iTunes--how else could I have gotten it unless we corresponded? He doesn't have a website, either (note to all artists out there who have CDs for sale: you must have your own website). Weird. In any event, Jeffrey Naness, (attorney by day, daddy by evening, keyboard wizard by night) has put together an EP of his synth compositions and named it Frenetic Passages. According to him, his major influences are early Rush (which scores him big points on my cool-o-meter) and J.S. Bach. His music, though, has neither guitars nor an orchestra so he ends up sounding like his other big influence: Wendy Carlos (disclosure: I never got past the Switched on Bach albums so that could be an overly broad comparison). I like it. It's a nice change of pace for me plus I'm a sucker for albums by people toiling away in their spare time. Check out the title track, Frenetic Passage, and Broken Light.

Red Delicious - Addictions & Scars

One of the nice things about the Internet bubble was MP3.com. No, not that silly site that is there now. MP3.com was where known and unknown bands could post MP3s of full-length songs that you could download for free. The bands were even getting paid if they were popular (for a while, at least). I discovered some signed bands (Lacuna Coil, Blind Guardian, Strapping Young Lad) and a bunch of unsigned ones (The Fur Ones, Volition, Borgo Pass, Ohm (Boston)). MP3.com would make CDs you could buy from music and artwork the bands uploaded. Red Delicious was one of the unsigned bands and I bought the full-length CD and the two EP-length CDs they had for sale. Good stuff: really outstanding songs and fabulous singing. They had quite a following online which resulted in their being signed to a small label. Production on their album was proceding when the label went belly up, which meant the masters were in legal limbo for a while. Well, Red Delicious are back from record industry hell with the self-released Addictions & Scars. It has remakes of some of their MP3.com "hits", such as the five-star Casualties, as well as new songs like Blues & Stars. Are you looking for a rock band with strong female vocals and great songs? Look no further.

Drain sth - Horror Wrestling

There was a period of time where I had a knack for finding bands that either just broke up or were about to. It was depressing. My more recent period of this is the aforementioned "baby years". Actually, that was a period of just not finding bands. Case in point: Drain sth This band from Sweden released two albums, Horror Wrestling and Freaks of Nature, in the late nineties but I had not heard of them until a year or two ago. The singing on Horror Wrestling reminds me of Layne Staley at his most hypnotic and the music rocks (check out I Don't Mind and Mirror's Eyes). This is one of those albums that gets better with each play and I'm going to get the other one. Alas, they are no more. Lead singer Maria is now married to Tony Iommi. The other three members were working together in a band called Superfix for a while (listen to the demo they posted last year, Your Addiction (Superfix), which I really like) but it didn't work out. Drummer/singer Martina is now the new lead singer of Snake River Conspiracy (check out the new song they just posted, Methlehem). Their next album is something I'll be keeping an eye out for.

Metallica - Live at the 2004 Download Festival

On June 6, 2004, Metallica were scheduled to play the Download Festival at Donnington, England. However, drummer Lars Ulrich had a medical problem en route and ended up in a hospital. Did Metallica cancel? Of course not. With not much time before the show, the band auditioned drummers from the other bands at the festival and chose Dave Lombardo from Slayer, Joey Jordison from Slipknot, and Flemming Larson, Ulrich's drum tech. The result, while not Metallica's greatest show ever, is an interesting curiosity for fans. Since they needed to stick with songs their new drummers knew, it was a night for songs from the Black Album and earlier. Metallica is making recordings of virtually all the shows from this tour available for purchase as digital downloads. You even get unique CD artwork for each gig. It took them a while to get the European dates up but they're finally available, including the Donnington show. Check out Battery with Dave Lombardo and Creeping Death with Joey Jordison. Lars who? :-)

Mediæval Bæbes - The Rose

Finally, some female choral music that is not Bulgrian folk music. Not that I have a problem with Bulgarian folk music, it's just that variety is a good thing. When I have tried to find more female choral music, I pretty much come up empty-handed (I am sure this is no surprise to you). Thanks to my recent Blackmore's Night purchase, Amazon recommended The Rose by The Mediæval Bæbes, a group of women who "perform music influenced by the Mediaeval period and sing in ancient and modern languages." It's not as cheesy as it may sound because they are really quite good. Check out Byrd One Brere and The Circle Of The Lustful to see what I mean.

