Clash 'Singles' rock the casbah

By MIKEDUTRA
Music Editor

Although The Clash's tumultuous career ended fifteen years ago, the seminal punk group's influence can be heard in such diverse places as the drum intro to Garbage's "Stupid Girl" and the sample from "Rock the Casbah" that anchored a recent Will Smith single. The Singles, available in Britain a decade ago, but just released in the United States, is a fine single-disc collection that presents the band's 18 UK A-sides in chronological order beginning with 1977's "White Riot" and concluding with 1982's "Should I Stay or Should I Go."

The chronological sequencing of The Singles corrects a major flaw of the two-disc The Story of the Clash, which has songs from different periods jumbled together in a haphazard way. The resequencing on The Singles allows the listener to hear the progression of the Clash from a straight-ahead punk band into diverse musical pioneers dabbling in reggae, new wave, and roots music. The Singles also shows the ugly side of The Clash with "Hitsville UK," a weak attempt at R&B, alongside such classics as "Clash City Rockers," "Train In Vain" and "London Calling."

If there is any weakness with The Singles, it has to be the inadequate liner notes. Although all the lyrics are included, there isn't much more than that. It would be nice if Epic would have included all or at least some of the interesting notes that accompanied The Clash on Broadway boxset. The Singles is a magnificent document to one of the most influential and experimental bands of the late'70s and early Ś80s.

The Aquabats' role in the late-'90's ska resurgence left much to be desired. In the same way that their mentors Devo and Oingo Boingo had been pigeonholed into new wave, the Aquabats were clearly outcasts in Rudeboy land. Luckily, the Aquabats' newest album, The Aquabats vs. The Floating Eye of Death!, dismisses any notions of the band's ties to a genre in which it clearly did not belong.

At times intentionally ridiculous, The Aquabats vs. The Floating Eye of Death! seems more like a soundtrack to a Japanese comic book than a rock Śn' roll album. From the anthemic "Giant Robot-Birdhead" to the brilliant horror cheese of "Monsters Wedding," each song is like a self-contained science fiction movie.

The above comparison to Oingo Boingo is not far-fetched, considering the Aquabats' conscientious use of horns, synths and outlandish vocal tricks. Track after track, the Aquabats push the creative envelope, constantly outdoing themselves in the realms of complex production and arrangement, to say nothing of impressive virtuoso performances all around.

Of course the album bears not even a slight resemblance to ska music. But rather than draw unfair contrasts between it and, say, any Less Than Jake release, The Aquabats vs. The Floating Eye of Death! is a mature and important album that deserves to stand on its own, outside of any genre. Trends come and go, but the Aquabats are here to stay.

- Joe Tepperman | Staff Writer

It's a good time to be Wu. Clan member ODB's sophomore album has gone gold, while Method Man's collaboration with Limp Bizkit is a staple of both rap and rock radio playlists. Thus, with impeccable timing, Ghostface Killah has just dropped his own solo adventure, Supreme Clientele.

Clientele is a reunion of sorts for the Wu crew - Method Man, Cappadonna, Raekwon, GZA and Masta Killah contribute rhymes, while the RZA and Inspectah Deck produce many of the beats. The show, though, is unmistakably run by Ghostface as his superior emcee skills steal the muscular "Buck 50" from four other Wu-Tang Clan contributors, and combine fluidly with the powerful beats on the first single, "Apollo Kids." Ghostface's wordplay is more about attitude than tricky rhymes, which stall many other rappers.

The title of Ironman (derived from the title of his acclaimed solo debut) is apt for Ghostface as his raps consistently deliver power and punch, but the production does not quite live up to Ghostface's lofty standards. The tracks are certainly adequate - the RZA, Juju of the Beatnuts and a host of other producers keep the beats interesting. Clientele lacks only the hot bass line to rise above the Wu audience.

Still, in the age of Wu, the audience is sufficient.