Published on Jan 14, 2005
Local Music Now is the Brooklyn-based brainchild of Bob McKee,
whose stated goal is to promote local music on a national basis
through the pages of
www.localmusicnow.net. This particular
double-CD packs 31 songs by 31 talented New York City artists, and
is the first of several planned discs featuring local artists from
various cities across the nation.
The volume of high-quality local NYC music crammed into this
package is fairly staggering, matched only by the variety. Disc one
kicks off strong with the appealing “Live,” a bouncy,
philosophical, catchy-as-hell cut from Sheryl Crow write-alike
Jennifer Marks; just three tracks later, you’re on a musical acid
bender with a collective that combines elements of Andrew Lloyd
Webber, Frank Zappa and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (Black 47 is the
group; “Fatima” is the track).
Just when you’re recovering from that twist, Sirsy kicks in with
some tasty Joan Armatrading-ish electric funk on “By July.” Nadine
Goellner, Rebecca Hart and Julia Darling all contribute thoughtful
folk-rockish cuts, while Ben Ratliff offers a growling electric
blues called “Permanent Midnight.” Tucked in the middle of disc one
you’ll also find Daily Vault fave
Bryan Master‘s acerbic confection
“Karmacide,” a treat for any fan of “pop” songs with bite and
resonance.
More highlights: Mitch Van Doff’s earnest country-rock; the
“streetwise Alanis” sound of the marvelously named Nefertiti Jones;
Sam Bisbee’s Matthew Ryan-ish raw-boned indie rock; and Nathan
Caswell’s sparklingly funny road trip with “Einstein’s Brain” (if
you’ve ever wondered what rhymes with Nagasaki, listen up).
The most memorable pair of tracks on disc two, though, starts
with Edible Red’s deliriously fun No-Doubt-meets-Bette-Midler cut
“Sugar And Spring.” Anybody who can make you want to get up and
dance while rhyming “bada boom bada bing” with a straight face is
alright by me. Its opposite number in more ways than one is
Second2Last’s socio-cultural hip-hop manifesto “Issues Of Today” —
a cut whose real, honest, soulful poetry reminded me in spirit of
early ’70s Stevie Wonder. Props also to Don McCloskey for his
memorable closer “Ending The Mission.”
Frankly, there isn’t enough space here to list all the good
music on these two little discs. It is incredibly rare for me to
find a compilation album that doesn’t make me want to hit “skip”
several times before I get through it. Not so with
New York Cares About Local Music: 2004. Through all the
variety and occasional unevenness in quality, this is one of the
most consistently entertaining compilations I’ve ever had the
pleasure of hearing, maybe that much moreso because every track
resonates with the hunger and determination of real local
musicians.
It’s also worth noting that this collection benefits both the
good musical works of Local Music Now and the humanitarian efforts
of New York Cares, the city’s premier volunteer organization,
providing opportunities for 27,000 people every year to serve New
Yorkers through a variety of community-based programs.
[For more information or to purchase this disc, visit
www.localmusicnow.net.]