http://www.stoneddog.com/guitar-voice-box/
Guitar and voice software and / or equipment?
I am totally a novice when it comes to that. Please enlighten me in terms they can understand! I have an acoustic guitar and I would like to record my voice and guitar on my computer. What software do I need? I would be able to change and the recording layer, so that I can add other tools as needed. Also, I have a sort of "box" to record music my guitar on my computer? In fact, I wonder what team I have to record my own songs. Now I have a guitar, my voice, and a computer. I just need some advice people who have a little more experience with this. Thank you.
Do you need a microphone and a kind of mixture of soft ceramic. The microphone should not be exceptional, but there is a USB microphone that connects directly to your computer (Guitar Hero / Rock Band mic work). You can mix different Google / recording software is a free software that is easy to find and download, but if you're willing to pay, I suggest you Mixcraft. I had a little bit and it was amazing, you can layer sounds, add the drums, add guitar effects, etc all for about $ 60.
Using Talkbox With Your Guitar
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Harmony / Vocoder Pedal $220.50 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box $142.50 |
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Electro Harmonix Voice Box Harmony Machine & Vocoder B $220.50 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Free US Shipping NEW ! NEW $220.50 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Harmony Machine & Vocoder $220.50 |
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DigiTech XMC Multi Voice Chorus Effects Pedal in Original Box (Old Stock) $79.95 |
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ELECTRO HARMONIX VOICE BOX HARMONY MACHINE & VOCORDER B FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING $217.50 |
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HQRP AC Adapter fits Electro-Harmonix THE MOLE / VOICE BOX / BASS BIG MUFF PI $14.95 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Guitar Effect Pedal Stompbox $220.50 |
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Electro Harmonix Voice Box Vocoder Harmony Machine Effect Pedal $160.00 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Vocoder NEW free US shipping $220.50 |
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Electro- Harmonix Voice Box $200.00 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box BRAND NEW FROM DEALER!! FREE S&H TO MOST COUNTRIES!!! $220.50 |
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Electro Harmonix Voice Box Harmony and Vocoder Pedal $220.50 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Harmony Machine/Vocoder $220.50 |
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ELHX Voice Box Vocal Harmony Bundle w/4 FREE Cables! $220.50 |
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Electro Harmonix Voice Box Harmony Pedal, Vocoder, NEW! $217.50 |
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Electro-Harmonix Voice Box Vocal Harmonizer BUNDLE $220.50 |
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1976 come alive with the VOICE BOX print Ad $9.99 |
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1978 Dean Markley Strings Voice Box shows you the way print Ad $9.99 |
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New Electro Harmonix Voice Box Harmony Machine & Vocoder Pedal + Bonus $220.50 |
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Electro-Harmonix Harmony Machine, Vocoder, Harmonizer Guitar Effect Pedal $217.50 |
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Electro Harmonix XO Voice Box, Brand New In Box ! $220.50 |
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NEW Electro-Harmonix Voice Box FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING $220.50 |
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Voice Box Like Guitar Can Insert in U Disk/sd Card.portable Speaker and Use Lithium Electricity.with Fm Radio This mini voice box is designed as guitar outline.Use lithium battery and powered by USB filling electricity.Built-in FM radio function.You can also insert U disk, SD card directly to play music and this time the remote can control for the exercise…. |
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Very Best Of The Moody Blues $6.02 Fans of the Moody Blues hungry for the band’s intoxicatingly rich arrangements and soaring melodies need look no further than this terrific compilation. What it lacks in depth this collection makes up for in breadth, spanning the band’s 30-year history of hits from “Tuesday Afternoon (Forever Afternoon)” to “Your Wildest Dreams.” Featuring some of Justin Hayward and John Lodge’s best songwriting a… |
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BBC Sessions $9.71 Frequently bootlegged and now digitally remastered by Jimmy Page, these tapes capture a 25-month (1969 to 1971) arc in which Zep’s sound grew to encompass the speed rush and jazz/blues festival stuff of their 1969 debut, the fully developed folkie musings of “Going to California” (in which Plant vowed to make a hejira right up to Joni Mitchell’s front door), and the band’s modestly popular multila… |
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Frampton Comes Alive $6.48 If you were challenged to name five rock albums that epitomized the ’70s, Frampton Comes Alive! should probably top the list. Former Humble Pie guitarist Peter Frampton recorded a few perfectly fine albums with his band Frampton’s Camel, but it wasn’t until some of those tracks were recorded at a live performance in San Francisco and released as Frampton Comes Alive! that he became a household nam… |
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Disney Toy Story & Beyond Talking Pull String Woody Doll $39.99 Hey howdy hey! Woody’s got his ol’ guitar all strung up for some Wild West adventure, and you’re just the deputy he’s lookin’ for. Give a tug on his pull-string, and Woody speaks up with lots of cowboy phrases…. |
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Tomy I-SOBOT Robot $299.99 .caption { font-family: Verdana, Helvetica neue, Arial, serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; } ul.indent { list-style: inside disc; text-indent: -15px; } table.callout { font-family: verdana; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.3em; } td.think { height: 125px; background: #9DC4D8 url(http://images.amazon.com/images/G/01/electronics/detail-page/callout-bg.png) repeat-x; … |
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Fisher-Price Little Superstar Jammin’ Band Musical Microphone $54.99 The Fisher-Price Little Superstar Jammin’ Band Musical Microphone is full of instrument play, lively tunes, sing-along songs, musical variety, and busy activities that help babies develop an awareness of rhythm, melody, and movement. Designed for ages 6 to 36 months, this musical toy will get little toes wiggling and little voices crooning. Jammin’ BandMusical Microphone Ages: 6 to 36 mont… |
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Acoustica Mixcraft 5 Audio MIDI Music Recording Software V 5 $85.95 Mixcraft 5 is a powerful yet easy-to-use multi-track recording studio that enables you to record audio, arrange loops, remix tracks, compose with virtual instruments, score and edit video, and add effects to create stunningly professional compositions. Easy enough for everyone and powerful enough for the pros. Get a studio for a song with Mixcraft 5!Loops and sound effects Mixcraft includes over 3… |
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Logic Express 9 Retail [Old Version] $199.00 Apple Logic Express v.9.0 MB788Z/A Audio Utilities… |
