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MUSICDISH
CD REVIEWS
Tim
Keyes: Vocals, keyboards
long
nights are killing me From his informative website we learn that Keyes was a: Graduate in Music Composition and Music Theory from The University of Notre Dame. During college, his talent as a composer emerged big time. In fact, the success of the third movement of his String Quartet No.1 and the second movement of his Six Pieces for Piano landed him a scholarship to the Aspen Music Festival, where he studied composition, conducting, and performance with Charles Jones, Leonard Bernstein, and Andre Watts. That dedication to a start in classical music thinking is why his pop/rock sound is so undiluted with the current tides of indie that constantly wash up on shore. The 10 tracks on Sketchbook are as original as if he's never bothered with a Beatles or Nirvana album, and that alone is compliment enough at this point in history.
With various components being recorded in London, Egypt, Madrid and Toronto, Jesse Cook's fifth release is aptly titled, "Nomad." Jesse's music is always an exotic, diverse fusion of cultures and rhythms; this release is no exception. "Nomad" does have more vocal tracks than Jesse's previous releases but as always, it's a perfect blend. "Nomad" features twelve tracks and opens with a "Prelude" that immediately draws you in. This is followed by the Arabic inflected rumba track "Qadukka-I-Mayyas" with vocals by Maryem Tollar. Then shifting gears, we are led into the seductive track "Surrender." Yes indeed, I surrender. Also of note, are the upbeat grooves of "Early on Tuesday" with vocals provided by Sam Llanas from the BoDeans, and the melancholy rumba,"Down Like Rain" with vocals by Danny Wilde from the Rembrandts. One of the many things that I love about Jesse's music is the fact that he has yet to release a CD with a mediocre track on it. There are no "throw away's", just absolute quality material. That in itself is something that is a rarity these days. Being a flamenco aficionado, I've always wanted to hear Jesse let loose and do a fiery traditional flamenco number. So I was pleasantly surprised when I heard the bulerias track, "Toca Orilla." With Montse Cortes providing vocal accompaniment, the song really takes flight and left me wanting to hear more. Alas, this was the closing track. Given the fact that each one of Cooks' releases explore different soundscapes, with textured filled layers of music; to try to place Jesse's music into a specific genre would seem confining and a daunting task. Cook is one of those rare musician's that effortlessly sets a mood, creating a landscape of imagery with his music. He has the ability to take the listener on a journey to places that can only be imagined in the corners of one's mind. With each new release, we embark on a journey to a new destination. Jesse Cook is currently on tour; his performances are always captivating as is his warm personality.
Founded by Grammy-nominated songwriter and producer Bill Wolfer, Mamborama has been featured on the PBS show American Family and has been licensed to several compilation cds, including the recent release, Rough Guide To Latin Jazz. Their music has been played on Mp3.com over 400,000 times, going on half a million by now, because this Cuban music SWINGS. It combines traditional rhythms with some more aggressive elements, such as keyboard sounds and R&B influences. The cd features guest appearances by top Cuban singer Sixto Llorente "El Indio," Manolito Simonet, "Pupy" Pedroso, and Klimax bandleader Giraldo Piloto. It gives mambo a good rap, and contains all the components you want in your Cuban-Latin line- up: percussion to the nth degree, jazz flute, male chorus chanting between the grooving piano syncopation, and a high layer of energy that puts some of these other so-called Name acts to shame. You can hear Entre La Habana Y El Yuma at their site, complete with lyrics and pictures of the band. One of the better band sites out there, actually, so definitely check them out. No disappointments in view.
Absent Me, from Sacramento, California [another local band preferring to use only their first names or nicknames], is comprised of six unique members: Brian [Soma], Curtis [Loki], Job, Butch, Megan [Skully], and Tim [Monkey]. Collectively they possess an incredibly fresh new style and sound for the local music scene, however they have yet to receive the much-deserved admiration as other bands of their stature. Their sound is captivating as well as alluring, mixing strong melodic vocals with keyboards; forcefully delivered drums/percussion; 'catchy,' strong, hard-rock guitar riffs, intertwined with metal overtones; rounding out and contributing to the band's overall unique sound, a thumping bass guitar. This band will not only blend with, but also compliment many genres of music. Their music is radio-friendly, possibly even dance friendly, having the capability of appealing to a large listening audience ranging from teens on up to listeners in their mid to late thirties quite easily. The song, 'Gloria' is a perfect example of the captivating sound this band produces. Skully lays it out very heavy on the keyboards crossing finely over into the gothic side, yet the song remains solid hard rock. 'Disposable Hero' is an extremely fast song, delivered with heavy metal overtones on both drums and bass guitar, in addition to aggressive guitar work rhythmically executed by Loki. Soma's vocals are melodic, dark, borderline erotic, with brief interjections of primal screaming. Introduction to 'Save Me', by Job is a brief solo demonstrating his thumping bass style. Following suite with his forcefully delivered sticks is Butch on drums, and once more, Skully on keyboards. This song has a very danceable beat, sultry vocals by Soma intermixed with some "AM" type vocal distortions, and multiple changes throughout in tempo - overall a great song. Closing out this E.P., the final track, 'Now You Know' proving to be fast paced, pounding, constantly changing hard-rock borderline groove/funk based song. Strongly executed throughout, this song needs to be played at an elevated level on a stereo to grasp the full effect. Overall Impression: Great album! A band capable of making an impact on local music - also very worthy of your respect and monetary investment in order to capture the true essence of Absent Me. Another 'must have' in your collection of local music talents. Additional side note: However, save that investment capital for the soon to be re-released EP. Congratulations to the band - winners of the Artist Development Contest sponsored by Velvet Tone Studios here in Sacramento the end of May. The band will be re-recording professionally their EP including some new music, compliments of the infamous Patrick Olguin-Recording Engineer Extraordinaire at Velvet Tones. In addition to the above news, the band was also chosen for this year's 98Rock Sac Rocks, Volume 10. The tradition continues with all proceeds from the shows and CD sales going directly to the Mustard Seed School of Sacramento, which helps our homeless children in the greater Sacramento area with shelter, food, clothing, education, and numerous programs structured towards improving family life and getting off the streets. The band's bare-faced self-promotion has just begun to scratch the surface; however they have started to gain some very long overdue attention and well deserved, perhaps the wording should be - earned recognition! Provided by the MusicDish Network. Copyright © Tag It 2003 - Republished with Permission
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Artist: Tim Keyes (
Artist: Jesse Cook (
Artist: Mamborama (
Artist: Absent Me (