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MODERN

PETER GABRIEL - UP (Real World / Virgin)

There's no point in going into the ten year recording process, the sessions on the Amazon river, Senegal or The Alps. Nor is there a point in talking about Gabriel's interests in the Great Apes nor his sage-like appearance nor the dozens of musicians on this album of albums. Instead listen. Listen to the rising atmosphere, amazing coppery percussion, Shankar's trademark violin, spectral sounds, a dropped piano and then Tony Levin's loping bass groove and your away into 'I Grieve'. Astonishing music, astonishing sound. Gabriel's raspy, impassioned voice summing up perfectly the feeling of bereavement. And halfway through it turns into a boppy positive plea for 'life going on and on and on'. 'Growing Up' is Gabriel's take on dance music and for the man who brought Ethnic music to the World it is suitably driven by tribal drum riffs. 'Sky Blue' has his daughter Melanie on it as well as Daniel Lanois , Peter Green and The Blind Boys Of Alabama. It recalls the Eighties days of Big Sky Lanois productions and the guitars just ring and ring. 'More Than This' has an addictive repetitive chorus and some spicy David Rhodes guitar. I love the way he arcs a scale and makes it soar and dive at the right places. The album concludes with 'The Drop', as if he's seen Beyond The Clouds and is like Antonioni/Malkevich travelling in a plane, thinking about life. It's just Gabriel and his Bosendorfer - melancholy and strangely resigned.

'UP' recalls all the best bits from his career. It's a dark/light, happy/sad, celebration/excavation of life. And thank God for it. Welcome back Peter, and thanks for taking the time. See www.petergabriel.com

THE SOFT BOYS - NEXTDOORLAND (Matador)

Robyn Hitchcock has said that The Soft Boys recorded this album in the same studio in Waterloo they used for the classic pop/psych spray of Underwater Moonlight. Hitchcock felt maybe " he had dreamed his life away ". But sorry Robyn, you've given us great solo albums and you're unique to British music despite all the Syd analogies. This opens with the twin guitars of Kimberley rew and Hitchcock on 'I Love Lucy'. 'Mr Kennedy' is beautifully melodic, touching and ends with a wonderful dynamic instrumental which recalls their 1980 high-watermark. 'My Mind Is Connected...' is just the kind of psych(otic), strange and unnerving ballad which reminds us that this is the band who gave us 'Insanely Jealous'. And the rest meanders in and out of consciousness and concludes with the soft 'Le Cherite'. A respectable return to form. See www.thesoftboys.com

U2 - THE BEST OF 1990 TO 2000 (Island)

They’ve done it again. Just when you thought they’d gone away, here they are with a brilliant compo of what is for me their greatest decade. The 1990s began with Achtung Baby and what a shock that was. This album is bookended by tracks (‘Even Better’, ‘The Fly’ ) from that sizzling electric masterpiece with the best lyrics of Bono’s career. We get bits from Zooroopa , Passengers , Pop and All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Will Orbit comes in to mix a new song ‘Electrical Storm’ and produce the new theme for the Scorsese movie The Hands That Built America. All in all a feast of choices and those molten-lava Edge guitar solos on ‘The Fly’ and ‘Until The End Of The World’ to boot.

ALICIA KEYS - SONGS IN A MINOR (J Records)

The rapid rise of New York piano-protege from the conservatory to today's most bankable Soul songstress is a modern day fairytale enhanced by star-maker Clive Davis. At the age of 17 Keys left her mother's home to live in an apartment where she could build her own studio! Now, three years later, she wins Grammy awards and gets to No 1 with ease. Her debut album opens in a dramatic way - her talking over herself playing Beethovan's 'Moonlight Sonata' which is then segued into a drum loop and her voice (mindful of Whitney, Aretha, Nina Simone and Billie Holiday) sounds like that of a mature , seen-it-all , done-it-all woman. Yes, she's won the $100 million lottary with Davis's backing but there's real substance here.

'Girlfriend' lopes along in a modern R 'n' B way. 'How Come You Don't Call Me' is pure squelchy Soul. 'Fallin' is a blues but a blues with another Beethovan riff (a sample from 'Fur Elise' methinks) and a kick in the drum department. Isaac Hayes turns up on the soft-funk of 'Rock With U'. Tracks like 'A Woman's Worth', 'Never Felt This Way', 'Butterflyz', 'Why Do I Feel So Sad' and 'Lovin U' have already passed into the realm of Classic Repertoire. She says she's been planning this record since the age of 14 and the recording locations in LA and New York include Hendrix's Electric Lady studios. The sky's obviously the limit for Alicia (pronounced Aleesha) and incredibly she's still only starting her second decade on the planet.

