Killing
Joke
Killing
Joke: Killing Joke
Killing
Joke singer Jaz Coleman's reputation as post-punk's own Nostra-damus
has always been undermined by the fact that we have not yet reached
the end of the world.
However, global events have added weight to his prophecies and fuelled
the most incendiary Killing Joke album in over 20 years. From the
opening barrage of The Death and Resurrection Show, this is classic
Killing Joke, as Coleman pours fire and brimstone over everything
from oil-pillaging wars and Britain's kow-towing to the US, to GM
crops and earth-threatening asteroids.
The
jackhammer grooves are beefed up by former Nirvana drummer Dave
Grohl, returning a debt owed since Nirvana borrowed a KJ riff for
Come As You Are. Otherwise KJ have rarely boasted such songs to
match their sound.
Loose Cannon returned the band to the Top 40 after nine years; Blood
On Your Hands is timely and disturbing, while the reflective, melodic
You'll Never Get To Me shows that the calm can be just as effective
as the storm.
Andrew
Roachford: Heart of the Matter
Since
he first found fame back in the late 1980s with the single Cuddly
Toy, Andrew Roachford has uneasily straddled pop success and soul
greatness. But with Heart of the Matter Vol 1, he's rediscovered
his jazz, classical and retro roots. The result is a beautiful collection
of songs that embrace both the positivity of life and the hopelessness
of love.
From the sparkling keyboards and authorative piano beneath the almost
pleading incomprehension of Love Games to the cocksure big dreams
of Ordinary Life, Roachford has poured himself into every delicate
melody and each sparse rhythm, creating his own Songs In the Key
of Life.
For In and Out My Life he mixes the sweet style of Stevie Wonder
with the blood and guts of Marvin Gaye and throws in Bill Withers'
Ain't No Sunshine harmonies, proving just how confident he's become.
The
Billboard Top Ten Albums
1.
Soundtrack, Bad Boys II
2. Chingy, Jackpot
3. Beyonce, Dangerously In Love
4. Brooks & Dunn, Red Dirt Road
5. Ashanti, Chapter II
6. Evanescence, Fallen
7. 50 Cent, Get Rich Or Die Tryin'
8. Luther Vandross, Dance With My Father
9. Norah Jones, Come Away With Me
10. Pat Green, Wave On Wave
Top
Ten R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
1.
Soundtrack, Bad Boys II
2. Chingy, Jackpot
3. Beyonce, Dangerously In Love
4. Ashanti, Chapter II
5. Luther Vandross, Dance With My Father
6. Da Brat, Limelite, Luv & Niteclubz
7. Monica, After The Storm
8. Three 6 Mafia, Da Unbreakables
9. Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Kings Of Crunk
10. 50 Cent, Get Rich Or Die Tryin'
Top
Ten Country Albums
1.
Brooks & Dunn, Red Dirt Road
2. Pat Green, Wave On Wave
3. Toby Keith, Unleashed
4. Lonestar, From There To Here: Greatest Hits
5. Trace Adkins, Greatest Hits Collection, Volume
6. Shania Twain, Up!
7. George Strait, Honkytonkville
8. Kenny Chesney, No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems
9. Buddy Jewell, Buddy Jewell
10. Tim McGraw, Tim McGraw And The Dancehall Doctors
Top
Ten Independent Albums
1.
Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Kings Of Crunk
2. The Peter Malick Group Featuring Norah Jones,
New York City
3. Various Artists, Vans Warped Tour 2003 Compilation
4. Dwight Yoakam, Population: Me
5. Craig Morgan, I Love It
6. Hot Hot Heat, Make Up The Breakdown
7. Alkaline Trio, Good Mourning
8. Louie DeVito, Louie DeVito's Dance Factory Level
9. Dropkick Murphys, Blackout
10. Various Artists, Punk -O- Rama
