Album Reviews

GARRISON STARR
The Sound of You and Me
(Vanguard)
Sharing a stage with goddesses like Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris and Melissa Ferrick certainly has elevated Garrison Starr's music career. The Sound of You and Me, the latest album organically grown by this talented singer-songwriter, is a poetic escapade of heartache, hope, desire and love. Starr's lyrical masterpieces like "Big Enough" and "Cigarettes and Spearmint" are shining examples of American folk art and kept this new fan entertained for seven hours straight. Deirdre Walsh [buy it]

THE SUBSTITUTES
The Exploding Plastic Inevitable
(The Substitutes)
The Substitutes are a rock & roll band. The San Fran foursome likes loud guitars, hair-pulling riffs, assertive vocals and the classic 4/4 thump. On The Exploding Plastic Inevitable , the boys experiment with funk (check the clavinet on "Wrong Side of the Whip"), and almost get sensitive on "Flower." But they're mostly happy to bang out soulful stompers like "In the City," "Hardcore California" and the snarling "God is Cocaine." I bet these guys tear stages to tiny bits, but this disk will suffice in putting cracks in your woodwork. Accept these Substitutes. Michael Toland [buy it]

THE SWORD
Age of Winters
(Kemado)
Austin quartet the Sword isn't out to change the face of heavy rock on its debut album Age of Winters. The band revels in riffs derived from Sabbathian sources, fantasy and mythology-soaked lyrics and old-school aggression. It sounds like Tony Iommi collaborating with Steve Harris after being inspired by the Cirith Ungol catalog. But the youngsters bring all their energy to bear on these warhorse melodies and themes, giving these moldering broadswords a shiny sharpness they probably haven't had since Iron Maiden's heyday. Plus the record just flat-out rocks ass. Which is all that's important anyway. Michael Toland [buy it]

TRES CHICAS
Bloom, Red & the Ordinary Girl
(Yep Roc)
La música de Tres Chicas es buena pero ordinario. This alternative country band features the sophisticated sounds of Lynn Blakey, Caitlin Cary and Tonya Lamm. Their latest album, Bloom, Red & the Ordinary Girl, refers to the nicknames of the members; however, the title is the most creative aspect of the CD. While the three soul-sisters create perfect harmonies on songs like "Shade Trees in Bloom" and "Still I Run," the record is a bit mundane. It serves as good background music but doesn't inspire or invoke passion. I imagine these fine women are much better in concert than on album, especially on beautiful songs like "Slip So Easily." Deirdre Walsh [buy it]

TRUCKFIGHTERS
Gravity X
(Fuzzorama/MeteorCity)
Of all the countries that produce Kyuss, um, let's call them enthusiasts, Sweden is the most profligate. While that means a few too many copycats, it also means bands likely to stick it out and evolve into something more than mere clones. So it is with Truckfighters. Gravity X boasts the familiar attributes—titanic riffs, roiling rhythms, charismatic vocals—but with a raw production aesthetic, a recurring cosmic feel and enough melodic twists to make the sound the band's own. Check out the rocking "Freewheelin'," the pounding "The Deal" and the psychedelic "Manhattan Project" for some delicious heavy rock candy. Michael Toland [buy it]

TWO HIGH STRING BAND
Moonshine Boogie
(Blue Corn)
Moonshine Boogie is the third record from bluegrass newcomers Two High String Band. The band boasts a revolving door of musicians and their music reflects that attitude. Some tunes, such as the title track, are as basic as they come. Others, like "Nobody Calls From Vegas Just to Say Hello," are jampacked with instruments piled on top of Geoff Union's hillbilly vocals. This is a pretty good record, especially considering this edition of the band has been playing together for just over a year. The playing is tight as a drum, with personality to burn. Lance Looper [buy it]

