|
|
Pop Making Sense
by David Byrne with Tony Peregrin 2008-11-12
|
|
This article shared 4226 times since Wed Nov 12, 2008
|
|
The sounds that accompany daydreams are plucked and matched with organic electronica on out singer-songwriter Matt Alber's remarkable debut, Hide Nothing. The uplifting chorus on The Slow Club is pure bliss, acting like phonic ibuprofen. The former Chanticleer singer's video for the lead single, Monarch, cleverly concludes with him typing on his laptop, as if it were a piano. Alber even salutes fellow genre-pushing artist Imogen Heap with a vocally focused cover of her track, Hide and Seek. Classical influences are deftly infused on the lush Song of Stars and Beotia. ( The latter was performed at the opening ceremonies to the Gay Games in July 2006. ) The ethereal Hide Nothing is due out Tuesday, Nov. 18, via Tommy Boy's LGBT-oriented Silver Label.
On Salme Dahlstrom's full-length debut, The Acid Cowgirl Audio Trade, she proves that nobody knows sugary pop music quite like those Swedes. Superstar Crash and Hello California have choruses and hooks that will leave listeners drunk on giddiness in a diabetic fit. But there is nothing sweeter than the Klubjumpers remix of her track C'mon Y'all. The final product comes across as a timeless gem from Deee-Lite's prime as Dahlstrom coos 'oh la la,' all the while getting any party thrown into overdrive. Now residing in New York, Dahlstrom wrote and produced this album, which has plenty of moments of her being Fatboy Slim's feel-good female successor. Similar to what Moby did with his crossover Play, the 5'11' blonde has licensed every track from The Acid Cowgirl Audio Trade to outlets ranging from Miller Lite to Virgin Mobile and the TV show Veronica Mars.
The delay in this year's World Series could have possibly been Labelle's fault. Should the Phillies have had a dome and these ladies sang in Patti LaBelle's hometown team's stadium, they would surely blow the roof off. The 1995 number-one club hit Turn It Out was just another teaser regarding a proper reunion of the legendary divas. The vocal trio marks its comeback with the much overdue album Back to Now. Here, Lenny Kravitz finds a '70s love groove as he produces Candlelight, Superlover and System. The upbeat I Will Survive-like anthem Rollout is produced by Wyclef Jean. The openly bisexual Nona Hendryx still serves as the group's primary song-writer, although the threesome does share writing duties. The ode Dear Rosa and the cover of Cole Porter's Miss Otis Regrets show that Labelle can nail a slower song. It's no wonder these gals receive a shout-out during Midnight Radio, which is from the Hedwig and the Angry Inch soundtrack.
And I Try, by Bimbo Jones, is just one of those songs that just gets me going. With big beats, horns and diva vocals courtesy of Katherine Ellis, this jam sat pretty atop the Billboard Club Airplay charts this fall. And I Try is pulled from the group's first album, 1 Stop Harlem. Also highlighting the upbeat set are the catchy Poison Heart and Make You Mine, as well as the mid-tempo piece Tell Me My Name. Bimbo Jones can boast having done some of the hottest remixes out there, including Annie Lennox's A Thousand Beautiful Things, Ciara's Like a Boy and P!nk's U + Ur Hand.
On Tuesday, Nov. 18, The Ladies of the Canyon Presents does a tribute to Pat Benatar at Fitzgerald's, 6615 Roosevelt, Berwyn. This showcase has Chicago-based songbirds paying homage to the great female singer-songwriters. Sure, Benatar has covered Kate Bush's Wuthering Heights, Fontella Bass' '60s staple Rescue Me, Roy Orbison and k.d. lang's Crying and John Mellencamp's I Need a Lover, but this multi-Grammy winner and her guitarist-husband, Neil Giraldo, have written a legacy of material. Benatar is outspoken about frustrations with sexism and social injustice on hits like Hell is for Children and Sex as a Weapon. Few realize that this pint-sized rocker with a four-and-a-half octave range was the first woman to have a video played on MTV with her remake of The Rascals' You Better Run. The always entertaining Ladies of the Canyon Presents never fails to deliver a phenomenal performance, while staying true to the material's original arrangements. For more information on Ladies of the Canyon Presents, please visit myspace.com/lotcchicago.
The highlight of Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour is the reworking of Like a Prayer. The 20-year-old chart-topper is mashed up with Meck's Feels Like Home. Meck scored a hit with this track in 2007 on dance radio with Dirty Vegas-like vocals provided by Dino Lenny. But what makes Feels Like Home stand out is the sampling of the beats from Felix's classic Don't You Want Me, which reached the pole position in the club airplay in 1993. This Felix cut is co-produced by Rollo, the mastermind behind Faithless ( Insomnia, God is a DJ, Mass Destruction ) ; Kristine W.'s breakthrough opus Land of the Living; and Dido's catalog. Don't You Want Me has been re-released overseas multiple times and lifts its vocals from Jomanda's Don't You Want My Love. So, Madonna, put this mash-up on your forthcoming single Miles Away. It's great having people buzzing about your music again, instead of your 'private' life or whatever headlines that conveniently surface whenever there is an album to sell or a tour to plug. |
 |
|
 |
This article shared 4226 times since Wed Nov 12, 2008
|
ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE |
---|
| 
|  | WORLD Japanese ruling, Pride events, Colombia election, Boris Johnson 2022-06-26 - A Japanese court ruled that the country's ban on same-sex marriage does not violate the constitution, and rejected demands for compensation by three couples who said their right to free union and equality has been violated, ...