Françoise Hardy - The Vogue Years

There is a scene in the film Broadcast News where Albert Brooks puts on a French record and starts singing along with it. I wondered where in America he would find out about a French song that he liked enough to learn all the words (it didn't occur to this homebody that he might have actually travelled to France but bear with me for a bit). I can tell you how I came across a French singer that I like (though I can't say that I sing along much). Françoise Hardy sang a song, Je Changerais d'avis, on an Ennio Morricone collection I have, Canto Morricone Vol. 1 (The 60's). That song really stuck in my head so a few years later I have purchased one of her collections, The Vogue Years (Vogue was the name of the first record company she signed with). The best way to describe the music here is "French Pop", if that means anything to you. Françoise was no flash-in-the-pan pretty face, though, as she wrote much of what she sang. Her very first single, Tous Les Garçons Et Les Filles, sold two million copies in 1962. She has followed that with forty years of music, including Tout Ce Qu'on Dit from 1965. Beats the heck out of freedom fries.

So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star by Jacob Slichter

1998 is a big blur for me. Actually, 1998 and several years after it are a big blur. The summer of 1998 was when my twins were born. I pretty much withdrew from popular culture in 1998 and still have not fully recovered. That's okay, though. It's one of those easy choices a daddy makes. Every so often I come across things that happened during "The Baby Years" that completely passed me by. One of those things was Semisonic and their song Closing Time. Apparently it was a big hit. Apparently it was a huge hit. I had not heard the song until this evening. I had not even heard of the song until I read So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star by Jacob Slichter, the drummer for Semisonic. Heck, whenever I saw the word Semisonic I experienced some sort of dyslexic thing because I kept seeing it as Seismonic. Weird. Anyway, Slichter has written a very interesting book about his experience with the nuts and bolts of the music business during Semisonic's roller coaster ride into and out of the spotlight. It is a memoir rather than a guide to making it big in showbiz, though if you want to read about drugs and groupies, look elsewhere. If you want to read about what is really involved in making a hit, how record companies help and hurt their artists, the power of radio stations, the things artists have to go through to promote their music, the rush of being on stage, and how quickly stardom can slip away, then I recommend this book. Slichter doesn't go into his relationships with his bandmates much and for someone who goes on and on about the band's escalating recoupable costs, he doesn't write at all about his income (surely he made some money from Semisonic). Minor quibbles, though. Good book.

Jethro Tull - Bursting Out

Ian Anderson has been going through the Jethro Tull catalog and remastering their albums in chronological order. He has made it up to one of the albums I have been waiting for the most: Bursting Out. Recorded on the Heavy Horses tour, Bursting Out captures Tull at their late seventies folk-rock peak, (arguably an artistic peak but definitely a commercial peak). It was a good time to be a fan of Jethro Tull. Bursting Out was a double LP when originally released. When it came time for the CD, the album was too long to fit onto a single CD so it was decided to keep the selling price low and remove two songs. I happened to really like those songs on the album so I never bought the CD. I never listened to the LP once I started buying CDs, either. Now the album has been remastered and the missing songs are back. No bonus tracks but I have plenty of live Tull tracks, so that is not a problem. Listen to Sweet Dream and A New Day Yesterday to hear what a good time it was to be a fan of Jethro Tull.

