Robert Johnson: King Of The Delta Blues Singers

This months pick was hard for me. As there are 5 in our group now it is only every 5 months that your pick comes up again. It actually causes me anxiety to make a pick for a few reasons. Namely, you don’t want to pick a dud and you always want to honour a great musician. I also fret about those I don’t pick.
Like everyone else, I was saddened about the passing of Prince and I thought that perhaps I should pick one of his albums this month. I decided not to, though I am sure we will get to such a great artist.
I decided to go another route. Back, way back, to the very roots of rock itself. The Blues.
I have always like the blues and I own many great blues albums. However, I do not own one Robert Johnson song. After researching the most influential blues albums it was clear that I should choose this particular Robert Johnson piece.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TdJmkv9lyI
robert2It was picked as the 27th greatest album of all time by Rolling Stone. The album is actually a compilation of songs recorded in 2 sessions in 1936 and 1937. These songs were released as singles back then but someone finally decided to put them all together. Usually we say no compilations for our picks but this isn’t some “Best of..” crap, this is just the first time it was financially possible to have a collection like this released. The list of people that were influenced by this album is literally endless but Keith Richards and Jimmy Page stand out. These sounds are literally the foundation that all rock, alt-rock, metal, punk were built on. Wow.
Though I am sure I will recognize some of the songs I am anxious and excited to listen to this month’s pick and to the icon that is Robert Johnson. I hope you enjoy this pick. Be sure to come back and read our reviews on the 1st of June.
Links:
Official Website
Wikepedia Page
Vanity Fair Article about his strange short life
Other Blues Masters I considered:
Howlin’ Wolf
Muddy Waters
John Lee Hooker
B.B King
Enjoy
Darren Scott

Chantal Kreviazuk: Colour Moving and Still

chantal-kreviazukChantal Kreviazuk is one of Canada’s most-prolific singer/songwriters of the last 20 years. A classically trained pianist and vocalist, she’s written songs for the likes of Gwen Stefani, Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne, Carrie Underwood, Drake and Pitbull. Her own albums have received critical acclaim, including the double-platinum second one: Colour Moving and Still.
Before You was the big hit off this album, with the other singles flying lower on the radar and a number of B sides. She penned all the songs on the album with a couple collaborations (including with her husband Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace fame), and her signature piano play is an integral part of every song.
Full disclosure: I’ve always had a bit of a musical-crush on Chantal thanks to her singles, and this is my first deep-dive into one of her albums. Now that we’ve had a couple months of high intensity rock under our belts, let’s see how the Collective responds to some adult contemporary Canadian content.
Links
Chantal’s Site
Album’s Wikipedia page
Chantal on iTunes

Meat Loaf: Bat out of Hell

Yeah, I know, it’s a bit of strange pick, but when I started reading up on it, the phrase “A science fiction update of Peter Pan filtered through the teen angst of Springsteen” came up and I thought How can that not be worth a second look??
Bat out of Hell is a strange album – an influential and highly successful effort with dense and complicated lyrics that glorify the sheer powerBat_out_of_Hell of rock and roll – or, rather, ROCK AND ROLLLLLLLL!!!! It sits on a gold and red velvet throne atop the genre of…what? Early glam rock? Rock and roll musical theater? Heavy metal lite? Progressive rock opera? It’s hard to pin down, but the 40+ million copies it’s sold since it was released in 1977 is hard to ignore.
This album holds a special place in my heart, as I “discovered” it during a very musically fertile time in my life, but it’s been ages since I gave it a solid listen. I wonder how it holds up, and am even more curious to hear what my esteemed Sonic Collective brothers think.
Links
Bat out of Hell on iTunes
Wikipedia page
Short article on how the album came to be, and the fallout of its sucess

David Bowie: David Bowie (aka Space Oddity)

Space Oddity

Last month, the world was sad to learn that another legend had recently passed away, and I would be remiss not to celebrate his work in this month’s pick. The man, the myth, the legend: David Bowie.

 

Born in 1947 as David Robert Jones, Bowie’s career spanned over five decades. He was constantly innovating, pushing the boundaries of music, visual presentation, and stagecraft. He never had a problem challenging social norms and stirring up controversy. His music and performances helped influence the shape of popular music, and arguably his most impactful work was done during the 1970s.

