Scroll down for reviews of the latest from Keene Brothers, Oneida, Office, Futureheads and Pet Shop Boys

Keene Brothers
Blues And Boogie Shoes

(Fading Captain)

robertpollard.net

A simple idea -- Robert Pollard is a big Tommy Keene fan (so much so, that Keene plays in his band), so Pollard asked him to compose and record some music. From there, Pollard would write the lyrics and do the singing. While Pollard had previously taken over the vocals for Phantom Tollbooth, in what amounted to a new recording of one of their albums, this was a new idea. Keene did most of the music in his studio, with a few folks helping out here and there. Then, Pollard recorded his vocals in Tobin Sprout's studio.

For what it's worth, this record really provides insight into what a vocalist can add to music. Obviously, Keene's music and Pollard's aren't worlds apart, and there are some common influences. A number of songs sound like lost Guided By Voices numbers. Initially, I thought that maybe Tommy was trying too hard to make songs in Pollard's style. But as I listened a few more times, I realized that I was fooled by Pollard's vocals. These were Tommy Keene songs, it just so happened that a few of them are pretty darn close to standard GBV-type material.

This may best be exemplified by "Naked Wall", a quintessential Keene jangler. But play just the chorus hook for a diehard Pollard/GBV fan, and I guarantee you that the fan will think it is a great lost GBV classic. The lilt of the melody is a trait that Pollard and Keene share. It begins with a typically bittersweet Keene guitar part, and then John Richardson kicks in the song with his reliably tight drumming. The verse lopes along on Keene's nimble bass playing. Heading into the chorus, Keene throws off a little more guitar power, and then the chorus -- it's pithy and yet it exemplifies Keene's ability to craft a succinct hook. Then follow that with a percussive middle eight with a counterpoint melody, which sets up a guitar solo. Wow. Pollard's lyrics are as cryptic as usual, but they fit the emotional vibe created by this propulsive yet thoughtful music. This song alone justifies the collaboration.

Swinging totally the other way, the excellent "Beauty of the Draft", while it still bears Keene's familiar guitar tone, really could have been penned entirely by Pollard. This song is a clear condemnation of warfare and how it exploits the lower classes who make up the vast majority of the troops: "Poles will reverse/last place goes first." This has that vague Who-like anthem feel, but the song doesn't quite ratchet up the power to that level. Indeed, the beauty of the music compliments the sarcasm of the title, which is the only line in the chorus.

The album has an interesting sound to it, since Keene and Pollard recorded in different studios. It is a credit to the skills of the engineers that it works so well. On "Heaven's Gate", a quintessential big riff Keene tune, a variety of effects are used on Pollard's vocals and the bright sound of the music is effectively contrasted by the compressed sound on the vocals.

Both collaborators are on top of their game on "This Time Do You Feel It?". This is mid-tempo track with loads of ascending guitar leads, creating a vaguely psychedelic color. The music is yearning and questioning, and Pollard fashions a lyric that fits it perfectly. The song contemplates what to do and where to go with life. Even better, Pollard comes up with his best vocal performance on the record. Heck, it's one of his best ever.

For all the praise I'm heaping on this disc, this still could have been even better. Whether as The Keene Brothers, or in some other form, I think it would be terrific if Keene and Pollard could continue working together, particularly if in the future they can explore their differences and push each other, without losing the common sensibility that makes this such an enjoyable disc.

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Office
Q & A

(self-released)

reachoffice.com

This is actually the second release from this Chicago band, with the only constant being the aesthetic of frontman Scott Masson. Masson is an unabashed pop lover, who, despite a denial I read in an interview, obviously has an encyclopedic knowledge of hooky melodic tunes, with a particular fixation for the breezy sounds of the early ‘80s. This is music that isn't quite new wave or synth-pop, but it percolates with strong rhythms and a romantic care free feel that is just made for the summer.

Masson's artistic vision is much more fully realized than on Office's 2002 debut disc, which is probably a result of three years of honing and finding three fantastic musicians to back it up. In particular, the rhythm section of Erica Corniel and Alissa Noonan are spot on every track, providing the proper pulse or dancebeat, as needed.

The first four or five songs on this album are near perfect pop. "Wound Up" is a great introduction to the effervescent sound, with a strong beat, a busy bass, a melody line reenforced by guitar and keyboards, and a great tension-and-release formula, that really fits the lyrics. The verses have a dramatic cast, as Masson is singing about vacationing in a hot (third world perhaps?) spot, detailing the strange goings on, while urging his honey to unwind and go to the beach. The chorus has a even stronger melody than the verses, and the transition between the two is seamless. This has a new romantic flair, without being all showy about it.

This is followed by "Oh My", which sounds somewhat influenced by The Cars, although only certain aspects of the song really remind me of the Boston proto-new wavers. Masson's clipped lyrics aren't as mysterious as Ric Ocasek's, but they aren't linear, and sound great, having a rhythm that fits the music. Scattered throughout are gems like "As we cum/look your loved one in the eyes/before you start to cry."

