MUSIC
Books on Tape - Sings the Blues
Books on Tape's second album Sings the Blues seems to have attracted quite a bit of attention, even though for the casual listener of electronic music, it is probably nothing to write home about.
Another KJHK DJ reviewed the album and likened it to a "poor man's Four Tet," which is a very good comparison. It is like Four Tet, if Four Tet had less depth, weaker equipment and less knowledge on how to use the equipment. Glitchy? Yes. Interesting? Most definitely. Listener friendly? Not really. It is like a precursor to Four Tet, similar to Aphex Twin's Classics, which contains tracks that Richard James was putting out on a young scene when he was no more than 20-years-old.
Again, for those already into electronic, glitchy music, this album is most definitely something to check out for reference sake and because it is interesting. For those only dabbling in electronic music, this is not probably something you are looking for.
-Collin LaJoie
KJHK DJ
4 a.m. to 6 a.m. Wednesdays
Grade: C+
G Unit - Beg for Mercy
Beg for Mercy, the first album from 50 Cent's G Unit is about as creative as grandma's formulaic 1949 cookie recipe. To Make a Gangsta Album: Make nine songs about how thuggish you are. Make four about money and/or women, and then add one about God and one about your mother, your girl or your dead/incarcerated homeboy. Continue by quoting an ol' school gangster movie, and if you are especially "hard," use the N-word to punctuate 10 percent of your declarative statements. If you are searching for originality or lyrical content, look elsewhere (DEFINITELY check out Scarface's The Fix). If you are looking to shake your ass or pretend to be a thug, G Unit picks up where 50 left off - with mindlessly catchy beats, singsong hooks and guaranteed club hits.
—Cornelius Minor, II KJHK Host of "Voice Activated" 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesdays Grade: C-
Jay-Z - The Black Album
Though the sound here is a bit different than what we are used to hearing from Jay-Z, The Black Album is the album that we all knew he could make. One senses that Jay-Z did not make this album for fans of Reasonable Doubt or Volume 1, nor did he make it for the masses that consumed everything after Volume 2. This isn't the rhyme pugilist from The Blueprint, The Black Album belongs to Jay-Z himself. It is a heartfelt battle cry at the end of a grueling campaign for respect and legitimacy, Jay-Z finally constructs success on his own terms; consequently The Black Album for Jay-Z—and for all who care to listen—is the majestic sound of victory.
Cornelius Minor, II KJHK Host of "Voice Activated"
9 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesdays Grade: A-
Remarc - Sound Murderer
Long before Squarepusher, Matmos, Kid606 et al. were creating mangled intelligent dance music, IDM oddities, there was a genre called jungle. Highspeed, super chopped-up beats over massive dancehall-style bass was the basic formula. The wave of jungle 12-inches released from 1992 to1996 unintentionally gave the IDM producers that would follow literally every trick they know. During this era, Remarc was the undisputed king of chopping breaks, and this new CD is a compilation of his best work. There are some upsetting track list decisions, such as why "Ricky" or the original version of "R.I.P." were omitted, but overall Sound Murderer is excellent and a must have for any IDM or jungle fan.
—Chris Shively
KJHK Host of "Superdisco
Galactiva"
7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays
Grade: A
The Strokes - Room on Fire
Forget about the hype. Forget about its socio-economic status. The Strokes are just five guys writing and playing exactly the type of rock music they want to play.
Their sound is a brilliant culmination of old and new influences, and it's a sound all their own. It is also a sound that a lot of people like to listen to. Room on Fire, the follow-up to its debut Is This It, is everything it should be and more. The album is sleazier, more back alley, more stylized, rawer, more diverse and better produced than its predecessor. What I enjoy most about The Strokes and Room on Fire are the little the things: the tension that builds when it drops down to just a beat and a lonely guitar line before exploding into a melodic chorus, the instantly memorable guitar solos that are so wonderfully restrained that they always leave you wanting more, the precision of the drum work that does sound like a machine at times, the honest desperation in Julian's self-conscious and detached crooning and I could go on and on... We might not be able to relate to the glitz and glamour of the NYC nightlife that The Strokes so adore, but we can relate to Julian Casablancas' fear of growing up, his struggles with the opposite sex and his excitement of being young. The Strokes don't aspire to be the next groundbreaking band; they don't aspire to be anything other than working musicians.
Peter Berard
KJHK Music Director
Grade: A
Soiled Doves - Soiled Life
Anticipation is a real bear. In the current musical climate of bootlegging, shelved albums and one-off side projects, albums that are expected to be life-affirming or -changing simply end up collecting dust. Fortunately, Soiled Doves' Soiled Life managed to avoid this fate despite the band, which was fronted by the ever-loved Blood Brothers' Johnny Whitney, breaking up in 2001.
The end result is a crunchy rocker, spliced in spots with traces of what has made the BBs Indie darlings. However, while these tracks chug along off kilter (especially "Hunter Gatherer") and dive with the best of the disjointed and disenfranchised set, this album is set apart in its deft touches: the piano at the beginning of "Death Knoll For Paper Children" and the Motown leanings of "Soiled Life." Be glad that this album escaped a much crueler fate.
—Phil Torpey
KJHK DJ
2 a.m. to 4 a.m. Sundays
Grade: B
KJHK TOP 30 ALBUMS
1. HER SPACE HOLIDAY, The Young Machines
2. SHINS, Chutes Too Narrow
3. PIERRE BAROUGH, suadade
4. STROKES, Room On Fire
5. BOOKS, The Lemon Of Pink
6. KING TUBY, 100% Dub: Select Cuts
7. KID KOALA, Some Of My Best Friends Are DJs
8. INCREDIBLE MOSES LEROY, Become The Soft.Lightes
9. AESOP ROCK, Bazooka Tooth
10. MIDWEST PRODUCT, World Series Of Love
11. PROCUSSIONS, As Iron Sharpens Iron
12. ELBOW, Cast Of Thousands
14. RYUICHI SAKAMOTO, Moto.Tronic
15. LUKE VIBERT, Yoseph
13. MOUNTAINEERS, Messy Century
16. BASEMENT JAXX, Kish Kash
17. CLEM SNIDE, A Beautiful EP
18. PAUL WESTERBERG, Come Feel Me Tremble
19. M83, Dead Cities, Red Seas And Lost Ghosts
20. KINKY, Atlas
21. FITNESS, Call Me for Together
22. STILLS, Logic Will Break Your Heart
23. JESSICA FLETCHERS, What Happened To The?
24. DENALI, The Instinct
25. EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY, The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place
26. STARS, Heart
27. CODEBREAKER, Two
28. JAPANTHER, Dump The Body In Rikki Lake
29. TRAVIS, 12 Memories
30. PLAID, Spokes
30
jayplay
thursday, december 4, 2003