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By Doug Levy
Arizona Daily Wildcat
May 6, 1998

Arizona Daily Wildcat

All year long, we here at Ground Zero have been doing our best to keep you informed on the newest and best in the world of entertainment. In our weekly Music Meltdown feature, we've surveyed the realm of new music, from the best to the worst, and done our best to let you know what compact discs would enhance both your music collection and your life.

For those of you who haven't been paying attention, though (it's OK, you're forgiven), and more importantly, for those of you who just can't remember everything you've read over the course of the year, or possibly even the week - who end up standing in the music store saying, "What did I come in here for again?" while you scratch your head and look stupid, what follows is a handy reference guide to the best albums to come out over the past two semesters.

It's easy to use:

First, check to see if you already own them all. If you do, smile at yourself in the mirror and congratulate yourself on how cool you are.

If not, circle what you're missing, fold up this page, put it in your pocket and head out to your favorite music shop. If you're still confused, just show the page to the clerk and let him or her take it from there. Don't forget and leave it in your pocket by accident, though. Newspaper doesn't hold up very well in the wash.

1. The Verve

Urban Hymns (Virgin)

A new Verve album was always something worth looking forward to in the past. That the group would release the album of the year was beyond anyone's expectations, though. Urban Hymns is a lesson in what rock and roll can be when stretched to its fullest potential. With its release, Richard Ashcroft and company broke free of whatever was holding them back in the past, unleashing a combination of psychedelic bliss, acoustic mastery and multilayered epic masterpieces. "Bittersweet Symphony" is only a hint of the greatness here, and a subtle hint, at that.

2. Oasis

Be Here Now (Epic)

True, there has been a certain amount of backlash against the Gallagher brothers this year, but only in America. And it doesn't change the fact that they released another classic album with Be Here Now. While it may not quite match up to their previous releases, Noel Gallagher still has no reason to shy away from the "great songwriter" label, and Liam's voice continues to shine, especially on the more inspiring tracks, like "Don't Go Away" and "All Around The World." The guitars do get a bit out of control at times, but it's a slight complaint and a trade-off worth making for an anthemic classic like "D'you Know What I Mean" alone.

3. Portishead

Portishead (Go Beat!/London)

It seemed for a while like the impending release of a new Portishead album was more of a fantasy than a reality. In the end, though, it was well worth the wait. Producer/disc jockey Geoff Barrow brings back his trademarked scratched-up, gloomy sounds with a vengeance on the group's self-titled sophomore release, adding an overriding feeling of espionage into the mix, along with excursions into the big band world of the past. Meanwhile, vocalist Beth Gibbons has as much power to entrance the listener as before, a sultry hint of anger in her often melancholy voice, and a promise of danger and intrigue if you're ready to follow her lead.

4. Massive Attack

Mezzanine (Virgin)

Another long-awaited release, the Massive crew returns again this month with their third, and best, album to date. It seems like the time is ripe for the world to be reminded of the genius of the Bristol music scene, with Portishead's release last semester, and now this, plus a new album from Massive Attack alumnus Tricky on the way. Mezzanine, like other Massive releases, features some talented guest vocalists over the haunting instrumentals, along with the laid-back rap of the Massives themselves. Most notable are the contributions from Liz Fraser of the Cocteau Twins, whose ethereal voice lends an otherworldly quality to the music. Overall, a much darker release than anything they've done before. (Mezzanine is out May 12.)

5.Propellerheads

Decksanddrums-androckandroll (Dreamworks)

The award for best electronic release goes to this duo out of England, who bring some serious beats into the house with this, their debut album. Mixing tripped-out samples in with live drums, electro-rhythms and a base in both rock and hip-hop, Decksanddrums-androckandroll delivers all that the title promises and more. There's guest vocals on a couple of tracks, by the likes of De La Soul, Jungle Brothers, and, wait for it - Shirley Bassey. Highlights include a cool as hell rendition of James Bond's "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" and the likewise themed "Spybreak!" The next Chemical Brothers? Who cares? This is funky stuff.

6. hurricane #1

hurricane ##1 (Sire/Warner Bros.)

Andy Bell is a guitar god. If you're unfamiliar with his work, you should immediately purchase any album by Ride, Bell's former band, one of the most underrated groups in history. Or, if you just want proof of his mastery at both performing and writing songs, pick up this debut from his new band, hurricane #1. In Ride, Bell did most of the singing himself, but nowadays he hands vocal duties over to Alex Lowe, a former boxer with a truly gritty rock and roll voice. This way, Andy's free to focus on his true love: the guitar. Songs like "Step Into My World" and "Smoke Rings," with their extended instrumentals, can lift you right up and carry you away in a way that few bands can ever hope to match.

