The Hope Blister: " . . . Smile's OK" (4AD)
Ivo Watts-Russell's latest musical project is a gorgeous, string-suffused collection of eight songs which effortlessly conjures up fond memories of This Mortal Coil's 1984 album, It'll End In Tears. The Hope Blister carries on where This Mortal Coil left off, uncovering precious musical gems and breathing life and beauty into each new interpretation. Singer Louise Rutkowski takes on the role previously filled by Elizabeth Frazer and Lisa Gerrard, suspending her shimmering voice over songs by Heidi Berry, David Sylvian, John Cale and Brian Eno. Songs such as Dagger, Outer Skin and Spider And I are echoing caverns of sound which make you want to turn off your mind, relax and float downstream.
By Kevin Courtney
Hothouse Flowers: "Born" (London)
The music of Hothouse Flowers was always about celebration. From the beginning, when Liam and Fiachna were little more than kids busking as The Benzini Brothers, right up to this album. However, now, most of the "flowers" are fathers themselves, have come through broken marriages or busted long-term relationships, embittering experiences in the music business and near collapse as a band. All these dynamics fuel songs like Turn Up The Reverb, Pop Song and Used To Call It Love. Liam is vocalising better than ever, when he doesn't try too hard to be a rock singer, and Fiachna and Peter are playing with the kind of passion that sounds as if they fear each recording may be their last. A "comeback" album? No. A "coming-of-age" album. Their best work to date.
By Joe Jackson
Jeannette Byrne: "Elegy" (BMG)
If you are a romantic you'll adore this album. Particularly if you've ever lived or loved in Paris while songs by the likes of Aznavour, Brel, Becaud and Leo Ferre echoed around little hotel rooms on the Left Bank. Her interpretation of Aznavour's La Boheme and Brel's La Chanson Des Vieux Amants capture all the pain and regret in both songs, while Legrand's His Eyes, Her Eyes ripples with unbridled sensuality. Sadly, in such a setting the songs by Paul Byrne pale into pastiche, particularly in terms of their lyrics. The jaunty reading of Let It Be Me also is a gross miscalculation. Even so, the album is worth owning even for that version of La Boheme.
By Joe Jackson
