Madonna’s “Rebel Heart” leaked and landed on iTunes : TRACKBYTRACK ALBUMREVIEW

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D'Angelo, D'Angelo Black Messiah, Madonna, Madonna Nicki Minaj, Madonna Rebel Heart, Madonna Rebel Heart Review, Nicki Minaj, Rebel Heart Review

As usual, I’m late. Sunday afternoon, after one of many naps, I looked at my iPhone and saw an alert from Spotify that a few new Madonna songs were available. That Friday, I remember seeing something on IMDB about how Madonna‘s upcoming 13th album “Rebel Heart” had leaked online. Knowing the songs were on Spotify and iTunes come Sunday was a bit surprising, but I figured that Madonna was on some “fuck you, pay me” stuff and her and her team decided to upload 6 of the leaked tracks to iTunes and make the album available as a pre-order.

I’m sure her pre-order sales are massive, because it’s MADONNA and it was mandatory for all the gays to buy whatever she has available. (I’m just not sure how this will show up on Billboard!?) I eventually went ahead and followed suit, but I was definitely hesitant at first. I wasn’t initially impressed with the previews on iTunes, I felt they were a smidge “reductive”. The day went on, and I kept thinking about the release. I kept thinking about the direction Madonna seemed to be taking and the odd decision to go ahead and release the material for purchase.

Than it dawned on me as I remembered a comment someone made on IMDB about the leaked material. Someone thought it might have been purposefully leaked by her camp to get an idea of what the masses thought of the music. Which is actually not a bad idea after that “MDNA” debacle. And when you listen to the 6 songs, you get the impression that there might not be a CLEAR direction for this album. Of course, once it’s released on March 10th 2015 there are supposed to be 19 tracks in total (all are untitled as of now, except for a song called “Mona Lisa”), and the album might be totally complete.

But the idea that MAYBE Madonna’s camp leaked the music to get opinions from fans inspired me to go ahead and download the 6 songs, which is somewhat an EP at this point right? At first, I was just going to download the few songs I liked based on the previews. Those would be the first three tracks, plus “Illuminati”, and then I decided to just go ahead and get the entire thing. The purpose was to come up with a sort of “Career Advice” post about the direction of the album based on the 6 songs.

Instead of that, I’m just going to go back to a format I used just once (I think). The Track by Track Review. Just off the bat, I like half of what Madonna delivered and the other half is kinda meh. I’m on the fence right now, I’m not totally excited about the March release but I’m very curious. However I am glad I bought the songs (I didn’t pre-order because… iTunes just sucks with pre-orders. You end up getting songs twice and… yeah it’s just not the business), because I have something to talk about today!

“Living for Love”

Predictably, the GAYS LOVE this song so far. And why not, it’s a nice inspirational little dance song that is very anthemic and classic sounding. It’s definitely paying a bit of homage to the Gospel-House songs of the 90’s, with the positive-minded “I Will Survive” type lyrics and the background sounds of a choir-like presence. It’s reminiscent of that style of Dance music, but it’s a lot softer which is totally appropriate and makes this song it’s own. Add the fact that there is a really nice keyboard sequence coming out of the hooks that give the song a contemporary edge.

The only complaint I could think of is with the lyrics which come off as sometimes very corny, but overall the words flow nicely with the production, and it ends up being a very satisfying feel-good type record.

Grade: B +

“Devil Pray”

This song is heavy on the acoustic guitar, and it has a powerful message (I’m assuming) to match. She talks about the decay of the world and how unity can bring it back. “If you wanna save your soul, then we can travel all together, and make the devil pray”. It’s a nice song, but honestly the part that gives me life is the pitch-controlled “save my soul” that comes right after the hooks. It’s an element that really saves this song and makes it exciting, and makes it 2015 and not a total throwback Madonna sound (the guitars remind me of “Don’t Tell Me” and “Miles Away”). This will take some growing on me, but it’s definitely a NICE song.

Grade: B –

 

“Ghosttown”

FLAWLESS. This is a beautiful song that’s beautifully layered. It has little pieces of different genres and different decades, with a ridiculously catchy hook. It’s definitely the shining light and saving grace of this release, because it really is one of her best songs in a long while. Everything about this song, from production to vocal delivery and lyrics, is on point.

Grade: A

 

“Unoplogetic Bitch”

While one can definitely groove to this Reggae-Light track, it’s the most irritating to me because it just doesn’t sound like a Madonna song. In fact, it sounds like a Rihanna song that Madonna got her hands on and decided to FORCE her voice onto it. It just doesn’t sound right, there’s something very off-putting about the track overall and ultimately I think that Madonna is just out of place on this song and maybe it should have been a duet between her and say… M.I.A. As it stands, it feels very un-organic and one that’s easy to skip over. Though… it may grow on me.

