CD reviews

Blank Dogs

Under and Under
(In the Red)
9.2

Goes well with: The Cure, Love & Rockets, monster movies with the sound turned down

While the identity of the Brooklyn musician behind Blank Dogs remains somewhat of a mystery, it’s probably a safe bet he’s got a shitload of Britpop bootlegs in his collection.

After years of cranking out limited-edition releases with various Brooklyn labels, Under and Under is Blank Dogs’ national coming-out party (the CD features 15 tracks; the double album has 20). The latest offering from this one-man wonder is a deeply nostalgic record full of huge hooks and deep distortion. Loaded with surf, synth and spooky riffs, the songs are a marriage of post-punk pop and lo-fi dark wave.

Hopped-up bass lines and analog beats lay the foundation, freeing the guitars to go after mood-altering effects. It’s a great combination reminiscent of the loopy bass playing of David J. paired with Daniel Ash’s astral axe. The guitar on “L Machine” is like a scalpel slicing into the melody. The vocals are uniformly distorted non-sequiturs stripped of theatricality that come floating in on icy bat wings: cold but catchy.

The buzz is legit, the lack of hype refreshing. Under and Under is evocative, enigmatic and not to be missed.

Lee Fields & The Expressions

My World
(Truth & Soul)
7.8

Goes well with James, Otis, Al, Marvin, Smokey

Close your eyes. Imagine James Brown. Doesn’t matter what version. Think of the voice. Think of the mic-stand trickery, the ubiquitous backdrop of horns, the kneeling and cape draping, the rhythmic grunts and “good gods” punctuating soulful hooks, the spoken bits of wisdom in between the verses.

Got it? Then you’ve got Lee Fields as well. In the 1970s, Fields released funk and soul singles that would eventually be coveted by rare-groove DJs. He was so linked with the Godfather of Soul that he was known as “Little J.B.”
Parallels to others in the Hall of Groove continue from there. Normally, it’s sacrilege to draw comparisons between anyone and Otis Redding, but Fields’ husky cadence rings true with a similar automatic authenticity. Easygoing ballad

“Honey Dove” finds Fields channeling the Rev. Al Green and “The Only One Loving You” could’ve just as easily been found on Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.”

The 13-piece, producer-assembled Expressions (not including back-up singers The Del-Larks) provide a perfect combination of retro and contemporary sounds as a landscape for Fields to wander. And while originality isn’t the prominent allure here, this is genuine soul music.

Yppah

They Know What Ghost Know
(Ninja Tune)
7.2

Goes well with: Ulrich Schnauss, Ride, Loop, Dabrye

If music is food for the soul, then this sophomore release from Houston DJ Yppah—you know, “happy” backwards—is a strange little all-you-can-eat buffet. Executive chef Jose Corrales Jr. again works from an extensive ingredient list, drawing from apprenticeships in a turntablist collective and various rock bands to heavily flavor each instrumental dish.

Album opener “Son Saves the Rest” wastes no time in using old shoegaze recipes that go on to season the mix throughout. It’s followed by the proposed “single,” “Gumball Machine Weekend,” with a simplistic piano chorus reminiscent of Psapp.

All of Ghost adheres to the smorgasbord aesthetic, and each track stands as its own course. The key-heavy “Moon Scene 7” channels the Alan Parsons Project and seamlessly gives way to the title track, an imagined mash-up of DJ Shadow’s “Organ Donor” and a Ray Manzarek-fronted Doors tune. The inappropriately titled “Sunflower Sunkissed” leans more toward My Bloody Valentine’s gloom, and the hyper tempos of “Parking Lot Carnival” finds ’60s psychedelia simmering beneath the surface.

The components in the mixed grill here never quite add up to the perfect meal, but it does provide quite a tasty little snack.