New Wave music reviews

So I'm standin' there chainsawin' up this big ole maple that come down in the recent storms, miserable work, even fer a robust old soul like me. And on the radio comes this song, ``Sick Jones,'' by this band, Tin Huey, the likes of which I've never heard. Dropped my pullsaw and ran straight out to the record store, where I hadda wait six weeks while they ordered it up from some warehouse somewheres. Anyhoo: Having read some now, I realize it's kinda a cliche to say Tin Huey is hard to compare to anything, but I'd say this is the greatest marriage of 1940s country yodel and Slovenian post-disco since founding member Harvey Gold's pre-Huey band the Teabaggers. (They used to do a "War Pigs"/"Deliverance" medley, if you can believe it.) Anyhoo: This is transcendant music and take it from me it'll stop your chainsawin' right now and I mean right now.

I found this little gem in a local thrift store, not knowing that these art-school lifers had managed to cobble together a follow up to the before-its-time "Contents Dislodged During Shipment", released before I was in high school!! I expected some thinly worn imitations of these Devo-bretherens' quirky, jazz-tinged pre-80's glory, and was in for a shock!

I tossed this in while I planned to do dishes or something, and soon found myself drawn into the room ("hey! This is a great record!!") reading the cover and wondering about these guys. Great vocal harmonies and layered tracks, fabulous interplay of instruments, and a panache of humor that doesn't obscure the musical integrity. The high quality and lack of a definitive categorizable sound makes this task difficult (just look at the range of adjectives in the other reviews!) but it stands as the perfect example of what it really is - a 'band' of guys who grew apart geographically, never really 'broke up', and worked/sat on these songs for as long as 20 years!! The 80's quirkiness is here "Otis Says No" and also a smooth 70's progressive/arty feel not unlike Todd Rundgren would be sounding had success escaped him. A dreamy quality pervades many of my favorite tracks, particularly "Reliable Sources" - the most accurate aural description of an extraterrestrial visit since Sonic Youth's "Disappearer". Evocative and seamless, "disinformation" plays like a fine film, sounding more modern (or even post-modern) than dated.

I've been adrift on this wonderful ride for a month now (I think I've played it 50 times) and don't know if I'll ever tire of it. Essential, if you love good quality, imaginative, and well-played music.

Just received and advanced copy of "disinformation" on Future Fossil from Scott Shepard at Time Traveller in Cuyahoga Falls..he's waiting for more copies...so what's the scoop with this..I know some of the tracks are the singles en such from the "Clone" daze...Are all the other tracks "recent" recordings? I've been waiting 15 years for something other than "I'm a Believer" to be released on CD...What's the status with "Contents Dislodged"? Will it ever be released on CD?

"Disinformation" is excellent...the thing that amazes me is that even today, 20 years later, the music fits perfectly into what is the 90's "alternative" (and I use the term somewhat lightly- alternative is to me..Garbage,Luna, Flaming Lips,ect)...the music doesn't at all sound "dated" but more "immediate" Great job in compiling this fellas...the sound quality of the mix is first rate. Just keep me informed

Simply put, this is the classic speed metal live album ever! The 3 man line up of Ian "Lemmy a fiver" Kilmister, "Fast Eddie" Clark & Phil"thy" "Animal" Taylor deliver the goods from the opening note. Motorhead rips through its set starting off with Ace of spades, played even faster than the studio version. Lemmy's gravelly voice & dirty bass sound never let down with Clark's riffs & Taylor's speedy drumming as they continue through "Stay clean", "metropolis", "the hammer", all the way thru to closing the set with a version of "Train kept a' rollin'" that'll have you headbanging forever! Buy this album.

Well if you or anyone of believe that bands like Korn, papa roach or limp bizkit are metal bands........YOU'RE WRONG....
Yes this guys are rock'n'roll.....they are ugly, bad and dirty, and that's what rock is about...
Lemmy & company delivers here a set of classics with an incredible fury, belive me, no other band make a guitar, a bass and a drum kit sound this aggresive. their music is LOUD! and fast.
If you want to know where did all the metal started you shouldn't miss this record, as well as his studio predecesor 'Ace Of Spades'......get it, you won't be sorry

The ultimate heavy metal live album of them all has just gotten even better! Need I say more?

Through the ups and downs with the band over the years Nicola Sirkis has done a great job perservering, and has finally come out on top! I love the new line-up, the new style of music, and the new image... I love it all. OK, so these guys come across as big bad hard core punk/goth rockers at first impression, but not to worry. They're completely harmless. They're Frenchmen. And as Frenchmen do best, they talk of love, passion, and romance.

