Nothing like a four-day weekend to bring the lazyness out of me. I have accomplished nothing and it was glorious. To my surprise my thanksgiving leftovers are almost finished. I wasn't too keen on the idea of bringing turkey sandwhiches to work anyway.

I have been having a little fun on Hoogerbrugge earlier today. I choreographed a little dance move Britney and X-Tina could add to their act. Type: T-T-T-N-N-U-N-U-C-U-T-B-C-M-N-T-C-S-S-S. If that doesn't get fantastic applause from the audience they could try a few Z's to end the night.

Below are two reviews that I worked on this weekend. Next on the agenda are Isobel Campbell's Amorino and Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham's L'Avventura.

Metric
Old World Underground, Where Are You Now?
Everloving, 2003
Rating: 8.0/10
Buy it at Amazon.com

I don't recall who recommended this band to me a few weeks ago but I'm glad they did. I ended up listening to the first track I.O.U. and immediately was taken by the voice of Emily Haines (ethereal and sexy), rhythm and melodies. The Toronto-New York-Montreal-Los Angeles-Brooklyn band's first full length offering was recorded in two months. Their sound can be described as a little bit of New Order, Blondie and The Cars. Yes, yet another 80s new wave pop band. They would fit perfectly in 1983 and with recent trend of bands also in 2003. Most of the tracks like 'Combat Baby' and 'Succexy' are upbeat and danceable while others like 'Calculation Theme ' and 'Love is a place' presents simple, low-key yearnings about existence. Forget that both Emily Haines and James Shaw were members of the Broken Social Scene or that they shared a pad with members of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the Liars.  Metric's catchy lyrics and pulsations doesn't thwart away other elements. I have a feeling that they put on a great live show (performance art and all).

Ben Lee
Hey You, Yes You
F-2 Music, 2003
Rating: 5.8/10
Buy it at Amazon.com

If someone were to ask me if I was a fan of Ben Lee, I would honestly answer yes. Now if someone were to ask me if I was a fan of his latest effort then I would declare a firm no. Maybe you are aware of how Ben Lee came on the music scene. If not, here's a refresher course. At the tender age of 13, Ben was in an Australian band called Noise Addict. After a few years with Noise Addict, Lee decided to go solo. With three albums under his belt (Grandpaw Would, Something to Remember Me By and Breathing Tornados) before reaching 21, he was coined the boy genius or too mature for his age (see Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes fame). I think that's about it. Oh, forgot to mention his old girlfriend was Claire Danes and he's collaborated with Ben Folds and Ben Kweller forming The Bens. An EP was recorded but might not see the light of day due to their respective label hindrance. Now we are all caught up. This time around for his fourth album, Lee went searching for better production and landed producer Dan the Automater (Gorillaz, Deltron 3030). There's not much there to grab you on this album.  It has the prescribed amount of synths, beats and loops. Remnants of libretto barely flit around the beats before tapering away. Perhaps his next attempt will find the balance of lyrics and sonics he was hoping Hey You, Yes You would accomplish.  

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