by Michael Caldwell
\n
\nWitchcraft <\/b>
\nThe Alchemist<\/i>
\n(Candlelight)<\/p>\n
With their third album, Swedish heavy rockers Witchcraft earn points for sounding like an authentic and obscure group from the late 60\u2019s and early 70\u2019s, i.e. Pentagram, Wishbone Ash, and Atomic Rooster. But they lose points for sounding like an obscure group from the era. Based on your preference, additional points can be added or subtracted for lead singer\/guitarist Magnus Pelander\u2019s voice, which can sound like he\u2019s channeling Jim Morrison via a watered down Glen Danzig.<\/p>\n
High scores are obtained when the quartet resign themselves to emulating Black Sabbath. \u201cHey Doctor\u201d is the new \u201cSnowblind\u201d with a hint of \u201cHand of Doom.\u201d But it\u2019s when Witchcraft taps into Sabbath\u2019s more eccentric explorations that they find their winning formula. Case in point, bongos accompany the opening drumbeat on the grooving \u201cSamaritan Burden\u201d which ends as acoustic folk. And the chugging, instant classic, \u201cRemembered\u201d contains a sweet sax solo. The album concludes with the ten-minute title track. Here the quartet combine the sum of their influences and in the process create something more uniquely their own.<\/p>\n
:::
\n
\nBlack Francis <\/b>
\nBluefinger<\/i>
\n(Cooking Vinyl)<\/p>\n
It must be hard to date\u2014much less be married to\u2014someone with multiple personalities. Everyday provides the possibility of waking up next to a stranger. Likewise, loving the music of Charles Thompson has gotten a little more complicated. To music fans, Thompson is best known as Black Francis, main man of the incomparable Pixies. Thompson also records by the name Frank Black, solo artist and leader of The Catholics. Now three years after the Pixies short lived reunion (the group broke up over a decade ago) Frank Black, um\u2026 Charles Thompson, is now Black Francis again. The result is Bluefinger, an album of 11 songs inspired by the late Dutch artist and musician Henry Brood.<\/p>\n
The logical question is, \u201cDoes Bluefinger sound like a solo album Black Francis would have made if he\u2019d released it during the Pixie\u2019s heyday?\u201d How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood? The answer to both inquiries is, \u201cWe\u2019ll never know.\u201d What is clear is that the rousing lead off track \u201cCaptain Patsy\u201d sounds just like a Pixie fan would hope a solo Black Francis lead off track to sound. Over a raw guitar and brisk drum roll, Francis\u2019 first words are \u201cAhhhhhhh\u201d as in \u201cAhhhhh yeah! This sounds like what you\u2019ve been waiting for.\u201d \u201cThreshold Apprehension\u201d sounds even more Pixie-ish. Wait a minute! Is that Kim Deal\u2019s voice lending backup! Nope, it\u2019s just a great imitation. One thing sorely missed is Joey Santiago\u2019s atonal guitar lines.<\/p>\n
But that\u2019s right. This is not 1993. As Frank Black, Charles Thompson has had a lengthy solo career in which time he\u2019s covered new musical terrain beyond what he created with the Pixies. In recent year\u2019s he\u2019s also gotten a little sleepy sounding. \u201cTest Pilot Blues\u201d slows the tempo of Bluefinger and simultaneously the rush of excitement that the prodigal son has returned. Black Francis is back but he\u2019s still also Frank Black. The 1950\u2019s rock n roll vibe of \u201cLolita\u201d is a nice Frank Black type song. The really cool, \u201cTight Black Rubber\u201d goes both ways. Ping pong baby. That\u2019s what it must be like living with a split personality. And so the album goes, back and forth between Thompsons\u2019 personas.<\/p>\n
Charles Thompson doesn\u2019t always strike gold, but he consistently creates precious music. His lyrical wordplay, guitar tones, chord choices and multiple vocal manipulations (in league with Bad Brains\u2019 HR) can do little wrong. He\u2019s an American treasure, which means he tries news things. This also means occasionally he fails. Bluefinger is not one of his failures. It\u2019s a combination of his musical personalities to date and brings us around the bend of his career. Perhaps we won\u2019t come full circle until he releases an album by his given name.<\/p>\n
:::
\n
\nJay Haze<\/b>
\nLove for a Strange World<\/i>
\n(Kitty Yo)<\/p>\n
Expectation is a bitch. When you order vanilla and get strawberry, it\u2019s easy to be disappointed; no matter how much you like strawberry. When you expect your electronic music to have a sub-woofer kick, and all you get is mid-range and tweeter, the clouds descend and the skies grow dark. Initial spins of Love for a Strange World may leave uninitiated listeners twiddling the knobs on their stereo and wondering, \u201cWhere\u2019s the freakin\u2019 bass?\u201d<\/p>\n