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Apple Logic Express 8 [OLD VERSION] $199.00 Logic Express 8. Powerful music creation. Logic Express 8 delivers the power, precision, and professional toolset of Logic Pro 8–including a redesigned interface that allows musicians to write, record, edit, and mix with unparalleled speed and ease. Logic Express includes all the functionality of Logic Pro 8 except for four high-end professional features–surround, TDM/DAE support, distributed au… |
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Behringer Effects & Modeling Processors w/32 amp models, 23 speaker cabinet simu $108 * The ultimate tone toolbox for bass/acoustic/electric guitar & keyboard amp modeling-* 32 amp models, 23 speaker cabinet simulations, noise reduction, compressor, wah-wah, distortion pedal simulations etc.-* 16 analog & digital multi-effects including ultrabass, synth, delay/loop sampler, chorus, flanger, rotary speaker, voice box, auto wah, phaser, ambience & reverb-* Stereo aux input-* Comprehensive MIDI implementation-* 4 renowned distortion & overdrive stomp boxes w/adjustable DRIVE, TONE, BOOST & SPLIT-* Wah-Wah pedal & studio compressor effects-* W/D/H: 236 x 180 x 63 mm, 1.2 kg |
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Bigg Robb – Jerri Curl Muzic $15.99 Personnel: Bart “Sure 2 B” Thomas (vocals, guitar, horns, keyboards, mini-Moog synthesizer, voice box, drums); Dale Degroat (vocals,… |
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CELESTION INT 12 50 Watt Celestion Gold Guitar Speaker T5471D $304 The Celestion, T5471D, 12″ speaker, is an upgrade from their popular Blue Series. Building on the platform of the Blue, the Celestion Gold is a higher-powered, Alnico-magnet speaker that recreates the unmistakable sonic signature of a ?well played-in? original. Over time, the high frequencies of a Blue soften and become less chalky as the cone becomes more flexible – a much sought after characteristic that the Gold exhibits straight out of the box. Also present in the Gold sound from the outset is an added warmth and complexity in the midrange which, coupled with the classic Alnico qualities of a laid-back attack, rounded low end and brilliant bell like highs, deliver huge rhythm voicings and saturated vocal lead tones. The Gold is a wonderfully expressive and revealing loudspeaker, affording guitarists an unprecedented degree of dynamic control. It has already become a favorite for many working players worldwide whether picking and bending with Brad Paisley, or rocking hard with Danny Spitz of Anthrax.-Features:-Nominal diameter 12″ -Power Rating 50W -Nominal impedance 8 Ohm -Sensitivity 100dB -Chassis type Pressed steel -Voice coil diameter 1.75″-Voice coil material Round copper -Magnet type Alnico -Frequency range 75-5000Hz -Resonance frequency, Fs 75Hz -DC resistance, Re 6.4 Ohm & 11.8 Ohm -Diameter 12.2″ -Overall depth 6.5″-Magnet structure diameter 5.0″ -Cut-out diameter 11.1″-Mounting slot dimensions 0.31″ -Number of mounting slots 4 -Unit weight 9.3lb |
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CELESTION INT 12 50 Watt Celestion Gold Guitar Speaker T5472D $304 The Celestion, T5472D, 12″ speaker, is an upgrade from their popular Blue Series. Building on the platform of the Blue, the Celestion Gold is a higher-powered, Alnico-magnet speaker that recreates the unmistakable sonic signature of a ?well played-in? original. Over time, the high frequencies of a Blue soften and become less chalky as the cone becomes more flexible – a much sought after characteristic that the Gold exhibits straight out of the box. Also present in the Gold sound from the outset is an added warmth and complexity in the midrange which, coupled with the classic Alnico qualities of a laid-back attack, rounded low end and brilliant bell like highs, deliver huge rhythm voicings and saturated vocal lead tones. The Gold is a wonderfully expressive and revealing loudspeaker, affording guitarists an unprecedented degree of dynamic control. It has already become a favorite for many working players worldwide whether picking and bending with Brad Paisley, or rocking hard with Danny Spitz of Anthrax.-Features:-Nominal diameter 12″ -Power Rating 50W -Nominal impedance 15 Ohm -Sensitivity 100dB -Chassis type Pressed steel -Voice coil diameter 1.75″-Voice coil material Round copper -Magnet type Alnico -Frequency range 75-5000Hz -Resonance frequency, Fs 75Hz -DC resistance, Re 6.4 Ohm & 11.8 Ohm -Diameter 12.2″ -Overall depth 6.5″-Magnet structure diameter 5.0″ -Cut-out diameter 11.1″-Mounting slot dimensions 0.31″ -Number of mounting slots 4 -Unit weight 9.3lb |
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DJ-Tech All-In-One Mobile DJ-PA System for iPod IBOOST303 $999 You are the DJ! Start the party and keep it going with the DJ-Tech iBoost303, an all-in-one DJ-PA system in a box with dual iPod docks. the DJ-TECH, iBoost303, no cables, no installation, and no set-up are needed. The iBoost303, has on board, 2 iPod docks, a 3000 Watt built-in amplifier, speakers, 2 channel DJ mixer, dual 7-band equalizer, effects processor/Voice changer, and a unique jingle box with loop and pitch functions. An ease to transport, it comes with wheels and telescopic handle for easy portability. Bring your music everywhere! Your living room, garage, swimming pool, garden, street or your favorite stage. Dock up to 2 iPods to the iBoost 303, and mix with the crossfader, to blend your music like a Pro DJ. Expand your sound in 3 dimensions with the 3 integrated DSP effects with an incredible voice changer: Robot, Mickey Mouse, and Female.The iBoost303 creates a new category of portable fun, with a unique and powerful jingle player. Imagine 8 pads with 792 sounds at the touch of your fingers: from scratch sounds, to guitar riffs, you?ve got access to a large library of sounds. Its as simple as pressing the pads to play the jingles, changing the tempo, and looping them with your iPods tracks. 99 Banks classified by category, will help to choose your best jingle in real time. And let’s not forget Karaoke, with an additional mic input, you’re ready to host your own American Idol. Be the king of the night, rock any party, event, or functions with this all in one party machine.-Features:-Built-In Amplifier: 3000 Watts (PMPO) max -Built-In Speakers: 2 x 12″ Subwoofer + 1″ high frequency compression driver -Dual iPod docking system with adjustable bracket -Recharge iPods and iPhones during playback -2-Channel DJ mixer with crossfader and 3 microphone inputs -Dual, 7-band Graphic Equalizer for each iPod/iPhone -3 x adjustable simultaneous DJ effects: Flanger/Chop/Delay -Adjustable vocal changer -792 jingles included – 99 banks of 8 sounds with loop and pitch fun |
