• Columnists
• Art
• Books
• Celebrities
• Comics
• Events
• Horoscopes
• Lottery
• Movies
• Music
• Restaurants
• Stage
• Television
• Visitors Guide
email this
print thisCD reviews: Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins, Jaheim, Belle and Sebastian, Ladysmith Black Mambazo
"Rabbit Fur Coast," Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins, Team Love ***½
"Sun, Sun, Sun," the Elected, Sub Pop ***½
Together, Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett are the driving force behind the smart, imaginative rock band Rilo Kiley, a group as strong on pop hooks as it is deep on lyrical insight. Split Lewis and Sennett apart, though, and you can see who brings what to the band.
She's the one with the insight on "Rabbit Fur Coat," her solo debut. It's a 12-song collection of rootsy tunes with a sometimes startling focus on spirituality (see: "Born Secular" and "The Big Guns"). Lewis' robust voice tends to fall into the same melodic patterns, but the Watson Twins' smooth, sort of eerie backing vocals keep things moving on "Rise Up With Fists!!" and change the tenor of "Handle With Care," a Traveling Wilburys cover that features vocals from Bright Eyes leader Conor Oberst and guitar from Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard.
Sennett is all about lush arrangements on "Sun, Sun, Sun," the second album by his side project, the Elected. The songs are impossibly romantic ditties about running away together or working things out, or working things out while running away together, and Sennett sings his sweet nothings in a whispery, gentle voice.
If you were down to your last dollar and could only buy one song from "Sun, Sun, Sun," it should be "Not Going Home" — the piano hook alone is worth at least a buck.
It's easy to imagine Lewis and Sennett contributing to each other's album, which is a sign of how compatible they are as collaborators, and that it's time for another Rilo Kiley record.
— Eric R. Danton, Hartford Courant
Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins perform Sunday at the Woman's Club, Minneapolis.
The Elected perform April 10 at First Avenue, Minneapolis.
R&B
"Ghetto Classics," Jaheim, Warner Bros. **½
Classic sounds take modern turn
When Jaheim debuted five years ago with "Ghetto Love," much was made that he was the long-sought missing link between hip-hop and classic rhythm and blues.
The hype ignored a long tradition that stretched at least as far back as Oran "Juice" Jones, but there was no denying this bear-voiced New Jersey singer was one of the most impressive new talents of the hip-hop generation.
Despite obligatory rap cameos (from Jadakiss and Styles P of the Lox), Jaheim's third album stresses R&B tradition at the expense of current trends. Naughty by Nature producer KayGee provides his fellow Jerseyite handsome tracks that bring out Jaheim's inner Teddy Pendergrass, and there's even a cover of Gamble and Huff's "Daddy Thing."
Jaheim has more in common with underrated love men like Gerald LeVert, who nod to hip-hop but pursue their own modern-but-reverent version of old school than any thug crooner around.
If these songs aren't quite the classics advertised, they at least suggest Jaheim might have it in him to deliver some.
— Dan LeRoy, Hartford Courant
WORLD
"Long Walk to Freedom," Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Heads Up International ***½
Ladysmith looks back at stellar career
It has been 20 years since this sublime South African a cappella group burst onto the world music scene courtesy of Paul Simon's Grammy-winning "Graceland" album. To note the anniversary, leader Joseph Shabalala offers a sort of career retrospective, with guests.
Two songs repeating from "Graceland" are the most familiar to U.S. ears: "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" with Melissa Etheridge on lead vocals instead of Simon at first is strange, then warm; Sarah McLachlan on "Homeless" doesn't really register much at all.
Pay closer attention to songs like the lulling "Nomathemba," Shabalala's first hit from the '60s. Then you'll be ready for Ladysmith's real raison d'etre, which was providing the soundtrack to their nation's anti-apartheid movement with hymns like "Nkosi Sikelel 'IAfrica" ("God Bless Africa").
— Phil Kloer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ladysmith Black Mambazo performs tonight in Grand Rapids, Minn. Also Thursday in Winona, Friday in Fairmont, Saturday in Rochester and Sunday in Detroit Lakes.
ROCK
"The Life Pursuit," Belle and Sebastian, Matador ***½
Finally, Belles just want to have fun
They used to seem so shy. Their music felt quiet and private, a chamber-pop cocoon. But little by little, the members of Belle and Sebastian seem to have realized maturity needn't come at the expense of silliness.
Now, their songs, which almost always have had beautiful melodies, feature funkier bass lines, rangier guitar parts and more soulful vocal phrasing.
"Pursuit" maintains both the vibe of California (where it was recorded) and the soul of Scotland (where the band was born). Melodies jangle. Harmonies coo. Some lyrics are so playful they rhyme "throat" with "poet." Others are naughty enough to include profanity. True, the Belles don't sound as intimate as they once did — but they sound more fun than they ever have.
— Nick Marino, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Belle and Sebastian perform Sunday at the Orpheum Theatre, Minneapolis. ROCK
