Spin Control: Cd reviews

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Updated: August 4, 2011 4:20PM

Rockabilly

Wanda Jackson, “The Party Ain’t Over” (Nonesuch) ★1/2

The party may not be over, but let’s come up with an excuse to duck out. Wanda Jackson, whose career as an icon of her genre is now at least three times as long as her original heyday, returns this week with a new set of tunes and a high-profile collaborator. But this party’s crowded and loud and kinda uncomfortable.

Jack White, he of the White Stripes, first worked with one of his classic country heroines in 2004, when he produced Loretta Lynn’s “Van Lear Rose.” At best, that album was a solid-oak monument to an Americana artist justifying her reverence (“Portland, Oregon” remains an awesome accomplishment in bridging the sounds of two generations); at the very least, she wasn’t singing Beck covers for Rick Rubin, a la Johnny Cash. White’s results with Ms. Jackson, however, aren’t nearly as sturdy.

Jackson, an Oklahoma native, is slavish to the textbook definition of Midwestern rockabilly. White’s attempts to stretch the boundaries here with cartoonish horns (some of the arrangements, like “Busted,” bounce around like Carl Stalling scores for Bugs Bunny) and various otherworldly effects (lots of eerie echo, like the music is broadcasting from a 1950s border-blaster station) don’t draw Jackson out of her shell, they just make what’s going on inside noisier and less distinct. Add to that Jackson’s strange tenor, which at 73 has gotten pretty dry, and the reckless revelry of songs like “Rip It Up” sounds like the goofing of a pre-teen. When she slows down, she’s more hit (“Rum and Coca-Cola,” despite the chatty organ) than miss (a cover Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good” grates), but she doesn’t slow down much.

Thomas Conner

Alt-rock

Deerhoof, “Deerhoof vs. Evil” (Polyvinyl) ★★★1/2

Can a band be too normal? That’s the complaint some fans and critics had of Deerhoof’s 2008 release, “Offend Maggie.” It was by no means a bad record, but it just felt a bit straightforward in its double guitar, classic rock antics. And straightforward is a word rarely associated with San Francisco’s Deerhoof, best known for its art house-meets-krautrock stylings. On Deerhoof’s latest, “Deerhoof vs. Evil,” the band abandons the riff rages from “Maggie” and instead delivers a quirky pop album full of disjointed melodies and ragged grooves.

Deerhoof definitely dialed back some of the twitchy dynamics from its earlier material, which were at times nearly dizzying, and opted for a more relaxed, organic feel.When the bouncy acoustic strumming of “Behold a Marvel in the Darkness” transitions into spacey guitar play from guitarists John Dieterich and Ed Rodriguez, it sounds more like a natural progression than a calculated decision. The polished approach of “Super Duper Rescue Heads!” features twinkling synthesizers and sugar-sweet vocal hooks from front woman and bassist Satomi Matsuzaki.

Still, Deerhoof hasn’t completely abandoned its edgier side on “Deerhoof vs. Evil.” Drummer Greg Saunier funks up the stagnant bass of “The Merry Barracks” with his drunken, lumbering beats, and swinging, ZZ Top-inspired guitars power the beefy rock of “Secret Mobilization.”

While “Deerhoof vs. Evil” certainly isn’t as musically reckless as the band’s past releases, it’s perhaps Deerhoof’s most engaging work yet as their art-rock sensibilities hold up quite well in the pop spectrum.

Richard Giraldi

sWING

Roomful of Blues, “Hook, Line & Sinker” (Alligator) ★★★

It would be easy to dismiss Roomful of Blues as just another band that’s playing out the string with “Hook, Line & Sinker.” The Rhode Island-based group is most often hailed for its longevity — 40-plus years — and its impressive alumni registry, which includes Duke Robillard, Ronnie Earl, Al Copley, Sugar Ray Norcia and Lou Ann Barton. The latest configuration of the horn-driven swingtime and R&B octet is led by guitarist Chris Vachon, a founding member, and alto saxophonist Rich Lataille, with three old hands plus new members filling out the roster.

Roomful is known for its original material, but the 12 songs that make up “Hook, Line & Sinker” are covers. Another minus is the fact that the pendulum of public interest has swung away from swing and jump blues, the group’s forte. Despite all these drawbacks, Roomful has managed to crank out a good-timey record with many more keepers than throwbacks.

The title track, Earl King’s smiley-faced uptempo number about a girl who has what it takes to get you hooked, sets the tone, along with Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown’s ripe-for-soloing instrumental “Gate Walks to Board,” one of two Brown numbers. Swing stalwarts such as Amos Milburn (“Juice, Juice, Juice”) and Floyd Dixon (“Time Brings About a Change”) were wise additions, along with Don Robey’s “Win With Me Baby.” The party goes on, and it leaves no sinking feeling.

Jeff Johnson