∂ Trash it ∂∂ Bypass it ∂∂∂ Consider it ∂∂∂∂ See it ∂∂∂∂∂ Worship it

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII C1 SATURDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2012

‘Close the Distance’Go Radio (Fearless)½

With a second rock-solid full-length album in as many tries as the frontman for Go Radio, it seems like Jason Lancaster has officially left Mayday Parade behind him. “Close the Distance” is more consistent than last year’s “Lucky Street” and finds Go Radio on the cusp of something truly special. Lan-caster and his bandmates have settled into a comfort-able groove on this 11-track collection of driving rock tunes.

Things get off to a fast start with “I Won’t Lie” and “Baltimore,” and Go Radio additionally hit all the right notes on “Go to Hell,” the title track, “Things I Don’t See” and “The Ending.” It’s hard to break free from the emo pack, but Lancaster has done it.

‘Don McLean: American Troubadour’Don McLean (Time Life)½

Don McLean will be for-ever known for his epic mas-terpiece “American Pie,” but casual fans might be sur-prised to learn there is much more to the singer/songwrit-er’s life and music than the tune named the fifth-best song of the 20th century. “Don McLean: American Troubadour” is a fascinating 84-minute documentary that focuses on the 67-year-old’s life and enduring career.

While plenty of attention is justifiably given to “Amer-ican Pie,” the DVD explores other classic songs (“Vin-cent,” “And I Love You So,” “Crying,” “Castles in the Air,” “1967”), and through extensive interviews with McLean and others exam-ines this influential artist’s fascinating life. A must for music lovers.

‘Observator’The Raveonettes (Vice)

One of the things I like best

about Danish indie duo the Raveonettes is their ability to reinvent themselves musi-cally. Their early albums sounded like retro throw-backs to the days of malt shops and motorcycles and they switched gears in 2009 with the deliciously gloomy “Raven in the Grave.” For sixth album “Observator,” Sune Rose Wagner and Sha-rin Foo strip things down and serve up their most inti-mate recording yet.

The nine-track, 31-minute release sweeps by too quickly, but there’s more than enough time to appreciate standouts like “Young and Cold,” “Curse the Night,” personal favorite “Sinking With the Sun,” “She Owns the Streets” and “You Hit Me (I’m Down).” Can’t wait to see what direction the next record takes them.

‘4th Street Feeling’Melissa Etheridge (Island)½

Heartland rocker Melissa Etheridge has been churn-ing out quality records for almost a quarter century and latest effort “4th Street Feel-ing” is a worthy addition to her impressive résumé. The 15-track release finds Ether-idge looking back warmly on her life and career, and her

signature raspy drawl has never sounded better.

Songs like the title track, “The Shadow of a Black Crow,” “Be Real,” bluesy gem “Rock and Roll Me,” “The Beating of Your Heart” and “Change the World” are flat-out fantastic and make “4th Street Feeling” an album you should seek out.

‘The Soul Sessions Vol. 2’Joss Stone (S-Curve)½

Joss Stone was just 16 years old when she took the world by storm with her debut album “The Soul Sessions.” This fresh-faced young Brit with a big, big voice put her stamp on a series of Ameri-can soul classics and it made for one of 2003’s more enjoy-able records.

Stone hasn’t quite become the superstar I thought she would, but has a handful of enjoyable albums on her résumé. And keep in mind, she’s still just 25.

She tries to recapture that magic on “The Soul Ses-sions Vol. 2,” with varying levels of success. The album is rock-solid, but can’t mea-sure up to the jaw-droppingly good original. Stone’s voice is awesome, if a tad dra-matic, and she serves up nice renditions of “I Got the...,”

“While You’re Out Looking for Sugar,” “Teardrops,” “I Got The Blues,” “Pillow Talk” and “Stoned Out of My Mind.” Not her best effort, but still a fascinating platter.

‘The Garden of Love: Songs of William Blake’Martha Redbone Roots Project (Blackfeet)

Having cut her chops per-forming retro soul and R&B, singer/songwriter Martha Redbone has made a pretty dramatic shift in her music with her latest project, “The Garden of Love.” This 12-track collection of Appala-chian folk songs set to poetry of William Blake is a revela-tion. It’s as if Redbone finally found her musical calling.

