Sound Bites

  Finley Quaye “Vanguard”

Finley Quaye “Vanguard” Epic

Reggae songs with electronic backgrounds are rare in the music
industry, as they should be. Defying both general musical practice
and common sense, Finley Quaye damages too many potentially
excellent songs from his new album by forcing together two genres
that were never meant to be united. That said,
“Vanguard,” the second album from the British reggae
artist, contains a few songs that escape with little or no techno
influence. These tracks are fun to listen to and provide an example
of what the rest of the album should be. Quaye, who is virtually
unknown in the United States, won a BRIT Award in 1998 for Best
British Male Solo Artist, after the release of his premier album,
“Maverick A Strike.” Whereas “Maverick” was
more true to Quaye’s chosen genre of reggae, this album
strays into strange territory with the introduction of electronic
elements. The album starts with two solid songs. Reggae or rock
music backs Quaye, who delivers tightly rhymed lyrics in a
speaking, rather than singing, voice. Following these tracks are
the four most purely reggae, and consequently the best, songs on
the album. Quaye’s voice is at its finest when he sticks to
the reggae style and these songs make the listener yearn for more
like them. Sadly, what follows feels like endless filler after the
singing and songwriting talent Quaye exhibits in the previous four
songs. He reverts to speaking his lyrics, and the music that backs
him becomes increasingly electronic, with a few reggae elements.
These songs aren’t bad, but after hearing what Quaye is
capable of, his failure to make full use of his talents is
disappointing. The album finishes with “Hey Now,” a
sparsely constructed song that largely consists of percussion and
Quaye’s now haunting voice. The song is somewhere in between
the two styles he exhibits on the album, and is a fitting end to
the weird mixture of genres he creates on “Vanguard.”
Quaye is an excellent reggae artist, as proven by the four songs
that are the highlight of this album. It’s too bad that his
focus seems to be on becoming the “Vanguard” of a new
style than a master of an old one.

Mary Williams Rating: 6

Junction 18 “This Vicious Cycle” Fearless
Records

Hailing from the small town of Abington, Mass., is the melodic
emo-core band Junction 18. From where? Yeah, Massachusetts is
not exactly renowned in the rock world, but Junction 18 may just
put this New England state on the map with its melodic rock music.
Sounding like other recently popular “˜emo’ bands such
as A New Found Glory and The Get Up Kids, Junction 18 presents
suburban upbeat rock with pop-sweetened melody lines. The West
Coast independent label Fearless Records recently released Junction
18’s debut “This Vicious Cycle,” which features
11 bouncy tunes for kids to dye their hair black to. Opening with a
bang, the first track “Dakota,” presents the familiar
story of a hard-luck love song presented over the top of the double
guitar attack. Vocalist Andy Bristol sticks to this frustrated love
theme throughout the entire album, leading listeners through a
vicious cycle of hope, love and loss. The fourth track
“Granite Street Knife” presents some more aggression
than the other tracks with a blistering opening riff. The following
song, “Turnabout,” presents the most melodic, catchy
refrain of the album, just begging listeners to sing-along. The
poetic quality of the lyrics presents a lot of imagery to the
songs. The tunes, however, sound similar to each other and
don’t have much in the way of variation. Nonetheless,
“This Vicious Cycle” presents a strong album from start
to finish. So lace up those black Converses and jump around to the
music of Junction 18.

Chris Moriates Rating: 7 Various
Artists “Pure Jazz” Universal Music
Enterprises

Playful and joyous, innocent yet mischievous, the jazz
compilation “Pure Jazz” creates a mood of levity and
delight. This album, full of catchy, danceable tracks, is a must
for any music library, even for those who are not jazz lovers. The
album begins with an upbeat piano riff backing the unique vocals of
Nina Simone singing, “My Baby Just Cares For Me.” At
times Simone’s voice sounds off tune, however, with the
lively pianist creating the melody, the song remains enjoyable and
fresh. The third track brings Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald,
two of jazz’s greatest contributors, together in an
unforgettable version of “Summertime,” recorded for the
George and Ira Gershwin opera “Porgy and Bess.”
Armstrong’s deep, powerful, soothing voice perfectly
complements Fitzgerald’s sweet, smooth vocals. Dramatic and
melancholy, this song is lethargic and thick, like a hot, sticky
summer. While “Summertime” is both serious and
leisurely, the next track is quite the opposite. Glenn
Miller’s “In the Mood” does just that, it gets
listeners in the mood to dance. An anthem of the Swing Era,
“In the Mood” contains instrumentation that sounds
sophisticated and polished. With a call-and-response technique
employed by the saxophones and trumpets, the listener can almost
hear words coming out of the musicians’ instruments.
It’s as if the players are telling their listeners to get up
and dance through their instrumentation.  Sarah Vaughan keeps
the mood playful with her contribution, “Misty.” With
the voice of an angel, Vaughan sings, “Look at me/I’m
as helpless as a kitten in a tree/I feel like I’m clinging to
a cloud/I can’t understand/I get misty just holding your
hand.” Such lyrics artfully parallel her heavenly sound.
Lightening the mood even more, Stan Getz playing with Joao and
Astrud Gilberto, contribute the track “The Girl From
Ipanema.” The song has the same feel-good spirit as “In
the Mood,” yet with a Brazilian flavor. With a voice as
smooth as Fitzgerald’s, Nat King Cole sings
“Unforgettable” with a sound that is out of this world.
His daughter, Natalie Cole, later recorded this single in an
overdub duet with her father, and it isn’t hard to see where
Natalie gets such a beautiful voice. Although all of the tracks are
quite distinct, the album flows beautifully from one song to the
next, each song a pleasant surprise. With the spirit of Louis
Armstrong, the soul of Billie Holiday (contributing “God
Bless the Child”), the swing of Glen Miller and Benny Goodman
(contributing “Swing, Swing, Swing”) and tracks by
Miles Davis, Count Basie and other amazing jazz musicians, the
album proves to be an amazing find.

Rebecca Cohen Rating: 9