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Reviews of new pop, country / roots, jazz and classical releases

By The Philadelphia Inquirer, Source: MCT News Service

Pop:

VAN HALEN "A Different Kind Of Truth" (Interscope, 2 1/2 stars)

Eddie Van Halen is on fire, but where are the songs?

There's a lot that's good, and good-natured, about "A Different Kind Of Truth," the first album that the still-combustibly carefree-sounding rock quartet bearing the name of Van Halen (as well as his drummer brother Alex and bassist son Wolfgang) has recorded with David Lee Roth in 27 years.

For one thing, there's Roth, who reunited with the band for a tour in 2007 and has joined the VH family for a much-anticipated tour. The 56-year-old professionally charming cad has lost much of his vocal range.

But he still knows how to have a good time, whether offhandedly noting in "The Trouble With Never" that "selective amnesia is only a heartbeat away" or delighting in the philosophical ponderings of the turbocharged, talking blues in "Stay Frosty." Roth's self-mocking flamboyance qualifies him as one of rock's great showmen, and when that's coupled with the dazzling dexterity of Eddie's lightning runs and a thunderous rhythm section, you're back behind the wheel of that Camaro you drove in 1985 with a beer between your legs.

The trouble is that even though many of the songs are reworked versions of 1970s demos (or maybe because of that), with a few notable exceptions like "Blood and Fire," they're largely lacking in the melodic pizzazz that turned VH into such a hit machine in their heyday. A complete, respectable effort that avoids nearly all of the pitfalls typical of decades-in-the-making reunions, but short of songs that can stand up to "Hot for Teacher."

_Dan DeLuca

PHENOMENAL HANDCLAP BAND "Form & Control" (Tummy Touch, 3 stars)

On "Form & Control," Phenomenal Handclap Band's second album, the New York sextet leads with the catchy electroclash tune "Following." Next up is dancehall disco, then some glam- and art-rock thrown in for good measure. Much of the album, in fact, is an homage to eras-past melodies, instrumentation, and lyrics, with even ABBA-inspired attire and coiffures.

What's missing from "Form & Control," however, are the soul influences inherent in the group's name. They were readily apparent on the group's 2009 self-named debut album, where the band recreated the soulful, sensual, and playful '60s without resorting to blatant derivation.

"Form & Control" is hit or miss, unfortunately. When they're on, songs are catchy and memorable, such as their take on Blonde Redhead's no-wave ethereal garage-rock in songs like "The Written Word" and the album's title track. But a number of tracks are predictable and uninspired, holding back this otherwise solid album.

_Katherine Silkaitis

PERFUME GENIUS "Put Your Back N 2 It" (Matador, 3 stars)

Mike Hadreas' music is the soundtrack to a shiver. Rather than a product of fear or desperation, that quake is passionate, coming from something so deeply felt that it gives an audible quiver to everything he does.

Hadreas, the man behind Perfume Genius, has a small trembling voice and a large, brave lyrical palette, one that since his 2010 debut "Learning" has embraced not only gay sex and sensuality, but the humanity behind such orientation. Mothers, sisters, lovers, and hookers are all part of Hadreas' eerie, earnest grand opera.

As with Antony Hegarty, Marc Almond (Soft Cell), and Cat Power at their quietest, there's a creaky, emotional, chamber-pop elegance at work here. It could be the emptiness of addiction that fuels "AWOL Marine," the words left behind after a gay suicide throughout "17," or the raw eroticism of the title track. Each phrase is sung with a mix of pain and happy empowerment. Hadreas says it best on "Song" when he sings, "No secret / No matter how nasty / Can poison your voice / or keep you from joy." That may not make him a genius, but it does make him pretty darned wise.

_A.D. Amorosi

TENNIS "Young and Old" (Fat Possum, 3 stars)

As a prelude to their second album, Tennis released covers of songs from Brenda Lee, the Zombies and Broadcast, and those three artists, especially the first two, suggest a few of the Denver band's templates. Like their peers in Best Coast and Cults, Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore are enamored of the sweet, orchestrated although done in homespun fashion.

