The Bloody Lovelies
(Cheap Lullaby)
There is a disturbing trend among American rock 'n' roll bands. Many have to go to Britain to get any recognition. The British press recognized the White Stripes, The Strokes and The Black Rebel Motorcycle Club long before they were noticed in America.
The Bloody Lovelies, who are on Cheap Lullaby Records in Los Angeles, took a page out of The Sir Douglas Quintet's playbook and have taken a British sounding word and thrown it in their name for possible UK credibility. But the Anglo illusions do not end there. Lead singer Randy Wooten's vocals sound like David Bowie countless times on The Bloody Lovelie's release .
begins with missteps which aren't repeated throughout the album. The \Me"" in ""You Don't Love Me,"" clearly does not refer to The Beatles ""Michelle,, which they plagiarize here. The concept of a singer that sounds similar to David Bowie covering a song similar to ""Michelle"" may sound like a good time, but it isn't. A little later in the album, ""You Could Die"" starts out with poorly produced miniature Soft Bulletin-like distorted drums.
Soon, though, The Bloody Lovelies get on track with ""Star,"" which has processed vocals and desert rockabilly music. They peak next with ""Lonely Town,"" which sets them in singer/songwriter mode with a lazy country beat and an emotive chorus. They kill two birds with one stone in the chorus by getting the song title and album title out of the way, "" I had a girl with and a little money/But she left me in lonely town."" ""Lonely Town"" is twice as long as most songs on the record, which is a good thing because it is at least twice as good as the many of slightly boring rock songs that follow.
It is a good thing that they stop rocking for the last song ""A million Years From Now."" Wooten leads the song with just the piano and a great melancholic vocal. Slowly the band enters until they crescendo in a singsong chorus. The arrangement is very clever and it gives the song a floating quality when the hand claps and overdubbed vocals come in. ""Lonely Town"" and ""A Million Years From Now"" both have a unique quality and identity that owes heavily to Wooten's piano and vocals, which The Bloody Lovelies lack when miming Bowie or the Beatles.
The Bloody Lovelies are just not a powerhouse rock band. Wooten can write decent rock melodies, but when they rock, Bowie impressions come out to no ones benefit, and although the rest of the band is solid, they have a glam/arena rock style that seems awfully derivative. They should stick to piano-driven melancholic pop; these songs are their strength and are perfect for rainy days and late nights.
--Eric Van Vleet
Zero 7
(Elektra)
Air's Moon Safari was an album that nobody knew we were missing. In it, the French duo mixed a Bacharach-like sense of melody with analog synthesizers to create some truly beautiful, dreamy songs that, despite their influences and means, ended up sounding pretty timeless. Besides hitting the trendy coffee shop music scene like a stylish atomic bomb, the album, more importantly, took on the role of bedside music for hipsters everywhere when they were knocking their collective Converse sneakers. Zero 7 must have taken note of this and the trio of producers, employing similar influences and means, would have become the purveyors of modern-day electronic lovers rock on this side of the Atlantic if only they weren't English. The follow-up to their well-received first album, , is a quality release that doesn't break any new ground, but they maintain the same airy (pun very intended) digital soul sound that made their first record a substantial hit (as far as down-tempo mood music is concerned).
Zero 7 have appropriated the Moon Safari formula, lounge instrumentation with electronic flourishes, extremely well, and without the burden of Air's experimental leanings, they've left us with a ridiculously listenable album. is the type of record that can hang in the background pleasantly or its subtleties can be closely appreciated via some quality headphones. It's an extremely well-produced album, filled with expertly placed guitars panning in and out of earshot and graceful, understated keyboard lines that breezily float along the record's length. The breathy, seductive vocals of the many collaborators only add to the sultry feel of .
The aptly titled first track, ""Warm Song,"" opens the album on a positive note, shimmering with Mozez's smoothly sung lyrics, strummed acoustic guitar, and some great soulful flute playing towards the end. ""Home,"" the first of two singles (though many of these songs could work well as singles), starts with a quiet heartbeat drum machine-beat, picked guitars and features Tina Dico's impassioned vocals. The song gradually adds layer upon layer of digital and analog melodies that lead to a brilliant (ahem) climax. is sexy stuff, and only after two tracks can one see why Zero 7's first album was so conducive to late-night love-ins.
""Somersault,"" the next single, sounds like a less sedative Norah Jones song in a very good way. ""Over Our Heads"" slows the record's momentum down a bit, but ""Passing By"" recovers it with some funky Clavinet playing. The title song, an instrumental, allows the listener to focus on Zero 7's impeccable ability to interweave organic elements with otherworldly electronic sounds. ""The Space Between"" is another Tina Dico piece that seems overly similar to ""Home"" at first, but once the cascading sound of the horns appear it becomes one of the more moving numbers on the album.
""Look Up,"" a welcome up-tempo number, and ""In Time"" introduce a new facet to Zero 7's sound: a sense of Americana that, in light of earlier songs, make comparisons to Air less relevant. Producer Nigel Godrich puts his stamp on ""Speed Dial No. 2"" with -style guitar lines (seriously reminiscent of OK's ""No Surprises""). ""Morning Song,"" another warm Mozez-sung track, ends the album with meticulously arranged strings, pianos and guitars that intertwine together to create a fittingly great ending to an entirely impressive and truly cohesive album.
This album is a reason to be glad regardless of whether you have somebody lying next to you, which must be what Zero 7 had in mind. In the end is a deeply satisfying listen under any circumstances.
-Adam Delewski
The Negatones
EP
(Melody Lanes)
Rarely are short EPs worth reviewing, and, at 10 minutes, is barely a short EP. But The Negatones have fit more good music than many full length albums into an album the length of a single (and a badly named one at that).
Combining surf-rock guitar and garage-rock bass, Strokes energy and Eels fusion of instruments, The Negatones stint in the New York rock scene has garnered them a celebrity fan club. The Strokes are on their e-mail list, Lee Renaldo and the Mooney Suzuki have both given the band kudos.
And for good reason. The Negatones are one of the best things in rock 'n' roll right now. features a production heavy sound that still seems disorganized. The Negtones effortlessly use distortion and xylophones and layers, and meld sparse genres into layered songs. One song merges Stone Roses psychedelia merges with Beatles chord progression and a '70's pop sunny chorus. The next uses jazz hi-hat to back blistering bass.
On the strength of a 10-minute-long EP, The Negatones have set a high bar for the full length release which should follow it. With albums like , they will soon make a mark in the music scene.
-Joe Uchill
