The Verve
Forth
(Megaforce/Sony)
The Verve are tenacious. After having the royalties from their biggest hit siphoned off by the Rolling Stones' lawyers, the band nearly imploded, but they're back and as willful as ever, welding unsettling textures on songs that could be as easy-to-swallow as hits by Coldplay or U2, both of whom they sound like. With only one track clocking in under five minutes, Richard Ashcroft and crew still come off like the rare rock stars who can tell the world to sod off without it seeming like an act.
— John Adamian
Randy Newman
Harps & Angels
(Nonesuch)
Listening to this latest album by Randy Newman—his first collection of original tunes in almost a decade—is like slipping into that favorite old sweater you keep in the back of the closet. While the songs themselves are new, the style and substance remain true to form. In his typically witty and, at times, cranky fashion, Newman shines a light on his well-worn tropes of society, politics and heartache. The production of these numbers, which range from rollicking ragtime to lovelorn ballad, is tastefully stripped-down, allowing Newman's ebullient piano playing to provide the perfect accompaniment to his tales of life and love.
— Matthew Dube
Autechre
Quaristice
(Warp)
For over a decade, Autechre has been the gold standard for cutting-edge electronica. Instead of the usual extended shape-shifting compositions, their latest album offers 20 concise tracks that include fuzzy ambient pastorals, haunting sonic washes, frenetic electro beatscapes, and menacing towers of stacked rhythms. Think of it as a Whitman's Sampler of the duo's current sonic preoccupations. For those who have been trepidatious about Autechre, Quaristice proves an ideal introduction. The hit-to-miss ratio is high and if you're not crazy about one soundscape, the next promises something completely different.
— Jeff Jackson
Ragga Twins
Ragga Twins Step Out
(Soul Jazz Records)
Little heard outside of their native U.K., Ragga Twins mixed dancehall reggae, hip hop and jungle into their own startling concoction. This double disc anthology collects singles from 1990-92, featuring work with innovative producers Shut Up and Dance. Although they were embraced by the blissed-out rave scene, Ragga Twins often injected political protests and cinematic narratives of drugs and violence into their music. In an environment where trends were measured in months, most of these tunes still sound vital thanks to the raw delivery and visionary collision of styles.
—Jeff Jackson