The music might sound a bit heavier when you first put it on, but you'll quickly get used to the new sound and actually come to embrace it after a few listens. For me it only took two. Some of the songs are hard and fast and then some of them are beautiful and slow. I play Paradize almost every day. It's a great pick-me-upper. There's a youthful spirit, great energy, and great emotion all pent up in this album. So when you play it, play it LOUD!

As usual, when Nicola sings, one always listens to what he has to say. The hermit lifestyle, quite a popular theme in Paradize, never sounded so good and so cool. In a handful of songs, Nicola talks much of staying indoors, locked up, with great fear of the outside world. His lyrics have always served as great inspiration, as well as great insight into some small corners of life. They still do. Some of them may end up meaning something special to you. A few examples are:
- "On se disait quelquefois que c'etait juste une aventure, et que ca ne durerait pas." (J'ai Demande a la Lune)
- "Moi je veux vivre un peu plus fort." (Marilyn)
In Punker, he will ask you several times, "Est-ce que tu viendrais faire le sexe avec moi?" What will you answer? A bit of a bite from Patti LaBelle's 'Lady Marmalade' but definitely one of my most favorite sing-a-long Indo songs.

This album does not disappoint. It still continues on with the Indochine legacy. They do a great job at keeping the new wave/punk/underground/industrial spirit alive in the new millenium.
I'm wishing they were better known in North America, but Quebec will have to do for now. Impatiently and anxiously awaiting the next album and their next visit to Montreal!

The music on this CD is really amazing, and unlike that produced by any US or British rock band I've heard. Even if you don't understand the lyrics, it's worth buying this album just for the music. Having previously heard their Le Best Of album, I was pleasantly surprised to find that this album is quite different: less upbeat but more mature. Each song, from beginning to end, is special.

Lyrics are great, arrangements are excellent, the songs are awesome. A new Indochine. I picked my CD in Quebec while visiting. What a great album to listen to at home or on the road! I also picked the Rita Mitsouko CD and enjoyed the various beats and sounds from both albums. French techno with excellent lyrics.

Joe Jackson can be something of an acquired taste, but apart from his regrettable experiment in big band (Cab Calloway retired 'Jumpin Jive'; no-one else should attempt it), this is a fantastic collection. The 'Stepping Out' stuff aside, I really enjoyed reliving the frenetic energy of the new wave stuff with 'Got the Time', 'I'm the Man', and other songs of that type. This is an extremely solid collection.

Joe Jackson is so underrated it is a crime.

The only artist I can compare him to in that aspect is "The Dan Reed Network" -- go look them up and be mesmerized.

But "You Can't Get What You Want" just so defines the 1980's to me -- it is a splendid song. There it is, the 5th track on Disc 2 -- just click the link and play it on Windows Midea Player or RealPlayer -- isn't that just a great song?

Check out "Steppin' Out" as well -- and if you can -- find the video of "Steppin' Out" -- damn New York City had such a spell on the viewer in the early 80's.

Joe Jackson was one third of the angry young men triumvirate of the British New Wave, standing alongside of Graham Parker and Elvis Costello. But while he may have never received the critical accolades that have held Costello's career in the spotlight for so long, or the maintained the energy of Parker, Jackson has managed to build an incredible, varied body of work. This two disc set encompasses every phase of Jackson's restlessness. From the hyper-active skinny tie pop of the first two albums, to the New York influenced sophistication of "Night and Day" and "Body And Soul," to his erratic but always interesting later material, it is all covered in this set's 38 selections.

Jackson can also claim to have stroked some major old school influence. "Is She Really Going Out With Him" was one of the first of the genre to crack the American Top 40. His debut, "Look Sharp," remains a songwriter's tour-de-force, all energy and crunch with a stunning array of stylized hooks. The darker "I'm the Man" followed suit, with a more expansive lyrical view and one of his early (but terrific) ballads in "It's Different For Girls." The restlessness was already beginning to take hold, and the dub-frenzy of "Beat Crazy" found Jackson striking out in all sorts of directions. A reflection on his past ("Jumping Jive") marked time till he could sort out his next move (along with taking up residency in NYC).

The result was the sophisticated, swinging pop of "Night And Day," Jackson's most fully realized album. From the elegant dance single "Stepping Out" to the knowing ballad "Breaking Us In Two," this was where Jackson made the transition from his new wave past to pop craftsman of the first order. The follow-up, the more urbane "Body And Soul" bordered on pretension though, Jackson's ego was beginning to show. That album did yield one great single in "You Can't Get What You Want," but like the other ballad here ("Be My Number Two"), the album felt more like style than substance. "Big World" suffered from the same pretensions; Jackson wanted to record an entire album with a live audience, but then forbade them from making any noise in the process. It made for a couple interesting and spontaneous songs (best represented here by "Right And Wrong"), it also sounded stuffy and forced.

