ROCK
CRITIC'S CHOICE
After Sweden's the Hives stormed the States with their 2000 breakthrough Veni Vedi Vicious, they joined a swarm of garage buzz bands, including the Strokes, the White Stripes and the Vines. Four years later (a dinosaur's age in indie-rock circles), the boys return with Tyrannosaurus Hives and prove that they are far from being extinct. Indeed, this disc is more raucous fun than anything the Strokes/White Stripes/Vines have done lately. In a lean and loud 30 minutes, the Hives deliver blast after (short) blast of potent power punk like the infectious first single "Walk Idiot Walk," which, with its jagged guitars, rum bling bass line and lead singer Howlin' Pelle Almqvist's primal wail, follows in the vein of their Veni hit "Hate to Say I Told You So." With names like Nicholaus Arson (Almqvist's brother, on guitar), Vigilante Carlstroem (guitar), Dr. Matt Destruction (bass) and Chris Dangerous (drums), the Hives clearly don't take them-selves too seriously, and they bring a healthy dose of humor to these 12 songs, which are all credited to the group's (possibly imaginary) Svengali, Randy Fitzsimmons. On the deliciously macabre "Abra Cadaver," Almqvist sings in mock horror, "They tried to stick a dead body inside of me." Later, on the fast-chugging thrasher "Dead Quote Olympics," they rip into a literary intellectual: "It doesn't mean it's good 'cause you found it at the library/ Yes they were smart but they are dead/ And you're repeating all that they said." Stinging indeed.
Nina Sky
R&B-POP
"Nina Sky is limitless: hip-hop, reggae, rhythm and blues, rock, alternative, jazz, funk and soul." At least that's what this new duo, consisting of 18-year-old identical twins Nicole and Natalie Albino, says in the spoken intro of this disc. And the Queens sister act indeed delivers a decidedly eclectic effort. On just the hit first single "Move Ya Body," they incorporate booty-bumping dance-hall (including guest vocals by Jabba), an insinuating Middle Eastern synth riff and bits of Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam's 1985 freestyle classic "Can You Feel the Beat." The result is one of the summer's big club anthems. When they keep the party pumping on cuts like "Turnin' Me On," a sexy come-on in the vein of Beyoncé's "Baby Boy," Nina Sky is airy fun. But the disc is dragged down by slow jams that are just, well, slow. Unlike another R&B duo, Floetry, Nicole and Natalie don't have the voices or the songwriting Nina Sky makes a less-than-lofty debut. skills (they cowrote all 14 tracks) to attain the kind of musical heights they reach for on ballads like the Latin- tinged "Temperature's Rising." This Sky does in fact have a limit after all.
The Hunger for More
RAP
Queens rapper Lloyd Banks brings a lot of street cred to this, his freshman solo outing. First he appeared on childhood friend 50 Cent's smash Get Rich or Die Try in'. Last year he teamed up with 50 again on their group G Unit's double-platinum debut Beg for Mercy. Then, in a testament to his underground following, he was named 2003's Mix tape Artist of the Year. The 22-year-old emcee clearly hungers for more success, and he has found it with this disc, which opened at No. 1 on the Billboard pop albums chart thanks to the Top 10 single "On Fire," a blazing party rocker that sounds like a sequel to 50's hit "In Da Club." Indeed, Banks's laid-back, sometimes singsong delivery is reminiscent of 50, who executive-produced Hunger and raps on two cuts (including the paean to smoking pot "I Get High," which appropriately features Snoop Dog). He also receives support from Ermine, who takes the mike on "Warrior Part "2" and produced the haunting gangster allegory "Till the End," as well as G Unit's Young Buck and Tony Yoyo. But it's Banks who emerges as more than just 50 Cent's sidekick: He's a bankable talent in his own right.
Scissor Sisters
POP/DANCE
With funky beats to match their funky clothes, the Scissor Sisters may be the grooviest dance-pop outfit to come out of the downtown New York scene since Deee-Lite in the early '90s. On their self-titled debut, the five Sisters (none of whom are related and only one of whom is female) cut and paste '70s disco, glam-rock and Eltonesque pop into a kitschy-cool sound. They even make the 1979 Pink Floyd prog-rocker "Comfortably Numb" all their own, with new-wavish keyboards, a pulsating drum-machine beat and lead singer Jake Shears's Bee Gees-style falsetto. Meanwhile, the fab first single, "Take Your Mama," with its honky-tonk piano and swaggering groove, is one of several songs that owe a debt to the Rocket Man (for whom the Sisters have opened on tour).
Elsewhere, the group displays a trashy wit on tracks such as the throb bing techno "Filthy/Gorgeous." How ever, the Scissor Sisters close the disc on a sobering note with the art-rock ballad "Return to Oz," which poignantly addresses crystal meth addiction in New York's gay community: "What' once was Emerald City's/ Now a crystal town."
Morrssey You Are the Quarry: Heaven knows he's still miserable. Which is cause for Moz fans to rejoice with this smashing comeback.
Gipsy Kings, Roots: The Kings return to their acoustic Roots on a heartfelt collection that evokes the intricate passions of the Spanish flamenco style.
Andy Bey, American Song: American songs like "Lush Life" and "Speak Low" meet an American master in this unforgettable jazz singer.
Angie Stone, Stone Love: On her latest, Stone continues to carve out righteous, retro-'70s R&B with help from Floetry, Betty Wright, Anthony Hamilton and Missy Elliott (on the humorous highlight "U-Haul").
Eric Clapton, Me and Mr. Johnson: With a voice that is weathered and true, and guitar playing that is vibrant and inventive, Slow Hand salutes the 1930s blues pioneer Robert Johnson.
SHANIA TWAIN (left) will keep you Up with dance versions (previously unavailable in the U.S.) of "Nan!" and "When You Kiss Me," at shaniatwain.com.
BEASTIE BOYS diehards will want to ch-check out fresh exclusive remixes of old faves "Pass the Mic," "Root Down" and "Shadrach," at iTunes.
NELLY, who has two discs dropping on the same day, Sept 14, sets the stage with the seductive single "My Place" (featuring Jaheim), available only at walmart.com/musicdownloads.
RUFUS WAINWRIGHT, the arty singer-songwriter whose next album, the Want One sequel Want Two, comes out this winter, tides fans over with a poetic four-song EP, Waiting for a Want, exclusively at iTunes.
- Contributors:
- Chuck Arnold.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
