Antony Strikes Gold, Piano Keys With Impressive Album

w "I Am a Bird Now" by Antony and the Johnsons (Secretly Canadian)</p> <p>This year's deserving winner of Britain's prestigious Mercury Prize, "I Am a Bird Now" is an impressive, emotionally deep work of musicianship. Most of the songs are simple piano pieces, but simple shouldn't be confused with simplistic, as each note evokes a richly expressive sound to accompany Antony's equally rich vocals.</p> <p>Antony possesses a strong voice with a slight quaver of vulnerability that speaks to his lyrics of uncertainty and transformation. "One day I'll grow up and feel the power in me / One day I'll grow up, of this I'm sure But for today I am a child," perfectly highlights Antony's diametrically opposed self-confidence and doubt.</p> <p>Although most of the album is delivered in hushed tones, Antony finds time for the fine slice of white soul "Fistful of Love," a song that Van Morrison would be proud to call his own. But it's still the quieter moments of a man honestly baring his soul that strikes home.</p> <p>Rating: GOLD</p> <p>w "Silent Alarm" by Bloc Party (Vice)</p> <p>"Silent Alarm" comes on strong, anything but silent to begin. Propulsive beats and rhythms combined with lead singer Kele Okereke's earnest vocals have an immediate impact that drives the album constantly forward. But despite the hype from the British music press, it's a momentum that can't be sustained.</p> <p>The first four songs are the album's best. Full of edgy guitars and new wave tension, they almost make you believe the hype, especially when Okereke declares, "I'm on fire" at the end of "Banquet." But while the remaining 10 tracks are certainly above average, they can't offer the excitement of the openers.</p> <p>"Silent Alarm" doesn't have the consistency to be great, but it's a strong debut that marks Bloc Party as a group to keep your ears on for the future.</p> <p>Rating: SILVER</p> <p>w "See You on the Other Side" by Korn (Virgin)</p> <p>Riding the crest of the alternative metal wave of the late '90s and earlier this decade, Korn stood above many of their contemporaries by tapping into teenage angst better than most. Somehow, they just had a little more to say. But while there will always be angry, testosterone-filled high school boys, they will usually choose artists they can identify with as the source to release their frustration. The members of Korn are getting old, and they sound it on "See You on the Other Side."</p> <p>The crunching guitars, monolithic drumming and Jonathan Davis' alternating whining and growling vocals are all here, everything that should make a die-hard Korn fan happy. But who is that anymore? It ends up being a solid set of head-banging songs, but without much new to offer.</p> <p>Rating: BRONZE</p> <p>w "The Road and the Radio" by Kenny Chesney (BNA)</p> <p>On his second full-length release of 2005, Kenny Chesney sounds as though he's spreading his talent a little too thin. "Be As You Are," released earlier this year, was held together by its Caribbean flavor and character sketches about mainlanders finding themselves on the islands. "The Road and the Radio" is a hodgepodge that comes across like leftovers from past albums — the type of songs he could write in his sleep, and apparently did.</p> <p>"Beer in Mexico" sounds like a better idea than an actual song, and that's about as good as it gets. While Chesney's brand of country-pop has rarely been much more than background music, it's even more apparent here.</p> <p>Rating: COPPER<


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