After that, there were a couple attempts to return to his roots ("Nineteen Forever") and a concept album or two. Of those, "The Man Who Wrote Danny Boy" (from "Night Music") stands out as one of the finest story songs Jackson has ever written. But it was obvious he was running out of ideas, as the telling title of the "Night And Day II" CD would show. That doesn't mean Jackson had gone flat, the songs on the second disc stand up fine on their own. (And the recent "Volume 4" CD is a strong return to form.)

"Steppin' Out: The Very Best Of Joe Jackson" offers a couple bonuses. Jackson took a swing at the reggae classic "The Harder They Fall" as a single/EP and a non album track, "Enough Is Not Enough," makes its CD bow. "Memphis," the great single from the movie soundtrack of "Mike's Murder" graces disc two. All in all, a very strong collection from an artist who's best work not just stepped out, but stands up to the tests of time.

This is truly an awsome cd. I love it a lot. I think that Nena is just a great artist. I mean, she is one of the only artist that I can honestly say that I love every song on the album. Its really good. I would recommend it to anyone.

I purchased this CD while in Vienna this past summer, and it's an amazing album. It has so many classics but they're redone extremely well. I recommend this CD to everybody!

It's great that nena is so popular in so many countries! :)
I only recommend the CD, it's really great. Especially I like "Leuchtturm", "Irgendwie irgendwo irgendwann" and also the English version of it featuring Kim Wild.
These 20 years made Nena very important to Germany! Go on, Nena!

the band who gave us the beavis & butthead classic "i know what boys like," turns out to be a pretty friggin' great new wave pop band. but you have to wonder about a group whose best song turns out to be a christmas song ("christmas wrapping," which is, of course, a rap about christmas). ironically, it was the burst of acclaim the band received after placing that song on a major label christmas album that created the cracks that eventually caused the band to fall to pieces. nevertheless, we now have this set of songs and we should be grateful, all the more grateful because you know we all love it when a band with so-so albums puts out a record that satisfies in one quick swipe everything we might ever need or want from their back catalog.

The Waitresses were a post-punk new-wave band that existed during the early to mid 1980s. None of their original studio albums has ever been released on CD. However, the 15 song compilation CD "The Best Of The Waitresses" is an excellent representation of what the band was all about.

Every one of these songs contains a certain amount of sarcasm and sense of humor. This band was about attitude more than anything else. For listeners who "get it," listening to the Waitresses is a pure pleasure.

The music on this CD is about as good as any music of the 1980s ever got. The playful attitude of singer Patty Donahue, combined with her wise-donkey vocal smirks make this a very fun record to listen to. Combine that with her confidence, and her need and ability to be in control of her life, and you have exactly what 1980s feminism is all about. Donahue is never a victim. Instead, she is in charge - she is in contorl of her life. She makes the decisions.

I don't know if there's much point in me listing any of the individual songs, because every song here is great, and the CD flows exceptionally well from the very beginning to the very end.

Ultimately, when it comes down to it, this is a fantastic CD.

I am hoping that once I learn all the lyrics to "Christmas Wrapping" I will be able to purge that particular song from my short-term memory, but that does not look like it is going to happen anytime soon (I would not mind but I actually have everything wrapped already, thanks, mainly, to this song). The choice at this point is between listening to that catchy little holiday rap within the context of other contemporary Christmas songs or within the context of this album, "The Best of the Waitresses." The Waitresses made their mark with witty and ironic songs of guitarist Chris Butler, including their recognizable hit, "I Know What Boys Like," and the theme for the short-lived by memorable situation comedy, "Square Pegs." The group put out only two albums at the start of the 1980s and their debut effort, "Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful?" was a lot better than "Bruiseology." "The Best of the Waitnresses" has the virtue of taking the best from both, and adding the "Square Pegs" song into the mix. Yes, you can dance to these songs, but you have to pay attention to the lyrics, because lead singer Patty Donahue certainly does (e.g., the telphone bit on "No Guilt." This is a memorable post-punk band that was a lot more than a one-hit wonder (with a television show theme song). Final recommendation: If you want more than the best of the Waitresses, then skip their two albums and check out their live album from a King Biscuit Flower Hour appearance, which has a live version of "Christmas Wrapping." Meanwhile, my turkey was actually too big, but I have plenty of cranberries and I just need to catch my breath. Just be sure you do Christmas right this time.

