52 New Releases NEW RELEASES NEWS SCOTT WALKER OSI The Drift Free Beggars Banquet/4AD (2603) InsideOut Music (SPV 48862 CD) MVD Audio will release Marillion’s If you require any proof that time OSI’s self-titled 2003 debut was a Marbles Live Aug. 29. The disc fea- passes quicker today than it did a few barnstormer of a progressive-metal tures the band performing their years back, consider this. Eleven years supergroup project, so folks hotly antici- Marbles album in its entirety at separate The Drift, Scott Walker’s latest pated this return visit to the Office Of London’s Astoria July 10-11, 2004. album, from Tilt, his last. But the gulf Strategic Influence, with Free. Three Track list: “The Invisible Man,” does not seem even half as dramatic as employees inhabit the office, namely “Marbles I,” “You’re Gone,” the mere decade that divided Tilt from its Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, “Angelina,” “Marbles II,” “Don’t Hurt predecessor, Climate Of Hunter. Fates Warning guitarist Jim Matheos, and Yourself,” “Fantastic Place,” “Marbles Part of the reason, of course, is that Chroma Key/ex–Dream Theater key- III,” “The Damage,” “Marbles IV,” Walker has been much more visible this boardist Kevin Moore. “Neverland” and “Estonia.” time around. Producing Pulp’s final Moore had previously created a Other new releases of note: Black album, curating the Meltdown festival, Herculean masterpiece of Roger Uhuru With Sly & Robbie, Dubbin’ It guesting on a James Bond soundtrack... Waters–level audacity in Chroma Key’s Live (DVD); Reggae Showdown: www.goldminemag.com GOLDMINE #680 August 18,2006 • GOLDMINE #680 August www.goldminemag.com considering his status among rock’s most 2003 concept album Graveyard Mountain Reggae Power In 5.1 Vol 1 — Dennis legendary recluses, he’s been busy. More Home, so at this point, it’s no surprise Brown Live At Reggae Canfest (DVD); important, however, is the fact that, last that many looked to Free for more Moore various artists, Reggae Showdown: time around, Walker’s continued exis- Courtesy of Beggars Banquet than anything else. As if everybody Reggae Power In 5.1 Vol 2, Giants Of tence was still a well-kept secret among involved were starting to realize Moore’s Sting (DVD); Reggae Showdown: the handful of acolytes who were aware Scott Walker genius, there seems to be a stepping aside Reggae Power In 5.1 Vol 4 — Shabba At that there was life after The Walker from standard prog-metal fireworks for Showdown (DVD, Taxi); The Church Brothers, the California trio with which he ments. But you have to join the dots more of a chilly, ultra-modern, sleek and Of Tiamat (DVD, Music Video first came to fame. Today, again, the leg- yourself; neither Walker’s voice (as even lushly laid-back keyboard and Distributors); Spencer Dickinson, end not only precedes him, it has also impressively rich and portentous as ever) vocals experience. Sure, the guitar songs The Man Who Lives For Love; spawned a mountain of compilations, a nor the instrumentation will do the job are there, although the riffs are usually Barrington Levy, Wanted; and couple of box sets, a bunch of reissues and for you. But lyrics leap out as footholds circular and not all that part of the Luciano, Live In San Francisco (2B1 the starry-eyed praise of a new wave of for your imagination to cling to, and melodic brew — Matheos is almost rele- Records, CD/DVD); Abby Travis, fans whose dads were still kids when Scott repeated listens will make marvelous gated to rhythm and texture. Glitter Mouth (self-released); Mike was a star. sense of even the darkest pieces. Boy, does Free fill up on texture, with Compton, Stomp (Acoustic Disc); var- But, if the buildup to the release of The Plus, there is a cheat sheet — “Jesse,” Moore putting on a clinic of traditional ious, Abominable — Original Motion Drift was less dramatic than before, the ostensibly about Elvis Presley’s stillborn twin and arcane sound-sculpting, the high- Picture Soundtrack (Aleph Records); music leaves Tilt sounding almost con- but described by Walker as his Sept. 11 song, light being the insanely catchy opener Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials, ventional — which, if you remember that is the album’s first video and somehow “Sure You Will” and the out-of-character Rattleshake and Cephas & Wiggins, album, is quite an achievement. Abstract, seems less foreboding when the shards are acoustic closer “Our Town,” which is the Shoulder To Shoulder (Alligator); obtuse, insanely dramatic and dramati- shaped by a picture. The album closes with most Pink Floyd–ian track on a record Simeon Harris, The Assessment cally mad, The Drift is the noise that you “A Lover Loves,” an assault that is almost a that rises to the standard of Waters’ (Alternity Records); Desperado, Ace hear when you’re fast asleep and your ballad. Even there, however, Walker has Amused To Death opus. But most impres- (Angel Air); Sufjan Stevens, Avalance: brain is trying to make sense of the work- fashioned an album that is quite unlike any- sionable is Moore’s amoral, detached, Outtakes And Extras From Illinois men building a condo up the road. Bleak, thing he, or anybody else, has ever created, nearly breaking but strangely confident (Asthmatic Kitty); Tommy James, dissonant, slightly frightening, there is and one that doesn’t even invite the unwary voice — the term world-weary would fit Hold The Fire (Aura/Kayos); sense to be made of it and a beautiful to listen to it. It dares them. Fallopian, Dammit, Eat Your Pudding soundscape to fashion from the frag- — Dave Thompson (Please see New Releases page 56) (Avebury); The Studiofix, Will Change Your Life (Avebury); Matt Angus (Black Potatoe Records); Scott Vestal & Alice Newman, Goin’ To The Indie label spotlight: Proper Dance (Bless Your Heart Music); Nick Moss & The Flip Tops, Live At Chan’s and Bill Lupkin & Friends, Where I HACIENDA BROTHERS his masterfully crafted songs and pro- The centerpiece of the album has to Come From (Blue Bella Records); What’s Wrong With Right duced the record. Now, the magic has be the title track, “What’s Wrong With Jason Moran, Artist In Residence and Proper (PR PACD004) once again been created, as Penn teams Right,” cowritten by Gonzalez and Penn, Jane Bunnett, Radio Guantanamo: with the Haciendas for What’s Wrong a beautiful steel guitar–laced country GuantanamoBlues Project Vol. 1 (Blue The Hacienda Brothers, led by With Right, an excellent 13-song release. tune destined to become a classic. Penn Note); Billy Price, Featuring The Billy singer/songwriter Chris Gaffney and The new album features several is one of the South’s most prolific song- Price Band (Bonedog Records); Dave Gonzalez, ripped up the charts Gonzalez/Gaffney originals, as well as writers as well as an A-list producer, and Viceroy, Viceroy (Bushwood Records); with their debut album last year, a fan- some Penn classics, including a hot new combined with the ultra-talented Bob Seger, Face The Promise and tastic “western soul” release. A key ele- version of “Cry Like A Baby,” “It Tears Hacienda Brothers, he adds yet another Hedley (Capitol); Big George Brock, ment to the Brothers’ success was the Me Up” and “Life’s Little Ups And feather to his cap and another strong Hard Times: A Film By Damien enlistment of legendary Muscle Shoals Downs,” There’s also a primo cover of the branch to the rock ’n’ roll family tree. Blaylock (Cat Head, DVD); and King icon Dan Penn, who provided many of 1968 Intruders hit, “Cowboys To Girls.” — Michael Buffalo Smith Karma (Centurion).