 

So then, let’s celebrate David Bowie with what critics have called his first “proper” album, David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) released in 1969. Most people are no doubt familiar with the first track, Space Oddity, but I don’t think everyone has been fully immersed in the album – I certainly haven’t, which is why I’m particularly excited for this pick.

 

Rest in peace, David.
Say hi to Lemmy for us if you happen to bump into him.

Links

 
Other Albums Considered

  • Naveed – Our Lady Peace
  • Scenery and Fish – I, Mother Earth
  • Jagged Little Pill – Alanis Morisette

Motörhead: Ace of Spades

Ace_of_Spades_Motorhead_album_coverI was in the beginning stages of writing up another selection for January when I read that Lemmy Kilmister, lead singer and ringleader of Motorhead, passed away. There were few musical icons as well established, admired, and entrenched as Lemmy, who was truly a rock God among musicians. There was no one else like him and will likely not be another father figure of hard rock like him again. He talked the talk, walked the walk, and drank the drink. It was who he was – period.
 
While looking at Motorhead albums online and listening to some tracks, I realized I don’t remember ever listening to a Motorhead album from start to finish. I’m about 30 years overdue, so this month’s pick is Motorhead’s seminal Ace of Spades in honor of The Man.
 
While this was the band’s fourth release in the UK, it was their first in North America, hitting stores in November 1980. They were clumped into what was referred to as the ‘New Wave of British Heavy Metal’, but Lemmy always insisted they were simply Rock n’ Roll. Their sound influenced countless hard rock bands, including Metallica who credits them for much of their sound.
 
Pour a Jack Daniel’s (Lemmy’s favorite), turn it up real loud, and strap in for Ace of Spades.
RIP Lemmy – it’s no doubt quite a bit louder wherever you are!
 
Links

 
Other Albums Considered

PJ Harvey: Dry

I’ve been thinking for a while that we have gone too long without focusing on the amazing women in music. I’m a big fan of so many of the great women in rock and PJ Harvey is an artist that I have been intending to listen to for a few years now. Every now and then I’d hear or read her name somewhere. As a big Nirvana fan I had heard that Kurt Cobain was a huge fan of this album and of PJ Harvey. When Nirvana was inducted into the hall of fame Dave Grohl even asked her to perform with Krist and himself but she was unavailable.
I don’t know that much about her but I am excited to learn. Just doing the basic research to write this pick has piqued my interest even more and a quick scan of several of her albums has lead me to believe I am really going to enjoy PJ.
It’s so hard to listen to all the music you want to, but I am now happy that I get the chance to listen to this album.
Biography.com offers this summary:

British singer and songwriter PJ Harvey is best known for her wide range of musical styles, ranging from rock to electronica and folk.
British singer and songwriter PJ Harvey was introduced to music at an early age and began writing songs as a teenager and joined with bassist Steve Vaughn and drummer Robert Ellis to create PJ Harvey in 1991. She is best known for her wide range of musical styles, exploring rock, electronica and folk. Outside of music, Harvey also expresses herself through art. READ MORE HERE

About Dry

Speaking to Filter magazine in 2004, Harvey said of her debut album: “Dry is the first chance I ever had to make a record and I thought it would be my last. So, I put everything I had into it. It was a very extreme record. It was a great joy for me to be able to make it. I never thought I’d have that opportunity, so I felt like I had to get everything on it as well as I possibly could, because it was probably my only chance. It felt very extreme for that reason.”
Some other resources:

PJ Harvey – Dry on Wikipedia
PJ Harvey on Wikipedia
PJ Harvey Website
PJ Harvey facebook Page
PJ Harvey in Rolling Stone
I really had a hard time picking this time. Some other great albums with women leads I almost picked were:
Heart – Dreamboat Annie
Etta James – At Last
Bikini Kill – self titled – (Watch The Punk Singer on Netflix.)
Enjoy.

