Primus
Primus & The Chocolate Factory
with the Fungi Ensemble
ATO Records
13 Song Vinyl LP

What does a band do when they want to make a comeback in grandiose fashion? Well, when you're Primus, you pull out all the stops and do something ridiculous. Talk about a marketing campaign. Les Claypool has scored big time with this one - not only has he reinterpreted the soundtrack for a beloved film, but he's also managed to catch the attention of national media by borrowing its main premise. Much like Willy Wonka in the film, Claypool promotes his wares by offering up five golden vinyl LPs hidden amongst the pressings - and those who find them will get Primus tickets for life. He's selling tons of them for that reason alone.

After all the hoopla, what about the album itself? Well, it's a crazy mess; quirky and bizarre to the extreme. The songs haven't just been redone - they've been re-imagined and totally transformed into products of the oddball imagination of Claypool. If you thought the book and movie(s) were weird, then you ain't seen nothing yet. Creepy and kooky fail to fully describe it, and it has to be heard to be believed.

MISH MASH MANDATE: Oompa Loompa Doopity Doo
Primus Website

The Budos Band
Burnt Offering
Daptone Records
10 Song Vinyl LP

Welcome back to the age of dynamic instrumental music that sounds like it could have been produced for a Hollywood action film of the late 60's. The Budos Band rips and shreds its way through a host of bombastic soulful instrumental tunes that harken back to the days of Ennio Morricone - that is, if Morricone had been under the influence of Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, not to mention a healthy dose of the Bar-Kays.

There are horns, big guitars, and plenty of drums. It's big, bold, and beautiful. Dig it.

MISH MASH MANDATE: Steve McQueen Car Chase
Budos Band Website

Jazz Spastiks
The Product
Dusty Platter
16 Track Vinyl LP

The Jazz Spastiks offer up a new and dazzling selection of old-school hip-hop that is steeped in classic hard bop jazz. Think Guru's Jazzmatazz or The Brand New Heavies' Heavy Rhyme Experience of the early 90s and you will get the drift. The break beats reign supreme, and the raps flow smoothly over jazzy horns and grooving bass lines. 

The group keeps it fresh by not succumbing to nostalgia for nostalgia's sake. While the album could have easily been produced in 1993, it doesn't lose its edge by being a mere throwback. It's an instant classic that sounds relevant and of the moment.

MISH MASH MANDATE: Back In The Days When I Was A Teenager
Jazz Spastiks at BandCamp

Various Artists
Barbecue Any Old Time
Blues From The Pit 1927-1941
Old Hat Records
24 song CD
20 page booklet

Once again, Old Hat Records is back with an excellent collection of early 20th Century music, and this time they're taking us to the barbecue pit. Trust me when I say that you don't hear this every day - 24 old blues tunes dedicated to eating barbecued meat. While it's unique, fun and amusing, it also provides an examination of early 20th Century culture, specifically how the migration of poor Southerners spread the influence of their food and music to other parts of the country. The full-color booklet gives a history of the music and the artists, and how barbecue became a phenomenon across the country.

Who couldn't fall in love with song titles like these: "Pork Chop Blues", "Pepper Sauce Mama", "Gimme a Pig's Foot and a Bottle of Beer", and "I Heard the Voice of a Pork Chop"? My absolute favorite track on the album, however, is the ode to pork by Blind Boy Fuller, entitled "I Crave My Pig Meat". It's a love song to his favorite food, and you can almost taste the smokey barbecue while he sings that pig meat is "something I do crave, I mean it".

MISH MASH Mandate: Barbecue Blues
Old Hat Records Website

Rival Sons - Pressure and Time

Not really a review here, but instead, one of those moments where you want to share something cool with the rest of the world. One listen to this and you realize that rock-n-roll is indeed still alive, to a certain extent. Sure, you've heard it all before - big guitars, screaming vocals, histrionics, and lots of pouting and preening. Yet, it's a formula that still works when done with the right attitude. So, turn it up and try not to over-analyze. You're welcome.

MISH MASH Mandate: The Heart of Rock and Roll
Rival Sons Website

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers
The Sesjun Radio Shows
Beeld En Geluid/T2 Entertainment
2 CD Set

Here's another incredible set of live tracks from the Sesjun Radio Shows, this time featuring hard bop drumming legend Art Blakey and his Jazz Messengers. Captured in four different sessions in the Netherlands between 1978 and 1983, about a decade before his death in 1990.

The sets show an aging jazz player still in his prime, surrounded by a younger team of musicians like Bobby Watson, David Schnitter, Jean Toussaint, and Donald Harrison on saxes, along with a host of others. The music is spot on hard bop jazz, with soulful horns blaring and Blakey pounding away with his incessant and forceful rhythms. Sound quality-wise, it couldn't get much better for a live radio show, no complaints here. A must have for fans of classic Blue Note-era hard bop.

MISH MASH Mandate: Blakey Bop
Art Blakey Sesjun Radio Shows on Amazon

Michel Legrand
Legrand Jazz
Arthaus Music
DVD

I must admit, while I have always appreciated the work of Michel Legrand, he has never been on the top of my list as one of the all-time jazz greats. To me, he has always been the jazz composer who wrote film scores and movie soundtracks, albeit very good ones. Now my opinion has changed, as this live DVD attests to the true scope of his talent. Backed by the London Big Band Orchestra, Legrand shows off his wares, delivering a stunning performance that starts with a bang and never lets up. Honestly, this is one of the best modern big band performances I have ever seen or heard.

The brilliance of the performance lies in Legrand's exuberance; he is alive and full of energy, so very into the music. His enthusiasm is infectious, and it is obvious and he and his band are having a blast. Later in the show, he is joined by guitar great Sylvain Luc and British pop singer Alison Moyet (formerly of Yaz). Their presence adds another layer of depth to the performance, yet the central focus is totally Legrand - he steals the show in every way possible.

My only complaint, and it is minor, is a distracting continuity error where closeups of the drummer show him missing a bow tie, which is present in the wide shots. Obviously some of the footage was taken from a different performance, and while it is not really a deal-breaker, it is a jarring visual to those of us who notice such minor trivial details. Rant over.

MISH MASH Mandate: Legrandstand
Legrand Jazz @ Naxos