Scissor Sisters- Ta Dah

Color me happy. Color me happy with undertones of excited. Add flecks of joy and a few lines of cheer, and I think we'll have a picture of me after I've listened to the new release by Scissor Sisters. In decades past, rockers and musicians have been inspired by those before them Elvis and The Beatles were inspired by the blues. Bob Dylan built part of his career covering others songs. (Great note about this in this months Rolling Stone.) A Band of Bees burst on the scene with a GREAT retro sound. If you have not yet heard them, go to itunes IMMEDIATELY if not sooner and check them out.
Scissor Sisters borrows heavily from the groovy way out dance sound of the 70's. They waste no time in hooking you with I don't feel like dancin'. Then they grab you by the head and twist slightly with She's My Man. My one lament is that the best tracks on this disc are unairable unless they are dubbed. I Can't Decide and Intermission are both really cool standout tracks on this disc. The rhythm is solid, and the beats are definitely there. The lyrics are a bit of a juxtaposition. If you really listen, they can get a bit dark. I like the combination very much.
There are a few tracks that seem to borrow a bit more of an 80's sound, but that is forgiven. This is a solid disc with little more than a hiccup along the way. Definitely recommended listening if you are into grooving out with a modern retro sound. A definite no brainer---A.

Please Step Out of the Vehicle- Sleeping right & the best in homeopathic medicine

Well, it may not be the most memorable of titles and names, but it's longer than hell!

Howdy ho! Your friendly neighborhood alternative reviewer here with today's installment. Please step out of the vehicle is a another in a long list of bands I have not heard of until now. They have put together what I call a schizophrenic disc. I have reviews a lot of bands that really change up the sound or beat on a CD. PSOV tries to do that, but they seem to confine themselves to a handful of sounds. The first track will certainly get your attention. Opening to the refrains of 80's video games, the opening track quickly decides to lump about 2-3 tracks together to create a song. I'm glad the whole disc did not follow suit. It is an interesting listen, but not the best sound.
It was touched on again in later tracks as a seemingly ordinary little song descended into audio hell for a few seconds before recovering and walking gently to the finish. About halfway through, things mellow out a bit. Real instruments are played, real songs are sung, and real musicianship is heard! I think it actually bears multiple listens in order to grasp the whole thing. They pull off a nice 50-60's retro rock sound at one point, and it's obvious there are a lot of things they want to do musically. I would certainly look forward to see what they go with next.

I was very much on the fence when it came to trying to rate this disc. It's not great, but it's certainly not bad. I settled on a difficult B. I just wish I knew how.

Barenaked Ladies-Barenaked Ladies Are Me

I haven't heard many Barenaked Ladies tunes in my time upon this planet, but I must confess I do own Stunt. They always had a way with rhythm and words that I really enjoyed. I didn't listen for their slower deeper tunes, I like the tunes with pep. The tunes with vim. Vigor, even!
It's now a few years down the road, and the guys have had some time to mature. With families and life in general throwing itself at them headlong, they've hit the studio with some more introspective thoughts, and less of a desire to come up with snappy patter and grooves.
BL are me is a pretty good disc overall. I almost wanted to call it sickeningly sweet, but it really isn't. Yes, the songs have a nice gentle groove to them. Yes, the songs are about aspects of life we deal with as we get older. No, they're normally not my type of songs, but somehow BL make them more palatable for a guy like me.
The sound is the same, but the groove is definitely different.
I must admit I was very happy to see a new disc out. I was a little saddened as I often am when a band matures and tries a different path, but my little heart gave an extra pitter pat as I played the disc. I was pleasantly surprised.
Somehow, this got a B- from me. I can only imagine it was because there weren't really any standout tracks on an otherwise solid disc. Dig?


In other news, I hope to provide an occasional link to song samples and downloads depending on the disc I am reviewing. Stay tuned for more details!

And an even more shocking development has found me falling in love with The White Stripes! I remember it now... watching the Simpsons and seeing their parody of The Hardest Button to Button. It did it for me!