reviews
albums
AUTOPSY **** The Headless Ritual( Peaceville)
Lots of extreme metal bands disappear for ages, then come back, and whatever they had has gone south like a paunch. Not so Californian vets Autopsy, whose second 21st-century album is much the same surgical grafting of doom onto death metal as captured Peaceville Records’ stony hearts in the late 80s. It can’ t have the same shock value as the first time out, but expertly switches up DM gallop, sludge trudge and guttural lyrics about corpses. Just one thing... the title’ s not a Smiths reference, is it? NG
BELL X1 **** Chop Chop( BellyUp)
More organically structured and varied than some of their contemporaries’ work, paired with Paul Noonan’ s effortlessly captivating voice, this Dublin indie troupe’ s sixth studio effort is a thrilling record to immerse yourself in. Several songs have the capacity to sneak onto mainstream radio and could increase the band’ s profile here. The production style creates a livedin feel, lending warmth and intimacy, but Noonan is the main draw; his voice grabs you instantly, while repeat listens reveal his clever, strikingly honest lyrics. IR
CARL CRAIG **** Masterpiece( Ministry Of Sound)
Electronic music compilations seem to be spoilt by the inclusion of a dog’ s breakfast of a track by a 1980s misfit whose 12” wonders are nowadays moulded into fruit bowls. Masterpiece is an exception: compiled by Detroit originator Carl Craig, two CDs bring together what inspired him, including Jamaican dub, Motown soul and Derrick May, with a third disc of the Planet E man’ s own new compositions. All in all, a Motor City techno lesson that looks back to go forward. DN
DATBLYGU **** 1982-84: Y Tapiau Cynnar / The Early Tapes( Ankstmusik)
With this compilation, Ankstmusik have now made available every last thing released by Datblygu, the most important Welsh language band ever. Buy it all, to have your worldview blitzed by bleak, irate poetry and conventioncracking postpunk, but buy this last, realistically. Compiling five cassettes( barely) released while Datblygu founder David R Edwards was still in his teens, it’ s amateurish in the extreme: recorded on a four-track, you’ re often left feeling its capabilities were underused. It’ s of a piece with the era’ s UK cassette culture, and a precious evolutionary document. NG
DIRTY REVOLUTION ***** The Heat( Dirty World)
Dirty Revolution are back after a year with their second album The Heat. If you haven’ t heard of them, where have you been? Missing out, that’ s where. With an eclectic mix of reggae, rock and punk this band tick all the boxes; Reb’ s soulful vocals belie her acid-tongued lyrics, while the rhythm section are sure to make anyone’ s hips sway. This band may share a genre with many but are certainly in a league of their own. My new album of the summer. LEJ
BUZZ 38
DOORLY **** Southern Fried & Tested 4( Southern Fried)
Doorly has oodles of fun on the latest volume in the Southern Fried mix series. The label has a vast catalogue of reliable talent both signed to them and featuring regularly on releases, and many of them are drawn on here. Space Cowboy opens proceedings with Cuttin’ N’ Scratchin and from there we build through two discs of classics( Mighty Dub Katz’ Magic Carpet Ride) and contemporary excellence from the likes of Eats Everything and The 2 Bears. RH
EDITORS **** The Weight Of Your Love( PIAS)
Four albums in, Editors continue to prove they can stay fresh. Traces of their previous material remain, such as the synthesisers and choral blocks introduced in precursor In This Light …, but they are played down and pushed back so that new twists enter the spotlight. This album’ s first half is comparatively dark: it’ s slow, sad and laden with strings, sort of Muse meets Morrissey. From Formaldehyde on, a driving Springsteen / Arcade Fire / Jam pace lifts the album to starry heights. AP
GWYLLT **** Gwyllt( Sbrigyn Ymborth)
Contemporary Welsh indie can all too often lazily conform to its arguably irksome format of forcing a psychedelic haze over everything irrespective of genre. It’ s refreshing, then, to hear something that’ s certainly a little different. There’ s nothing groundbreaking here; there are monster nods to the Britpop era with some strong, deep country undertones thrown in throughout, but the tunes are catchy, well-performed and oh-so-easy to listen to. Lovely stuff and well worth a look. JS
GWYNETH HERBERT **** The Sea Cabinet( Monkeywood)
This – the sixth studio offering from Londoner Herbert – finds the jazz pianist in playful and quirky mood. In essence a concept album centred on the imagined story of a broken-hearted woman who lives by the sea, each track subtly blends into the next with a mixture of broken musical interludes and coastal noises. Melancholy in parts and decidedly jovial in others, this release makes for some gorgeous summer afternoon listening – assuming one makes an appearance, that is. JS
KAIROS 4TET ***** Everything We Hold( Naim Jazz)
British jazz is in a good place at the moment: a phenomenon, in part, fuelled by the strength and ingenuity of contemporary crossover bands. Bands that are playing inventive, exciting, cutting-edge jazz. Bands that are reaching increasingly broader audiences. Bands like Kairos 4tet. Everything We Hold, spearheaded by virtuosic saxophonist and bandleader Adam Waldmann, breaks fresh creative ground for the band, who manage to maintain the high watermark of their early work, while generating thoroughly superb new pieces of music. BK
LARRY AND HIS FLASK **** By The Lamplight( Xtra Mile)
