BuzzCuts: New Music
Indie-rockers Spoon follow up 2005's widely-acclaimed "Gimme Fiction" with an introspective, radio-ready sixth studio album. Also, late-'80s hit-makers Crowded House reunite with their first album in a decade, and singer-songwriter Brad Colerick follows-up last year's "Cottonwood," his first album in 19 years.
Spoon, "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga" (Merge)
Spoon, "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga"
Crowded House, "Time on Earth"
Brad Colerick, "Lines in the Dirt"
Spoon's songs have been featured on TV shows ("The O.C." and "Veronica Mars") and in films ("Stranger Than Fiction"). With their sixth studio album, the alt-rockers from Austin, Texas, could score something even more elusive: a bona fide summer hit.
There are several candidates on "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga," the band's most accessible album yet. Most radio-friendly is "The Underdog," a tune that inspires instant toe-tapping. Rich with horns, handclaps and acoustic guitars, it's an upbeat anthem for the overlooked.
"You've got no fear of the underdog," songwriter-guitarist Britt Daniel sings. "That's why you will not survive."
A warning to closed-minded music execs and radio programmers, perhaps?
Daniel and his bandmates — drummer Jim Eno, bassist Rob Pope and keyboardist Eric Harvey — address their perceived lack of mainstream marketability on the tongue-in-cheek (yet radio-ready) "Finer Feelings."
"Sometimes I think that I've found love, one that's going to change my heart," Daniel sings. "I find it in commercial appeal."
"You Got Yr Cherry Bomb," with its horns and xylophone flourishes, is another catchy song with hit potential. That's not to say that Spoon has gone all pop. The same introspective lyrics, layered guitars and moving harmonies that characterized their earlier work still flows through "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga."
"Don't Make Me a Target" and "My Little Japanese Cigarette Case" sound like classic Spoon. The quartet stretches its musical boundaries on "The Ghost of You Lingers," an ethereal track marked by staccato piano and heavy reverb.
CHECK THIS TRACK OUT: "Don't You Evah," with its handclaps, groovy bass line and thoughtful lyrics, is a blend of the band's pop and alternative tendencies. (Sandy Cohen)
Back to topCrowded House, "Time on Earth" (ATO Records)
More than 10 years after calling it quits, Crowded House returns with "Time on Earth," a collection of mostly contemplative, at times plaintive songs that reflect the group's well-established flair for melodic hooks and harmonies.
For the first time, the Australian rock band, which scored its big break in 1987 with the song "Don't Dream it's Over," is without founding drummer Paul Hester, who hanged himself at age 46 two years ago.
Singer-songwriter Neil Finn and bassist Nick Seymour, two original members, are joined this time out by guitarist-keyboardist Mark Hart, who joined the band during their previous studio album in 1993, and drummer Matt Sherrod.
Perhaps because of Hester's death, many of the songs on "Time on Earth" resonate with themes of loss, longing and heartbreak.
In "A Sigh," an aura of echoey feedback and keyboards frame light acoustic guitar strumming as Finn sings, "A sigh is more than I can bear/This show is not fooling anyone/But it's all for you/But I think your mind is made up."
In the organ-heavy "Heaven that I'm Making," Finn declares, "Mind out don't think/I can't get used to it/And right on the brink/I end up losing it."
In "Silent House," co-written by the Dixie Chicks, Finn sings over fuzz-laden guitars, "I will try to connect all the pieces you've left/I will carry it on and let you forget/I remember the years when your mind was still clear/All the flickering lights that filled up this silent house." (The track was also on last year's Chicks' album, the Grammy-winning "Taking the Long Way.")
Still, even at its most melancholic, "Time on Earth" never becomes bleak. And with 14 songs, there's several upbeat numbers, including "Transit Lounge," a sexy, bass-driven track, and "Don't Stop Now," featuring The Smiths and Modest Mouse guitarist Johnny Marr.
CHECK THIS TRACK OUT: It builds slowly and teases with a restrained chorus, but then "Say That Again" soars with a spacey, cinematic vibe and features some of Finn's most powerful vocals. (Alex Veiga)
Brad Colerick, "Lines in the Dirt" (Back 9 Records)
On the song "Paperboy," Brad Colerick romanticizes the newspaper profession in a blatant bid to win a favorable review from the press.
So here you go, Brad: "Lines in the Dirt" is a fine album.
Seriously, it is. The 11-song set shows that Colerick's excellent 2006 release "Cottonwood" — his first album in 19 years — was no fluke.
Because his tunes are so consistently melodic, the Nebraska-born, California-based singer-songwriter occasionally sounds like someone who made a living writing music for commercials, which he did. But Colerick's songs are sweet rather than saccharine, and they benefit from his wit, flair for narrative and diverse choice of subject matter.
Colerick's topics range from the news biz, immigration and the futility of war to young love, the art of courtship, fish tacos and sweet corn. He also covers the Carter-Cash gem "Ring of Fire" in a charming duet with Suzy Bogguss, who first met Colerick when both were struggling performers.
Bogguss is a star now, and "Lines in the Dirt" merits attention, too.
CHECK THIS TRACK OUT: "My California" provides a melodic reminder that the state is more than merely beaches, convertibles and celebrities. (Steven Wine)
Previous BuzzCuts: New albums from Kelly Rowland, T.I., and Velvet Revolver.