Dino Saluzzi with Rosamunde Quartett
Kultrum (ECM New Series)
Like Astor Piazzolla, the tango revivalist and visionary composer in whose footsteps he follows, Saluzzi plays the bandoneon, a rich, complex button accordion. He fills his beautiful compositions with ardor, longing, and melancholy. Constantly pushing the boundaries of his music, Saluzzi performs here with the Rosamunde Quartett, yielding a music filled with the passion of tango and the sophistication of classical.
Various artists
Searching for Jimi Hendrix (The Right Stuff)
During his short, incandescent life, Jimi Hendrix produced a style of hallucinogenic pop that was so personal and pyrotechnic as to be his alone, impervious to duplication or interpretation. Or so it seemed. Almost 30 years later, the jury is still out on the former, but not the latter. This documentary soundtrack offers 11 Hendrix classics performed by varied artists. Most renditions are smart and head-turning: Laurie Anderson weaves an atmospheric "1983," and Rosanne Cash polishes "Manic Depression" like someone who's licked its dark underbelly. Hendrix himself might be surprised at the language Chuck D uses on "Free at the Edge of an Answer," but no one captures the Feedback King's spooky danger and instrumental sorcery.
Garmarna
Vengeance (NorthSide)
You know you're on to something different when the backward fiddles start, then the drum machine and samplers kick in, followed by the cool clarity of Emma Härdelin's voice singing of revenge - all the blood and guts of Swedish folk music in a new context. Once you've lifted your jaw off the floor at the way ancient and modern fit seamlessly together, you'll find yourself hypnotized.
The Chemical Brothers
Surrender (Astralwerks)
Two years ago, the Chemical Brothers were the first electronic dance artists to win a Best Rock Instrumental Grammy, for "Block Rockin' Beats." On this their third album, Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons filter out the hip-hop references in favor of bringing their indie rock and pop influences to the fore, working with heroes like New Order's Bernard Sumner, Primal Scream's Bobby Gillespie, Oasis' Noel Gallagher (who sang on the last album's post-rave comedown "Setting Sun"), and Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval.
Complementing the record's instrumental breakbeat tracks are pop gems like "Out of Control" and "Dream On," a hallucinatory lullaby with vocals from Mercury Rev's Jonathan Donahue.
Regina Carter
Rhythms of the Heart (Verve)
A double novelty for jazz - a female instrumentalist and a violinist, for God's sake - Carter has gained instant cachet with her aggressive self-confidence and muscular flash. Actually, she'd do well to lose some of that muscle and flash; she's yet to unlock the cry of vulnerability that lies at the heart of the violin's song. Best cut: a reggae take on the Temptations' "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone," featuring Cassandra Wilson's vocals.
Jim Hall & Pat Metheny
Jim Hall & Pat Metheny (Telarc)
Guitarist Pat Metheny has been hounding his idols since day one. As a youngster, his temerity led him to sit in and wow vibraphonist Gary Burton. After years of homage, he recorded with multi-instrumentalist Ornette Coleman, yielding the critically acclaimed "Song X."
Now Metheny has Jim Hall - that seminal six-string icon - in the crosshairs. This sublime duo creates tasteful, sometimes aggressive counterpoint around such classic fare as "Summertime" and "All the Things You Are," and then conspires on five improvised pieces in a whirlwind of creativity. Soon we'll all be old, and this recording too shall be deemed classic.
John Tavener
Eternity's Sunrise (harmonia mundi)
Tavener's music closed Princess Diana's funeral in 1997. Here, regal with handbells and solo soprano, Eternity's Sunrise comprises five works performed by the Academy of Ancient Music. Incorporating period instruments, orthodox texts, and contemporary harmonies, he makes music that soothes our sense of the world's dissonance.
Ben Folds Five
The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner (550 Music/Epic)
Ben Folds Five could have cozied up just fine with the likes of the Beatles, Queen, Elton John, and Joe Jackson. Why? Because the alt-pop trio cleverly cops nearly every sound ever made by these musicians. In fact, listening to this album is like a pop-music crash course.
The catchy "Army" tempo-shifts from ivory-pounding Broadway bombast to witty slacker ode ("Well I thought about the Army / Dad said 'Son, you're fuckin' high'"). "Narcolepsy" weaves between dreamy pop minuet and arena-ready progrock. But pretty as it all is, one yearns for a song that doesn't sound so borrowed. Like many unauthorized biographies, this disc has the feel of a well-done clip job.
STREET CRED
Room Service
Organize in Stereo
A Time to GrO
Many Unhappy Returns
The Wrath of You
King of Lost Vegas
Touchscreens Are Better
Urban Legend
Music
Just Outta Beta
ReadMe
Here to Reternity
Natural Selection
Exquisite Computing
No Village Idiot
High DRAMa
Contributors
