Album Reviews

AMERICAN DOG
Red White Black and Blue
(Glue Factory/Outlaw)
Redneck boogie metal from Columbus, Ohio. Singer/bassist Michael Hannon did time in Texas' Dangerous Toys, and the Dog's second record walks a similarly fine line between Southern grit and commercial polish. The balance tips toward the former, fortunately, and songs like "Shitkicker," "I Keep Drinkin' (You're Still Ugly)" and "Hear Me Howlin'" leave a messy trail reeking of booze, bongs and sweat. At over an hour, though, it's a needlessly long trail. Michael Toland [buy it]

BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
Take Them On, On Your Own
(Abstract Dragon/Virgin)
It's been three years since its debut album, yet B.R.M.C. hasn't developed a whit; it's still as in thrall to the dirty fuzz pop sound of the Jesus & Mary Chain as ever. It's admittedly a bit disturbing that after three years of incubation the trio's second record sounds just like the first—it even rewrites its hit "Whatever Happened to My Rock 'N Roll" as "Six Barrel Shotgun." But since no one else is plowing this field—hell, even the Chain didn't sound like the Chain in its dotage—we'll let B.R.M.C. slide one more time. But the guys might want to think about incorporating some of their own ideas before their next slab. Michael Toland [buy it]

CONSONANT
Love and Affliction
(Fenway)
Clint Conley wrote the catchiest songs in the repertoire of the legendary Mission of Burma (how many covers of "That's When I Reach For My Revolver" have you heard?), but dropped out of music in the early 80s. Now he's back, teamed with former members of indie rock heroes Come and Bedhead in Consonant. The quartet's second album mines much the same vein as Conley's Burma songs: melodic, noisy, balancing intellectual probing with emotional confusion, reiterating to the millions of indie rockers who followed him how to really write songs. Michael Toland [buy it]

DIMMU BORGIR
Death Cult Armageddon
(Nuclear Blast)
Dimmu Borgir's black metal majesty is controversial just for existing—extreme metal goobers won't accept the band's dedication to craft (not to mention its sense of humor) while mainstream metal fans can't get past the Satanism. Too bad for both, as Borgir is easily the most melodic, most ambitious and simply best black metal band on earth right now, and Death Cult Armageddon is the group's mightiest statement yet. Michael Toland [buy it]

DIVISION OF LAURA LEE
97-99
(Lovitt)
Sweden's Division of Laura Lee took the underground by storm a year ago with its fine album Black City, which fused the raw immediacy of the rising garage rock scene with an angular musical sensibility that drew as much from postpunk icons like Gang of Four and Wire as from straight punk. Which makes the overt Fugazi worship of 97-99, a collection of pre-Black City recordings, a bit of a shock. Division and Fugazi apparently have similar record collections full of old Ruts and Public Image Ltd. LPs. The band's drive and passion is just as evident here as it would be on its breakthrough, so perhaps derivation is less of an issue than conviction, right? Michael Toland [buy it]

MARK EITZEL
The Ugly American
(Thirsty Ear)
The idea of genius songwriter Eitzel recycling older material with a Greek folk band seems like a sorry substitute for an album of new material. But there are some genuine rarities here (the previously single-only "Take Courage," the limited edition track "What Good is Love"), and Eitzel tweaks the lyrics on a few tunes. Producer Manolis Famellos' combo lends surprisingly sympathetic backing. Besides, the beauty of these versions of "Western Sky," "The Nightwatchman" and "Jenny" gently overrules any misgivings and makes The Ugly American one of his most appealing and endearing albums. Michael Toland [buy it]

THE FIREBALL MINISTRY
The Second Great Awakening
(Nuclear Blast)
California's Fireball Ministry preaches the gospel of no-frills hard rock on its third disk The Second Great Awakening. Actually, the Rev. James A. Rota II's image-heavy lyrics and surprisingly melodic vocals owe little to the genre's past practitioners, but otherwise this band worships at the altar of the holy riff. With chapter and verse like "King," "In the Mourning" and "Flatline," I'm ready for the laying on of hands. Hallelujah! Michael Toland [buy it]

