YEAH YEAH YEAHS: Cool It Down (secretly Canadian)
Verdict: Simmers nicely
****
PIXIES: Doggerel (Contagious)
Verdict: rock trailblazers back in shape
****
CRAIG DAVID: 22 (BMG)
Verdict: Bangers and Ballads
***
When Adele picked her eight Desert Island Discs in July, one surprising selection stood out. Beneath the anticipated jazz and R&B standards of Nina Simone, Gabrielle, and Destiny’s Child, a 2003 single, Maps, lurked lurking from the arty Brooklyn garage band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Adele glowed with praise for powerhouse singer Karen O, who described her as “a dragon with a tender moment…it blew my socks off!” It’s easy to see why: Maps helped make the Yeah Yeah Yeahs a force in alternative rock in the 2000s along with other New Yorkers The Strokes. It was also a heartfelt love song that has comfortably stood the test of time.
Karen – the ‘O’ stands for Orzolek – channels both that inner, fire-breathing dragon and her more sensitive side on Cool It Down, the trio’s first album in nine years.
In the meantime they have focused on solo projects (with Orzolek recordings with dance musician Danger Mouse), but as a collective they work best.
Fans expecting songs dominated by guitarist Nick Zinner’s power chords may be in for a surprise. Like the group’s 2009 album It’s Blitz!, much of the responsibility lies with electronic instruments. Initially, there is also a focus on ballads rather than loud rockers.
Karen – the ‘O’ stands for Orzolek – channels both that inner, fire-breathing dragon and her more sensitive side on Cool It Down, the trio’s first album in nine years
The album opens on the Bowie-esque Spitting Off The Edge Of The World, with drummer Brian Chase’s slow, cumbersome beats, before Karen starts a duet on climate change with vocalist Perfume Genius. The next track, Lovebomb, is all dreamy synths and whispered vocals.
However, the slow opening is a smokescreen and Cool It Down quickly develops into a wonderful pop album.
Built around the kind of chunky synth chords that were once a mainstay of Pet Shop Boys singles, Wolf’s disco flavor sets the pace.
The infectious Different Today – framed by Liam Gallagher’s producer Andrew Wyatt, and the strings of the Urban Soul orchestra – is clear, light-hearted and optimistic
As befits a band with roots in Brooklyn’s trendy art-rock scene, there are nods to the neighborhood’s pop past. The album title was stolen from a Velvet Underground song, and the funky Fleez is a tribute to 1981’s Moody (Spaced Out) from Bronx-based indie band ESG.
There’s also a moving tribute to The Four Seasons on Burning, a dance number inspired by a fire that destroyed Orzolek’s apartment, destroying laptops and cameras, but leaving a precious photo of her parents untouched. Based on Beggin’, a Four Seasons single that became a hit in the northern soul scene (the original writers are co-credited), it also allows Zinner to finally unleash some signature guitar work.
Thanks to the slow start, Cool It Down is a comeback with a strange order. But with its eight tracks eventually flying by in 32 minutes, it’s a lean, powerful return. Adele is clearly an excellent judge.
Thanks to the slow start, Cool It Down is a comeback with a strange order. But with its eight tracks eventually flying by in 32 minutes, it’s a lean, powerful return. Adele is clearly an excellent judge
The Pixies were one of the great guitar bands of the 1980s. The Boston quartet’s brilliant second album, Surfer Rosa, formed the quiet-loud-silence blueprint that inspired Nirvana, and they’ve since become an unlikely reference point for young British stars. as Nilufer Yanya.
Following an upbeat Hyde Park show with Pearl Jam in July, Doggerel’s new album is an attempt to recreate past glory – and despite a few Pixies-by-numbers moments, it’s their best since a 2004 reunion. .
Original bassist Kim Deal will be missed, but Paz Lenchantin is a rock solid replacement and the original line-up is otherwise intact.
“My favorite rock and roll is sealed with a kiss,” Black Francis sings on Get Simulated, hinting at the dark romance at the heart of the band’s appeal.
Craig David was a teenage superstar when his debut album, Born To Do It, topped the UK charts and helped him crack the United States.
There’s A Moon On, about the effect of the lunar cycle on human behavior, was a highlight of their summer tour. Dregs Of The Wine is a distant cousin of Debaser from 1989.
Guitarist Joey Santiago serves up well-known surf pop licks on Vault Of Heaven, but there are also welcome detours. Country rocker The Lord Has Come Back Today has a nod to Neil Young’s Hey Hey, My My (Into The Black), and the title track is an offbeat, jazzy shuffle.
Craig David was a teenage superstar when his debut album, Born To Do It, topped the UK charts and helped him crack the United States. Craig David remains an avid British dance music player. He returned to the top of the charts with 2016’s Follow My Intuition, and 22 consolidates his resurgence.
Titled in honor of Born To Do It’s 22nd anniversary, his new album plays with familiar strengths, flowing like any of his popular radio shows or DJ sets.
Titled in honor of Born To Do It’s 22nd anniversary, his new album plays with familiar strengths, flowing like any of his popular radio shows or DJ sets. With finger-picked guitars and jittery electronics, Teardrops is a throwback to its old garage sound. Created with Swedish duo Galantis, DNA is a traditional house stunner.
With one eye on the dance floor, the other on romance, with the playful slant of the singer who keeps his slower songs – sometimes just – the good side of schmaltz.
The mood softens on the languid ballad What more can I ask for? Acoustic closing track Maybe is a nostalgic pop song about the one who escaped.