The first song, \u201cTroubles I\u2019ve Seen,\u201d sounds like Moby recording on a four-track while immersed in the depths of depression. Over the next seventeen cuts, it becomes painfully apparent that Love for a Strange World is nothing short of Jay Haze\u2019s diary entries set to dark and reduced ambient tracks.<\/p>\n
Haze\u2019s bottomless techno blues work better through a set of headphones where his manipulated vocals and minimalist accompaniment can be whispered into the ear. On track seven he breathes, \u201cDon\u2019t want to feel your pain. Don\u2019t want to know your name, because it\u2019s all the same, everyday.\u201d Such selfish sentiments and Haze\u2019s preoccupation with his own misery reduce the album\u2019s listen-ability. There is little room left for the listener to interject his or her own experiences in order to empathize. Unlike traditional blues that often manage to maintain a sense of hope and provide up-lift, Love for a Strange World should come with a warning sticker alerting those with suicidal tendencies to stay clear. Masochists, who want to take an audio peek at Haze\u2019s digital diary, would do well to listen for short segments at a time, and after ensuring sharp objects are out of reach.<\/p>\n
:::
\n
\nSeemless<\/b>
\nWhat Have We Become<\/i>
\n(Equal Vision Records)<\/p>\n
Seemless is a Massachusetts based super group of sorts. Vocalist Jesse Leach and guitarist Pete Cortese used to play with Killswitch Engage and drummer Derek Kerswill was a member of Shadows Fall. Musically however, Seemless share more in common with Soundgarden and Kyuss than any member\u2019s previous metal project. The quartet\u2014rounded out by bassist Jeff Fultz \u2014produces heavy straight ahead rock with lots of chunky, low tuned riffs, a la Soundgarden\u2019s Badmotorfinger.<\/p>\n
The problem is Leach often sounds more like Glen Danzig than Chris Cornell, yet he lacks the latter\u2019s fist clenching range. Likewise, Seemless\u2019 songwriting doesn\u2019t meet the standard much less improve upon the catalog produced by their influences. The first two tracks from their second album What Have We Become are pure filler. Though there are worthy moments throughout, it\u2019s not until the final cut \u201c\u2026Things Fall Apart\u201d that the quartet evoke anything unexpected and reveal greater depth.<\/p>\n
Make no mistake, Seemless can throw down. Listeners new to the genre will find the group more than capable of rocking their speakers. Experienced aficionados, however, will have already been there and heard it done better.<\/p>\n
:::
\n
\nLuke Vibert<\/b>
\nLover\u2019s Acid<\/i>
\n(Planet Mu)<\/p>\n
Stick out your auditory tongue and say ahhh! Let Luke Vibert drop some Lover\u2019s Acid on ya-baby. Bug and chill-out to the up-tempo, downbeat, futuristic, retro, space age-bachelor pad, stoner, trip-hop, drum n bass, acid-jazz, electronic melting pot that is Vibert\u2019s latest concoction \u2013 and his fifth full-length album released under his own name (he has also recorded as Wagon Christ and Plug).<\/p>\n
Maybe if the Beastie Boys had continued in the groundbreaking direction of Paul\u2019s Boutique (minus the raps) their instrumental album might have sounded a lot like this. Come to think of it, a few cuts from Lover\u2019s Acid do sound like Beastie instrumentals (minus some of the live instruments). There is a quirkiness that pervades Vibert\u2019s work. Yet, the idiosyncrasies seldom come at the expense of the songs.<\/p>\n
Like LSD, the major downside with Lover\u2019s Acid is that at times you might not be in the mood for the unpredictable ebb and flow of sensory stimulation performing calisthenics between your ears. Vibert\u2019s subtle genre jumping can be jarring when one track, lurking on the periphery of awareness, gives way to another that sets about boring straight through your forehead. To Vibert\u2019s credit, the change in dynamic is largely achieved through his selection of sounds and tones, versus volume or tempo. It is possible to go along for the whole trip in one sitting, and when you\u2019re on the right wave length what a cool journey it is. Now, try making love to it.<\/p>\n
:::<\/p>\n