Grade: D

 

“Illuminati”

Seems like Madonna has taken it upon herself to say “bollocks” the all the Illuminati talk going around the blogs. She says this without saying too much at all, because the lyrics are really FUN (even though the delivery is slightly dark), “everybody in the party, shining like Illuminati”. I actually enjoy that balance, because the production here is really good, really dark and really NOW. It’s definitely the most ambitious of the 6 tracks, and it’s definitely a song that will grow on me, and fast!

Grade: A –

 

“Bitch I’m Madonna” featuring Nicki Minaj

When I heard the previews, I deemed this the WORST song of the 6. And it’s the one I wanted to like the most! I think in a few write ups I’ve done for this blog I’ve said, literally, that the Queen of Pop needs to OWN that title and say “Bitch, I’m Madonna!” and she did on this song. I do feel like the song is a tad generic though, generic and slightly uninspired. Plus I don’t feel the attitude that is needed for a song like this is really matched with Madonna’s vibe. She should have attacked this with much more strength and ego, but she sounds typically high-pitched and girl-like.

I will admit though, the song is catchy AF and I really don’t hate it anymore.

Grade: C

 

So that’s that! “Rebel Heart” will be officially released March 10th, and I hear that more songs will become available in February. For now, we have what Madonna deems as an “early Christmas present” in these 6 songs, which are pretty okay and make us fans very inquisitive about the new outing. It’s not clear really what the overall theme or direction the album will have, because all 6 songs are pretty different. It’s just good knowing we have new music from the Queen coming soon. (Now… WHERE IS RIHANNA!!!)

-BTW.  I DID buy D’Angelo‘s “Black Messiah” last week the day it was released. I am a big D’Angelo fan, and was really excited to hear the news and hear the album. Now I like what I’ve heard so far, but I can’t really say I’ve been in the right mood to listen to the entire thing. Once I do, I’ll come back on here and talk about it. Maybe sometime before the end of the week. I just wanted to say that because some of you might have been wondering.

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Nicki Minaj finally shows the grown woman inside on “Pinkprint” : ALBUMREVIEW

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Nicki Minaj, Nicki Minaj Album Review, Nicki Minaj The Pinkprint, Nicki Minaj The Pinkprint Review, The Pinkprint Album Review, The Pinkprint Review

I can’t believe I’m about to make the next two statements.

– I listened to Nicki Minaj’s new album “The Pinkprint”

– It’s actually good!

If you follow my blog, you’ll know that I’m not the biggest Nicki Minaj fan. But the powers of Beyoncé got me interested in Minaj’s 3rd official album “The Pinkprint”, which is released tomorrow. The Nicki Bey collab “Feeling Myself” is fun, full of attitude and swag, and surprise surprise… Beyoncé didn’t steal Nicki’s shine, in fact I feel like Nicki’s rapping and singing on the song made Beyoncé unnecessary. I was so impressed with Minaj on this song that it made me curious about the rest of the album.

And yes, I am very impressed with “The Pinkprint”. Not to say that this is the best album of the year or anything, there are definitely flaws, but overall I feel Minaj took her time to put together a really nice piece of work that flows well together and displays a new side of the controversial rapper. “Pinkprint” shows Minaj in a more vulnerable and mature state for whatever reason. Maybe she’s heartbroken or maybe she feels a need to prove herself, whatever it is that affected her during these sessions was a good thing because I’m very much into the vibe and tone of everything on this outing. Her lyrics are a lot more thoughtful, her flows are better, and even her singing has taken a notch up. She is definitely trying to improve on her artistry, which is a far cry from her last album.

That “Roman Reloaded” album from 2012 seemed incredibly rushed and only focused on broadening her demographic. Which resulted in an album full of silly and redundant lyrics matched with run of the mill production. The fact that the quality of her music was going down while her ego was inflating -I gave up on Nicki. With “Pinkprint” it seems she has re-gained the urgency to do something creative and personal, and I’m here for that.

She opens the album with three very emotional and personal cuts where she talks about love and loss over moody tracks. All three songs are quite lovely and set the tone for this new toned down Nicki. The rest of the album has it’s highs and lows, but flows from genre to genre in a much more seamless flow than before. There’s dance cuts (“The Night is Still Young”), ultra-ratchet (“Feelng Myself”, “Only”), the boastful cocky stuff she loves (“Want Some More”), sentimental ballads (“Grand Piano”, “Bed of Lies”) and pretty much everything in between. With 22 tracks, several features, and all of the genre hopping, you’d think the album would be equally as messy as “Roman Reloaded”. What makes this album work? All of the songs seem to fit into a certain vibe that makes the album more cohesive. Also the fact that Nicki’s delivery is way more toned down. Instead of her high pitched rap flows and singing, she actually sounds like a grown woman instead of Minnie Mouse, so her voice isn’t as irritating and in fact it’s very pleasant.

