 Sleater-Kinney
All Hands On The Bad One
Kill Rock Stars
CD Review by Kat
Jetson
"I can be
demure like girls who are soft for boys who are
fearful of getting an earful," coos Corin Tucker on the opening track of Sleater-Kinney’s 5th release, "All Hands On The
Bad One (AHOTBO)." Corin demure? Not here.
Certainly not while she’s rattling the walls
of your brain with her fiery and commanding
vibrato vocal styling. While previous releases
such as 1995’s, "Call The Doctor"
and 1997’s, "Dig Me Out," were a
one-two sonic assault, AHOTBO will rock your
world a bit more subtley. Still present is their
unbridled passion as evidenced by the
sharp-tongued, "Youth Decay"
("Close my mouth. Was I born to
accommodate"?), and the ultra catchy,
2-minute blast, "The Professional,"
with Carrie cutting, "They hand you the
world’s biggest razor blade. An amateur
bleeds but she hardly gets paid." But, there
seems to be a new piece in the Sleater-Kinney puzzle. Sweetness. It
gets downright beautiful here at times; so many
gorgeous layers of vocals. One can’t help
but think of The Bangles, and their sunny L.A.
harmonies while lending an ear to "Leave You
Behind." Backed with a xylophone and Carrie and Janet's heavenly ooh
oohs, Corin’s vocals soar as she sings,
"When you’re in the room, it’s all
that I can feel." Your heart melts. But
wait, It gets better! On the super poppy,
"You’re No Rock n’ Roll Fun,"
Carrie and Corin playfully
intertwine darting guitar licks and lyrics. You
can practically hear Corin smile as she sings,
"You’re no rock and roll fun. Like a
piece of art that no one can TOUCH!" Shame
on you if you’re not dancing to this one.
Wrapping it up nicely is "The Swimmer,"
a Yo La Tengo-induced number with peaks and
valleys of haunting and dreamy guitar parts.
AHOTB is proof that Sleater-Kinney have mastered
their craft while creating vital and genius music
that entertains.
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