Timbre Tantrum

That voice.  It knocks the wind out of you upon first listen, leaving your mouth agape, gasping for air.  For her sophomore release, 21, Adele Atkins powerhouse vocals take the driver’s seat, resigning super producers Paul Epworth (Florence + the Machine, Kate Nash), Rick Rubin (Johnny Cash, Dixie Chicks), Ryan Tedder (Beyoncé, Kelly Clarkson), Dan Wilson (Dixie Chicks), and Fraser T. Smith (Cee Lo Green, Taio Cruz) to build music around her rafter-rattling pipes.  And that they do, letting Adele’s voice vacillate between styles in blues, country, and soul-tinged tracks.

For an album that could have easily spiraled into a genre-hopping grab bag, Adele infuses her vocal performances in 21 with impassioned intensity, grit, and raw vulnerability.  The album’s opening track and debut single, “Rolling in the Deep,” assembles hand claps, gospel-style backing vocals, and a whumping kick drum to build a legitimate soul barn burner.  Similarly, “Rumor Has It,” utilizes the same raw materials with a tough-as-nails bite from Adele.  Other standout tracks include the syncopated subtleties of “He Won’t Go,” the exuberant horns of “I’ll Be Waiting,” and “One and Only,” a Motown-style track which deftly showcases Adele’s unvarnished guttural wail.

While there is a lot here to praise, 21 falls short is in its heavy reliance on down-tempo power ballads to exhibit Adele’s powerful pipes.  Yes, the girl can sing, but let her have a little fun in the process.  For “Don’t You Remember,” a winsome country twang can’t save the song’s overwrought and melodramatic leanings.  The album could also be well-served by a shuffle in the track listing.  After barreling through the record’s first two high-energy tracks, the album slams on the brakes, not fully recovering its pace until track eight.  One thing is clear, with 21, Adele rightfully pulls away from the pack of Brit-soul exports who rose to stardom when the Winehouse bubble burst.

Timbre Tantrum’s rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Adele’s sophomore album, 21, is available now from XL Recordings / Columbia Records.

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“I’m often asked what do I do for a living.  And I answer, ‘I do what I want.’”  The spoken word intro from Cee Lo Green’s newest solo LP, The Lady Killer, sets the stage for the 13 diverse tracks to follow, and with Cee Lo at the helm, we are prepared to expect the unexpected.

The Lady Killer is just the latest incarnation of a vocalist who began as an original member of the Atlanta hip-hop group, Goodie Mob, dropped two neo-soul solo releases, and hit the mainstream big-time with producer Danger Mouse as one half of the duo, Gnarls Barkley.

For The Lady Killer, Cee Lo flip-flops between the roles of ruthless lothario (Bodies, Cry Baby) and lovesick victim (Fuck You, It’s OK), often within the few seconds between tracks.  But instead of sounding like a hodgepodge of musical styles and vocal personalities, Cee Lo maneuvers effortlessly through songs, coasting on a permeating undercurrent of crooner cool.

In a musical atmosphere where the mere mention of throw back or vintage soul influences starts eyes rolling, Cee Lo exudes a sense of authority over the genre, bending its bari sax bass lines and doo wop choruses to his whim.  And let’s face it, the man can sing.  We’re talkin’ ‘bout tell your mama, shout it from the rooftops, wailin’ to the heavens, SING!

In its 45 minute run time, The Lady Killer packs the hits in full to the brim.  Beginning with the undeniably catchy and sing-a-long chorus-ready viral hit, Fuck You.  On the track, Cee Lo doesn’t mince words when addressing a former love interest with expensive tastes, “Now I know/ that I had to borrow/ beg and steal and lie and cheat/ tryin’ to keep ya’/ tryin’ to please ya’/’cause bein’ in love with your ass ain’t cheap.”

