Whitney Mann - The Western Sky

Whitney Mann - The Western Sky
2011, Mud Dauber Records

There are a number of things you might know Wisconsin for: beer, cheese, sausage and the Green Bay Packers.  The brightest light in Wisconsin might not be on your radar yet, but it won't be long.  Meet Whitney Mann, a traditional country singer/songwriter from Madison with an impassioned and pure voice (both as a singer and songwriter) who has open for such elite artists as Willie Nelson and Loretta Lynn.  Without varnish or any of the Nashville sheen, Whitney Mann writes honest, heartfelt songs born of farm and country life, and combines it with a rare ability to connect almost instantly with any crowd, large or small.  On May 10, 2011, Whitney Mann will release her second EP, The Western Sky, consisting of six original songs that might just blow your mind.

Mann opens with "Been Thinkin A Ways", a contemplative love song that's also something of a come on. Mann sings the song without artifice or design, speaking from her heart in song in a refreshingly unadulterated fashion.  "Home" is a traditional country-style number; stripped down with a bit of bluegrass influence.  Mann's voice is beautiful in its unadorned splendor, conveying thought and emotion through pure melody.  "Miss You On The Farm" and "Born To Love You" are both solid entries born of or inspired by love.  They serve as a running lead in to "I'm Like", a love ballad with a touch of vaudeville flair.  Mann falls a bit into cliché here, but the effort is so honest and heartfelt that cliché is reborn as simple truth.  "All I Want" is the piece de resistance on The Western Sky, a love song destined to be covered again and again.  If Mann were to re-record this number in a more pop/country arrangement she'd be storming the Billboard Country charts.  Mann revisits "Been Think A Ways" in a reprise that takes on gospel overtones on her way out the door.

Whitney Mann has an ability to connect with listeners.  Unfettered by pop conventions such as cynicism and what we call "polish", Mann simply writes great music, and performs it with the unaffected air of a best friend telling you about her life over a cup of coffee.  The Western Sky is the sort of EP you get comfortable with; listening to it again and again over time.  Whitney Mann doesn't blow you away, but speaks to listeners of life and love in the quite undertones of a confident.  The connection is forged, and you'll keep coming back for more.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Whitney Mann at www.whitneymannmusic.com.   The Western Sky drops on May 10, 2011.  You can pre-order downloads from Amazon.com.  Keep your eyes open for wider availability.

Flo Anito - No Dustbunnies

Flo Anito - No Dustbunnies
2008, Flo Anito

Flo Anito, a Washington, D.C.-based singer/songwriter who has garnered comparisons to Ani DiFranco, Fiona Apple and Nellie McKay, has been charming fans in the DC area and throughout New England for a couple of years now.  Her jazzy, piano-driven pop songs show off poetically prolific story-telling style with theatrical flair.  A graduate of Wesleyan University, Anito is classically trained in piano, voice and cello, and has a background in musical theater as well.  All of these facts offer hints of what is to come when first sit down to listen to Flo Anito's latest album, No Dustbunnies.  Anito worked with Chris Keup (O.A.R., Erin McKeown); Stewart Meyers (Lifehouse) and Brian Jones (Dave Matthews Band, Mandy Moore) to bring No Dustbunnies to life.

Anito opens with "Man Of The Year", a simplistic piano-driven arrange with a lace of strings added for atmosphere.  The song explores the angst of a new or prospective relationship; of wanting in but being afraid of getting hurt.  It's an intriguing start, and shows off a voice that's both gritty and pure; a sweet alto with a bit of tough-girl rasp.  "Uh Oh!" is catchy, stripped-down rock n roll that wouldn't be surprising in the background of a prime-time drama.  Anito's theatrical background comes out to stay for a while, starting with "Work!".  The song explores the complete thought process about a failing relationship, in a wordy yet well-flowing presentation that sounds like a modern Broadway/rock soliloquy.    If "Work!" is the internal conversation, the "Change My Life" is the external one that follows.  The melody is memorable, and the chorus in particular could get lodged in your head for days. 

