Roni Size and Reprazent
New Forms
Mercury

The Cure
Galore
Electra

Roni Size and Reprazent
New Forms
Mercury

Roni Size and Reprazent, two popular English techno gurus, have teamed up in a two-CD collaborative effort, New Forms. This is good news for club DJs, but itâs not news for layfolk.

For even the most rampant techno fiend, the CD is too general for everyday listening. It lacks catchy riffs and unique vocals, but thatâs probably exactly what the group is going for. Its sound is a bore at home but possibly a pleasure to mix.

The grinding repetition, familiar in most of electronica, is not creative enough to keep listeners interested for a couple hours (two CDs provides enough room for 23 long tunes). But it will give DJs an excellent selection of material to manipulate, dub and transpose.

The male vocals on ãRailingä are entrancing but not attracting. They lack the flair and personality of the Prodigyâs Maxim Reality and the luminous, mind-altering nature of Underworldâs vocals.

Still, itâs a creative use of monotony. His never-changing voice skips from beat to beat in a funk-filled way.
The acoustic-esque ãBrown Paper Bagä starts out with a good idea and a unique mix of the surreal and the real, but the 9-minute song overdosed on it. Too much of a good thing is a bad thing.

The title track sports a sassy female vocalist strutting her stuff. Unfortunately there isnât much to strut. What she is doing has been done before and doesnât deserve to be revisited.

Her soul sounds unnatural and just insults listeners. Her attempt at originality falls flatter than an end-of-an-episode Mr. Bill.

The CD jacket boasts that the group and the Spice Girls were recently nominated for the same award in Britain.
Whoops! Fire the marketing genius who put that there.
­ by Ricardo Baca

The Cure
Galore
Electra

Avalanche jerseys arenât a rarity at McNichols Sports Arena, but they are when gothic god Robert Smith is wearing one. His band, The Cure, shot down rumors of a separation two years ago when they played before sold-out crowds across the country.

Other rumors that the group was about to release a new album but wasnât going to tour have circulated recently across the Internet. This one actually proved true.

The new album, Galore ÷ The Cure singles collection 1987-1997, pays tribute to the bandâs last five albums and also includes a new, spicy treat.

The biggest incentive for long-time Cure fans to buy the album is their newest single, ãSorry, Wrong Number.ä It is a quasi-electronic effort interspersed with classic Cure songwriting.

Smith is known for personalizing his songs by including different quotes ÷entire conversations sometimes ÷ within his songs.

His abstractly vague songwriting is again successful as he sings about ãThe sickly sweet colors of the snakes Iâm seeing ÷ lime, green, lime, green and tangerine are the sickly sweet colors of the devil in my dreams.ä

For those not familiar with the band, Galore will provide a half-life history. As with any other best-of album, it is a collection of the bandâs favorite and most successful songs. Newcomers need to buy Standing on a Beach, which showcases the bandâs greatest hits from 1978 to 1986, to get a glimpse of the full spectrum.

Also included on the collaboration, and all previously released: ãWhy Canât I Be Youä and ãJust Like Heavenä are from the album Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me.

A personal favorite of mine (and Smithâs), ãCatch,ä about one of Smithâs imaginary girlfriends from his youth, also made the cut.

ãLovesong,ä the bandâs biggest U.S. hit which left no room for misinterpretation, and ãPictures of Youä were added from Disintegration.

A revamped version of ãClose to Meä is one of two releases from Mixed Up, and ãFriday Iâm in Loveä made it from the album Wish.

After a 4-year hiatus, the band came back with Wild Mood Swings, a diverse effort including songs with Latin origins (ãThe 13thä) and up-beat tunes reminiscent to the early â80s (ãMint Carä), both of which are on the CD.
As Smith put it: ã10 years in 73 minutes ÷ the drowning man indeed!ä

­ by Ricardo Baca