PUBLIC IMAGE LIMITED Live In Tokyo (Elektra)

It’s contractual fulfillment time for PiL while Johnny Boy goes label shopping. Originally released in England a good three years ago, this is a fairly perfunctory outing with whiny droners like “(This Is Not A) Love Song” and furious scorchers like “Annalisa” getting dragged about. Lydon sounds disinterested, for chrissakes. This performance bears absolutely no resemblance to the outrageous concert I saw PiL do in N.Y.C. last spring. The atmosphere was somewhere between Altamont and Olympus. Tension like you wouldn’t believe, and, through it all, Lydon was brilliant. In Tokyo, he was just thick. C.Z.

SAM RIVERS Dimensions And Extensions (Blue Note)