Album Review: Tech N9ne- Strangeulation

The embedded video for the cypher version of the title track of Strangeulation encapsulates everything that's both great and awful about Tech N9ne's empire.  The undisputed Kansas City King is capable of sending shivers down my spine with his brilliance on one track and triggering my gag reflex with his lusty predilections on the next song.  Just like the varied quality of his collaborators on this cypher, Strangeulation is a real mixed bag.


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I reviewed a concert by John Scofield's Organic Trio on Saturday.

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I  occasionally make music selections for KCUR's Up To Date program.  Kantorei of Kansas City's "Fantasy on La Bamba" aired Friday.

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Largely because XTA-C gets a shout-out in U-Neek's "Kansas City", I'm giving the song a pass.  (Via Tony's Kansas City.)

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Trumpeter Joe Wilder has died.

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Triptykon's Melana Chasmata is exquisite art-metal.  RIYL: Tool, H. R. Giger, Nine Inch Nails.

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I'm certainly not a member of the jazz police, but Badbadnotgood remain underwhelming on III.  RIYL: good ideas on paper, OFWGKTA, hype.

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The curatorial choices made on Road Shows, Volume 3, Sonny Rollins' latest live album, are very interesting.

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Naná Vasconcelos chatted with Gilles Peterson.

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Steel Panther's All You Can Eat isn't nearly as good as the parodists' previous albums, but it still has plenty of hilarious moments.

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God loves mediocre.  Even though I'm predisposed to love Atmosphere, I recognize that Southsiders is just ok. RIYL: Eyedea, the Twin Cities, Mac Lethal.

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I wish I liked Marrill Garbus' music as much as I like her.  I can take or leave most of Tune-Yards' Nikki Nack.  RIYL: David Byrne, playgrounds, St. Vincent.

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Ramshackle Serenade, a new effort by the trio of Peter Bernstein, Larry Goldings and Bill Stewart, is RIYL: Grant Green, overlooked excellence, Shirley Scott.

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Not only did I listen to the entirety of Skrillex's new album, I truly liked it.  Recess is RIYL: frat parties, DJ Kool's "Let Me Clear My Throat," red solo cups.

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Blueprint's Respect the Architect is the best backpack rap album I've heard this year.  Even so, it's at the bottom of my Best Albums of 2014 playlist.  RIYL: Brother Ali, corny sincerity, Aesop Rock.

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Tech N9ne will perform at the Gathering of the Juggalos 2014.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Gee Watts- 199X

Gee Watts is obsessed with Kendrick Lamar.  And why not?  Lamar is arguably the most important rapper alive. He also gave Watts' career a kick start by contributing a few bars to the Kansas City rapper's track "Watts R.I.O.T." last year.  Unfortunately, Watts' new album 199X sounds like an extended homage to Lamar's groundbreaking album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.

Worse still, Watts isn't even the star of his own album.  The poetry of Purpose on the tracks "Mourning Soul" and "Hide & Seek" provide 199X's best moments.  Only on the sorrowful "Hide & Seek" and the hip-hop collage "Deeper Than Rap" can Watts' true potential be easily discerned.

During the opening moments of 199X, Watts admits that he "feel(s) like I might have let the town down."  I can't speak for anyone else, but he let me down.  I'm not about to jump off Watts' bandwagon, but I'm convinced that he has much more to offer than than can be heard on the disappointing 199X.


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I reviewed Dream Theater's concert at the Uptown Theater on Wednesday.

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I love the fact that there's a song titled "'02 Boschee".  Unfortunately, I don't love Chase Compton's composition.

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Slowly Rolling Camera created an appealing video for "Dream a Life".  RIYL: Portishead, jazz that's not jazz, Soul II Soul.

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Cloud Nothings' Here and Nowhere is RIYL: Japandroids, college radio in 1987, Fugazi.

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Free Aesop Rock!

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I think Steel Panther is hilarious.  (I'm a 14-year-old boy at heart.)

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I realize that it's an ignorant thing to suggest, but Tinariwen's Emmaar is a bit, um, samey.  RIYL: John Lee Hooker, repetition, Ali Farka Touré. 

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Originality isn't the strong suit of Black Label Society.  I adore Catacombs of the Black Vatican anyway.  RIYL: Ozzy, sledgehammers, Slash.

