Just when they’d all but slipped from pubic consciousness,
Idaho have materialized with an oasis at the end of an
otherwise dry ’98. Perhaps freed of commercial expectations, main man Jeff Martin
has produced his best collection of amber-coated textures and melodies. Moving on from the monochrome of the band’s early LPs, Alas
adds subtle dabs of pizzicato violin, marimba and pocket trumpet to
Idaho’s palette, of slow-mo guitar strums, feedback washes and Martins intimate
baritone, as well affecting back-up vocals from Hole’s Melissa Auf Der Maur and drums by Beck’s Joey
Waronker. Rarely have guest cameos served the songs so well. AP
( Buzz, 409 N, Wolcott, Chicago IL 60622)