American Alternative music reviews

Jesus Lizard are simply not as others. David Yow's lyrics and vocal delivery are like listening to the paranoid ramblings of a deeply twisted, and sensitive person broken by this absurd, violent, yet humorous world. Like some kind of punk rock Charles Bukowski, he deals in psychic pain and character observation (or confusion) unlike few others. He doesn't wallow in self-serving despair, rather his angst and anger is primarily directed outward in a kind of celebration of the absurd. His screams and pained vocal delivery provide a huge contrast to the surgically precise, yet no less disturbed math-metal-punk of guitarist Duane Denison, drummer Mac McNeilly, and uber bassist David Wm. Sims. They proceed like some kind of unending bad dream that you don't want to wake up from, that you can't wake up from. Relentless and abrasive and dark, yet not without humor, Jesus Lizard's Down is a unique listen from one of the odder and truly alternative bands of the '90s. Also recommended: Head/Pure (their first EP and album in one CD), Liar, Goat, and Shot.

Some lyrics from "Din":

Get me up from this terrible place
Because it's dangerous down here
There are splinters and splinters
Flying like arrows around
I turn around to see one huge black tongue
That means to lick my very being
And the sun is about to set
On the head of my shadow
so get me the hell out of here
so get me the hell out of here

This is the best Jesus Lizard album, with its unique arrangements and stellar songwriting.
Or is it "Liar," with it's amped-up crunchiness?
Now that you mention it, "Goat" is pretty essential.
The singles/rarities collection "Bang" is also hard to beat.
"Head/Pure" might be more difficult to access until you're into them, but then you get even more of their best songs.
Heck, even "Shot" (despite being the "major label sellout post-Albini album") is most assuredly rocking.

This album is probably my favorite JL album, even compared to Liar.
It's just crushing, and bass lines (like on 50 cents) just don't come around often enough. While i am glad to see bands such as the Dennison Kimbel Trio rise from the ashes, the Jesus lizard are just so seminal, and i think this album really captures why.

As a huge phan who is always trying to spread the word of phish, I find that this is the best album to start out with. This is by far not my fav studio release, but I have found that this is the album that non-phans are most open to on the first hearing. Now, this version in particular is pretty sweet for the long time phan, due to the extra studio tracks. I must say it was very much worth the extra bucks it cost, just to get a nice clean version of Driver and Mist. I also find that this album, although lacking the nice long jambased songs we have come to love (with the possible exception of Piper) does have a tight feel to it. The flow is a bit odd a points, but the two extra tracks at the end give the album a sense of closure, unlike the american version, which ends so abruptly. If nothing else, get a version of this disc simply for "First tube" one of the most digady dancy songs from our fav vermont boys, period. This song kicks, hard core!

By all means Farmhouse is a great album, probably the best all studio, (not including the crowd noise inserted) album Phish has relased with the exception of Rift... although all of the albums generaly appeal to me. I gueses the main question is are the two extra songs and some japanese writting worth the extra 15 dollars for the same album? Well frankly many people would say that 32 dollars is deffanitly a resonable amount for some whistles and bells. not to mention the ability to not pay sales tax on this item makes it even more appealing.

this cd is all about the two bonus tracks. to have the studio versions of driver and mountains in the mist, are a must for a true phish phan.

besides the bonus tracks you get the latest effort from the phabulous phour known more comonly as PHISH.

This is neat little dinosaur jr CD with a bunch of old songs and a couple of new ones. Chunks is an ok song its better then throw down. Just like heavan is amazing so is show me the way and the rest is good too. Buy it if you want to.

"Chunks" is a song by Last Rights, a Boston hardcore band who only played one show in 1983 in Greenfield, MA and then put out a 7" record on Taang! that notoriously had a rare sleeve of Hitler (limited to 100). Mascis and Barlow were in the MA hardcore band Deep Wound together and they played at that show, and I always took the song to be them just giving a nod to their roots on this. Interestingly, a couple of times before the recent reunion of the original lineup of Dinosaur Jr, Lou came onstage at a couple gigs J was playing and they covered some of their Deep Wound material. The Last Rights stuff can be found on a joint cd also featuring Negative FX put out by Taang!. Deep Wound stuff is actually kind of hard to find, although Lost and Found put out a bootleg of it.

