Madness – Oui Oui, Si Si, Ja Ja, Da Da (Lucky 7 Records, 2012)
Three years after an acclaimed comeback LP and following this summer’s triumphant appearance at the London Olympic closing ceremony, Madness have returned with a new record – a warm, inviting collection of a dozen-plus tunes. There’s no shocking reinvention here, no modernist production flourishes, no contrived updating of their sound. It’s simply, beautifully, a really good Madness record.
All the sides of the group are on display here: sketches of day-to-day life in Great Britain, cheerful platitudes and plaintive reflections, slinking reggae-influenced interludes, joyous skanking ska anthems. It’s one great tune after another, winding, wistful slices of song, melodies so perfect and concise that they could be carved into marble or rung from the top of St. Paul’s Cathedral.
I find it really inspiring that a band in their 33rd year of recording is still making music this good. The beauty of Madness is their consistency, their finesse, their craftsmanship. They keep marching along, sounding like they always have – and in doing so, they sound better than ever.
Viv Albertine – The Vermillion Border (Cadiz Recording Co, 2012)
Viv Albertine is one of the great unsung heroes of punk. She was a member of The Slits, played alongside Sid Vicious and Keith Levine in the legendary band The Flowers Of Romance, and her distinctive guitar style was one of the defining sounds of late the 70s UK music scene. And she effectively retired from music in the early 80s to become a full-time artist and filmmaker.
And then, in 2009, she picked her guitar back up and began to tour and record again. She released an EP under her own name in 2010, and now, she’s unleashed this, her first full-length solo album.
It’s a pretty astonishing listen. It has plenty of the chirpy, angular textures that she pioneered with The Slits, but mixes in some breathy atmosphere, some girl-group harmony backing vocals, some herky-jerky rhythms, and some swirling detuned electric pulses. It’s mellower and quieter than her earlier work, but that reserve should not be mistaken for softness. This is a confident artist, completely in control, and every move matters. Old compatriot Mick Jones lends some guitar to ‘Confessions Of A MILF’, and other featured musicians include Tina Weymouth, Glen Matlock, and Jack Bruce.
This isn’t an easy record to categorize – simple labels like “singer-songwriter” and “post-punk” and “chanteuse” could be applied, but they only give part of the picture. It simply sounds like an album that had to be made. It’s incisive and focused, keeping a cautious distance while expressing intense emotion. I find myself holding my breath while listening, so I don’t miss a single moment.