Daily Staff Writer

“Formless/Functional”

Polara

“Formless/Functional” can be taken literally as well as metaphorically. The songs on the CD careen from pop to trance to acoustic to jungle quicker than a chameleon can change colors.

It’s almost hard to believe that this CD is the result of one threemember band and not some sort of soundtrack or anthology with a lot of various artists in different genres.

“Whassup?,” the first track on the CD, could easily be musical collaboration. It mixes synthesizers and house techno with European-flavored vocals, a really bizarre chorus and a pop rhythm. This is what would happen if Fat Boy Slim attempted to remix “Up, Up and Away,” and it ain’t pretty.

Other songs on the CD fare much better. “A Brighter Day” thrives on fuzzy guitar riffs, a catchy drum trap and lurching rhythms. “Got The Switch!” is a decent detour into jungle.

“Halo” could be a Rolling Stones outtake with Bob Dylan on vocals, and “Verbing” is reminiscent of the mid-’80s Brit invasion with synthesizers thrown into the mix.

What is most amazing is that this diverse array of sounds is incorporated into one package that is still listenable and functionable — and that is definitely worth checking out.

4 stars out of five

— Ben Jones

“California”

Scott Thomas Band

The Scott Thomas Band’s newest CD, “California,” is a commendable affair. It’s quirky, it’s fun and it’s pretty good.

It is also likely to appeal to fans of The Wallflowers, Chris Stills (who has a guest appearance on the CD) and Dave Matthews, who are all white hot at the moment.

On “California,” Scott Thomas demonstrates that he writes better lyrics than Jakob Dylan, and that his songs are just as catchy, if not better.

His band (guitarist Andrew Williams, bassist Curt Schneider and drummer Sandly Chila) shows it has enough talent to back him up, and that they deserve to be individually recognized (after all, how many Wallflowers do you know besides Dylan?)

The CD relies mostly on sunny, syrupy songs (“Happy,” “Full Moon Painter,” “Believe”) that are laced with remarkable melodies and memorable choruses.

But even the CD’s slightly more melancholy songs (“Black Valentine,” “Sad Girl,” “Goodnight Baby”) are heartwarming just because the music is so overwhelmingly beautiful.

“California” is a gem of a recording that should not be overlooked.

4 stars out of five

— Ben Jones

“Head Shrinkin’ Fun”

The Bomboras

“A Haunting We Will Go-Go”

The Ghastly Ones

“Head Shrinkin’ Fun” and “A Haunting We Will Go-Go,” the first two releases from Rob Zombie’s Zombie-A-Go-Go Records, are fun excursions back to a time when music wasn’t so serious and self-degrading.

Unfortunately the CDs, and all of the songs on them, sound so similar that it is nearly impossible to tell the difference between them.

They are both more than a half hour of surf-infused go-go music, with no lyrics or added instruments besides the core line-up of guitars, bass and drums.

But they will make you want to dance your butt off, that’s for sure. Besides that, as the Bomboras CD liner notes humorously point out, they can be used as a board game, a drink coaster, a paperweight, modern cookware or dog food.

Or, if you aren’t dancing to the music, they can be used to assault a surfer, take his board, and start slapping people upside the head with it.

“Head Shrinkin’ Fun”

2 stars out of five

“A Haunting We Will Go-Go”

2 stars out of five

— Ben Jones

“Adore”

The Smashing Pumpkins

After two years of soundtrack contributions and a blowout world tour, the Smashing Pumpkins have finally released a new album.

The band’s follow-up to “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness,” simply titled “Adore,” is a complex network of layered tracks that speak of death, pestilence, and many other deeper elements.

“Adore” opens quietly with the soft chirping of crickets before a blissful acoustic melody comes in and Corgan’s purely sensual voice pours forth “Twilight fades through blistered avalon, the sky’s cruel torch on aching autobahn…” on the beautiful “To Sheila.”

The sounds get flightier as the album continues through “Daphne Descends” and the echoey “Once Upon A Time,” a heart-filled sonnet.

At the abrupt end of that song, the drums stumble into the dark world of the song “Tear” which tells the tale of the death of a lover in a car accident.

The Smashing Pumpkins get epic on “The Tale Of Dusty And Pistol Pete,” a peaceful song that disguises its tale of death and vengeance in an envelope of light-sounding guitars.

Corgan’s emotion really shines through as his voice cracks on “Annie-Dog.”

The song explores quite vividly the life of a prostitute struggling with not only drug addiction but the unhappiness of her situation and the want of a new life.

“For Martha” is one of the best songs on “Adore.” It was inspired directly by the death of Corgan’s mother.

The mostly piano-laced song soon turns into a Queen-like guitar brawl and slowly fades in and out into the unknown.

“Adore” is truly a work of art with its lovely ballads of longing and despair that can sometimes bring tears to your eyes with its raw emotional power.

Though this album is missing the Jimmy Chamberlain element from earlier albums, had Chamberlain not been fired, this masterpiece could not have been created.

The Smashing Pumpkins have come full circle, returning to their pre- “Gish” era when it was only Corgan, Iha, D’arcy and a drum machine.

5 stars out of five

-Kevin Hosbond