"Mean" continues in the same vein, a catchy rocker with blues in its ancestry that explores the petty offenses and responses that dot a dysfunctional relationship.  This one is delivered in two acts: the first an early wakeup call that she didn't appreciate; the second her scheming for revenge.  Revenge and pathos make for an entertaining and tuneful trip into the dark reaches of the relationship psyche.  Country, blues and gospel blend on "No Good", a musical revelation that the relationship needs to go.  Anito gives you the entire rundown in lyrics that give you everything you could want to know while somehow avoiding the trap of too much information.  The chorus will stick with you, and you'll still feel the Broadway vibe that's run throughout much of the album to this point.

Things on No Dustbunnies have gone so well to this point that the coming slowdown is both expected and disappointing.  "dRuNKen LetTeR" is morose and self-serving, as it should be, but really dampens the entire mood that Anito has set to this point, and sounds very much out of place.  "Afghanagain" and "Valentine's Day Blues" are solid story songs, but lack the pizzazz and energy of what's come before, while "What You Don't Know Can Hurt You" serves as a placid transition to the close.  Anito sails off into the sunset with the jaunty, tongue-in-cheek Leave It To Beaver pop of "No Dustbunnies", funneling the frustrations of an old-time housewife into the cleanest home in town.  Rather than playing the song dipped in irony, Anito gives listeners the story in an authentic, time-stamped voice, which in its way is more ironic than the sarcasm often passed off as irony in pop culture.

The key to great pop music is simplicity.  Flo Anito appears to have learned this lesson well, constructing simple-yet-catchy pop tunes that are literate and fun.  Half of No Dustbunnies mines the culture of relationships for dysfunction and real emotion, presenting it all in a storytelling style that is equally at-home in the theater as it is on a pop record.  Anito manages this all in engaging fashion, wrapping you up in the web of strong narrative and infectious melodies that simply won't leave you alone.  The other half of the album is less winsome; functional in nature but lacking the pizzazz and charm that Anito is capable of.  All in all it's a worthwhile effort, but there are certainly some weeds in the flowerbed.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Flo Anito at www.floanito.com or www.myspace.com/floanito.  No Dustbunnies is available on CD from Amazon.com. Downloads are available from iTunes.

Big Trouble - 20 Years And A Million Beers Ago: The Very Best Of Big Trouble

Big Trouble - 20 Years And A Million Beers Ago: The Very Best Of Big Trouble
2011, Retrospect Records

Popular music is often about being in the right place at the right time.  This lesson was not lost on James Schmitt, Mike Wilkes, Dan Call (The Villains) and Chuck Strawhand, who bands, Big Trouble, were the darlings of the heavy rock scene in Atlanta in the early 1990's.  Opening for bands such as Skid Row, Jackyl and Extreme, Big Trouble built a large following and looked to be on their way to the heights of the rock world.  Then a little song called "Smells Like Teen Spirit" took over the radio.  Grunge was here to stay, and hair metal was a thing of the past, soon relegated to retrospectives by a new generation of rock fans.  Two decades on, all four members of Big Trouble are making music in various capacities, but thought it would be neat to dust off the old masters and see what they had.  The result is 20 Years And A Million Beers Ago, a collection of eleven studio and three live tracks from the band's heyday, and one newly recorded track that looks back on it all with a decidedly different sound.  20 Years... is due out on May 10, 2011.

20 Years... opens with "No Stopping Now", featuring the big guitar sound and full frontal vocals characteristic of 1980's hair metal.  The band rocks out in grand fashion, although the vocals are a bit weak.  There's a fair amount of formulaic material here that fits well into the era but fails to stand out.  "Way Out" is an exception, sounding like a wayward cross of Poison and Van Halen.  Released five years earlier on a major label, this song would have been a huge hit for the band.  Big Trouble shows its chops on power ballads with "Accidental Angel", which would have been a favorite at junior high dances in the late 1980's.  "Lost In Your Love" takes another crack at the power ballad style, but with a bit less success.  Big Trouble revives such fan favorites as "You Might Get Lucky", "Now You See Me", "Hot Shot" and "Seeing Is Believing" along the way.  The band closes with a new track, "Popcorn, Whiskey and Beer".  This is a huge sonic departure, more of an alt-country number that reflects musical growth and change in the individual members over the last two decades.  It's an ode to glory days and the sustenance of the time.