Ultimately, what makes this album such a shocker is the fact that Nicki must have really took her time to perfect a sound for this album. Like I said earlier, the lyrics are a lot more thought out and the production is so much more intricate. It’s great because there might be hope for her, because she IS talented and she’s smart, so it’s great to know that all won’t go to waste. “Pinkprint” is no Masterpiece, but it’s a huge move in the right direction … and I might actually become a fan again.

Grade: B –  Best: Buy a Heart, Truffle Butter, Trini Dem Girls

Calvin Harris’ “Motions” flows Perfectly : ALBUMREVIEW

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All About She, Big Sean, Calvin Harris, Calvin Harris Album Review, Calvin Harris Motion, Calvin Harris Motion Review, Calvin Harris Review, Ellie Goulding, Gwen Stefani, John Newman, Motion Album Review

There haven’t been many album releases that have truly excited me this year. Sure, I was excited for new Mariah music, but other than that it’s been a bit of a lackluster year for new releases. My reactions have been very lukewarm, even though I enjoy some of the artists and album, my feelings have been like “eh a new Coldplay album… I guess I’ll get it. New Shakira, Why not!?”. Nothing like how excited I’d be for a new Rihanna or Kanye release.

All of that to say, maybe I felt the need to get excited about something as the year comes to a close. So I got really excited when I heard that Calvin Harris was releasing his fourth album “Motion”, which was released earlier today. I enjoy his EDM style, and his last album “18 Months” was a Cardio favorite of mine, and ultimately a good collection of his DJ and Production style. Another thing that excited me about the release of “Motion” was that other than Disclosure’s “Settle”, there’s been a lack of good Dance music this year, so I was hoping Harris to fill that high energy void.

Fortunately my expectations were met and Harris delivered with this album, it not only has all the energy and Dance flare I needed, but there’s some really great production with a sign of growth from the DJ/Producer.  Maybe I am so pleased with the album because there is a narrow window of quality I expect from a Artist/DJ/Producer like him. Like David Guetta, they both have such distinct sounds that you already know what you are going to get before you hear the first song. Calvin Harris has become famous for really dense dance tracks, with repetitive keyboard sequences and undeniably infectious beat-drops (a la the mega hit “We Found Love” with Rihanna). The singles leading up to the release of “Motion” fell within that mold and the album has a lot of that same sound, but there are some nice variations.

Songs like “Blame” with John Newman on vocals, the hit “Summer”, and “Outside” with Ellie Goulding, for example, give us that familiar Calvin Harris sound, and we love it because it makes us want to dance and the bpm’s keep us energized and smiling. Harris takes a bit of a turn on songs like “Slow Acid”, which is similar to the digitized randomness of Daft Punk’s “Derezzed” but… *gasp a lot better. “Ecstacy” is almost a ballad, with a very mellow and  romantic vibe. Even “Love Now” with All About She has more intricate production ticks and effects layered in.

Though most of the album is slightly predictable, but still incredibly fun and addictive, Harris does show some growth as a producer. And his guest vocalists do a great job of complimenting his work. Gwen Stefani sounds great on “Together”, displaying a new depth to her voice over the Pop/Dance sound (hopefully he has at least one production on her upcoming solo album). All About She works “Love Now” to perfection, as does John Newman on probably my favorite cut (and current single) “Blame”, and I was shocked to hear Big Sean flow so nicely over “Open Wide”.

In comparison to “18 Months”, “Motion” flows a lot better overall. That previous album was fun, but a little too all over the place, while “Motion” feels less like a compilation of singles and more of a complete album.

There aren’t any releases slated before the years end that I’m excited about, I’m at least happy that Harris did not disappoint with this album. “Motion” has some flaws, but overall it’s a very pleasing album with a good diversity of emotions and moods and fun.

Grade: B+  Best: “Blame”, “Faith”, “It Was You”

R.I.P. D.K. “DK3” is O.K. : ALBUMREVIEW

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Danity Kane, Danity Kane DK3, Danity Kane DK3 Review, DK3, DK3 Review

The Danity Kane Saga is a sad one. The girls release their reunion-but-final(-probably) “DK3” album today, an album that nearly didn’t see the light of day. Danity Kane’s entire existence as a Girl Group has been filled with drama, and this blog post is partly a review of the new album, but mostly a summary of their demise their reunion and their second demise. It’s a frustrating thing because the girls had such talent and so much potential, but ego’s and BOYS and other things doomed them from the start.

