Hairspray - Soundtrack To The Motion Picture

The new 'film based on a musical which was based on a film' Hairspray isn't a movie this reviewer is particularly keen on seeing, indeed it's the kind of film I would go out of my way to avoid. So what hope does the soundtrack have of getting a good review? Well, we're nothing if not open-minded here at Entertainment Manchester, so we've given the Hairspray a fair listen and... it's not actually that bad. Sure Marc Shaiman's production is as slick and mindlessly glossy as you could possibly imagine, while the 'repeat listening' value of a musical soundtrack is of course fairly limited. How many times can you ever want to listen to Michelle Pfeiffer's hugely irritating dance lesson/nostalgic recollections of (The Legend Of) Miss Baltimore Crabs? Once is quite enough, despite the quite nice swells of a Broadway orchestra in the background. Generally though, the music is all decent pastiches of 60s music, from the Ronettes-style opener Good Morning Baltimore to the Motown of The New Girl In Town, and of course the big Welcome To The 60s number, which is only slightly ruined by the presence of John Travolta (at least you can't actually see him in drag). Most of the performers (particularly the male ones like Zac Efron) are quite bland and deliver generic performances, while it's frankly disturbing to hear Christopher Walken comparing Travolta to 'stinky cheese' in the nightmare-inducing (You're) Timeless To Me. However, this soundtrack is saved from being awful almost single-handedly by newcomer Nikki Blonsky as central character Tracy Turnblad, because she has an excellent voice that adapts well to the various styles she has to sing in and unlike her most of more established co-stars, she brings a real life and zest to her songs. It's still not a soundtrack that will appeal much to anyone who doesn't like the film, but it's far from a complete disaster.

Transformers - The Album

The obvious temptation with this soundtrack - as with the movie when it comes out - is to compare to the 1980s cartoon version, and there's no way it can possibly match up to that, at least from the perspective of someone who grew up with Transformers. Vince diCola's score might sound horribly cheesy and dated to non-fans nowadays, but to the rest of us it's legendary. But obviously it wouldn't work for a 2007 live action film, so instead we have a bunch of rock songs instead by bands ranging from Linkin Park, Smashing Pumpkins and Goo Goo Dolls (ie, bands we've all heard of) to the likes of Styles Of Beyond, Julien-K and Idiot Pilot (people none of us have ever enountered). Being a Michael Bay film, there's obviously a dependency on noisy stuff, hence the likes of This Moment by Disturbed, and of course there's the ballad, Before It's Gone (Sam and Mikaela's Theme) which is a classic Goo Goo Dolls love song, which is to say that it sounds a lot like Iris. The rest of it is quite random really, with HIM gothing the place up with Passion's Killing Floor and Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda rapping on Second To None with Styles Of Beyond. For the old fans there's Mutemath's slowed-down version of the Transformers Theme, though that's not from the film (nor are a few of the other songs) and has already divided the faithful, though it's pretty good really. Technical Difficulties by Julien-K is quite appropriate metal machine music for the film, but most of the rest of it seems to have basically nothing to do with Transformers at all. With the Linkin Park and Pumpkins songs available on their most recent albums (the latter reviewed above), this is hardly an essential purchase, but it's alright for what it is.

Smashing Pumpkins - Zeitgeist

As has already been noted in plenty of reviews so far, Zeitgeist is a completely inappropriate title for this album from the new Smashing Pumpkins. The zeitgeist is a place Billy Corgan and Co haven't been anywhere near for over a decade now, and this album is not going to change that. Circa 1995, they were one of the biggest things around, with Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness a massive album not just in terms of ambition and length, but also popularity. However, following it up with the elegaic and electronic Adore (still one of the most underrated albums of the 90s) was an act of commercial suicide and thrust the Pumpkins out of the limelight, something that Corgan's legendary ego can't have enjoyed, and it has been a downhill slide ever since. After two failed solo projects he announced a couple of years ago that he was getting his old band back together again, but even three of his old bandmates weren't particularly interested anymore, so the new line-up has only drummer Jimmy Chamberlain of the familiar faces (indeed, on this album there's only actually the two of them). Zeitgeist has been released with a remarkable lack of fanfare or critical acclaim, so is this all another disaster for poor Billy? In musical terms, certainly not, and the irony is that if the Smashing Pumpkins had released Zeitgeist back in 1997 when its title might still have been appropriate, it would have sold a hell of a lot more copies than Adore did and than it will do now. What the fans seemingly wanted back then was a straightforward rock album in the spirit of Gish and Siamese Dream, and that's what Corgan has delivered here, with the only real criticism being that it is maybe a little TOO straightforward at times. It's certainly one of the heaviest albums of their career, with the guitars turned up to 11 at all times, not least on opening track Doomsday Clock (from the forthcoming Transformers movie) and recent single Tarantula. What's remarkable about it is just how much is sounds like a Pumpkins album, even after the split and without the likes of James Iha, D'arcy or Melissa Auf Der Maur. Corgan's voice sounds as good (or bad) as it ever did, having stood the test of time much better than his contemporary Chris Cornell's ravaged vocal chords, and the song-writing here is much stronger than on the Zwan album or his solo album. Despite the relatively 'safe' approach to the music at times, he isn't afraid to push the envelope at times either, with epic centrepiece track United States lasting almost ten minutes and is at times utterly ridiculous, but somehow works overall as a wonderful piece of rock excess, something that the Smashing Pumpkins have always been good at, for all of their early shoegazing credentials. You can argue about whether this should really be called a Billy Corgan solo album all you like, but you can't argue that the Pumpkins name has brought focus back to one of the biggest talents in US alt.rock, and Zeitgeist is a triumphant return.

Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House

You know what you're getting with a Josh Rouse album. Since moving to Spain he has been releasing an album a year of smooth country-folk singer-songwriter music, and Country Mouse City House continues the trend of Nashville and Subtitulo. The question is, does this mean that Rouse is not progressing or pushing himself, or has he found a nice groove that he and his fanbase are comfortable in? Perhaps it's a little of both, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. One of the most underrated artists in his genre because of the laidback nature of his music and his lack of pretensions or political outbursts. Indeed, the most exciting thing Rouse does with his music is occasionally bring in jazzy horns on tracks like Italian Dry Ice and Hollwood Bassplayer, two of the most immediate songs on Country Mouse City House. He's decidedly uncool, with no attempts to attach himself to any kind of zeitgeist, preferring to stick to the kind of music the likes of James Taylor and co were making in the early 1970s and that's all for the better, as it suits his voice perfectly. Domesticated Lovers sees girlfriend Paz Suay on backing vocals again (after their duet EP She's Spanish I'm American, which came out a few months ago) and it's a typically lovely ballad with hints of Lou Reed (at his most mellow of course) at times. The undoubted highlight of the album though is the delightful London Bridges, with a delicately bouncy rhythm, pretty melodies and quirky touches that make it a classic Josh Rouse song. Country Mouse City House won't change the world, but it's another low-key slice of genius. Same time next year Josh?