NEW MUSIC

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 15/12/2001 (9076 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NO DOUBT / Rock Steady (Universal)

When a band that’s flirted with ska for most of its existence puts out an album called Rock Steady — an early forerunner of Jamaican reggae and ska — you’d expect the group in question to return to its roots.

No Doubt does nothing of the kind. Underneath It All, a dancehall-pop hybrid produced by the legendary Sly & Robbie, is the only genuinely reggae-drenched track on an extremely polished album that races from disco to modern rock and ’80s-style power-pop over the course of 13 songs that don’t have a lot to do with each other.

The lack of focus stems from the concept: Rock Steady matches No Doubt up with a succession of high-powered producers. William Orbit makes singer Gwen Stefani sound like a latter-day Deborah Harry on the dancy Making Out. Prince has better luck with the synthesized soul-pop of Waiting Room (no, not the Fugazi song) while The Cars’ Ric Ocasek is the best match for the band on Don’t Let Me Down and Platinum Blonde Life, which both bubble with the bouncy energy of what used to be called New Wave.

That makes sense, given No Doubt’s recent history: Last year’s generally ignored Return Of Saturn disc had an ’80s streak running right through it. The follow-up has some interesting moments, but the stylistic divides aren’t that easy to breach. 3 stars out of five

— Bartley Kives

ROCK

VARIOUS

I Am Sam Soundtrack (V2/BMG)

Covers are a tricky business: Artists must respect a song without merely aping the original version. That being said, many of the musicians on this album of Beatles covers — a soundtrack to upcoming Sean Penn vehicle I Am Sam — get it exactly right.

Sarah McLachlan’s simple, acoustic Blackbird sounds as if it were written for her, while the sexy swagger of Chocolate Genius’s Julia sounds as if he wrote the song himself. Others, like Aimee Mann and Micheal Penn, find The Beatles’ fingerprints all over their own material but don’t stoop to rehashing the classics.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said of Stereophonics or even the usually solid Ben Harper, who stick to slavish imitation. Then again, we are talking about covering the music of the greatest songwriters in the history of pop music, so you really can’t go wrong. 3 stars>/b>

— Jill Wilson

HAWKSLEY WORKMAN

Almost A Full Moon

(Isadora/Universal)

This 28-minute appetizer of a CD by Toronto’s most eccentric singer-songwriter is supposed to be a Christmas album. But aside from demented elves, it’s tough to envision the intended target audience.

The wildly creative Workman replaces the tacky sentimentality of an ordinary yuletide album with wacky tunes about being sick all through the holidays, the horror of extended-family, post-dinner dishwashing marathons and what appears to be a Boxing Day recipe for soup made out of leftovers.

The sound is vintage Workman: Over-the-top cabaret crooning, Billy Joel-inspired piano pop and exuberant guitar rock. Does that work for the holidays? Who knows. But it’s quirky enough to rate as solid EP. 3-1/2 stars

— B.K.

FOLK & ROOTS

ROYAL CITY

Alone At The Microphone (Three Gut/Outside)

Guelph, Ont. singer-songwriter Aaron Riches gets right at the dark heart of country and folk music, exposing some raw and disturbing emotions. Though his macabre, morbid lyrics have the paranoid sheen of urban disillusionment, they’re perfectly suited to the Appalachian twang so often paired with a good murder ballad.

That’s not to imply that the album is entirely sombre. But even the ostensibly upbeat songs have a grim streak. Opening track Bad Luck has an irresistible hook but a pessimistic outlook and Dank Is The Air Of Death and Loathing needs little explanation.

This spare, spooky and beautifully chilling affair, replete with banjo, ghostly piano, hollow echoes and eerie noises, is never less than compelling.
4 stars

— J.W.

JAZZ

GREG LOWE

Life So Far (Big Cheese)

Winnipeg guitarist Greg Lowe knows his way around a fretboard. He plays electric and acoustic guitars over the 10 tunes on this indie disc and is joined by vocalists on three tunes, including Jennifer Hanson. Lowe can be an amazing guitarist, burning up the strings on one cut and playing a beautiful acoustic tribute to his parents on Golden Anniversary Waltz. This is more contemporary than straight-ahead jazz, but really it’s just a good guitar album (www.greglowe.com). 4 stars

— Chris Smith

KURT ELLING

Flirting With Twilight (Blue Note/EMI)
<brChicago singer Kurt Elling is a hard guy to label. On one hand he's the coffeehouse intellectual with the smart, witty lyrics and delivery. On the other, he opens a ballads album by putting vocals to bassist Charlie Haden's solo from Quartet West's version of Moonlight Serenade.

He’s on slightly different ground here. Gone is his regular band, except for pianist and musical cohort Laurence Hobgood. They’re joined by the likes of first-call musicians Peter Erskine (drums), Marc Johnson (bass) and Jeff Clayton (saxophone), among others. This is Elling’s fifth album for Blue Note and he continues to keep alive the great, if thinly populated, art of male jazz singing. 4 stars

— C.S.

BLUES

DR. JOHN

Creole Moon (Blue Note/EMI)

This is not the Dr. John we’re all used to. The bluesman’s trademark gravelly voice grooves to a hip-hop beat on lead-off track You Swore. Later, he apes the Godfather of Soul on Food For Thot. Could Such A Night’s day be done?

Dr. John’s familiar bluesy style shows up a couple of times on this disc, but he wants to remind listeners about funk’s forgotten role in New Orleans music. Dr. John prescribes a healthy dose of it; Some of it works and some doesn’t.

I wouldn’t put this spice in my gumbo, but you’ve got to give some, uh, props to the chef for giving it a try. 2-1/2 stars

— Alan Small

HIP-HOP

GHOSTFACE KILLAH

Bulletproof Wallets (Epic/Sony)

The most consistent member of the Wu-Tang Clan, Tony (Ghostface Killah) Starks continues on the winning path laid down by Ironman while his bandmates struggle.

Like vintage vino, Ghost gets better with age. His lyrics have always been puzzling but he gets away with it because he pours them out like syrup. His flow really is remarkable.

Previous release Supreme Clientele was a sample-heavy truckload of timeless soul. This time, Ghost employs live vocalists throughout Bulletproof Wallets. He also ups fellow Wu-Tang member RZA’s involvement and they leave bodies in their wake on Walking Through The Darkness and Maxine.

Wallets would be more consistent if he did away with the extended guest list and featured Raekwon on more than five tracks. Less is more, Ghost, but he more or less remains bulletproof. 4 stars

— Angelou Flores

DANCE/ELECTRONIC

JELO

Live.Mix@Baseline (Project/Koch)

DJ/producer Jelo’s debut is the first DJ mix album recorded live by a Canadian artist in front of a Canadian crowd. With more than 1,000 screaming people in Halifax’s Reflections Nightclub and more waiting in the drizzle outside, Toronto’s latest export rips through 20 tracks of tough hard house, clubby techno and slick breaks with a energetic and party-proven mixing style.

Relying heavily on exclusive tracks and his own material, Live.Mix@Baseline is a raw club experience that shouldn’t disappoint anyone looking to take in a night of thumping beats, without leaving the comfort of your own home. Jelo spins at the Pyramid Cabaret tonight. 3 stars

— Anthony Augustine