>Album Review: Gorillaz, Broken Bells, Dan Black
Posted by d1esel6 in Album Review, Broken Bells, Dan Black, Gorillaz
Album Review, Broken Bells, Broken Bells Review, Bruce Willis, Dan Black, Dan Black Review, Dan Black UN, Dan Black UN Review, Danger Mouse, Gorillaz, Gorillaz Plastic Beach, Gorillaz Plastic Beach Review, Gorillaz Review, James Mercer, Plastic Beach, Plastic Beach Review, The Shins
>The only Electronic group with literally animated group members and consistently mind-blowing videos have released their third album last month. Talking about the Gorillaz naturally, who have made a name for themselves with great imagery, hotly discussed videos, and a handful of insanely catchy and iconic hit singles. With the groups first single from their new album "Plastic Beach", you get a real indication of what the album will be. The video for "Stylo" (video at the bottom of this post) follows in their great tradition, and is yet another consistent and captivating music video co-starring Bruce Willis of all people. The song however, while good, is just a bit Too mellow and even guest appearances from Mos Def and R&B veteran Bobby Womack can't really make the song itself more memorable. And that's the main problem with the album, which is in general a good effort just not a very hard-hitting one. Not that the Gorillaz have ever been anything other than a mellow/chill Electronic group, however in their previous albums they did a great job at infusing some really catchy and more upbeat cuts into the mix. This album doesn't have a "Dirty Harry" or a "Feel Good Inc." or even a "Dare" or "Clint Eastwood".
The good thing about the album is it's very cohesive and the "Plastic Beach" idea is felt in the vibe of the very relaxing tracks. And better still, the featured appearances from the likes of everyone from Snoop Dogg, Lou Reed and De La Soul mix in perfectly. There vocals never seem to take away from the moody and chill tone of the album. This album seems to be perfect if you are going to listen to the whole thing on maybe a road trip, or just some sort of a relaxing playlist for the beach or wherever. Not their best, but definitely not a bad album.
Danger Mouse is also back. The producer you SHOULD know who was behind the incredible albums by Gnarls Barkley, the aforementioned Gorillaz, The Black Keys and Beck in the past few years. This time, he's teamed with The Shins front man James Mercer to form the duo and album titled "Broken Bells", which is another tremendous feat in Danger Mouse's discography. His production style is definitely present on this album which was released last month. Danger Mouse is the king of moody and pretty dark productions, and that vibe can be felt on this album. However unlike Gnarls Barkley's sophomore album and Beck's "Modern Guilt", Mouse infuses a little more light into his sound with this album. It makes for a wonderful aural experience, and the best album of the year so far. And what makes this collaboration a little better than his previous productions for Cee-lo, Black Keys and Beck is that Mercer's voice seems to perfectly match the style of the tracks. Beck delivered a bit of a mumbled vocal performance and Cee-lo's voice, although very unique, can get a little grating after a while. And those previous albums were terrific albums even given the vocal complaints, but that's just the reason why "Broken Bells" works so beautifully is because both members truly compliment each other.
Another great thing about this album is it's one that can be enjoyed on the whole, but if you take the singles by themselves they still stand out. "Citizen" "Mongrel Heart" and "The Ghost Inside" can be very worthy follow up singles with great hooks and melodies and of course great production. Even "Sailing to Nowhere", which plays almost entirely as an instrumental, is phenomenal on it's own given Danger Mouse's subtle production, you can hear a crazy drum sequence faintly in the background that elevates the track and takes away nothing from the beauty of it. A truly flawless album, let's hope they are remembered come Grammy time.
In Dan Black's debut album "UN", you hear an extremely talented guy trying — and succeeding at producing his very own finely tuned Pop album with Hip Hop influences. And he does it all by himself. Without the benefit of having Timbaland or Kanye West producing tracks for him, he does a really impressive job of making songs that sound like they were produced by Timbaland or Kanye. This kid obviously has his ear to Pop radio, and every track (literally) is catchy enough to compete in that format easily. "U + Me" and "Alone" could potentially be big hits on the charts. If there's one problem with this debut, it's Black's voice. It's paper thin and at times a little whiny, a little more vocal control or even playing with different melodies, phrasing or just the attitude would have greatly benefited the album, especially some of the slower songs like the gorgeous "Cocoon" or "Life Slash Dreams". However this is his debut album, and based on what he's been able to accomplish here the future looks really good for him, and hopefully he grows leaps and bounds from here.
