The Couch Potato Report
Returns Thursday, March 31st
New CDS: Beck, Beanie
Reviews of "Guero," "The B. Coming" and more
Beck Guero (Interscope)
After the final out of the 2004 World Series, NBC played Beck's "The Golden Age" during the closing credits. It was a weird choice -- they obviously picked the song to celebrate the Red Sox victory, judging it by the title but ignoring the fact that it's a heinously depressing breakup ballad. Jesus, talk about a buzz-kill. But it was a perfect Beck moment, given the strange way he's spent his career foraging through American junk culture. On Guero, his eighth album, he returns to what he does best, hopping from genre to genre, hustling for scraps of beat and rhyme. He has reunited with the Dust Brothers, the producers behind his 1996 masterpiece, Odelay, for his liveliest and jumpiest music in years. Suggested ad slogan: The slack is back!
Ever since Beck hit his peak with Odelay, he's stood firm in refusing to make a sequel, or even an album that sounded remotely like one. His MO has been to push one of his tricks all the way to album length. So he became a morose folkie on Mutations, a comedy-funk party yutz on Midnite Vultures and a broken-down love junkie on Sea Change. All these records had their good and bad moments, and all had their fervent admirers. But they erred too far on the side of consistency, and whoever wanted consistency from Beck? Guero is the first record since Odelay where Beck mixes up the medicine the way he did in his Nineties prime -- we get stun-gun rock guitar ("E-Pro"), cracked country blues ("Farewell Ride"), psychedelic bossa nova ("Missing"), goth atmospherics ("Scarecrow") and laid-back fire-hydrant-Seventies R&B ("Earthquake Weather").
Throughout Guero, Beck dips deeply into Latin rhythms, reveling in the street culture of the East L.A. neighborhood where he grew up. "Que Onda Guero" is a walk through the barrio, with traffic noises and overheard Spanglish voices over Latin guitars and hip-hop beats. Guero is slang for "white guy"; Beck's an outsider here. The song ends with some stranger saying, "Let's go to Captain Cork's -- they have the new Yanni cassette!" "Hell Yes" and "Black Tambourine" sound like they were knocked off in a session that began, "Hey, let's do some of those wacky, zany numbers we used to do," but they're still pretty great.
Guero will get Beck accused of copying Odelay, but it has a completely different mood. Tune in "Missing" or "Earthquake Weather," and you can't miss the melancholy adult pang in the vocals. The closest he comes to a funny line on the album is "The sun burned a hole in my roof/I can't seem to fix it." Which isn't too close. Beck is thirty-four now and can't pretend to be the same wide-eyed, channel-surfing kid who buzzed with wiseass charisma on Mellow Gold, Odelay and Stereopathetic Soulmanure. On Guero, he sounds like an extremely bummed-out dude who made it to the future and discovered he hates it there. The lyrics are abstractly morbid -- lots of graves, lots of devils. Nearly every song has a dead body or two kicking around. At times, Guero feels as emotionally downbeat as Mutations or Sea Change. But there's a crucial difference: The rhythmic jolt makes the malaise more compelling and complex, with enough playful musical wit to hint at a next step. Beck isn't trying to replicate what he did ten years ago; instead, on Guero he finds a way to revitalize his musical imagination, without turning it into a joke.(ROB SHEFFIELD)
Beanie Sigel The B. Coming (Damon Dash Music Group)
Back in 2000, Beanie Sigel was poised for stardom, before his life and career were derailed by the street life he documents so well. In November, he began a year in prison on federal gun charges. The Philly MC's flow is still among the best -- it recalls the smooth delivery of his mentor, Jay-Z, mixed with a young Ice Cube's growl -- and The B. Coming starts strong. "Feel It in the Air" and "I Can't Go On This Way" weren't produced by Kanye West, but may as well have been, with soulful female vocal hooks softening Sigel's ruminations. The B. Coming eventually flattens out into dark, brooding territory -- it was, after all, originally going to be called The Great Depression. The stoner anthem "Purple Rain," with electric guitars reverberating into space, is an only slightly apologetic ode to painkillers and cough syrup. And many a track waxes longingly about the guns that landed him a sentence. "Don't Stop" is vintage Neptunes, with Snoop Dogg purring above drifting organs and a cowbell sound. "Let's toast to the man that when he get out/He gonna do them things that he rappin' about," says Snoop. And then comes Beanie: "Hatas, stay out my face/And know that thing still by my waist." (BILL WERDE)