1 GIANT LEAP (Palm Pictures CD/DVD)

I've lived with this album and DVD for some time now, trying to get my head around its manifold diversity. Two blokes (Jamie Catto of Faithless and Duran Duran / Paul McCartney producer Duncan Bridgeman ) got hold of a Macintosh G3 laptop and a digital camera and went around the world looking for " the unity in diversity " after meeting in a Brighton flat and digging Brian Eno and Peter Gabriel records. Africa, India, Indonesia, Australia and America were all covered and the DVD communicates this incredible journey of recording and discussion. As they went along they revealed what they had recorded before to new musicians so the work is incredibly layered dense and a summation of all the world music jaunts of Gabriel, Michael Brook and such. U Srivinas is here as is Linton Kwesi Johnson, Neneh Cherry, Haraprasad Chaurasia, Stewart Copeland, Baaba Maal, Eddi Reader, as well as Eno, Michael Stipe, Robbie Williams, Dennis Hopper, Kurt Vonnegut, Ram Dass, Anita Roddick and dozens of others. The album is a glorious celebration, probably the very best World Music album I've ever heard in my life with incredible texturing, tracking and Ambience. Even the usually conservative Telegraph said it was " a very superior Ambient / Chill-Out album ".

The DVD is another matter. With 250 hours of music to choose from the boys have had to divide the disc into ten chapters with a dizzying array of playback options. I'm still trying to figure out how to play this in one go. There are 29 geographic explore movies alone, chapter modes, region modes, videos , jukebox modes , music modes, mix modes, interactive motion menus, loop features and pant more. It's mind-boggling in its construction but maybe that's what happens with digital technology - it just eats information. Still I'll be playing this for years to come. www.1giantleap.tv

Primal Scream - Evil Heat (Columbia)

They’re back! They’re with Andy Weatherall. They've got Robert Plant playing harmonica and Kate Moss duetting on a Nancy Sinatra song. But don't hold your breath because most of this is dark grungy stuff courtesy Kevin Shields a la Xtrmntr. There are two stand-out tracks : 'Autobahn 66' which recalls the chilling autoscapes of Harmonia and 'Space Blues # 2', a vocal by Martin Duffy couched in beautiful Velvets (period 1968) contours. But 2 out of 11 isn't really good enough is it.

Oasis - Heathen Chemistry (Big Brother)

No matter what the critics say, this is a great album. 'Hindu Times' is a brilliant psychedelic rock number in the mould of The Beatles best but it's modern rock with a huge sound and that Noel Gallagher guitar-as-sitar riff. 'Stop Crying Your Heart Out' returns us to that marvellous movement when 'Wonderwall' became an anthem for a generation - it's the way Liam Gallagher sings up and into the mike. Gorgeous. Listen to the liquid intro to 'Little By Little'. 'All In The Mind' has the thumping beat of 'Tomorrow Never Knows'. And Liam Gallagher writes too - three songs: 'Songbird' (a Beatles/Gram Parsons-era Stones piece of gold), 'Better Man' (a wonderful take on Lennon's 'Cold Turkey' replete with that Karma guitar sound of John's) chorus-laden 'Born On A Different Cloud'. Noel has even allowed the rest of the band a go with Gem Archer's 'Hung In A Bad Place' (with its air-splinter guitar melt) and Andy Bell's superb instrumental psych rocker (cue Prunes, Seeds etc) 'A Quick Peep'. And you can even hear Johnny Marr on two tracks. A belter. See www.oasisnet.com

CORNELIUS - Point (Matador)

Keigo Oyamada, born Tokyo, some 32 years ago makes real modern music. Takes his name from the original Planet Of The Apes and loves Brian Wilson and My Bloody Valentine. This is his sixth album but his first major audio effort to make it in the West. It's avant-garde pop/rock with a glorious stereophonic sound. The end of 'Smoke' is a revelation of water and extremely high guitars, the beginning of 'Drop' clipped guitar and sink-drip water, 'Tone Twilight Zone' with its birds and insects and dead-calm percussion/guitar loopings the very definition of Ambient. There are grunge-guitar tracks as well but Cornelius is best at that special Japanese type of sound best summed up on the Martin Dennyesque 'Nowhere'.

JEFF BECK - YOU HAD IT COMING (Epic)

Mostly acid burn guitar with addition of 'Rollin & Tumblin'. Nitin Sawhney comes on board for 'Nadia' where Beck's guitar is made to sound like a skittering sitar to Sawhney's beats. 'Suspension' is just lovely picked chords to Ambient percussion. Heaven from a master of his instrument.