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DJ-Tech Open Box i-Styler DJ Station for i-Pods w/792 Jingles & Voice Changer bu $138.97 DJ Station for i-Pods-The Pack Contains:-* Dual iPod docking with adjustable intelligent iPod bracket charging iPod during playing-* 4-Channel Mixer (2 x iPod, Microphone, Jingles)-* Intelligent Crossfader-* Headphone Monitor Output-* 8 superb DSP Effects-* Pitch/Reverb/Echo/Filter/Flanger/Pan/Chop/Wah-* 2 Parameters ajustabel:X and Y-* Voice Changer built-in-* 792 Jingles built-in-* 99 banks of 8 Sounds (Scratch, Drum Loop, Funny Voice..etc)-* 8 large rubber pads for easy triggering-* Adjustable Jingle Tempo (+/- 30%)-* EZ instant tempo restore-* Seamless jingle loop-* Dimension: 300 (W) x 210 (L) x 40(H) mm-* Weight: 1.1 kg-i-Styler is the easiest and most versatile machine to mix 2 iPods without the need of a computer. Small and portable,i-Styler is a 3-IN-ONE DJ Station: it integrates a DJ Mixer, a powerful Effect Processor to move your sound in 3 dimensions, and a Jingle Player with 8 pads integrated.-Just connect i-Styler to your PA system or your hifi, and crank it out.-i-Styler features a jingle player: imagine 8 pads with 792 sounds under your fingers: from Scratch sound, to Guitar riff , or funky beat, or why not animation sound or anthem, no need any science of mixing:press the pads and play the jingles , change their tempo, and loop them with your iPods , mixing as easy as a game. 99 banks classified by category, will help to choose your best jingle in real time.-i-Styler integrates a fantastic Effect processor with 2 adjustable parameters; So easy to give colours to your sound: flanger , Delay , pitch,Phaser ec .. etc ..,but it can become as well a voice changer: Female,Robot, or Mickey Mouse voice in a snap.-ROCK YOUR iPod, Rock your music, ROCK SOLID.-The new spicy of iPod DJ station is born.-i-Styler will shape your mix and give you tons of fun and creativity. |
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Dandelion $16.98 Beginning with the found-sound hiss and music box strangeness of “San Luis Freeze,” Dandelion finds Scott Tuma’s always engaging, musically unique voice continuing to explore unexpected possibilities beyond the conclusion of Souled American’s existence into a now well-established — and equally mesmerizing — solo career. The sense of deep, unusual roots emerging out of forgotten corners continues here, murkier and designed around instrumentals instead of songs as such, with a sense of it somehow being a lost time of a century past viewed through haze. It’s audible, whether it’s the piano parts swirling through mechanistic shudders and reverb on “Red Roses for Me” shifting into an equally elegant banjo performance, then what could be a distant squeezebox and singalong at a faraway train station; or in the title and delicate overlay of twang and plucking on “True History,” feeling like a multi-guitar lament for something that never quite was. Other moments echo more modern expectations of drone experiments, like the slow grinds of “Again and Again” achieving a meditative calm, and the slow rhythmic feedback howls and tones of “Free Dirt” — almost sounding like Steve Roach’s darkest, heaviest moments in his recent work — before more open-ended, scarring performances shift the reference points to something like the Dead C. “Hope Jones (Jason’s Song)” is at once one of the simpler and more shocking songs — the slow acoustic guitar performance and gentle echo are accompanied at points by a barely discernible, distant voice, like a ghostly performance. “Oakum” is even more suggestive given its title: the delicate, hammering melody seems a world away from the brutish work prisoners did with the material in 19th century institutions as part of their punishment. The CD version continues the cryptic beauty of the core album, thanks to the lengthy “Intermission” (a mock broadcast, something from an alternate Soviet evangelical tradition, perhaps?), and th… |
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DigiTech Open Box Harmony Man Intelligent Pitch Shifter Pedal $194.5 HarmonyMan is the world’s first Guitar pedal that generates harmonies based on your chord progression. It features four different types of Pitch shifting depending on which of the 42 different voices are selected. Combine up to two distinct voices in any combination to accompany the Input signal: a 3rd or 5th above or below, an octave up, two octaves below, 24 semitones and 4 detune variations. Simply play the songs you know and love, and when the spotlight cues your solo, hit the harmony footswitch to get amazing multi-part guitar harmonies! -Cutting-edge pitch detection engine designed specifically for guitar delivers fast accurate shifting! -3-part guitar harmony; Forget about Music theory and programming. Just play-it?s that simple! -Intelligent harmony voicings, fixed chromatic voicings, and detune voice settings. -Edit, store and recall 4 Memory presets. -Sidechain connection lets you solo while your rhythm guitarist provides the recognition source. -Built-in guitar Tuner -Pre-harmony Distortion loop |
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Dornenreich – Her Von Welken N?chten $14.99 Dornenreich: Eviga (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, voice box, bass instrument); Gilvan (drum, percussion). Additional personnel:… |
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Eddie Cochran – Somethin’ Else: The Ultimate Collection [Box] $259.99 Personnel: Eddie Cochran (vocals, bass voice, guitar, acoustic guitar, ukulele, electric bass); Gene Davis (vocals, guitar, background… |
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Flood $14.99 Swamp blues twosome Moreland & Arbuckle, with assistance from drummer Brad Horner, graduate to the relative big time with their debut for the high-profile Telarc label. The hundreds of one-night stands in dingy blues clubs and as support for other roots artists yield a tough, no-nonsense set that barrels through 50 minutes of highly charged Delta-styled blues and blues-rock. Like Billy Gibbons, guitarist Aaron Moreland gets a lot of gritty sound out of his guitar, in his case a custom cigar box contraption with three guitar strings and two bass strings. A bassist contributes to three tracks, but Moreland’s attack is so powerful that he doesn’t need the help. Singer/harpist Dustin Arbuckle blows like a combination of Little Walter (whose “Hate to See You Go” is one of the album’s few covers), Paul Butterfield, and Jason Ricci; in other words, plugged in and spitting blood. He’s also become a convincing singer with a dynamic and powerful voice able to infuse emotion into the few ballads that provide a brief respite from the locomotive attack. His emotive croon on the acoustic “Your Man Won’t Ever Know” is spooky and threatening. Less successful is the standard Chicago groove of “Don’t Wake Me,” a by-the-numbers shuffle that changes the disc’s more raucous tempo but doesn’t take the band, augmented by a pianist on the track, anywhere others haven’t already been. But you’re never far from a blistering, midtempo Mississippi blues like “In the Morning I’ll be Gone,” where the guitar and harp lock together on a grinding riff, then skirt around each other until the chorus. Moreland’s banjo on the closing “Can’t Get Clear” (an earlier creeping six-minute electric version is another album highlight) shows that he’s far from a one-trick guitar pony. The band veers into acoustic country dirt on “Can’t Leave Well Enough Alone” and “Red Moon Rising.” Both changeups complement the more rugged, plugged-in territory plowed on the majority of this impressive disc. Th… |