>Album Reviews: Usher, Ludacris, Monica
Posted by d1esel6 in Album Review, Ludacris, Monica, Usher
Album Review, Battle of the Sexes, Battle of the Sexes Review, Ludacris, Ludacris Battle of the Sexes, Ludacris Battle of the Sexes Review, Ludacris Review, Monica, Monica Review, Monica Still Standing Review, Raymond v Raymond, Raymond v Raymond Review, Raymond versus Raymond, Raymond versus Raymond Review, Still Standing, Still Standing Review, Usher, Usher Raymond v Raymond, Usher Raymond v Raymond Review, Usher Raymond versus Raymond, Usher Raymond versus Raymond Review, Usher Review
>Even though on my last post I spoke about how this years album releases have been lacking. Well three new releases that I wasn't expecting much from have actually really surprised me (well, two of the three) and make 2010 seem like it might be a nice year in music after all. This is what I'd like to call my Atlanta Special Edition because not only are all of these artists from Atlanta, but they have all collaborated with each other on multiple occasions.
Usher's 6th studio album "Raymond v. Raymond" will be released March 30th, and I'm so proud to report that this one is worth the purchase. 2008's "Here I Stand", had Usher playing the "devoted husband and father" role and I think the album and it's promotion suffered because of it. Not a terrible album by any means, but his live performances were severely lacking and his interviews became intolerable with him trying to convince everybody how much in Love with his new wife he was. And than just a few months after that album dropped it was announced that he was getting a divorce. This album starts off by making the point "there are three sides to every story. One side. The Other Side. and The Truth" and the rest of album seems to just point out the different sides and doesn't really seem to deal with the truth. However that's not a complaint, because pretty much everything about this album is great. Just on a production level, this is one of his best albums. The various producers ranging from Jim Jonsin to Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis offer Usher tracks with so much depth and complexity. Even though the album sticks to what Usher is good at, R&B, there is a good bit of diversity on the album as far as it's tracks. And even on the Dance/Pop'ish tracks it's not just the typical and lazy repeated loop of a keyboard sequence, there's always something new coming up with each minute on each song.
Lyrically it's also very on point, as I keep listening and noticing clever lines and even some thought provoking ones. The albums BEST (yeah I said it!) track "Mars v. Venus" is a great example, where he uses space travel and astronomy terms to equate with sex and love. "Pro Lover" is another well-written track, you might miss the genius of the lyrics at first because the track is so fun and his vocal delivery is so creative, but listen to the lyrics on the second go round. Throughout the album, like I said before, he shows the different sides of what can make a marriage go south. And I definitely appreciate that he's not blaming anybody, (well at least not on every track), he accepts his part and also acknowledges how the female in the relationship might feel. It's a really well-rounded album lyrically.
And Vocally, Usher is on fire on this album. The lead in track "Monstar" almost doesn't even sound like him, his vocals are way more relaxed and even conversational on this Disco inspired track. And even though "Foolin' Around" plays like "Burn part Two", his vocals actually save what might be considered a dated track. The difference from this album from the last album vocally is Usher seems to be a lot more present and determined to let his voice be the star even though he has A+ tracks to sing over. He plays with his voice in so many different ways, and truly shows that he does have some major talent outside of his dance skills.
I can't wait to see some Live performances from him to show if he's Really back, but this album is a winner. There's really not a bad track on the album, and even if certain songs have things lacking, the amazing production lyrics or vocals save it from floundering.
Ludacris released his 7th album "Battle of the Sexes" on March 9th. And having been very disappointed in his last two albums I didn't expect hardly anything from this one. Once a great force in the Hip Hop game, I had counted Ludacris out really. Upon listening to his new album though, I realized what was missing from the last two albums. FUN! Luda was always the rapper with the great skills, but the one that always made you laugh (in a good way) while listening to his rhymes. It seems like on the last two efforts "Release Therapy" and "Theater of the Mind", he tried to get too serious and forgot what made him a star. So happy he returned to form with this effort because not only does it make for a solid album, but in a lot of ways made me love Hip Hop again. Having said that, the "Battle of the Sexes" theme isn't very obvious throughout the album except for "B.O.T.S.", if the idea was to show conflicting sides of this battle, he kind of failed because instead of it being about a Battle it's more just talking about relationships in general. Even than, "Everybody Drunk" and "Party No Mo" don't seem to fit at all, even though they are two of the better tracks. "How Low" and "My Chick Bad", which are the two first singles, are two of his best songs because though they seem misogynistic based on the titles, he actually does celebrate women and doesn't degrade them as hard as some other rappers even R&B singers (this is something I've always loved about Luda actually, he's very pro-woman and definitely appreciates and celebrates them). He has his required sex songs with what seem to be required guest appearances by Trey Songz and Ne-Yo. (Speaking of, Ne-Yo's collaboration "Tell me a Secret" is a great song… but the true star is Swizz Beatz for the very subtle but very original and creative drum track) Overall, it's not his best album by a long shot but it's a great return to form and just a Fun album.