Stan Ridgway & Pietra Wexstun - Mark Ryden: Blood

I have movie soundtracks, TV show soundtracks, original cast recordings, a radio show soundtrack, and LPs that have dialog from movies and TV shows (there was an era before you could rent and buy videos for your home, you know). Now, with Mark Ryden: Blood, I have the soundtrack to an art show. Stan Ridgway & Pietra Wexstun have created music to go with each of the paintings for a 2003 installation of Mark Ryden's works at the Earl McGrath Gallery in New York. It has a real soundtrack feel to it, too, rather than just being a collection of fluffy ambient tracks. The pieces seem to work well with the paintings, though to get the full experience one probably needed to actually be at the gallery. However, the music does stand on its own, as Rose and Entrance demonstrate.

Motörhead - Inferno

Motörhead fans, like those of AC/DC and The Ramones, generally come in two flavors. The first has just a few albums, which they really like, but after that all the music starts sounding the same. The second has nearly all their albums and can't believe that they manage to keep things fresh after all these years. Where do I stand?:

• The Ramones - One greatest hits album.
• AC/DC - Two albums.
• Motörhead - Twenty two albums and a few singles.

The mighty Motörhead is back with Inferno. This is one of the better ones; of the more recent albums, I'd put it up there with Sacrifice. Still loud, still in your face, still rough around the edges, still loud, still Motörhead. Witness In the Name of Tragedy and Smiling Like a Killer. How do they manage to keep things fresh after all these years?

The High Violets - 44 Down

Shoegazing time! The High Violets make that dreamy, swirly, turn-on-the-fog-machines kind of shoegazing music that I like so much. Check out the title track, 44 Down and Wheel.

P.S. If you like this kind of music, check out The Flir, too.

Glen Campbell - All the Best

If you weren't around in the late sixties and early seventies, if you know of Glen Campbell at all it is probably from his DUI arrest last year or his Behind the Music episode. It may be hard to believe (or remember) but once upon a time Glen Campbell was HUGE. When he hit Los Angeles in the early sixties he quickly made a name for himself as a hot session guitarist. Later that decade his solo career took off in a big way and Glen carved his niche as a country/pop crossover. He had his own television variety show and starred alongside John Wayne in True Grit. Along the way, of course, he made some great music. None greater to me than Wichita Lineman, which easily holds up almost 35 years later. His troubles with alcohol over the years makes one listen to Rhinestone Cowboy a lot differently these days. It was just irritating way back when (HUGE hit) but hearing "...a smile can hide all the pain..." today makes me pause.

Placebo - Sleeping With Ghosts

If had to describe Placebo's album Sleeping With Ghosts in one sentence, it would be, "Pop meets goth, sung by the Pet Shop Boys." A pretty mellow album (don't let the opener, Bulletproof Cupid, fool you). Even the upbeat numbers, like The Bitter End, have a slow melancholy to them. The title track, Sleeping With Ghosts, is my favorite.

The Rebel Pebbles - Girls Talk

I suppose I'm a fan of girl groups. The Go-Go's, The Bangles, The Pandoras, L7, Heart (yeah, yeah, I know they don't count but still...). The thing is, though, I don't really think of them as girl groups. I know there are women in the groups and all but I tend think of them as just bands. The Rebel Pebbles, on the other hand, I do think of them as a girl group. Girls Talk came out in 1991 and I had never heard of it until a month ago (it came out during the KNAC years so I wasn't hearing a lot of non-metal at the time, I suspect). Anyway, it's not a bad album (way out of print but you can find it used for cheap--I did). Sure there are some clunkers (did 1991 really need a song called Groovy Love?) but it also has a few gems like How Do You Feel and the way-too-cute Eskimo and Butterfly. I have to mention Anthony's Attic, a song about--I kid you not--how sexy intelligent men can be (it manages to be both sexy and weird at the same time). The band (with ex-Pandoras drummer Karen Blankfeld playing guitar) released their one album and sort of disintegrated (on-the-road stress, etc. though the impending Nirvana tsunami might have had something to do with it). I figure I'm not the only fan of girl groups that had not heard of them, so I submit for your approval: The Rebel Pebbles.

Joey DeFrancesco - Incredible!