Big Trouble includes, as a bonus, three live songs.  "Candyland" is a pleasant surprise, sounding radio ready for the day and perhaps even now.  "Life Rolls By" reflects the other end of the spectrum, with vocals that just don't sound up to par.  The band's cover of Van Halen's "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" is middle of the road, but buoyed by a wealth of enthusiasm.

Sometimes it's best to let the past stay buried; others it's hard to know which way to go.  Big Trouble fits into the latter category.  There's certainly some material here that stands the test of time, but without label backing and mired in 1980's technology, 20 Years... reflects a band good enough to open for some of the big boys of rock n roll on a local basis, but never quite accomplished enough to make it themselves.  20 Years... will be a great bit of nostalgia for folks who perhaps saw the band play in the early 1990's, but won't build a significant second life for a band whose members have all moved on.

Rating: 2.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Big Trouble at www.reverbnation.com/bigtrouble1990.  20 Years And A Million Beers Ago: The Very Best Of Big Trouble drops on May 10, 2011.  You can get the album now from Amazon.com as a Download.  Keep checking for availability on CD if that's your thing.

Breanne Duren - Sparks

Breanne Duren - Sparks
2011, DurenDuren Records

Breanne Duren knows the grind of touring the world, having been on the road with Owl City's Adam Young.  Duren sang on Own City's 2009 album Ocean Eyes, and will also appear on the upcoming release All Things Bright And Beautiful.  While on the road, Duren began writing her own melodies, and upon returning from a tour of Japan, went into the studio with producer Mike Daly (Whiskeytown, Rachael Yamagata, Grace Potter And The Nocturnals).  The resulting five-song EP, Sparks, is out today

Sparks opens with "Goldmine", which takes a 1960's girl group vibe and blends with a heavy electro-pop backbone.  The song is all about figuring out your direction in the world, and is delivered in a wonderfully infectious arrangement that will translate well to pop radio as well as to the dance circuit (with a bit of re-mixing).  "No One Else" is pure synth-pop, complete with seemingly computerized vocals.  Duren's voice has a cute, little-girl quality to it at times, but the obvious computer enhancement here serves as more of a distraction than anything else.  The song itself is formulaic and bland pop.  "Catapult" finds Duren opening up the vocal throttle a bit, sounding something like Ashley Simpson in the process.  Duren explores the explosive growth of youth, where instinct and lack of perspective make most anything possible.  "Daydream" is an awkward bit of teen poetry set to a minimalist electro-pop arrangement.  Duren closes with "Summer Days", a retrospective pop ballad that yearns for the simple pleasures of young love.  Duren makes the most of her voice on this number, but the arrangement is a cynical marriage of pop sensibility and electronics without any real sense of progression outside of the atmospherics of bland new age music.

Breanne Duren mines the pop music archives of artists such as Debbie Gibson and Tiffany for "Sparks", not replicating the bubble gum sound per se, but offering a modern equivalent.  Duren has been lauded for her work with Owl City, and may be the real deal, but Sparks is so over-produced you're left to wonder what is really Duren and what is animation.  Sparks could have been much more.

Rating: 2 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Breanne Duren at www.breannedurenmusic.com.  You can pre-order Sparks through Duren's website.

Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown - Original Broadway Cast

Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown - Original Broadway Cast
2011, Ghostlight Records

The Lincoln Center's limited run of Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown ended much too soon, to judge by the original cast recording due from Ghostlight Records on May 10, 2011.  Jeffrey Lane (book) and David Yazbeck (music and lyrics) have taken the heart of Pedro Almodovar's 1988 Oscar-nominated film and infused it with their trademark wit and musical magic.  Under the direction of Bartlett Sher (South Pacific), the show received accolades from press both regional and national.  Lane and Yazback's (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) book and score set an impressive foundation set in 1980's Spain, exploring the love life menagerie of four women and the effects on those around them.