Dinosaur jr's first 1991 release. Its not much of a cd the only new song is keep the glove and then there is the two that appered on the just like heavan single, as a matter of fact the whole single is on here. If you want to buy this here is what your looking forward to.

Little fury things (from your living all over me)
This one is a great kinda depressing song with the crazist feedback scream ive ever heard. Lee ranaldo (sonic youth) does the back ground lyrics to this one as well.

In a jar (from YLAOM)
This one is a dinosaur jr classic its mostly base playing but the vocals and lyrics are awesome and it really gets a good kick in the ass at the end.

Show me the way *cover* (from YLAOM)
Last song on YLOAM is an OK song a cool mix of distortion and a solo but the vocals kinda get annoying after 2 mins.

Freak scene (from BUG)

The only song from bug on this album. This song kinda put dinosaur jr on the map for higher class indie rockers. I love the guitar and lyrics AND vocals *another dinosaur jr classic*

Keep the glove (new)

This is a folk rock song with the crazist solo at the halfway point this one is perfect to crank because the solo is LOUD and crushing one of J mascis's best songs.

Just like heavan *single*

I remember seeing this music video a few years back but the video is rarely shown. As you may or may not know this one is a cure cover and an amazing cover too. Its a smart blend of acoustic and hard rock and instead of the cures nice little "you" in the chorus you get the whole band screaming "YOU!" then j mascis goes back to normal vocals. What an amazing song.

Throw down *off of the single*

Very Very short filler song (I think 45 seconds) of acoustic. If you listen to brand new love by sebadoh, after the song is over you can hear this song in the background for some reason.

Chunks *off of single*

Chunks is a cool punk song made for some rights group of whatever but the song has freak scene style guitaring with Henry rollins style vocals. What a great blend.

By this cd if you dont have enough money to get both your living all over me or bug but if you do get them and not this, this one is for people who want every cd by the band (like me).

hey all,

Kevin Seconds proves once again that he's an insightful lyricist. 7 Seconds are perhaps thee most dedicated Hardcore band. Beginning twenty years ago they have stood the test of time. 7 Seconds are able to profoundly express their convictions of unity, the strength of an individual, anti-racism, and gender equality without limiting themselves to one audience. They make it known that they aren't "hard" and everyone is welcome to share their music and message. 7 Seconds remain more progressive than the typical hardcore band because they don't distort their ideals by preaching a straight edge philosophy or a "my crew your crew" gang mentality.

"Good To Go" demands proper attention once a fan slaps the album on his or her stereo. Wasting no time the album opens up with "Sooner Or Later", a plea calling for the end of cliques which only serve to seperate, very similar to their timeless song "Walk Together Rock Together". Kev doesn't waste his time with smug songs detailing how "legit" and "old school" 7 Seconds are, instead he examines the present, while reflecting on his past without dwelling on the "good old days". one may argue that some of the songs sound a little similar, but 7 Seconds still play with the same passion and urgency that first earned them respect. They certainly dedicate themselves to thanking and conversing with their fans, without having a rock star complexes. Kev remains a very friendly, down to earth individual, how many bands can you name that allow themselves to be as approachable as 7 Seconds?

I had the pleasure of seein' them in NYC and I must say, they put their words into action. It was easily the best show I ever attended, and judging by half the crowd that joined them onstage to sing along 7 Seconds will forever remain a major part of Hardcore.

7 Seconds is part of the reason that some bands still ARE great. Rockin hard 20 something odd years. Although, there is no way to replace awesome bands like 7 seconds, Bad Brains, Minor Threat, Rancid, Blah Blah and such and such. They shape the way for new bands with a new sound. For example, lead singer Kevin Seconds does a split album with Alkaline trio lead singer Matt Skiba, Both of which are incredible musicians. If you decide to purchase this album i highly reccomend 7seconds"The music the message"

one of my favourite bands when i was thirteen and still one of my favs......couldnt have asked for a better record from these guys....fast, tight and fun....great live as well....a no loose situation.