Morrissey Live at Earls Court (Attack/Sanctuary)
It's been nearly twenty years since the Smiths broke up, but the band's passionate, sensitive fans have never quite gotten over it. On this live set from 2004, Morrissey -- who is slowly turning into a British New Wave version of Frank Sinatra -- heals some of the heartache by revisiting his old group's anthems in excellent, swaggering renditions. Between the shuddering opening riff of "How Soon Is Now?" and the final cymbal crash of "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me," Moz takes on "Shoplifters of the World Unite" and "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" to rapturous applause. But Live at Earls Court isn't just an exercise in nostalgia. The best songs from last year's return-to-form You Are the Quarry -- the ironic "I Have Forgiven Jesus" and the fiery "Irish Blood, English Heart" -- hold their own against the Smiths' classics. (JONATHAN RINGEN)
The Bravery The Bravery (Island)
After the success of the Killers and Franz Ferdinand, the world is crawling with rock dudes who've suddenly discovered their deep and abiding respect for the Cure's Robert Smith. Enter the Bravery, who got together in New York barely more than a year ago but who already have fans drooling for their heavily anticipated debut album of synth-heavy goth pop. Singer Sam Endicott looks like a cross between Morrissey and the bald punk guy who befriends Eric Stoltz in Some Kind of Wonderful. The Bravery do a jockier version of the New Wave competition, pumping the drums in straight-ahead tunes such as "An Honest Mistake" and "The Ring Song." But the peak is "Swollen Summer," which combines the best of early Love and Rockets with late Flesh for Lulu. (ROB SHEFFIELD)
ROLLING STONE
(Posted Mar 28, 2005)
New White Stripes Album Due In June
Rock duo the White Stripes will release their next studio album on June 14 via Third Man/V2. The as-yet-untitled set was recently recorded in the group's Detroit home base. It will be the follow-up to 2003's "Elephant," which debuted at a career-best No. 6 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 1.7 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
A handful of live dates have already been announced ahead of the album, including a three-night run in Mexico that begins May 11 in Monterrey. As previously reported, the group will also play June 10 at Atlanta's Music Midtown festival.
Beyond the White Stripes disc, singer/guitarist Jack White has also been working on an album with fellow Detroit native Brendan Benson. The project, which also features Greenhornes bassist Jack Lawrence and drummer Patrick Keeler, will most likely not see the light of day until the end of the year or early 2006, according to a V2 spokesperson.
"It's kind of a little of everything," Benson told Billboard.com in December. "I've got songs that I've pretty much written and he added lyrics to it. And he brought some songs, or actually made a bunch of 'em up on the spot. It's cool, different stuff. Some of it sounds like Jack and some of it just sounds like Cat Stevens or something."
Entertainment groups predict more movies, songs over Internet
WASHINGTON (AP) - The music and film industries will continue to offer digital copies of songs and movies online for a price even if they lose a landmark Supreme Court case focusing on consumers who steal copyrighted material over the Internet, those industries' chief lobbyists said Monday.
"Consumers want a legal, hassle-free, reasonable-cost way to get their products online," said Dan Glickman, head of the Motion Picture Association of America. "There's no question you'll see a lot more opportunity for people in their homes to enjoy music and movies and other creative material."
Glickman and Mitch Bainwol, chief executive of the Recording Industry Association of America, met with editors from The Associated Press on the eve of arguments in the upcoming Supreme Court case, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios vs. Grokster.
