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Unmitigated cool never goes outta style. Ever. Especially when said cool comes from one of the originators. See then it's something at once insidious and divine, a thing in and of itself, unexplainable, indefinable and blessed beyond belief.

That kinda cool also tends to be highly emulated. And no one was perhaps more emulated throughout the Swingin' '60s than a dame named Ronnie Spector, front chick of The Ronettes. The beehives, the tight skirts, the black slashes of heavy eyeliner, all spoke bad girl in a time when there really wasn't such a thing. And Ronnie's gang set the stage for all the good female trouble to come.

After Ronnie hooked up and marryied Phil Spector back in '63, she and the Ronettes had a run of Top 40 hits which included "Be My Baby" and "Baby, I Love You," as well as a slate of Christmas classics that still get played to this day. But by the end of the decade their star had faded and Phil had pretty much lost his mind.

Check Crossfade on Wednesdays from now on for a quick survey of interesting recent national releases.

Chuck Prophet
Let Freedom Ring (Yep Roc)

You've got to hand it to Chuck Prophet. While the rest of the world  was panicking about the swine flu outbreak, the San Francisco-based songwriter was holed up in a sound studio in Mexico City, recording what ranks as the most staggering rock record of 2009. From the blistering opening chords of "Sonny Liston's Blues" to the plaintive refrain of "Leave the Window Open," Prophet has produced a suite of songs whose exuberance will call to mind not just the mid-'70s heyday of the Stones, but also vintage Cheap Trick.

Prophet's voice is pure Southern California drawl, and his Stratocaster seems never to have met a lick it couldn't shred. But what stands out here is Prophet's ability to survey the moral landscape of America, as the nation faces up to the brutal economic hangover of the go-go Bush years. "Let there be markets, let them run wild," he sings, on the rousing title track, "as the sisters of mercy just laugh/All the lost brothers can drink themselves blind/While good fortune breaks hard work in half." Not even the shimmering chorus can blunt the sting of that sort of truth. What's most remarkable about this album is that Prophet has told the ugly truth about our imperial ills and made it impossible for us not to sing along. -- Steve Almond

Monotonix
Where Were You When it Happened (Drag City)

Last year, Monotonix were just a bunch of long-haired Israelis playing shows that seemed to have people on the blogosphere talking that these guys might indeed be the "best band on the plane." Then they put out an EP on the venerable Drag City Records, and all of a sudden, everybody knew who they were. Now, after a touring schedule that would make Black Flag's head spin, they put fourth eight songs on their first LP, Where Were You Last Night, that all reek of Jesus Lizard worship. This is Maybe one of the dirtiest albums of the year. -- Jason Diamond

Sarah Jacob
Damask
(Reppertoire)

According to the Merriam-Webster, Damask is a firm lustrous fabric make with flat patterns in a satin weave on a plain-woven ground on jacquard looms. After listening through Miami's own Sarah Jacob's Damask, I can say the title is fitting. It's filled with flat patterns, plain-woven lyrics, and a puzzling propensity to crowbar those lyrics into schizophrenic musical arrangements.

Damask's opening line on "Deprivation" perfectly describes my time with the album. "You came on ever so quickly. You filled me with expectations, but only briefly." The opening track "Prelude" is a sparse and beautiful piano and violin arrangement that lasts 31 seconds. "Dare I," substitutes keyboards for pianos and begins to fall apart a few moments later. Jacob's singing is beautiful at times, especially when she goes from a raspy whisper to a full on belting out of her lyrics. But she gets a sort of beat poet vibe and stops singing mid line to speak certain words before suddenly breaking back into singing. It makes for an uneven experience.

Miami Bass Warriors
Miami Bass Warriors 12"
(Palm Tree Snuff/Que Pasa M.I.A.?)

You ever stand around and realize that you are completely surrounded by fucking children? Yeah, it happens... that's how old age dawns upon you and it don't matter how cool and with it your little record collection is, you'll be hard-pressed to explain to the "kids" what it is all about. So, realizing my worth as narrator here, let's see what the Miami Bass Warriors (MBW) do: other than make me out to be the square bald guy with whiskey breath bullshit on the corner. Whatever, see if I care, see if I give a shit, cuz I rode that jitney whilst Taylor Dane blasted and Power 96 was the epitome of cool.

