Parts and Labor
Receivers
(Jagjaguwar)
When they get cooking, Parts and Labor can sound like a jet loaded with bagpipers taking off in a tornado, which is a good thing, generally. With psychedelic distortion mongers My Bloody Valentine making a celebrated comeback this year, it would seem a good time for the layered and explosive noise pop of Parts and Labor, which tends to harken back both to early Pink Floyd and the driving metallic post-punk of the mid-'80s. The band name, album title and songs called things like "Satellite" give you an idea of the kind of vaguely industrial, remote vibe. And I like it better when the singer stays quiet, which could be a sign of an emotional disconnect. But who needs big emotion when you've got big sound? —John Adamian
Amy Ray
Didn't It Feel Kinder
(Daemon Records)
The first few seconds of Amy Ray's new CD, Didn't It Feel Kinder, are taken up by her voice alone. Throughout the album, Ray's voice is direct, unsentimental and free of irony. This record sounds more like the Indigo Girls than Ray's first three solo recordings, which were more punk. The best song on the new CD is "Cold Shoulder," a celebratory rocker: "See that girl over there, she's gonna give me the cold shoulder/ she may be straight tonight, but last night she let me hold her." Another song on Kinder praises radio stations that reject commercials and NPR-style "underwriting messages," and that are run democratically, by listeners. An example is Northampton's Valley Free Radio. —Eesha Williams
Jay Reatard
Matador Singles '08
(Matador)
Jay Reatard has been busy, releasing his second singles collection in a matter of months. You might assume this compilation offers more of the same, but there's a significant difference between Singles 06-07 and the latest: quality. Where his previous singles were distinguished by vigorous attention to detail and unexpected genre-bending, these songs feel cut from the same cloth. They showcase Reatard's manic garage rock aesthetic and homespun Wall of Sound production, but the best tunes, like "See Saw," tend to get lost in the sameness. For fans, the high-octane formula still supplies enough kicks to be worthwhile. But these songs also suggest early signs of creative exhaustion and the onset of diminishing returns. —Jeff Jackson
Hot Day at the Zoo
Long Way Home
(Inta -> Records)
Lowell's Hot Day at the Zoo brings a modern drive and an engaging sense of melody to traditional string-band music. The EP's opener, "Gypsy Moon" offers upbeat bluegrass mixed with Poe's "The Raven." The title track, a well-constructed ballad, also goes decidedly 19th century: " far-off mourning dove/ its song of peace is louder than a Union cannonball." The harmonies bleed and the banjo pops—this is somehow bluegrass that really rocks. Hot Day at the Zoo plays Friday, Dec. 5 at the WWII Club in Northampton with Oneside and Appalachian Still. —James Heflin
