Gotye 'Making Mirrors' album review (for kevchino.com)

Gotye has been playing around the traps in Australia for many years now, so it’s nice to see him finally getting some critical acclaim, especially in the Northern Hemisphere. His latest album, Making Mirrors seems to have taken over the world, with the first single “Somebody That I Used to Know” (featuring Australian female artist Kimbra) charting in the top ten in over twenty countries, six of which were at the number one spot. It also won a whopping six out of a nominated seven ARIA awards in his country of residence, Australia.

With one listen of the album, you can see why. With his expert use of varied instruments, keen ear for sampling and loops, and heartfelt lyrics, Gotye has hit the mark with this album. “Somebody That I Used to Know” is a great track, but definitely not the standout on the album.

“Easy Way Out” is a weighty tune featuring 60s-style guitar riffs and some nice drum fills, with whispering verses leading into a heavy mod-esque chorus. “Smoke and Mirrors” features some old-school-sounding keys, tribal drum beats, and some fine sampling work, a laid-back, eerie tune. This is followed by the modern Motown tribute “I Feel Better” (reminiscent of one of his previous hits, “Learnalilgivinanlovin”—if you don’t know it, look it up), an upbeat, soulful track that makes you instantly feel better (funnily enough). “In Your Light” is about as Australian as it gets as it transports you with an acoustic guitar and some hand clapping into the sunshine on the beach. And “State of the Art” is an amazing tribute to a man and his instrument, an insanely innovative and imaginative song that basically takes you through Gotye’s creative process in his lounge room, all done in a vocal effect akin to Lurch from The Addams Family. Definitely the show stealer for me.

Gotye’s pure talent at bringing together such an eclectic use of instruments, samples, loops, and vocals shines through on this album. It is original, interesting, passionate, and inspiring. He has managed to harness an international flavor while keeping his Australian undertones, which is what makes him unique, and he fully deserves every piece of success and critical acclaim that comes his way.

Mark Lanegan Band 'Blues Funeral' review (for kevchino.com)

Blues Funeral is the latest album to hit the airwaves from the Mark Lanegan Band. His seventh release, and first release of new material in eight years, it would make you think he couldn’t go wrong. But alas, you’d be wrong. Unlike its title suggests, it lacks any semblance of what is generally considered blues, unless the actual death of blues is what he was going for (hence the funeral).

Lanegan’s deep, sultry, smoky vocals are the only thing that holds the album together, along with the one standout track, “The Gravedigger’s Song,” which opens the album with a gritty, heavy bass line, eerie guitars, and spooky synthesizers—a walk of the damned, if you will. After this, the album falls apart like a decomposing corpse. “Riot In My House” and “Quiver Syndrome” are two good basic rock songs, but lack any standout riffs or the edginess we’ve witnessed from the band on albums past. “St. Louis Elegy” features some nice Latin-esque country guitar riffs in the chorus, which would prove handy for a Mexican standoff, and “Deep Black Vanishing Train” is a quieter, moodier piece, with some nice deep vocals and haunting cellos to match. But though the aforementioned are bearable, it seems most on the album are not.

“Gray Goes Black” does nothing of the sort and stays a banal and bland shade of gray. “Ode To Sad Disco” is exactly that—sad, contains elements of disco, and goes for 6.24 minutes too long. And “Tiny Grain of Truth” completely misleads, with any true musical talent being lost in over seven minutes of hippie, trippy, esoteric synthesizer improvisation that makes you wonder if the machine simply got stuck on a loop.

The primary track is exciting and outstanding, which makes the rest all the more disappointing. An avid fan of his past work, it pains me to say it, but I wouldn’t even play this at a funeral.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra 'Unknown Mortal Orchestra' review (for kevchino.com)

One of my most favorite acts when living at home in Sydney was a band from across the waters called The Mint Chicks, hailing from New Zealand. They came, they repeatedly kicked ass, then sadly they seemed to disappear into the musical ether and I always wondered what became of them. Until now…

Mint Chicks front man Ruban Nielson has unleashed yet more of his amazing creative talent upon us in the form of Unknown Mortal Orchestra - a psychedelic plethora of funky, groovy, kitschy 60's sounds fused with epic 60's rock'n'roll and blues riffs, and some of the most get-up-and-dance drum beats I've ever heard. Their latest self titled album is what Austin Powers would have listened to if he'd taken all the right drugs.

Tracks such as 'Ffunny Ffriends' and 'Strangers Are Strange' are definitely the most modern sounding of the album, leaning towards an MGMT sound at times but still utilizing the old school crackle and turntable effects. 'Bicycle' and 'Thought Ballune' really kick back to the old 60's rock'n'roll guitar riffs, coupling them with trippy lyrics and oh so funky drums. 'Jello and the Juggernauts' and 'Little Blue House' go even more trippy with some warped and spaced out effects not unlike that of Donovan's 'Hurdy Gurdy Man'. But stand out track is definitely 'Nerve Damage' with it's dirty gritty old school punk feel producing a really raw sounding killer rock track.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra have brought back the 60's without rehashing old formulas, and they've done it extremely well. The album is unique, original, modern and pays homage to their old school influences without getting buried in the past. An amazing listen from an amazing band.

Kate Bush 'The Directors Cut' review (for Kevchino.com)

See the original article posted here: http://kevchino.com/review/kate-bush/director-s-cut/2269

Kate Bush's latest release, Director’s Cut, is the first on her own label, Fish People. Comprising of four tracks taken from the original album Sensual World (released 1989), and seven tracks from original album The Red Shoes (1993), the songs have been rerecorded by Bush to offer a new take on various old favorites. While most of the instrumentation has remained the same, many of the tracks have been recorded in a lower key due to Bush’s now lower vocal tones.

Bush has even gone as far as to alter the lyrics to The Sensual World’s title track, giving it the new moniker “Flower of the Mountain.” The reasoning behind this being, when originally recording this song, Bush wished to set an excerpt from Ulysses by James Joyce to an instrumental piece she’d composed, but was refused the rights. Upon asking a second time around for the Director’s Cut project, permission was granted, and the initial concept came to light.

The two original albums have an endearing and unique Bush-esque quality about them that is no doubt also swayed by memories associated to them around the original release dates. Both were outstanding albums and did relatively well at the time—The Red Shoes being the last album Bush recorded before taking a twelve-year hiatus, and being accompanied by a short film Bush produced herself, titled The Line, The Cross and The Curve. The new album is available in a deluxe box set, which includes all three albums, enabling the listener to sample both the old and the new and survey the merits of having new life breathed into the tracks.

However, one cannot help but wonder the point of all this. Why rerecord these albums? Were the original recordings not a worthy caliber within themselves? And if Bush was stepping into the studio, why not simply record new pieces instead of altering older songs? While the recording of the aforementioned “Flower of the Mountain” is an interesting story in itself, most of the remaining tracks come across as overproduced, erratic, and sometimes just plain bizarre. The addition of bloodcurdling screaming at the finale of “Lily” is a fine example of this, and “A Woman’s Work” has not benefited from the rerecordings whatsoever.

In theory an interesting project to undertake, but in the end a seemingly pointless one.