Listening Booth

PJ Harvey - 930 Club Washington, DC 9/10/2001

A fan blows upwards from the stage, making her long dark hair float around her head like a shot in some rock video. Lights low, just PJ and her electric guitar. She's handling "This Mess We're In", a song she does on her new album with Thom Yorke of Radiohead, just fine solo. Beautiful in fact. Simple, pure, hitting the high notes smooth and loud. Showing her full range and why she just may be the most talented woman in rock. Sometimes simple is better. She finishes and the crowd roars. The rest of the band comes out and she gives up her guitar as they launch into "The Whores Hustle and the Hustlers Whore". Guitars churning, volume growing. The band is tight, working as a single unit. Songs from the new album went from the fierce "Kamikaze", which brings to mind the raw power of songs from PJ's debut album "Dry", to the gentle "Horses in My Dreams" to the over the top "Good Fortune" and "Big Exit". It wasn't all new stuff though. Long time fans got to hear older songs like "Man-sized", smoldering with emotion, while "Down By the Water" brought a giant fish to the stage by an audience member. The show wrapped up with Polly doing several new songs and leaving the crowd begging for more.
- Joe Whitehair

Artist: Karma To Burn
Album: Almost Heathen

Tired of all the crap that's getting played on the radio, with it's silly lyrics and wanna-be metal riffs? Well, plug into Karma to Burn and forget about those fools trying to run rhymes. K2B doesn't have time for spewing nonsense lyrics. In fact, they can't be bothered with words at all. This West Virginia 3 piece is just about making heavy music. They can't even be bothered with song titles. Instead, they just use numbers. Check out songs like Thirty-Nine, Thirty-Six, and Nineteen for heavy, distorted bass, monster riffs and pounding drums. Better yet, catch them live when they come through town. They'll peel the paint off the walls and make your ears bleed. In a good way. Goes good with moonshine from the holler.
- Joe Whitehair

Artist: Iggy Pop
Album: Beat Em Up

What can you say about the godfather of punk, except that he's still got it. Pick up the new album, Beat Em Up and find out why this old man's music crushes most of the contrived BS on the radio that passes for rock. It's not perfect, the opening track "Mask" starts off with a pounding beat, but becomes repetitive and never quite makes it's potential. Get past this though, and you get the pounding L.O.S.T., with it's heavy guitar work interspersed with flashes of tweaked notes. Guitarist Whitey Kirst shows strong song writing and playing talents here, it's not all Iggy. "Howl" wails like a Halloween horror movie theme, while the title track rocks out with it's heavy groove guitar and punchy vocals.

Iggy's had a good career. Every album hasn't been great (anyone remember Brick by Brick?), but he's had more hits than misses and this proves he still has more rock and roll up his sleeve. Fifteen songs of the real deal.
- Joe Whitehair