Friday’s picks!

ilentertainer — Wed, 19 May 2010 20:18:25 +0000

Showtime, May 21st

This week’s highlights include Dengue Fever, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, and JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound.

Yep, that’s two soul bands and another with a Cambodia fetish. Dengue Fever, return to Chicago pushing a new album, just not necessarily one of their own work. People have been waiting years for Dengue Fever – two Californian brothers and their Indochinese frontwoman – to expose some of the rare recordings that influenced their sound. Electric Cambodia (subtitled “14 Rare Gems From Cambodia’s Past”) does just that, with a delightfully campy (to us) inversion of psychedelic Western pop and surf rock featuring Cambodian lyrics. Like Chinese Democracy, however, it’s neither as fantastically awful nor unprecedentedly beautiful as hoped. Among standouts like “Jombang Jet” and “Snaeha” by Pan Ron are some spins as exotic as anti-war Vietnam films. Sadly, many of these musicians were killed or silenced by the regressionist Khmer Rouge; with a wide array of tools and steep learning curve, some great, original music was surely at hand. (@Empty Bottle with I Kong Kult and Aleks & The Drummer)

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings‘ I Learned The Hard Way (Daptone) is the latest swingin-hips R&B slam in the indie revue revival. Actually, that’s not quite the case as the band move into more sensual fare than the funk that characterized the last two albums. Without quite morphing into Carla Thomas, Stax vibes emanate from “If You Call” and “Mama Don’t Like My Man.” The Dap-Kings — who assisted Amy Winehouse on Back To Black — provide a travelogue of ’60s and ’70s R&B, starting in Detroit and landing in Philadelphia after Memphis. (@Vic Theatre with The Heavy)

If Jones is Thomas or Aretha, JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound are James Brown and The J.B.’s. The Chicago-based soul kings put most of their weight on dance grooves, running on the fence between cheeky homage (see “Baltimore Is The New Brooklyn”) and hard funk, but a slick cover of Wilco’s “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart” proves they plan to move things forward. (@Metro with Blah Blah Blah, Hollows, and Lasers + Fast + Shit)

– Steve Forstneger

Daptone Gold reviewed

ilentertainer — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:04:56 +0000

Various Artists
Daptone Gold
(Daptone)

Lee Fields, Naomi Shelton, Charles Bradley: these are names that all fans of classic soul music should know, but likely don’t. Along with Sharon Jones, these are vocalists who have been baring their life on the mic for years yet weren’t given the proper platform until connecting with Brooklyn-based funk, gospel, and soul imprint, Daptone – the very label that’s celebrating its best thus far with Daptone Gold.

Given the sheer amount of soulful jams the label has released in the past seven or so years, it would be hard to mess up a compilation like this. Still, even listeners who have heard a bulk of these tracks will be surprised – not just by the rarities like the bluesy “Down To It” but by how well every song here flows together. The lo-fi, heart-digging R&B of Charles Bradley & Menahan Street Band (“The World”) seamlessly combines with the upbeat soul of Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings (“Got A Thing On My Mind”). As many of the same musicians back up different Daptone vocalists, there’s a consistency with the warm horns, twangy guitars, and dusty drums that keeps this collection consistently funky, regardless of the mood.

9

– Max Herman

Illinois Entertainer » Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

Friday’s picks!

Daptone Gold reviewed