Even better is "Big Bang Jump", with more airy guitar lines and sturdy bass playing on the percolating verses, shifting to a percussive funky white boy chorus. The song is like a 21st Century version of "Dancing in the Streets", encouraging every one to party and dance, because...what else is there to do? This song has a number of distinctive parts, showing off some real compositional sophistication. This song has the potential to improve a radio station by 73%. At least.

On the next track, Office begins to show off a knack for lacing a little Britpop feel into the mix. "If You Don't Know By Now" matches the best of poppier side of Scissor Sisters, interlocking rhythm guitar chords with a walking keyboard line. Masson sing-talks in the verses and then hits on a great chorus: "If you don't know by now/go ask somebody else/somebody else." This is a Hall & Oates worthy hook, it's so automatic.

The band further scales up the peak of brilliance on "Busy With Other Things". Here, Office conjures up memories of The Suburbs, with Masson's on-the-edge vocals and the rock-disco vibe. The chorus is more Oingo Boingo (one of the good OB songs), and again rides some heavy percussion. Masson perfectly captures a young college grad over his head in the business world, too caught up in the party scene: "always late to the office...I'll need that good excuse/train delays/construction/city-blackout/windburn/lions tigers and bears/escaping from the zoo."

There is more to Office than dancey new wavey pop perfection. The piano piece "Until 6pm" is very much in line with the music of Hawksley Workman and Rufus Wainwright, both in terms of sound and quality. On the other side of the spectrum, "Had a Visit" is a paranoid rocker, with Masson frantically noting that "under the mistletoe/is where the tension grows" and this bit of advice: "smile big for your passport picture/show those agents your Freedom Smile." This song is followed by a soft-pop puffball, "Dominos", that is ‘70s AM radio pop wonderful.

Really, it's all good. This second edition of Office does a great job of taking familiar sounds and blending them into something fresh. One of the best pop records in recent memory.

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Oneida
Happy New Year

(Jagjaguwar)

jagjaguwar.com

This prolific trio continually brings to mind The Fall, not because of their sound, but because of their approach. They bring certain influences to the table and then work a number of variations off of them. The two primary strains of their music are airy psychedelia and throbbing Kraut rock. After tipping more to their psych side on their last album, this album moves back a bit more towards the droning side of the band, but just a bit.

It's strange -- while I loved 2005's The Wedding, which strongly tilted in the psychedelic direction, I'm glad that this album is more balanced. If anything, the band is coming further along in finding ways to stitch their various ingredients together to become more cohesive within individual songs. Yet, I would have to say that this album is not as good as last one, as it doesn't flow quite as well and doesn't have as many top drawer songs.

Still, there are plenty of worthy additions to the band's canon. The title cut has a Eastern mantra melody, with various keyboard lines repeating, with similarly repetitive sitar-like guitars. Drummer Kid Millions plays with jazz inflected aplomb, reminding me a bit of Mitch Mitchell's work on some of Jimi Hendrix's records. The song follows this course, with multiple vocals parts overlapping near the end. The use of vocals is akin to the band's love for repetitive instrumental passages, illustrated well on the following song, "The Adversary". Other good songs in the psychedelic vein include "Busy Little Bee" and "Distress".

Kid Million also keys the final track, "Thank Your Parents", his bouncy mid-tempo beat being paralleled by a piano part early on. The piano adds a jazz element to this otherwise sweet, yet ominous, track. The melody follows the construct of the rhythm, while singer Hanoi Jane sounds blissful, painting scenes of death and comas. Other keyboards and a keyboard bass add layers into this song which is heavy, without being heavy, if that makes sense. This tune certainly has a nightmarish aspect.

The beginning of "History's Great Navigators" almost sounds like it could have been lifted from an old Wall Of Voodoo album, except for the odd little high end keyboard sounds and plinking guitars that plink in what should be the wrong places. This groove (as is often the case with Oneida) carries the song, while Jane sings quatrains like this: "Carve the sun into a diagram/that reads to you/reads to you." This is post-punk mysticism at its best.

Long time fans of the band will be most pleased with "Up With People". Not only is this a good old-fashioned Oneida rocker, it's one of their best. The song is propulsive and urgent, as Jane urges that "You got to get up to get free." The groove of this song is nearly funky -- heck, let's call it Kraut funk. I could readily imagine this being reconstructed into a Kraftwerk song. Throughout it's seven minutes, the band takes detours from the groove, all of which are very interesting. Yet they avoid prog-rock noodling. I could go for an album of corkers like this. Between Jane's guitar work and the gazillion keyboards played by Bobby Matador, and Kid Million's always impressive drumming (he's one of the best out there right now), this song is simply one of the best that anyone will put out all year.

The most exciting thing about this record is that eight albums into their career, Oneida still has so much potential, which is amazing for a band that has already accomplished a great deal. They are one of those rare bands who you can just follow around, knowing they will always take you some place worthwhile.

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Pet Shop Boys
Fundamental

(Rhino)

rhino.com

After a brief foray into slightly more guitar oriented music on 2004's Release (thanks to the wonderful Johnny Marr), the Boys are back to basics on this album. Really, with the exception of the spotty Bilingual, Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe have been remarkably consistent, releasing one good or great album after another. This probably falls more into the good category (whereas, I thought the last one was great), and there's not much else bad to say about it.