Monica, on the other hand, has just released her 6th studio album "Still Standing" and Fun is definitely not a word you can use to describe this outing. If you can get past her and producer Missy Elliott taking a DUMP on two R&B Classics ("Silly" by Deneice Williams is turned into the awful "Everything to Me" and "Betcha She Don't Love You" by Evelyn 'Champagne' King into "If You Were My Man"), what your left with is a pretty standard contemporary R&B album. With her singing about the standard R&B stuff… Love, Love Loss, Cheating, Breaking Up, etc etc. However I think the biggest problem with this album, and Monica's entire discography the past 8 years, is that she takes herself a little too seriously. The albums title track proves this, where she paints herself out to be this artist with so much adversity and so much hate, when that's never been the case. Monica has always been one of the more respected artists in the R&B game, and she's been wealthy and successful since she was 14 years old. So lyrics like "been through the storm, had dirt on my name" and "Whatever don't kill you make you stronger, well I must be the world's strongest woman" don't make much sense to me knowing her story. And I think this self-imposed importance really makes some tracks that might have been great a little dull. Her contemporary and one time Rival Brandy released an album full of generic Pop songs in 2008, but it was her voice and her energy that brought those songs up. Monica is just lacking something and it's probably because she thinks she can't have fun or she won't be taken seriously. The very last two songs are winners though, the Jermaine Dupri produced ballad "Love All Over Me" and the Stargate produced "Believing In Me" are a lot better than you would think given just the titles, and her voice matches up nicely with the simple productions. Overall, not a very good album, and to be frank Monica hasn't really progressed much and that's probably another major problem I have with the album. It can very easily blend into her last two albums "After the Storm" and "The Makings of Me", and to me that's not a good thing.
>Album Review : Quick Update!!!
Posted by d1esel6 in Album Review, Grizzly Bear, Gucci Mane, Hot Chip, Lil Wayne, Robin Thicke, The Temper Trap
Album Review, Conditions, Conditions Review, Grizzly Bear, Grizzly Bear Review, Grizzly Bear Veckatimest, Grizzly Bear Veckatimest Review, Gucci Mane, Gucci Mane Review, Gucci Mane The State Vs Radric Davis, Gucci Mane The State Vs Radric Davis Review, Hot Chip, Hot Chip One Life Stand, Hot Chip One Life Stand Review, Hot Chip Review, Lil Wayne, Lil Wayne Rebirth, Lil Wayne Rebirth Review, Lil Wayne Review, One Life Stand, One Life Stand Review, Rebirth, Rebirth Review, Robin Thicke, Robin Thicke Review, Robin Thicke Sex Therapy, Robin Thicke Sex Therapy Review, Sex Therapy, Sex Therapy Review, Temper Trap, Temper Trap Conditions, Temper Trap Conditions Review, Temper Trap Review, The State Vs Radric Davis, The State Vs Radric Davis Review, The Temper Trap, The Temper Trap Conditions, The Temper Trap Conditions Review, The Temper Trap Review, Veckatimest, Veckatimest Review, Weezy
>So 2010 is shaping up to be a boring year Music wise. There haven't been many big releases thus far, and reading Rolling Stones "Spring Music Preview" it doesn't look like there's much to look forward to either. I've checked out a few new releases, and just now getting into some stuff from last year. So here is just a quick run down of what's standing out to me right now.
Grizzly Bear "Veckatimest"
When I first played this album, only two tracks grabbed me. Those two tracks still remain the standouts on this album, but I grew to love the laid back vibe and beautiful harmonies and melodies this group has put together on their third album which was released last summer. The albums first single (and now featured in a Volkswagen commercial) "Two Weeks" is a light, upbeat and a great showcase for all 4 band members talents. "Ready, Able" is a slower, moodier song that blends perfectly with the vibe of the album — which is very moody, but also very relaxing and also very Earthy (I suppose this is what you might call Contemporary Folk music). Those two benefit from very strong hooks and melodies, but the entire album with their very textured harmonies is a great listen, a great example of a band that blend together perfectly.
