COUNT THE STARS "Never Be Taken Alive"
(Victory Records)

What first caught my eye was the detail that Count The Stars extract inspiration equally from both The Smiths and Cave In. I don't know or care whether it's the old agro-metal-screamy Cave In or the newer contemplative space-rock pedigree Cave In. Both editions are su-perb, and made me eager to get "Never Be Taken Alive" in both hands. Plus, they've done their fair share of touring, and had twenty songs ready in advance for this album. I'm not really hearing their alleged "Emo bits", thankfully. Emo-core can and frequently does suck my ass dry, to be candid. I've never quite understood what all the phony moping was about. Plus Emo songs sound more or less identical to the other bands' on any given "sensitive" bill that night. The groups all go and dye their hair black, get star tattoos, wear t-shirts an eight-year-old would find snug, and sing about being misunderstood. Not this particular ensemble -- they're far too upbeat to whine in public. Even with morose song titles such as "Better Off Alone" and "Taking It All Back", Count The Stars announce with optimism that "the world can swallow you whole, but I will never be taken alive". Right there is a possible antidote to the toxin that is making far too any "acclaimed" bands sound the same lately.

(mp3: "taking it all back").











HEXSTATIC "Solid Steel Presents: Listen & Learn"
(Ninja Tune)

This is installment numero dos in Coldcut's wordwide syndicated radio show Solid Steel, and proof that they certainly don't appear to be slowing down. Robin Hexstatic has exposed some obvious choices ("The Message" and "Apache"), but surprised me with Young MC, whom I never took very seriously. I always filed Young in "Old School", while keeping the man clear of the records that could gang up on him. Unpredictably, his "Know How" is one of the strongest tracks on
the compilation, and he had very vigorous rivalry from Unsung Heroes, Shirley Bassey, Coldcut, Toots & The Maytals, DJ Food, Stonebridge, Ike & Tina Turner, and Boards of Canada. "Listen & Learn" bridges the elements of hip-hop, dub, jungle, and soul easily. My only grumble would be that the mixing, which was done partially on cd decks, hit "The Matrix" territory on occasion with Hexstatic's dissection, and drawing out of certain sections. I 'spose it was an experiment, and while not a complete letdown, I would have enjoyed it much more in analog. Regardless, this was an almost perfect
collection. (9/10)














HINT "Portakabin Fever"
(Ninja Tune / Hombre)

Jonathon James sits alone in his Portakabin, but rather than stare intently out of the window, as Hint, he constructs rhythms based around some of the less obvious musical implements that you and I have both forgotten. Nowadays with breakbeats you're fairly certain to experience a 1960's trumpet or a randy organ run, complete with somebody's horny uncle (surely) screaming on the ones and fours. Who would have thought that a short acoustic guitar phrase could serve as a substitute, while still remaining lodged in the listener's head for hours? I had to put the noise of Cryptic Slaughter on to make "Words To That Effect" find someone else to haunt. On James' debut classic 30's and 40's tunes see the light
of days again, and their simple beauty is understood once more. There are vibes, and what sounds like my grandmother's organ -- the one with the lit-up keys, so you'd know if you were playing an 'A' or a 'D'. These eleven tracks seem as though they incubated in James head until he was able got hold of an MPC, and make them walk. (8/10)

THE YOUNG ONES (DVD)
Off The Wall 80's British TV Sitcom Finally Out On DVD!!!

It's unfortunate that English humor has a way of going over the heads of some Americans who aren't used to shows being subtle and witty simultaneously. Over here The Simpsons are quite popular, whereas I find them (and cartoons in general) to be fairly dull. The show is admired in England as well, but the focus is more on how crazy they think suburban Americans must be.

Having said that, here's your chance to see some vastly superior comedy courtesy of the BBC. The Young Ones was first introduced stateside on MTV in 1982 when it first aired. The show centers around the lives of four students at Scumbag
College sharing a flat in London. To suggest each of the characters is rather eccentric is putting it lightly.

Rick (Rik Mayall) is the spotty philosophy student who fancies himself as "The People's Poet". Next up is Vyvian (Ade Edmondson), the attention deficit punker who kicks out windows, chops off his own finger, and nails the front door to the ceiling. There's Neil (Nigel Planer), a thoughtful, naive hippie, typically the brunt of everyone's pranks, and finally Mike
(Christopher Ryan). As "The Cool Person" of the house, Mike seems to have the answer to everything.

The series pilot ("Demolition") has Vyvian racing to destroy their home. The place has been condemned apparently, and it's up to him to wreck everything before the professionals arrive. Rick hangs himself on a cross in the front of the house in protest of its inherent demise. He recites one of his poems to the authorities below in an effort to link himself with the building in its moment of destruction.

Another episode, "Boring", has the four desperately thinking of ways to alleviate the monotony of student life. At wits end, Neil plans to kill himself, and digs a grave in the back yard.

Each episode also features Alexei Sayle, who plays various members of the landlord's family. Motorhead, The Damned, Madness, Dexy's Midnight Runners, and others also appear.

The series was written by Rik Mayall, Ben Elton, and Lise Mayer. Mayall would also star in "Drop Dead Fred". Elton went on to pen scripts for the BBC televised comedy "Black Adder".

The Young Ones is a superb document of a time when Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher ran the free world. The twelve episodes come with extensive political satire, and references to the many issues that made up the era in which it was filmed.

There are also several bonuses, which include two brief documentaries on The Young Ones, and two chapters of programs that Mayall, Edmondson, and Planer also starred in.

The well-timed re-release of this series couldn't have been improved on, and fans of the 1980's will find this DVD boxed set essential. I thought the very off-the-wall humor was extremely refreshing, and as far removed from the trite
obviousness of many American sitcoms as possible.

(Runtime: 6 hours, 40 minutes, 3 disc set)