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Happy with What You Have to Be Happy With $9.99 The relationship between this EP and King Crimson’s Power to Believe (2003) long-player mirrors that of the six-track Vrooom (1994) sampler and subsequent full-length release Thrak (1994). The music perfectly contrasts the primarily instrumental and live Level Five (2001) EP by honing in on the latest lyrical contributions from Adrian Belew (guitar/vocals). The disc begins with “Bude,” the first in a series of short spoken verses incorporating an electronically manipulated and harmonized Belew. The result is similar to the voice box effect used by Peter Frampton on “Do You Feel Like We Do?.” This slams headlong into the thrashing title track, which is not too far removed from the angst-ridden alternative metal from the likes of Therapy?, Tool, and Rammstein. In true Belew style, he incongruously twists the subject matter into a sonically aggressive backdrop, cleverly dissecting his craft as a singer/songwriter, exemplified in the lyrics: “And when I have some words/This is the way I’ll sing/Through a distortion box/To make them menacing.” “Mie Gakure” is a two-minute meditative soundscape interlude from Robert Fripp (guitar). While the necessitation for brevity is duly noted for this release, interested parties are emphatically encouraged to seek any of Fripp’s full-length soundscapes — such as Blessing of Tears (1995), November Suite (1996), and Gates of Paradise (1998). She Shudders — another of Belew’s harmonized haikus — prefaces an acoustic version of a second new tune, “Eyes Wide Open.” This is without a doubt one of the most lyrically poignant and musically refined tunes in the King Crimson repertoire, taking its rightful place alongside tracks such as “One Time” or “Frame by Frame.” Belew’s vocals hang ethereally over the languid, inspired instrumentation. “Potato Pie” is a moody and dark blues containing angular chord structures as well as some symbiotic fretwork from Fripp and Belew. A live version of the fourth installment in the “… |
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Live at Montreux 2003 [DVD] $14.98 Live at Montreux 2003 brings together the Yes quartet of Alan White (drums), Chris Squire (bass), Steve Howe (guitar) and Rick Wakeman (keyboards) to back up vocalist Jon Anderson, and what you have in 2003 is an older, more distinguished Yes playing their exotic material with a little more study and perhaps less energy than when they performed in Boston circa 1983-1984 during the “Owner of a Lonely Heart” era — a song which is, unfortunately, missing from this set. There are 17 selections with the disc clocking in at about two hours and 20 minutes and though the filming is lovely with some elegant sweeps of these excellent musicians, the camera capturing Howe’s hands and Wakeman’s piano runs very nicely (does one really need all those keyboards in this computer age? Yes, the effect on the stage show is still marvelous) but the quip on the back of the DVD box that this is one of the “finest (shows) that they have ever played” is a bit much. It’s a good performance, Anderson’s voice like that of a baseball pitcher morphing from fast ball to technique, Father Time catching up to the journeymen but not denying them their skills. These fellows are beginning to look like the elder statesmen from a Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings film, which is better than the alternative (see the band Starz DVD Back in Action: Live 2003 from the very same year to witness a truly troubling battle of the bulge and a good reason why Yes can thank their lucky stars). The three pages of liner notes by Classic Rock Magazine’s Dave Ling in the six-page booklet that comes with the package are what is expected by fans of material from this era. The music is flawless, of course, the group able to fuse some soul into their precision, and the feel is inviting even to those who don’t know the band’s music. It is a delicate look at the group’s classic catalog and one that, though not definitive, is a keeper and certainly entertaining. ~ Joe Viglione, Rovi |
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Love to Love You Baby $6.98 Love to Love You Baby”‘s 16 minutes and 48 seconds of arousal and refill — ticklishly sensitive rhythm and fusion — threw disco into a tizzy overnight, but the tonally starved blues-of-isolation on the B-side isn’t to be missed, either: the broken promises Donna Summer bemoans in “Full of Emptiness”; “Need-a-Man Blues,” with its unrequitedly sexy guitar rhythm as out of range of Summer’s voice as she of satisfaction; the imaginary seaside hold-me in “Whispering Waves”; and “Pandora’s Box,” where Summer and guitar scream icily at one another as they turn their backs on each other’s body music. Hunger without recourse; essential disco. ~ Michael Freedberg, Rovi |
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Lunatic Soul – Lunatic Soul $14.99 Lunatic Soul: Mariusz Duda (vocals, acoustic guitar, keyboards, voice box, bass instrument, electric bass, kalimba, percussion, sound… |
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Lyle Lovett $9.99 While Lyle Lovett’s debut album is easily the closest he’s ever come to making a straight country disc, right out of the box Lovett made it clear he was an eccentric in the great Texas tradition, and rather than sounding like the new boy in Nashville, he presented himself as the odd but likable distant relative of Guy Clark and Jesse Winchester. While “This Old Porch” and “If I Were the Man You Wanted” proved he could write a sincere and affecting song as well as anyone, they also made clear that he wasn’t cut out for Nashville-style radio-ready singles, while the ironic “Cowboy Man” and the wickedly cynical cheating song “God Will” proved Lovett possessed a genius for taking traditional formulas and giving them a hard twist. The jazzy sway of “An Acceptable Level of Ecstasy (The Wedding Song)” offers a witty and engaging preview of the blues-flavored sound Lovett would hone on later albums, and in this context the tunefully obsessive “You Can’t Resist It” sounds like the great pop hit he never had. While under Tony Brown’s production (and with a team of Nashville session vets backing him up) some of the sharper edges of Lovett’s musical personality were smoothed down, Lovett’s reedy but soulful voice shines through, and a casual listen confirms that Lovett’s music was just as strong as his lyrics. Along with Steve Earle’s Guitar Town, Lyle Lovett was one of the most promising and exciting debut albums to come out of Nashville in the 1980s, and like Earle’s album, this set a high bar for what would become an exciting and idiosyncratic career, proving first-rank singer/songwriters didn’t just come from New York or Los Angeles. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi |
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M-Audio 9900-52420-00 Pulsar II Matched Pair Microphones $299 The Pulsar II Matched Pair delivers a boxed set of Pulsar II small-capsule condenser microphones that are within +/-1dB of each other?from 20Hz to 20kHz. The distinctive-sounding Pulsar II is hand assembled in small quantities to insure peak performance. Featuring a solid-brass backplate and other top-quality components, these modern classics breathe new life into Stereo miking applications including drum overheads, acoustic guitar, piano, and room recording. The Pulsar II easily adapts to many recording and live situations. The 12dB/octave 80Hz high-pass filter reduces low-frequency rumble and the potential for overloading mic preamps with low-frequency signals. The -10dB switchable attenuation pad and thermal diaphragm treatment also allow it to handle high SPLs for its class. And the included t-shaped stereo mounting bracket facilitates XY and ORTF recording right out of the box. -Professional small-capsule condenser microphones: flexible applications -3/4″, 6-micron Mylar evaporated gold diaphragm: sensitive and accurate -Solid brass backplate: natural, Transparent sound -Class-A FET electronics: low Distortion -Switchable -10dB pad and 80Hz high-pass filter: adaptable -Includes mounting bracket for stereo miking applications: drum overheads, acoustic guitar, piano, rooms and more-Ideal for: Grand piano (classical) -Grand piano (jazz/pop/rock) -Acoustic guitar -Drum overheads -Room miking -Violin -Viola -Cello -Flute and piccolo -Oboe and English horn -Vibraphone -Marimba and xylophone -Choir (stereo distant) -Congas (including Tumba and Quinto) -Bongos -Also great on: -Voice -Tom toms -Double Bass -Tabla -Clarinet -Bassoon |
