Spin Doctors - Pocket Full Of Kryptonite (20th Anniversary Edition)

Spin Doctors - Pocket Full Of Kryptonite (20th Anniversary Edition)
2011, Epic/Legacy Recordings

If you were a denizen of commercial radio, circa 1991, you'll remember how wonderfully new and vibrant the Spin Doctors sounded.  Songs such as "Jimmy Olson's Blues", "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong" and "Two Princes" were an instant party.  Twenty years later it's hard to stand still when one of these songs comes on the radio.  The Spin Doctors were an organic rock n roll collective from Vermont, captured up in the major label machine, but never really belonging in the board rooms of NY or LA.  Still, their album Pocket Full Of Kryptonite was pure gold, and the labels couldn't walk away from such a musical gem.

Jump to 2011, and Epic/Legacy Recordings gives Pocket Full Of Kryptonite second life with a 20th Anniversary Edition release (due August 30, 2011), featuring a brand new disc that includes the original demos Can't Say No (1989) and Piece Of Glass (1990), which were only available at Spin Doctors' gigs before they were signed by SONY/Epic in 1991. 

The set is a gem.  Pocket Full Of Kryptonite never seems to get tired as an album, and the demos are vibrant and full of the rough and early life of a band on the precipice of that perfect sound.  Long time fans will be thrilled with two tracks not previously available anywhere.  A number of the tracks presented on disc two were later reworked for Pocket Full Of Kryptonite or one of the Spin Doctors' subsequent recordings, but "Can't Say No" and "Turn It Upside Down" make their appearance on an official recording for the first time.

Yes, it's a cynical attempt by Epic/Legacy Recordings to make more money on a classic album by expanding and re-releasing it rather than working on artist development, but it's hard to argue with this particular edition of Pocket Full Of Kryptonite.  The sound is crisp and clear on the re-mastered album, and the verve you hear on disc two is priceless.  If you're a hard core Spin Doctor's fan, this is a must have.  If you're a bit young, junior, and don't really know the Spin Doctors, then you need to become familiar with one of the bands that nearly saved the grunge generation from itself.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Spin Doctors at www.spindoctors.com or www.myspace.com/spindoctors.  Pocket Full Of Kryptonite - 20th Anniversary Edition  drops on August 30, 2011.  You can pre-order the album from Amazon.com as a 2-CD Set or Download.

Aaron Comess - Beautiful Mistake

Aaron Comess - Beautiful Mistake

2011, Aaron Comess

Aaron Comess is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer who has collaborated with the likes of Joan Osborne, David Foster, Phil Ramone, Isaac Hayes, Chris Whitley, Marc Cohn and Natasha Bedingfield (among others).  You might remember Comess as a founding member of The Spin Doctors (drums).  However you may have crossed musical paths with Aaron Comess, there can be no doubt that his talents have aided and abetted some pretty big names in the music business.  On June 14, 2011, Comess releases his second solo instrumental album, Beautiful Mistake. 

Comess surrounds himself with first class musicians on Big Mistake, allowing the ensemble to stand out as a whole, and in individually, while he quietly drives the action with variegated rhythms.  Opening with "Truth", Comess starts listeners off in mellow, thoughtful tones.  Guitar is the lead voice here, imparting a sort of stodgy melodicism that is more fluid and lyric than it first appears.  "Beautiful Mistake" is a deceptive and archaic waltz that occasional breaks into a swing beat.  Bass and percussion create a rhythmic bed that is entrancing, while Comess' guitarist has his way with your ears in a guitar sound that's part Prince and part Eric Johnson.  Comess and ensemble build all of this into a rollicking jam that sweeps you up in its pure joy.  "Past Present & Future" builds on a polyrhythmic feel with quirky guitar sounds, sounding like a compositional study in rhythmic aberrations.  It's entertaining and offbeat, and could be taken as run through with a wicked sense of humor. 

Comess drops into mellow rumination for "Kumpelicious", delving into some vaguely Hendrix-style riffs in a mellow side-trip of sound.  "Castkills Last Waltz" is jaunty and fun, with something a swing sensibility built loosely into the arrangement.  What will really catch your ear here is the phrasing on the guitar, which transcends technical competence to that thing they call "touch" or "feel".  As a counter, Comess pulls a complete left turn into the bowels of garage rock for "Dirt", an angular and distorted bit of fun that serves as a perfect counter to the pure essence it follows.

