Music Blurbs. Vol. 7

More of my capsule commentaries.

Sixpence None the Richer
This alt-rock band originally from New Braunfels, Texas is something of an outlier in the world of popular music. Fronted by singer Leigh Nash, Sixpence None the Richer has fund its biggest successes – in the form of two of its most popular singles – by covering songs that were massive hits for other artists. Both “There She Goes” (originally by Liverpool Britpop band The La’s) and “Don’t Dream It’s Over” (by New Zealand’s Crowded House) were major hits for the group in the 1990s and early ‘00s. An original song, “Kiss Me” was in fact a bigger smash, climbing to the Top Ten in six countries. Sixpence None the Richer is also one of few bands to find success on both pop and Christian charts. The band took a three-year hiatus but returned in 2007; since reforming, they’ve released two albums including a Christmas album (The Dawn of Grace) and their most recent full-length to date, 2012’s country-flavored Lost in Transition. A new EP, Rosemary Hill was released in October, and the group is currently on tour with all its original members, celebrating Sixpence None the Richer’s 25^th anniversary as a band.

Brother Ali
If there is such a thing as a typical rapper, Brother Ali doesn’t fit that description. The Minneapolis-based member of the esteemed Rhymesayers Entertainment collective turns out rhymes that are often political in nature, but the 47-year old rapper is more interested in focusing on the positive. And that positivity comes naturally; Ali doesn’t employ a studied approach to songwriting. Converted to Islam at age 15, he follows a religious path that values harmony among different faiths, one that fits in with the realities of 21^st century life. Yet his nuanced political sensibility shines through in tracks like 1997’s “Uncle Sam Goddam,” inspired by a legendary civil rights-era song by jazz icon Nina Simone. Put another way, Brother Ali combines firsthand personal experience with a big-picture approach when crafting his lyrics. To date he has released ten albums; his most recent is Satisfied Soul, a collab with producer Ant. In fact Ali is a frequent collaborator, having guested on more than a dozen releases by other artists including Atmosphere, Chuck D, Talib Kweli, Del the Funky Homosapien, G. Love & Special Sauce, 9^th Wonder and more.

Mannheim Steamroller
Originally conceived by Omaha-based Chip Davis in 1974 as a sort of proto-New Age musical endeavor, Mannheim Steamroller gathered commercial success with a series of albums under the Fresh Aire banner. A decade after Mannheim Steamroller’s recorded debut, Davis recorded and released Mannheim Steamroller Christmas on his own American Gramaphone label. A runaway success, that album landed both with critics and the listening public. Mannheim Steamroller Christmas took on a life of its own: to date Davis has released 30 Christmas-themed albums, including compilations and titles under his own name. And his success has been consistent; more than a dozen of those albums soared into the Top Ten on the New Age and/or Holiday album charts; eight went Platinum or multi-Platinum. The next logical step for Davis was to take the project on the road. This he did, eventually employing two complete musical casts, crisscrossing the country during the yuletide season, bringing joy to concertgoers far and wide. The groups gear up every year around September, honing the arrangements before setting out on a schedule that brings Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas show to 85 cities in seven weeks.

Loom
Improvisation is music’s wild card. At its worst, it’s a noisy train wreck. In a better form, it can still sometimes come across as insular, the musical version of an inside joke that only the players get. At its best, however, improvisation energizes the musicians and engages the audience, creating a never-before (and, by definition, a never-again) experience. The latter is the target at which SLC-based Loom aims. Combining a dizzying array of musical styles – country, disco, funk, jazz, rock and world – Loom seeks to weave a sonic tapestry that works for listening as much as it does dancing. The group’s aesthetic is squarely focused on the here-and-now, creating auditory atmospheres that celebrate those shared experience, breaking down perceived barriers between band and audience. The band – Billy Rogan (guitar), Vince DiMichele (bass), Tyler Troy (keyboards) and Carlos Bible (drums) – fashions original material, but Loom also applies its musical character to existing and well-known songs, endeavoring to make cuts like The Meters’ classic “Cissy Strut” their own. While improvisation (or jamming, if you prefer) is Loom’s specialty live onstage, in the studio (as showcased on “What I Mean”) the quartet takes a tightly focused approach to its craft.

Pink Talking Fish
What do Pink Floyd, Talking Heads and Phish have in common? One of the most successful bands of the rock era, Pink Floyd pioneered space rock and concept albums. During the new wave era, Talking Heads incorporated dance, funk and world music textures into art rock. And as the post-rock era dawned, Phish picked up the jam band torch of the Grateful Dead (along with music of that group’s fan base) and ran with it. Put simply, to the uninitiated, there’s virtually no overlap among the aesthetics of the three aforementioned bands. But clearly no one explained that to the members of Pink Talking Fish. This tribute/fusion act draws from the repertoire of all three landmark acts, leaning into a free-for-all jam style that allows room for the arrangements to breathe, stretch out and take on an exploratory character. Pink Talking Fish – Cal Kehoe (guitar), Eric Gould (bass), Richard James or Stephen Learson (keyboards) and Zack Burwick (drums) – serves up both well-known classics and deep album cuts, weaving them into a set list in which the band highlights previously unnoticed connections between the music.