Take a break from pop - rock goes down easier
Date 9/28/2000 12:00 AM | Topic: Arts & CultureStone Temple Pilots' No. 4In what could be called, "The Sober Album," the Stone Temple Pilots regroup with clean-veined frontman Scott Weiland to release their aptly titled fourth album, No. 4. Thanks to their prowess in musical composition, bassist Robert DeLeo and his brother, lead guitarist Dean DeLeo animate the album with consistent hard rock adrenaline.
The album's first single, "Sour Girl," is melodramatic while managing to be catchy. Bordering pop, the track is radio-friendly and simplistic, not in a bad way, but for mass appeal purposes.
The track "MC5" is short, a suitable length for the thrusting guitars and Eric Kretz's thundering percussion, a combination that makes the song much like a garage band jam session.
While the music seems to solidify into a moshing, leather-clad entity, the lyrics are repetitive and for the most part lack substance. Weiland does, however, use his lyrics to confront his struggle with d77rug addiction with honesty. In "I Got You," Weiland sings, "you're there to bend and nurture me through these / Troubled times / 'Cause the fix begins to twist my troubled mind." Although Weiland does not live up to the lyrical standards of STP's first album, Core, his voice succeeds as he delivers clear, raw and edgy vocals.
The shining moment in the album is the final track "Atlanta." The song is laced with whispered acoustic, rolling percussion and Weiland's soulful outbreaks in a song where his sound is almost reminiscent of Morrison. "Atlanta" is the most complex musically, bringing in string arrangements and bass marimba.
"Atlanta" serves as an effective album-closer, leaving the listener with a cool-down session after the intense ride of the previous tracks. The album is a muscle-flexer, exercising competence in overall sound.
The downfalls do little to damage the blood-pumping tracks as the Pilots drive in an album that lands them on solid ground as a lasting force in the rock world.
Travis' The Man WhoNamed after a character in the film Paris, Texas, Travis, a band out of Glasgow, Scotland, emerges in the U.S. riding atop the U.K. success of their 1999 release The Man Who.
The foursome's second record, The Man Who became "the album who" picked up Best British Album at the 1999 Grammy-equivalent Brit Awards. With singer/songwriter Fran Healey, guitarist Andy Dunlop, bassist Dougie Payne and drummer Neil Primrose having also earned the Best British Band award, Travis arrives in the U.S. deserving of a heads-up from music culture.
Of note is the single "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" which is gaining college-radio attention as well as VH-1 airplay. The spirited guitars over melancholy strings give the song a tone of self-mockery. The single has legendary status when its performance at England's Glastonbury Festival in the summer of '99 was actually met with sudden rain. This fact, plus its sing-along quality, has made the song a club anthem of sorts in the U.K.
Without songs like "Rain," "Turn," and "Driftwood," the album would lack diversity. Most of the songs sound slow and tired, though Healey exhibits a good vocal range. While the songs beat at a standing heart rate, the music is effective melodically. The album is moody and sublime with the instruments taking on a different personality for the different songs.
Travis manages to mix a blues flavor with a haunting melody in "Luv" and "Driftwood," Healey creates a poetic metric rhythm that rides atop a clean guitar arrangement and battering percussion.
The best song is the hidden track, which is worth the three-minute wait after track 10. Referred to as "Blue Flashing Light," the track is angry and in-your-face. It is one of those songs that needs to be played really loud. It is at home when it shakes the room.
"Blue Flashing Light," about domestic abuse, is one of Healey's few social commentaries, but the energy of the song is like one such victim exploding an emotional shout of anger, fear and pain.
The hidden track indicates that Travis is capable of wide-ranging sound. Currently in the middle of their fourth U.S. tour, Travis has set aside time to work again with producer Nigel Godrich on their third album. Travis' energy may pick up on the next album with its first single Coming Around as a promising taste. Until then, The Man Who is a definite find to add to one's CD collection.
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Amy T. Domaszek
Chips News Co-Editor
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