The cast alone will convince you to the buy the album:  Sherie René Scott,  Patti Lupone, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Laura Benanti, Nikka Graff Lanzarone, de'Ardre Aziza, Danny Burstein and American-Idol alum Justin Guarini bring the show to delirious life on CD/MP3.  Burstein is sort of the Jiminy Cricket of the crew, providing guidance to the characters as they revel in the social and sexual freedoms of post-Franco Spain.  He gets things started with the snappy "Madrid Is My Mama", setting the stage with a mammary obsession and Stax-Style horns all dolled up with Latin rhythms.  "Lie To Me" features Sherie René Scott and Brian Stokes Mitchell in stage-setter that establishes the unstable relationship that drives the later action.  "Lovesick" is one of the brightest moments on the soundtrack, with Sherie René Scott taking the lead on a clinical dissection of romantic desperation that is both funny and endearing.

Patti Lupone is front and center on the ever-changing "Time Stood Still", reminiscence on falling in love that transforms from a 1950's-style pop number to a Broadway soliloquy before settling into an R&B mode as it closes.  Laura Benanti takes narcissism to the extreme in "Model Behavior", perhaps the most hilarious turn of the show.  The series of answering machine messages show manically borderline tendencies and play them for maximum comedic effect, while also serving to derail the ultimate reconciliation between Pepa (Sherie René Scott) and Ivan (Brian Stokes-Mitchell).  "On The Verge" closes act one with a pure dose of insanity that's catchy and perfectly sung by the ensemble.

Sherie René Scott gives a standout performance on "Mother's Day".  It's the sort of performance that could (or should) single-handedly earn her a Tony nomination; a grand soliloquy that turns the action of the show toward the eventual resolution.  Scott is in perfect voice here, and sells the song like she's lived it.  Brian Stokes Mitchell follows with a catchy exploration of the permanence of love and the impermanence of its objects.  "Yesterday, Tomorrow and Today" is amusingly bittersweet, moving from the glory of bachelorhood into the beginnings of realization of what might be lost.  "Tangled" is the pressure point of the show, with the entire ensemble feeling the pains of the messy paths they've wrought.  Burstein acts as the strong shoulder/counselor that helps them get (mostly) back on track.  Patti Lupone's performance on "Invisible" is, well, Patti Lupone.  Need we say more?  "Shoes From Heaven" seems a somewhat disconnect closing number; perhaps making more sense in context of the actual performance, but definitely a bit out of focus on the cast recording.  The cast recording includes a bonus track, "My Crazy Heart".  This was the original opening of the show.  It's a solid tune, but it's evident why the song was cut.  It would have gotten things off to a less than smashing start, and doesn't really fit into the flow of the show as presented here.

Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown pleases on several fronts in spite of a somewhat weak closing number.  The entire ensemble is at the top of their game, but Sherie René Scott, Patti Lupone, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Laura Benanti stand out even from an exceptional cast.  This is one of those shows where the soundtrack never quite fits together as well in recorded media as it does in the context of the show, but is nevertheless an amazing document of a show whose run on Broadway was much too short.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown at www.sh-k-boom.com/womenontheverge.  The original cast recording drops on May 10, 2011 on CD.  Amazon.com has Downloads available, and pre-orders for the CD.  Digital versions are also available via iTunes.

Sister Act - A Divine Musical Comedy - Original London Cast

Sister Act: A Divine Musical Comedy - Original London Cast Recording
2011, Ghostlight Records

Ghostlight Records recently released the Original London Cast Recording of the musical Sister Act, to coincide with the show's opening on Broadway.  Olivier Award nominee Patina Miller is Deloris Van Cartier, the excitable and worldly showgirl hiding from mobsters amidst the nuns of St. Catherine’s.    With a musical score written by the great Alan Menken (Little Shop Of Horrors, The Little Mermaid, Beauty And The Beast), and lyrics by Cheri and Bill Steinkellner ("Cheers"), this is a case of matching a lead performer nearly perfectly with the songs.

