There is no shortage of discs by singer/songwriters landing on my desk these days. It's good to see so many people flexing their creative muscles, but the sad part is that very few are even mildly interesting.
So, it's a nice surprise that this week, some good ones arrived -- most from abroad -- and in a range of styles.
First up was a surprise arrival by British guitarist Kris Dollimore, who was a member of The Godfathers and Del Amitri. His solo debut "02/01/1978" (Sun Pier Records/Cargo) -- named for the day he got his first guitar (there's picture of the event on the cover) -- comes out of left field as it features Dollimore wearing the hat of a Delta bluesman. Best of all, his blues are gritty and down home, unlike the brassier, noisier British blues kind. Dollimore proves himself to be more of a John Lee Hooker than an Eric Clapton.
Bristol-based Rose Kemp dishes up her U.S. debut, "A Hand Full of Hurricanes," on One Little Indian, and it's a brash, edgy alt.rock-based outing that infuses touches of ambient and folk. All of it is layered with Kemp's tortured vocals. Think PJ Harvey's house, but with a welcome mat on the doorstep instead of shards of broken glass.
Also from the UK is Astrid Williamson, born in Shetland, Scotland. Her third solo disc, "Day of the Lone Wolf," is also out on One Little Indian and is a completely different affair. Spooky, dreamy, wispy, ethereal, "Day of the Lone Wolf" is minimalist art pop with melodies and alluring vocals. It's really a great record.
Alexei Murdoch was just here in Milwaukee, touring in support of his disc, "Time Without Consequence," on his own Zero Summer Records. That record led Rolling Stone to dub him one of its 10 artists to watch. His 11-track record is intimate and mellow and acoustic and recalls Nick Drake, but without the mythic proportions. It's likeable and interesting, but I'm not sure I wouldn't just opt for "Pink Moon" instead.
On the other hand, there's Paolo Saporiti's "The Restless Fall," on Italy's Canebagnato Records. Beautifully packaged, this 12-track disc doesn't feel Italian at all. Saporiti (pictured above) sings in English -- with barely a trace of an accent -- and his music is rooted in British and American folk. Tender and quiet, listening to "The Restless Fall" feels like peering into Saporiti's open bedroom window and eavesdropping on him singing alone. It's sweetly melodic and wonderfully and darkly charming.
Lastly, but certainly not leastly, is the debut disc from Sweden's El Perro del Mar (aka Sarah Assbring) on Control Group. The super-minimalist record -- mostly just Assbring's voice and an instrument or two -- has drawn comparisons to Julee Cruise , the Beatles and Brian Wilson. But her traditional girl group pop melodies conjure up Phil Spector's productions. But while Spector found inspiration in his Wall of Sound, Assbring knows how to wring every drop of emotion and power from a screen of sound or even just the reflection of sound. This one is an early contender for the year-end top 10 list.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
