(Rightous Babe)
Ani DiFranco's fans are fiercly loyal. She is an artist whose willing to say things and live her life in a manner that makes many people reach for their defenses-but even more admire her. Ani was one of the first to give the middle finger to Bush after Sept. 11, and she has not lowered her voice for the feminist gospel she is associated with. On her new album, , Ani presents an unsurprising and intricate assortment of songs that may alienate new fans but no doubt satiate die-hards.
Ani has never been afraid to go without the studio quality control that most artists rely on for their careers. By embracing off-key notes and the the sound of passing trains on , Ani has added another layer of credibility by recording, mixing and producing the album in her house. This proxmity, however, does not lend the album more sincerity.
Ani's songwriting has evolved to the point that her songs have actually become somewhat inaccessable. She builds her songs on her usual insights on love and life-Ani's ability to create poetry out of mundane events and ordinary angles has not waned-however, the song structure of songs like \Bubble"" is so nonlinear it borders on contrived. Background vocals accompany Ani's tight vibrato and play an important part in the songs on . Sticky arpeggios and muffeled stacattos jump out from behind her narratives and spoken-word poems, lending childlike charisteristics to several of the tracks.
Educated Guess is not a cheerful or optimisitic album. Dark overtones resonate on the album, perhaps stemming from Ani's recent separation from her husband. The anger of has drained from her guitar work and this creates a more injured quality within the songs. Sadness creeps along the record predicatably, a departure from her older work, like Dialate in which??her guitar took the brunt of her frusteration.
Ani fans will love this CD like any other Ani CD because it's an Ani CD. does have beautiful moments, polished lyrical insight and emotional guitarwork but it is definitly not an entry-level Ani album-it simply might go over the heads and hearts of potential fans, and maybe some older ones too.
-Kristin V. Johnson
(Vanguard)
Based on the successes of recording another woman's song on a Dolly Parton tribute album, Mindy Smith's singing/songwriting career received an unexpected jolt. Her voice, seductive, clean and pure, appeared on Leno; her praises in Time Out New York, Rolling Stone and CNN. Not to mention a nod from Parton herself: ""I believe she will leave her mark as one of our greatest writers and singers ever.""
She hasn't yet. And it's a shame. One Moment More's leadoff track ""Come to Jesus"" shows as much potential as any country-influenced singer/songwriter this side of Neko Case, in the same vein and league of Kelly Joe Phelps' atmospheric folk blues. Layered, impassioned call-and-response guitars, a melody that shows off the range of Smith's voice - this song could have served as the blueprint of a great album.
But if the first song draws you in, it is only to kick you in the gut. attempts to branch into more genres than Mindy Smith can handle. A schizophrenic and widely uneven album, Mindy Smith tries too many things and fails at new things too often. One song is country, another folk, a third blues-one song even has a electric backbeat. Very few songs, however, sound inspired by anything besides Smith's own uncertainty where her strengths lie. Even though Smith seems unwilling to identify herself as anything other than a simple singer/songwriter, the closer gets to simple popish folk, the worse Smith's songs fare.
This is an immature album, one where the artist clearly can get better by learning what works. Maybe Mindy Smith will make her mark on the as one of the greatest singer/songwriters ever. But not on the strength of albums like .
Dub Narcotic Sound System
(K)
Those fortunate enough to see Dub Narcotic Sound System last Easter at Union South saw a massive performance, a balancing act between feigning ballet and self-referential performance art, all within an indie-rock format.??
Dub Narcotic, currently a three-piece reggae/dance outfit, is the progeny of K Records founder Calvin Johnson. It's been said before, but Dub Narcotic is better live than on disc.??Somehow we lose Calvin kicking care-free in black jeans in the strictly-audio format of Dub Narcotic.??Regardless, Degenerate Introduction, the first full-length album since 1998's , is most like the live incarnation of D.N.S.S. than anything previous.?? There's a reason for this.
Dub Narcotic has been playing the songs on Degenerate live for a year now, many of them were performed at Club 770 in April.?? Then, Johnson was successfully plucking a guitar with a finger splint, the result of a record-pressing accident.
contains straight-forward drum fills, deep, plodding bass grooves and Johnson's trademark monotonous, yet endearing, white boy raps ala Beck,.?? Johnson even sends an nod to his chum: ""Two microphones and one turntable/One for the bass and one for the treble.""
D.N.S.S. constantly reminds us who we're listening to, never missing a chance to sing lyrics like ""Narcotic Sound/It's a party...Drop the needle/Pump it hardcore.""?? ??
""Blood Flow"" has lost some significance.?? The lines ""Ashcroft is an ass/Bush is being pimped/Ashcroft is an ass/There's no escaping it"" seemed downright dangerous-like treason-last April.??Now it seems mondane?? But when the ""Cheney-is-a-heartless-corpse"" chorus kicks in we know just how timeless the Narcotic sound really is. But above all, it's fun music, really,?? great for dance parties.
In the end, only suffers in that it keeps Dub Narcotic a groovy bass/drums/guitar threesome.?? It would be interesting to see Johnson as well as bassist Chris Sutton and drummer Heather Dunn experimenting with different sounds.?? We have every reason to believe that this is the way Calvin wants things-after all, Dub Narcotic is his baby, and so is, for that matter, all of K Records.