7. Ween

The Mollusk (Elektra)

Making sure that America gets represented in the top 10 this year, Gene and Dean Ween put out one of the most amusing, yet genuinely musically entertaining, albums of the past 10 months. The Weens have always been known as much for their musical experimentation as for their silliness, an attribute that led them this time to release an album of songs "inspired by the sea." There's an instantly-classic drunken sea chanty, "The Blarney Stone," a traditional seafarer, "She Wanted To Leave," and the psychedelia of songs like the title track and the seriously Black Sabbath-influenced (!) "Buckingham Green" and "The Golden Eel." The overriding theme is there, in other words, but, as always, Ween continues to defy description.

8. Curve

Come Clean (Universal)

After the apparent break-up of Curve in 1993, the future looked grim for fans of the highly inventive, ahead-of-its-time band. However, former goth goddess Toni Halliday and her co-conspirator Dean Garcia returned this year with Come Clean, the group's third, and most accessible album. Known for creating a hypnotic wall-of-sound that washes over the blissful listener in waves, Curve leans toward a more traditional, often harder, sound in their latest incarnation, relying as heavily on sequencers and programming as on guitars. A change in producers has a lot to do with the new sound, though the old beauty still pops through at the most unexpected times.

9. Travis

Good Feeling (independiente/epic)

You probably haven't heard of Travis, but that's only because of the American music industry's constant failure to promote foreign acts, unless they have some sort of gimmick, which Travis don't. They're just a great British rock band, who put out a great debut album which is miles ahead of any American debut this year. A lively, blues-based funfest, inspired more by the Kinks than the Beatles, and full of catchy, sing-a-long songs, Good Feeling will indeed leave you feeling good.

10. Tori Amos

from the choirgirl hotel (Atlantic)

Another last minute entry, Tori returns to us this month with a new husband, a new single and a new album - from the choirgirl hotel, her fourth. Having proven with her last release, Boys For Pele, that she can handle the harpsichord as well as the piano, Tori takes a swing toward the traditional this time, sending out the first single, "Spark," as a teaser before yesterday's album release. If anything, though, the songs have more musical depth to them than ever, and the lyrics remain as delightfully obtuse as fans have come to expect. Of course, Tori's fans are so dedicated that it would be hard for her to displease them, but this is even a treat for the uninitiated.

As an added bonus, here's some other Ground Zero staff picks for the school year's top 10 albums:

Annie Holub

Modest Mouse - The Lonesome Crowded West (Up)
Ida - Ten Small Paces (Simple Machines)
DJ Shadow - Preemptive Strike (Mo'Wax)
The Verve - Urban Hymns (Virgin )
Jonathan Fire Eater - Wolf Songs for Lambs (Dreamworks)
Ani DiFranco - Little Plastic Castle (Righteous Babe)
Smart Went Crazy - Con Art (Dischord))
Bedhead -Transaction de Novo (Trance Syndicate)
Fugazi -End Hits (Dischord)
Portishead - Portishead (Go Beat!/London)

Eric Anderson

Grateful Dead - The Phil Zone (Arista)
Widespread Panic - Light Fuse Get Away (Capricorn)
Wu-Tang Clan - Wu-Tang Forever (Loud)
Grateful Dead - Live from the Filmore (Grateful Dead Records)
Phish - Slip, Stitch and Pass (Elektra)
John Scofield - A Go Go (Verve)
Grateful Dead - Dick's Pick's #9 (Grateful Dead Records)
Bob Dylan - Time Out of Mind (Columbia)
Public Enemy - He Got Game Soundtrack (DefJam/Mercury)
G. Love & Special Sauce - Yeah, It's That Easy (Epic)

James Casey

Common - One Day It'll All Make Sense (Relativity)
DJ Krush - MiLight (MoWax)
Heiroglyphics - Third Eye Vision (Heiro Emporium)
Gang Starr - Moment of Truth (Noo Tribe)
DJ Shadow - Preemptive Strike (MoWax)
Portishead - Portishead (Go Beat!/London)
Super Furry Animals - Radiator (Creation UK)
The Verve - Urban Hymns (Virgin)
hurricane #1 - hurricane #1 (Sire/Warner Bros.)
Diana Krall - Love Scenes (Impulse)