Did you know that there is a sub-genre of jazz that features the mighty Hammond B-3 organ? You did? Oh. Sorry but everything I know about jazz I learned from Ken Burns. Incredible! features present-day jazz organ wizard Joey DeFrancesco with a special guest, jazz organ pioneer Jimmy Smith. Now I can't tell good jazz from bad but I can tell you that if you're a fan of the Hammond (favored by Keith Emerson, Jon Lord, Rick Wakeman, and so many others in the rock world) you will want to give this a listen. Joey and Jimmy team up for two medleys on the album. Check out the first and the second. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to investigate some Bernie Worrell...

Celldweller - Celldweller

This is an interesting one. Celldweller starts off with Switchback, a catchy-as-heck techno rocker. Great beat and you can dance to it or bang your head to it. With such a catchy opener, you would expect more of the same...and you would be wrong. This album is all over the place. Rock. Techno. Mellow ditties like Welcome to the End. I wonder if people attracted to the rock will be put off by the techno and vice-versa. Best not to think too much about that and, instead, just listen to the music. With Celldweller able to make such a rocking single they can't help but become more popular.

Ennio Morricone - MondoMorricone

Ennio Morricone: the man, the myth, the legend. Regular readers are going to become familiar with him, if they are not already. Most of you should at least be familiar with his work on The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly and The Mission. He is so prolific (there is no exact count of the several hundred scores he has written) that there are more compilations of his work than most composers have original albums. The MondoMorricone series (MondoMorricone, More MondoMorricone, Molto MondoMorricone) is one of the more unique collections. It gathers some of Il Maestro's groovier pieces from movies of the late sixties and early seventies. Not much you'd want to dance to at an Austin Powers-themed party (see if you can dance to Alla Luce Del Giorno) but you could play all three albums in your swingin' bachelor pad while you entertain that far out chick of yours (dig on Giocoso, Gioioso, baby). A fine addition to the collection of any Enniophile or someone who appreciates the groovier things in life.

Praxis - Live at the Bonnaroo 2004 Music Festival

I was recently exploring the world of live recordings and I came across The Bonnaroo 2004 Music Festival, which was held this past June in Tennessee. The usual suspects were there (String Cheese Incident, The Dead, Trey Anastasio) (actually, to be fair, there were a lot of interesting acts at the festival) but what caught my eye was an appearance by the mighty Praxis. Praxis, for those of you who don't know, play a sort of fusion. However, whereas fusion is usually a cross between jazz and rock, Praxis are more of a cross between jazz, speed metal, and space aliens. This version of Praxis is pretty much the original lineup, Buckethead, Bernie Worrell, and Brain, with Bill Laswell filling in for Bootsy on bass. They even throw in guest Lili Haydn for a few numbers. The great thing about this Bonnarroo Festival is that they are making recordings of the performances available for download. They're not free but what I paid for a 2 1/2 hour Praxis performance was pretty darned reasonable. You get a choice of downloading MP3s or uncompressed FLACs. I am really happy to see things like this (Metallica's Live Metallica, the Instant Live site, etc.) starting to take off. Check out Vertebrae and Machine Gun to get a taste.

2020 UPDATE: Praxis later released the album Tennessee, which is this recording.

Rush - Feedback

Once upon a time, probably before you were born, the band Rush rocked. No, really. They have matured into a band that's more mellow than those early days, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Their latest album/mini-album/EP (it clocks in at 27 minutes--call it whatever you want) is a bit of a return to their rocking roots. On the occasion of the trio's thirtieth anniversary together, they've stripped things down and covered some songs from their teenage years (read: the sixties). The result is Feedback. While you're not going to hear a patented Geddy Lee shriek anymore (lest there be any confusion, I liked the shriek), you do get to hear the band rock more than usual. My favorites are the Yardbirds covers they have chosen: Heart Full of Soul and Shapes of Things. Only time will tell if the looseness will spill over to future albums.