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Motor Motel Love Songs $14.98 Toronto man about town Jason Collett unfolds his sleeve to reveal a happily bleeding heart on this collection of material from past releases (four of Motor Motel’s tracks are culled from his 2001 release, Bitter Beauty). Collett’s voice isn’t mind-blowingly amazing, but it is brimming with warmth, and he has a cigar box full of stylistic implements with which to accompany it. Together with a gaggle of talented pals, he sells his material at a reasonable and honest price — it’s like a set of pleasantly this-or-that rockers on a late-night left-of-dial radio station. “Tiny Ocean of Tears” is glorious, jangly pop with double-tracked vocals and a splashy snare, while ballads like “Little Clown” and “Choke Cherry” drift in cigarette smoke and resonate with earthy, economical instrumentation. It’s in these more moody moments that Collett really shines. “It Won’t Be Long” — his collaboration with Hawksley Workman — is fragile with its vintage keys and strummed acoustic guitar. “You can tell yourself it’s nothing serious,” Collett sings in your ear. “But you’re in love.” And yet, his weary words could be cutting through the hushed air of a bedroom still charged with the afterimages and realizations of a three-hour fight. These whoop-de-dos of emotion keep Collett’s straightforward style consistently interesting. Sure, “Gabe” and “Lucky Star” are a bit like throwaways — the former is vacant in that Pete Yorn sort of way, while the latter is an easygoing jam, like a spontaneous cover of “Dead Flowers.” But they shimmer and shimmy respectively, and feature great guest work from Toronto locals like Andrew Cash, Mia Sheard, and Kersti McLeod, and Patrick Gilmour of Ruby Drake. In the end, Motor Motel Love Songs is as graceful as the fading light of day, and as comfortable as the predictable old creaks of a trusted pickup truck. ~ Johnny Loftus, Rovi |
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My Dusty Road $79.98 It’s nearly impossible to fathom that recordings so alive and important sat untouched in a Brooklyn basement for six decades, but that’s how the story of My Dusty Road begins. Long story short: an elderly woman had inherited a cache of some 2,000 metal disc recordings cut in the 1940s for Herbert Harris, owner of the Stinson Records label, and Moses Asch, who went on to found Folkways Records. Among them, most in pristine condition (some were scratched but the metal masters were otherwise shiny and new-looking), were roughly 150 sides made in April 1944 by one Woodrow Wilson Guthrie, first-class performances from his peak years. It should be noted up front that this is not a discovery of music that hasn’t seen the light of day before — only six of the 54 tracks that ended up on the four-CD box set are previously unreleased; the rest have been issued by Stinson (and on various reissues). My Dusty Road can, however, be considered a significant sonic upgrade. Some of the metal discs were damaged, but enough was salvageable — and able to be cleaned up with modern technology — that this collection (including six alternate versions Guthrie never released elsewhere) culled from that basement can now be considered a worthy new piece of the Guthrie canon. Divided into four thematic segments — Woody’s “Greatest” Hits, Woody’s Roots, Woody the Agitator, and Woody, Cisco and Sonny (i.e., Guthrie and fellow folksingers Cisco Houston and Sonny Terry) — the set is both familiar and fresh-sounding at once. Opening with “This Land Is Your Land,” it becomes immediately noticeable throughout the first disc that, although there is still a certain amount of hiss and scratch present (these recordings did, after all, sit in a basement for 60 years), Guthrie’s voice and guitar are brighter, more immediate. Two versions of “Going Down the Road,” one a collaborative effort with Houston and Terry, the other with only Houston, are lively and poignant, and other staples such as “… |
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Rosemary Clooney – Ballads, Blues Songs, Hits and Jazz [Box] $26.99 Personnel: Thurl Ravenscroft (bass voice); Art Ryerson, Sal Salvador , Mundell Lowe (guitar); Lou Stein (piano); Stan Freeman… |
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Rough Dried Woman $16.98 The Wolf record label has served Magic Slim & the Teardrops well, producing eight CDs between 1986 and 1992, when the band was emerging from Chicago to tour the world. They are deserving on many fronts as the self-proclaimed “best blues band on the planet,” and these tracks, marketed as “Magic Slim’s best 14 songs,” certainly go a long way to proving that assertion. Of the album’s 14 tracks, 11 come from the studio and three are previously unissued live concert sessions in Austria, all with Slim, the remarkable second guitarist John Primer, brother and bassist Nick Holt, and different drummers. Only one of the tunes was written by Slim, the others taken from classic blues songwriters and heroes of the lead vocalist and guitarist, whose distinctive sound comes shining through from start to finish. Albert King for sure is a favorite of Magic Slim, as he does fine renditions of “Match Box Blues” and a live version of “Blues at Sunrise” with extended guitar introductions. Composer Walter Williams is also well represented here on his classic “Bad Avenue” and “Ain’t It Nice” in slow and dirty, grinding fashion. The definitive “Spider in My Stew” is Willie Dixon’s tune, always a favorite of this band and audiences, as the richness of Slim’s voice is most pronounced, while the Muddy Waters evergreen “You Can’t Lose What You Ain’t Never Had” suits Slim & the Teardrops to a T in a slow-stewing broth. Then there’s J.B. Lenoir’s famous “Mama, Talk to Your Daughter,” as Slim’s persuasive side takes a back seat to speedy con man’s jive, and the bouncy “I’m Good” reveals the boastful, confident side of Slim while Nick Holt’s upbeat basslines reinforce the alleged good times ahead. Eddie Taylor’s classic “Bad Boy” reveals yet another facet in a chunky blues that parallels “Sweet Home Chicago,” while the lone original of Magic Slim’s “Tell Me What Makes a Woman Treat a Good Man So Bad” echoes the payback in a shouted-out, steady-rolling, rock-edged style… |
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Samson Audio Meteor Mic – USB Studio Microphone – SAMTR $99 Meteor MIC is the universal solution for Recording Music on your computer. Perfect for your home studio, Meteor Mic is also ideal for Skype, iChat or voice recognition software. With Meteor Mic, you can make incredible recordings that are out of this world. Producing rich Audio recording for any application, Meteor Mic has one of the largest condenser diaphragms (25mm) of any USB mic available. Its cardioid pickup pattern, smooth Frequency response and 16-bit, 44.1/48kHz Resolution give you Professional audio results no matter what you?re recording. Meteor Mic?s chrome-plated body includes a fold-back leg design that looks amazing on your desktop. And the legs adjust to the optimal position for any recording application from acoustic guitars to vocals or speech. A Stereo 1/8-inch Headphone Output for no latency monitoring and headphone volume knob gives you complete control. A Microphone Mute Switch gives you audio privacy while Video conferencing. Samson Integrated a mic stand Adapter into the bottom so you can mount the Meteor Microphone on a boom or desktop stand. Since there?s no need for drivers, you can start recording right out of the box on any computer. And Meteor Mic is compatible with most computer-based Digital audio workstations. A USB cable and carry pouch are also included. For singer/songwriters or a band looking to capture a jam session right on a computer, Meteor Mic ensures you get every note. Its cardioid pickup pattern captures pristine vocals or can be used to close-mic an instrument or guitar amplifier. For online communication, Meteor Mic is a simple, yet elegant solution. For Skype or other communication software, Meteor Mic provides a level of clarity that enhances everyone?s experience. Need a portable audio recording solution? Meteor Mic will even work with iPad when used with Apple?s camera connection kit. With Meteor Mic, your online Communications have never been more Personal or effective. For multimedia creators, Meteor Mic brings am |
