In the mix: KXUA staff review their CD picks
KXUA Staff
Issue date: 2/16/06 Section: Lifestyles
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by Olivia Meeks, KXUA Staff
Artist: Cat Power
Release: The Greatest
Label: Matador
Chan Marshall, aka Cat Power, has built a reputation on crippling insecurity. Fans of this reclusive indie darling have reveled in the bittersweet melancholy of Ms. Marshall for more than a decade, and for many, the beauty of Cat Power has been in listening to her struggle against impending internal collapse.
The Greatest, Marshall's most recent project, finds the tortured protagonist gaining strength and winning the struggle. Recorded in Memphis, Tenn., The Greatest soaks in the rich musical history and bluesy feel of the culture. Marshall enlists seasoned session musicians from the Memphis scene, like the legendary "Teenie" and "Flick" Hodges, who nudge her through songs at a quicker clip, as well as bringing in R&B, gospel and country-folk influences which expand and enliven her sound.
New listeners or previous skeptics might find that the record offers an up-tempo, Southern-fried Cat Power that retains her lyrical and emotional depth. Longtime fans might wonder who this girl singing doo-wop over a horn section is, but don't fret. The brooding, fragile Cat Power of yore is still here.
"Hate" features her signature despondency and barbed guitar riffs, and the gorgeous title track has the balladeer at her most poignant. The Greatest shows Ms. Marshall can be more comfortable in her own skin without forsaking her sultry, yet vulnerable allure.
File under singer/songwriter, indie rock.
For fans of Patti Smith, Elliott Smith, Beth Orton.
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by Joel Bunch, KXUA Staff
Artist: Tortoise & Bonnie "Prince" Billy
Release: The Brave and the Bold
Label: Overcoat
OK, so this album is a little weird. Will Oldham and the guys from Tortoise present an album's worth of covers from bands ranging from the Minutemen to Springsteen to Devo.
The music is eclectic throughout the album, proving Tortoise as a very versatile group of musicians. They put an interesting touch on just about every song. (Check out Oldham's Portuguese on Track 1). There are a few weaker songs on the album where Oldham's vocals sound bored and the music is less experimental and less interesting. For the most part though, this album is very enjoyable.
File under post-rock, indie rock.
For fans of anything by Will Oldham or Tortoise.
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by David Prater, KXUA Staff
Artist: Neko Case
Release: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Label: Anti
Neko Case has become more popular in indie rock circles these days because of her collaboration with The New Pornographers.
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is a reminder that Case is more than just that girl from that Canadian band.
Neko Case is a songwriter of first rate. She writes with the wit and passion of a poet, and arranges her simple guitar/bass/drums band to make the most of them around her haunting and smooth voice.
The lyrics echo Southern gothic themes, especially, "Star Witness," which follows a young woman who lost her love in accident.
Perhaps the most aching moment of the song, and indeed the whole album, is when Case's voice soars and sings:
"Trees break the sidewalk and the sidewalk skins my knees / There's glass in my thermos and blood on my jeans / Nickels and dimes on the fourth of July wrote off in a crooked line."
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood follows the path that Case began early in her career: quiet, beautiful, melodious alt. country that really distinguishes her as an imaginative and talented musician.
File under alt. country, indie rock.
For fans of The New Pornographers, Liz Phair, Aimee Mann.
Artist: Cat Power
Release: The Greatest
Label: Matador
Chan Marshall, aka Cat Power, has built a reputation on crippling insecurity. Fans of this reclusive indie darling have reveled in the bittersweet melancholy of Ms. Marshall for more than a decade, and for many, the beauty of Cat Power has been in listening to her struggle against impending internal collapse.
The Greatest, Marshall's most recent project, finds the tortured protagonist gaining strength and winning the struggle. Recorded in Memphis, Tenn., The Greatest soaks in the rich musical history and bluesy feel of the culture. Marshall enlists seasoned session musicians from the Memphis scene, like the legendary "Teenie" and "Flick" Hodges, who nudge her through songs at a quicker clip, as well as bringing in R&B, gospel and country-folk influences which expand and enliven her sound.
New listeners or previous skeptics might find that the record offers an up-tempo, Southern-fried Cat Power that retains her lyrical and emotional depth. Longtime fans might wonder who this girl singing doo-wop over a horn section is, but don't fret. The brooding, fragile Cat Power of yore is still here.
"Hate" features her signature despondency and barbed guitar riffs, and the gorgeous title track has the balladeer at her most poignant. The Greatest shows Ms. Marshall can be more comfortable in her own skin without forsaking her sultry, yet vulnerable allure.
File under singer/songwriter, indie rock.
For fans of Patti Smith, Elliott Smith, Beth Orton.
--------------------
by Joel Bunch, KXUA Staff
Artist: Tortoise & Bonnie "Prince" Billy
Release: The Brave and the Bold
Label: Overcoat
OK, so this album is a little weird. Will Oldham and the guys from Tortoise present an album's worth of covers from bands ranging from the Minutemen to Springsteen to Devo.
The music is eclectic throughout the album, proving Tortoise as a very versatile group of musicians. They put an interesting touch on just about every song. (Check out Oldham's Portuguese on Track 1). There are a few weaker songs on the album where Oldham's vocals sound bored and the music is less experimental and less interesting. For the most part though, this album is very enjoyable.
File under post-rock, indie rock.
For fans of anything by Will Oldham or Tortoise.
-------------------
by David Prater, KXUA Staff
Artist: Neko Case
Release: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Label: Anti
Neko Case has become more popular in indie rock circles these days because of her collaboration with The New Pornographers.
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is a reminder that Case is more than just that girl from that Canadian band.
Neko Case is a songwriter of first rate. She writes with the wit and passion of a poet, and arranges her simple guitar/bass/drums band to make the most of them around her haunting and smooth voice.
The lyrics echo Southern gothic themes, especially, "Star Witness," which follows a young woman who lost her love in accident.
Perhaps the most aching moment of the song, and indeed the whole album, is when Case's voice soars and sings:
"Trees break the sidewalk and the sidewalk skins my knees / There's glass in my thermos and blood on my jeans / Nickels and dimes on the fourth of July wrote off in a crooked line."
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood follows the path that Case began early in her career: quiet, beautiful, melodious alt. country that really distinguishes her as an imaginative and talented musician.
File under alt. country, indie rock.
For fans of The New Pornographers, Liz Phair, Aimee Mann.