The Oregon sextet return with a further album offering driven by wired banjo-driven beats and unrelenting energy. Cook’ s leering lead vocals duel with manic strings and percussion, helping bolster the outfit’ s brand of off-kilter bluegrass in the process. Standout tracks The Battle For Clear Sight and Tides strike a subtle balance between muted laid-back folk and intense psychobilly. By The Lamplight aims to find order in a melee of genre switching and succeeds with originality as well as panache. CP
MAYA JANE COLES **** Comfort( Kobalt)
Comfort opens with the title track, and immediately it’ s clear how apt a name it is. Right from the outset, Maya Jane Coles succeeds in showing us how comfortable she is constructing a great track. There’ s a level of clarity and assurance to her composition – usually the hallmark of much more experienced DJs than herself. Sometimes, perhaps, this leads to tracks remaining slightly unrealised. For the most part, though, it marks a truly excellent album by an exciting young talent. BK
METABEATS **** Caviar Crackle( Associated Minds)
The second Metabeats LP effortlessly scoops‘ finest album title of 2013’, despite Caviar Crackle having been bandied around for a good couple of years now, and his debut Metaphysical landing back in 2007. The south Wales producer’ s album sounds meticulous not finickity, love-jammed not laboured; right out the blocks, Action Bronson is its flagship guest MC( Hookers), while Odissee, Dubbledge and Vanity Jay follow on an opus which spans several styles( hip-hop acts as a springboard, essentially) and retains depth and personality throughout. NG
MYRON & E *** Broadway( Stones Throw)
Rather than dig the crates for classic soul 45s like some of their label mates on the West Coast institution Stones Throw, Myron & E recreate the sound from scratch. Broadway is a highly faithful tour of the 60s soul sound, yet it’ s done with such heart that it easily slips past pastiche. You could question the point of replicating a sound so loyally and completely without adding anything particularly new, but it feels churlish to criticise something done with such love. SE
NO THEE NO ESS **** Spring Dawn Glow( Folkwit)
This fourth studio outing sees the Cardiff-based outfit couple sublime acoustic melodies with dense shifting suites in equal measure. The fivepiece excel on the sparser album tracks, where highlights include the ethereal daze of Dream Surfer and soulful Is It Alright For Me, while Dear Little Raindrop finds the band drawing on post-Soft Bulletin Flaming Lips harmonies. In many ways, No Thee No Ess prove masters in flitting between style and tone on this warm, tight structured release. CP
PET SHOP BOYS **** Electric( x2)
Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe have been pumping out the albums with increasing gusto over the last few years. Electric is the first release on their own label x2, and the first to be produced by multi-Grammy grabber Stuart Price. It is also at pains to distance itself from their last album, 2012’ s almost ambient Elysium. Pounding electronica number Bolshy and a collaboration with Example all set the standard for an album as energetic as the duo get. RH
SARAH GILLESPIE ***** Glory Days( Pastiche)
Having never heard anything by Sarah Gillespie, third album Glory Days comes as a pleasant surprise. With her Joni Mitchell / Melanie-esque voice, foot-tapping music, and captivating lyrics(“ I inhaled a thousand bees, I spat out wings like olive pips,” from the almost-samba The Bees And The Seas;“ It’ s hard loving a man who thinks mahogany is a type of wood,” on the cabaret-style Babies and All The Shit), her songs are infectious. Folk narratives to rediscover again and again – close your eyes and think of Woodstock. LN
THE SICK LIVERS *** Motors, Women, Drugs, Booze And Killing( Glunk)
Rumney’ s Sick Livers aren’ t breaking any moulds with this album of pure and simple rock’ n’ roll. At a time when bands are trying multi-genre crossovers it’ s refreshing to hear one unafraid to embrace the fundamentals. Fastpaced guitar, growling bass and guttural vocals are rife throughout this relentless 23-minute album. The lyrics are not the most profound, the song Bummed To Death perhaps being the prime example but you’ ll be dancing and bobbing along too much to notice or even care. LEJ
THE SKINTS ***** Part And Parcel( Bomber Music)
The Skints have been the hot young upstarts of the dub / ska / punk scene for a while now: gigging prolifically, churning out track after catchy track, and supporting everyone from Sublime to Gym Class Heroes. So perhaps it’ s about time they started to get a bit stale, right? Wrong. Part And Parcel jumps and kicks with all the firebrand energy of their last album: the sound of talented young musicians with plenty to say, and the creative wherewithal to say it well. BK
STEPHEN WHEEL **** Out Of The City I Can’ t Sink( Chasing Magpies)
Props firstly need to be given to the CD cover art of Stephen Wheel’ s second album, and its homage to Hitchcock’ s Vertigo featuring Wheel as Jimmy Stewart. Musically it’ s a very layered affair, with thought given to building on elements of guitars, drums, synths, cello, French horn, harpsichord … the list goes on, as do the cited influences including Led Zep and Bowie. Piano driven first single Station stands out, as does proggy six-minute closer The See Throughs Are Selling Me Out. RH
TOM MOULTON *** Philly ReGrooved 3( Harmless)
The Philly Soul sound is known for its lushness and grandiosity and, on Philly ReGrooved 3, the extended remixes of Tom Moulton( who was doing extended disco mixes before remixes or indeed disco existed) gives each track at least six minutes to fully flaunt it. Depending on your opinion of The Spinners and the Trammps, this is either a wonderful indulgence or it all sounds a bit samey by the time you get on to the second disc. SE
VARIOUS * Funk Globo: The Sound Of Neo Baile( Mr Bongo)
Baile funk is party music from the favelas, all raucous and raw and was big in 2005( well M. I. A