| Michael
Cerveris plays the throat-slicing, guitar-picking Sweeney in the
pared-down revival of "Sweeney Todd." Though it's his
fourth leading role in a Broadway musical (there were turns in "Assassins,"
"The Who's Tommy" and "Titanic"), Mr. Cerveris
would rather be a rock star. In 2004, he released "Dog Eared"
(Low Heat), with cameos by members of Sonic Youth and Sleater-Kinney.
His vocals and guitar can also be heard on the "Sweeney Todd"
cast album, released on Nonesuch in January, and he has plans for
an early summer release of an EP, "hinterlands (the history
of tears)" (Low Heat). Mr. Cerveris spoke with Winter Miller
about what he has been listening to.
Grizzly
Bear
Grizzly Bear's debut album "Horn of Plenty" (Kanine Records)
is an overlooked gem from 2004. The recent reissue includes a new
CD of remixes by Efterklang, the Double and Dntel of the Postal
Service. It's really understated, a great late-night, predawn record,
a chill-out record. "Horn of Plenty" is not especially
groundbreaking or radically new, but the sonic textures are really
interesting: they use a lot of acoustic instruments, reed instruments
and found sounds, stuff that's beyond the usual rock band thing.
It's atmospheric; you get mini-movies in your head while you're
listening. It's a good headphone record, a getting-lost-in-it kind
of record.
Related: Music
from "Horn of Plenty" on Grizzly
Bear's official Web site.
Hot
Chip
I love this
record. It's as if electronica had happened in Motown in the 70's.
Or if a couple of white British kids had a garage next to Prince's
studio and had a glass to the wall: this is what they would have
made. "Coming On Strong" (Astralwerks) sounds like they
used a lot of old analog synthesizers; that's the vibe you get from
it. Along with great grooves, it has quirky little bleeps and blips,
and it's kind of wobbly-sounding. But it's got a great sense of
irony and cool — not that sort of disinterested, disaffected
cool. Genuine cool. The lyrics are really great.
Related: Music
from "Coming on Strong" on Hot
Chip's official Web site.
The
Kooks
I buy a lot
of records in the hope they'll be good, but they often aren't. It
could just be that the packaging is appealing. With this album it
wasn't the layout; it was the name, because I thought they had to
be referencing Bowie's "Hunky Dory." Their curly-hair
mops made me think of Marc Bolan and T. Rex, so there was reason
for optimism. I was right about those reference points. "Inside
In/Inside Out" (a British import on Virgin, soon to be released
in the States) has a quirky Bowieness to it and a madcap British
pop thing going on. A bit like Kaiser Chiefs, sort of Kinks-ish,
early Supergrass. A really breezy, ready-for-summer kind of record.
The vinyl version comes with a live album of the same songs done
at Abbey Road Studios, and they pull the cool thing off live, too.
Related: Music
from "Inside In/Inside Out" on The
Kooks's official Web site.
The
Envelopes
This is something
I picked up despite the cover. I found "Demon" (Brille)
at a listening station, and it appealed to me immediately. It's
an import that should be getting a Stateside release soon. The Envelopes
are from Paris and Stockholm via north Yorkshire, so already that
confluence of strange European indie history was intriguing. They
come across like a more fleshed-out Vaselines, with nods to the
Velvet Underground. They're a less-delicate Belle and Sebastian,
and some songs are reminiscent of Belly's and Velocity Girl's. Lots
of treble and quirkiness, but it's a very whimsical, sweet record,
deceptively addictive and smile-inducing.
Related: Music
from "Demon" on The
Envelopes's official Web site.
Regina
Spektor
I did first
pick up "Mary Ann Meets the Gravediggers and Other Short Stories
by Regina Spektor" (Transgressive Records), another import,
because the packaging was good. It looked like an Edward Gorey thing,
and I couldn't tell if it was spoken word or from a theater piece.
Even after listening, I wasn't quite sure. It's almost all just
piano and voice. They're really quirky, idiosyncratic stories, great
character studies and unusual vignettes. They're a bit like Tori
Amos, only without the personal angst and with more wit and detachment.
It's genuinely odd, as opposed to "Look at me" odd. It's
the kind of thing I'd usually resist for being too arty or too self-aware,
but it's so clever and seems so personal that I don't think it's
as put on as it seems to be. It's smart, a little scary and very
sexy, too, because of all that.
Paul
Weller
I've been a
Paul Weller fan since the Jam. "As Is Now" (Yep Roc Records)
is a total return to form, to the "Stanley Road" record
(1995) and "Wild Wood" (1993). His voice just gets better
and better. It has a smoky, blue-eyed-soul quality to it. You get
the sense he has always followed his muse and not trends. It's ageless
music, a perfect example of how to grow old gracefully in rock 'n'
roll. It's old-school rock and R&B, but it still feels completely
relevant, because these are good songs and he's a masterful interpreter
of his own material. His voice is really lived in. And he sounds
more energetic, and certainly not going through the motions. He's
always had great style, sartorially and every other way, but his
tastefulness never runs to blandness.
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