STACK Nov #133

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Bjork
Vulnicura Strings
No artist has been more active
than Bjork in the realm of fiddling
up remixed versions of perfectly
good albums. But why would
she want to dwell on this, the
harrowing post-mortem into her
failed marriage? The short answer
is to prolong the agony – for him,
conceivably, but mostly for her.
"If I regret us/ I'm denying my
soul to grow/ Don't remove my
pain/ It is my chance to heal," she
sings on Not Get, as the strings
saw at her bones. The cracking
electronic undercurrents of the
original album are gone and new
viola parts added to close-miked
arrangements. It's an altogether
more raw and abrasive experience
which, while not without beauty,
feels more about closure than
progress. (Inertia) Michael Dwyer
Darlene Love
Introducing Darlene Love
It's been an extraordinary couple
of years for legendary singer
Darlene Love. In 2013 her career
was revived after decades of
anonymity when the Oscar-winning
documentary film 20 Feet From
Stardom exposed the exploitation
in the sixties of session singers by
producer Phil Spector. Now, thanks
to the E Street Band's Steve Van
Zandt (whose robust arrangements
and production offer a perfect
fit) and Bruce Springsteen, Elvis
Costello and Jimmy Webb (who
contributed new songs,) she's
belatedly taking her rightful place
centre stage, trading vocals with
fellow Spector alumnae Bill Medley
and covering Tina Turner's River
Deep Mountain High.
(Sony) Billy Pinnell
Keith Richards
Crosseyed Heart
Like Richards' three previous solo
releases, this one, his first in 23
years, finds him in the company of
familiar and like-minded musicians:
drummer Steve Jordan who co-
wrote the album, guitarist Waddy
Wachtel, keyboard player Ivan
Neville, backing singer Sarah Dash
and saxophonist Bobby Keys.
His croaky vocal delivery is
affective throughout, be it on folk,
blues, country, all-out rockers,
reggae, or ballads. One, Illusion, is
a duet with Norah Jones.
With or without the Stones,
Richards is at his best when his
guitar interplays with musicians
who are prepared to serve the
song first.
(EMI) Billy Pinnell
The Wainwright Sisters
Songs In The Dark
You can hear the fire crackling in
Prairie Lullaby but the "shadows
slowly creeping" foretell an
album as much about unspoken
horrors as the comforts of the
family hearth. Martha Wainwright
and Lucy Wainwright Roche
are sisters by different musical
mothers, so they share a gift for
heavenly parlour harmony as well
an understanding of the darkness
that weaves through folk tradition
– hence the black humour and
plain terrible tales herein, from
the unsettling half-suggestions
of Runs In The Family to the
old-world wickedness of Long
Lankin. With its default waltz time
and soft, spare accompaniment,
it casts a spell not easily shaken.
(Inertia) Michael Dwyer
The Ocean Party
Light Weight
It’s taken The Ocean Party five
albums to finally get into a proper
studio, but Light Weight doesn’t
abandon their multi-songwriter
intimacy or poignancy. It’s actually
their most melancholy outing
yet, with a dark streak that
extends from the cracked skull
on opener Black Blood through to
the unnerving fixation of Phone
Sex. Their songwriting more
mature than ever, the Melbourne
ensemble keep up some of the
last album’s ’80s tinges but add
some country licks. They’ve
evolved nicely from slacker jangle-
pop to something much more
universal.
(Spunk/Universal) DougWallen
Gum
Glamorous Damage
Best known for his sideman roles
in mind-bending juggernauts Tame
Impala and Pond, Jay Watson
nabs the spotlight with his second
solo album as Gum. It’s a glorious
celebration of kitschy synth-funk,
including all the requisite falsetto
turns and squiggly synth solos,
but there’s a lot of heart and many
hooks involved. Elafonissi Blue
sounds like vintage Super Furry
Animals, while other tracks will
appeal to fans of The Flaming
Lips and Daft Punk. Gum may not
overtake Watson’s other bands
anytime soon, but it sure is fun.
(SpinningTop) DougWallen
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Russell Morris
Red Dirt – Red Heart
It’s the most remarkable Australian trilogy since
Crocodile Dundee – but whereas Mick Dundee
lost his mojo third time around, this offering might
actually be the best of Russell Morris’s Aussie blues
series. A little more laidback than its predecessor, it
finds Morris deep in the heart of the nation, telling
indigenous stories such as Bennelong, Kadaitcha Man and Pemulwuy. These
are songs for the head and the heart. Who would have thought that Aussie
history could be so entertaining? Morris makes you think and dance. You
can easily get lost in Australia’s harsh interior and Red Dirt – Red Heart also
features songs of salvation. “They say redemption sometimes comes at the
darkest of dawns,” Morris sings in God Loves A Sinner. “You either want it or
you don’t.” The album – masterfully produced by Mitch Cairns – showcases
Morris’s dynamic vocals and Shannon Bourne’s expressive guitar playing. The
beautifully reflective final song Nullabour Sand, written with guitar great Kevin
Borich, sounds like closure. “Time will lead us all back home,” Morris declares.
A fitting conclusion to an Aussie classic. (Chugg Music) Michael Dwyer