Daily Staff Writer

“Tied and Tangled”

Glitterbox

Glitterbox hail from the same polkadotted, eccentric world that the Flaming Lips and Pavement call home.

It’s no surprise then that fans of those two “alternative” groups will like Glitterbox and those who detest Pavement’s strangeness and the Flaming Lip’s ambiguity will hate the group.

“Tied and Tangled” is full of gobbledygook and half-baked ideas. Lyrically, the group doesn’t have much to offer but vagueness and outright nonsense (check out “Jesus Song” which states “He’s got disciples/They want to sleep with him/Attracted by the magnets in his brain”).

Musically, however, there is a vast amount to be happy about. Take “I Can Wait” for example. It’s a salsa-flavored ditty with minimal string arrangement and some keyboard notes thrown in for good measure.

This catchy song, which features great guitar work from Miles Heseltine, also contains some of the CD’s funniest lyrics (“I caught her yawning when/We changed our position/We’d make love early morning/She was watching television”).

“Woody Allen” is also a great tune that conjures up visions of unwanted sex (“I can’t even get undressed/’cause you keep asking me for sex/Lock the bedroom door when you’re outside/You took the locks off, now I can’t hide”) amidst a melody punctuated by shotgun blasts of drums and guitar fuzz.

Some of the disc’s other highlights include the lukewarm burner “Step Inside” (which sounds like an eccentric mixture of Crosby, Stills and Nash and early Jane’s Addiction), the tempestuous typhoon created when melody meets noise on “Sit Back and Watch Her Fly” and the bouncy/meaty “Scared Of All The World.”

These songs make other offerings, like “Houdini,” “Superman” and “Summersong” (which happens to have the best lyrics of the CD but also the blandest music) seem out of place.

Make no mistakes about it, Glitterbox is certainly not the next Pavement, and it will probably not be the next big thing. But “Tied and Tangled” is a CD that is delightfully fun and worth checking out.

3 1/2 stars out of five.

— Ben Jones

“Sevens”

Garth Brooks

The past year has been up and down for Garth Brooks. His historical performance in Central Park in August was spectacular and definitely continued his tradition of stirring up new interest in country music.

However, problems with his record company kept him from releasing his album in August.

Perhaps the wait just made the anticipation better because when his latest CD, “Sevens,” was released less than two months ago it went straight to the top of the charts.

This long-awaited CD features 14 brand new songs which demonstrate his ability to escape the boundary of honky-tonk music and broaden his appeal to audiences outside of the normal country range.

However, the new CD is different from all his others and does not have the energy that was trademark in “Wild Horses.”

The classic honky-tonk songs are still there with “Longneck Bottle” and “Cowboy Cadillac.”

Several of the other songs also have a great beat and are fun to sing along with, such as “Two Pina Coladas.”

Still, most of “Sevens” is much slower paced.

Unlike past albums which were fast-paced and easy listening, “Sevens” needs to be listened to several times before the meaning of the songs and the real flow of the album become clear.

The songs flow together easily although several are barely two minutes long.

Garth has always had his own style and records songs that do not follow the trends of other country artists and this new CD contains several songs that will be trademarked as Garth’s.

Three especially stick out from the rest of the album: “Two Pina Coladas,” “When There’s No One Around and “Belleau Wood,” Garth’s favorite and an extremely powerful and emotionally charged song.

The love songs are there too. The hit duet with Trisha Yearwood, “In Another’s Eyes” and “She’s Gonna Make It” are standouts on the album.

Garth Brooks fans will probably be surprised by the more serious and relaxed tone. “Sevens” is not the best CD Garth Brooks has ever recorded, but it is a great album.

4 stars out of five.

— Amanda Knief

“Welcome to Our World”

Timbaland and Magoo

It’s a sad day for hip-hop music when I recommend an album based on beats rather than lyrics, yet in the case of “Welcome to Our World” no other conclusion is possible.

Timbaland is better known as the music producer who made Aaliyah “One in a Million” and gave Ginuwine a “Pony” to ride.

Awash in the platinum success of rapper/songwriter Missy Elliott, Timbaland has focused his talents on a new rap protege named Magoo.

Although Magoo has an interesting voice reminiscent of Q-Tip, his rhyme skills never get more sophisticated than “Off and on beat, old school like Beat Street” on the debut single “Up Jumps Da’ Boogie.”

What really makes this album work is Timbaland’s musical wizardry. His high energy futuristic sounding tracks snap, crackle and go pop with incredible ease.

Check out the oddly fast-paced yet sultry rhythms of “Man Undercover” featuring Aaliyah. Groove to the laid back funk of “Feel It.”

Most of all, check out both versions of “Clock Strikes” — the latter remix reworks the theme song from the TV series “Knight Rider” into a funky, head-nodding, foot-tapping beat.

This album is purely ear candy. It won’t change the world or revolutionize rap music, but it’s tasty and enjoyable anyway.

3 1/2 stars out of five.

— Steve “Flash” Juon

“Lili”

Lili Haydn

Lili Haydn has intelligent, thought-provoking lyrics that are emotional and biting at the same time. Her talent as a cello player is evident on every track and she has a beautiful voice.

But there is a problem on Haydn’s debut CD — she can’t combine all of these elements into a cohesive whole.

On “Stranger” she tells us that a “pretty teenage baby has a baby of her own/no one to talk to, she’s got no place to turn” with a voice that is buried by her cello, rumbling bass and twinkling keyboards.

“Salome” is an unremarkable instrumental. “Real” is a cello-laced “girl gets even with a man” song that has more bark than bite because of decent lyrics (“I’m not your tramp/You cannot make me behave/My tits are real/And I’m tired of pretending”) that can’t really be heard over the distorted vibe.

The CD also has several sappy sentimental songs (“Baby,” “Mama,” “Daddy” and “Faithful One”) and a sad tune about homeless people (“Take Somebody Home”) which feature great lyrics that are unfortunately buried within an annoyingly happy cello-laced pop shell.

Glen Ballard, the producer/songwriter that made Alanis Morrissette a household name, attempts to salvage Haydn on “Someday.”

The song is filled with the big rock-and-roll sound and feel that Ballard is known for. This becomes really irritating when combined with breathy, grating vocals and cello solos.

While the addition of the cello adds a unique feel to the music, it is completely unneeded and most of the songs would sound better without it.

It’s too bad that a cohesion problem strangled the music of this very talented young woman. Hopefully she will retain her recording contract and be able to try again.

2 stars out of five.

— Ben Jones

“Psychoanalysis”

Prince Paul

You have three minutes in which to tell me a dream — an innocent enough phrase to be sure, but musical maestro Prince Paul warps this simple statement into a verbal nightmare and an aural delight.

The bizarre genius behind both De La Soul and the Gravediggaz, Prince Paul has already produced his way into the hip-hop hall of fame with classic tracks like “Say No Go” and “Diary of a Madman”.

Now the ever innovative beatmaster has created an album which is part audio collage, part introspection, and part insanity. The result is funky grooves and twisted shit guaranteed to make you smile.

“Beautiful Night” is an ideal example: a psychiatric patient describes his homicidal behavior under analysis while singers harmonize to a lush R&B beat: “It was a beautiful night to kill crackers, it was a beautiful night all around.”

The combination is so utterly twisted that you can’t help but laugh your ass off, and most of the album follows this formula: bizarre samples, ill-advised covers of hip-hop classics, and skits about people who have a few too many screws loose.

For anybody looking for a non-traditional rap album that doesn’t take itself too seriously and still manages to sound good, Prince Paul’s “Psychoanalysis” is a sure shot winner.

4 stars out of five.

— Steve “Flash” Juon