SHERYL CROW - C’MON, C’MON (A & M)

This is the album Keith Richards was supposed to be on. It took three years for Sheryl to record this and it seems Lenny Kravitz was her best bet as his guitarist Craig Ross is all over the album. 'Steve McQueen' belts off the album in Stones style, 'Soak Up The Sun' is so quirky little girly Sheryl style, 'You're An Original' is a stone classic like only Lenny can deliver but 'Safe & Sound' is the first true classic. Christ this girl can sing and as she extends her voice this goes right through you. Then it's back to Nashville for contributions from Stevie Nicks and Don Henley. 'Lucky Kid' is back to block-rocking rock 'n' roll. Gwyneth Paltrow appears on 'It's Only Love' and Emmylou Harris on the eerie 'Weather Channel'. The UK version gets two extra tracks and the inner sleeve pics make her look particularly beautiful. See www.sherylcrow.com

VANILLA SKY - SOUNDTRACK (Reprise)

Let's face it, Cameron Crowe's latest Tom Cruise vehicle is a great idea that doesn't really come off. It's hard to believe Tom Cruise as a young Bobby Dylan or nascent James Dean even though I do respect Cruise as a pretty good actor who dared to take on Kubrick. With Almost Famous, Crowe was on safer ground but here he falters. Yes, the bravura style is fun but it's not a film I'd like to see again. Now the soundtrack is a different story. R.E.M., Radiohead, Paul McCartney, Peter Gabriel, The Monkees ('Porpoise Song'), Sigur Ros, Jeff Buckley, Todd Rundgren, Bob Dylan, The Chemical Brothers and more. You can't go wrong. It's a super hit all over.

LENNY KRAVITZ - LENNY (Virgin)


Written by, presented by, produced by, played by, programmed by, sung by and everything else by in Miami - the one and only Lenny Kravitz. But grow up Lenny, the days of pastiche should be long behind you. ' If I Could Fall In Love' is so Glitter rock and 'Yesterday Is Gone' could be Sweet while 'God Save Us All' is Suzi Quatro. 'Believe In Me' has some interesting drum programming where 'A Million Miles Away' returns to the Lennonesque ways of yore. It ends with the good 'Let's Get High' but the album is the kind of '70s Top Of The Pop sound which is best left behind as a memory.


GRAMAPHONE - GRAMAPHONE (Artful)

A three-piece Ambient/Soundtrack band from Birmingham whose sound recalls experimental 1980s music like that of David Sylvian. Unfortunately Penny McConnell's vocals are not in that league and though there are interesting textures here, the album lacks memorability.

HIS NAME IS ALIVE - LAST NIGHT (4AD)

In contrast to the above His Name Is Alive really have a way with sound and Lovetta Pippen wraps her breathy vocals around your ears. And this is lo-fi rock music of a very original kind with Warn Defever's guitar and piano coming in at judicious points to make you want to prick up your ears. Includes fantastic version of Jimi Hendrix's 'In From The Storm'.
PIANO MAGIC - SON DE MAR / WRITERS WITHOUT HOMES (4AD)

Son De Mar is music from a film by Spanish director Bigas Luna. It's authors are Glen Johnson, Jerome Tcherneyan and Miguel Marin - Spanish, French and English. It's superb Ambient music for a " visually Ambient film ". It has that English chamber quality of strings and pianos but fills its spaces with discreet water, clock and bell sounds. Though Simon Raymonde, Vashti Bunyan and others all join in for the second album, the predominance of vocals ruins the mysterious quality of the sound. With Steve Beresford and James Topham, Writers Without Homes sounds like a typical 4AD fusion project
RADIOHEAD - AMNESIAC (EMI / PARLOPHONE)

Reputedly recorded at the same time as Kid A, Amnesiac is the sound of out-takes and with Radiohead that means wisps of songs, bits of melodies clouded in a fog of unresolved music and sound. Some people might call this genius but it's incredibly annoying when you don't have one decent song you can hum. The piano opening of ‘Pyramid Song’ can be spliced with The Syd Barrett era weirdness of 'The Morning Bell Amnesiac' and you wouldn't notice. File next to Pink Floyd's Ummagumma.