Regardless of the case's outcome, Bainwol predicted a rise among Internet music-subscription services, which permit consumers to listen to more than one million songs for a flat monthly fee.
"Subscriptions will really take off," Bainwol said.
In the Supreme Court case, entertainment companies want the court to permit them to sue manufacturers of file-sharing software popular among computer users for trading music and movies over the Internet.
Lower U.S. courts have twice ruled that such file-sharing software can be used for "substantial" legal purposes, such as giving away free songs, free software or government documents.
The lower court rulings - effectively shielding the manufacturers of file-sharing software - have compelled entertainment companies to sue thousands of people caught illegally distributing songs and movies over the Internet.
"There's no question it's far more efficient and far more sensible to go after the people whose business is built on infringement," said Cary Sherman, the president of the recording industry association.
Lisa Marie Presley Firms Tour Dates for 'Now'
NEW YORK (Billboard) - With the release of her sophomore full-length album nearing, Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley, has confirmed a spring tour that will kick off April 26 in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Thirteen dates have been confirmed through a May 15 show in Asbury Park, N.J., with more expected.
Presley's second album, "Now What," will be released April 5 via Capitol. The set features 10 original songs and a cover of Don Henley's 1983 hit "'Dirty Laundry" and guest appearances by pop singer Pink and Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones.
Here are Presley's tour dates:
April 26: St. Petersburg, Fla. (Jannus Landing)
April 27: Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (House of Blues)
April 29: West Palm Beach, Fla. (SunFest)
May 1: Memphis, Tenn. (Beale Street Music Festival)
May 2: Nashville (The Cannery)
May 4: North Myrtle Beach, S.C. (House of Blues)
May 5: Norfolk, Va. (NorVa Theatre)
May 8: Boston (Paradise Club)
May 9: Alexandria, Va. (Birchmere)
May 10: New York (Supper Club)
May 12: Rama, Ont. (Casino Rama)
May 14: Atlantic City, N.J. (Trump Marina Casino)
May 15: Asbury Park, N.J. (Stone Pony Landing)
'Corner Gas' closes for season
Keep your eye on Nancy Robertson, who plays Wanda the cashier on CTV's hit comedy Corner Gas.
Nancy Robertson's favourite scene so far on Corner Gas? Kicking The Tragically Hip out of the garage.
"It was nice bossing The Hip around," she says. "Don't think I didn't take advantage of that."
Robinson plays Wanda, the blond mighty mite behind the cash register on Canada's No. 1 sitcom. She was in Toronto two weeks ago to promote the season finale of Corner Gas, airing tonight at 8 p.m. on CTV.
There'll be no shock ending, she reports. "Nothing that's cliffhangy. Just finding out more and more about the characters."
The cheery Vancouver native almost didn't audition for the series. Wanda was originally envisioned as an older character. When series creator Brent Butt and the other producers were having trouble finding Wanda, the casting director suggested they re-think the role for Robertson. She auditioned in Vancouver, got the good news on a Monday and had to be in Regina that Wednesday to start work on the series.
While she had met Butt before on the comedy circuit, the Corner Gas cast member she knew best was Fred Ewanuick, who plays Hank. The two co-starred in The Delicate Art Of Parking, a mocumentary about parking attendants which won Best Canadian Film at the 2003 Montreal Film Festival.
Robertson, a mainstage member of the Vancouver Theatresports Improv League, has worked shows like Addams Family and Cold Squad in the past. She's in CTV's upcoming Robeson Arms and had a small part in Ice Cube's Are We There Yet? "Blink and you miss me," she jokes.
Corner Gas has been the Canadian success story of the past two years, averaging over a million-and-a-half viewers and flirting with two million on a couple of occasions. That's despite several pre-emptions and scheduled shifts (mainly to accommodate the ins and outs of American Idol).
