The Santa Fe-Albuquerque area’s Cherry Tempo released its latest record Radiohead-style. You can download it free from the band’s website and fork over as much or as little cash for it as you’d like. Muddy-toned melodies stay the course until they switch gears like an indy car, ramping up or slowing down as they please. It doesn’t carry the velocity of punk, but it bares its muscle; the scream-sung lyrics are both tuneful and raw. Cherry Tempo’s grungy indie rock carries a hint of what used to be called emo, before that term became corrupted. (SM)
David Binney Third Occasion (Mythology Records)
Any list of the top jazz players that does not include altoist David Binney should be dismissed out of hand. His stupefying technique, profound emotional intensity and superior compositional skills combine to make compelling music that’s abstract, concrete and expressive. Here, he’s joined by Craig Taborn (piano), Scott Colley (bass), Brian Blade (drums), and occasionally a quartet of doubled trumpets and trombones. The stunning title track provides the template: a simple theme that opens doors rhythmically and melodically, with Binney exploiting secret harmonic wormholes that get him almost magically from here to there—while discovering new theres along the way. (MM)
O+S O+S (Saddle Creek Records)
Track numero uno on this album, “New Life,” is really good. At first I thought I had a fun, new Cocteau Twins-y thing on my hands. But as I waded further into slow-tempo electro indie, the falsetto girl voice started to get melodramatic. Then, in the midst of layered sound, the ambient noises began. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like my rock to include clanking cans and barking dogs or what have you. (JCC)
