Tag Archives: Rock

Ophelia (Natalie Merchant) – Album Review

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The CD Cover - Natalie As Demigodess

The CD Cover - Natalie As Demigodess

I consider Natalie Merchant’s “Ophelia” as the point when her solo career really commenced. She had released an album before (1995’s “Tigerlily”), but that album was more like the closing of a stage than the start of a new one. Conversely, “Ophelia” (released in 1998) is her first truly realized artistic statement, using every device that she wants to use, and letting her own voice and musical vision dominate every single minute of the album.

In actuality, “Ophelia” was a multimedia project – the CD was accompanied by a short video, and stills from the film constitute the artwork of the album. A concept is clearly discernible, although there are songs like “King Of May” that deviate from the overall study of the famed Ophelia, a female figure par excellence, and an obvious choice for Natalie, someone always concerned about the way women are perceived and how these perceptions can end up being lies which are always true.

That is the theme of the album’s eponymous track, and the first thing you listen to when you play the CD. Incidentally, it will also be the last thing you will listen to – an orchestral reprise closes the album. The song studies the character of Ophelia all through history, her feats and the eventual disgraces those achievements were to bring about. The fate of Ophelia reminds me of the words of Yeats: “I’ve grown nothing/being all”. Is Natalie studying the role of women from a perspective that implies so much effort to be regarded as equal did nothing but accentuate differences that were actually small to begin with? And is the result of such a situation that women end up being relegated to submissive romantic roles, such as in the song “Frozen Charlotte”? Continue reading →

Chalkhills and Children (Chris Twomey) – Book Review

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The Cover Of The Book. The Picture Comes From The "Nonsuch" Photo Shot.

The Cover Of The Book. The Picture Comes From The "Nonsuch" Photo Shot.

Named after one of Andy’s most ethereal compositions, this book (first released in 1992) stands as a moving portrait of a band that is incredibly cerebral, and yet has the ability to tug at your heartstrings like few bands in history. That contradiction comes as no surprise. The story of XTC involves the clash between ideals and reality, and that is something that comes across very vividly on this book.

The book has 188 pages. It includes 10 chapters, two sections of black & white photographs and a discography at the end. It begins out of chronological order (the first chapter deals with Andy’s breakdown) and then the story properly starts and it is run without detours or digressions. It is also an “authorized” biography – the book was compiled from interviews with the band members and their families. And most key figures like Todd Rundgren and Steve Lillywhite are also among the interviewees. Continue reading →

Greatest Hits Volume II (Linda Ronstadt) – Compilation Album

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The Front Cover

The Front Cover

This is the companion album to the volume I reviewed last week. It basically gathers Linda’s most salient recordings at the time when her sound began diversifying in earnest. As I explained at the end of my review of Elvis Costello’s “Extreme Honey”, when that happens an artist might not make the best choices as regards which songs he or she ends up performing, and the way these are recorded. That was the case with Linda’s albums throughout this particular period, and as such this compilation has the merit of bringing the very best from those years that could be termed a bit spotty. Continue reading →

Greatest Hits (ZZ Top) – Compilation Album

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You Are Not Going To Ask Why Their Music Is Called "Bearded Rock" by many, are you?

You Are Not Going To Ask Why Their Music Is Called "Bearded Rock" by many, are you?

Two months ago I became acquainted with an American. Upon learning about my active liking for Country music, he advised me to give Southern rock a definitive look. One of the first bands he mentioned to me was ZZ Top.

I must admit that the one and only song of theirs I was familiar with was La Grange. They are not the kind of band that gets airplay in my country. This compilation is readily available everywhere, though, and I decided to give it a go.

Dynamite. The playing of these guys is pure dynamite. I have never listened to people riffing this maniacally. A prototypical ZZ Top would be “Planet Of Women”. Both lyrically and musically, it showcases their from top to bottom.

Musically, it is all about having a good time. These are the kind of songs that get any party going, and keep it running until the end. “Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers” indeed!

Lyrically, it is all about having a good time. Don’t look for any subtext in the songs. You will not find that. ZZ Top’s compositions mostly deal with attraction, love and sex in a direct, unfurnished way that is devilish funny. Continue reading →

Greatest Hits Volume I (Linda Ronstadt) – Compilation Album

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The Front Cover

The Front Cover

Linda Ronstadt’s first major collection of hits surfaced in 1976. It was to be followed by a second volume in 1980. Between them, they give you a good overall insight into a woman that set records in the history of contemporary music, and that showed that women could be up there in a scene predominantly occupied by male performers. Continue reading →

Linda Ronstadt – General Introduction

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A Young Linda Ronstadt

A Young Linda Ronstadt

The number of female figures in music today makes it a bit difficult for members of younger generations to wholly grasp the impact Linda Ronstadt had through several decades before other figures such as Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and who knows who else came along. I am not going to discuss the merits of such performers – all I am going to say is that many of them are not artists but mere entertainers. Linda, on the other hand was, is and will always be not just an artist but a person who promotes art in its purest form, and that has opened a door into music that shows the way to female artists in an industry where roles are sadly (and constantly) painted in black and white. Continue reading →

Action Packed: The Best Of The Capitol Years (Richard Thompson) – Compilation Album

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Where Can I Buy One Of Those?

