Trax
By Bliss 07/15/2010
THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM, American Slang (SideOne Dummy): (4 stars out of 5)
The Garden State rockers follow 2008’s breakthrough “The ’59 Sound” with this brisk, 37-minute declaration of purpose. Frontman Brian Fallon’s tattooed romanticism and throaty yowl share musical DNA with Springsteen, who joined the quartet onstage at Glastonbury. Beat-slamming, lyric-packed showstoppers like “Old Haunts,” the doo-wop-flavored “Diamond Street Church Choir” and “Queen of Lower Chelsea” roil between the “The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle” and the soul-baring “Tunnel of Love.” At the Wiltern Wednesday. http://gaslightanthem.com.
VARIOUS ARTISTS, Tribute to a Reggae Legend (Putumayo): (3 stars out of 5)
Rocky Dawuni, Funkadesi, Rebelution and Northern Lights with Jonathan Edwards are among the international cast saluting Bob Marley on this disc of new and previously released tracks. Most hew closely to Marley’s arrangements, but the most memorable connect the artists’ own traditions to Marley’s genre- and culture-transcending message — such as Brazilian stylist Céu’s rendering of “Concrete Jungle” and Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars’ uplifting embrace of “No Woman No Cry.” putumayo.com.
JIMMY LAFAVE, Favorites: 1992-2001 (Music Road): (3.5 stars out of 5)
Gravel-voiced troubadour LaFave is one of the most compelling performers on the national folk scene, thanks largely to his interpretive skills and impassioned vocals. Throughout the 1990s his albums for the indie Bohemia Beat label were hard-to-find cult faves — more so after Bohemia dissolved. LaFave’s most consistent albums remain “Blue Nightfall” and the excellent “Cimarron,” released this decade by Red House; unfortunately, none of that superior material’s represented here. Still, this tastefully packaged compilation’s a handy early-career retrospective. jimmylafave.com.
BLAME SALLY, Live at Stern Grove Festival (Ninth Street Opus): (3 stars out of 5)
The Bay Area femme quartet’s strummy folk is more sonically engaging here than on last year’s too smooth “Night of 1000 Stars,” augmenting their guitars with keyboards, mandolin, accordion and an electric bassist (Rob Strom) while punctuating their mid-tempo rockers with handclaps, spirited vocals and call-and-response exchanges with their audience. Should attract Indigo Girls and Eliza Gilkyson fans. At Levitt Pavilion Thursday, July 22. blamesally.com.
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