New Music Reviews - 10/11/2011 - Icebird, Erasure, and Peter Gabriel

Icebird The Abandoned Lullaby - Icebird is a three person indie/post-punk rock band that was formed in Los Angeles although none of its members are originally from the area.  This album was produced by singer/producer RJD2 (Massive Attack and Mos Def) who helps add a level of psychedelia to the disc.  The name of the band comes from a coffee shop's name in the Koreatown area of L.A. that the band members used to live in.  That's one funky name for a coffee shop!

The eerie and funky "Charmed Life" begins the album and sets the mood for the rest of the disc with its Black Keys-esque bluesy bass line and nifty synthetic horns use that prevents the song from being a downer.  "Just Love Me" is a more classic pop song with some really smooth guitar refrains that helps conceal the emotion behind a song about yearning for love.  And then you get songs like "Spirit Ache" which has carnival-esque organ chords and xylophone mashing over a narrative about pain of the soul that they manage to make work well in a Eels/Queens of the Stone Age kind of way. 

Overall, The Abandoned Lullaby is a interesting and entertaining release that takes you on a worthy journey over the duration of the disc.  The album also has a good change of pace from track to track preventing the album from being stuck in one gear for sixty minutes.  One song will bring you a sweet melody with a catchy pop/soft-rock hook ("Wanderer") while the next will have discordant vocal harmonies that add a creepiness to the album ("King Tut") such that it becomes a fun game trying to figure out where the album is going to go from song to song.  Not every track is a success but the overall feeling you get from listening to the album is worth the price of admission. 

Score: 8/10
Song(s) to Sample: "Going and Going.  And Going." [sample it below] and "Charmed Life"

Erasure Tomorrow's World - The synthpop duo of Vince Clark and Andy Bell return with their 14th studio album.  A deluxe edition of the album comes with an extra disc with remixes and demo tracks.  Unfortunately this album, like their last two studio albums, show the band has not aged well giving us music that isn't much different from what they gave us over twenty years ago except in the late 80's and early 90's the music sounded new and fresh while the tunes they produce now seem outdated and stale in may ways.  This is surprising given that the disc was mixed by Rob Orton who has done synth heavy recent albums by Lady Gaga and, more relevantly, fellow former 80's band Pet Shop Boys.  Even the first single from the disc, "When I Start to (Break It All Down)", is a repetitive and uninteresting song with a horrible hook that on most levels fails to impress.  Only the most diehard Erasure fans should pickup this album as it does give extremely brief glimpses as to what made them great in their prime.  Everyone else would be wise to avoid it like the plague.

Score: 3/10
Song(s) to Sample: "What Will I Say When You're Gone" [sample it below]

Peter Gabriel New Blood - Alrighty then, another big name from the 80's with a new album release this week!  This time it's the flautist and original vocalist from Genesis coming out with a disc of re-imagined, orchestral versions of songs from his previous solo albums.  So, while its a disc full of songs that have already been released, you've never heard them like this before with a full orchestra accompaniment.  The special edition version comes with a second disc of just new musical arrangements sans any vocals (which is way cooler than the lame demos disc that comes with the Erasure deluxe edition).  However it's a bold choice to go back and redo your old, published works that fans have been loving for decades and produce new versions that are radically different from what the fans know.  It's a blast to hear classics like "In Your Eyes" again in a familiar but completely new way but the album as a whole is hampered by too many unfamiliar songs which made the pairing of pop vocals with orchestral melodies odd at times.  New Blood is an interesting experiment that, unfortunately, doesn't have enough life over the entire disc for me to recommend it wholeheartedly.

Score: 5.5/10
Song(s) to Sample: "In Your Eyes"