Review: Anarbor - Free Your Mind and The Bigger Lights - Fiction Fever

Label: Hopeless Records

Released: March 10, 2009


Label: Doghouse Records

Released: April 7, 2009

Thirty years ago, a subgenre of rock that had been building for a few years was just about ready to explode. AOR took the best elements of 70s rock, dummied it down, made it safe and sold millions of records whose broad appeal was based on the least common denominator. While what they did was generally meaningless, a few bands did it well, but for every Journey or Foreigner, there were a slew of Loverboys and Survivors (and don't even make me count the Honeymoon Suites). Just about every subsequent generation has turned its primal voice into a slicked up, safe facsimile of itself that embodies the spirit, if not the sound, of AOR.

Both Anarbor and The Bigger Lights embody that spirit, but the results aren't quite the same. On their Free Your Mind EP, Anarbor take a step forward in songwriting. While they still won't be remembered years from now, their songs are catchy and draw from influences that expand their basic power pop sound. Each song is catchy enough to be memorable and "The Brightest Green" and "Halfway Sober" both have clear single potential, with the latter tapping into power ballad territory worthy of Aerosmith. All in all, not bad for today's version of AOR. It may not have staying power, but it's a good listen in the moment.

The Bigger Lights have bigger problems. While Anarbor have trouble creating a consistent, distinctive sound, their songs do manage to maintain some personality in their own right, but The Bigger Lights can't even establish that on a song by song basis. Not only could their Fiction Fever EP be played by any number of bands, but the songs themselves could be interchanged with literally thousands of others glutting the current rock market. Where Anarbor struggles to find a voice of their own, The Bigger Lights struggle to find something worth saying.

Anarbor - Free Your Mind

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 6/10
Aretha: 6/10
Overall: 6/10

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The Bigger Lights - Fiction Fever

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 4/10
Aretha: 4/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Cheap Trick - Budokan 30th Anniversary Edition

Label: Epic/Legacy

Released: November 11, 2008

I always had a tough time understanding why Cheap Trick was so popular. Sure, "Surrender" is among rock's greatest songs and they had their share of other decent tunes, but why would they stand out like they did? The answer I was told is contained in their live show and this 30th Anniversary Edition of their Budokan set, re-packaging the original At Budokan shows into one DVD and three CDs, is the best thing short of being there.

The DVD features original concert footage from Cheap Trick's two nights at Budokan in 1978 that only aired once and only on Japanese television. If nothing else, the wild flamboyance of Rick Nielsen adds to the band's already electric live presence in a way that cannot be conveyed in the audio (at least not completely). The filming does have the quality of a TV special, but that shortcoming does little to compromise the entertainment value of a great live band in their element, especially at that very moment that will catapult them into the upper echelon of popular music.

Two of the three CDs recreate the the 1998 20th anniversary issue of At Budokan, remastered for 2008, but the real gem is disc 2, the April 28th show in its entirety. Most live albums really suffer from being culled from multiple shows, because they lose the real picture of the band live, the flow, the energy, the bumps and bruises even. This package however, gives the best of both worlds and the opportunity to really get a feel for why these shows shot the band into super-stardom.

For what it's worth, I saw Cheap Trick at the Virgin Festival in Baltimore in the summer of 2007, over 19 years after the legendary recordings contained in this set, and they were still amazing. The Budokan 30th Annivesary Edition is a great way to understand what the big deal was about Cheap Trick, but, as good as it is, it's still not a substitute for seeing the real thing and three decades later, while their peers are fat, old and boring, Cheap Trick can still deliver. See them if you ever get the chance.

Rating: 9/10

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Review: Switches - Lay Down the Law

Label: Interscope Records

Released: March 18, 2008

Lay Down the Law is a collection of songs that is perfectly good in the moment. Their catchy 80s power-pop (filtered through more recent times via the Strokes) is pleasant enough, but it can't hold on to what it's caught. Even after multiple listens, there isn't a single melody here that sticks with me. Switches are the kind of crafty yet middling band that could probably play in any genre, yet truly succeed in none.