The first time my girlfriend dragged me to hear Paul Brill perfom at CBGB's I was less than enthusiastic. Country-style singer-songwriters are my least favorite artists, as a rule. Much to my amazement, however, I soon found myself singing along to his music. A singer-songwriter extraordinaire, Paul Brill captures the heartache of American life in a manner which is as current as it is timeless. Drawing on influences as diverse as Hank Williams and Bob Dylan, Brill's music is a refreshing body of meaningful work in an otherwise bleak musical landscape. Songs such as "Maybelline" and "Dry Ice" have a sing-along quality that undermines their lyrical depth. Brill is a thinker, and his songs evoke a familiar and ultra-American sadness reminiscent of the work of the Beats. Musically, Brill's compositions are solid manipulations of pop conventions set against a New Country backdrop. Don't let the slide guitar fool you, this is pop music at it's best. Brill has crafted tunes worthy of Oasis, if not the Fab Four themselves.

This CD came highly recommended by a personal friend. The artwork appealed to me enough to take a chance on it. That was a few months back, in April, I believe. Now, in July, I am still struggling to find the tools to pry the disc from my CD player. It simply refuses to leave.

This independent release is simply a work of true art and such a welcome and pleasant surprise to my record and CD collection. My tastes, as most people, range far and wide, from Modest Mouse to the Byrds, Big Star, and so on. It would seem that Brill shares a similar appreciation for good music, or at least, I may flatter myself into believing our tastes are concurrent.

The arrangements are soulful and inventive, and Brill's deft and natural sense of melody and harmony conspire to create something traditional and original at once. The coda to 'Bad Medicine Night' causes me to hum along, nodding my head with the acoustic guitar. The vocal harmonies in 'Caroline' give me pause. And the drums in 'Dry Ice' evoke the following phrase: 'yeah yeah'.

Click on Buy this CD. Insert Credit Card information. Wait for arrival of said CD to your doorstep. Enjoy.

There are no words to describe the originallity of Paul Brill's musical style so i had to come up with new ones: Endoplasmically Reticulous. People from the San Francisco Bay Area are already familiar with Brill's songwriting genius. But with this release he shows his prowess as a complete musician and producer. Each song is carefully crafted with subtle yet sufficiently complex arranging. It features the some of the hottest bluegrass/counrty players in the "Downtown" scene of Manhattan, and as one might expect, the playing is outrageous. Upon first listen the song forms are constructed with familiar building blocks of the folk and bluegrass idioms, but upon closer review, each block plays host to an ornamented symphony of Beethovian proportion. I highly recommend this CD.

Now, to start off, I did like this album. But after reading a few reviews that this is their best work yet, I feel a little opposition is neccessary.
I fell in love with this band after listening to "Recovering the Satallites", and I feel that is Counting Crows' most honest album. I've always seen this band as a search for meaning, and "Hard Candy" seems more like a pit stop.
"American Girls", "Good Time" and "Up All Night" Aree excellent tracks that are good examples of Counting Crows. But a lot of songs seemed a little too sugar coated for my taste ("New Frontier" is the best example of this)
The Bonus track of "Big Yellow Taxi" is a good track in my eyes, only because the music seemed radically changed, and without the annoying back-up 'Shoo-bops'.
Yes, this album was nice, but I still feel that the band is a little far from the mark, and could use a bit of the hard edge they had in "Satallites"

This album is their best work since August and Everything After. I can't imagine a anyone listening to this album and not loving it. Whether you are a long time fan or just starting out, you can't go wrong Hard Candy.
I listen to this album everyday, my favorite tracks are Black & Blue, Up All Night, and Holiday in Spain.
Just like the cover says, this album has 13 new flavors of candy for you. Some are sweet, some are sour, and some are tingling taste of both.
I once said if I could buy one album for everyone in the world it would be August and Everything After. You know what? I just might give them this one instead. Yes. It is that good.
While I don't want to seem ungrateful to Adam and the boys, their music just seems to get better with every studio release, so, lets have another!
I look forward to seeing them on tour and can't wait for them to come to the Seattle area.

