Send "The Gossip " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Musicomh |
 It seems to be two steps forward, three steps back with Portland, Oregon soul-punk pioneers the Gossip. Not musically you understand; they consistently make leaps and bounds in that area, but as a political entity. And they are one, albeit an incredibly catchy and danceable one. Even if they don't use soap boxes or slogans, by their very existence and excellence Beth Ditto, Brace Paine and Hannah Blilie are a positive force for change in a narrow-minded mainstream; a sharp slap across the face, waking the world up to questions about image, sexuality, gender and identity. There is no band as important right now. Now in the process of penning an infectious floor-filler like Standing In The Way Of Control, they got everyone from girls about town to the Mail-reading man in the street to scream out loud about gay marriage - an awesome achievement. But liberals shouldn't get lazy, because for every hint at progress, something happens to knock us back down to earth with a bump. And it's clear there is still much to do....full text |
| Uncut. |
| It’s one thing to be a fanzine-scene punk darling, another to be an indie icon, and still another to be a full-blown global pop star. Beth Ditto will soon be one of the few individuals lucky enough to have experienced being all three. From the first note of Music For Men – a clomping hoof of a drumbeat that leads like a beckoning finger into the slinky, country-tinged “Dimestore Diamond”– it’s clear that this is an album with a mission. Consider it a resounding rebuttal to anyone who suspected that The Gossip might be a one-hit-wonder whose long silence in the wake of their 2006 dancefloor-devouring gay-rights anthem “Standing In the Way of Control” was down to the fact that they simply didn’t have any more good songs. Brace yourselves, naysayers, for a tour de force. Of course, there’s nothing like making your major-label debut with an esteemed production wizard at the wheel: Rick Rubin, the bearded bear-man who has previously worked with everyone from the Beastie Boys to the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Johnny Cash, has been trumpeting his love for The Gossip since her first saw them play in 2007, and he clearly knew what buttons to push – figuratively and literally – to bring out their best. Brace Paine’s guitar sounds like it could saw through marble; Hannah Blilie’s drumming crashes and booms with concussive force; and while there’s no denying that Ditto has one of the best soul-punk set of pipes on the planet, she really goes to town here, unleashing a Janis-Joplin-meets-Dolly-Parton vocal wallop like a woman with a horsewhip. They make use of all the tricks at their disposal, too – layers of synth, plinkety pianos, the punctuating “oohs” and “ahhs” of backing vocals – all of which take them far away from the stripped-down blues punk that defined their sound when they emerged on the Olympia, Washington riot grrl scene a decade ago....full text |
| Spin |
| What's that joke about gay couples wanting to get married? They deserve the chance to be as unhappy as straight people. On the Gossip's major-label debut -- 12 Rick Rubin–produced tracks spanning minimalist disco, post-punk, and garage -- the trio extends the gay-positive message of 2006's "Standing in the Way of Control," the single that broke them in Europe seven years after the band started. Yet frontwoman Beth Ditto remains caught somewhere between Donna Summer and Dolly Parton: she loves to love, but all those complications keep her down....full text |
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