WOLF ALICE Blue Weekend
( Dity Hit )
By 2017 ’ s sophomore album Visions of A Life , Wolf Alice was rightly designated at uppermost of breakout bands from the UK with the hardware to match : Brit and Mercury Awards and a Grammy nomination , buoyed by Ellie Roswell sensuous yet bullshit-free vocal . Visions ' “ Yuk Foo ” was a punk-feminist anthem signpost of what was to come in 2021 . Blue Weekend is stripped down to the bare studs at several moments by Markus Dravs production , and now Roswell breaches the “ no love songs ” dam wall too . “ Smile ” verses are the nails that stick out of the rehab project , while the 4AD floating chorus is the satin finish on the repaired walls . What ’ s new is Roswell is OK talking about romantic frailties (“ Safe From Heartbreak ”) and grief , subjects she usually avoided on her first two albums . Since the beginning , the band has been able to straddle the gulf between angry-punk feistiness (“ Play The Greatest Hits ”) and grand , willowy harmony-filled choruses (“ How Can I Make it OK ’). Their third album perfects their delivery while not over-exposing them to listeners . They ’ re competent yet hesitant rock stars . On paper , the best kind . When they tour this fall , they ’ ll put an exclamation point on it .
Appearing 11 / 8 at Vic Theatre , Chicago - John Vernon
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GARY NUMAN Intruder
( BMG ) Those who have followed Gary Numan ’ s arc since 1978 ’ s Tubeway Army know there ’ s much more to the synthesizer pioneer ’ s catalog than “ Are ‘ Friends ’ Electric ?,” The Pleasure Principle , and that
24 illinoisentertainer . com july 2021 album ’ s icily paranoid single “ Cars .” 2013 ’ s Splinter ( Songs from a Broken Mind ) and 2017 ’ s Savage ( Songs from a Broken World ) were bracing works of industrial and gothic electronic rock showing how Numan ’ s influence on acts like Nine Inch Nails , Smashing Pumpkins , and Fear Factory has reflected back into his own work . With songs including “ My Name is Ruin ,” Savage was a haunted fable about humankind under duress in a world desertified by global warming . Numan remains concerned about habitability for his children ’ s children , crafting an album laced with science fiction on the way
toward becoming science fact . Intruder increases the alarm sounded by Savage , offering an even more urgent cautionary tale about catastrophic climate change . This time , the central voice is that of nature itself . Mother Earth has seen her once-beloved human children become callous and selfish , operating as a virus . She ’ s mad as hell , and she ’ s not going to take it anymore . “ You are death , and I am betrayed ,” sings Numan in his inimitable and supple voice during cinematic opening cut “ Betrayed .” The song incorporates Middle Eastern melodies and neo-progressive flourish a la Porcupine Tree . The mood scarcely relents for the remainder of the album . The grim title cut “ Intruder ” fuses thundering , gothic metal with synthesizer atmospheres echoing Numan ’ s early singles , amplifying the sense of lurking danger that Peter Gabriel spun in his 1980 song by the same name . This time , however , it ’ s not the shadowy intruder speaking . Indignant Earth names humanity as the interloper and sets about exorcising it . “ This was always your one home ,” sings Numan atop . “ Don ' t you wish you ' d just listened more ?” Dark-wave textures and moody rumination envelop the hypnotic pulse of “ The Gift ,” as Earth describes the remorseless ticking of the doomsday clock set by man . “ Is This World Not Enough ” criticizes those with a warped vision of creation as a divine gift to exploit rather than nurture . “ I am real , and Heaven is the world you know ,” sings Numan as the voice of Earth . With its grim guitar riff and insistent breakbeat , “ Saints and Liars ” similarly castigates those who offer blind devotion to the divine while neglecting the planet that sustains us . Earth welcomes partnership with her offspring but doesn ’ t hold much hope during “ I Am Screaming ,” a song illuminated by twinkling music box sounds . “ You ’ re wel- come to die with me ,” she warns . The tone turns tender during “ A Black Sun ,” led by a lonely piano melody and mournful strings . The song describes a childhood full of bright potential that has crumbled into ruin and tears . “ And it Breaks Me Again ” evokes the sense of embattled parents reeling from life ’ s cruel blows and shattered dreams for their children . The gloom lifts slightly only during “ Now and Forever ,” while Numan sings as a devoted father offering unconditional love and steadfast support even as the inevitable end approaches . Numan ’ s daughters Raven and Persia reprise their roles from Savage , joining their proud dad in song here and elsewhere . With “ The End of Dragons ,” Earth remembers the love held for her wayward and long-vanished children .
