Idiot Reviews May 07
Album review for Air – Pocket SymphonyJean-Benoit Ducknel and Nicolas Godin, the French purveyors of all-time classic lush, space-lounge electronica better known as Air, are back in force with their eagerly anticipated 5th studio album Pocket Symphony. From start to finish, it’s an album you can find yourself entirely lost in, but it’s a happy lost.
Pocket Symphony is standard Air. Ambient and beautiful from start to finish, a mélange of soft bass-beats, orchestra strings and anything else Ducknel and Godin choose to bring to the table, Pocket Symphony stands up alongside legendary past Air albums such as 10,000Hz Legend and Moon Safari.
From the rolling piano in the backbeat of the opening “Space Maker,” the album is 12 songs of absolute celestial ecstasy. Although it may be safe to say that Air covers little to no new territory on this album, when you’ve spent the past decade fine-tuning a sound so smooth, elegant and beyond imitation, maybe you don’t really need to break new ground each album around.
Five stars. Majestic ones. French ones.
Album review for Umphrey’s McGee – The Bottom HalfAt first when I heard that Umphrey’s was releasing The Bottom Half, a collection of B-sides from 2006’s Safety In Numbers, I’ll admit I was a little bit apprehensive. Sure, all their studio albums have been dynamite, but one usually needs to take the term “B-sides and unreleased material” with a grain of salt.
As it turns out, the Umphrey’s boys had originally planned for Safety In Numbers to be a double disc: one electric and one acoustic. However, in the recording process, they couldn’t get everything to flow together as they wished, so they chose the single disc, then Bottom Half route.
Here, we get our two disc set. Disc one features a few new tracks left off Safety, as well as many longtime live staples brought to studio for the first time, including the Bela Fleck-assisted “Great American” as well as fan-favorites “Higgins,” “Divisions” and “Bright Lights, Big City.” B-side or no, disc one rolls through with an intricate fury on par with any of Umphrey’s previous three studio efforts.
Disc two is definitely more esoteric collection, designed it seems mostly for hardcore fans. It features 28 outtakes from Safety including demo versions, acappella versions and several stripped-down, re-worked tidbits that never make it to the fan’s ear. Sort of a basement library catalog of all things Umphrey’s, just not something you’ll pop into your cd player to start the day.
Umphrey’s McGee continues to develop as a band and, as indicated on the shining first disc here, their best may still be yet to come. Four ½ stars. Almost 5.
Hell Yeah-HellyeahHellyeah is America’s latest super group. Hellyeah also marks the return of drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott from Pantera and Damageplan. He hasn’t been musically active since his brother, Pantera and Damageplan guitarist Dimebag Abbott, was murdered on stage a few years back at a Damageplan show in Columbus, Ohio. A collective effort by Mudvayne and Nothingface members (singer Chad Gray, guitarist Greg Tribbett, guitarist Tom Maxwell and bassist Jerry Montano), Hellyeah is somewhat reminiscent of the band Ministry devoid of samples and electronic burps and farts all the while maintaining its originality. The single, You Wouldn't Know, is a bonafide rocker with distorted doubled vocals via Chad Gray and also features Vinnie Paul’s’ relentless drum attack with all wall of guitars and bass to drive the point home . We get it! Other stand out tracks are Alcohaulin'Ass and GodDamn. The record was recorded in Dallas Vinnie and Dime’s studio where the past few Pantera records and the last Damageplan album was recorded. Dimebag’s gear still keeps watch. Evidently all the stars were aligned or something because this Cd is way better than even I expected. It’s good to see something positive rise out of a dark period in music. With a summer tour with Korn’s Family Values traveling rock and roll circus, the masses will get to experience this great new band first hand. Welcome back Vinnie Paul! We missed you!
