Latest CD releases reviewed

VARIOUS
Africa Calling: Live 8 at Eden Warner Vision ****

You've got to get over two obstacles with this release. First, it was just incredibly stupid to corral all the African musicians playing at Live 8 into a space in Cornwall for an event that received minimal coverage. Second, the release of this DVD independent of the "real" Live 8 DVD in November does seem to reinforce the stupidity of the decision. That apart, this double disc rounds up all the best music on the day - the stuff we weren't allowed watch because the cameras were on Mariah Carey, etc. Thomas Mapfumo steals the show here with a high-octane set, and other notable performances come courtesy of Tinariwen and Daara J. Extras include the very good documentary, Africa Calling at Eden and band interviews conducted by Anna Gabriel. This really shows us what we missed - it seemed like quite a day down Cornwall way. Brian Boyd

VIOLENT FEMMES
Permanent Record: Live & Otherwise Rhino **

DVD's great advantage over VHS is to archive memory more effectively, accessibly and cheaply, offering the die-hard fan a permanent visual record to complement their re-mastered CD re-issue. Thus this Violent Femmes DVD features a hot and grungy never-before-seen concert (recorded in 1991 at Norfolk, Virginia's live dive Boat House), seven video clips (including the "experimental" Machine) and one live impromptu street performance, all of which evoke vividly the gothic humour and wry charisma of the early 1980s punk rockabilly trio. But while the live versions of Blister in the Sun, Country Death Song and Add It Up glow with a vivid youthfulness - even the video clips seem daring on a shoestring - Permanent Record lacks the very real "bonus" of a documentary (interviews or profiles) to contextualise the band's unique music and time. Strictly for fans - and not in a good way. www.rhino.com Jocelyn Clarke