Euge Groove “Euge Groove” Warner
Brothers
Next time you’re in the dentist’s chair and they put
another CD on the stereo, it just might be Euge Groove’s
debut album. Sit back and listen to the soothing mind-numbing
sounds of this self-titled CD from saxophonist Steven Eugene Grove,
aka “Euge Groove,” and yes, that’s pronounced
“huge.” Not that it’s a terrible album; in fact,
it’s really well produced and sounds “clean.” And
there are definite situations where this album would be
appropriate: the elevator, reception areas of office buildings and
even next to a burning fireplace with a bottle of champagne and
scattered rose petals on Valentine’s Day. “Euge
Groove” is a fusion of R&B, urban classical, and pop
music. The 10 songs on this album are richly layered with
synthesized sounds and Groove’s saxophone. His tone is pure,
but not very exciting. The album is reminiscent of Kenny G. Groove
is more versatile, however, switching between tenor, alto and
soprano saxophones. Groove has many credits to his name, including
performances with everyone from Tina Turner to Elton John. All the
songs sound similar. Notably, on “Give In To Me,”
N*Sync’s J.C. Chasez, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone, Chris
Kirkpatrick and Justin Timberlake contribute vocals. “Sneak A
Peak” features an overdubbed sax background chorus under
Groove’s melody. “Vinyl” has an interesting
looped scratch noise throughout the song, which Groove says is
reminiscent of old vinyl jazz records. But the entire song
doesn’t sound like an old vinyl record, just the scratch, so
it ends up sounding more like a cheesy special effect. Some people
will definitely like this album for its smooth sound. Others
won’t because of its sparse musical content. Whatever your
listening preference, “Euge Groove” is, at the least, a
new contribution to the possibilities of blending acoustic
instruments with electronic ones. Chris Young Rating: 3
Trina “Da Baddest Bitch”
Atlantic
Trina, the latest in a long line of raunchy, materialistic,
sexually explicit and sexually eccentric rappers, comes out asking,
“Who’s bad?” in her title cut, and completely
eclipses Michael Jackson’s attempt at badness, which merely
reached the heights of loitering in a parking lot and dancing. The
album is simplistic, unimaginative, juvenile and sad. There
aren’t many endearing or redeeming qualities in the overall
product, but it may offer a lot of laughs to those not mortally
offended. There are countless references to the finer things in
life: the male and female genitalia, drugs, loser men, rich men,
paying bills and the bare necessities ““ you know, hardcore
sex, money and more money. This has the moral value of “The
Jerry Springer Show” on incestuous marriages. Then again,
Trina’s objective in the conception of her album probably had
little to do with morality. The subject matter alone is not what
disqualifies her from the running of even being a viable artist,
but her poor skills and narrowly tailored and repetitive ideas do.
After only the first song, one has had about enough of her
high-pitched, twangy, baby voice and banal rhymes.
“Mama,” is an embarrassing attempt at something that
fails to provide the pathos that Tupac’s “You Are
Appreciated” incomparably did. The hook of the song just ends
up sounding like a cheap commercial jingle. On “Ain’t
Shit” Trina takes the opportunity to respond to Dr.
Dre’s “Bitches Ain’t Shit,” a song whose
ignorance does not deserve the time and effort it takes to
acknowledge it, much less reply to it. The only song that would
even come close to sounding somewhat enjoyable is “Take
Me.” And that had little to do with Trina’s involvement
in the song. Pamela Long of Total, with her smooth and lightly
raspy voice, infuses the talent, substance and subtle sexiness this
album is greatly deficient in. This album needs a biohazard sign
for its poor quality, because that parental advisory symbol
can’t come close to explaining all of the elements wrong with
this album. Of course, the cover showing Trina straddling a corpse,
with a painfully ugly look of ecstasy on her face, may just do the
trick. Aphrodite Manousos Rating: 2
Supergrass “Supergrass” Island
Records
It had to happen sometime and on Supergrass’ third album
these rambunctious Oxford boys have finally grown up. Gaz Coombes,
Mick Quinn, and Danny Goffey have traded in the all-night parties
for quiet night-ins. If you listened to their debut “I Should
Coco,” you knew this day was coming. “Coco” was a
simple burst of punk-pop written by three blokes very much
interested in having a good time. Maturation was surely in their
future. And on “Supergrass” the trio has supplanted
most of the adolescence fun with sardonic reality. “Shotover
Hill” is a symphonic ballad riding on strings and a booming
orchestral drum. On “Eon” Supergrass goes with some
prog-rock punch, moving quietly along before whipping a wailing
guitar solo for the last minute of the song. What is not lost in
the doom and gloom is Supergrass’ streak of cheekiness.
Supergrass might have gotten older but they haven’t lost
their sense of humor. “What Went Wrong (In Your Head)”
is a bouncy pop anthem that sounds like it belongs on
“Fraggle Rock.” The infectious breakthrough
“Pumping on Your Stereo” is a pop confection that
sticks to your brain long after the three-minute ditty fades away.
Coombes does his best Mick Jagger impersonation on the track. With
this album, Supergrass shows how a band can age gracefully from
unfocused childlike exuberance to mature rumination. Trinh Bui
Grade: 7
MC5 “The Big Bang! Best of the MC5″ Rhino
Records
Lengthy sets and a lot of randomness fill this highly
unstructured album. Perhaps this is the purpose ““ to
demonstrate the band’s range. Although its not the most solid
album musically or lyrically, it definitely has unstoppable energy
and the band’s positive political plight is valuable. Late
“˜60s and early “˜70s recordings contain everything from
grinding guitars coupled with frantic vocals to piano interludes
and tambourines. Other times, MC5 breaks out with peace loving
rock. The band’s political plight is evident in
“Ramblin’ Rose” which begins, “I wanna hear
a little revolution!” from an announcer introducing the band
at a live show. The crowd is then urged to become part of the
era’s solutions and to discover a sense of purpose. Staggered
guitar chords, along with a blaring amp comprised of the
album’s raw sounds, add to some of the song’s themes.
“Kick out the Jams” conveys good times and good music
for all. “Come Together” is driven by political unity
messages. And droning vocals carry the emotional “Miss
X.” Other tracks contain poppy stop and go riffs, traditional
rock and roll, old school punk and even country influences. The
band’s longevity is key. They are considered pioneers of
music that was versatile and politically charged during a socially
progressive time. The chaos and uncertainty is expressed in
MC5’s music, but the listener must consider this background
in order to fully appreciate the musical arrangement. Mariko Obrero
Rating: 5