Joe Pug

Messenger

Lightning Rod Records

4 out of 5 stars

With a million dollar voice and a songwriting pen torn from the fingers of the old-school folk tradition, Joe Pug has created one hell of a debut album. Messenger delivers on all levels and with Pug’s current success sitting on the laurels of two EPs, I can officially say the man’s got the talent to carry one’s interest for a full-length album.

A college dropout, Pug (whose real name is Joe Pugliese) worked as a carpenter by day and spent his nights practicing his musical craft.  Eventually, those nights morphed into recording sessions at a Chicago studio where a friend snuck him into the late night slots after other musicians had cancelled. The outcome, Nation of Heat EP, drew critical praise almost immediately upon its release in 2008. While gigging in Chicago, Pug decided to take a grassroots approach to self-promotion. The plan was simple: At concerts and through his website, Pug offered existing fans unlimited copies of a free two-song sampler CD to pass along to their friends.  To the new fans that contacted him via email, he would also send out CDs at his own expense, even paying the postage.

Inside each package was a personal note thanking the fan for helping to spread the word. The response was overwhelming—to date, Pug has sent out over 15,000 CDs and seen his fan base grow ten-fold. Without the backing of radio, Pug managed to turn his small dedicated fan base into a daisy chain of Pug-promoters that stretched across the country.   Having created a substantial fan base to tour on, Pug played more than 200 shows, recorded another EP, 2009’s In The Meantime, and finally got the backing from Lightning Rod Records to settle down to record his debut album, Messenger.

Messenger is a to-the-point affair featuring 10 songs, clocking in at just under 38 minutes.

There are no extended solos, no songs over five minutes in length and no fluff. It is all about Pug’s songs, voice and acoustic guitar. While most of the songs are delivered in an acoustic fashion similar to both his previous EPs, a few do feature full-band backing, including drums. The album’s title track is an upbeat affair and will most likely be the album’s lead single. While the track sounds like something that could be played on country radio, it still has Pug’s unmistakable lyrical charm and swagger which floats in and out of the musical passages.  “The Door Is Always Open” starts out with Pug’s voice and guitar until a barrelhouse rhythm section propels the song into its chorus. In all, the accompaniment works just fine and shouldn’t irk Pug fans too much. If anything, it makes his music even more accessible, which I believe was the goal for this release. The accompanying musicians don’t distract from Pug’s acoustic charm — the ethereal pedal steel guitar that creeps into “The Sharpest Crown” being a perfect example.

The most striking thing about Pug has to be his age and the maturity he shows beyond it. While he is only a tender 25 years old, his vocal delivery and songwriting gives the illusion you are listening to someone much wiser than you will ever be.

Hard to believe this is only his first full-length album.

— Jonathan Keller

Brian Jonestown Massacre

Who Killed Sgt. Pepper?

A Records

3.5 out of 5 stars

Brian Jonestown Massacre is a very beautiful thing. The band, which centers on the musical leadership of notable eccentric Anton Newcomb, is probably never going to glide into the mainstream. They have been around in various incarnations for nearly 20 years and seem fine floating under the mainstream radar. In a way similar to Frank Zappa’s recording philosophy, Brian Jonestown Massacre seem fine with creating music only for themselves — disregarding the temptation to create engaging singles. In their tortured process they have been able to create some of the most interesting experimental music in recent memory.

Formed in 1990 by Newcomb, The Brian Jonestown Massacre floundered in relative obscurity in the 1990’s, releasing seven albums while struggling with personnel changes mostly brought on by Newcomb’s own struggles with heroin addiction. The 2004 documentary film DIG!, chronicled the band’s struggles and quickly immortalized Newcomb as a tortured artist and as a narcissistic asshole incapable of keeping it together. Although the film provided a surge in the band’s underground popularity they soon slid back into relative obscurity, releasing only two full-length studio albums and a few EPs since the documentary’s premier.

After Newcomb’s apparent success in rehab, the band reconvened to record 2008’s My Bloody Underground. The album showcased the band’s avant-garde approach to producing and recording with its space-rock/neo-psychedelic sounds. When listening back it is clear to see how that album was a musical prelude to Who Killed Sgt. Pepper.

Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? continues that musical pattern with the introduction of electronic elements, industrial sounds, creative production, and cohesive ideas.

With a current lineup consisting of nine members, Brian Jonestown Massacre recorded Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? throughout 2009 in Iceland and Berlin. The album is full of industrial elements and, for the first time, finds each song centering on a hard beat-driven groove.