In the early 2000’s, Reality TV was all about finding the next STARS. “American Idol” was the assembly line type way of finding a star, but Diddy’s “Making the Band” (after the ill-fated first season that gave us O-Town) was different because he took his time to filter out the hardworking contestants that exhibited star quality. Da Band, a Hip Hop/R&B group, was created on the first season but their second season showed how quickly money and fame go to people’s heads, so his disbanded the group.

His next try was to find the next big Girl Group. After three seasons of rigorous auditions and recordings, Danity Kane released their self-titled debut album in 2006 which hit #1 in it’s first week.

The girls had a big debut performance in Central Park in 2006, and there was no question after watching them live that all 5 girls HAD IT. Aubrey, Aundrea, Dawn, D Woods and Shannon had the drive, the talent, the voices, and the charisma to carry this group a long way. Well, at least that’s what me and many other fans thought. Yes, their team made some questionable choices as far as singles and styling, but DK showed so much promise and delivered some really good music.

By the time their second album “Welcome to the Dollhouse” was released in 2008 (another #1 debut), the unity within the group had taken a dip. The girls separated themselves into little groups, and one meeting took the group down. From my perspective, the demise of group came from Aubrey. Her post-fame surgery was going overboard, and her ego was inflating out of this world. She also began to resent group member Dawn, who was handpicked by Diddy to join his Dirty Money outing. Aubrey’s smart mouth in that final meeting must have been Diddy’s breaking point and he ended Danity Kane.

In the years after, Dawn joined Dirty Money and released two independent EP’s and a full length album. Aubrey went the typical fame-whore route and settled on Reality TV with her own ill-fated show and a turn on “Celebrity Apprentice”, a show that displayed her smarts but also an evil side. D Woods became a go-to singer/actress for traveling plays, while working on her solo material. Shannon and Aundrea worked on music but stayed out of the spotlight.

In 2013, the girls excited ALL of their fans with an official announcement of their reunion. Though D Woods was missing from this reunion, most of the DK fans were really pleased to see this talented and upbeat group get back together. And the four girls seemed excited as well. Not even a full year later, Aundrea announced she was leaving the group to focus on family, she had become pregnant and couldn’t carry on with the rehearsals and touring. That was the beginning of the end for them and their reunion (and to me, they should have called it quits when she left because Aundrea was always the STAR of the “MTB” series and a fan favorite. She was the underdog during auditions and we ALL rooted for her and smiled heartily whenever we saw her on stage living her dreams). After Aundrea left, their lead single “Lemonade” made ZERO waves on the charts, and shortly after that, the reunion was officially over due to a physical altercation between Dawn and Aubrey.

This fight and the death of the group was not surprising given Aubrey’s antics that have been caught on film, so you can only imagine how bad she was off camera. All blame aside though, the group just couldn’t pull it together long enough to deliver the new album as a united front. But because the girls knew their fanbase was so strong, they decided to go ahead and release the album, which is available today.

The album, “DK3”, is about as inventive and creative as it’s title. It’s a fairly decent album overall, with a few standout cuts from the 10 tracks available. The lyricism is pretty much basic, but the production on each track is refreshing. It’s the Hip Hop/Electronic/Pop sound that worked so well on “Dollhouse”, but in a way the sound is more scaled back and simplistic. It’s not as over-produced as some of the “Dollhouse” tracks and it works perfectly, especially on the mellow track “Roulette” and the sexy and laid back “Tell Me”. There’s a good number of uptempo dance stuff like album opener “Rhythm of Love” and my favorite track “Bye Baby”, the more Urban tinged single “Lemonade” and “All In a Day’s Work”.

The flaw in this album for me is it feels like something is missing. There’s no real collective feel to the album, and there’s not a real statement from the group of what this album is supposed to represent. This is probably because the album is incomplete. I don’t know how far they were in recording, but it almost feels like they just stopped their sessions and put whatever was finished on the album. I may be wrong, but the album doesn’t feel like an ALBUM (if that makes sense), it feels more like a fan-composed playlist.

Of course me and all the DK fans are happy the girls decided to release the album, now we don’t have to wonder what might have been. And at the end of the day, it’s worth a purchase. The girls still have it, the backing harmonies and melodies are impeccable and are evidence of the amazing vocal skills they’ve always had. I have gripes (don’t the melodies on “Pieces” remind everyone of Aaliyah’s 2000 “I Don’t Wanna”) but overall it’s an entertaining outing, an appropriate enough end to a group that could have gone so much further.