The Gathering - Sleepy Buildings

I have been a fan of Lacuna Coil for a few years so I was aware of The Gathering. People on the LC mailing list, Amazon.com, etc. were recommending The Gathering if you liked LC. I gave them a listen but I wasn't impressed so I didn't pursue them. Fast forward to a few months ago and an MP3 from their (then) upcoming live album is posted on the web. I give them another try and this time I am interested. That album, Sleepy Buildings, is released, I pick it up, and now I am very interested. This recording really grabs me so the question is: what happened when I listened to them before? Well, I've gone back and listened to those samples again and the answer is: I'm not sure. Maybe I was so intent on comparing them to Lacuna Coil that I couldn't hear them on their own terms. Maybe the style of this album (it's sub-titled "A Semi Acoustic Evening") suits them better than the previous albums. Maybe the poor-quality samples at Amazon messed with my ears. Who knows? I'll keep trying them out but in the meantime we have this very good album. Listen to Saturnine and Locked Away to hear for yourself.

Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

There are great albums that are of their time. There are great albums that transcend their time. There are great albums that define their time. Fleetwood Mac's Rumours falls into the third category...wait a second. What is a twenty-seven-year-old album that everybody has heard of doing on Fresh Tuneage? It turns out that Rumours has finally been remastered, and not just your typical "I'm not sure I hear a difference" remaster, either. Disc one has the normal album with the addition of the B-side Silver Springs. Disc two has early versions of almost all the album tracks, including a version of Songbird that gives the final version a run for its money, followed by assorted demos. Is it worth spending the extra bucks for a double CD to replace a CD I already have? The deluxe treatment has also been given to Fleetwood Mac and Tusk but I'm going to wait on those two. For me, the answer was "yes" for Rumours.

Blackmore's Night - Shadow of the Moon

Take one of rock's most influential and notoriously bad-tempered guitarists, add a whispy-voiced female singer, and drop them in the middle of a renaissance faire (complete with costumes). What do you get? Something that, surprisingly, works. Blackmore's Night is the name of this band of minstrels. Led by former Deep Purple and Rainbow guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and his lady love Candice Night on vocals, Blackmore's Night makes mostly acoustic, renaissance-era-inspired music. If that sounds cheesy, scary, or weird to you, you're not alone. It's taken me several years to get over my prejudice and give the band a try (many thanks to the band for putting up good-quality MP3s of entire songs on their site so I could hear for myself) and it really does work. Listen to their cover of Joan Baez's Diamonds and Rust. Not bad, eh? Not exactly a renaissance-era song but they make it their own. This doesn't mean that I am going to start buying chainmail tank tops and telling my wench to fetch my mead but I am going to pick up more of their albums when I can.

Sophia Ramos - Her Majesty

Singer Sophia Ramos first came to my attention when Jason Newsted's Chophouse Records emailed people on their mailing list asking for feedback on a couple of songs they posted featuring Ms. Ramos. This was back in March and at the time I replied, "Regarding Sophia Ramos, I like the Godswallop track better than the TARRAT track. The reason is that towards the end of the Godswallop track she lets loose. She's a nice enough singer but she does have some pipes and when she goes off like that, her voice rises above just nice and really shines." That's my story and I'm sticking to it for her album Her Majesty, as well. She is such a powerful singer. Still, my favorite track is Deep In My Bones, which is more of a power balled than a full-on rocker. For those, give a listen to Torn Down or Esperanza. I have a hunch that we're getting just a glimpse of her potential. Keep an eye out for her.

Monster Magnet - Monolithic Baby!

Three years and a few personnel changes since their last album, the Monster is back; as big and badass as ever. Monster Magnet has unleashed its latest, Monolithic Baby!, on an unsuspecting world so take cover. Of my, now five, Monster Magnet albums, this is one of the most consistent and ranks right up there with Powertrip. Attitude, lyrics from outer space, and GUITARS. Check out Unbroken (Hotel Baby) and hear for yourself. Let's hope we won't have to wait another three years to hear from them again. Hail to the Monster, baby.

