kd lang – Watershed – Warner
Simple lyrics and classic singing. Watershed sees Sapphic sex symbol of the early 90s k.d. lang resurface as a mature and powerful singer at the top of her craft. From the sounds of a French springtime in the album’s opening tracks to the country touches in its closing, lang proves that, in a world that worships Idol contestants and the latest post-Britney pop craze, sometimes becoming a timeless classic takes time. The Bonus DVD includes interviews about her journey from ‘Constant Craving’ to ‘Watershed’, including comments about her sexuality and its impact on her songwriting and album decisions. All in all, get this album and get it fast – before her April 19 show at King’s Park. –MS
Various – Skins, the Soundtrack – Polydor
From the critically acclaimed TV series comes the equally popular soundtrack. Skins tracks reflect the show with a range of underground hits, including the Gossip, Tricky and Bloc Party. Any album that also features the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Adam & the Ants and ‘It’s All Over’ by Broken Family Bank needs to be part of your collection. Giveaways on www.www.outinperth.com. –BD
Mr G – Naughty Girl – Virgin/EMI
This could be the dance hit of the millenium. From Mr G’s groundbreaking musical ‘Mr G, the Musical’ comes the title track produced by Paul Mac. Guaranteed to burn up dance floors across the nation, Naughty Girl tells the tale of an adolescent’s struggle with drugs. E is for Ecstacy, so maybe G is for Great because that’s what this song is. A nice reminder that drugs are wrong, but a song about them is cool – Jessica would have wanted us to dance to this. After all, she was a slut – all the kids said so. –BD
VICIOUS CUTS – Summer 08 – Vicious
You could be excused by thinking you’re listening to a Ministry compilation… After the success of the first three Vicious Cuts compilations, one of Australia’s leading dance labels follows up with the next instalment in the series for summer ’08 (has anyone noticed it’s April?!). You’ve got Melbourne’s own John Course on disc one and international Aussie superstar Dirty South on disc two. Coursey’s disc is happy and friendly house/electro that is easy on the ears but commercial as hell. Dirty South’s offering is as enjoyable, but with some dull electro that drove me nuts. However, with names like The Potbelleez, StoneBridge, Dirty South, SE:SA, Bodyrox, Freemasons, T-Rek, Vandalism and Bodyrox, this is sure to be a winner with today’s dance music generation. –SM
NEON NEON – Stainless Style – Lex Records
If anyone was going to make a concept album based on the life story of John Z DeLorean, the ‘playboy engineer’ who invented the first muscle car, romanced Ursula Andress, hustled £85m out of the British government and was almost brought down by the FBI in a coke-smuggling scam, your money would be on Jay-Z. In fact, it’s an unlikely duo. Super Furry Animals’ Gruff Rhys and Bryan ‘Boom Bip’ Hollon first collaborated on ‘Do’s & Don’ts’, a spectral sermon from the latter’s 2005 album Blue Eyed In The Red Room. As Neon Neon they have dumped the baggage of their regular guises, in the same way that Damon Albarn was able to emancipate his muse via Gorillaz. Here, with tinted aviators acting as a mask, Rhys and Hollon have mainlined the soundtrack of ’80s boomtime, yacht rock, Italo-disco, and Prince?, with their combined songwriting prowess preventing the affair from descending into pastiche. As an exercise in sleek, nostalgic pop fantasy, Stainless Style is a lot of fun and probably a cooler epitaph than a corporate conman like DeLorean really deserves. –SM
HED KANDI – Beach House – Hed Kandi
Welcome to the new album from Hed Kandi, it’s summertime again, (or is it autumn? Or is it summer?) and time for the deeply soulful, mid-tempo sun-drenched collection with shimmering vocals and the occasional Latin twist. Over the last year or so, Hed Kandi have developed a penchant for slightly more electronic sounds and this edition of Beach House wouldn’t be complete without a dose of what might best be summed up as Beach Electro. Another Beach House album is ready for direct play in sunlight. We’re off now to find our bikinis and trunks (or is that factor 30 and a shawl) as we take a dip in the sea. –SM
Janet Jackson – Discipline – Island
Discipline isn’t too bad an album, although it is formulaic, even in its attempt at originality. Lead single ‘Feedback’ is cutesy driven electro; ‘Rollercoaster’ is melodic swinging driven funk; and ‘2nite’ is modern disco with all the styling and slick production one would expect from a Jackson. Missy Elliott makes a disastrous cameo and Janet attempts spoken word… horrifically. Highlight, however, is ‘So Much Betta’, where Janet takes on the vocoder voice of the album’s personal assistant, Kyoko. With that said though, Jackson misses the mark that has made her famous in the past: her energy and enthusiasm are directed into nothing exciting here, nothing new, nothing to inspire a rhythm nation to dance. –SPM