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Samson Audio Open Box Meteor Mic – USB Studio Microphone – SAMTR $83.5 Meteor MIC is the universal solution for Recording Music on your computer. Perfect for your home studio, Meteor Mic is also ideal for Skype, iChat or voice recognition software. With Meteor Mic, you can make incredible recordings that are out of this world. Producing rich Audio recording for any application, Meteor Mic has one of the largest condenser diaphragms (25mm) of any USB mic available. Its cardioid pickup pattern, smooth Frequency response and 16-bit, 44.1/48kHz Resolution give you Professional audio results no matter what you?re recording. Meteor Mic?s chrome-plated body includes a fold-back leg design that looks amazing on your desktop. And the legs adjust to the optimal position for any recording application from acoustic guitars to vocals or speech. A Stereo 1/8-inch Headphone Output for no latency monitoring and headphone volume knob gives you complete control. A Microphone Mute Switch gives you audio privacy while Video conferencing. Samson Integrated a mic stand Adapter into the bottom so you can mount the Meteor Microphone on a boom or desktop stand. Since there?s no need for drivers, you can start recording right out of the box on any computer. And Meteor Mic is compatible with most computer-based Digital audio workstations. A USB cable and carry pouch are also included. For singer/songwriters or a band looking to capture a jam session right on a computer, Meteor Mic ensures you get every note. Its cardioid pickup pattern captures pristine vocals or can be used to close-mic an instrument or guitar amplifier. For online communication, Meteor Mic is a simple, yet elegant solution. For Skype or other communication software, Meteor Mic provides a level of clarity that enhances everyone?s experience. Need a portable audio recording solution? Meteor Mic will even work with iPad when used with Apple?s camera connection kit. With Meteor Mic, your online Communications have never been more Personal or effective. For multimedia creators, Meteor Mic brings am |
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Susana Baca $15.98 Susana Baca’s eponymously titled debut captures the plangent beauty of her voice. The accompaniment is thankfully sparse, including only a guitar and caj? n (a wooden box drum). The songs are unhurried and round corners melodically, twisting and turning, always showcasing her musicality. There’s nothing on the album quite like “Maria Lando,” and Baca’s astonishing performance that led off the Soul of Black Peru compilation of Afro-Peruvian music, but a few tracks come close. The lead tune, “Negra Presentuosa,” is the strongest, beginning with the caj? n, which is soon joined by the guitar, then Baca, and finally a chorus at the close. Other standouts are “Heces,” “Tu Miranda y Mi Voz,” and “Caras Lindas.” Andean pan pipes make their appearance on “La Luna Llena,” while “Se Me Van los Pies” includes ill-considered echo effects, the album’s only artistic lapse. ~ Spencer Harrington, Rovi |
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Take Me to the Sea $10.99 Phoenixing from the ashes of the Blood Brothers and Pretty Girls Make Graves, Johnny Whitney, Jay Clark, and Cody Votolato reinvent themselves as something completely new. While the Blood Brothers were straight up hardcore screamo and Pretty Girls were spiraling indie rock, Jaguar Love’s tastes are broader and harder to define. There are the theatrics and bombast of glam (think Sweet), the circular meandering and aggression of post-rock (Mars Volta), the danceable rock of post-punk revival (Hot Hot Heat), and the fuzzed heaviness of alt metal (Wolfmother), combined with the classic arrangements of show tunes, doo wop, and waltzes. The musicianship is mature — a jangly, shifting cornucopia of guitar, bass, organs, and drums — but it is practically ignorable behind the caterwauling wail of Johnny Whitney, which takes precedence over all. His is the type of voice that’s hard to be indifferent about. Either you love it, or it’s nails on chalkboard, forcing sharp-eared dogs and small children to cry out in pain. Easily mistakable for a woman, his range varies between the high pitch of Belinda Carlisle and the higher pitch of Kate Bush and forgoes the shriek that he emitted in his prior band for a helium-fueled croon. In the Blood Brothers, his voice was just another piece of the wacky puzzle, but in the context of songs with more standard arrangements, it stands out and glares brightly. Given time, the audaciousness actually gives way to reveal an accomplished singer with great control and a surrealistic way with wordplay. “So I flew to Australia on a flamingo’s back/The Pacific Ocean was dreaming of angels with the wings of a bat” is reported amidst the dance-funk grind of “Jaguar Pirates,” and druggy imagery is draped all over the rock box drum machine beats and guitar chunks of “Humans Evolve Into Skyscrapers” as he explains that (“Your fingers turn to tongues as my pregnant wife gives birth to a mushroom cloud shaped killer bee swarm.”) It’s all super in… |
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The Classic Years 1927-1940 $28.98 There are some box sets that seem like overkill, beyond the pale for all but the very most hardcore fans, and others — a little more obvious in their justification — that never achieve much currency beyond the ranks of the serious fans and as easy Christmas ideas for their relatives. And then there are the ones that, based on the sheer credibility of the artists involved — Eric Clapton, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra — become practically standard-issue for any serious music listener; you expect to find at least one, and more likely two of them on a lot of shelves. The Classic Years 1927-1940 ought to fit into the latter category, despite the fact that Blind Willie McTell never had a hit record in a recording career lasting nearly 30 years — he also didn’t make Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 greatest guitarists of the twentieth century, even though he could play circles about three-fourths of those who did. Some music and musicians just speak too well for themselves and their genre and style, and in this case all 84 cuts have value, and a lot more value than JSP Records is asking in its retail price. From McTell’s earliest session, in October 1927 to his November 1940 session for John Lomax, he is superbly represented here by his voice, guitar, and songs, and unlike many comprehensive compilations of pre-World War II blues, there are no apologies needed for the quality of most of the sources or the resulting tracks. However it happened, JSP has assembled a series of generally superbly clean and bright masters (with some exceptions, especially in the mid-’30s sides, some of which have surface noise) going back to the late ’20s, which, in their current digital state, showcase McTell’s dazzling finger-picking style on the 12-string guitar. Listeners will swear there’s more than one guitarist playing, but there isn’t on the early sides, and what he gets out of the one guitar makes it sound almost like a trio, covering rhythm as well as lead… |