| 
|  | SHOWBIZ Elliot Page, NPH, Madonna, Chita Rivera, Jennifer Lopez 2022-06-26 - Elliot Page talked with talk-show host Seth Meyers about how her Netflix show The Umbrella Academy incorporated the actor's own personal transition into season three of the series, Deadline noted. "With Steve Blackman, the showrunner of ...
| 
|  | Lynda Carter releases new single, 'Human and Divine' 2022-06-23 - Many people are familiar with actress Gal Gadot as superhero Wonder Woman. However, decades before, Lynda Carter wore the bracelets and wielded the golden lasso as the Amazon princess who set many hearts (of men and ...
| 
|  | Back Lot Bash taking place June 25-26 2022-06-22 - The inclusive music fest known as the Back Lot Bash will take place June 25-26 at 5238 N. Clark St., in Andersonville. Back Lot Bash started in 2004 in response to the lack of women's events and the limited presence of ...
| 
|  | The Andersonville Village Market returns for summer 2022 2022-06-21 -- From a press release - CHICAGO (June 21, 2022) The Andersonville Chamber of Commerce (ACC) is pleased to welcome back its 2nd annual Andersonville Vintage Market, featuring antiques, home décor, jewelry, accessories, clothing, music and ...
| 
|  | Chicago Philharmonic launches 2022-23 season 2022-06-21 -- From a press release - CHICAGO, IL - (June 20, 2022) Chicago Philharmonic has announced its 2022-23 symphonic season on the heels of a 2021-22 season that ended with the sold-out Chicago Premiere of Marvel Studios' Black Panther in Concert. The ...
| 
|  | Chicago Pride Fest adds new features to the outdoor celebration 2022-06-20 - The Chicago Pride Fest outdoor celebration returned June 18-19, as local Pride events lead up to the parade on Sunday, June 26. The festival featured music on three stages and more than 150 vendors running down ...
| 
|  | Goodman Theatre running musical 'Life After' through July 17 2022-06-20 - Goodman Theatre is running the musical Life After through Sunday, July 17. With humor and wit, this "luminous new musical…lush, poetic and surprisingly funny" (The San Diego Union-Tribune) explores how people move through and live with ...
| 
|  | SHOWBIZ 'Lightyear,' celebrity event, LGBT runner, Mariah Carey 2022-06-19 Video below - Pixar's latest film Lightyear is hitting theaters, and it has a special moment for gay fans—a same-sex kiss between the character Hawthorne (voiced by Uzo Aduba) and her female partner—that almost didn't happen, Out Magazine note ...
| 
|  | Five Worth Finding: WNDR Museum, Prince, queer books, flowers 2022-06-16 - WNDR Museum's Pride event "Crafting with Queens": The West Loop museum is usually entertainment and, um, wondrous enough on its ownbut during Pride Month, WNDR is queering things up with "Crafting with Queens" on Tuesday, ...
| 
|  | PERFORMANCE 'Moonset Sunrise' at Navy Pier on June 16 and 18 2022-06-15 - Collaboraction announced that Moonset Sunrise, its 25th-anniversary production, with live performances on June 16 and 18 at 7:30 p.m. at Beat Kitchen's new Bar Sol on Navy Pier, 700 E. Grand Ave. Through healing ritual, storytelling, ...
| 
|  | Andersonville Midsommarfest draws out the diversity during Swedish celebration 2022-06-14 - The Andersonville Chamber of Commerce brought back Andersonville Midsommarfest, after a two-year hiatus, for its 56th year on June 10-12. More than 50 music and entertainment acts were featured across five stages on Clark Street from ...
| 
|  | 'Rufus Does Judy at Capitol Studios' out; Wainwright in Chicago on June 16-17 2022-06-13 - Rufus Does Judy at Capitol Studiosan all-new performance of out singer Rufus Wainwright's tribute to Judy Garland, Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall, recorded last year at Los Angeles' famed Capitol Studioshas arrived via BMG and ...
| 
|  | Queer-themed plays win Tonys; Hudson reaches EGOT status 2022-06-13 - On June 12, the 75th annual Tony Awards were held to honor the top performances from the theater industry. The event—hosted by LGBTQ+ Oscar winner/Tony nominee Ariana DeBose at New York City's Radio City Music Hall—followed ...
| 
|  | Theo Ubique marks 25th-anniversary season with four musicals 2022-06-11 -- From a press release - CHICAGO (JUNE 10, 2022) Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre's Artistic Director Fred Anzevino and Managing/Casting Director Christopher Pazdernik announced the 25th Anniversary season today with four musicals including a Midwest Premiere ...
| |
|
|