"You could see the possibilities because the scripts were funny," says Robertson. "A lot of times you go to audition for a part and it says it's a comedy and as an actor you go, 'No it's not.' "
She credits Butt and the other writers for establishing a "very specific rhythm" for the show.
And while it is set in fictional Dog River, Sask. (and shot near Regina), she thinks the fact that it could be any rural Canadian outpost broadens the appeal. Several recent Canadian comedies were industry shows (An American In Canada, Made In Canada, The Newsroom, etc). Corner Gas has nothing to do with television. "Everybody can identify with it," she says.
It also helps that it appeals to all age groups, she says. "You'll talk to people and they'll say my grandson or my grandmother watch it," she says. "It's not offensive, not in your face. It has wackier humour, all different kinds of humour. It's real escapism."
Has she ever had a job like Wanda's? Just once, and it lasted a day, says Robertson. "A friend got me a job at a T-shirt store when I was 17," she says. "It was a Sunday and the boss wasn't supposed to be there. I was a cocky girl and decided to unwind in the back room and read a few magazines. The boss walked in and there I am with my feet up, reading Playgirl."
Sounds like a future Corner Gas episode. "Sure, that's just what the writers need," says Robertson. "You gotta second? Can we go for a walk?"
ALSO TONIGHT: CTV picks up John Stamos' new comedy, Jake In Progress, already in progress on ABC. It makes its Canadian network debut tonight at 8:30 p.m., followed by back-to-back episodes Thursday starting at 8 p.m. (providing there's no voter screw-up on American Idol this week). Also at 8:30, Ken Finkleman gets animated on the series finale of The Newsroom (CBC). Jerry O'Connell's kid brother Charlie is the latest rose tosser on The Bachelor (ABC/CITY-TV, 9 p.m.) And Dave Bidini skates with Alexander Yakushev and other former Soviet stars in The Hockey Nomad Goes To Russia (CBC, 9 p.m.).
LOOK WHO'S BOBCAT
Bobcat Goldthwait is calling the shots at "Jimmy Kimmel Live" and has been working as the show's di rector for six months.
Remember Bob cat? The chubby- cheeked wild man from the 1980s who shrieked his way to fame as a stand- up comic and later as a mo- vie star.
De spite six months of solid and stable ratings under his watch and things on "Kimmel" running smoother and funnier than ever before, ABC officials have remained mum about Bobcat's new job.
"If I ran a network, I don't know how quick I would be to announce that I was the guy now at the reins of your late-night talk show," jokes Bobcat, 42. "Look, it would probably make them look like they were crazy."
Then again, Goldthwait says he's never made much of an attempt to change his wild public image.
"People really don't have any idea hard-working and how serious I take this or any of my directing jobs," he says. "I've always been a Groucho Marx fan and I never wanted to hear or see Groucho talking serious, so I've never presented that side of me to the public — I can understand why people would perceive me as an insane person."
But instead of the growling, snarling loon people remember, Bobcat is now soft-spoken and slim — but still gut-busting funny. And aside from donning a different, strange hat every day at work (he greets a visitor after the show wearing a large, black Mexican sombrero), he leaves all the strange stuff to Kimmel.
Whatever his secret, it's working.
Since Bobcat joined the show, the ratings have soared, especially among the network's most coveted group of viewers (ages 18-39). The numbers even jumped 50 percent with tough-to-attract teens — maybe not such a good thing for a show that starts at 12:05 a.m. on school nights.
His late-night gig began on an unpromising note: The show's former director had a heart attack on Bobcat's first day on the job. "I had nothing to do with it," he laughs. "Seriously."
Kimmel says the cast and crew love having Bobcat in charge.
"He knows where to go with things and more important where not to go," Kimmel says. "He comes to writer's meetings; he understands subtlety; and he adds funny moments to the show, whereas a lot of other people wouldn't."
Goldthwait is no stranger to calling the shots behind the scenes.
He spent four years directing at Kimmel's old Comedy Central gig "The Man Show" and called the shots for segments of "Chapelle's Show."