Prepare for a ride akin to flipping radio channels. Craig Armstrong's style was set for him with the success of Romeo + Juliet (the "Balcony Scene" being included here). It's what directors have wanted since (e.g. Best Laid Plans) and so why not capitalise on what will effectively be a useful demo and produce an album showcasing all that versatility? "Weather Storm" starts off ...
Manufacturer: Melankolic
Manufacturer: Asylum
With Dummy, their 1994 debut, Portishead not only created a classic of turntable-derived soul, but defined their sound so exhaustively as to spawn a host of imitators. So what to do for a follow-up? As it happened, the answer was simple--refine the template. This self-titled album simply ups the ante on everything that made their debut so special: the brooding sense of menace, that deep ...
Manufacturer: Universal / Island
Manufacturer: Domino
Manufacturer: RCA
Manufacturer: Parlophone
As if answering the challenge of those who dismiss them as a cartoonish joke, Slipknot claim that Iowa is a statement of intent, a real heavy-metal album. As percussionist Shawn Crahan puts it: "We're able to cut into the wound, crawl inside, stitch it up ourselves and fester in the f***ing hurt". And right from the introductory shriek and grind "of (515)", you know they're deadly serious. ...
Manufacturer: Roadrunner
Best-known--and reviled, by many hardcore headz--as the man who set a rap to a tune from Annie, that notorious tale of life in the 'hood ("Hard Knock Life"), Jay-Z clearly decided some time ago that amassing the Benjamins came before keeping it real, in the greater scheme of things. Still, even his harshest critics might be somewhat placated by the re-issue of this, his first album, which ...
Manufacturer: Northwestside
Will The Cool, the second album from Lupe Fiasco, do what his first couldn't and make this Chicago rap prodigy a star? If the answer must be no, maybe it's just because Lupe's too far ahead of the competition. The Cool gets off to a bit of a bumpy start--"Go Go Gadget Flow" shows off Lupe's quick-lips vocal talents, but it's a bit slight content-wise, while "Superstar" reaches for ...
Manufacturer: Atlantic
