SOUND CHECK.TOM WAITS: ``Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards'' (Anti/Epitaph) - Three and one half stars This three-disc magnum opus separates Waits' major themes by genre. The first takes in roadhouse road·house n. An inn, restaurant, or nightclub located on a road outside a town or city. roadhouse Noun a pub or restaurant at the side of a road Noun 1. blues and rock such as ``Fish in the Jailhouse,'' seemingly interpreted by a paranoid schizophrenic coming off a three-day bender. The second reveals Waits' sublime affinity for the maudlin maud·lin adj. Effusively or tearfully sentimental: "displayed an almost maudlin concern for the welfare of animals" Aldous Huxley. See Synonyms at sentimental. in such tracks as ``Little Drop of Poison,'' in which he coaxes a lot of emotion out of a voice thick as road tar spiked with bathtub gin. The final CD in the package is the repository for everything that defies easy classification, from demented carny car·ny also car·ney n. pl. car·nies also car·neys Informal 1. A traveling amusement show; a carnival. 2. One who works with a carnival. soundscapes to esoteric spoken-word missives. -- Len Cutler MICHELLE MALONE: ``Sugarfoot'' (SBS See Small Business Server. ) - Three stars A blues-rocker with a tender-tough voice, Malone sounds like a thoughtful Joan Jett. She also plays all the bottleneck acoustic and power-chord electric guitar on her new album, as well as copious blues harp and, strangely but pleasingly, mandolin mandolin (măn'dəlĭn`, măn`dəlĭn'), musical instrument of the lute family, with a half-pear-shaped body, a fretted neck, and a variable number of strings, plucked with the fingers or with a plectrum. . A clever songwriter, Malone evokes raunch (``Tighten Up the Springs'') and romantic regret (``Black Motorcycle Boots'') with equal non-wimpy effectiveness. -- Bob Strauss CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1) no caption (Tom Waits) (2 -- 3) no caption (CD covers) |
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