HANK WILLIAMS III
Straight to Hell
(Bruc)
The grandson of Hank Williams is as known for devotion to metal and hardcore punk as for honky-tonk country. Sadly, Straight to Hell isn't the C&W/metal fusion of which he's clearly capable. However, it is a great country record; better yet, it's a great Hank III country record. III's previous albums found the scion working territory well-covered by both his grandpa and his buddy Wayne Hancock. Straight to Hell, though, stamps III's mark—honest, angry, blatantly profane—all over bare-bones, mostly acoustic C&W tunes about drinking, drugging, loving and killing. Sin and salvation, in other words. (But mostly sin.) It sounds like country heaven, but we all know what Nashville thinks of this stuff these days. (The demonic cover art, bizarre sound collage "Louisiana Stripes" and appearance of live favorite "Dick in Dixie" ain't helping, not that III or we care.) Straight to Hell still doesn't quite live up to Hank III's potential as an artist, but it fulfills every bit of promise he has as a C&W icon in the making. Michael Toland [buy it]

WITCH
Witch
(Tee Pee)
Witch is a side-project for members of acid folk ensemble Feathers, but most people will take note of the presence of one J Mascis on drums. Don't get me wrong, the Dinosaur Jr. leader is a hell of a drummer, but the biggest deal about Witch is that it's one slambang monster of a hard rock record. The guitars are huge, the vocals clear and full of character and the songs bend melody to the will of huge-ass riffs that fill every spare inch of space. Check out the metal anthem "Black Saint"—if it doesn't have you banging your head and trying to play air guitar and drums at the same time, you better check your pulse (and testosterone level), 'cause you might be deceased. Michael Toland [buy it]

WOLFMOTHER
Dimensions
(Modular)
Though already a known quantity in its native Australia, this young power trio shakes hands with the States via this quick 'n' dirty EP. "Dimension" kick the prerequisite Big Rock Booty, while "Love Train" rides a groove that nods to the O'Jays' like-named classic without being a misguided funk rock cut. "Mind's Eye" and "The Earth's Rotation Around the Sun" get dunked in acid for psych rock journeys into introspective space. CD-ROM vids for "Mind's Eye" and "Dimension" round out an introduction to a band that should leave some nice footprints on the rock landscape. Michael Toland [buy it]

STEVE WYNN & THE MIRACLE 3
…tick…tick…tick
(Down There)
Steve Wynn is nothing if not consistent. No matter who his collaborators or with what paint he colors his work, his general methodology remains the same: noir-influenced lyrics, dry-as-dust vocal delivery, melodies that take Bob Dylan back to the garage, guitar music that pays homage to six-string outsiders (the Velvets, Neil Young, the blues, etc.) everywhere. That said, …tick…tick…tick has something his prior LPs didn't manifest quite so overtly: a sense that Wynn and band are going for broke, that this shaky universe could fall spectacularly apart at any moment. Whether it's the folk-rocking "Freak Star," "All the Squares Go Home" (which builds to a feedback-ridden frenzy) and "The Deep End" or the noise-soaked "Wild Mercury," "Turning of the Tide" and "Killing Me" (which is practically a tribute to RL Burnside), Wynn and the 3 find the beauty in chaos and shove it right in your face. Brilliant stuff. Michael Toland [buy it]

WARREN ZANES
People That I'm Wrong For
(Dualtone)
Warren Zanes' Memory Girls was one of those great out-of-nowhere debuts that makes this whole rock critic thing fun. People That I'm Wrong For, the former Del Fuegos guitarist's follow-up, is just as damn good. Zanes turns in another set of smart, sensitive songs that mix and match elements of roots rock, soul, folk and classic pop, buoyed by Daniel Tashian's warm production. "Mating Calls," "Carrying Me/Carrying You" and "Everyone Here is Made of Thunder" are the kind of songs that would give triple-A radio some much needed class. The only folks for whom Zanes would be wrong are people without taste. Michael Toland [buy it]

SOUNDTRACK
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
(EuropaCorp/RMFF/Recall)
This record makes me want to see the movie. What I know about the film is echoed here, with earthy, dusty songs that paint the beautifully desolate landscape of Southwest Texas. Along with songs from Merle Haggard, Hank Williams Jr. and Dwight Yoakam, Marco Beltrami has created some eerily original music for the film. It's Beltrami's work that makes this great. This is not simply a collection of songs, but a listening experience not unlike watching a movie. The tense score is broken up by the random appearance of these voices from country music's past—Freddy Fender here and Roger Miller there. Hopefully the movie is as good. Lance Looper [buy it]