Grade: B-  Best: Bye Baby, Roulette, Rhythm of Love

Mariah Carey’s “Me. I Am… The Elusive Chanteuse” plays more like ‘I Was’ : ALBUM REVIEW

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Mariah Carey, Mariah Carey Me I Am Mariah Review, Mariah Carey Review, Mariah Carey The Elusive Chanteuse Review, Mariah Week, Me I Am Mariah Review, Me I Am Mariah The Elusive Chanteuse Review, The Elusive Chanteuse Review

It seems like so long ago since Mariah Carey has released a full fledged album, and that’s why the anticipation for her 14th release “Me. I Am Mariah… The Elusive Chanteuse” is so eagerly anticipated among the Lambily. After #DemBabies, “American Idol”, and a seemingly constant supply of singles, expectations were also high. Mariah talked, for months and months, about the album being more personal, and the title seems to promise a more confessional Diva. On the plus side, the new album is definitely a good one, with some amazing vocals, catchy lyrics and great tracks. On the negative, it’s just another Mariah album that doesn’t fulfill the promise of being a peak into her life. More striking than that though is that the album seems a little too familiar to her previous work, which is personally an off-putting part to the otherwise solid piece of work. Even on the songs I really enjoy, I can’t shake the similarities lyrically and otherwise. “Dedicated”, her love song to Hip Hop, is my initial favorite from the album. But some of the references and general tone remind me of “Candy Bling” from her last outing. The disco-fied “You Don’t Know What to Do” is a great and addictive cut, but the intro seems to harken back to “You’re So Cold” off her sophomore album, not to mention the overall vibe is similar to “I’m That Chick” from her 2008 album. “Thirsty” has a real “Obsessed” vibe, and I feel I could go on and on, and that’s my only real disappointment with the album.

In truth “… Elusive Chanteuse” continually grows on me, and it definitely fills a void in my music library in this otherwise lackluster year in Music. Mariah is definitely in a comfortable place vocally, and she continues to impress with her technique and skill on each song proving she is still a vocal Goddess. The album has a good balance of Urban, R&B and Ballads, and she manages to bring her full power in each genre she attacks. The emotional album opener “Cry.” is so engaging with minimal background aide, “Camoflauge” is another emotional moment that shines. “Make It Look Good” is a wonderfully unique track that she kills, and of course the sweet “#Beautiful” with Miguel still evokes a joyous feeling. Good material, but just not too much that’s really refreshing and new from her.

The content is still mostly relationship centered, thus similar to her previous material, so I don’t see a confessional angle to “Me. I Am Mariah…” at all. That is, other than the adorably sweet “Supernatural” featuring #DemBabies. And potentially “Thirsty”, which may or may not be addressing rumors of divorce from Nick Cannon. Other than that, the music is, dare I say… generic lyrically, because I don’t feel like I know her any better. But, this is probably just another case of my expectations ruining a good thing, because “… The Elusive Chanteuse” will stand nicely alongside her other material.

Grade: B-  Best: Dedicated, Supernatural, #Beautiful

#PharrellPhriday Pharrell Williams and his “G I R L” : ALBUM REVIEW

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pharrell girl album review, Pharrell Williams, pharrell williams album review, pharrell williams girl album review

Pharrell Williams is “Happy” and he loves women, and thats basically the gist of his second solo album “G I R L”, which was released earlier this week.

Not that we need any thing else from Pharrell, who is at his best when he’s making us dance and sing a long to his infectious productions. For that reason “G I R L” is a winner of an album. Its not deep and it doesn’t try to be, it doesn’t even have any ground breaking production. Its just fun, and it gives us a snapshot of Pharrell in a very confident and positive space in his life.

It’s actually the most relaxed and at ease we’ve probably ever heard Pharrell, which is evidenced on tracks like “Gush” or his duet with Justin Timberlake “Brand New” where he doesn’t hit all the right notes, but still sounds more sure of himself and that confidence makes the track that much better.

He’s not trying to prove anything lyrically or production wise here, he just wants to put out music he enjoys in hopes that his fans will enjoy it as well. And we do. Well I do. Not every song is a killer, but MOST are. Most importantly they all sound great mixed together, so it makes for a  great and cohesive album. It’s not over-long or trying to throw in all different types of genres like on his debut album “In My Mind”. At only 10 tracks, “G I R L” sticks mainly to soulful sounds like on the aforementioned “Brand New” and “It Girl”.

There is a nice number of collaborations, but not so many that they overcrowd the album and drown him out. The album is just a perfect balance all the way around.

Some artists seem to make their best music when they are sad or depressed, in Pharrell’s case it seems to be the opposite. He’s happy and confident, and listeners can feel those positive vibes radiate from each song.