The Temper Trap "Conditions"
This groups break out single "Sweet Disposition" grabbed me when I heard it on the radio, but like Grizzly Bear I wasn't bowled over the first time I listened to the album. And that amazing single is still the only real standout to be honest. The powerful and unique vocals and vocal delivery of Dougie Mandagi, matched with the upbeat instrumentation and strong hook make this one of the better songs I've heard in a while. Unfortunately it seems like the group couldn't match the greatness of this song with anything else on the album. However, if you like that song (and I love it) the rest of the album isn't a big disappointment. It's very much in the same vein of that song, power hooks over very polished electronic/rock beats. "Soldier On" shows a lot more restraint than most of the tracks, with a soft guitar backing and very great delivery by the lead vocalist it also stands out a little more than the rest. However, this is their first studio album. So I think this group has amazing potential to be pretty big in the years to come, if they keep in the same direction as "Sweet Disposition"
Lil Wayne "Rebirth"
Sticking in this, "sort of Rock" tradition, let's talk about Lil Wayne's much talked about Hip Hop/Rock album. I listened to it twice to be sure, and I'm pretty much certain now that this album is Awful to the point of being one of the worst albums I've ever heard. And the thing about it is, it could have been saved. Wayne seems to have gotten too confident that he could pull this off, and he really didn't. At all. "Ground Zero" is no doubt the best song on the album. Weezy and Producers DJ Infamous and Streetrunners do a great job at keeping the dirty vibe of a rock track and mixing it with the dirty vibe of a Hip Hop track. And there are occasions, on a pure instrumental level, that some of the tracks really do work in that way. The problem is the Auto-Tune. Wayne uses it way too much on this album, and at all the wrong moments. Sometimes, most of the times, listening to the album is unbearable because of it. And really if he wanted to embody a Rock Star, they aren't scared to have their voice sound off-pitch, gritty or out of tune because it's Rock and Roll!! I think Wayne thought it was a cool effect and that's really what ruined this album. And the other problem, is that some of the songs don't sound like Rock at all. "On Fire", one of the singles released, is another highlight but it's hectic drum programming and his delivery are pure Hip Hop and nothing else. And there are times when the producers just seemed to throw a bit of a guitar sound on the track and pass it off as Rock. I honestly wasn't expecting much, but I was expecting a lot better. (And don't even get me started on the "Knockout" song, which is just so infuriating in theme)
Gucci Mane "The State Vs. Radric Davis"
The most surprising album so far this year has been Gucci Mane, which I expected NOTHING from. I was a big fan of his single "Wasted", which led me to download this album. And I think everything I like about "Wasted" is the reason why I actually really like this album and why it actually works. Gucci is very simple in delivery, but he does a great job of matching whatever the track dictates. The album begins with a very underground Hip Hop sound with standouts like "Heavy" and "Stupid Wild", but they come off as just very fun songs (almost the feeling of Project PAT). The album than flows into the more commercial ready Rap/R&B stuff (collaborations with Keyshia Cole, Bobby Valentino and Usher on the hit "Spotlight"), and than lands back to a grittier sound to end out the album. Still Fun though, and the bottom half of the album is definitely focused on the party with one of the best tracks "Kush is my Cologne" and two versions of "Wasted". The album is sequenced well, and the guest appearances from the likes of Lil Wayne, Mike Epps, E-40 and Soulja Boy among others are well spaced apart to let the star actually shine. Who knows where Gucci will be next year, there aren't an extraordinary amount of skills coming from this album, but he does bring back the fun that Hip Hop sometimes lacks.
Robin Thicke "Sex Therapy"
Another huge surprise, Thicke's fourth album which was released late 2009. I've never been a big fan of his and I was so ready to put him in the "One Hit Wonder" group after 2006's "Lost Without You" made him the "White boy singing R&B Star of the Moment". Than I heard this albums title track, a very Prince influenced "baby-making" song that is growing into one of my favorite slow burners. I'm not surprised it's sitting at #1 on the R&B Single charts, because it is a real winner. On his 4th studio album there are a good number of other great songs. The summer-y "Meiple" featuring Jay-Z, the electro-disco sound of "Rollercoasta" featuring Estelle, the slow ballads "Brand New Luv" and "2 Luv Birds". There are also a good number of songs that sound really dated (like "Make U Love Me" or the god-awful "Shakin it 4 Daddy" with the ever present Nicki Minaj), but my biggest problem with the album on the whole is that Thicke still isn't really a distinctive singer. He's a bit recognizable because of his falsetto, but he doesn't have enough attitude or personality with his vocals so sometimes it sounds like he's channeling Justin Timberlake sometimes Maxwell sometimes Prince, and never making his own style. I do appreciate an R&B album where the man actually respects women, and that's a running theme on the album. Even on the sex drenched title track, it's about pleasing Her. And "Diamonds" with The Game is another standout where he celebrates black women who have worked hard to get where they are.
Hot Chip "One Life Stand"
I discovered this Electronic group last Fall, and once I listened to some of their music I became a fan. I love that their this electronic group, but somehow they don't over-do it with the effects and keyboards but still make really dance floor ready songs. I became addicted to their second album "The Warning", and really excited when I saw they released a new album earlier this year. And though it's not nearly as good as that aforementioned album, it's a pretty solid and a little more cohesive effort. "I Feel Better" and the title track are clearly the best songs here, and "Brothers" is a sweet love song to brotherly love which has hit potential because it's speaking so obviously to the younger generation (with references to playing X-Box and "drinking my fill with my brothers"). The rest of the album is alright, but it suffers from an insanely irritating lead vocalist Alexis Taylor. And I'm sure his voice would sound fine over some other tracks, but it just didn't mesh all that well with me. However, it's something I could get used to.