A Couple CD Reviews

For those of us who love the Scissor Sisters, it would be hard to live up to the shear joy and massive hype of their first album. However, the sophomore release Ta-Dah comes damn close, even with some trippy sojourns through the dark nightlife of the Soul Train. Jake Shear’s falsetto and the band’s glittery dance music still sound like they’re channeling 1970s Elton and the Gibb brothers. But then again, when you have a successful formula, why change?

And the Scissor Sisters do have a pretty solid approach. By mixing B-52s every-concert’s-a-gay-party panache with updated disco gloss, they had the biggest UK album of 2004 with their debut, Return to Oz. Critics said things like “Thank God!” and “[this is] their first greatest hits album.” (The Scissor Sisters caused barely a blip in America, but then again, our Brit friends were always a little better at reveling in glam and weirdness. Bowie, anyone? Or for that matter, Boy George?)

On Ta-Dah, the party they started is still in full swing, but a few people are starting to get bitter! (Sadly, it’s bound to happen at every great gathering…) The danciest of many dancy songs on the album, one of the two that Sir Elton helped write, is entitled “I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’.” Some song lyrics even go so far as to say “I can’t decide whether you should live or die.” In short, the boogie-oogie-oogie sound of the first album is always there, but now it’s filtered through a strong sieve of regret and muted with a crunchy production that buzzes in your ear like coming down hard off of a handful of Studio 54-style Quaaludes.

The Scissor Sisters cannot keep this Me Generation dancefloor exorcism going on forever, true. So, the song “Intermission” has woe-is-me lyrics (think Morrissey or Rufus Wainwright), but it’s implemented with gorgeous string composition by the legendary Van Dyke Parks. “The Other Side” sounds like a particularly good Roxy Music homage (or plagiarism, take your pick.) Both tracks are good indications of where the band could go next.

The truth is Ta-Dah is a perfectly lovely if sometimes lyrically gloomy dance album. The Scissor Sisters wrest their strength not invention, but in re-invention. They have successfully mined and updated the 70s sound. And they do it with a true aficionado’s love. However, one feels the next time, the primary thing they’ll need to re-invent is themselves.

Indigo Girls fans are in for thick and thin. They commit, because each of IG’s eleven studio albums has a few tracks that are songwriting jems. However, you can separate the IG’s albums into two categories: those with great songs and interesting production, or those with great songs and ho-hum production. In the former category are their eponymous album, Rites of Passage, and Come on Now Social. In the latter, their last album and this one, Despite Our Differences.

The girls are basically a Southern lesbian Simon & Garfunkel: a folk duo - although they do have a slight, slight punk rock leaning. Emily Saliers and Amy Ray really need a producer who can capitalize on their anarchy, their experimentation, and their individuality. If not, IG albums sonically end up being the same stuff you can hear strummed out at any Borders or Barnes & Nobles on Saturday nights. Uber-producer Mitchell Froom completed a squeaky clean album, which means he wasn’t up to the task of helping define and refine these lovely melodies.

Sad, because Emily’s missive to Amy – the title track – is extremely personal and emotionally stirring. Amy’s “Dirt and Dead Ends,” an eulogy to a meth-addicted friend, is downright arresting. They’re always helped by brilliant craft on their part. One track is assisted by some lovely background growl from pop singer Pink. Sadly, Despite Our Differences is just hindered by an utter lack of imagination on producer Froom’s part.