Primal Scream: "Vanishing Point"(Creation) Dial-a-track code: 2191
Bobby Gillespie and his Scream Team are back on form with this very worthy successor to Screamadelica, and though it doesn't quite match up to the Primals' seminal 1991 album (nothing ever will) it's certainly a welcome departure from the retro rockisms of 1994's Give Out But Don't Give In. With former Stone Roses bassist Mani on board, the Scream are all revved up and ready to go, and Vanishing Point sees them hurtling down the highway like cosmic beatniks. While the rest of the world goes barmy for big beats, Gillespie once again struts against the grain, going for laid- back hipster funk and atmospheric, radar-lovin' blip-hop. Burning Wheel smoulders and sputters with cranked-up sound effects, If They Move, Kill 'Em goes down in a burst of sax and violence, and Kowalski is a tangle of wired-up industrial sounds and pylon-sized basslines.
UB4O: "Guns In The Ghetto" (Virgin) Dial-a-track code: 1971
Don't be fooled by the mock-revolutionary Third World title - Ali Campbell and his troop of coffee-table guerillas are just peddling a streamlined brand of soft-reggae, a Caribbean-flavoured dub with all the bite taken out. This was recorded in Jamaica and Birmingham, and there are traces of an organic process in songs like Hurry Come Up and Tell Me Is It True; but tunes like Always There and I Love It When You Smile betray their bland hearts with a flourish of syrupy synths. Oracabessa Moonshine is toe- curlingly tourist-friendly, swathed in sunshine and jacaranda trees, but also stuck in the sand. The title track shoots political blanks, while Friendly Fire uses the image of love as a weapon, missing Cupid's target by a mile.
The Vard Sisters: "Heavenly" Dial-a-track code: 2081
This is a beautiful album. Beautiful voices singing beautiful spirituals which are given quite beautiful settings by producers Michael Casey and John Drummond. Indeed, the arrangement of a hymn such as Ave Maria reminds those who might have forgotten that its main melodic line is a thing of exquisite beauty, a winding ribbon of notes ever-rising towards the divine. Even so, too much beauty can lead to overload - and for those who prefer a spiritual such as How Great Thou Art sung out with the gritty dynamics that define, say, a black choir, this album may be a disappointment. Then again, maybe producer, Bill Somerville-Large wanted an ambience that is almost New Age, and the blend sure has proven to be popular with the Irish public. But, next time, The Vard Sisters really should be allowed to spread their wings beyond the purely ethereal.
