Colin Marshall

April 22, 2004

Bowie Brings a Breath of Fresh Air

By Colin Marshall

In today's troubled musical climate, one wonders how to escape the choking morass of teenage weltschmerz, slipshod technical ability and half-baked political dissent so prevalent in live shows.

April 8, 2004

Blondie | The Curse of Blondie | Sanctuary

By Colin Marshall

The life of a music critic has its ups and downs. Sometimes you’ve got to trudge through seemingly endless streams of dreck, but occasionally – just occasionally – you get to hear an album full of sexua...

April 8, 2004

Franz Ferdinand | Franz Ferdinand | Domino

By Colin Marshall

Every so often, a foreign band that's already been hyped to such a degree that many music fans are pre-convinced of its greatness comes across the water.

March 4, 2004

The Cooper Temple Clause | Kick Up the Fire, and Let the Flames Break Loose | RCA

By Colin Marshall

While listening to Kick Up the Fire, and Let the Flames Break Loose, the second album from British up-and-comers the Cooper Temple Clause, I couldn't help but adopt the persona of a desperate high school coach. "Come on,...

February 26, 2004

John Frusciante | Shadows Collide with People | Warner Brothers

By Colin Marshall

I concede that, even before hearing Shadows Collide with People, the latest solo album from Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante, preconceptions were formed.

February 19, 2004

Kanye West | The College Dropout | Roc-a-Fella

By Colin Marshall

Kanye West is alleged to be the next big thing in the realm of mainstream hip hop, and on this, his debut album, he's chomping at the bit to convince the world of his importance.

February 12, 2004

Elbow | Cast of Thousands | V2

By Colin Marshall

British rockers Elbow say they play "progressive rock without the solos." While the first half of that quote delighted me, the second half induced a wave of crushing disappointment.

February 5, 2004

The Special Goodness | Land Air Sea | Epitaph

By Colin Marshall

During Weezer's hiatus in the late 1990s, drummer Patrick Wilson's ennui motivated him to form the Special Goodness, a side-project featuring himself on vocals and guitar with Moth's Atom Willard drumming.

January 22, 2004

Kelis | Tasty | Star Trak

By Colin Marshall

Brought to stardom by legendary production team the Neptunes, R&B singer-songwriter Kelis Rogers is back with Tasty, her third and most elaborate album to date.

January 8, 2004

The Darkness | Permission to Land | Atlantic

By Colin Marshall

Having already made a sizable dent in the U.K. charts, 1970s-influenced hard-rockers the Darkness have brought their product stateside, and what an in-your-face product it is.