CD Reviews

tUnE-yArDs | w h o k i l l

4AD (2011)

By DANIEL BROCKMAN | May 25, 2011

2.5 Stars

The human voice is often seen as a lonely thing, calling out unaccompanied in a cold and hostile environment. It is this property that has seen generations of vocalists enshroud themselves in bands in order to mask their loneliness and be part of a group thing, looking out the window at the sulking singer-songwriter all alone on a stool caterwauling to no one. Merrill Garbus, d/b/a tUnE-yArDs, a recent enchanter at our Brighton Music Hall, clearly is having none of that. Armed with a few delay pedals, a smattering of percussive devices, and a fucking ukelele, she creates a vocal army of one. Her continued veering into Afrobeat appropriation occasionally whiffs of Bobby McFerrin–ism, but fear not: especially on this, her sophomore outing, the sophisticated boom-bap and wall of rhythmic power pays off more often than it panders, especially on scorchers like "Bizness" and "Gangsta." It takes a certain amount of courage to make music that so closely skirts the outer edges of sheer annoyance, and indeed for some this music's lilting sing-song mixed with Garbus's propensity to shift from a Ladysmith Black Mambazo soothe to a blues mama yowl will prompt an instinctive grab for the "stop" button. But give it a chance: w h o k i l l may be strange on first pass, but only by its uniqueness, a music whose microgenre would disappear in a whiff were Ms. Garbus to have never stumbled upon it within her.

Steve Earle | I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive
New West Records (2011)
The Human League | Credo
This year sees the release of yet another pathetic '80s rehash, a desperate plea for attention and relevance by a has-been by-product of an earlier, synthier decade, a record whose glossy sheen can't cover up the band's sad inability to pen a tune on a par with the hits that made them charttopping behemoths in an age gone by.
The Naked and Famous | Passive Me, Aggressive You
Republic (2011)
Times New Viking | Dancer Equired
Times New Viking's tour of America's legendary indie-rock labels continues with their first release for Merge after a few albums on Matador and then Siltbreeze.
The Weeknd | House of Balloons
Self-release (2011)
Explosions in the Sky | Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
Temporary Residence Limited (2011)
Young Widows seek beauty and mortality in noise
It's not much of a leap to imagine Young Widows hanging out in a funeral home.
Greg Dulli keeps his peace in the Twilight Singers
One of the most widely circulated Afghan Whigs bootlegs, from our own Paradise in May 1994, has the iconic alt-rock foursome busting out a loose and rollicking version of New Order's "Regret."
Out: The Chris North Dream Quartet help christen the Haven in Jamaica Plain
With the Chris North Dream Quartet, singer/guitarist Chris North Alspach retains the sincere Celt-folk vocal inflection and distinctly New England–influenced lyrics of his other, Best Music Poll–nominated band, the Points North.
Julian Lynch | Terra
Although experimentation in music nowadays is certainly in vogue, there aren't many records that will straddle the line between commercial plausibility and healthy art-for-art's-sake like Julian Lynch's Terra.
From afar, Destry bring vintage allure to Boston
When Destry's Michelle DaRosa tells me she grew up watching musicals excessively, I find myself listening to her singing voice just to see what type of musical heroine she'd be.
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Topics: CD Reviews , Music, 4AD, folk, More

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