Grade: 4 of 5
Best: Lost Queen, Know who You Are, Gust of Wind

#PharrellPhriday Discography Review : Pharrell Williams, N.E.R.D. and The Neptunes

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Pharrell, The Roots

Back in 2001 as The Neptunes, Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams, were about to take over the industry as the hottest Producers in the game, they decided to do something a little different and release an Alternatiev/Rock album under the name of N.E.R.D. which stands for Noone Ever Really Dies. That album “In Search Of…” was first released in Europe and than re-done with all live instruments by band Spymob and released in the US in 2002.

N.E.R.D.’s debut “In Search Of…”

The album still stands as one of my all time favorites, and both versions have their own charms. The European version is a good effort in itself.  The material of the album, from the lyrical content to the overall tone are strong enough to work in any format. “In Search Of…” paints the picture of youth in all their contradictions. At one moment they are full of bravado and high libido’s (“Rock Star”, “Brain”) and the next they are full of depression and regret (“Provider”, “Bobby James”).

While the European version works, the US version is perfection. There is something amateur and raw about the live instrumental backing that matches the tone of the songs perfectly. The album is all about angst, wants and needs, and the gritty backing makes the European version seem a littler sterile in comparison. “In Search Of…” succeeds at being a fun yet thought-provoking album that is an excellent listening experience from start to finish.

Grade for European Version: 3 of 5 stars
Grade for US Version: 4.5 of 5 stars

Best: Bobby James, Rock Star, Stay Together

In 2003, after a breakthrough year for The Neptunes the duo decided to release a compilation album in “The Clones”. Featuring the talents of Ludacris, Jay-Z, Kelis, Nelly and a host of other hot artists of the time.  I remember being extremely excited for the album and than slightly disappointed once I listened to it. Yes, the album has some amazing production including Snoop Dogg’s “It Blows My Mind”, Roscoe P. Coldchain’s “Hot” and Busta Rhymes’ “Light Yo Ass On Fire”.

For me, the disappointing thing was that the album was so loaded up with Hip Hop and only small glimpses of anything else. At this point The Neptunes had a wide variety of sounds on the radio from Funk (Beyonce, Mystikal) to Pop (Britney Spears, N Sync) to even Rock (No Doubt, Limp Bizkit), and this album didn’t seem to reflect that. The album was enjoyable over all, and the really great songs saved the entire thing,  but it just didn’t show what the duo was fully capable of.

Grade: 3.5 of 5

Best: Hot, It Blows My Mind, Frontin’

(Side note: the initial release of the album included a DVD that had one amazing sequence of how Chad Hugo builds their beats. Watch it at 8:40, it blew my mind.)

N.E.R.D.’s second album “Fly or Die” featuring the amazing single “She Wants to Move”

2004 brought the return of the group in the form of their sophomore effort “Fly or Die”. On this album things are more polished and clean, and the tone is a little more upbeat. The overall feel is the group is paying homage to some of their Classic Rock and Alternative inspirations. Steely Dan, The Beatles, The Stones and a host of other legendary acts’ style can be heard in songs like “A Wonderful Place” and “Maybe”, but there is still a strong Neptunes style that is felt throughout this very fun album.

“Fly or Die” is definitely a worthy follow up to “In Search Of…”. It’s a different sound and its solid overall, plus there are  some really Epic songs like my personal favorite N.E.R.D. song “She Wants to Move”, “The Way She Dances” and “Jump”, which all make this album a must-have.

Grade : 4 of 5

Best: She Wants to Move, The Way She Dances, Maybe

In 2006 when Pharrell finally decided to drop a full solo album, I was too excited, and much like “The Clones” I found myself disappointed in the full effort. There were a handful of masterpieces like the EXCELLENT “That Girl”, along with “Number One”, “Baby” and “Young Girl”, but the rest was either too Hip Hop for me or too slow and I never got into the album as much as I felt I should have.

Pharrell’s debut solo “In My Mind”

I think the main problem with the album is that Pharrell was trying to prove he could do everything. That he could rap, that he could do a R&B slow jam, that he could Rock it out and that he could be an 80’s styled Pop crooner. It all made the album a little too much and it could have used a little editing. Again, there were those handful of songs that salvaged the album from being a complete let-down.

Grade: 3 of 5

Best: That Girl, Baby, Number One

Pharrell and the Yessirs “Out of My Mind”

Grade: 2.5 of 5

Best: That Girl, Angel, Best Friend

In 2008 Pharrell re-formed N.E.R.D. and released the highly ambitious, unique and hype “Seeing Sounds”. With tracks like “Spaz”, “Everyone Nose” and “Anti Matter” this album gives a bold in your face Rock/Hip Hop sound that definitely stood out and made an impression, and proved that Pharrell and company were as creative and forward thinking as they come.