Where Can I Buy One Of Those?

Although commercially Richard Thompson has never seen wildly successful days, the ‘90s will always remain as the closest he got to mass-popularity. I am more than sure that if the name Richard Thompson rings a bell when it comes to casual listeners, it is all because of songs released in that decade such as “1952 Vincent Black Lightning”, allegedly his most popular composition.

The whole decade Richard’s record company was Capitol. When they parted ways, this retrospective was issued. The CD features songs from every single album he produced during his tenure at Capitol, beginning with 1988’s “Amnesia” and ending with “Mock Tudor” (1999). It also has 2 rarities and a new track where Richard duets with son Teddy. That song is called “Persuasion” and it is a lilting ballad about second chances – definitely one of my personal favorites from this compilation.

In terms of approach, there are countless character sketches where Richard’s acidic vision of humankind is fully developed, including the minor-hit “I Feel So Good”, the startling “Cold Kisses” and “Cooksferry Queen”, a polka which has been drawn from “Mock Tudor”.

Continue reading →

Kiss This (The Sex Pistols) – Compilation Album

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Rotten And Vicious "Grace" The Cover

Rotten And Vicious "Grace" The Cover

What better way to commemorate the post number 77 of MusicKO than reviewing this compilation album? As you know, the Pistols were to release only one “true” album during their turbulent career, and a soundtrack that had mostly farcical appeal. What this compilation does is to take the entire “Never Mind The Bollocks” album, add the best tracks from the “Great Rock & Roll Swindle” OST and throw in a couple of studio tracks that are found in neither album.

The sequencing of the disc is flawless – my hat off to the one who took care of that. The first 4 tracks are the singles from “Never Mind The Bollocks”, and they are followed by the studio rarities “Did You No Wrong”, “Satellite” and “No Fun”, along with some of the best tracks from the soundtrack album (“I Wanna Be Me”, “No Lip” and “Stepping Stone”). Then, you have the remaining “Bollocks” tracks in the order that they appeared on the original record if you were to take away the singles (which here are placed at the very beginning). This means that “Bodies” is followed by “No Feelings”, “Liar”, “Problems” and so on. Once this section ends, you have Vicious’ “My Way”, and the album closes with an alternate take of “Silly Thing”. This time, Steve Jones handles the lead.

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The Great Rock & Roll Swindle (The Sex Pistols) – Album Review

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No Wonder Why Johnny Rotten Badmouths McLaren At Every Turn

No Wonder Johnny Rotten Badmouths McLaren At Every Turn

When I bought this album I was in the middle of my punk heydays, and I don’t recall feeling as enraged ever in my life as when I first played it. I didn’t really get it. And any person who goes into it thinking only in terms of “Never Mind The Bollocks” will be but disappointed.

You see, this was the soundtrack to a widely-banned movie that manager Malcolm McLaren assembled after Johnny Rotten had left. Many were approached by McLaren with a view of becoming the Pistols’ new lead singer, including Ten Pole Tudor and the Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs (one of the most celebrated criminals in history). In the end, everybody (including the original Pistols) handled vocals, and some early recordings featuring Johnny Rotten were thrown into the mix.

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Black Sea (XTC) – Album Review (Part 2)

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This is Part 2 of the review. Don’t forget to read Part 1 for the introduction!

The original album had 11 songs, and the CD rerelease 14. If we had to summarize what XTC achieved here in one word, that would be “consistency”. The album is a true work, and in certain places it feels like a continuous track (some songs actually run into each other).

It is not an easy task picking favorites this time – as I said, there is such a sense of unity that the album is one of the most rewarding listening experiences within XTC’s catalog. What I can do is pick out personal favorites: these would be any of the singles plus the splenetic “Paper & Iron” and “Burning With Optimism’s Flames”. “Paper & Iron” has my favorite performance from Terry on any of their albums – he carries the whole song, takes it wherever he wants and finishes it with a detonation the kind Keith Moon would be proud of. For its part, “Burning With Optimism’s Flames” has a mesmerizing chorus that makes the title of the composition become more than a mere asseveration.  Rather, it turns into a true validation for pushing forwards no matter what. Continue reading →