They have some very good moments like the vocal interplay on "Need to Be Needed," but more often they're simply shallow. "Drama Queen" is Switches taking on the Stones' awkward attempt at new wave a la Some Girls/Emotional Rescue. It's appropriate, because, like the Stones of that era, Switches are just plugging their songs into the genre-of-the-month. They try to plug in some credibility and edginess as well with a few drug references, but it's very superficial and disingenuous, just reinforcing how light the band really is. Lay Down the Law is just another example of how craft without heart is the perfect recipe for bad rock n roll.

Ratings
Satriani: 6/10
Zappa: 5/10
Dylan: 6/10
Aretha: 2/10
Overall: 4/10

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Review: Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer - Schematics

Label: Flight Plan/Reignition Records

Released: September 25, 2007

Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer is yet another power-pop band among what seems like an endless stream coming out these days. So, what sets this female-fronted hook-fest apart from the others? For one thing, energy. In a genre that seems to go through the motions, Zolof is engaged in what they're doing. Straightforward rhythms are augmented by solid hooks, sometimes in the vocals and sometimes on the organ. Unlike so many power-pop and pop-punk bands, the vocals have a bit of edge, just enough to keep the songs out of that sappy territory in which most of their peers tread, but not enough to suck the pop out of the power. Zolof is a band in every sense of the word. From the rhythms and the the power chords to the sweet edgy vocals backed by plenty of "whoa-oh-ohs," nothing gets all that complex and piece steps on another. The result is both a raw energy and a refined catchiness that is tough not to like.

Rating: 6/10

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Review: Bert Susanka - Onward Christian Slater

Label: Cornerstone RAS

Released: February 13, 2007

I once saw an interview with a pro surfer. When asked who was the best surfer in the world, she replied, "The one having the most fun." Bert Susanka might be the musical embodiment of that surfing ideal.

Onward Christian Slater takes the harmonies of the Beach Boys, the down-to-earth grittiness of the Replacements and the quirky eclecticism of They Might Be Giants and wrap it up into a charmingly imperfect package. There are hints of surf, ska, power pop, hip-hop, pop punk, doo-wop, even psychedelia, so the album doesn't really have a lot of musical continuity. However, it's laidback spirit ties it together in a way that can escape even the most single-minded albums. The songs are so close to pop brilliance at times that you might think with just a bit of polish these songs would be amazing. But don't be fooled. Polish would suck the life out of them. It would destroy their beauty. It would crush their spirit. This is an album that's right even when it's wrong.

It's more than just the surf theme that crops up throughout (most notably on the story-song, "The Trip That Needed to be Took") that makes this a surf album. The Beach Boys had far more of that. It's really the essence of surfing that makes it ultimately a surf album and that's something that speaks to more than just actual surfers. In a sense it may also be similar in character to the Dude from the Big Lebowski. This is not an album about the pristine, but the laidback, the easygoing, the happy (even when it's sad). It's an album that "takes it easy for all us sinners."

Rating: 8/10

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Review: Watershed - Three Chords and a Cloud of Dust II

Label: Idol Records

Release Date: September 11, 2007

As Watershed well knows, a live album is a difficult proposition. Their 1994 debut (on Epic Records) didn't pan out the way I'm sure they'd hoped and now, 13 years later, they're trying again. The real difficulty with live albums is that it's hard to find that middle ground between too live, making it difficult to appreciate the music, and not live enough, making it difficult to feel the band's (and the crowd's) energy. While this album occasionally strays into the former, overall, it does a fine job of finding the best of both worlds.

Having successfully dealt with the most precarious problems of a live album, you'd think Three Chords and a Cloud of Dust II would be in the clear, but it's not. It's real troubles stem from Watershed's rather generic power pop/pop punk sound. The songs are all solid and there is little doubt that the large hometown crowd loves them (it was recorded at a sold-out show in Columbus, OH). The fact that this is an unedited live recording and nonetheless maintains its listenability is certainly a tribute to the band and their ability to be a tight live act that keeps the show moving. There are a few tracks like the opener, "Suckerpunch," and the lyrically and musically quirky "Mercurochrome" that stand out, but by and large the songs wouldn't have large appeal to anyone who doesn't care for Cheap Trick and all of their many followers. However, if that is your thing, this may be at the top of your live album hit list.

Having captured the energy of their live show, it's a shame that Watershed doesn't have a better repertoire to draw in people outside of their established fan base. Having spent time with their latest live effort, I am probably more prone to catch them when they come to town than I am to stock up on their studio efforts.

Rating: 5/10