Better Late than Pregnant...(though it is really late).

North Mississippi All-Stars – Keys To the Kingdom

Immediately, I enjoyed the way they fused traditional blues and rock…I heard some of that “Keith Richards” open tuning in there…the texture of the songs makes it perfect for that Sunday AM rotation and, importantly, it passed the “Deb test” with flying colors…no snide remarks while listening for the first time and no, “what is that shit?” comments, so for all that, and a great cover of “Stuck Inside of Mobile”, it gets a 3.5.

Alkaline Trio - Crimson

This was the surprise of the month for me…I had not been familiar with them and did not expect them to be so…poppy, um…I mean…melodic. I really liked the musical structure of the songs. I only wished that they had more of a dynamic range…after a while they were all at the same volume throughout, with the same instrumental and vocal mix, and that gets a little boring. All in all though, I think I will like these songs mixed among others in my i-Tunes library, so thanks for that…it gets a 3.5

Motorhead – The World is Yours

Do one thing and do it well…that has worked in business forever and it works for Motorhead too. Lemmy decided long ago that he was not an “artiste”; he was a Rock and Roll bassist and singer. This could have been from 1981, 1991, 2001…but it’s new, and with today’s technology, it sounds GREAT. 10 tight songs full of power chords, screaming leads, and rock and roll vocals…good, solid meat and potatoes…well done! 4

The Smiths – Louder than Bombs

Evidently, it’s trio month at “Down Our Nose”…this is one of those bands that I couldn’t get into at the time…my mid ‘80’s were not terribly introspective nor were they bleak, so I didn’t get this “alternative” stuff…so now when I listen 25 years or so later, the best I can say is I can sympathize with Morrissey, but I can’t empathize. As far as the music itself, the songs are clever enough and a song like “Stretch Out and Wait’ stands out inventive and interesting, but I just can’t seem to connect to his body of work…The critics and I will have to agree to disagree…for me, it just gets to a 3.

5 Chinese Brothers – Singer, Songwriter, Beggerman, Thief

Finally…a band with more than 3 members…although if you look up their bio they seem to have 4 members…what’s up with that? Anyway, I love this CD. It’s a mish mash of country, folk, rock, Americana all rolled into one fun, happy, snarky, cynical, clever ball of music and lyrics that bring a big smile to my face every time I hear it. It’s right up there in debut albums with “My Aim Is True”…4.5 stars.


GHITS – 3 Chord Rock

I love pizza…in my world; it has to really suck to be considered “bad” pizza. Now, if we assume that the acid test to compare pizza is 3 ingredients only – dough, cheese and sauce, there are still 1000 variations, and some are better than others. Well, I love “three chord” rock and roll and this month’s GHITS contains songs that have only 3 chords in their structure, though they all sound as different as pizza from different places taste. I could have put 22 different songs on this and it still would have been a GHITS collection…if I left any out that you enjoy better…sorry.

Topic – HOW do you listen and does it affect how you rate CD’s in this group?

I listen to music in a bunch of different ways, and YES, how I listen does influence how I rate these CD’s. If I listen in the car, ‘stereo blasting’, like with Motorhead, it’s going to be a different experience than if I’m listening in an open room at less volume (so as not to disturb those upstairs, for example). I-tunes has forever altered my willingness to listen to most CD’s in their entirely, so when I find one – like the 5 Chinese Brothers – to which I repeatedly listen to all tracks in succession, other than when we rate them – it’s special. The fact is, HOW and WHEN I listen absolutely affects how I rate CD’s. My preference is home alone, at night, in a small room with the lights low or off, at loud volume, concentrating on nothing else, but that only happens about 20% of the time. Another 20% would be at the gym w/ear buds, 30% would be driving at night and finally the remaining 30% of the time would be in the house’s open first floor area at moderate volume. And that’s why North Mississippi All Stars had to take “the Deb test”.