You won’t find a bad song in the bunch, and Redbone is especially effective on the title track, “Hear the Voice of the Bard,” “On Another’s Sorrow,” “I Heard an Angel Singing,” “A Poison Tree” and “Why Should I Care for the Men of Thames” (with Jonathan Spottiswoode). Highly recommended.

‘Natchez Trace’Kevin Bowe & the Okemah Prophets (self-released)

Kevin Bowe started his career playing in punk bands before transitioning to the world of folk/rock. With pals Peter Anderson and Steve Price joining him as the Okemah Prophets, Bowe has cobbled together a twangy gem in “Natchez Trace.” It’s a sprawling, 17-track release that, while a smidge over-stuffed at 58 minutes, is so good you won’t mind at all.

The opening one-two punch of “Fallen Satellites” and “Long Goodbye” are fan-tastic, and Bowe & the Oke-mah Prophets also deliver the goods on “Power Trip,” “Everybody Lies,” “Waitin’ for the Wheel,” “My Favorite Pain” and “Every Little Bit Hurts.” the centerpiece of the set is “The L.A. Suite,” a trio of tunes that showcase Bowe’s gifts.

Go Radio’s new album offers more consistent, solid tunesby JEFFREy SISK

NEW YORK — Tony Bennett doesn’t speak Spanish and he was not familiar with most of the Latino artists he recorded with for his new album, “VIVA Duets.” But to his delight, the great American crooner dis-covered some common ground while recording: “They sing with the heart.”

The 12-track album, out on Monday, includes collabora-tions with superstars like Christina Aguilera, Gloria Estefan and Marc Anthony, as well as names like Chayanne, Juan Luis Guerra, Thalia and Ricardo Arjona. Songs include “Steppin’ Out With My Baby,” ‘’Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me),” ‘’For Once In My Life,” ‘’The Best Is Yet To Come,” and “Return To Me (Regresa A Mí),” an English/Spanish duet with Mexican great Vicente Fer-nandez.

Bennett greeted The Associ-ated Press for a recent inter-view while surrounded by his oil and watercolor paintings in his art studio in Manhattan (with a real life landscape of Central Park as a backing). He

was putting some finishing touches to a watercolor he was working on while whis-tling the tune “Fly Me To The Moon.”

He’s as proud of his art work as of his singing career, professing his love for both art expressions and showing proudly how, as an octoge-narian, he’s just taking on sculpting with a bust of his friend Harry Belafonte. “It’s a lifetime study I enjoy very much,” he said.

The Associated Press: You recently turned 86 and you keep recording, traveling, painting. .... What is the secret of your longevity?

Tony Bennett: Many peo-ple say, “How come you’re not retiring?” I love life, so much. There are two things that I love very much: I sing and I paint ... It’s really a lifetime study, so you keep learning from it. My ambition, if I get lucky enough, is to actually attempt to learn more and more and get better as I get older.

AP: Your voice still sounds impeccable. How do you keep it in shape?

Bennett: Well, I had very

good training. I was in the Second World War ... and when I got back under the G.I. Bill of Rights the United States gave us schooling ... to make up for (the education) we would have had when we were in the Army. I made a very good move by joining the Ameri-can Theater Wing. They gave us the best teachers. I had a real great education on how to preserve my voice and how to think about it and I had

great teachers who taught me how to perform. It’s helped me right through the years, I still remember everything they taught me.

AP: A new duets album is coming out, “VIVA Duets,” this time with all Latin stars.

Bennett: I loved it. I had no idea what to expect and what I found (is) it’s kind of what they taught me in school — never to compromise and just

do quality. And that’s com-pletely different than the out-side world. The record com-panies want the latest fashion — rap or disco or whatever is coming out next. And I never did that. I went along with my teachers: Never do anything unless it has quality.

AP: You recorded the songs in person with them. You even traveled to Vicente Fernandez’s ranch in Mexico.

Bennett: It was fantastic! He’s the favorite. They treat him like Frank Sinatra in the Latin countries ... He had a beautiful recording studio right on the grounds and we recorded right there.

AP: Any anecdotes of that trip?

Bennett: We had lunch with him and his wife and his people; my wife was with me. They were so gregarious. I said, “You have all these animals in your ranch, is fantastic.” And “Oh, you like it?” Someone came over with a small dog to my wife and said, “Here, this is for you” (laughs). But we have a dog so I said, “Thank you, but we have a dog.” The dog was ador-

able though (laughs).AP: Juanes once said he

warms up his voice with a tape you were generous enough to share with him. It’s obvious that younger singers may have a lot to learn from you. Have you found yourself leaning from them?