Sister Act follows essentially the same story line as the movie of the same name, with Deloris both transforming and being transformed by St. Catherine’s.  The all-original score captures the sass and wit of the movie without mocking or copying too closely, segueing gracefully between 1960's Motown, 1970's disco/soul/pop and classic Broadway styles.  The flow of the album is amazing, the voices all top notch.  Highlights include the over-the-top "Fabulous, Baby!", the darkly-veiled platitudes of "When I Find My Baby" and the self-realization of "The Life I Never Led".  As an album, the ending is a bit anti-climactic and trite; a clear case of the pop/Disney-ization of Broadway in its purest form.  Nevertheless, the cast album works on several fronts.  Don't be surprised if Sister Act earns a handful of TONY nominations this coming year.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Sister Act at www.sisteractonbroadway.com.  Sister Act: A Divine Musical Comedy (Original London Cast) is available from Amazon.com on CD or as a Download.  The album is also available via iTunes.

Karrin Allyson - Round Midnight

Karrin Allyson - Round Midnight
2011, Concord Jazz

Karrin Allyson gets back to the roots of vocal jazz on her latest album, Round Midnight, due out May 5, 2011.  Allyson offers up twelve intimate portraits in song in understated yet emotionally vibrant fashion, recalling an era where small jazz clubs flourished and a sense of refinement enveloped the stage.  Allyson sings from the blue heartbreak of the speakeasy, covering both classic jazz vocal selections and modern songs in what may be the three-time GRAMMY nominee's most personal work to date.

Round Midnight opens with Bill Evans' "Turn Out The Stars", offering up a melancholy and emotionally heavy reading that brings out the sad nuance of Gene Lees' lyrics.  Allyson slows things down significantly and allows the emotion pool in perfectly articulated lines with her fashionably understated vocal style.  Paul Simon's "April Comes She Will" might seem out of place on the track list, but both the memorial of the passage of time and the depth of the human heart and Allyson's handling of the song are spot on.  "Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most" is a great, bluesy number about being stuck in the shadow of a love lost.  Allyson is expressive and refined here in what may her best vocal performance on the album. 

Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" gets the royal treatment; heartfelt and warm and full of palpable emotion.  Allyson stays very much true to the spirit of the original.  "There's No Such Thing As Love" features a toughness in the delivery that's a perfect spoil to the vulnerability and heartbreak underneath.  Johnny Mandel's "The Shadow Of Your Smile" is delivered in much the same fashion.  The flute solo here almost steals the show.  Stephen Sondheim's "Send In The Clowns" is a wonderfully nuanced and blue mood piece.  While not as dynamic as some of the famous renditions of this song, Allyson's take captures the emotion of the piece from a place that's dark and reserved.  Allyson closes with the epitome of loneliness in song.  "Round Midnight" (Thelonious Monk) is presented here with just Allyson and an upright bass for accompaniment.  Allyson's subtle and understated vocalization mixes perfectly with an almost free-form style in the bass part to capture hope maintained in spite of the loss of same.  This is a 'wow' moment almost in spite of itself.

Karrin Allyson sings at soundtrack of atmosphere, to be partaken of over a glass of whatever the bartender is pouring on the outskirts of desolation.  The refined and classy beauty that Allyson brings to the dregs of human emotion is refreshing.  With a touch for phasing and a voice full of quiet beautiful, Karrin Allyson will remind listeners of a time when it wasn't so much the singer as the song that mattered.  While she is in front on Round Midnight, Allyson is often an equal part of the ensemble that simultaneously documents the tragedy of human suffering in song, while soothing the hearts of those who seek an oasis in spirit and song.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Karrin Allyson at www.karrin.com or www.facebook.com/karrinallyson.  Round Midnight drops on May 3, 2011.  You can pre-order the album from Amazon.com on CD or as a Download.