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USED: Deeper Waters $9.99 Over the past 30 years, singers and songwriters Robin and Linda Williams have assembled one of the most daunting, emotionally honest, and brilliantly crafted catalogs in American music. Their now trademark tapestry of bluegrass, traditional mountain folk ballads, Southern gospel, country, and hillbilly blues is singular. With Deeper Waters, the album that marks their debut on the Minnesota-based Red House label, and their 30th anniversary as a recording and touring unit, the Williams have issued what amounts to nothing short of a masterpiece and perhaps their most inspired recorded moment. Once in a while, it is possible to glance at a cover to know that what is contained within its folds is special, something so completely out of the ordinary, it seems to speak before it is placed in the box and played. Deeper Waters is just such an item, from the sleeve with photography by Michael Wilson and a gorgeous design by Carla Leighton to its phenomenal players, who include Mike Auldridge, Jimmy Gaudreau, Mark Schatz, and Rickie Simpkins, to its guest vocalists: Iris DeMent, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Schuyler Fisk, and actress Sissy Spacek. The true wealth of any recording by the Williams is in the songs, of course, and this batch is glorious. The pair wrote or co-wrote all but one track here. The pair co-wrote with Dave Hull, Jerome Clark, Tim O’Brien, Jimmy Fortune, and Jim Watson. There’s the pastoral melancholy of “October Light,” the shimmering dobro and mandolin that entwine with Robin’s guitar and vocal of haunted bygone love in “Whippoorwill,” and the hunted, devastating dislocation of “Leaving This Land,” where the grain of Linda’s voice carries within it the weight of every dispossessed, locked-out refugee from across the history of the American landscape. Interestingly enough, it is followed by “Home #235,” a banjo-driven song that looks across a life spent traveling and wrapped in the anchor of love for a wandering soul, holding a few possessions as the… |
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USED: London 0 Hull 4 $3.99 Like a box of chocolate truffles with BBs hidden in them, a Housemartins album offers deceivingly simple and tuneful pop songs that are designed to cause you some discomfort once you start chewing on them. Singer and songwriter Paul Heaton sings with a disarmingly boyish voice, high and adenoidal, and his bandmates contribute angelic harmonies as well as sweet and straightforward guitar pop instrumental settings. But listen closely to Heaton’s lyrics and you find yourself plunged into a world of class resentment, bitter economic disappointment, and strangled rage. “Get Up Off Our Knees” includes the deathless couplet “Don’t point your fingers at them and turn to walk away/Don’t shoot someone tomorrow that you can shoot today,” while “Sitting on a Fence” ridicules those who “see both sides of both sides” and “Sheep” bemoans the apathy of the downtrodden masses. Heaton is no simple lefty — his politics are a strange amalgam of Marxism and Christianity — but his views are brutally uncompromising, and they constitute a very iron fist wrapped in the velvet glove of the Housemartins’ blissful guitar pop. Agree with him or not, there’s no denying the music’s power. ~ Rick Anderson, Rovi |
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USED: London 0 Hull 4 $5.99 Like a box of chocolate truffles with BBs hidden in them, a Housemartins album offers deceivingly simple and tuneful pop songs that are designed to cause you some discomfort once you start chewing on them. Singer and songwriter Paul Heaton sings with a disarmingly boyish voice, high and adenoidal, and his bandmates contribute angelic harmonies as well as sweet and straightforward guitar pop instrumental settings. But listen closely to Heaton’s lyrics and you find yourself plunged into a world of class resentment, bitter economic disappointment, and strangled rage. “Get Up Off Our Knees” includes the deathless couplet “Don’t point your fingers at them and turn to walk away/Don’t shoot someone tomorrow that you can shoot today,” while “Sitting on a Fence” ridicules those who “see both sides of both sides” and “Sheep” bemoans the apathy of the downtrodden masses. Heaton is no simple lefty — his politics are a strange amalgam of Marxism and Christianity — but his views are brutally uncompromising, and they constitute a very iron fist wrapped in the velvet glove of the Housemartins’ blissful guitar pop. Agree with him or not, there’s no denying the music’s power. ~ Rick Anderson, Rovi |
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USED: Love in Time $9.99 Shortly before his death from prostate cancer in 2007, Dan Fogelberg completed his final studio album, locked it in a safe deposit box, and directed his wife to release it after his passing. Long considered one of the landmark artists of the ’70s smooth singer/songwriter genre, the Illinois native released very little new material in his last decade, making the classic sound contained on Love in Time all the more welcome. Full of songs that could easily sit alongside his biggest hits such as “Longer Than,” “Same Old Lang Syne,” and “Leader of the Band,” the album pairs Fogelberg’s soothing voice and expert songcraft with just the right amount of subtle instrumental backing. “Come to the Harbor,” with its jaunty strumming and electric sitar motif, sounds like Cat Stevens’ “Peace Train” meets the Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood,” while “Sometimes a Song” is a quintessential Fogelberg love ballad, with a stick-in-the-head melody and spare, acoustic guitar-based accompaniment. A cover of Neil Young’s “Birds” is dressed with gorgeous Eagles-esque vocal harmonies and serves as a poignant and chill-inducing closer, its final — and in this case literal — lyric, “it’s over,” seeming to echo long after the song ends. A gentle, finely crafted, and passionately performed album, Love in Time is a career coda both satisfying and bittersweet. ~ Pemberton Roach, Rovi |
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USED: Lyle Lovett $5.99 While Lyle Lovett’s debut album is easily the closest he’s ever come to making a straight country disc, right out of the box Lovett made it clear he was an eccentric in the great Texas tradition, and rather than sounding like the new boy in Nashville, he presented himself as the odd but likable distant relative of Guy Clark and Jesse Winchester. While “This Old Porch” and “If I Were the Man You Wanted” proved he could write a sincere and affecting song as well as anyone, they also made clear that he wasn’t cut out for Nashville-style radio-ready singles, while the ironic “Cowboy Man” and the wickedly cynical cheating song “God Will” proved Lovett possessed a genius for taking traditional formulas and giving them a hard twist. The jazzy sway of “An Acceptable Level of Ecstasy (The Wedding Song)” offers a witty and engaging preview of the blues-flavored sound Lovett would hone on later albums, and in this context the tunefully obsessive “You Can’t Resist It” sounds like the great pop hit he never had. While under Tony Brown’s production (and with a team of Nashville session vets backing him up) some of the sharper edges of Lovett’s musical personality were smoothed down, Lovett’s reedy but soulful voice shines through, and a casual listen confirms that Lovett’s music was just as strong as his lyrics. Along with Steve Earle’s Guitar Town, Lyle Lovett was one of the most promising and exciting debut albums to come out of Nashville in the 1980s, and like Earle’s album, this set a high bar for what would become an exciting and idiosyncratic career, proving first-rank singer/songwriters didn’t just come from New York or Los Angeles. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi |
