CD REVIEWS
NATALIE
IMBRUGLIA/White Lilies Island
(BMG)
 Having recently performed as a backup singer with U2
for the World Trade Center Tribute to Heroes concert, Australia’s pop diva is back in
the public eye just in time for the release of the long-awaited follow-up to her 1998 hit
album, Left Of The Middle. But unfortunately, long-awaited doesn’t necessarily mean
good, as Imbruglia reemerges with an album that can only be characterized as
middle-of-the-road singer-songwriter stuff that has been done much more forcefully by
artists such as Alanis Morissette. Imbruglia aspires to drama on the opening track
“That Day,Eand to U2-style inspiration on “Beauty On The Fire,Ebut
for the most part White Lilies Island tends to dribble forgettable from one power pop
ballad into the next. Look for this one to drop like a stone.
DAFT
PUNK/Alive
(Virgin)
 If the worldwide success of their latest album, Discovery,
wasn’t enough, along come the mischievous Parisian duo of Thomas Bangalter and
Guy-Manuel de Homem Christo with a live album only a few months later. Recorded during
their 1997 Homework tour in Birmingham, England, Alive captures Daft Punk in the raw,
performing before an audience of reverent ravers who can be heard whooping and hollering
in the background. The duo stretch out on epic tracks including the monster,
16-minute-long “Da Funk,Eand the tough-as-nails “WDPK (Part II).E
While lacking the clinical perfectionism of their studio efforts, the album possesses an
unvarnished energy that proves why the duo are one of the hottest acts both in and out of
electronica today.
VARIOUS ARTISTS/Trance Progression
(Aztek)
 While no one would
argue that what the world needs is another psychedelic trance compilation, this one by
newcomers to the Japanese party circuit Trance Progression stands out for introducing some
of the less well-known emerging artists on the scene. ManMadeMan offers the hard-assed
“xp1Ewhile UK-based Shakta chips in with the tightly percussive “Trip To
Flamsville.EOther artists include Mindfield and Jaia, who close out the CD with the
characteristically tasteful “Not So QuietE For those wanting to delve
further, many of the artists on this album will also be presenting either live or DJ sets
at Trance Progression’s upcoming CD release party Oct 20 at Yokohama Bay Hall.
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GERLING/When
Young Terrorists Chase The Sun
(Festival
Mushroom/Sony)
 The packed reception this Sydney-based trio got at the Fuji Rock
Festival is a testament to their substantial underground following here, and the case for
their new CD is full of Japanese text and imagery, so one presumes this hasn’t gone
unnoticed. Gerling’s music itself is an eclectic selection of ambient, various
degrees of indie-rock, downbeat hip-hop, electronic bossa nova, catchy examples of the
disco house sound currently in vogue (check “Dust Me SelectaEfor the
Barry-White-via-a-Playschool-microphone intro), and some quirky silliness too. If you
think of the album as torn between rock and dance tendencies, then the pumping disco
grooves of “G-House ProjectEand the jangly guitars and sing-along indie-rock
chorus of “High Jackers ManualEare the Twin Peaks of its highly varied terrain.
Simeon Paterson
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THE CHARLATANS/Wonderland
(Aztek)
 THE
CHARLATANS/Wonderland (MCA) After coming on the scene way back when, it seems the
Charlatans, unlike their peers, are still doing it, and doing it very well. With their
seventh album they have proved that despite most odds they can still cut it as a
respectable British rock band. This is a solid, coherent album that really grooves along.
It’s got the Charlatans indie thing with a twist of funk soul. Vocally, Tim has
adopted a catchy mix of Beck, Paul Simon and Curtis Mayfield seen most on “Wake
UpEand “Love is the Key.EThe bass percussion duo and upbeat piano
dominate the album’s instrumental and party peak, “The Bell And The
Butterfly.EAnd throughout there is additional use of flute, brass and, of course,
the essential female backing that adds soul and passion. Wonderland shows the Charlatans
on another level. Happier and sexier, they’re having fun as well as taking it easy. Sally
Mizon
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