Brian Wilson – Imagination (Giant) It’s kind of sad that after decades of being an acknowledged pop musical genius, former Beach Boys front man Brian Wilson is probably best known now by kids as the guy that Barenaked Ladies sang about. On Wilson’s first solo album in nearly a decade, he sets about straightening that out. … Continue reading
Garbage – Version 2.0 (Almo Sounds) The surprise success of Garbage’s debut album took this band from being a vanity project for producer Bruce Vig and a bunch of studio boffins with a hot British bird fronting into an actual working rock band. This new sense of permanence works in this follow-up’s favor, giving a sense … Continue reading
The Rolling Stones – Bridges To Babylon (Virgin) The world’s oldest rock group still has some tricks up their sleeve. While Bridges To Babylon lands pretty low in the group’s body of work compared to Let It Bleed and Exile On Main Street, it does rate a lot of the cheap thrills of the band’s best work. Mick still prances around like … Continue reading
Duran Duran – Medazzaland (Capitol) Duran Duran’s career has been up and down so many times that you think it was built by the Otis Elevator Co. Right now the band is way down after the disastrous reaction to their 1995 covers album Thank You, a curious follow up to 1992’s Wedding Album, which had them back on … Continue reading
Todd Rundgren – The Very Best Of Todd Rundgren (Rhino) It’s a little easy to forget now that he is calling himself TR-i (Todd Rundgren Interactive) and putting the technology cart before the musical horse, that once upon a time, Upper Darby, Pa.’s favorite son was just a damned good singer and songwriter. The Very Best … Continue reading
10,000 Maniacs – Love Among The Ruins (Geffen) It is pretty much universally agreed that Natalie Merchant, as lead singer and songwriter, was the main talent of 10,000 Maniacs. So how is it possible that this album, the band’s first since Merchant left, is so much better than Merchant’s 1995 solo debut Tigerlily? It comes down to stronger songs and … Continue reading
Styx – Return To Paradise (CMC International) It’s been at least a decade since I’ve spent a thought on Styx, THE arena rock group of my high school years. Music has moved on and so have I, and now the band is made up of a bunch of guys in their forties, so I didn’t have … Continue reading
U2– Pop (Island) Now three albums into their flirtation with techno, U2 have finally figured out how to make a consistently listenable album out of it. As signified by the album title, the band wants to wallow in the kitsch of modern life. Pop gets offto a bit of a rocky start with the clanky swirling Zooropian single … Continue reading
Susanna Hoffs – Susanna Hoffs (London) It’s hard to believe it has been six years since the breakup of the Bangles, the pop girl group of the ’80’s. Since the breakup, Hoffs, the band’s leader, has kept a low profile. She did release a 1991 solo album, the slightly overly slick When You’re A Boy, … Continue reading
Van Halen – The Best Of Van Halen Part I (Warner Brothers) Fact: Van Halen were the best hard rock band of the late seventies and early eighties. Fact: Van Halen has sucked since 1985. It’s not a coincidence, 1985 was the year that leader David Lee Roth, metal’s sleaziest (in a good way) and … Continue reading