The album’s first track, “Tempo 116.7 (Reaching for Dangerous Levels of Sobriety),” really sets the stage for the entire album. It opens with textured feed-backed guitars, hand drum rolls and a looped drum beat. Soaring over the top is an obscure keyboard melody line and electronic sounds that roll from speaker to speaker. The track breaks down with various vocal samples, enters sonic chaos, then comes out clean on the other side, refraining the gentle intro. It is highly interesting, engaging and a total shock to hear. It is like nothing the band has ever done before.   Granted some of the songs on Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? simply border on the edge of experimental mess (“White Music,” and “Detka! Detka! Detka!”), many of the album’s tracks work extremely well, including the upbeat and pulsating “This is the First of Your Last Warning (Icelandic),” the guitar driven “The One,” and “Super Fucked,” which is a perfect mix of acoustic guitars and hard industrial beats.

Brian Jonestown Massacre is not going to change the face of music as a whole, but they have a knack for making interesting music. Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? is not going to appeal to large audiences, but it is an album that should be noted as one of the more interesting releases of the year thus far. I can’t wait to see what this band does next.

— Jonathan Keller

For a full version of this review, visit

www.marqueemag.com and click on CD Reviews.

INU

Monster (EP)

Independent

2.5 out of 5 stars

The San Francisco based producer “Count,” who has worked with DJ Shadow, Radiohead and New Order, has been the mad scientist in the indie super group Inu on their latest LP. They’ve just released an EP entitled Monster, a precursor to their full-length release due later this year.

Monster has a “sound” for sure. It kind of reminds me of something that would’ve come out in 1988, or maybe 1998? Inu’s sound is fairly simple and “poppy” in its production. There are textural synth patch pads and dry rhythm guitar tracks throughout. There isn’t much instrumental flash as the prominence of vocals and drum beats outshine the rest of the production — a slightly sad thing because the vocals are fairly monotone.  It’s not that the vocals are bad per se, but from what I can tell, none of the melodies sung are outside the range of an octave, and this ain’t Billie Holiday.

Trying to figure out a good comparison isn’t easy, but I’d have to say they sound a little like a really mellow version of Nine Inch Nails mixed in with essence of The Cure, or maybe a more simple blend of Radiohead and fellow UK rockers, Spiritualized, with a dash of Coldplay.

— Chibo Acevedo

Runaway Express

Howlin’ At the Moon

Raven Records

4 out of 5 stars

If you’ve been to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival there’s a 99 percent chance you’ve heard the title track to this album. That track was written by Colorado picker Jim Ratts and bluegrass legend John McEuen, but it was Telluride staple Sam Bush who took the song to number three on the bluegrass charts.

This album, which Ratts says is a 60th birthday present to himself, is a testament to doing things right. Even someone who disdains bluegrass music cannot find flaws in this album’s execution and presentation. From the absolutely impeccable artwork (designed by award winners Greg Carr and Salli Ratts) to the phenomenal production value to the spot-on playing by a giant list of pickers, Howlin’ at the Moon is most certainly a best-foot-forward project, and one that pays homage to a softer side of bluegrass that’s sometimes hard to see in Colorado’s jamgrass scene.

— Brian F. Johnson

Dave Rawlings Machine

A Friend of A Friend

Acony Records

5 out of 5 stars

While the name might not be immediately familiar, you’ve likely heard David Rawlings’ music. He is probably most widely known for being the longtime musical partner of singer/songwriter Gillian Welch. Rawlings has also produced and/or accompanied a wide variety of other artists including Ryan Adams (the Morrissey “argument” at the beginning of Heartbreaker is between Rawlings and Adams), Old Crow Medicine Show, Bright Eyes, and Robyn Hitchcock.

With his new project, David Rawlings Machine, the man who once spent most of his time behind the scenes has decided to step out into the forefront with a fantastic debut album, A Friend of a Friend. Continue — Read more »

Neil Young

Dreamin' Man Live '92

 Reprise Records

3.5 out of 5 stars

When word leaked that Neil Young was planning a series of archive releases in 2005, fans rejoiced at the prospect of finally getting their hands on unreleased archive material, including two fully completed, unreleased studio albums from the 1970s and a plethora of multi-tracked live concerts spanning nearly four decades. In the four years since the announcement, the archive project has yielded a poorly-received (and expensive) boxed set entitled Volume One: 1963-1972, and four separate live concert albums including: Live at Fillmore East, Live at Massey Hall 1971, Sugar Mountain: Live at the Canterbury House 1968, and the latest in the series, Dreamin’ Man Live ’92. Dreamin’ Man Live ’92 should please Young’s fans, especially those who enjoyed his 1992 studio album Harvest Moon. Continue — Read more »

