COVENANT
Sentience
This record would have sounded unoriginal even if Erasure hadn’t
existed. Unfortunately for Covenant, Depeche Mode, Yaz, and New Age music have
also come and gone. Their bigger problem is that they probably believe they
sound far more cutting edge than they do, what with their talk of “the digital
evolution of rock and pop.” To see what is actually being done with sex,
sampling, and synthesizers, they should check out any number of things coming
out of England, like Tricky’s Maxinque. It’s for their own good, really. – Mindy LaBernz
KING FRIDAY
Get It (DMZ)
With just the right radio-ready mix of hook & croon
songwriting, Get It proves King Friday was Austin’s Collective Soul
before Collective Soul was cool. And even if Chris Wright’s voice is
occasionally so slick he slides over boredom’s edge, it’s also Wright’s flair
for melody that more often than not stops King Friday from making your
run-of-the-mill riff record. – Andy
Langer
LANGUAGE HOUSE
Savage Bliss (Seecross)
Language House’s Savage Bliss speaks a mouth full with
its gleaming Soundgardenesque hardcore, and its beautiful CD packaging. As you
might expect from a band that’s ready to take it to the next level, every
aspect of this Austin band’s dialect spells “professional,” from
singer-songwriter Kurt Thompson’s climactic musings during “Wreck” to the
screw-tightening seminal squeeze of “Crank.” – Chris
Marsh
DENNY BROWN
Still in Trouble (Avenue)
So, how do ya like your roots? Maybe with a little Memphis soul,
or how about a generous slice of blooze, Joe Ely-style? Well, you’re in luck,
because Still in Trouble features guests Booker T. Jones (yes, that one)
and longtime Ely sideman David Grissom. But it’s Brown’s record, and while it
isn’t a slam dunk, it is a 15-foot fallaway off the glass. Very nice. – Chris Gray
PODUNK
Breech (Core)
Podunk must have spent a while pondering the anti-abortion,
pro-God, anti-child molestation stances that litterBreech, because
their melodic pop take on metal is as dated as any late-1989 Slaughter cash-in
attempt. Or then again, maybe they’re just anti-progress too. –
Andy Langer
TOM PRINCIPATO
In the Clouds (Powerhouse/Ichiban)
Tom Principato is either really talented or really boring – it’s
hard to tell which. Too often on In the Clouds however, his flawless
fretwork is what prevents him from turning loose. Unfortunately, that’s exactly
what he should have done.
– Chris Gray
ROMAN PROFILE
Genius of Love (Invasion)
If you need another reason to hate the consultants who invented
album-oriented rock, look no further. Roman Profile prominently features lazy,
antiseptic Mick Jagger vocals backed with a slick encyclopedia of decomposing
rock & roll clich�s. Their schizophrenic ambition is hopelessly
belittled by their utter lack of originality or energy.
– Greg Beets
OMAR & THE HOWLERS
Muddy Springs Road (Watermelon)
Solid, workmanlike trip through the Delta with gravel-throated
Kent “Omar” Dykes & crew. There’s nothing on this record that Bo Diddley
and Howlin’ Wolf didn’t make a living doing, but on the other hand, Wolf is
dead, and the last time anybody saw Diddley, he was doing shoe commercials for
Nike. – Chris Gray
MICHAEL HALL
Frank Slade’s 29th Dream (DejaDisc)
There are those out there who believe Mike Hall, as songwriter
or performer, can do no wrong. This one’s for them. A nigh-on-40-minute song
(yes, I said song, not song cycle or song suite or epic or rock opera)
with but one thing to say: “Life is alright, for the time being.” Say that it
does, but I won’t be the one to count the number of times. I also won’t be the
one to attempt to positively claim whether Hall is crying with us or laughing
at us here, but I will point out that this is a low-pricer with two of the best
songs from his previous albums thrown on as a bonus. – Ken
Lieck
This article appears in July 7 • 1995 and July 7 • 1995 (Cover).