Moving In Stereo: Volume 17

as heard by Darren Paltrowitz

Since Moving In Stereo: Volume 16 hit browsers, shelves, and tables around the world, a lot of worthwhile and attention-worthy releases have reached the office CD player, including:

Idlewild “Warnings / Promises” (Capitol)
Nightmare Of You “Nightmare Of You” (East West/Bevonshire)
Iron Maiden “The Essential Iron Maiden” (Sanctuary/Sony)
Shannon McNally “Geronimo” (Back Porch/Virgin)
The Churchills “The Odds Of Winning” (Near)

…From The Stage

One of the most respected bands of the power-pop genre, Teenage Fanclub recently headlined a two-night stand at The Bowery Ballroom. Touring in support of “Man Made,” the quartet – with an auxiliary keyboardist in the back – gave fans an astonishing near-two-hour set. From “Bandwagonesque” to “Songs From Northern Britain,” all corners of the discography were covered with jangly guitars and note-perfect harmonies. The Rosebuds, labelmates of TFC’s on Merge Records, went on before the Scottish superstars, showcasing selections from their second full-length “Birds Make Good Neighbors.” Poppy yet dark, this is surely a group to keep an eye on…The recently-announced hiatus of New York’s own Instruction surely saddened some folks in the U.S. and U.K., but that time off has led to the formation of Fires. Playing their first “official” gig at Pianos, always-outspoken frontman Arty Shepherd let it be known that the four-piece had only seven rehearsals to its credit. However, the near-capacity audience appeared blown away by new songs like “Unfold” and “The Great Wake Up Call,” which should soon be streamable at www.myspace.com/firesband. Until then, readers must rest assured from yours truly that the band’s sound fuses the aggressive, almost-metallic elements of Instruction with the dynamics and guitar bleeding of British legends like Ride and Swervedriver…Tracy Bonham – whose “Blink The Brightest” made for recommended listening a few volumes ago – has turned in a lot of New York area appearances lately, including one at the Central Park Summerstage. Although performing selections from “The Burdens Of Being Upright” and “Down Here,” her set was balanced but generally focused on newer material. However, first single “Something Beautiful,” as recently performed on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” does deserve to be a bigger hit than “Mother Mother”…Huey Lewis & The News may play a lot of casinos, but that doesn’t mean that the nine-member act doesn’t put on a high-energy, fast-paced show. Performed in the round, nearly every hit from the “Time Flies” compilation -- minus “If This It” – was featured on this evening at the North Fork Theatre at Westbury; kudos also going to the venue itself for its renovations and upgrades on recent months. Although few surprises in the set-list, Huey and crew’s mini-acapella set proved to be a memorable highlight, showing nearly every member of The News to be a competent vocalist. Casino entertainment doesn’t come much better; nor Broadway-based entertainment, as Huey will be starring as Billy Flynn in “Chicago” this fall.

…From The Screen

Whether due to the infamous “Chappelle’s Show” sketch featuring Dave Chappelle and Charlie Murphy, or the fact that he had been “The King of Funk,” Rick James’ popularity remains high as ever even a year following his unexpected death. “Super Freak Live” chronicles a full-length 1982 performance – on Germany’s Rockpalast program – by James and The Stone City Band, showing everyone in top-form. This DVD ought to clear up any misconceptions about how serious Rick James was about music, serving as a vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and style-switching ringleader…Fans of classic rock and classic television will surely enjoy the three-disc set that is “The Dick Cavett Show.” Featuring nine full music-centric episodes of the series, these DVD’s feature Dick Cavett alongside visionaries like David Bowie, George Harrison, Stevie Wonder, and Janis Joplin. Nearly ten hours in length, bonus materials include new introductions and a recent interview with Cavett. Fans of Ray Charles should also be pleased with “The Dick Cavett Show: Ray Charles Collection,” also available through Shout Factory.

If you have news to report for the next edition of Moving In Stereo, press releases and all other correspondence should be sent to darren.paltrowitz@gmail.com.

Moving In Stereo: Volume 17 Contest Giveaways

The following albums will be given away to readers of Moving In Stereo:

A Wilhelm Scream “Runner” (Nitro)
Daphne Loves Derby “On The Strength Of All Convinced” (Outlook)
Githead “Profile” (Swim)

To enter into the drawing, visit http://www.cityzen.tv/content/missubscribe.php. Three winners – one CD per person – will be selected at random and notified.