* Black Crowes, “Three Snakes and One...

* Black Crowes, “Three Snakes and One Charm,” American. The Crowes were never rock’s most original outfit, just dependable Stones/Faces copyists. But “Snakes” sounds strangely disengaged. Fresh from last year’s neo-hippie H.O.R.D.E. Tour, the Crowes here worship the groove above all else, with no rock edge, no hooks, no tunes. From this morass, “Everything” erupts into some fine mid-’70s-style funk, but only underlines the lack of energy elsewhere.

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