A review of Seal’s Soul (2008) At the beginning of his classic track “Killer,” Seal says, “It’s the loneliness that’s the killer.” And maybe that’s just it: after you marry a supermodel and get her to duet with you on … [read more]
A review of Idan Raichel’s Project’s The Idan Raichel Project (2006) Am I dating myself (38) by talking about world music? Does anyone other than 35 plus year olds with a liberal bent still listen to world music? These days, … [read more]
A review of Sam Cooke’s One Night Stand! (1963) Sam Cooke is commonly thought of as one of the originators of soul music and also gets frequent mention as a role model for black entrepreneurs in the entertainment industry. A … [read more]
A review of Depeche Mode’s Violator (1990) It’s hard to remember, from today’s perspective, just how powerful Depeche Mode’s Violator was when it came out in 1990. It neatly, elegantly bridged the gap between punk and mainstream pop while at … [read more]
A review of David Bowie’s Heathen (2002) Released in 2002, this is – for me – Bowie’s most satisfying record of the 2000s so far. It demonstrates what rock can sound like today – well-produced, full, dense, interesting, full of … [read more]
A review of Calexico’s Carried to Dust (2008) And while I’m busy clearing the backlog of “CDs I must mention on my blog,” here’s a definite contender for 2008 Record of the Year. Calexico is an Arizona-based outfit that makes … [read more]
A review of Lambchop’s OH (Ohio) (2008) Despite the recording industry’s continuing contraction (not unlike the financial system’s), the world is full of beautiful music that’s worth hearing. One result of the long tail economy has been that there’s so … [read more]
A review of Ben Harper’s Lifeline (2007) Ben Harper plays a stylish blend of rock, reggae and old-style r’n’b, like a subtler, less flashy version of Lenny Kravitz. These are well-crafted, well-rehearsed songs, recorded in just seven days in a … [read more]