Vinyl

Fogshack Music Volume 2

Avila Street Records

3.5 out of 5

The opening 17 seconds of Fogshack Volume 2 sounds pretty lame, to be honest. But as soon as the intro subsides, the album starts kicking ass and it doesn’t really take a break until its entire 40 minutes has passed.
Fogshack sprung forth from the master reels and outtakes of the veteran funk band’s Flea Market recording session, as re-envisioned by Bay Area production team The Rondo Brothers, along with long time Vinyl producer Tony Mindel. But just to turn it up a bit, in addition to their signature grooves, the band landed Les Claypool, Yossi Fine, DJ Quest and the aforementioned Rondo Brothers.
This is a great remix and showcases some of the mastery with which Vinyl attacks their chosen genre.                                        — Brian F. Johnson

:: CD Release :: Bluebird Theater :: January 1 ::

Vices I Admire

The Politics of Apathy

Independent

3 out of 5 stars

Dave Curtis, Mickey Dollar and Mark Towne met in 2002 while studying at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. During that time they balanced college life with rehearsals, performances, a few DIY regional tours and the release of their first album, Plan B. (recorded at The Blasting Room in 2005).
In 2007, Vices I Admire relocated to Denver and parted ways with its original bassist. The eventual addition of Daniel Battenhouse, who played early on with The Fray, revitalized the group and together they worked around the clock to produce the material that would engender their new album, The Politics of Apathy.
The Politics of Apathy was recorded at Colorado Sound Studios in May/June of 2009. JP Manza (engineer) and Ian Pinder (producer) provided the direction and perspective necessary to capture the varied moods and styles of each song. From the dance-pop inspired “Sweetest Girl” to the anthematic head-banger “Kiss Kiss,” The Politics of Apathy showcases the musical maturation and diverse talent of Vices I Admire.
— Brian F. Johnson

:: CD Release :: Bluebird Theater :: January 1 ::

:: KRFC Live @ Lunch :: January 7 (noon)

Flashbulb Fires

Glory

Independent

4 out of 5 stars

Formerly known as Fiancé, the Denver-based Flashbulb Fires claims to have made Glory as a “cohesive artistic statement and an undeniable return to the album as an art form.” And while the indie-rock quartet gets a little poppy from time to time, I hear more Flaming Lips than I do The Fray on Glory. (Disclaimer: In my iTunes, Flashbulb Fires comes right after The Flaming Lips, and that could have influenced my initial thoughts about this album.)
In fact, some of the tracks do sound very Wayne Coyne-esque, without the acid. But the album is a massive arrangement with countless layers — a real score, rather than a collection of tracks. Flashbulb Fires’ orchestral elements give tremendous emotion to the heavy brooding “no one understands” lyrics. Yet, the band eschews the standard pitfall and lightens up before the whole thing gets too heavy and that’s a critical feature to the album’s greatness.

— Brian F. Johnson

:: KRFC Live @ Lunch :: January 7 (noon)

Meat loaf

Bat Out of Hell: The Original Tour (DVD)

Eagle Rock Entertainment

4 out of 5 stars

On a hot summer’s night I would, indeed, offer my throat to the wolf with the red roses. If I had a time machine and only a few trips it’s a good bet I would go back and see Meat Loaf’s Bat out of Hell tour. It’s always been a guilty pleasure of mine and this DVD is much better than the edited clips that occasionally get spit out by VH1. It’s also a great reminder of how weird and creepy the whole spectacle was in the first place.

Slayer

World Painted Blood

American Records

4 out of 5 stars

Slayer finds their mojo once again, due mainly to the fact that Kerry King’s songwriting doesn’t dominate the album. This is the kind of Slayer record that you could imagine being released right after Reign in Blood or Hell Awaits, but luckily for the younger generation of Slayer fanatics, the band saved it for 2009.

Rakim

The Seventh Seal

Ra Records

5 out of 5 stars

For the casual hip-hop/rap fan Rakim is one of those names that you’re like, “He rules,” but when it comes time to name songs you draw a blank. This album is destined to change that. If the first track “How to Emcee” don’t slap the coke out your nostril and remind you what hip-hop is all about, you ain’t a fan.

John Mayer

Battle Studies

Columbia

2 out of 5 stars

I am not one of those people that like to rip on John Mayer because it seems like the cool thing to do. [Editor’s note: This is most likely a direct dig at the editor of The Marquee, who immediately picked on Keller for even suggesting this review in the first place.]