HELLBORG/LANE/SIPE
Temporal Analogues of Paradise
(Bardo)
Recorded live in 1995, Temporal Analogues of Paradise is either a thrilling showcase for world-class musicians or a dull noodlefest by self-indulgent technicians, depending on one's perspective. Bassist Jonas Hellborg, guitarist Shawn Lane and drummer Apt. Q258 Jeff Sipe (that's how he's credited) have more chops than a butcher shop, and their improvisations veer wildly from tasteful atmospherics to burning solos. Melodies appear and disappear without much development. Fusion fans will no doubt be pleased, but if you like more structure in your music, approach with caution. Michael Toland [buy it]

THE JET CITY FIX
Play to Kill
(King Bee/Infect)
Washington's Jet City Fix gleefully trips through all the hip guitar rock fields on Play to Kill. There's some rip-roaring power rock ("Invisible," "Jet City's Rockin'"), some singalong pop/punk ("Dumb Luck," "Sick of Drugs"), some emo-inflected alternative rock ("Drowning," "Bullet") and some blatant Supersuckers rips ("The Life," "Love It or Leave It"). The performances often burn; too bad the songwriting rarely rises above functional. Gritty vocalist Shane Flauding holds everything together, but it's unclear whether the JCF is a band that's versatile or confused. Michael Toland [buy it]

KRAKATOA
We Are the Rowboats
(Cuneiform)
This veteran New York combo runs progressive rock, jazz, klezmer and Balkan folk music through a strainer, and the resulting essence is melodic, impish and, most of all, fun. The violin-heavy quartet avoids the quagmire of seriousness that drowns most proggers, especially those inclined toward instrumentals, by reclaiming a long-lost playfulness. That originals like "Hot Water" and "Accelerations" stand up to the timeless wit of Aram Katchaturian's "Sabre Dance" is hot fudge on the blintzes. Michael Toland [buy it]

LEADFOOT
We Drink For Free
(Abstract)
Long-suffering North Carolina quintet Leadfoot's third album won't make you forget the likes of Down or American Dog—or even Molly Hatchet—but it's solid enough Southern rawk, the kind that makes more sense on stage after a few Budweisers than it does on the stereo during a pot party. Best song title: "Chicks Dig Metal," which features this salacious, name-dropping libretto: "Just glad to see you made it backstage/Lemmy put an end to your masturbating rage." Michael Toland [buy it]

MICHELLE MALONE
Stompin' Ground
(SBS/Daemon)
This is what I always wanted Bonnie Raitt to sound like. Some might argue that Atlanta's Michelle Malone is the poor person's Raitt: same bluesy approach, same proficiency with a bottleneck, same rootsy sensibilities, etc. But something Malone doesn't share with her better-known rival is the studio slickness and triple-A radio sheen that puts such a distance between Raitt and her material. If the strong songs, crisp guitar work and soulful vocals of Stompin' Ground are any indication, we should start referring to Bonnie Raitt as the poor person's Michelle Malone. Michael Toland [buy it]

THE DEL MCCOURY BAND
It's Just the Night
(McCoury Music/Sugar Hill)
At this point, the Del McCoury Band has its shtick down to a formula: contemporary Nashville country ("Same Kind of Crazy as Me"), contemporary bluegrass ("Asheville Turnaround"), spirituals ("I Can Hear the Angels Singing"), a barnburning instrumental ("Hillcrest Drive") and, thanks to the success of the last record's "1952 Vincent Black Lightning," a couple of Richard Thompson songs ("Dry My Tears and Move On," "Two-Face Love"). But the McCoury troupe isn't called the best bluegrass band in the world for nothing, and even if It's Just the Night contains no surprises, it's still overflowing with pure bluegrass pleasure. Michael Toland [buy it]