The Fratellis – Costello Music

I stumbled onto the Fratellis’ single “Chelsea Dagger” back in March or April. I think it was mentioned in a music article on Slate online. I fell for the raucous barroom sing-along feel, and I wound up using it in a mix CD I put together in May. I was curious to see what they would do with a whole album.

Thankfully, Costello Music is more of the same. Unlike most of the music coming out of England, there isn’t a trace of the New Wave Revival here. There aren’t synthesizers, and there are no nods to the pop of the 80s. Instead, the record sounds as though it was designed to be played on a pub jukebox on Friday night. Rocking with energy and pace, rather than power chords and hair spray, the Fratellis seem to care more about enjoying themselves than making art. This is a fun record.

My favorite track is “For a Girl,” simply because I’m a sucker for a good melody, but “Flathead” and “Everybody Knows You Cried Last Night” are also standouts. Really, though, there aren’t any bad songs, and the album sounds pretty terrific straight through.

Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings – 100 Days, 100 Nights and Naturally

I learned of Sharon Jones because she was involved in some bogus “feud” with Amy Winehouse and Mark Ronson because they’d “stolen” her band, the Dap Kings. I loved the sound of Mark Ronson’s work on his own album and Winehouse’s, so when I discovered that the Dap Kings were responsible for a lot of that sound, it didn’t take me long to find these albums.

Playing with Sharon Jones, the Kings’ sound is really something special. The production is clean, without being glossy, and you can really hear each instrument. The Kings play wonderfully together, and Jones has a classic soul voice that adds a lot to the mix.

The only drawback is the songwriting. The lyrics and melodies of many of these songs can’t match the energy, feel, and emotion that Sharon and the Kings are putting into them. That is why, I think, there aren’t many songs, and several of them are covers. (Another reason for the shorter track listing is a conscious effort to evoke the look and feel of LPs from the late 60s and early 70s.)

Songwriting aside, there are some very good songs here. On Naturally, the 1-2 punch of “How Do You Let a Good Man Down” and “Natural Born Lover” is pretty stellar. “How Long Do I Have to Wait for You” is another favorite of mine. On 100 Days, 100 Nights, there are fewer funk workouts, and one abominable duet (“Tell Me”) that’s the only track on these two albums I have to skip. But the record also contains a few gems in “Something’s Changed” and the title track. Better still, the record comes with a Daptone Records sampler CD hosted by someone named Binky Griptite. It’s almost an hour long, and it’s great. A little uneven, but great.

I can’t wait to pick up their first record, Dap-Dippin’ with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. Soul Power!

Queens of the Stone Age – Era Vulgaris

Ugh. Not impressed.

I own Songs for the Deaf, which I really like in spite of the terrible radio station skits. I passed on buying Lullabies to Paralyze because Nick Oliveri left the band and Dave Grohl (my favorite aspect of Deaf) wasn’t involved either. It didn’t help that the record got mixed reviews. I was excited, then, when most of the reviews I read raved about Era Vulgaris. The Queens’ brand of hard rock is out of fashion right now, and there’s hardly anyone doing it well, so this record was coming at the perfect time. (I must admit that playing “No One Knows” repeatedly on Guitar Hero 1 might also have primed me for the release of this album.

But it’s just a bunch of noise. Josh Homme can still play guitar really well, and his band plays some intimidating passages, but there isn’t a song on the album. Compare it to Deaf, which had “Hanging Tree,” “First It Giveth” and others in addition to the awesome singles “No One Knows” and “Go With The Flow.” Each of these was a song I could hum. There’s only one song like that on Era Vulgaris, and it’s “Make It Wit Chu.” Sorry, Queens. Not good enough.