Tricky - Knowle West Boy

I finally got hold of a copy of this last week, following its belated US release - the Chilean release date sadly yet to be confirmed. "Knowle West Boy" is easily his most accesible album yet and without doubt the best thing he's released since his debut, Maxinquaye, 13 years ago. Sounding far more energetic and less asthmatic than on previous releases, Tricky has managed to craft something almost catchy and I like it. He even rocks out on this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqioPHIU6xk

Oh yeah, and there's a Kylie cover.

Return of the Trumpets

Calexico's latest, "Carried To Dust", heralds the triumphant return of the mariachi trumpets which were sadly muted on the folk rock by numbers of their last effort, "Garden Ruin". This is a much more eclectic affair and thankfully they seem to have returned to scoring their own imaginary westerns. I'm a big fan of the recent upsurge of popularity of Glockenspiels and Accordions on records, and on this one, as well as making great use of these old favourites, Calexico manage to incorporate a huge array of other weird and interesting instruments including, an Omnichord 1983, a Venezuelan Cuatro, a Chinese Guizeng, a Guiso, a Vibraphone, a Bottle Cap Rattle, and a Cassette Player, perhaps explaining why they sound like no other band. No other band that I've heard anyway. There's no single song on the album that rivals "Crystal Frontier", "Ballad of Cable Hogue" or "Minas de Cobre", but its a good listen and works well as a whole."Two Silver Trees" is a real grower, while "Man Made Lake", "Inspiracion" and the instrumental "El Gatillo (Trigger Revisted)" are the standout tracks.

Here's the "Two Silver Trees" video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCA0_bNXAao