“Spaz” to N.E.R.D.’s third album “Seeing Sounds”

The only problem with “Sounds” is that the boldness is sometimes too much to take all in one listen. And the album is a little uneven with hyped Rock tracks followed by more mellow rhythmic tracks. It doesn’t flow as well together as it should have, but it’s still a refreshingly different sound and that should be applauded.

Grade : 3.5 of 5

Best: Spaz, Windows, You Know What

2010’s “Nothing” plays like the two entities of Pharrell and Chad meeting up. The album is like The Neptunes meets N.E.R.D. with the danceable and catchy rhythmic bass heavy sound of the Production team and the out-there lyricism and feeling of the Band. The best example of what this album gives is best described on the title of the first single “Hot N Fun”.

Though not their most impressive outing, it definitely bests their previous work in being Fun. “Perfect Defect”, “Party People”, “I Wanna Jam” and a host of other tracks here are undeniable in their catchiness and infectiousness.

It’s not perfect, but it’s perfectly fun.

Grade: 3.5 of 5

Best: Hypnotize U, Perfect Defect, Hot n Fun

“BEYONCÉ”, Game Changing Album gets a Game Changing Review : ALBUM REVIEW

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beyonce, Beyonce 5th Album, Beyonce 5th Album Review, Beyonce Beyonce, Beyonce Beyonce Album Review, Beyonce Beyonce Review, Beyonce Surprise Album, Beyonce Surprise Album Review

It’s Monday. Like most of the other Stans across the world, my entire weekend was consumed by Beyoncé and her latest solo album simply titled “BEYONCÉ”. Friday was the initial shock and awe of the BOSS move she made with the surprise release of the album. Saturday found me still in shock, but getting into the songs more and more. By Sunday the shock was subsiding and I started to appreciate the album on the whole. Today, I feel I have to write about it.

All weekend I was thinking of different ways to review the album. I finally decided to do like Beyonce and break the rules, so I’m going to present this review in a slightly different way. Obviously I need to talk about the album overall, talking about what it says about Beyoncé the artist, the vocalist and the person. Followed by a Track by Track review where I break the songs into three groups; the ones I have been obsessed with, the really good ones that I haven’t fully gotten into, and the ones I didn’t like so much upon first or twelfth listen. So here we go…

At first listen I couldn’t shake the few weird similarities “BEYONCÉ” shares with Kanye West’s “Yeezus”. Beyoncé’s frank business talk on “Ghost” and the extreme sexual nature of tracks like “Blow” “Rocket” and “Partition” gives the same IDGAF attitude that “Yeezus” gave. I also thought of Drake in the sense that the album is more atmospheric and she allows the backing music (which on every track is flawless) to be the main star, with her voice blending in beautifully.

The more I listen, the more I realize it’s not right to compare her to anybody else because this album is so purely a BEYONCÉ album. It has her stamp all over it, vocally and lyrically, and nobody else could have pulled off any of the material. It’s also her being very open in such a new way, while also being incredibly risky, things I’ve been dying for from her. I feel like she was able to do this now because she truly has nothing more to prove.

It seems like Beyoncé for once immersed herself in what SHE liked and not what was expected of her. Beyoncé has always been media savvy, at times calculated and very guarded, this album flips all of that. She openly talks about her displeasure with record labels, doubts about her relationship, her battles with perfection and beauty, and sex… lots and lots of sex. Her previous albums have shown hints of all of this but never went all the way, and “BEYONCÉ” presents the Superstar at a point where she doesn’t care about taking things over the edge, she just wants to sing what she feels.

It’s a masterpiece for Beyoncé because it collects all of the things musically we have come to love from her. She has “Jealous”, a “kiss-off” type song that fits along perfectly with “Irreplaceable” and “Best Thing I Never Had”, “XO” gives a very positive and glowing vibe like a “Halo”. “Blow” is the X-rated version of the very PG (in comparison) “Naughty Girl”.  The album elevates all of these bits of Beyoncé the artist with excellent production value and the singer feeling more at ease and deservedly confident.  “BEYONCÉ” is really a fully realized version of who Beyoncé has become as an artist.

And it wouldn’t be fair to this “Visual Album” if we didn’t get into the music videos that accompany the album. All of the videos are perfection from the styling, the editing and the overall visuals which take Beyoncé from her Houston hometown to Paris to NYC to the backseat of her limo. I watched the videos before I listened to the songs on their own, and for songs like “XO”, “Rocket”, “Mine”, “Drunk in Love”, “Jealous” and “No Angel” the visuals bring the songs to life and evoke a feeling that matches the content perfectly. There are small gripes here and there about the videos, but overall she did an amazing job creating clips that are unique to her Videography and unique to what else is out there in the Pop world.

