RALPH MYERZ & THE JACK HERREN BAND
Your New Best Friends
(Dynastic)

Naming themselves loosely after cult film legend Russ Meyer and his cameraman, Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band are actually a trio that consists of producer Erlend Sellevold and percussion duo Thomas Lönnheim and Tarjei Ström. Together with various vocalists and instrumentalists at their base in the fertile electronic scene of Bergen, Norway, they return with a second album that makes the word “eclectic” seem somehow wanting. The anguished trip-hop of the opener “Kill The Habit” gives way to a sonic landscape that takes in everything from Scandinavian lounge-pop to mind-bending dub. With all those long winters and good social benefits, it seems, the Scandinavians have plenty of time to focus on making worthy music. DG

FAHNA
Libera Haberu
(Natural Music/3rd Wave)

While Libera Haberu marks the first release by Okinawan duo Fahna, singer and sanshin player Ikko and guitarist Oyakata in fact have a long history of recording that dates back to their earlier incarnation as Dizzy. Their mastery of the piquant shimauta style is evident from the opening track of the album, with Ikko’s translucent voice alternating between playful and mournful and Oyakata keeping up an expertly sparse accompaniment. The tracklist ranges from traditional Okinawan folk songs to an island-style cover of “Amazing Grace,” with sax player Andy Bevan and Okinawan contributors filling out the arrangements. Fahna celebrate the release with a gig at “live house” Bogaloo in Yoyogi on June 25. DG

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
Stadium Arcadium
(Warner)

Whenever a band claims their newest effort is “by far the best thing we’ve ever done,” I always take the sentiment with a grain of salt. And that’s certainly true of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ newest double CD, Stadium Arcadium. After hearing the astonishingly strong opener, “Dani California,” my hopes were for the quintessential summer album. But with track two’s chorus of “Hey oh, listen what I say oh,” I’m left wondering if these guys are even trying anymore. Sure, there are some great tracks, but they’re delivered intermittently at best. If the Chili Peppers want to live up to their self-propagated hype, they should try to cut out the fluff and leave us with something truly memorable. One disk of Arcadium would have certainly been plenty. Trevor L. LaClair

MARK KNOPFLER & EMMYLOU HARRIS
All the Roadrunning
(Mercury)

Since the breakup of Dire Straits, former frontman Knopfler has been exploring roots, folk and blues on albums that, despite garnering critical praise, failed to recreate the buzz of his previous work. Harris, meanwhile, has been in the best form of her life recently, redefining country music while her voice gets better with each passing year. All the Roadrunning is a stellar pairing, with the inspired Knopfler producing his best songs in a decade and Harris providing a perfectly graceful foil to his husky drawl. “Rollin On” revives the laidback shuffles of Dire Straits’ groundbreaking ’78 debut, while “Right Now” presents Harris at her adventurous, Wrecking Ball-era best. It couldn’t have worked out any better. Robert Poole

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