Uli Jon Roth - Metamorphosis

A little background:

• Uli Jon Roth, née Ulrich Roth, former lead guitarist for The Scorpions.
• Heavily influenced by Jimi Hendrix, sometimes to a fault.
• Dresses like a flower child.
• Amazing guitarist but terrible singer.
• Cheesy, pretentious album artwork.
• Is on a mad quest to wed the electric guitar to the world of classical music.
• I have all of his albums.

Say what you will about him, Uli is following his own muse and is utterly unconcerned with pursuing commercial success as an end itself. His latest album, Metamorphosis, features his all-instrumental adaptation of Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons (yes his adaptation--his arrangements and orchestrations). He uses his guitar, basically, as a replacement for a violin, so I don't see that he has found a unique place in an orchestra for the electric guitar yet. I'm glad he keeps trying, though. When he succeeds, it is wonderful (listen to Teardrops In October). When he fails, it is spectacular. What more could an artist hope for?

Inger Lorre - Transcendental Medication

I am writing this less than an hour after seeing Inger Lorre perform at The Knitting Factory in Hollywood and oh...my...GAWD! The sad and twisted tale of Inger Lorre and The Nymphs has been told elsewhere so I won't rehash it here. The Nymphs' first (and only) album is memorable, with some really good cuts on it. The same with Inger's solo album, Transcendental Medication: memorable with some really good cuts on it. Inger's solo acoustic show, however, was unbefreakinglievable. Even if you were a big fan of The Nymphs and are a big fan of Inger's, pay attention: you have no idea how good she is. Inger performed songs by herself (including a new one), The Nymphs, Lou Reed, P.J. Harvey, John Lennon, and one I didn't recognize (which is a shame because it was my favorite song of the night). Words fail me. It was, quite simply, one of the best performances I have ever seen. Inger mentioned that she is working on an acoustic album and you better believe that once it's released, you will read about it here. In the meantime, there is Transcendental Medication to keep you company; forty five minutes of naked, writhing emotion. Listen to It Could Happen To You, my favorite cut. Oh, what the heck, here is Just One Happy Day by The Nymphs. Go see Inger if she does one of her shows near you. I am so glad I was able to go (no small feat for this daddy).

Hey, whaddya know. While getting this post ready, I came across Slip It In, a song Inger did with Henry Rollins for the benefit album Rise Above. Gotta add that puppy to my shopping cart...

[Inger Lorre left a comment a few days later:]

INGER here,.....thank you.....
Hello,.. inger lorre here,... the girl that does my website.,(transcendental spirit.com) e-mailed me your very kind review of my show at the knitting factory,....And I just wanted to thank you for your kind words,.....as most people know by now,....I suffer from a HORRIBLE case of alcoholism,...and it has taken me all this time just to get back on my feet again. It was VERY scary, performing without any "substances" to soften up my bad case of stage fright,......and I promise you that the next time I play,...it will be alot better,...I had no idea how scary it is going onstage all by yourself,..!!!!(that was the first time for me!) anyway,.....now that my SOLO-performer-cherry has been popped!....it's all smooth sailing from here on,...... also,..I wanted to tell you,,,that I am pretty sure the song wich you speak of,,,that you did'nt know the name of was "pissin' in a river" by patti smith,...since all my friends said that THAT was the best song of the night,...I dont know...I'm oblivious to these things ya know...... I just know that ever since elliot died,..I feel that it's up to me to sling an acoustic guityar across my chest, and start up where he left off,..in honor of HIM and his genius. I DONT want the singer/songwreiter rock-poet troubador-to die WITH him...ya know???? I will NEVER be ANYWHERE as good as elliot,....but I feel it's my duty to carry on his message. love inger (you can contact me at the wbsite if ya want) see ya!) and thanx again!

Parallax Project - Oblivious

This one is a bit of a mixed bag. The songs on this debut album by The Parallax Project that work the best are the Beatles-esque numbers like Just Like Yesterday and Take A Walk. The songs that don't work as well are the sensitive singer/songwriter-type songs. Then again, I like When I Die so what do I know? Well, I know that this album hits more than it misses so The Parallax Project makes it onto my "Bands to Keep an Eye On" list.