In the past I have given Mayer favorable coverage when deserving — an example being his 2008 live album Where the Light Is, which I gave 3.5 stars. But, his recent fourth studio effort, Battle Studies, is a major step backward for Mayer as an artist. If a pop star is all Mayer wants to be remembered as, Battle Studies is going to further pigeonhole him into the teen heartthrob image he has seemingly tried to break away from over the past few years.

There is no doubting Mayer’s commercial success. He is easily one of the most successful solo artists of the last decade with four Platinum albums and seven Grammy awards. However, after the huge pop successes of 2002’s “Your Body is a Wonderland” and 2004’s “Daughters,” Mayer quickly shied away from the teen heartthrob image those singles helped create.  

In an attempt to return to his blues-rock roots, Mayer formed The John Mayer Trio in 2005 with bassist Pino Palladino (The Who, David Gilmour, Jeff Beck) and drummer/producer Steve Jordan (The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton).   Palladino and Jordan gave Mayer immediate street-cred and the power trio toured, released a critically successful live album and many who weren’t paying attention started realizing that Mayer was actually a very gifted blues guitarist. The trio allowed Mayer to form friendships with B.B. King, Eric Clapton and a slew of the other blues-master elite. Mayer was finally being recognized as a musician and his fan base was spanning generations. 

Battle Studies is almost a slap in the face to all those who gave Mayer the benefit of the doubt. It is full of slick, uninspired, horribly written pop songs that go nowhere. I am not blasting this album because it is pop. I am blasting this because Battle Studies is simply the worst album Mayer has made — it doesn’t hold a candle to Heavier Things or Continuum, which I greatly enjoyed.

When listening to Battle Studies it is hard not to picture a desperate guy trying his best to write songs that will get him laid. With song titles like “Heartbreak Warfare,” “Half of My Heart,” and “Friend, Lovers or Nothing,” one can’t help but wonder if Mayer can write anything other than a sappy love song.  Lyrically, the album is his shallowest yet. In “All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye” he sings, “Just when I had you off my head / your voice comes thrashing wildly through my quiet bed,” and in the chorus of “Heartbreak Warfare” Mayer boringly repeats the line, “If you want more love, why don’t you say so?”    It is pretty damn mind-numbing.

The only decent songs on the album are the two Mayer didn’t write: Robert Johnson’s “Crossroads,” which is in the style of Cream’s version with an added electronic feel, and Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire,” which was only available through the iTunes pre-order.

John Mayer is a talented artist; however, he is quickly showing that being a great songwriter is not one of his strengths. That said, I am sure  teenage America is going to eat Battle Studies up.

— Jonathan Keller

Light: On the South Side

Chicago 1975-1977 (multi-media)

Numero Group

5 out of 5 stars

This is truly one of the most stunning projects I’ve seen this decade — a flawless and decadent collection of music and photographs which effortlessly transports listeners/readers back to mid-late ’70s Chicago in both sight and sound.

A 132-page hardcover book of photographs by Michael Abramson taken on the South Side of Chicago between 1975 and 1977, Light chronicles the elaborate, audacious and sometimes sleezy lifestyle of the jazz and funk clubs’ patrons. Abramson was unenthused with the artists on the stages of the joints he was hitting. He found the real action to be in the crowd and the photos turn Abramson’s bright flash in their direction.

But what makes this project so overwhelmingly special are the two old school vinyl LPs that come with it, titled Pepper’s Jukebox. Housed in a gorgeous slipcase with the 12X12 book, Pepper’s Jukebox is a 17 track compilation packaged in a sharp gatefold jacket with two inner sleeves crammed to the gills with label scans and stories.

The vinyl does, in an audio format, what the photos do in a visual format —?offer a snapshot of that time and those places with a revealing transparency that has never been done before. While it’s all funk, the funkiness of the funk in this collection is hard to grasp and even harder to explain. With tracks by Arlean Brown, Bobby Rush, Ricky Allen and Lady Margo, to name a few, your woofers will get a bass workout for sure, and the fact that the music is presented on vinyl only adds to the authenticity and charm of the package.

Taking photos and music in together, along with the essay by Nick Hornby, is equivalent to taking a college level course on Chicago between 1975 and 1977, and the volumes of dialog expressed in Abramson’s black and white prints could fill a set of encyclopedias.

This is a must-have for any funk fan, pretty much for any Chicago native, and an absolute trample-people-at-the-store kind of gift for anyone who, in the last twenty years, has longed for the liner notes and artwork of the vinyl era to return. I?can imagine audiophiles by the hundreds lying belly down on their living room floors, not far from their turntables, carefully examining each photo and each track simultaneously in analog bliss. I’d kill to see more releases like this, focusing on different eras and genres. It’s phenomenal!

— Brian F. Johnson