Catatonia
"Sweet Catatonia" CD-EP
Blanco Y Negro. NEG85.
by Scott Zimmerman.
April 30, 1996.
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Stephen Street assisted in production of "Sweet Catatonia" so I guess
that gives Catatonia instant credibility in the UK pop scene, while I
would imagine also cementing the accusation of die-hard Welsh music fans
of having "sold out," an accusation that arose when this band that arose
from the ashes of Y Cyrff started writing songs in English, apparently
for reasons other then mere pity for the neglected letters a, e, i, o and
u. Anyways, catchy song, slick production, totally cool background vocals
and all that.
Too bad it sounds so much like product. In fact, it sounds like a rip off of a proven winner, the Primitives "Sick of It" (at least at the beginning). Ahh, maybe that's because Paul Sampson (maybe he's famous, too?) produced both songs! In fact, now flipping through all my Primitives records, I see that his name appears all over the place. So, if you like the Primitives' sound you may want to check out Catatonia. But on the other hand, since track two "Acapulco Gold" doesn't do much for me, and neither does "Cut You Inside (Demo)," maybe you'd be better off just completing your Primitives collection instead. Cerys's voice starts to get on my nerves, while I could listen to Tracey's all day.
Cha Cha Cha
"Riot 119" Cassette
Pop Gun. gun-007.
by Scott Zimmerman.
November 23, 1996.
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Because it's fun to use strange descriptions, I'll classify this one
as twee hip-hop. There's a tad of that Southern California Beck
sensibility here, but with female vocals. You've got three snappy
songs on this cassette, each with a cool lo-fi pop groove that's
defined by a dancy bass/guitar/keyboard/samples/drum machine
combination. Definitely one to put on your Christmas list!
Cha Cha Cha
"Slide On By" 7" vinyl
Motorway. Motor-019.
by Scott Zimmerman.
January 9, 1998.
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Sure, it's indie-pop, but if this
record had been released twenty years ago instead of now, you could almost
see this being used as the soulfoul, groovy mood music the gangsters in a
Quentin Tarantino flick might flip on the radio just before they carry on
with the day's business of plugging a couple of the latest screwups in the
Los Angeles criminal underworld. Alright, so Rachel's intoxicating voice
might not quite have the necessary QT edge, but Cha Cha Cha are from the
southland so that could gain them some points in the above hypothetical
scenario, yes?
Anyway, I love this record. It's super great to have the sounds of Cha Cha Cha on vinyl, credit due to the previously released cassettes on the Popgun label charming the Motorway label sufficiently. So now that their hip-shaking, shimmering sound has been certified one hundred percent diggable by the Japanese pop music empire (and me too, for that matter), rush out and buy a copy of the three-song "Slide on By" 7" before it disappears!
Guy Chadwick
Lazy, Soft, And Slow CD
Setanta. setcd053.
by Keith McLachlan.
May 3, 1998.
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The House of Love were always
better than they received credit for. Guy Chadwick, the underachiever in
the striped shirt, got a bum rap as he couldn't quite inherit the mantle
of great white hope needed to replace the recently deceased Smiths and
Bunnymen. But the first four HOL albums are certainly better than decent
with 'Babe Rainbow' heading for most unappreciated album of the 90s
status.
Well HOL is dead but Guy has returned from the grave with a nice album of pop songs :) Songs that really do live up to the album title as they meander by in a gentle pose of wit and insouciance. The first single 'This Strength' is probably the best track on the lp but not by a great measure as the quality is maintained pretty consistently. Not a great leap from HOL and it misses some of the peaks and valleys of HOL records- there are no real highs or lows just a happy medium. But all in all it is pretty good. Worth the price of a domestic issue that is surely months away.
Chicklet
Wanderlust CD
Satellite. 70025.
by Keith McLachlan.
June 27, 1999.
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Price: $8.28. Add To Shopping Cart
In Stock. Usually ships the same day or the next working day .
Earlier this week Chicklet was in the Cutie Club Chatroom and while I
was enjoying their characteristically Canadian politeness while they
fended off the tedious attacks by we five or six cuties I was
unceremoniously dumped from the room (note to Colorado readers BeWell
stinks), and actually I think I may have been the lucky one for the
scent of burning Hydrogen was heavy in the air. Anyhow I was there
long enough to learn that Chicklet is quite perturbed over the fact
that the comparison to Lush is omnipresent in their lives.
Hmmm...thing is the comparison is dead-on accurate and this there new
record is not going to change anyone's mind. You see, because the
blueprint for 'Wanderlust' was established long ago in 4AD England
during the 'Gala/Spooky' era of Lush (hey better than being compared to
post-'Spooky' Lush I say), this blueprint consists of ethereality
mixed with crunchy guitars and a propulsive force within each song
keeping things from filling your head with clouds!
Unlike earlier releases the vocal duties are not equally shared here as Julielet (she is the better singer) takes the mic on all but two of the songs with vocals and hey when Danielet sings his two songs they sound more like the Dylans, especially on 'Shark's Smile', than Lush so maybe that is something to build on? Anyhow this record is sparkly, shimmery and filled with bouncey reverie. Still, Lush is the easiest comparison and even though it annoys them it is unavoidable. This record is fantastic and it establishes Chicklet as the current best band in Canada (I am still unsure whether that is a compliment or insult?), well, at least until a new Zumpano record lands.
the Chills
Sunburnt CD
Flying Nun. 303.
by Keith McLachlan.
December 1, 1996.
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Out of Stock.
In the nearly four years since Martin Phillips originally broke up his
band, the Chills, many things have happened and not all of them
positive. Martin had a drawn out legal wrangle with his former record
label Slash, the Tall Dwarfs recorded "Self Deluded Dreamboy in a
Mess" which chronicled their not so shining opinion of Martin's
situation, he released an oddly compiled greatest hits record and
finally reformed his band under the new legally required name of
Martin Phillips and the Chills. And thus we have Sunburnt, his
fourth
album, which while certainly not a benchmark for his career, reminds
us we did miss him during his hiatus. Stylistically it is a return to
his late 80's fusion of keyboards, minimal guitars and ethereal vocals
in a manner very reminiscent of Brian Wilson. A few of the songs are
lyrically unfortunate ("Come Home") but all of them are highly
listenable pop songs. Highlights are the charming "Surrounded," the
hushed title track, and the two closing numbers that reveal Martin's
darker edge. This album might have been entirely dark and pessimistic
and excusably so, but it is not; it retains a feel of optimism.
However, Martin is not completely forgiving as his next album, already
recorded, is said to be his darkest ever, full of tales of his musical
exile. As a whole Sunburnt lies somewhere above the last album
Soft Bomb and is certainly a pleasant listen.