LEO O’KELLY - GLARE (Clarinda & Ist Records)

Punchy return to form by former Tir na nOg man recorded and mixed at Sun and Clarinda Way Studios by Pat Donne at Sun, asst by Dave West and Leo O'Kelly at Clarinda Way. Produced by Trevor Knight. Highlights 'Streets Of This Town', 'You Took All The Fun Out Of It', 'This Plane Is Dragging Me Down'. See www.leookelly.com

SEIGEN ONO - MARIA & MARIA / AT THE BLUE NOTE TOKYO 2000 (Saidera)

Ono on guitar and charango. Strange sounding sets of faux jazz in book CD formats. At The Blue Note performed in New York with John Zorn Aug/Sept 2000. Maria & Maria is a kind of Ambient chamber music which was recorded in Clinton Recording Studios . See www.saidera.co.jp

NEW ORDER - GET READY (London)

After eight years and a chasm of myth , New Order return with a belter of an album. No Gillian Gilbert but Hooky, Steve Morris and Bernard Sumner are back on the job. 'Crystal', the opener never recovers from the heavenly keyboard melody supported by waves of key chords and Dawn Zee's amazing voice. Hooky's snakey bass is all over '60 Miles An Hour'and 'Turn My Way' is another paean for freedom which only Barney can turn into heaven. Bobby Gillespie and Andrew Innes of Primal Scream are all over 'Rock The Shack' which approximates The Stones in the way New Order have never done. 'Someone Like You' is pure electronic rock and it all ends with strings, acoustic guitars . Produced in Ireland, Wales, Wiltshire and London.

ALSO OUT

MICHAEL HOUSER - DOOR HARP (Sanctuary) : Late guitarist (Aug 2002) from Widespread Panic's final album of acoustic vignettes recalls pastoral psychedelia of Jimmy Page with smatterings of Americana and Windham Hill ambience.

LEFT ORBIT TEMPLE - PROPULSION (Tydirium) : Wayout Ambi-Tribal concept album from Chicago's James Teitelbaum with additional ROM material featuring tattoists,artists and film-makers. (Note: Sorry for delay, got lost in the pile.) See www.tydirium.net

NPB - THIS IS MY HAPPENING & IT XXXXX ME UP (Catchy Go Go) - Gritty Dublin rock band in the mould of The Velvets/MC5/Stooges. Means National Power Breakfast. Gives The Strokes a run for their money. See catchygogo.com

GREGORY PAUL - ANON (Dirty Girl) : Hailing from Chicago this guitarist first strikes as if cut from Durutti Column mould of understated guitar-shimmering beauty but the more one delves the greater the rewards as hidden treasure of electronic Ambience/soundscape beauty beckons. See www.gregpaul.com

ERIC BELL - A BLUES NIGHT IN DUBLIN (Voiceprint) : You have to understand that now Dublin is a multi-cultural transnational city music is booming. And in the haze of great Guinness and clean fresh air the ambiance is wonderfully tipped to having a good time. Bell, guitarist for Lizzy's first three albums, here mine's the blues he loved growing up as an urchin in Belfast. Shades of Stevie Ray but you can feel the atmosphere.

SINEAD O’ CONNOR - SEAN NOS NUA (Hummingbird) : Whereby Sinead tackles traditional finger-in-the-ear Irish trad waxing and comes up trumps.

YANN TIERSEN - L'ABSENTE (Labels/Virgin) : Like the music he did for that annoying Amelie film, Tiersen's music is full of French sounds like the ondes martenot and accordion. He straddles Debussy/Satie and the popular idioms of Piaf and Brel. it's very popular and I find it annoying and pretty by turns.

MATT EASTON - LOVE AMBITION DEMO : Bay Area singer-songwriter's self-produced CD of heartfelt acoustic ballads should get him major interest. See www.matteaston.com

VARIOUS - BONNAROO 2002 (Sactuary/Superfly) : Double disc compo from 75 hours of tape for Tennessee 'Woodstock' festival of 2002 featuring Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Ben Harper, Widespread Panic, Bela Fleck and Blind Boys Of Alabama. See www.bonnaroo.com

VARIOUS - SOS PLANET EARTH (XIII Bis) : Artist response to Johannesburg World Summit on 'sustainable development' regarding poverty, depletion of natural resources, climate, waste, gas emissions and so forth. All moneys going to new projects. Features much African music plus Peter Gabriel and Bill Laswell.

COPYRIGHT ON ALL OF THE ABOVE RESIDES WITH MARK PRENDERGAST. ANY EDITOR’S OR PUBLISHERS WISHING TO QUOTE FROM THE ABOVE WRITINGS CAN DO SO AS LONG AS THEY ENQUIRE BY EMAIL markp@cdboxset.co.uk

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