OutKast-Idlewild
Jive “Hey Ya!” was probably the worst thing that could’ve happened to OutKast.The mega-enormo 2003 single catapulted the Atlanta duo’ Andre 3000 and Big Boi’ from avant hip-hopsters creating intense masterpieces to a mainstream pop act; in short, a pair of artists once comfortably under the radar were now undone by their own ambitious achievement.…
Justin Timberlake-FutureSex/LoveSounds
Jive Few artists have invested more energy in freeing themselves from their past than Justin Timberlake; his fierce determination to demolish his pretty-boy pop image is, at times, awe-inspiring’ having successfully stepped out on his own with 2002’s “Justified,” Timberlake spent the intervening years jet-setting, holding court with Cameron Diaz and remaining one of the…
Heartless Bastards-All This Time
Fat Possum Records I never thought I’d give a favorable review to an album with a little girl and pretty dragonflies on the cover, but I am. The Ohio-based Heartless Bastards shocked and awed last year with their debut, “Stairs and Elevators,” one of the best albums of 2005. Lead singer and guitarist Erika…
Devo 2.0-Self Titled
Disney The signs were there when Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo began composing for children’s films like “The Rugrats Movie.” It should come as no surprise that something like “Devo 2.0” would eventually arise. Devo 2.0, a group of 10- to 13-year-olds, sings the Devo classics and a couple of new tracks by Mothersbaugh and fellow…
Gas out of grass?
I live with a man who wants to make gas out of grass. I live with a man who talks to himself and anyone who will listen about farmland, feedstock and fuel tanks. I live with a man who has spent most of his adult life trying to figure out where and how…
Thee Emergency-Can You Dig It?
Blue Disguise If high-octane garage rock mixed with R&B is your thing, Seattle’s Thee Emergency is a must-hear band. Unlike many post-punk bands, Thee Emergency’s latest, “Can You Dig It?,” is not filled with lyrically lacking tripe set to crunching guitars and infectious hooks. To be certain, the band knows how to rock out,…
John Mayer-Continuum
Columbia . Those who continue to dismiss John Mayer as an acoustic heartthrob are missing the bigger picture’ he’s still capable of penning a wrenching ballad, but his scope of vision encompasses so much more than making high school girls cry. “Continuum,” Mayer’s third and most accomplished effort to date, is a superb artistic statement…
