New Year - 2001 - Newness Ends

When the Kadane brothers -- Matt and Bubba -- disbanded Bedhead, it was at the height of that band's creativity and excellence. Wherever they went, well-deserved critical acclaim seemed to follow, and for good reason: Their music was intricate, touching, and emotional to a degree few bands ever reach. Bedhead's final album, Transaction de Novo was particularly affecting. The New Year is led (and all its songs are written) by the Kadane brothers, who were apparently less taking a break from each other than from the project they had created. The New Year's debut album, Newness Ends, comes after the band had played only a handful of shows, and while it has obvious similarities to Bedhead, the reason for the name change is also apparent. The most blatant difference is the tempos on Newness Ends. Whereas Bedhead records rarely made it past a crawl, these new songs take a similar songwriting approach and hit the gas a bit. The first track, "Half a Day," announces the difference with a bouncing rhythm, something heretofore not seen by the Kadanes. The true test of Newness Ends' greatness, though, is whether it would stand on its own as a debut album by a group of unknowns, without having to live up -- or down -- to die-hard fans' expectations. Clearly it does, blending the brilliant writing and playing of these two slow rock pioneers' past an present. It's a step sideways into amazing, only partially discovered territory.

1 Half a Day Kadane, Kadane 3:56
2 Reconstruction Kadane, Kadane 3:21
3 Gasoline Kadane, Kadane 3:34
4 Great Expectations Kadane, Kadane 2:40
5 Simple Life Kadane, Kadane 3:29
6 One Plus One Minus One Equals One Kadane, Kadane 4:23
7 Alter Ego Kadane, Kadane 2:44
8 The Block That Doesn't Exist Kadane, Kadane 2:38
9 Carne Levare Kadane, Kadane 2:37
10 Newness Ends Kadane, Kadane 3:19

¡Aquí!

Jarboe - 2005 - The Men Album (2CD)

Disc 1

1 This Is Life Jarboe 6:01
2 Found DeSouza, Jarboe 3:21
3 To Forget DeSouza, Jarboe 4:17
4 Reason to Live Child, Stanley 5:09
5 Redeemer (Lion) Jarboe 1:33
6 A Woman's Dreams Jarboe 7:42
7 Into Feral Jarboe 1:54
8 Feral Blixa Jarboe 2:07
9 Feral Jarboe 8:37
10 Your Virgin Martyr LeBan 7:15

Disc 2

1 This Is Life, Meridien Howard, Jarboe, Ross 5:54
2 Angel David Jarboe 4:04
3 Dark Strong Sauce Jarboe 0:44
4 Bass Force/Angel Jim [Low Rider Mix] Jarboe 8:36
5 Torn Kiss Torn 2:17
6 Penance Izzo, Jarboe 8:41
7 Subtraction Jarboe 4:53
8 Jarboe Feral (Durga) Jarboe 1:08
9 When the Sun Rises Jarboe 2:56
10 Edward Life Jarboe 12:52

¡Aquí!

Smith, Elliott - 2000 - Figure 8

Judging only by his earlier, bare-bones indie-label albums, it seemed highly unlikely that Elliott Smith would turn into the ambitious arranger and studio craftsman of his lushly textured Dreamworks debut, XO. A big part of that shift, of course, was the fact that Smith had major-label finances and equipment to work with for the first time; this allowed him to fuse his melancholy, slightly punky folk with the rich sonics of pop artists like the Beatles and Beach Boys. Smith continues in that direction for the follow-up, Figure 8, an even more sonically detailed effort laden with orchestrations and inventive production touches. With a couple of exceptions, the sound of Smith's melancholy has largely shifted from edgy to sighingly graceful, although his lyrics are as dark as ever. Even if the subject matter stays in familiar territory, though, the backing tracks are another matter -- a gorgeous, sweeping kaleidoscope of layered instruments and sonic textures. Smith fleshes his songs out with assurance and imagination, and that newfound sense of mastery is ultimately the record's real emphasis; there's seemingly a subtle new wrinkle to the sound of every track, and yet it's all easily recognizable as trademark Smith. Even if it is a very impressive statement overall, Figure 8 isn't quite the masterpiece it wants to be -- there's something about the pacing that just makes the record feel long (at over 52 minutes, it is the longest album in Smith's catalog), and it can sometimes float away from the listener's consciousness. Perhaps it's that Smith's songwriting does slip on occasion here, which means that those weaker tracks sink under the weight of arrangements they aren't equipped to support. Still, most of the songs do reveal their strengths with repeated plays, and it's worth the price of a few nondescript items to reap the rewards of the vast majority. Fans who miss the intimacy of his Kill Rock Stars records won't find much to rejoice about here, but overall, Figure 8 comes tantalizingly close to establishing Elliott Smith as the consummate pop craftsman he's bidding to become.

		1		Son of Sam	Smith	3:04
		2		Somebody That I Used to Know	Smith	2:09
		3		Junk Bond Trader	Smith	3:49
		4		Everything Reminds Me of Her	Smith	2:37
		5		Everything Means Nothing to Me	Smith	2:24
		6		LA	Smith	3:14
		7		In the Lost and Found (Honky Bach)/The Roost	Smith	4:32
		8		Stupidity Tries	Smith	4:23
		9		Easy Way Out	Smith	2:44
		10		Wouldn't Mama Be Proud?	Smith	3:25
		11		Color Bars	Smith	2:19
		12		Happiness/The Gondola Man	Smith	5:04
		13		Pretty Mary K	Smith	2:36
		14		I Better Be Quiet Now	Smith	3:35
		15		Can't Make a Sound	Smith	4:18
		16		Bye	Smith	1:53

¡Aquí!

Oldham, Will - 2000 - Guarapero: Lost Blues 2

Guarapero/Lost Blues 2 gathers seven years' worth of rarities from Will Oldham, including an unusual reading of D.H. Lawrence's poem The Risen Lord, with a clunky, cheesy drum machine in the background, as well as a radical reworking of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Every Mother's Son." Several of these songs come from BBC sessions, but the sound quality on tracks like "Gezundheit" and "Let the Wires Ring" suggests they were recorded on wax cylinder and transmitted by a crystal set, which, of course, only amplifies the songs' sparse, timeless feel. "The Spider's Dude Is Often There" and "For the Mekons Et Al" are among the most exuberant Palace songs on Guarapero, while Oldham tracks like "No More Rides" and "Sugarcane Juice Drinker" trace his development as a performer and songwriter. Due to the time span it covers, it's natural that Guarapero/Lost Blues 2 is a bit disjointed; nevertheless, it fills in the gaps for Oldham completists and is an entertaining, if scattered, look at some of his musical sketches over the years.

		1		Drinking Woman		2:29
		2		The Spider's Dude Is Often There		4:17
		3		Gezundheit		2:48
		4		Let the Wires Ring		5:20
		5		Big Balls		3:15
		6		For the Mekons et Al		5:36
		7		Stable Will		4:26
		8		Every Mother's Son		6:06
		9		No More Rides		5:06
		10		The Risen Lord	Lawrence	5:20
		11		Boy, Have You Cum		2:51
		12		Patience		3:10
		13		Take However Long You Want		3:55
		14		Sugarcane Juice Drinker		3:33
		15		Call Me a Liar		4:20
		16		O Lord Are You in Need?		3:03

¡Aquí!