STACK September 2016 Issue 143

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Dolly Parton, Linda
Ronstadt and Emmylou
Harris The Complete Trio
Collection
The coming together of three
of the major voices in country
music was a 'wow' moment in
music history. Emmylou Harris,
Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt
started recording together
in the ’70s but it wasn’t until
1987 when we first heard their
collaboration on Trio, with Trio
II following in 1999 – both
Grammy Award-winning and
chart-topping albums. Newly
mastered with 20 bonus tracks
of unreleased material and
alternate takes, if you missed
these landmark albums the
first time around, they are a
must in any country music-
lovers collection. A triple treat.
(Rhino/Warner)
Denise Hylands
Big Scary Animal
An ever-evolving sound is emitted
from this Melbourne duo, who
– from humble indie roots with
garage rock and an Australian
Music Prize nod – are now selling
out shows around the country
on the eve of this, their third
album proper’s release. Dark,
electro-clash undertones across
the art-experiment beats and
whistles make for an arse-shaking
experience if the mood takes you.
With its beyond-catchy hooks and
stop-start party vibe, The Endless
Story is crying for radio dominance
(if it ever makes the maddening
playlist ‘cut’), so too Flutism and
Up and Up and Up with their
break-beat/post-punk crossover
hypnotism. Best local release of
2016 thus far, as you’d have to pull
many a rabbit out of an enormous
hat welded shut to compete with
this. (Inertia) Chris Murray
Cody Jinks
I'm Not The Devil
If you like your country badass
and outlaw like Jennings, Haggard
and Cash, you may just like what
Cody Jinks has to offer. Although
he was raised on outlaw country,
metal was his first love. They all
come around eventually...
After a stint fronting a thrash
metal band, country came a-calling
and with it brought forward
a new generation of country
appreciation. This Texas singer-
songwriter lays down unapologetic
and honest songs of heartache
and redemption, with a smooth,
authentic, all too familiar baritone.
This is real straight shootin’,
double shot swiggin’, true country.
(ThirtyTigers/CookingVinyl)
Denise Hylands
Jarrow
2003 Dream
Coming out of the Nashville
school of songwriting, 20-year-old
Melbournian Dan Oke knows how
to sling a tune. As the songwriter
and frontman of Jarrow, he
portrays himself as spiritually
broken and perpetually unlucky,
the kind of charming sad boy
archetype who takes his beatings
with a grin that made Ryan Adams
and his ilk so hot. Persona aside,
part of 2003 Dream’s charm is
in its varied instrumentation,
switching up jagged guitar pop for
sprawling psych instrumentals and
electric flourishes. Jarrow come
off like the kids who knew they
were smarter than everyone else
in the class and never hesitated to
show it, but damnit if you couldn’t
help liking them all the same.
(Remote Control) Jake Cleland
Wilco Schmilco
“I always hated normal American
kids…” sings Jeff Tweedy on
the opener; you get the idea
immediately. If I Ever Was A
Child dances into more pop/folk
territory with such infectiousness
it’ll conjure a Tim Rogers smiling
vibe with ease (and demand repeat
listens), then Cry All Day train-
chugs through a depressive ballad
with juxtaposed positivity. Wilco, as
always, lure emotional responses
from unsuspecting brains via
putting you completely at ease in
seconds. The 12 tracks here, most
of which are under three minutes,
traverse many subgenres within
their own inimitable style. You’ll
hear so much of your own record
collection (Lennon, T-Rex, Zevon)
snapshotting throughout, but it’s
still, unmistakably, Wilco. A serious
grower.
(ANTI/Warner) Chris Murray
Ol '55 Time To Rock 'N' Roll: The Anthology
Ol’ 55 were seen as a novelty act – an Aussie
version of Sha Na Na, reviving the rock sounds of
the ’50s. But they did it wonderfully well, with a
sense of style, genuine songwriting smarts and
a larrikin sense of humour. And now, 40 years
after they urged pub rock fans to Take It Greasy,
comes this generous Ol’ 55 compilation: 56 songs
including nine live tracks, some previously unreleased studio recordings
plus liner notes by the band’s manager, Glenn A Baker. Frankie J Holden
was an accountant named Peter Brian before fronting Ol’ 55 (and this
anthology features his song Chartered Accountant Blues). He was joined
by a saxophonist named Nicholas Aitken, who found fame as Wilbur
Wilde. Holden and Wilde did just one album with the band, but it was a
gem – 1976’s Take It Greasy, featuring the hits On The Prowl and Looking
For An Echo, as well as covers of classics such as Get A Job and Only
Sixteen. Ol’ 55 – who took their name from the TomWaits song, later
covered by The Eagles – picked up where Daddy Cool left off, celebrating
rock’s fun side with glorious harmonies and a charismatic line-up. This
classy collection is the compilation they deserve.
(Festival/Warner) Jeff Jenkins
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18 SEPTEMBER 2016
MUSIC REVIEWS
Venus II Inside Your Sun
Inside Your Sun is a love letter
to sweet Hacienda, that fantasy
land where the pills are pure, the
cops never come, and people like
Shaun Ryder are allowed to exist
in public. Eagle & the Worm’s
Jarrad Brown and Canyons’
Ryan Grieve have bonded over
their timewarped obsession and
synthesized this perfect clone of
'baggy', that awfully-titled genre
of '80s British dance rock, which
means you get all the rhythm of
acid house alongside bombastic
psych rock buildups. Venus II are
prone to their predecessors’ faults
as much as their successes: the
slower ballads – mercifully few
– come off as gratuitous and self-
indulgent stabs at seriousness, but
the hard-hitters – most of the rest
of the album – are unparalleled
fun. (Warner) Jake Cleland