"Limbo" sounds like a blend of Steve Howe and Greg Kihn; funky and full of a bubbling energy.  The exceptional guitar work here is punctuated by rhythms and sounds that begin by distracting and slowly enmesh themselves into the creation that is the song.  Comess tries his hand at gothic-style film scoring on "Unleash The Beast", a messy-but-fun composition that gets points for style and pure chutzpah.  "Lullabye" serves as a spoiler, a sweet, flowing melody as a moment of piece in the maelstrom of creation imparted on Beautiful Mistake.  The moment of peace is over quickly, however, as Comess and band launches into the muscular-yet-atmospheric "High Five".  What starts out as a straight forward composition builds in intensity and style, adding funk and volume until it's ready to blow out the top. 

"Stinky" is an edgy new-age pop instrumental.  Mild-mannered, but rough enough around the edges to not quite fit into the traditional new age category.  Comess answers back with "Bubble Blues", which is bathed in distortion and reverb.  It doesn't really add a lot to the album, but is an interesting diversion that leads into the spritely sweet closing track, "I Love You".  Everything flows at the end, as Comess has save his purest melodic moment for last.

Beautiful Mistake is a pleasant surprise.  So many pop/rock instrumental albums out there rely on cyclical arrangements and blind creation, often resulting in repetitive or derivative creations that seem anathema to the creative process.  Comess has structured Beautiful Mistake with an ear for musical diversity and progression, forcing himself continually over new ground rather than recapturing the same harmonic and melodic fields again and again.  Not every moment here will work for every listener, but Comess keeps things original and new throughout the album.  Consequently, those will listen complacently will miss a lot.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Aaron Comess at www.aaroncomess.com or www.myspace.com/aaroncomess.  Beautiful Mistake drops on CD on June 14, 2011.  The album is already available digitally from Amazon.com or iTunes.

Sherman Ewing – Single Room Saloon

Sherman Ewing – Single Room Saloon
2011, Okindalia Records

Sherman Ewing walked through hell and lives to tell the tale.  Tell it he does on his latest album, Single Room Saloon.  The Columbia University grad, who once played in a band called Sherman And The Bureaucrats with John “Jojo” Hermann of Widespread Panic, grew up in British boarding schools during the birth of the punk movement.  His songwriting evokes some of that attitude infused into a blend of pop, rock and country.  With an all-star band at his back (members have worked with Bob Dylan, Spin Doctors, Hank Williams, Jr., Phish, Keith Richards and Widespread Panic), Ewing opens an emotional vein for all the world to hear.

Single Room Saloon opens with “Heaven Waits”, an intriguing commentary on materialism and the corruption it breeds.  Ewing points to a light in the distance in a delicious blend of country guitars and sophisticated rock n roll.  “Single Room Saloon” has a distinctly urgent feel; imagine the Beatles playing in an Americana style.  The result is an edgy sound that will stay with you.  “Grey Skies Blue” is catchy, but its Ewing’s guitar work that most stands out.  It’s a tune about that one person who makes even the darkest day bright, and brings to mind some of the better works of Wilco.  “Flatlands” is a dreamy Americana blend that’s as pleasing to the ear as it is pointed in message.

“Walk On” is all about making your way in the world and finding your place.  It’s a delicious bit of soulful, buzzy rock and roll.  Things slow down for a couple of songs, but Ewing gets back on track with “Bye Bye America”.  Ewing laments those who would stand by and watch America’s decline as long as they get what they feel is coming to them.  Ewing keeps up the social commentary on “The Mission”, delving into the growing gap between rich and poor and the inability of the latter to keep up.   Ewing closes with “Marilyn”, an inconspicuous final track that plays like an epilogic vector.

Sherman Ewing shows a distinctive ability in the crafting of songs on Single Room Saloon.  The material presented here is, for the most part, cogently written and melodically sound.  Ewing’s special talent is in the musical details, which he wraps around the melodic core in layers both distinctive and refined.  Not all of the songs here work on all levels, but there’s more than enough here to make Single Room Saloon worth your time.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Sherman Ewing at www.shermanewing.com.  Single Room Saloon is available digitally from Amazon.com or iTunes.