\u2014Michael Caldwell<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New Music Reviews by Michael Caldwell Witchcraft The Alchemist (Candlelight) With their third album, Swedish heavy rockers Witchcraft earn points for sounding like an authentic and obscure group from the late 60\u2019s and early 70\u2019s, i.e. Pentagram, Wishbone Ash, and Atomic Rooster. But they lose points for sounding like an obscure group from the era. Based on your preference, additional […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[335],"class_list":["post-447","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive","tag-new-music-reviews-by-michael-caldwell"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":467,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2008\/04\/22\/music-reviews-by-michael-caldwell\/","url_meta":{"origin":447,"position":0},"title":"Music Reviews by Michael Caldwell","author":"admin","date":"April 22, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Note - alternate page: http:\/\/reviewermagazine.com\/rvur38music-michael-caldwell-1.htmlMusic Reviews by Michael Caldwell The Sword Gods of the Earth (Kemado Records) With their sophomore invasion Gods of the Earth, The Sword don\u2019t tinker much with the formula they stole from Black Sabbath. And why should they? That same formula was used to create their\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":446,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2008\/02\/17\/high-on-fire-now-by-michael-caldwell\/","url_meta":{"origin":447,"position":1},"title":"High On Fire NOW, by Michael Caldwell","author":"admin","date":"February 17, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"[Literature]High On Fire NOW!Based on a true story* By Michael Caldwell I was an errand boy sent by my boss\u2014not to collect a bill\u2014but some flyers from the print shop.Of course I have to wait\u2026and wait. The print shop, shit! I\u2019m still only in the print shop. Every moment I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":647,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2006\/04\/01\/music-reviews-issue-32-from-kristina-meek\/","url_meta":{"origin":447,"position":2},"title":"Music Reviews, Issue 32, from Kristina Meek","author":"admin","date":"April 1, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Music Reviews by Kristina Meek Desert Rust Cactus Music If the whole CD were like the easy, melodic, gathered-around-the-campfire-drinking-beers first track, Cactus Music would be quite an enjoyable little jaunt. Unfortunately, when Desert Rust picks up the pace and adds thin, strained-sounding vocals, the warm desert night turns ice cold\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":142,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2006\/09\/11\/cd-reviews\/","url_meta":{"origin":447,"position":3},"title":"CD reviews","author":"admin","date":"September 11, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"new CD reviews by Kent Manthie UBZORB (s\/t) (Cordhead Recordings) One cool tune on this record is track 5: \u201cSize Mick\u201d, the chorus: \u201cSeismic waves and Cosmic Rays\/destroy the maze\u2026\u201d Cool, huh, so California. Apocalyptic visions of a California bursting at the seams, earthquakes, fire, death, destruction \u2013 constant reference\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":511,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2008\/09\/15\/new-music-reviews-by-hailey-van-meter\/","url_meta":{"origin":447,"position":4},"title":"New Music Reviews – by Hailey Van Meter","author":"admin","date":"September 15, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"http:\/\/www.reviewermagazine.com\/rvur38music9-15New MusicCD reviews by Hailey Van Meter::: Emily Wells The Symphonies: Dreams, Memories & Parties 2008 With an indestructible base of perfected crafted instruments, Emily Wells\u2019 voice penetrates your eardrums and dances through every echo of your brain. Half-angelic and half-haunting, she brings a certain level of eeriness to a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12359,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2015\/09\/22\/elevating-serra-the-man-and-the-mystic\/","url_meta":{"origin":447,"position":5},"title":"Elevating Junipero Serra, the man, the mystic and the magic!","author":"Reviewer Rob","date":"September 22, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Father Junipero Serra's work for the Spanish Inquisition(you may not have expected this)\"FLYING THROUGH THE AIR AT NIGHT\" So it looks like tomorrow Pope Francis will canonize Junipero Serra (born Miquel Joseph Serre, November 24, 1713, Petra, Majorca, Spain) and make him a \"saint\". Father Junipero Serra founded many many\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "archive"","block_context":{"text":"archive","link":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/category\/archive\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Father Serra may not have liked the hokus pokus but he sported a stylin doo.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/12049696_1019925081386277_4334935291379393565_n.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/447","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=447"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/447\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}