Adam and the boys return with true audio "candy" this time. You can hear the magic again in the music. You can hear reflections of the melodic hooks that made the Crows great (something that was sorely missing on the last album)....its the old sound Crows fans love....just updated to help it grow and reach new levels of appeal. Credit Steve Lillywhite (of DMB fame) for finding the soul of the band again!! Even the lyrics reflect a growth and departure from pure melancholy. The songs take the listener around the world from LA to Spain to Miami to the French Quarter. This cd has some tunes that immediately grab you.....American Girls, Hard Candy, Miami, Goodnight LA, Holiday in Spain....and others that grow on you with each time you play it !! Definitely a classic but it may take some listeners a couple spins to digest it !! A five star return....but I would avoid the import and buy the domestic version....the extra tracks aren't worth the extra cash !!!

"Donate Your Bodies To Science You Fools!"
I was laughing so hard during that story, I had to stop the tape..!!!

Why only four stars? The rough bootleg style of recording makes this release pale in comparison to his later work.

By essential, I mean as in 'The essence of..' rather than 'A must buy for everyone who reads this'. Appalling recording quality aside (I think this is another recording-by-walkman job) this is a good CD for a couple of reasons.

The biggest one is that, like a lot of his early offerings, this performance is more bittersweet and poignant than later ones. It's not funny for funny's sake; it's Rollins speaking about things that have happened in his lifetime, and it is his delivery and perspective on these events more than anything that creates the humour.

Another plus about this album is that it has the small-show (and somehow more realistic) dynamic that the later sellout theatre-hall CDs lack. It's a record of where Rollins' shows have come from; hand-to-mouthing it across the country, doing these shows just to buy food and fill in time till the next time he tours with the band. One can gain a much broader insight into the man himself from these CDs as opposed to more recent outings.

Another one that is more suited to the fans than the casual first-timer, but certainly not a worse CD for it.

If you're a fan of hardasses with brains, you'll love just about anything Rollins does. His storytelling style is reminiscent of William Burroughs and his "pull no punches" judgement of the world around him puts him right up there with Robert A. Heinlein. (Which, I expect, would horrify Mr. Rollins were he to find out).

"Human Butt" is a supurb example of Rollins' personal experiences distilled into the storytelling art form. Do yourself a favot and buy this one.

If you have hearty appetite for catchy cotton-pickin, root 'n' tootin', grainy voiced, country rock that sounds somewhat like Counting Crows on an off day, then delay no longer and submit your credit card details immediately, for you will not be dissapointed. You have the Mr Beard seal of approval, and should you be even slightly unimpressed, then I suggest you write a strong letter to either Mr Ramm or Jon (the other two reviewers) as they gave it more stars than me. Enjoy.

I bought this album on the basis of the fact I heard
Pensacola on the radio here in charlotte and then I went to a show.
I was blown away by the talent coming out of these guys at a live show. The song "begin 1000" taps into something rare and
much needed in today's music. Chemistry. The songs are liltful,
ripe for the ears and any discerning music critic would have
to search long and hard to find fault from this album.
The songs overall comes from John's ability to sing with just the

right amount of enthusiasm and woefulness at given right intervals. This is story rock at it best. Using the right amount of balance, tamed guitars and quiet melodies they cut through the
the mold of what rock music should be and form their own opinions
on the matter. When you get inside the heads of these men you can
hear the influence of REM with the right amount George Jones and
find yourself lost in a world of sound, structure and purpose.
But if Jolene is taking you there, who wants to leave?

'In The Gloaming' is a true masterpiece, it is rare that you find an album that has both instant appeal and simply gets better every time you listen to it. John Crookes haunting lyrics combined with soaring guitars make for an album that begs to be listened to again and again. The only thing that betters this album is the spectacle of experiencing Jolene live.

The magic just isn't here anymore. I think that every cramps fiend's affection comes from the fact that these guys struggled through pretty much every kind of hardship a band can face (except for a lack of purpose, drive, and motivation) throughout the wild and wooly days of the early punk scene. even the punks didn't get these guys. This album is just too artificial sounding to be a real cramp's album. it sounds like a novelty album for kids. I loved "sinners", though. and for that I gave it another star.

Visually, the Cramps had lost none of their impact with this collection and the supporting tour, yet there is something of a pause here in their oeuvre, for this is the point at which the Cramps leapt from basement nightmares to graduate school appreciation that invoked the use of pretentious French words by irony aware critics. And with that audience solidified-however much the Cramps may disdain a fickle esthete fan base-the expectation for "Flame Job" was high. Instead, the Cramps did it their way and delivered yet another Cramps album.

