Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog
Brigade “Live Frogs ““ Set 1″ Prawn Song
Records
This just in: Les Claypool is a pretty good bass player and he
has a funny singing style too. OK, so this isn’t exactly
up-to-the-minute news for anyone familiar with Claypool’s
role as leader of the hard-hitting rock group Primus. However, what
many may not be aware of is that Claypool has been a busy fellow as
the Flying Frog Brigade will attest. The Brigade basically plays a
large array of songs from Claypool’s non-Primus catalogue,
including songs from his side project, Sausage, his solo project,
Holy Mackerel, and a few surprises thrown in for unpredictability.
The group had only been together for a few months when this
stunning live album was recorded early last October. Whereas Primus
was predominantly a rock group, the Flying Frog Brigade has
enlisted the help of a sax player to add a little soul to the
band’s sound. In addition, the concert has much more of a
jam-based feel than any of Claypool’s previous efforts.
Perhaps the Brigade’s jammy feel is due to another of
Claypool’s current side projects, Oysterhead, a trio
comprised of Claypool, former Police drummer Stewart Copeland and
Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio. “Live Frogs ““ Set
1″ kicks off with a jaw dropping version of King
Crimson’s “Thela Hun Ginjeet.” As expected, the
top-notch bassist takes the lead as the song is driven around a
catchy bass riff. While the next five songs on the album are all
equally pleasing in their tight renditions, it’s really the
last track which sets this album head and shoulders above most
other live albums. Doing a colossal cover of Pink Floyd’s
“Shine On You Crazy Diamond,” the Brigade adds a bit
more raucousness to a previously austere song. “Shine on You
Crazy Diamond” is also a precursor to what is rumored to
appear on the next installment of the concert releases. Near the
finale of the song Claypool says in a not-so-serious voice,
“We’ll be back in 20 minutes with more Pink Floyd than
any human should ever withstand.” And what happened after
those 20 minutes that fans should so eagerly look forward to? Well,
nothing less than a cover of the Pink Floyd album
“Animals.” Sadly, that 20 minute break has been
stretched a bit longer and “Live Frogs ““ Set 2″
isn’t scheduled to be released until this summer. Until then,
the Brigade has dropped the bomb, and the Colonel has made his
orders clear: hold listeners’ ears captive until our next
release, boys.
Antero Garcia Rating: 8
Crazy Town The Gift of Game Columbia
In the song “Toxic” on Crazy Town’s debut
album “The Gift of Game,” the lead vocalist brags,
“Crazy Town’s toxic. Toxic, loud and
obnoxious.” Hey, at least the band is willing to admit
it. Like fellow rap/rock band Linkin Park, Crazy Town features two
vocalists, but neither has the talent or range of their
contemporaries. Rather, they are nasal, screeching on most tracks.
The band attempts to capitalize on the popularity of rap/rock but
adds nothing to the genre. Shallow, sexist lyrics which
reflect nothing more than arrogance and conceit, combined with
mediocre instrumentals do not make a winning combination. One
example of a lyric that embodies the albums’ offensive nature
says, much less eloquently, that the vocalist only engages in
sexual intercourse with unattractive females when intoxicated. Few
bands can hope to achieve such egotism, superficiality and inequity
in just one song. The catchy hook that popularized the hit single
“Butterfly” is sampled from the Red Hot Chili
Peppers’ “Pretty Little Ditty.” The melodies that
are actually written by Crazy Town lack creativity and originality,
with the possible exceptions of “Revolving Door” and
“Black Cloud,” which are much less abrasive than most
of the other tracks. Additionally, song tempos are unsettled and
either dragging or uncomfortably fast. After a pause at the end of
the album, there is an unconvincing speech about Crazy Town’s
merit, a la Matt Pinfield on Limp Bizkit’s “Significant
Other,” but the growling voice on this album sounds
justifiably unsure of its stance. Once again, Crazy Town says it
best in the song “Only When I’m Drunk”:
“Crazy’s comin’ through. You know we’re
gonna blow up. Hold Up. Wait. I think I’m gonna throw
up.”
Whitney Smith Rating: 3
Paul Reed Smith Dragons “Jenna’s Eyes”
www.prsguitars.com
Most guitar aficionados will recognize the name Paul Reed Smith
as the man responsible for some of the highest quality (and most
expensive) guitars being played. Just ask Santana himself. What
most don’t realize is that Smith has some wailing guitar
chops. The second album from Smith’s band Dragons,
“Jenna’s Eyes,” is a surprisingly pleasant
ensemble of tracks. However, the beauty surrounding
“Jenna’s Eyes” is not readily apparent; the album
has a rather lame cover of part of a dragon’s face and the
song titles seem a bit clichéd: “Cold Wind in
July,” “Play the Blues Away” and
“She’s the One.” The latter of these tracks,
which also happens to be the album’s opener, is a refreshing,
straight ahead blues track that is merely a prelude to the guitar
chops that are yet to come. The song is basic in its structure,
relying on an incredibly catchy riff to make up for rather shoddy
vocals. The reliance on guitar riffs makes up for the fairly
unoriginal vocals and lyrics which permeate the disc. While this
seems rather disappointing at first, it may not be as bad as
listeners think. Instead of focusing on unpolished vocals, the
album forces its listeners to hear the beauty of the crisp, warm
PRS sound. Instrumental tracks such as the album’s title
song, are ear candy for the many guitarists who have spent hours
futilely toiling with the many knobs and switches on their axes and
amps. On some tracks, in fact, it’s only this invigorating
tone that makes them listenable. The band’s rendition of
“Star Spangled Banner,” is a bit too over produced. The
recording does little more than what guitar messiah Jimi Hendrix
did live 30 years ago at Woodstock, the anthem here has been
stripped bare of any feeling. In its place is robotic studio
accuracy that sounds both out of place and dated. When it all boils
down, “Jenna’s Eyes” is a fine example of the
sound quality that should be expected of more of today’s
studio musicians. Maybe it would just be better if Smith and
company really had the blues or any feeling similar to that before
it tries to hide its unfulfilling song craftsmanship behind a great
sounding rig.
Antero Garcia Rating: 5