The staggeringly slick production of the gunshot-laden spy caper Love Gun, featuring vocal powerhouse Lauren Bennett is a jaw-dropper.  Cool as a cucumber, double-O Cee Lo shares with his female counterpart, “Ain’t no use in runnin’/ no use in hidin’/ I want you dead or alive/ if you promise to surrender / I love you tender / darlin’ I’ll let you survive.”

Other stand out tracks include Bodies, where a menacing Cee Lo is in full-on Dexter mode, old school panty dropper Fool For You, featuring Earth Wind and Fire’s Phillip Bailey, and the bouncy finger-snapping ditty, It’s OK.

Cee Lo Green’s The Lady Killer is available now from Elektra Records.

Timbre Tantrum’s rating 4 out of 5 stars.

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Photo by TImothy Murray

From the thundering opening drumbeats of Apply, Glasser’s Ring encircles you, squeezing you tight and never letting up.  Ring is the debut LP of “one-woman orchestra” Cameron Mesirow, recording under the nom de guerre, Glasser.  The album is replete with soaring vocals, hypnotic harmonies, and the lush and layered soundscapes of a full orchestra.  In fact, unlike Glasser’s Apply EP which was composed almost entirely on Mesirow’s laptop, Ring utilizes the rich sounds of real-life marimbas, chimes, saxophone, koto, and an array of heavy drums and synthesizers in its arrangements.

Ring is named for its adherence to a traditional “ring” literary structure, where ideas are arranged in a symmetric order for emphasis.  Mesirow also enlisted the help of Swedish producers Van Rivers and The Sublimimal Kid to create transitions between all of the tracks so the album can play in a continuous loop.  In the “ring” structure, the song T, serves as the album’s center, and is the only track without a partner.  “Eight of the nine songs are paired up and they share themes,” Mesirow shares with Fader Magazine.  “Home is the second song on the record and Treasury of We is the eighth song, and they share a disorienting factor.  They’re both about false stability.”  According to Mesirow, T is both the spiritual and literal center of the ring, and was written as a dedication to long-time best friend and visual artist Tauba Aeubach, who also created the album art for Ring.

T is the smoldering down-tempo ballad, reminiscent of Bjork’s Unravel, and serves as the ideal changeover center of an album filled with so many densely layered compositions.  Compositions such as Home, which ebbs and flows in warm waves with hand claps and layered choruses leading the way, Clamour, which features a menacing saxophone backbeat and ominous vocals, and the playful call and response marimba on Treasury of We.  Highlights are hard to single out on Ring, because all of the songs are consistently excellent.  Our only complaint is that the album ends too soon, and after nine tracks, we are left wanting more.  (If you purchase the digital album from iTunes, you will receive two additional bonus tracks, Temp On and Let Letter, but there is a reason they didn’t make the album cut)

Glasser’s debut LP, Ring, is available now from True Panther Sounds.

Timbre Tantrum’s rating 4 out of 5 stars.

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Jenny and Johnny are having fun, and they want you to join in.  Jenny and Johnny are the musically inclined lovebirds, Jenny Lewis (of Rilo Kiley) and Jonathan Rice, who’s meet-cute included an introduction by mutual friend Conor Oberst.  Since then, the pair have been practically inseparable, collaborating both inside and outside the studio.  Rice appeared on and toured in support of both of Lewis’ solo albums, Rabbit Fur Coat and Acid Tongue, even co-producing 2008’s Acid Tongue. Read the rest of this entry →

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The ‘burbs just went highbrow.  For their third full-length studio album, Arcade Fire turn their focus to the cul-de-sacs, strip malls, and tract housing of suburban life.  The Suburbs is epic in its size and scope, clocking in at just over an hour in length, and overflowing with orchestral scores, multi-voiced choruses, and complex song structures.  Yes, Arcade Fire is the only band that can turn the subject of suburban sprawl into a disco-infused anthem; a feat accomplished in two parts, no less, on Sprawl (Flatland) and Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains). Read the rest of this entry →

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