• • 10 music: ...... 0 looking back and looking ahead

John Zeiss Yield assistant music reviews editor Pearl Jam "'u I guess I'm qualified to write a ..:t XO sort of "State of the Union .. Elliot Smith Add res "for the world of popular Cl music since l come from what some are calling its new center, ... Darkest Orlando. Forget Los Angeles, cw York, Seattle or London; only Days the Magic Kingdom can boast that Stabbing it is the home to those hit making mHello Nasty real talent beyond the Billboard charts. Beastie Boys If there was one predominant trend i!l music this year, it was change. Maybe bands looking for Up a new direction should kindly ask Despite the loss of drummer 8111 Berry. R E.M. produced one of I 1st ye,irs finest cilburm . REM their drummer to take a leave of absence. It worked for REM, who reinvented themselves once again year's best new band, Air. Lauryn be included on a list of this yt•ar's Moon Safari on Up. But then again, what if a I lill knows that "th.it thing" to get best. And those ctt'rnal particrs, Air band made an album just as right to the listener's heart is still the Bcastie Boys, pulled all things beautiful as that shimmering piece sweet Motown sou I. jay-Z stole old and new together for the tons- of pop experimentation and rap out of the player hands of of-fun lie/lo Nasty. Psyence nobody cared? That's ('Xuctly whut Puffy and took it back to the hard- But when choosing a best of tl\is happened with Smashing knock streets. And Bob Dylan year, the CoUnkle The coming millennium was a releasing his much-bootlegged an hour, Up begins to drag one theme used often, to the best 1966 ｬ ｾ ｯ ｹ ｡ ｬ Al/Jeri 11111/ concert down. XO is longt'r-winded than results on Unkle's Psyrncl' Pictio11. album. The euphoric l'Xperience past ｉ ｾ ｊ ｬ ｩ ｯ ｴ Smith l'fforts. And /Jello Adore But music this year wasn't all that is Spiritualized led that field, Nasty quickly becomes .repetitiw; Smashing about looking to the future; some particularly flooded this y1.•ar with listen to the choruses of "Supl'r artists looked back for their live albums from Pearl jam, Disco Breakin"' and "Body Pumpkins inspiration. At a Portishcad, 311 and many more. Movin"' and tell me they aren't the time when most And then there were those who l'xact same thing. Yes, the album of bands arc simply stuck to a winning formula. the yrar ends up being the 1wver-a- experimenting ｉ ｾ ｬ ｬ ｩ ｯ ｴ Smith may h.wt• addt•d dull-moment Yield by Pearl jam. with electronic instrumentation and studio gloss, From the se.ning opening riff of clements in but it only made his XO sound "Brnin of J" to the unconventional their music, even better. Quick - n.rnw the best love song "Wishlist" on through Beck went the album featuring a spooky female the punk rock of "Do the other direction on kad \'ocals with droning tt•chno Evolution" to the sombt•r fade out with M11t11tw11s, dots and loops running under her of ''All 'I host• Yl•stt•n.i.lys," this reverting back sultry voict•. If you s,1id CMb,1ge's .1lbum ,1ctu.1lly ll'aves you wishing to tlw folk music Vcrsio11 2.0, you'r · wrong. It w.1s for mort•. "The who((.' world will b • he start •d out P.j . I larvcy's ls Ｇ Ｏ Ｇ ｉ ｩ ｩ ｾ Ｏ Ｉ ｣ ｾ ｩ ｲ ｣ ＿ different soon," bddit• tl'lls us, but playing. Disrn is Maybe it's thos' nagging voi cs th.rnkfully th •sc guys will still bt• alivt' and coolly in my lw,1d talking .1gain, but I around to nKk us in to th• n •xt think St.1bbing Wcstward's millennium. Stabbing Westward makes Ｇ Ｙ Ｘ ｾ top ten albums of tt1 y .ir r 'work •d for the '90s by this d •pr •ssion-fe ·t ｊ Ｉ ｡ ｲ ｫ ｣ ｾ ｉ D11ys has to

8 january 29, 1999 arcade