For many discerning fans, Nine Below Zero far outpaced the Jam wannabes that doomed Britain's so-called mod revival era. They even opened for the Who, whose favorite producer, Glyn Johns, oversaw this second A&M album. (Like other 1979-era revivalist bands, the group has re-formed on an intermittent basis.) Nine Below Zero show themselves as sharp players with plenty of hooks up their sleeves. Stix Burkey and Peter Clark whack out a disciplined rhythm attack without fussiness or flourishes, leaving the interplay to singer/harpist Mark Feltham and the main songwriter, lead guitarist Dennis "The Menace" Greaves. Greaves' tunes successfully execute '60s R&B toughness, yet are updated enough to grace a teen scooter fanatic's good books. "One Way Street" is a punchy, doing-it-my-way anthem ("They told me to go by the book/But look at the time that it took"), while the roughhouse R&B of the title track and "Treat Her Right" come across like a speedier Yardbirds. The feel's that close, but Greaves and cohorts have the skill to pull it off. The group expresses their bluesier side on "Ain't Comin' Back" and the slow-burning "Sugar Mama," and also dips back into '50s-style roots rave-ups with a credible cover of "Rockin' Robin." "Helen"'s trebly poppiness offers another nice diversion, being a working stiff's plea to his anxious wife ("You're the one I'm thinking of/When I come home late from my job"). An unpretentious sense of humor also makes itself heard on the title track and "Liquor Lover," which chides a girlfriend who's too fond of the fizzy stuff (which is reminiscent of how Rockpile sent up overeating on their own "Knife and Fork"). Greaves' quest for authenticity occasionally falls flat; "Three Times Enough" is as barely disguised a rewrite of "The Train Kept a-Rollin'" as you'll ever hear. However, the group's enthusiasm is contagious in all the right places, as typified by its anthemic closer, "You Can't Please All the People All the Time." Don't let the revivalist tag stop you from putting this album in your collection.
AllMusic

Been listening through my iPod in alphabetical order. I went on a trip this weekend, thus the large number.


Abattoir Blues by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds


Abbey Road by The Beatles


About A Burning Fire by Blindside


The Absent Sounds of Me by Dear Ephesus


Absolutes by Stavesacre


Acnalbasac Noom - by Slapp Happy


Acoustics by Hella


Actor by St. Vincent


The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn by CoCoRosie


Alarma! by Daniel Amos

Pixies - Doolittle
The Feelies - Crazy Rhythms
Nirvana - In Utero
Thelonious Monk - The Best of the Blue Note Years

The Kinks: The Ultimate Collection

2CD Kinks collection. Covers the period from 1964 through 1984. The first disc contains 22 UK top 40 hits, including the 3 no.1 singles 'You Really Got Me', 'Tired Of Waiting For You' and 'Sunny Afternoon'. The second disc is made up of the most popular album tracks and b-sides from throughout their career. If you're like me and really like the Kinks but don't always feel like gathering a stack of albums to hear the great singles, this is a pretty damn fine collection to go with.

good album dump

Whoa. What is this?

This guy owes our buddy Hassler some intellectual property money for stealing his artwork.

norwegian "dancey" shit that you would HATE

in other words, it's awesome

Paul McCartney Wings ~ Band on the run

Madera Limpia~La Corona

U2 ~ boy

KEXP radio

Oneida - Rated O
Oneida/Liars - Atheists, Reconsider
Merzbow/Carlos Giffoni/Jim O'Rourke - Electric Dress
The Curtains - Flybys
High Places - 03/07-09/07
Women - s/t
Ganglians - s/t
Mount Eerie - Lost Wisdom
Ganglians - Monster Head Room
Magnolia Electric Co. - Josephine
Arthur Russell - World of Echo
Nobukazu Takemura - Scope

Mott the Hoople - Mott
The Comsat Angels - My Mind's Eye
Sparklehorse - Dreamt for Light Years....

Eyedea and Abilities - By The Throat

continuing my ipod alphabetical play-through:


Alice by Tom Waits


All At Once - Young People


All Indie EP by Michael Knott