The Cars hit a formula right from the very start. With Ric Ocasek generally taking the lead vocal, The Cars combined wonderfully wordsmithed lyrics with a solid rock beat to become one of the best New Wave groups. Some people have argued that The Cars, along with Devo and several other groups, created New Wave.

This album is a remarkable debut, with three of the songs released as singles and three others released as flipsides for a incredible 6 of 9 songs appearing as singles - something that few other groups have managed to achieve. The songs are: "Just What I Needed"/"I'm in Touch with Your World" (5/29/78), "Best Friend's Girl"/"Don't Cha Stop" (10/10/78), and "Good Times Roll"/"All Mixed Up" (2/27/79).

I've always had a great appreciation for The Cars' lyrics. They are typically artfully evocative and more intended to evoke emotion than to convey a concept directly. As an example, look at the opening lyrics of "All Mixed Up":

she shadows me in the mirror
she never leaves on the light
and some things that I say to her
they just don't seem to bite

When you read The Cars' (typically Ric Ocasek's) lyrics you feel surrealistic. Once you understand you are to picture images of feelings, or feel the feelings yourself, you gain an understanding of how the singer/songwriter is feeling. It helps that some lyrics are also playful or ironic, which makes some of this music fun.

This CD is probably not a must for your collection if you have the original version. However, the second CD with demo versions and previously unreleased tracks is a great addition to any fan's collection of Cars' music, particularly if you are a big fan.

The Cars insisted they are music performers and not an "act", preferring to be known for their music rather than their ability to look flashy or jump around on stage. Fortunately for us, the listeners, that desire translates into musical quality and sincerity. This music has a pop feel to it, but with enough of a hard edge that pushes it towards the boundary between pop and hard rock.

The musical style is somewhat dated, feeling like the late 70s music that it is, but it has aged to the point where it is now classic rock. This CD is very solid music for anyone a fan of The Cars, of late 70s or 80s music, or anyone looking for something a bit out of the mainstream that has a good solid rock beat.

Of course you already have The Cars' debut album. This is all about disc 2 - the demo versions of the songs are great to listen to and it's fun to see what changed from the demo to the final album versions of the tracks. There are even some bonus tracks of demo songs that were never released, a few are quite good.

Get this CD, throw it in your car and let the good times roll!

The Cars probably had more Top 40 hits than any other New Wave band for several reasons. Ric Ocasek wrote clever pop tunes that have aged well, and his voice gave the Cars a unique sound along with bassist Ben Orr, who could sing in any range or style. The combination of Elliot Easton's catchy guitar hooks, Greg Hawkes' keyboards (which veered into techno pop territory without being pretentious), and David Robinson's drumming style (that turned the beat around when you least expected it), made them stand out. Their demos prove they were a tight band with some occasionally weak harmonies, but to be successful, they needed a producer like Roy Thomas Baker to take them to the top.

Rykodisc Records originally released "Changesbowie" in 1990 to take advantage of David Bowie's "Sound and Vision" world tour that year. The tour itself was to promote Bowie's catalogue being released on CD by the small, then-independent label.

Despite being docked one star for its pointless re-mix of the #1 hit "Fame," this Bowie hits collection remains the best career-spanning, one-disc retrospective of his career. Taken together, Bowie's stylistic ch-ch-ch-ch-changes form a template of 70s rock; "Rebel Rebel," "Suffragette City," and "Jean Genie" constantly shift and evolve while never edging closer to the listener. Even after nearly 30 years they remain cool, strange; lyrics vaguely out of reach with music updating the hybrid British soul ("Fashion," "Golden Years"), British blues ("Ziggy Stardust"), British music hall. Few other than Bowie could kidnap American music styles to match such free-flowing lyric imagery. Even with the personal, painful vignettes of "Young Americans," this remains among the least sensitive, least intimate music any solo performer has ever made (at least until Nile Rodgers comparatively warm but trademark style on 1983's huge hits "Let's Dance" and "China Girl.")

The exciting time of discovery between Bowie fans and the CD format has come and gone. Bowie shifted his copyrights to Virgin Records, re-released his catalogue on the original LP form (at full price), and removed the bonus tracks that made those Rykodisc sets a revelation. This import remains faithful to Ryko's original approach; it, and the other Bowie CDs Ryko released, are of better value than either the new Virgin releases or RCA Victor originals, worth picking up wherever available. "Changesbowie" was victim to record company changes, but remains David Bowie's essential compilation.