AC/DC – Back in Black

Back in Black is the seventh studio album by Australian rock band AC/DC. Produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange, the album was released on 25 July 1980 by Albert Productions and Atlantic Records. (Thanks Wikipedia)
This album represents a crossroads for AC/DC. The band’s rising international success is walking a razor’s edge thanks to the untimely death of lead singer Bon Scott. Brian Johnson has stepped in, further opening a door to “outside” influence the band has just barely started accepting in the production studio. Will the emotional highs and lows of the past year break the band or, if it survives, what will the music sound like after hitting the studio again?
Looking back, we know Johnson’s addition to the band has worked out fairly well, and Back in Black is the second-highest selling album of all-time. It’s in the same company as Thriller, The Dark Side of the Moon, Bat Out of Hell, and Rumours. Rarified air indeed. By like those albums, there are 20-30 years between their release and today. How does this album stack up today?
Some members of the team have a history with this album, so we’ll see how things shape up between those of us listening to it in-full for the first time and those returning to rekindle the magic with an old flame.
Rock and Roll ain’t noise pollution, so crank it up, crack a beer and join us on the journey.
Listen to AC/DC’s Back in Black on Google Play Music

Useful links

Wikipedia – Back in Black
Wikipedia – Best selling albums
AC/DC Homepage

Other albums under consideration this month

Tears for Fears – Songs from the Big Chair
Kris Kristofferson – The Silver Tongued Devil and I
Heart – Heart

Muse – Black Holes and Revelations

Muse came to Bangkok a few weeks back and almost everyone I know went. Me with a kid at home, well, concerts don’t really happen anymore. But everyone was raving about it the day after, so I decided to check them out and loved what I heard. I know one of the conditions for album picks in the Sonic Collective is that they should have had some kind of meaning for us, but despite only recently learning of Muse, I know that if I had known about Black Holes and Revelations in 2006, I would most definitely have had it on repeat for weeks.Continue reading

Nine Inch Nails – Pretty Hate Machine

Nine Inch Nails is not so much a band as it is one man’s musical sandbox. That man is Trent Reznor, and even if you’ve never heard of him before, chances are you’ve probably heard some of the music he’s produced over his prolific career, either through movies or video games. But long before Reznor was an award-winning producer, he was a janitor…

Photo by Kevin Westenberg
Photo by Kevin Westenberg

Working nights as a handyman and janitor at the Right Track Studio in Cleveland, Ohio, Reznor took advantage of his down time and access to equipment to record and develop his own music. Playing most of the keyboards, drum machines, guitars, and samplers himself, he recorded a demo and began to shop it around to various record labels. Eventually settling on the name “Nine Inch Nails”, he scored a deal with TVT, a small label originally known as TeeVee Toons, whose bread and butter was releasing novelty and television jingle records.
Thanks to his new recording contract, Reznor got the opportunity to work with a number of producers he idolized, and thus Pretty Hate Machine was born. Much like the demo he cut, Reznor refused to record with a conventional band, preferring to record by himself.
On October 20th, 1989, Nine Inch Nails released Pretty Hate Machine to commercial success, and mixed critical reception. It was the starting point of a long, storied career for Trent Reznor, and it’s the album we’re reviewing this month.
Listen to Pretty Hate Machine on Rdio

Useful links
Wikipedia – Pretty Hate Machine
Wikipedia – Trent Reznor

Other albums under consideration for this month’s review:

  • Alanis Morisette – Jagged Little Pill
  • New Kids on the Block – Step By Step
  • Rage Against The Machine – Rage Agaist The Machine

Stevie Wonder: Innervisions

I’ve known of Stevie Wonder my entire life and a handful of his hits are familiar to me, but I’d never consumed an entire album. The time has come. After some digging to determine which of his albums is considered to be the best, Innervisions came out on top and what a treat it’s been delving in to its rich tracks.
Innervisions, Wonder’s 16th studio album, was released on August 3, 1973 (20 days before I was born!) and is cited for its exploration of popular themes at the time: drug abuse, racism, inequality, and toxic politics. The tracks are not only full of funk but challenge the listener at every turn. Jabs at then US President Richard Nixon appear, as do calls against police for their treatment of black Americans, all while keeping your toes tapping – an impressive feat.
Stevie Wonder The Sonic Collective
220px-Steviewonder_innervisionsWonder completed this album more or less on his own, writing, producing, and playing on most tracks, relying heavily on an ARP synthesizer, which set the tone of black music to come. He played all instruments on six of nine tracks and this work firmly cemented him as one of the world’s preeminent musicians. I encourage the listener to put on headphones for an initial, undisturbed listen, to fully absorb the lyrics, before diving in to future sessions. Enjoy!
 
Other albums enjoyed and considered this month include:

Innervisions on iTunes
Innervisions Wikipedia page