Bennett: Yeah, a lot of them, every one of them. See, the one thing about the Latin singers, the majority of music that Latinos love, that the pub-lic loves of the Latinos, is they sing from the heart. And that doesn’t go away. That makes the record never sound old-fashioned.

There’s some gimmick that’s popular for 10 weeks and then forgotten. ... (But here) there was so much feel-ing in their performances that it will always sound good. Twenty years from now the same record will sound good because it has the feeling. They all sing with so much feeling and the public responds with so much feeling.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Tony Bennett’s duet album has ‘heart’

AP

Singer Tony Bennett has released his second duets album with various Latin musicians, “Viva Duets.”

Walk Off the Earth stop by Mr. Smalls in Millvale Tuesday night at 7:30. Tickets for the all-age show, which includes Julia Nunes and the Mowglis, are $20. Call 412-821-4447 for additional information.

WALK OFF THE EARTH

‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!’Godspeed You! Black Emperor (Constellation)½

Had someone told me at the end of September that I’d have a new Godspeed You! Black Emperor album in my hands by the end of the year, I would have laughed at that idea. Yet here it is, four all new cuts on a fourth full-length that is in stores already. What a wonderful surprise.

For a longtime fan of GY!BE and of cinematic instrumental music in general, having new stuff from the band is a loaves-and-fishes-level miracle, and having absorbed the album as many times as possible before writing about it, I am in full rejoice mode over this stunning, emotional, almost religious experience. Two epics — the captivating, gnarly opener “Mladic” and the more contemplative “We Drift Like Worried Fire” — make up 40 minutes of this document, along with two shorter cuts, and it’s a stun-ning return no one could have anticipated.

‘Come Home to Mama’Martha Wainwright (V2/Cooperative)½

Martha Wainwright has known both joy and tragedy

since her last record, 2008’s “I Know You’re Married, But I’ve Got Feelings Too.” She became a mother for the first time, yet she also lost hers, singer/songwriter Kate McGarrigle.

“Come Home to Mama” is centered by a tender, yet rejoiceful “Proserpina,” written by McGarrigle, a song that should cripple your heart. Around it are punchier, poppier songs than we’re used to hearing from folk-leaning Wainwright, including “Can You Believe It?”; ’70s-flavored, paranoid “Radio Star”; and arresting, suggestive “I Wanna Make An Arrest.” This is a fruitful trip through sorrow, cathar-sis and artistic rebirth.

‘Apocryphon’The Sword (Razor & Tie)½

Austin, Texas, traditional metal band the Sword have been going a decade now, having released four albums in that frame. Their latest is Southern-style, stoner-embracing “Apocryphon.”

Adopting more esoteric lyrical content this time around and eschewing a con-cept piece, the band plugs in their hulking riff machine and have at it, scoring again and again on opener “Veil of Isis”; Sabbath-inspired “The Hidden Masters”; and sci-fi-laced “Dying Earth” and the cosmic title track. Sounds great with a cold beer.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor offers listeners a stunning returnby bRIAN KRASMAN

Manilow returns to BroadwayNEW YORK — Looks like

Barry Manilow is making it again — on Broadway.

The Grammy Award-winning singer will start a

17-show stand on Jan. 18 at the St. James Theatre.

His new show, “Manilow on Broadway,” has tickets rang-ing in price from $50 to $350.

Emotional Brooks goes into Country Hall of FameNASHVILLE, Tenn. — Garth Brooks

promised he’d be emotional during his Country Music Hall of Fame induction. But the tears started before he made it all the way into the building.

Reflecting on personal heroes George Strait, Bob Seger and James Taylor

on hand to salute him Sunday night, Brooks teared up as he spoke with reporters on the red carpet. He only got more emotional as the night went along.

“I moved to this town for one rea-son and that was to get ‘Much Too Young to Feel This Damn Old’ cut by George Strait,” Brooks said before the ceremony as his eyes began to redden.

“That’s what George is singing tonight. It’s gonna be so cool. I’m a fan. So I get to be a fan tonight.”

Brooks was inducted along with trailblazing singer Connie Smith and keyboard player Hargus “Pig” Rob-bins, whose rolling signature sound has adorned countless hits across the radio dial.

ASSOCIATED PRESS