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USED: SLOW CRACK 1189 $6.99 Expanded for American release by the inclusion of a few tracks from the Transaction and Remindlessness efforts, The Slow Crack, which originally surfaced in 1987, finds Kilbey agreeably filling in the time between the Church’s Heyday and Starfish albums. There are actually fun hints of the latter album here and there: the mandolin on “Fireman” (there’s also some sax) is a definite giveaway, considering the cameo turn David Lindley did on “Antenna.” In general, The Slow Crack lives up to its solo nature; it’s less full and energetic than the Church (Kilbey plays everything himself and serves up some acoustic numbers here and there), but no less interesting. Certainly fans of Kilbey’s sometimes-cryptic lyrical imagery and his sighing, melancholic voice (and accompanying melodies) won’t complain. When Kilbey more self-consciously stretches, the results are often intriguing, such as the slightly forbidding, cool “Ariel Songs.” Then again, “Surrealist Woman Blues,” though it avoids completely being a formal exercise thanks to its woozy chorus, doesn’t really do much more than pretend it’s a late-night bar somewhere. Of the extra tracks, “Transaction” itself is the best, a smart, slyly snaky effort that would have easily made for a great Church number and sounds just fine on its own; Kilbey’s reliance on indifferent drum programming instead of a real drummer is the one real flaw. His Hex partner, Donette Thayer, contributes swan guitar, making for a wonderful concluding solo. “Like a Ghost” is another newer beauty, just persistent enough in its synth/rhythm box drive to suggest Kilbey’s trademark drama while not actually sounding like a typical Church song at all, while “Song of Solomon” takes an even more sweeping, passionate path (this time with guitars). Best title of the bunch: “A Favourite Pack of Lies.” ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide |
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USED: Segundo $6.99 America doesn’t have a lock on all the off-kilter singer/songwriters. Take a listen to the very individual Argentine Juana Molina. On her second album, she explores electronic and acoustic textures, treading through them like rooms in an empty house while inspecting details and corners. She’s equally comfortable with detuned synths (as on “Medlong”) or acoustic guitar (“El Zorzal”), but whatever she uses, her music keeps taking the path less traveled. Her unusual, minimal touches transport lovely melodies into different dimensions. Molina is like a Latin Lisa Germano: both make small, intimate albums and think outside the box. But originality should be treasured, especially when it’s wrapped in glistening little melodies. Molina can have an almost childlike simplicity at times in the way her voice glides between the blips and bloops, although her sensuality comes to the surface in other moments. She utilizes minimal arrangements and the production might sound more like work from home than the big recording studio, but this na? vet? suits the songs. There’s an irresistible charm about both this disc and Molina’s approach. Even if you don’t speak Spanish, you’ll still be smiling. ~ Chris Nickson, Rovi |
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USED: Siberia $7.99 Lights’ 2011 sophomore effort Siberia is a much heavier sounding affair than her gentle, 2009 full-length The Listening. There she delivered a batch of Cyndi Lauper-meets-Postal Service-meets-Daft Punk dorm room anthems that were pleasantly catchy. Two years later, Siberia showcases singer/songwriter Valerie Poxleitner’s more mature, sonically sophisticated approach to her synth-driven melodic pop that draws on such dance-sympathetic styles as dubstep, hip-hop, and electronica. Where before Lights’ keyboards plinked and percolated like tiny bubbles popping with a soft, twee-like exuberance, here she slams you with overdriven, fuzz-pulsing synth and drum machine-driven tracks that, aside from Poxleitner’s angelic vocals, have an almost purposefully lo-fi sound. Which isn’t to say Siberia sounds bad; on the contrary, the album — produced with some assistance from Brian Borcherdt and Graham Walsh of Toronto’s indie electronic ensemble Holy Fuck — is a blissful, laser-toned experience where Poxleitner’s sweet voice is expertly wrapped in stylish, multicolored hues of fluorescent keyboard squelch and bass guitar shimmer. In that sense, tracks like the yearning “Where the Fences Are Low” and the sparkling, anthemic “Toes” bring to mind the work of such similarly inclined contemporaries as the Naked and Famous and M83. Elsewhere, the yearning and dancey “Everybody Breaks a Glass,” the grand “Flux and Flow,” and the funky “Fourth Dimension” are sexy, passionate, club-ready cuts that sound something like early Madonna mashed up with the Buggles’ Age of Plastic and piped through a boom box with blown-out speakers. If this is the sound of Siberia, then Lights should have you begging to be exiled. ~ Matt Collar, Rovi |
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USED: The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration $14.99 To commemorate 30 years since the release of Dylan’s first Columbia album, a marathon tribute concert was held at New York’s Madison Square Garden, with a galaxy of stars and voices from the past taking part. The cumulative effect of this tribute was staggering, revealing just how much truly great Dylan material there is to choose from all of his periods. A firm nucleus of the three surviving members of Booker T. & the MG’s, plus G.E. Smith on guitar and Jim Keltner and Anton Fig on drums, anchors the bands, and most of the stars offer fresh slants on songs familiar and obscure. Among the more memorable interpretations are Richie Havens’ moving “Just Like a Woman,” completely within his style; the Clancy Brothers’ fervent conversion of “When the Ship Comes In” to an Irish folk idiom; the swinging, countrified “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” from Mary Chapin Carpenter, Shawn Colvin, and Rosanne Cash; and a sullen “Masters of War” by Eddie Vedder and Mike McCready on acoustic guitars. Lou Reed went through the bootlegs to come up with the pounding “Foot of Pride,” which is perfectly suited to Reed’s declamatory style. Eric Clapton shrugs off his diffident manner to deliver one of the most electrifying performances of his life in “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” — each guitar lick and vocal cuts angrily to the bone — and George Harrison makes his first U.S. concert appearance in 18 years with “Absolutely Sweet Marie.” Dylan himself appears at the end, wildly improvisational and harshly authentic in voice on “It’s Alright, Ma” and “Girl of the North Country.” By no means does this box contain the entire concert, though, and while the reason was probably to make the thing fit on two well-packed CDs, some of the deletions are inexplicable. To cite just a few examples, Harrison’s “If Not for You” is missing; so are Clapton’s “Love Minus Zero, No Limit” and some numbers by Booker T. & the MG’s (“Gotta Serve Somebody” and “Lay Lady Lay” are in Sta… |
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Zapp & Roger – All the Greatest Hits $7.99 Zapp: Roger Troutman (vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, voice box); Zapp Troutman (vibraphone, background vocals); Lester Troutman… |