Martin Hayes
and Dennis Cahill
Welcome Here Again
(Green Linnet)
I've joked that I'd listen to Martin Hayes installing a new fiddle tuning peg. I was wrong. Welcome Here Again is a surprisingly lackluster effort. Part of the problem lies with poor track ordering; there's nothing approaching an up-tempo piece until track five, and the fieriest tracks are the last two. One doesn't expect breakneck playing from the master of the slow hand, but here the casually paced tunes lack Hayes's customary soulfulness. Everything is brilliantly played and there are moments that astonish, but there's so little heat generated that it sounds more like rehearsal than performance. Cahill, a fretted instrument genius, is also subdued. This isn't a bad recording, but it is so technique-focused that it inspires little passion.
—Rob Weir
April Cope
Petals Fall
(Independent)
Petals Fall bemoans the pretty girl's burden; the songs are either about a woman objectifying herself or freeing herself from her dependency on men. This is fine fodder for country music reminiscent of Dolly Parton, but April Cope ends up sounding like a tame imitation of folk divas like Emmylou or Jewel. The problem lies not in Cope's talent as a singer—she is certainly technically gifted—but in the songwriting. The lyrics are laden with near-clichés, and the bluesy accompaniment is simply uninteresting. All of this would be forgivable if she didn't end the album with a song about how it took a man to pick up the pieces and put her back together again.
—Sarah Gibbons
Manu Chao
La Radiolina
(Nacional)
The follow up to polyglot pop sensation Manu Chao's masterful Proxima Estacion: Esperanaza arrives with a colorful thud. It features his stirring mix of propulsive gypsy guitars, springy hip-hop rhythms, and catchy choruses sung in Spanish, English or French. But this time, the results often feel surprisingly rote. Even re-recorded versions of excellent tunes written for Amadou and Miriam fall flat. La Radiolina harnesses the manic energy of his live show but sacrifices too much subtlety and songcraft in the process. As a result, it takes longer for gems like "A Cosa" to impact. Manu Chao's unique version of world music remains inspiring, even if this album is a minor misfire. Let's hope we don't have to wait another six years for the next one.
—Jeff Jackson
Cryptacize
Dig That Treasure
(Asthmatic Kitty)
The songs on Dig That Treasure switch gears so spastically they'll likely enhance even the lamest high. Listening to lead singer Nedelle Torrisi on the album's opening song, "Stop Watch," made me cringe—think of Baby's older sister singing in the talent show in Dirty Dancing. The discord of the instruments in the background didn't help. It's like Cryptacize is daring listeners to make it past that first ear-splitting song. If so, unusual treasures await (except for "Cosmic Sing-along," which sounds like Alvin & the Chipmunks' "The Christmas Song"), like "Heaven is Human," the best track on the album, which proves Torrisi can sing, and employs a jazzy progression and melody undercut by reggae beats.
—Kendra Thurlow
