Friday, August 31, 2007
A+E, Music, Reviews

Blaqk Audio; Mandy Moore

 

Blaqk Audio CREDIT: Courtesy of Universal Music Group

Blaqk Audio Wednesday, Sept. 5 The Loft $23 404-885-1365 www.theloftatl.com

Mandy Moore CREDIT:Courtesy of Firm Music

Mandy Moore w/Rachel Yamagata Thursday, Sept. 6 The Roxy Theatre $23.50 404-249-6400 www.livenation.com

“CexCells”
(Interscope)

The long-lasting “Retroplex” weekday show on 99X has just been taken off the air, which doesn’t bode well for Blaqk Audio’s retro-propelled debut. Inspired by their love of ’80s techno, Jade Puget and Davey Havoc of AFI dial back the time machine to the good old days—20 years ago—when Depeche Mode was making groundbreaking pop.

The resulting 12-song set doesn’t push envelopes as much as it wraps itself around an established sound that originally inspired pasty-faced fans to smudge on black eyeliner, wear Doc Martens and dress like extras from “Night of the Living Dead.”

The creeping anxiety is reflected in sinister titles such as “Cities of Night,” “Snuff on Digital” and “The Fear of Being Found” that encapsulate the European lush synths and brittle edges Peter Murphy perfected after leaving Bauhaus. For those who weren’t born the first time this sound crossed over to MTV, Blaqk Audio nails it with all of the driving synth drums, swooshing blips and bloops, radio-ready hooks and baritone vocal bellowing you can stuff into 51 minutes. Complaining that this is old news isn’t beside the point; it is the point. And to that end, “CexCells” is a success on its own limited terms.

But if this album is no better, darker or more decadent than Depeche Mode’s “Music for the Masses” or “Black Celebration,” to name just two established classics of the genre that are still available, why bother? We’ve been there, done that, and have the shrunken, moth-eaten T-shirt in the bottom drawer to it. TWO AND A HALF STARS—Hal Horowitz

Mandy Moore
“Wild Hope”
(The Firm Music/EMI)

Breaking news! Former tween pop princess and all-American actress opens her diary and writes songs with collaborators. Stop the presses!

What, that’s not a front-page headline? Well, you coulda’ fooled me, especially after plowing through a pound-heavy press kit overflowing with color reproductions, cover stories and fawning accolades for Mandy Moore’s first plunge into “adult” singer/songwriter fare on “Wild Hope.” Even established music writers are gushing with barely contained praise.

Unfortunately for Moore, jumping into the singer/songwriter pool invites comparisons with similarly aged peers such as Brandi Carlile and Kathleen Edwards—artists whose visions and talents are so far beyond Moore’s that it seems unfair to mention them in the same sentence.

It’s commendable that Moore took this step, going indie and joining her rather sophomoric lyrics with somewhat simplistic melodies provided by collaborators such as the Weepies, Rachel Yamagata and Lori McKenna. Still, the slick instrumentation combined with Moore’s pouty vocals and clichéd confessions that make Jewel seem like Dylan, are, at best, weak next to other, less-photogenic songsmiths who have been scuffling for years to catch a break.

Moore is America’s sweetheart, hurting from a rough breakup—break out the violins. But all the sympathy in the world doesn’t make her a good lyricist. Even though “Wild Hope” tries hard, it seldom succeeds in landing a quality melodic hook. Take Moore’s name and gauzy likeness off the cover and then see how much print this lukewarm album generates. TWO STARS—Hal Horowitz