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Ibibio Sound Machine's self-titled album is RIYL: Angélique Kidjo, world parties, Antibalas.

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I'm unable to resist the charms of Tune-Yard's "Wait for a Minute".  RIYL: Graceland, tomorrow, Reflektor.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Stephen Malkmus- Wig Out at Jagbags

I happened to listen to Trey Anastasio's 2012 album Traveler the same day I played Stephen Malkmus' new album Wig Out at Jagbags for the first time.  The only real difference between the two recordings is the Phish man's sincerity and the Pavement man's irony.  Both guys are obviously in thrall of the Grateful Dead.  ("Lariat" is my jam.)  I need a miracle- how about a co-headlining tour of the two oddly compatible men during the second half of 2014?

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I reviewed Allen Toussaint's concert at the Folly Theater on Saturday.

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I had an out-of-body experience on Sunday as a trio of women from the Midwest Chamber Ensemble played Claude Debussy's "Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp" at a Lutheran church.  I also enjoyed hearing "Pendulum Quartet" by the young composer Joseph Kern.

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My review of a Steel Panther concert was referenced by the Huffington Post.

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Amiri Baraka has died.

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I didn't see the trippy video for Reggie B's "Hypnotized" until last weekend. 

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A&R veteran Peter Lubin's new essay about the Everly Brothers is loaded with invaluable insights.

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John Newman's new album Tribute  is solid British blue-eyed soul.  RIYL: Adele, pure pop for yesterday's people, Dusty Springfield.

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I like Leo Welch's Sabougla Voices even though it's reminiscent of those awkward albums that paired the likes of Howlin' Wolf with his young English devotees.  RIYL: boogie, unblinking musings about impending death, Mississippi.

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Wayne Kramer's picks are superior to Billy Bragg's choices in an entertaining "What's In My Bag" segment.

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Kid Ink's My Own Lane is one of the most cynical boardroom-constructed albums I've heard in some time.  The gambit- creating a watered-down version of the catchiest work of 2 Chainz/Tiga/Big Sean- works.  RIYL: Katy Perry, high school, Bruno Mars.

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The Tord Gustavsen Quartet has five American gigs booked in February.  I'm eyeing the Chicago and Portland dates as I listen to samples from the forthcoming Extended Circle album.

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Have I no shame!  I genuinely enjoy Martynas' self-titled crossover-classical/Euro-pop accordion album.  RIYL: cheese, hokum, watching TV at nursing homes.

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Even though Juana Molina's Son topped my album list in 2006, I simply wasn't prepared to listen to her new release Wed 21 until recently.  RIYL: Gal Costa, dreaming, Tom Zé.

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Matt Pryor's Wrist Slitter is shockingly good.  RIYL: Elvis Costello's first five albums, contemplating suicide, the Get Up Kids.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Ray Price, 1926-2013

Now blue ain't the word for the way that I feel…

I had a rocky relationship with my dad.  The outlaw country of Waylon, Willie, Kris and Bocephus was one of the few things we could agree on.   My dad also kept a more conventional hits collection by Ray Price in regular rotation.  I've continued to love those songs in the two decades since my dad died.  I saw Price for the first time at Knuckleheads in 2007.  Although I was "working," I shed simultaneous tears of joy and grief during much of the legend's vital concert.  Here's a representative performance.  Price died earlier this week.

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I reviewed concerts by Steel Panther and Stone Temple Pilots.

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I played music by Terri Lyne Carrington, Bobby Rush, Brandy Clark, Frank Wess and Stik Figa on KCUR's Up To Date yesterday.

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Guitarist Dave Higgs, a founding member of Eddie and the Hot Rods, has died.  (Tip via Big Steve.)

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My favorite tracks on the The 12 Days of Christmas (and Voting) compilation are by the Doo-Dads and Making Movies.

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Because the Internet is the first Childish Gambino recording that speaks to me.  RIYL: emo rap, sad guys, Kid Cudi.

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I can't stop thinking about last month's spectacular Kanye West concert.  An intriguing detail- ambient music including Burial's "U.K." provided the low-key soundtrack to the construction of the imposing mountain that served as West's backdrop.

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There will always be a place in my life for albums like Scott Hamilton's Swedish Ballads… and More. RIYL: Ben Webster, moldy figs, Coleman Hawkins.

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"As the Palaces Burn", the new documentary about Lamb of God, looks great.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)