SUNDAY DECEMBER 4
MORCHEEBADuring triphop's mid-'90s heyday, Morcheeba were among the genre's ruling classâand they ruled with class. The British ensemble debuted auspiciously with 1996's Who Can You Trust?, featuring Skye Edwards's heavy-lidded, creamy croon. Brothers Ross and Paul Godfrey lent luster with louchely languorous funk backdrops that weren't as emotionally fraught as Portishead or Tricky's output or as sassy and sexy as Sneaker Pimps and Moloko's, but compensated with luxurious textures, soothing arrangements, and mellifluous melodies. Subsequent albums found the group deviating from their strengths, but not completely losing the plot; at their best they sound like a straight-laced Beck in folky-funk mode. However, Morcheeba did lose Edwards after 2002's Charango. Her replacement, ex-Noonday Underground vocalist Daisy Martey, belts like a feisty Nancy Wilson/Shirley Bassey combo on Morcheeba's fifth album, The Antidote, while the Godfreys guide the act into ever more pedestrian folk-rock terrain with mild psychedelic touches. Undoubtedly, Morcheeba's original magic's faded, and Edwards is sorely missed. With Gabby La La. Showbox, 1426 First Ave, 628-3151, 8 pm, $25, 21+.
NEW MIX CDS ALERTDJ Fucking in the Streets and DJ Recess recently handed me their new mix discs. They make a cute coupleâthe discs, not the DJs, though in a certain light perhaps... But seriously, both efforts draw upon underground culture's recent infatuation with rock-friendly dance productions and dance-friendly rock productions. Recess's Galaxy Rock for Disconauts is an aptly titled rip through booger-sugared-up, cowbell-happy rockno (rock + techno). It'll cheer you right up (extra credit for including Diplo's remix of Spank Rock's "Put That Pussy on Me"). FITS's There Is Mass Movement mix (out next year on up-and-coming Seattle imprint Mass Mvmnt) bumps it more on the tech-house tip (e.g., Captain Comatose, Superpitcher, John Tejada, Tiga, Tomas Andersson), but it's still pretty song-oriented, serving as a nice intro for rockers seeking a slick entrĂ©e into tanz musik. FITS opens for !!! and FCS North Sat Dec 3 at Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave, 441-5611, 9 pmâ2 am , $12 adv/$14 DOS, 21+; Recess hosts Co-Op every Sunday at Chapel, 1600 Melrose Ave, 447-4180, 9 pm, free, 21+.