This is a fine compilation of 75 minutes worth of some of David Bowie's most popular songs. Is it perfect? No, but how could it be, when everyone has different favorite songs? Notable American hits that are missing are: "Under Pressure" with Queen, "This is Not America" with the Pat Metheny Group, "Dancing in the Street" with Mick Jagger, "Day-In Day-Out" and "Never Let Me Down". There are too many missing British hits to mention. Probably the most questionable decision was to include a 1990 remix of "Fame", instead of the original version. Still, it's an excellent sampler of Bowie's work.

Label changes can create headaches not only for the artist but for the music buyer. During Bowie's RCA years, there was ChangesOneBowie and ChangesTwoBowie. When Ryko bought his back catalogue, (Space Oddity to Scary Monsters) a single Changesbowie CD, consisting of his old RCA singles and EMI singles came out in 1990, and this is what launched the discovery of old Bowie for me.

Absent from this 18-song greatest hits is anything from The Man Who Saved The World, Low, and Lodger. However, the essentials are here, such as "Space Oddity," "Changes," "Ziggy Stardust," "Rebel Rebel," and the three Let's Dance singles that catapulted him to a new audience, myself included.

Well, if there's going to a single disc of Bowie's greatest hits, this would probably be it for me. This is available only as an import and is the best place to get "John I'm Only Dancing," which was added as a bonus track on one of Bowie's Ryko reissue albums--I think it was Ziggy Stardust. Also included here is "Fame 90," which is perfect if you don't want to buy the Pretty Woman soundtrack.

This is a mere condensed pocket history of David Bowie. Small wonder that in order to get the full effect of Bowie's material, the Singles Collection 1969-1993, a more complete but less portable collection, was released three years later.

remix? or just a collection of quieter tracks?
there is very little that would be different from just copying thse tracks from their orig cds and putting them together on one disc.
i am a long-time aon fan, so i thought i would give it a try. it is nice, but the "remix" aspect should not be pushed as a selling point.

if you don't have these aon albums, look over the other reviews and if you are intrigued, give it a spin: aon can do ambient as well as outrageous.

The second phase of Art of Noise ( everything after the album "Who's Afraid of the Art of Noise?" ) did not thrill me at all. The novelty duets and cover versions ( Tom Jones, Maxx Headroom, Duane Eddy, etc ) to me just ruined a formerly great artistic collective. Having said that, this ambient mix collection of some of Art of Noise's second phase material is one I cannot live without. I play it at night to relax, in the morning for something less abrasive, or after clubbing to chill out. All praise must go obviously to Youth, the mixing producer, and his DJ partner on this particular project, Alex Patterson of the Orb. They give life and wonder and a sense of astonishment to what had none of these things before. Five stars, gentlemen. Very well done.

My single favourite CD ever. Wow, I never thought I'd say that, but it's true.
This is a collection of the most beautiful music and immersive atmosphere. Very relaxing. Not for partying.
Put it on, kick off your shoes and close your eyes ... you will be transported to wondrous musical spaces.

It's so pleasant - kinda like a mental massage.

Recommend it? heck... I'd buy it for you if I could!

remix? or just a collection of quieter tracks?
there is very little that would be different from just copying thse tracks from their orig cds and putting them together on one disc.
i am a long-time aon fan, so i thought i would give it a try. it is nice, but the "remix" aspect should not be pushed as a selling point.

if you don't have these aon albums, look over the other reviews and if you are intrigued, give it a spin: aon can do ambient as well as outrageous.

The second phase of Art of Noise ( everything after the album "Who's Afraid of the Art of Noise?" ) did not thrill me at all. The novelty duets and cover versions ( Tom Jones, Maxx Headroom, Duane Eddy, etc ) to me just ruined a formerly great artistic collective. Having said that, this ambient mix collection of some of Art of Noise's second phase material is one I cannot live without. I play it at night to relax, in the morning for something less abrasive, or after clubbing to chill out. All praise must go obviously to Youth, the mixing producer, and his DJ partner on this particular project, Alex Patterson of the Orb. They give life and wonder and a sense of astonishment to what had none of these things before. Five stars, gentlemen. Very well done.

My single favourite CD ever. Wow, I never thought I'd say that, but it's true.
This is a collection of the most beautiful music and immersive atmosphere. Very relaxing. Not for partying.
Put it on, kick off your shoes and close your eyes ... you will be transported to wondrous musical spaces.

It's so pleasant - kinda like a mental massage.

Recommend it? heck... I'd buy it for you if I could!