Black Monday - Six Shooter

I found Black Monday via a posting on Slashdot, of all places (Marketing 101 tip to all bands: mention your website everywhere). See if you can see which reply post is mine. Their CD, Six Shooter, is actually a "duel" with another band, Speedbuggy, with each band getting six songs each. Black Monday is loud rock, with a dash of punk, and a big splash of the wild west. Check out Wrapped in Red and Crossroads. Cowpunk? Whatever. They rock.

Auf der Maur - Auf der Maur

Hearing that Melissa auf der Maur, former bassist for Hole and The Smashing Pumpkins, was releasing a solo album, by itself, wouldn't interest me too much. However, hearing that Masters of Reality main-man Chris Goss produced it, that would interest me very much. The album has been out in Europe for several months and videos of the first singles have been on Melissa's site for a while so I have been listening to them before the album's release in the U.S. (thank you Audio Hijack!). The album, on a first listen, sounds okay. Further listening reveals a surprisingly solid batch of songs (I guess I'm surprised because I'm not a fan of Hole or The Smashing Pumpkins). I hope Goss and MadM worked well together because the end-result of their collaboration is smart, funny, sexy, rich, and always rocking; I want there to be more. The first single, Followed the Waves is the album's stand-out track. Also check out My Foggy Notion. If you're a fan of Melissa (or if this album makes you a fan) you might want to check out her, I'm completely serious, Black Sabbath tribute band, Hand of Doom.

The Pandoras - Stop Pretending

Where were you in 1986? The Pandoras were releasing their second album, Stop Pretending. Great sixties-style garage rock with "proto-riot grrrl" vocals. Both The Muffs (Kim Shattuck and original member Melanie Vammen) and The Leaving Trains (Vammen again) have roots that go back to The Pandoras, for what it's worth. Rhino Handmade, the limited edition arm of Rhino Records, has remastered Stop Pretending and added ten more tracks of rarities and demos. Check out the single, In and Out of My Life (In a Day), as well as Ain't Got No Soul It's a limited edition of 2500 so don't sit on your butt if you're interested. Where was I in 1986? I was actually in Southern California so I had no excuse for not seeing them. With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight: I was stupid, stupid, stupid. I've made up for it, though, by getting the whole back catalog. Vinyl singles included.

A Perfect Circle - Thirteenth Step

The past several years has seen a renaissance, of sorts, in the prog rock world. Bands such as A Perfect Circle and Porcupine Tree, as well as the most recent album by Opeth, have delivered a slower, more intense and moody brand of prog rock, rather than the flashy, technically dazzling brand you might be afraid of. More In the Court of the Crimson King than The Gates of Delirium. This second album by A Perfect Circle is a journey best taken in your home with the lights dimmed. Then again, it works in my car, too. I just make sure the windows are closed. Check out the next single, Blue, and Weak and Powerless.

Elvis Presley - That's Alright

Fifty years ago this evening, a 19-year-old Elvis Presley went into the recording studio at Sun Records in Memphis, TN. The result of that session, "That's All Right", was, arguably, the birth of rock and roll (Bill Haley actually recorded Rock Around the Clock a few months earlier on April 12, and had released it and Shake, Rattle and Roll by July). Forget Las Vegas, the movies, the rhinestone outfits, the weight gain, the drugs, the cult, the sightings, the imitators and parodies. Listen to the song. The essence of rock and roll is found in that one minute and fifty five seconds. It's been my favorite Elvis song since well before I learned of its significance.

The Oscillators - Incog★Neat★O!

Clear some room on the beach, Frankie and Annette, there's a swingin' new band for the party. Okay, they're not new (this album came out in 1999) and I'm not convinced they're even still together but Incog★Neat★O! is great! A catchy neo-sixties twangy guitar band. How can you not like something as catchy as Don't Look Back or Doug Buggy (he's the dune buggy on the cover). Yeah, baby!