Credit producer Patrick Carney of the Black Keys for the tougher and sharper sound of "Young and Old" in comparison to last year's Cape Dory, although the girl-group melodies and Spector-ish drumbeats remain. Tennis songs are shamelessly nostalgic, and part of the fun is hearing the echoes of the past reverberating throughout this brief album, whether of Brenda Lee, Duane Eddy or early Motown. Riley and Moore are less comfortable toying with soul and samples on "Petition," but Young and Old proves this young band is adept at seducing with old styles.

     _Steve Klinge
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     Country / roots:
     DIERKS BENTLEY "Home" (Capitol, 3 stars)

Dierks Bentley gets his new album off to a rousing start with "Am I the Only One," which has already been a No. 1 hit. It's a honky-tonk-inflected party anthem but a smart and witty one _ in other words, it's Bentley at his country-mainstream best after the foray into rootsier, acoustic-based sounds on 2010's "Up on the Ridge."

"Home" occasionally flirts with generic country-rock ("Gonna Die Young") and ballads ("Breathe You In"). But mostly Bentley shows why he has deservedly become a star _ whether it's with twinkle-in-the-eye crowd-pleasers ("Diamonds Make Babies") or more soulful and somber-minded efforts such as "When You Gonna Come Around," a duet with Little Big Town's Karen Fairchild.

Bentley makes his usual foray into quasi-bluegrass with "Heart of a Lonely Girl," but the album's most striking number is the title song. It's a rarity in country music _ a song about America that manages to be clear-eyed and unsentimental, while remaining deeply patriotic and moving.

_Nick Cristiano

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Jazz:

CHICK COREA / EDDIE GOMEZ / PAUL MOTIAN "Further Explorations" (Concord Jazz, 3 1/2 stars)

The new century has been good to pianist Chick Corea. He has reprised his great fusion band Return to Forever; played duets with Japanese pianist Hiromi; put out a concerto recording; and made a string of solo, trio and quartet CDs.

Here Corea, 70, continues his forays by enlisting two of Bills Evans' great sidemen _ bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Paul Motian _ for a live set devoted to the late pianist's songbook and a few additions.

This double-CD collection, recorded at the Blue Note in New York in May 2010, is a sonic feast for the trio format. Corea is wickedly formidable, whether it's teasing out a classic bop tune such as Todd Dameron's "Hot House" or waxing all cosmic. The set gets too spacey at times, but Corea scores with another stellar session.

     _Karl Stark
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     Classical:
     BEETHOVEN

"Piano Sonata No. 29 "Hammerklavier" and Liszt's Annees de Pelerinage, Premiere Annee" Andreas Haefliger, piano (Avie, two discs, 4 stars)

"Piano Sonatas No. 2 Op. 2 No. 3; No. 21 Op. 53 and others" Alice Sara Ott, piano (Deutsche Grammophon, 3 stars)

"Piano Sonata No. 5 Op. 10 No. 1; No. 11 Op. 22; No. 12 Op. 26, and No. 26 Op. 81a" Jonathan Biss, piano (Onyx, 3 1/2 stars)

All piano recording careers come round to Beethoven sooner or later, and though Jonathan Biss is completely ready on this new disc, Alice Sara Ott has a way to go. Both pianists scale their performances with few if any outward quirks and tempos that never leave the middle of the road. And though Ott delivers any number of beautifully arresting phrases (she's a fine Chopinist), Biss makes the sonatas consistently speak within the interpretive confines he has set for himself. Though Biss' recordings can seem all-too-well-mannered, this one shows that gentility and comprehension aren't mutually exclusive.

The standard-setting Beethoven recording of the bunch is Andreas Haefliger's, and not of just any sonata, but Op. 106, whose far-flung technical requirements and long, introspective spans of music make it Beethoven's most challenging keyboard work. Few "Hammerklavier" performances are this complete, taking in the big picture as well as the tiniest details. In general, he meets the piece at eye level rather than peering up at it from afar. His concentration is incredible, and as a result, so is that of the listener. His Liszt (which fills out the set's second disc) is among the smartest to come out of that composer's recent

     _David Patrick Stearns


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