As with any great band, they mix things up just enough to keep things fresh. What I really like is that they show off a strong Kraftwerk influence on two tracks. "Minimal" is keyed by a vocoder/disembodied electronic voice in the chorus, spelling out and then singing the title. This song is somewhat uncharacteristic lyrically, as it is more impressionistic rather than observational. That is not so on the lead track "Psychological", which continues with the mechanistic Teutonic rhythms and light melody lines. This is a simple ode to paranoia, where the music sets the atmosphere so well, the words merely color in the shapes.

The band goes for a bubblier club sound on "The Sodom and Gomorrah Show". The song is about a wallflower who is invited out for "sun, sex, sin, divine intervention/death and destruction." The music here verges on Hi-NRG club music, more like Erasure or disco-era Sparks. This is one of those songs where Tennant's deadpan vocals make the direct lyrics seem funnier than they probably are. You certainly believe that he was a straitlaced guy who goes to the show and gets...unlaced?

The ballads are quite strong. I don't know if Tennant and Lowe's slower numbers have varied much in approach over the years, but they have a knack for large enveloping melodies that can convey sadness and loneliness and nostalgia. The best of these is "Luna Park". This is the sound that Scissor Sisters were going for on the slower tunes on their debut (and did quite well, by the way). The song is a sullen take on a (shuttered?) amusement park. Whether meant literally or as a metaphor, this song really captures the feeling of happy emotions that have burned down into ashes and cinders.

"I Made My Excuses and Left" is an even sadder tale. It opens with what sounds like the echo of a Gregorian chant, followed by a string driven instrumental section that is positively teary-eyed. Finally, Tennant sings of walking in on a lover staring in the eyes of another man. Using simple language, Tennant hits on all of the awkward feelings, including a weird sensation of guilt: "Each of you looked up/but no one said a word/I felt I should apologise/for what I hadn't heard." The approach of this song is very much in the vein of so many great country songs -- just taking a common (but not too common) situation, and articulating it. This is 21st Century synth-pop blues.

The best songs are definitely front-loaded on the disc, and while, with the exception of the obvious (both musically and lyrically) "I'm With Stupid", a toothless gibe at George W. Bush (why doesn't someone set a Rude Pundit piece to music?), there are no clunkers, and the album almost plays like a set of A-sides and B-sides. But the A-sides are really, really good. So this album is a keeper.

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The Futureheads
News And Tributes

(Star Time/Vagrant)

startimerecords.com

While this young British quartet sang of going from "A to B" on their winning debut disc, they manage to go from A to C on their follow up LP. While the band's basic sound doesn't change drastically, they have really smoothed away most of the spikeness and uncontrolled energy from the first album, putting more emphasis on strong melodies and classic guitar riffing, augmented by their stellar harmony vocals.

There is no doubting the quality of the effort. Yet two problems become apparent while listening to the disc. The first is that the angular Wire/XTC inspired music on the debut platter was a perfect fit for the anxious lyrics about young men dealing with first jobs, first loves and living in the city. Here, the lyrical themes are a bit blander -- they don't seem to be as engaged in saying anything with their music, so much as proving their abilities to craft it. Second, a number of songs here beg the question, is the world ready for a 21st Century version of Big Country?

Not that sounding like Big Country is a terrible thing. The album's first single, "Skip to the End", sounds like what should have been the logical follow up to "In a Big Country" and "Fields of Fire". Twenty-two years too late -- oh well. The song has a loping beat and a big fat guitar riff that provides instant gratification. Not only that, it sports one of the stronger lyrics on the album. Why go through the trouble of romance, if you could figure out how things will turn out? This is pop at its finest.

But it's worrisome that this is one of the few songs whose lyrics I even remember. This is a shame, because the musical settings are so appealing. "Favours for Favours" has a light echoing guitar part and lovely backing vocals -- the atmosphere is enveloping. Ultimately, the song is one of yearning, and this music captures that. Yet the sound subsumes the words. It still works, but had the band come up with a key phrase or two, or sold the words more, this could have been very special.

In other instances, the ideas aren't fully formed. "Cope" is a rocker closer to the feel of the first album. It's about a guy "who tries too hard" to fit in. A great topic for a song. However, the band doesn't make it pay off. It's a character study that starts and ends with a single trait. This lack of resolution is reflected in the music, which cooks pretty well, but without a payoff.

It's not so much that they rushed this album as they have so many directions they want to go in and so many things that they want to try, the goal seems to be to expand their reach rather than finding a way to communicate more effectively. Granted, broadening a sound can certainly expand the things that you can say. Here, there's a level of disconnect. It just helps if there is some specificity, whether it's the detailed lyrics on the title cut that give it more resonance, or something else that defines an idea or emotion that these lads are trying to convey.

Despite my reservations, this album still represents some artistic progress. It remains to be seen if they can marry their musical ambitions to something that will make me care.

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