He describes his latest solo album, Sinister Swing (Intervention), as a “musical journey from jazz-induced trip-hop to new millennium synth-pop to avant-garde minimalism”.
It’s very retro in a Depeche Mode fashion, actually, with synth melodies, Eighties-flashback beats and Nyte even sounding like Dave Gahan in places (no real swing, though).
Mostly this works — combined with the “minimalism” Nyte mentions, it results in simple but stirring tracks, such as opener Revival with its brooding vocals (“If you lie to me again I’ll say goodbye”) and the strings on Real. The livelier tracks are upbeat, though the single Fingertips, which floats along happily on its synth pop-rock wave, would have benefited from a stronger chorus.
Unfortunately, the days of Depeche Mode are over, and too much of a good thing, well, you know. So, by the second half of Sinister Swing, tracks like Rogue and The Cutting Room just sound old. The minimalist touches on Borrow the Hatchet with its Twin Peaks-like foundation or the contemplative Fading, which ends the album in a languorous way, should have been applied to more of the album.
Still, it’s a good listen; the music will suit Nyte’s atmospheric stage act well. He just should not dwell on the past too much.
Celtic Rumours: Slow Rain: The Complete Celtic Rumours (Fresh)
Part of the Retro Fresh series that revives and digitally remasters seminal South African music and albums from the past, this is a tribute to the late Kevin van Staden’s great band that sailed the local charts in the Eighties and early Nineties, complete with testimonies from drummer Ross Campbell, who played on This Day, and bassist Lars Lofstrand, as well as a selection of photographs. Included are 18 tracks, from Wish and This Day to Wishing I Was Lonely, Should I Stay, The Fall and Innocent Child — a showcase of Celtic Rumours’s smooth pop sound (sometimes a lot like Simple Minds) and their place in South African music history. Esteemed guests on these tracks include Dan Hill, Mauritz Lotz, George van Dyk and Syd Kitchen. — Riaan Wolmarans
Simple Plan: No Pads, No Helmets … Just Balls (Atlantic)
Too bad these Canadian boys didn’t have the balls to break away more from the Blink 182 camp and create a unique sound. Their easy pop-punk is too juvenile and only fleetingly entertains. It’s not even as naughty as Blink 182’s tunes. — RW
Ringo Starr: Ringo Rama (David Gresham)
The former Beatle relies on his musical past with melodic rock that often borrows the sounds of the Fab Four, David Bowie, Paul McCartney and Wings and even Roy Orbison (his growl is incorporated into the catchy Memphis in Your Mind). Eric Clapton guest-stars on guitar on Never Without You, a tribute to Starr’s former band mate George Harrison. Ringo Rama is a happy dose of old-fashioned rock’n’roll with too much of a lads-at-the-pub vibe to make a dent in today’s demanding rock scene, but it’s good to see Starr isn’t about to fade into complete obscurity. — RW