Stand out songs that invoke your ooze are "Ultra Twist" and "Swing the Big Eyed Rabbit," but a departure is the nearly haunting "Strange Love" that begs to be covered by Mazzy Star, or at least Hope Sandoval. This curious tune and "Sinners" in the mix suggests that the Cramps were on the border of flirting with torch songs as a step towards innuendo over double-entendre for lyrical sexual allusions. As the album loses with a definitive well worn cover of Route 66 this possibility remains unexplored. Ivy's guitar work on "Route 66" is exemplary, both spare and alluring, is among her finest work and further demonstrates that she is a more accomplished artist than eye candy in a leotard.

In sum, this album does not equal "Songs the Lord Taught Us" or "Stay Sick!" for sheer appeal, but it has more merits than simply being an object for Cramps completists.

Pretty much your usual Cramps record here.No complaints though.'Flamejob' is no doubt a highly energetic fueled CD that's sure to fully please any Cramps fan,rather he/she be old school or new.Plenty of foot-stompers here,like "Mean Machine","Ultra Twist"(miss seeing the video),"Let's Get F**ked Up",their abuse song "Naked Girl Falling Down The Stairs","Trapped Love" and "Route 66".As the Cramps seem to always deliver the goods,another great psychobilly release to hold and to cherish.A true keeper.

Mannheim Steamroller is excellent music, however, this collection is "Seasons - A Fresh Aire COLLECTION" and is NOT what I would call CHRISTMAS music.. I am disappointed that i did not recieve CHRISTMAS music. I do not intend on keeping it.

I own every single cd and or song that Mannheim Steamroller has ever made which is ALOT! They are a great band to listen to for all ocasions...Christmas obviously is #1 but the Halloween and what not or good too...The fresh Aire Series is my all time favorite...1-8 are great to listen to and relax. I would suggest buying all the cds. Chip Davis is a close friend of mine as well and he is a great man

I received my first introduction to Fresh Aire while I was in New Zealand as a Mormon Missionary in 1984 - I was listening to some music by Sky and my companion commented that if I liked that I would probably like Fresh Aire. It wasn't until 6 months later that I was actually with someone who had tapes of Fresh Aire (like many people, I never heard of Mannheim Steamroller until some time later) At the time I didn't know just which album the tapes were of (indeed I later found that they were a mixture of the first three) but I became totally hooked the very first time I heard Toccata and the Cricket.

I later bought a vinyl copy of Fresh Aire, still later a cassette of Fresh Aire II and finally a CD of Fresh Aire III. When I found this boxed set on Amazon, I couldn't stop myself ordering it, and it now takes pride of place in my CD collection. When I want to relax and tune out, it's on with the headphones and on with one of these CDs (my favourite is III, but I like them all). Chip Davis is an incredible musical talent.

It is hard for me to qualify exactly what it is I like so much about Fresh Aire. As a musician my response to music is as much an emotional as a technical thing. If I were to try and analyse what appeals to me about this music it would probably have a lot to do with the masterful blending of the sounds of nature, traditional instruments (recorders, harpsicords etc.) and electronic and more modern instrumentation. Combine all that with some great cutting-edge stereo effects in the studio (what I like to refer to as the "music moving through your head" feeling) and you have something that is quite unique.

Looking at the albums individually, my least favourite would be Fresh Aire IV, but even that had a couple of tracks I like. The first three, however, to me would have made it worth getting the set even if I hated 4 (which I don't). I have since listened to Fresh Aire V, Fresh Aire VI (both of which I would consider at least as good as the first three) and Fresh Aire 7 which I was not so sure about. Admittedly I've only listened to 7 once, but it just didn't seem to grab me on an emotional level like the other albums for some reason. That may simply be a matter of individual taste.

Despite already having the first 4 albums, I'm considering getting the re-released set containing all 8 albums. It's probably worth noting for anyone looking at buying this set that American Gramophone have remastered all the earlier 7 albums and re-released them with 8 in HDCD (i.e. 5.1 digital surround)