Numan has adopted the role of the sullen street-corner prophet wearing a sandwich board reading “ the end is nigh ,” protesting to anyone within earshot . However , he ’ s done this as a legacy artist who is still creating riveting music when he could coast upon his status and past accomplishments . Intruder echoes the eco-warning of the Police ’ s “ Walking in Your Footsteps ,” updated with something close to resignation in the era of Greta Thunberg . The captivating heavyweight vinyl presentation stretches to double-album length , packed with thrilling music to move the body and spark the imagination . It ’ s also an unrelenting , full-throttled call to take action before it ’ s too late .
Appearing Oct 10 at Park West Chicago – Jeff Elbel
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PAUL AND LINDA McCARTNEY RAM 50th Anniversary LP
( Capitol / UMe )
Ram is latest album from the Beatles family to celebrate its 50th birthday , celebrated here with a half-speed mastered vinyl pressing in a gatefold sleeve . Following 1970 ’ s homespun McCartney , RAM found the McCartneys combining home-recording on their farm in Scotland with traditional studio framework to produce more meticulous fare . The album features contributions from soon-to-be Wings drummer Denny Seiwell and Steely Dan ( not to mention Van Morrison ’ s “ Brown- Eyed Girl ”) guitarist Hugh McCracken . RAM produced Paul McCartney ’ s first post-Beatles # 1 single with the Abbey Road – styled medley “ Admiral Halsey / Uncle Albert .” McCartney has cast the nostalgic song as a sort of apology to the generation that came before , and a remembrance of his own beloved Uncle Albert . Linda McCartney is prominently heard in the song ’ s uplifting “ Hands Across the Water ” chorus , answering Paul ’ s vocal . “ 3 Legs ” is an easygoing blues-pop shuffle masking what many assumed to be a jibe at McCartney ’ s splintered Beatles bandmates . “ Too Many People ” takes more overt shots at estranged soul-brother John Lennon , with lines including “ you took your lucky break and broke it in two .” Paul ’ s lyrical themes are generally simple ( sometimes goofy or even a childishly gross , as on the musically cooking “ Smile Away ”) and light , but the musical arrangements of album cuts like “ Dear Boy ” show his inventiveness in full flourish . The ukulele-driven “ Ram On ” and poison-penned “ Dear Boy ” mark the return of McCartney ’ s fascination with lush Beach Boys-styled pop symphonies and affinity for bouncy Harry Nilsson-styled pop , with echoes of the then-unreleased Smile tracks like “ Child is Father of the Man .” Linda ’ s unaffected vocal takes the lead role for saucy retorts alongside Paul ’ s polished delivery during the romantic “ Long Haired Lady .” “ Monkberry Moon Delight ” is a giddy nod to songs like “ Love Potion No . 9 ” and Screamin ’ Jay Hawkins , who eventually recorded the song himself . Paul ’ s vocal becomes increasingly unhinged , while daughter Heather sings a bubbling background vocal that mimics a trumpet section . The chugging “ Eat at Home ” and acoustic-based “ Heart of the Country ” reprise McCartney ’ s sense domestic bliss and the joy of the rural setting away from frantic city life . The album concludes with the orchestral flourish of “ The Back Seat of My Car ,” a pensive piano-based song reminiscent of “ You Never Give Me Your Money ” that had originally been presented to the Beatles . Although released as a UK single , the ambitious arrangement remains a hidden treasure to be rediscovered by many contemporary fans .
– Jeff Elbel
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THE WEDDING PRESENT Locked Down & Stripped Back
( Scopitones ) David Gedge ’ s penchant for acoustic
versions of their songs goes back to 1987 ’ s “ Give My Love To Kevin ” when the band issued a surprise 7 ” version B- Side of their George Best album track . Fast forward to 2020 when the Gedge ’ s “ At The Edge of The Sea ” festival in Brighton was cancelled because of the pandemic . Gedge salvaged the event by producing an ‘ online ’ version of the festival . “ For The Wedding Present ’ s contribution , we picked twelve tracks to rework in a ‘ semi-acoustic ’ style , and it was fascinating to see how stripped-back arrangements brought out different aspects of the songs , “ Gedge said in his press release . With Louise Wener and Jon Stewart ( the WP ’ s newest guitarist ) of Sleeper sitting in , the acoustic-y versions their earliest material including “ A Million Miles ” and
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