Project X (OST) – Various Artists (Silva Screen Records) S
The overall feel of the album does well to recreate the feel of the film; loud, hot, sweaty and violent…”
his is punk legend Patti Smith’s first album of (mostly) original songs since 2004’s Trampin’. ‘Banga’ is a 12-track album about "the importance of respect for Mother Nature", as well as songs written for her celebrity friends, including Johnny Depp and a song dedicated to Amy Winehouse. It’s a strange old mix of songs, at times jazzy and light, at others rocky and mystical, very reminiscent of The Doors and of her (at the time avant-garde) heyday in the 60s and 70s. Although she does sound rather dated now (it’s all quite hippy-sounding), at least it’s nice that she is sticking to what she likes, and how she chooses to express herself, rather than take up dubstep or whatever. She’s similar to Kate Bush in that way. Her songs are sometimes sung, sometimes spoken, and always very poetic. The only complaint I have is a really terrible cover of Neil Young’s ‘After the Goldrush’, which, with its children’s choir towards the end made me immediately go and and heal myself by listening to the original. In general, it’s an album for Patti Smith fans, who love lyrics like “The eternal sun runs to the mother... falling soot... it’s just the dust of a shimmering gem”. The truth - you might get more out of this album if you’re
stoned.Lizz Page
T t’s a strange old mix of
songs, at times jazzy and light, at others rocky and mystical…”
Levellers – ‘Static on the Airwaves’ (On the Fiddle Recordings) Y
Static on the Airwaves’ makes no hesitation at ripping the plaster off an ailing Britain…”
44 /June 2012/
outlineonline.co.uk
ou’d do well to grit your teeth for the Levellers’ latest release, because ‘Static on the Airwaves’ makes no hesitation at ripping the plaster off an ailing Britain. On this, their tenth studio album, it sees the band at their most consistently socially aware; the themes of war, welfare, government and struggle
are laid bare, no need for interpretation. ‘Our Forgotten Towns’ sees the Levellers at their rootsy, fiddlin’ best, with a fast, sinister fiddle line being riffed over by Mark Chadwick’s familiar lilt, a lament on the boarding up of Britain’s high streets, while ‘The Recruiting Sargeant’ is the band’s own reworking of the Black Watch anthem, ‘Twa Recruitin’ Sargeants’. It paints a picture of the stark realities of the modern military via a folk-rock instrumentation that you could imagine Frank Turner learning by rote. It seems jarring that as we enter festival season, where warm lager becomes infinitely more acceptable set to the backdrop of the Levellers’ more carefree anthems (‘What a Beautiful Day’, anyone?), we’re being forced to acknowledge the winters of our discontent with this darkly honest body of work. These are the realities though, and if you think sand is a perfectly viable location to place your head, fear not – the album’s playful orchestration, perfectly realised by producer and brother to Seth, Sean Lakeman – will ease the reality as much as sitting in the sun with a couple of scorching tinnies.Emma Garwood
eeing its release this month, here comes the soundtrack to the insanity-filled ‘Project X’, which was released in cinemas earlier this year, produced by Todd Phillips, the guy responsible for both Hangover movies. The film tells the story of three high school guys that want to throw the ultimate house party in order to upscale their popularity, and the soundtrack…? It features some heavyweight artists such as Nas, J- Kwon and includes the classic rawkus tracks such as ‘The Next Episode’ by none other than Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. The overall feel of the album does well to recreate the feel of the film; loud, hot, sweaty and violent, with Eminem and D12’s ‘fight music’ accompanying the feature’s climatic fight sequence with the appropriate swagger. The album could almost double as a ‘best of” for some of the better gangsta rap artists of the last decade. Alongside the mostly gangsta feel to the soundtrack, there’s a couple of sweaty house choons courtesy of Shiny Toy Guns and a remixed Yeah Yeah Yeahs track, to suit the scantily clad, ecstasy fuelled party scenes. Overall, it’s not a bad collection; it deserves to be turned way up with plenty of bass going on, so it’s a definite contender for the soundtrack to your own summer parties. Beware however; when reality imitates art, imitating reality, you never know what could happen… Rider
Patti Smith – Banga (Columbia Records)
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