(Sony)
The Coral need to stop writing songs and convert to a mid-60s folk-rock cover band. There’s a substantial baby-boomer nostalgia circuit—my friend’s dad played bass for “The Grateful Dads”—and the Coral could own it. Seriously, the band has some fine musicians and competent vocalists, and they come across as very polished. I bet they’d do a rockin’ rendition of “The House of the Rising Sun,” but there’s no way not to suck given the songs they have written.
The opening track on Magic and Medicine, “In the Forest,” is supposed to be some kind of dream sequence about this guy finding his nymph in her element. But with lyrics like “From all the feelings that are making you blue / You’ll never know how much I…you,” it’s impossible to take this stuff seriously. “Gypsy Market Blues” is the band’s feeble attempt to emulate Dylan-style talking blues and “Bill McCai” is their take on social commentary. Think “A Day in the Life” as written by a first-grader. For its finale, the Coral give us the 6-minute “Confessions of A.D.D.D.” I guess this is their tribute to jam-rock; unfortunately, the band members are in no position to improvise. The result is a two-minute guitar solo based entirely on five notes. “Liezah” and “Secret Kiss” present some more memorable, if bland, tunes evoking the Byrds, but they don’t quite get close enough.
Oh, and there’s a bonus disc included in the packaging called Nightfreak and the Sounds of Becker. I took the liberty of not listening to it.
—Mickey A. Muldoon
Zero 7
When It Falls
(Elektra)
Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker, two British producers who go by the name Zero 7, have made a career of copying French atmospheric masters Air. The comparison was flattering to Zero 7 from the outset. With the release of their second album, When It Falls, it’s clear that this down-tempo outfit can do little more than imitate their musical superiors.
Zero 7’s 2001 debut, Simple Things, featured the great single “Destiny,” which got moderate play on MTV and exemplified what was to be the fad of “chill-out” music—electronic keyboards, acoustic guitars, a slow beat and that sexy, sexy female voice. Two years later, When It Falls tries to recapitulate the same feeling of relaxed, soulful bliss. The trouble is the whole chill-out thing feels weary and used-up. While Air and Britain’s Kinobe have moved on to more energetic, complex electronic sounds, Zero 7 seems to be stuck in a perpetual 4 a.m. after-party, coming down after a night at a lousy club.
That’s not to say this album is terrible. The music is lush, full of atmospheric echoes and acoustic guitars; electronic keyboards tinkle through most of the songs while the sound of strings hover in the background tastefully, conjuring the image of a dim room with couples draped lazily over each other. “Home” builds to an intense, layered sonic climax that really does leave you blissed-out. But tracks like “Passing By” ironically sum up the disposable melodic sensibility of the record—“I’m only passing by,” Sophie Barker croons soulfully. When It Falls floats by in an easy-to-listen-to haze, leaving barely any impression at all.
—Daniel M. S. Raper