Shawn Snyder?
Stripmall Troubadour (Live at the Moose)?
www.shawnsnydermusic.com
www.myspace.com/shawnsnydermusic

Turnip-haired homeboy Shawn Snyder made quite a splash with last year's sophomore set, Romantic's Requiem, an album that earned it New Times' kudos for being among the best local releases of 2008. For its follow-up, Snyder strips things down, offering up a lo-fi acoustic set that not only finds him in his element but remarkably, even bolder than before. His studio effort boasted tumultuous tales of love and loss, tempered by a journeyman attitude and a restless spirit that kept him on the road nonstop for months at a time. Consequently, it's a relief to find Snyder alighting long enough to record this performance at Davie's Chocolate Moose Cafe, giving ample opportunity to effectively emote and embrace his sinewy, soulful motif. Opener "Dirge" finds him in accapella mode, a rather startling attempt that seizes attention immediately at the outset, From that point on, Snyder provides a dark and tangled mix of angst-intensive narratives, soulful ruminations and gruff confessional ballads that retrace the best entries from his studio recordings.

Kreamy 'Lectric Santa
Operation Spacetime Cynderblock: "Four Riddles of the Spheres"
(Starcleaner Records)

It has been a very long time since the Kreamies have graced us with a full-length effort and what an incredibly delicious piece of wax it is. And though it has been ages, the spirit of this outfit permeates every aspect of this release. For the uninitiated: Kreamy 'Lectric Santa bridged the awkward end of the '80s and the massive untamed wilderness of Miami's '90s underground music. This band helped cement the kitschy ber-coolness of Churchill's Pub as the real musical hub of South Florida and send a couple of record nerds out to track down many cassette and 7" releases from fledgling local labels.

The Crumbs
Insubordination Fest '08: Live From Baltimore (Insubordination Records)
insubordinationrecords.com

Here are the Crumbs down to a three-piece, rocking harder than most of their contemporaries in an excellent live document of one of their retrospective gigs. (The Crumbs have 16 years in the game, baby!) The DVD gives them the full honor of color footage and a minimum, by my count, of six different camera angles. The 11 tracks on the accompanying live CD appear here too, in their full glory. Consider this justice finally served to one of the South's best, undisputed champions of punk rock and roll!

DJ Sire Esq.
All In (Culture Kings)
myspace.com/sireesq

Not only can DJ Sire Esquire drop a mean set at a local club, but homeboy can still funk up, tea up, fuck up, and own tracks like nobody's business. This disc features 34 reworked numbers that at times rock better than the originals. Together they give you, the consumer, an uninterrupted, 80-minute play list of get-low-and-sticky-and-come-back-to-my-room pieces that express the true gist of South Florida living. It's hot here for a reason, and Sire ain't helping the weather out with these. Get it, drop it, live your life in style, my babies. This is a solid mix with a Hunter S. Thompson streak. (Full disclosure: Sire Esq. occasionally writes about music for New Times under his real name, Bernard Hacker.)

Ed Hale
Ballad on Third Avenue
(Dying Van Gogh)

Ed Hale's outfit Transcendence was the kind of band that allowed ambition and extravagance to find equal footing. Progressive by design, its sumptuous arrangements often overshadowed Hale's skills as a songwriter, which featured some great melodies at the core. Hale seems to have remedied that band's often-obtuse approach with a solo album that focuses more on emotional content and less on instrumental elaboration. The cast of supporting players is terrific (several played in Transcendence), and Hale demonstrates an enviable gift for brooding, introspective melodies that are as quietly compelling as those of Leonard Cohen or Nick Cave. And yes, they're that good.

The fact that Hale still boasts a penchant for grander schemes ought come as no surprise. His own Dying Van Gogh label has given a home to some of South Florida's most talented artists, including multi-instrumentalist Fernando Perdomo, who also co-produced this disc. Hale himself has shifted his base of operations to New York, where he now finds both the aural and visual muse for his music. And despite the vast expanse of these urban environs, songs such as "Scene in San Francisco," "Hello My Dove," "It Feels Too Good," and "New Orleans Dreams" provide an intimate view of life, love and longing from a solitary point of view.

Jacob Jeffries Band
...Waiting for the Piano Movers...
Eleven:11 Entertainment

Jacob Jeffries is absurdly young -- barely out of his teens -- to be so abundantly talented. And despite his age, he's clawed his way to the top strata of South Florida's pop elite, thanks to last year's aptly titled debut album, Wonderful. The comparisons to Billy Joel and Ben Folds have been widely trumpeted by the local press, but Jeffries' obvious penchant for pure pop essence makes him unique among the local legions who tend to lean towards seriousness.

Jeffries and company strike up a celebration of fock's sheer joy and unbridled exuberance, interspersing their piano pop with the over-the-top showmanship a la Jerry Lee Lewis or Elton John. Consequently, the decision to spotlight the Jeffries band in a live setting was a sound one. The resulting album, the awkwardly punctuated ....Waiting for the Piano Movers..., recreates the excitement and enthusiasm of the band's live gigs.