And talk about diversity, the 17 videos go from dramatic mini-movies (“Pretty Hurts”, “Heaven”), to art-house pieces (“Mine”, “Ghost”), simple documentary-styled peeks into her life (“Blue”, “Drunk in Love”), stylized and glossy performance clips (“Blow”, “Partition”) and everything in between. These videos are easily some of the best of her career and presented in a way that doesn’t try too hard but come off perfect. Which makes the overall album a little overwhelming, a but a great overwhelming. Beyoncé truly did pull off making an EVENT out of this album in a way not many other artists could. Bravo Beyoncé Bravo!

And now let’s get into the songs…

Love at First Listen aka Weekend Obsessions:  “Drunk in Love”, “XO”, “No Angel”, “Mine”, “Blow”

This group of 5 songs is what I have been playing over and over all weekend. “Drunk on Love”, Bey’s tale of raising her freak flag after a night of “drankin” with her husband (“I get filthy when that liquor get into me”). I should say that “B’Day” has always been my favorite Beyoncé album because she let out her inner Hip Hop MC, and this song (and the album in general) channels that same Beyoncé. She raps here about her “L’Assemblage” and riding with her “surfboard” with so much swag that you can’t help but fall in love with the song (The video to “Drunk” may be simple, but I love it for the simple fact it’s just Beyoncé grooving and gigging to a song she so clearly loves). “No Angel” is another slow-burning Hip Hop styled song, this time she talks about her and her mates imperfections and how it makes them that much more compatible. This one grew on me considerably on Saturday and Sunday, the track is so smooth and gets into some intricate keyboard play mid way through. Sometimes I get annoyed with Bey’s falsetto singing which might have put me off of the song at first, but I’ve learned to love it, the message of the song might be why she sang it that way.

I won’t hesitate to say that “XO” is not only one of my all time faves from her, but easily the most radio accessible song on the album, and it deserves to be a huge international hit.  The lyrics are about basking in the light of love before the lights go out, and the sweet but strong vocal delivery and the international flavor of the track makes the message easily heard. The video is perfect in bringing the emotion of the song into a visual form, using the flashing lights of Coney Island and the smiling faces of her fans to bring more power to the lyrics. “Blow” is the funkiest, sexiest, danciest song on the album and it has my favorite line “Tear that Cherry Out”. Bey gives us old school 80’s flavor while being so nasty lyrically but so seductive and sensual at the same time (peep her “mmmm”‘s in the background), and the adorable Roller Rink/”Boogie Nights”/Rick James inspired video is so vivid and fun and hot it makes it hard to shake the images when you’re listening.

While I love “Mine” it seems like a Drake song. Or a song that he wrote for her with his personal style in tact. It’s not a bad thing though, I like Drake and I think the song is flawless. I love how they trade off verses and sing together on the hook, I even like how it’s bookended with her piano-laced intro and his beat-laced outro. It’s a great merger of Hip Hop/ Pop and R&B.

Songs I LOVE but need to get more into: “***Flawless” “Blue” “Partition” “Jealous” “Haunted”

My Number One Pet Peeve about albums is when an intro or outro is part of an actual song. In this case it’s “Yoncé”, which I don’t particularly care for right now, that’s ruining my full immersion in the banger “Partition”. It’s another explicitly sexy song that makes me laugh (“he Monica Lewinsky’d all on my gown”), but also has a delicious bridge section that reminds you of an early 90’s Girl group (“I just wanna be the girl you like, the kinda girl you like”). My pet peeve comes into play with “Haunted” as well, which I really like for it’s backing track and the spoken word bit that reminds me so much of Madonna (the video itself looks like an homage to both Madonna’s “Justify My Love” video and “The Shining” movie), but I’m not always into listening to “Ghost” which comes right before it.  

My issue with “***Flawless” is that it’s WAY too short, this song is a perfect ratchet club banger with three call & response lines that will have the clubs going insane (“I woke up like dis!” being the most fun). It’s just a little weird that it comes after “Bow Down” and a speech about feminism by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, I just wish there was an extra minute of the song because it goes that Hard! And the video is Insane, one of my favorites of her career.  When it comes to “Blue”, I assumed it was going to be a corny ode to her first child and motherhood, but it’s actually beautifully produced with an infectious island vibe. Beyoncé matches the track so wonderfully with her voice and never over-does it. It’s just a feel good song. “Jealous” is great, but not really much else to say about it. 

They’ll Have to Grow on Me: “Superpower”, “Pretty Hurts”, “Rocket”, “Heaven”.

It’s no surprise that the 4 slower tracks are my least favorites. “Superpower” is a little too slow for me but I am getting into it a little bit more. It’s funny because the video is a lot better than the song to me with it’s slow-motion pace, the content (a violent protest against THE MAN) and pacing of the video matches up in such a weird way with the song. The “Rocket” video is amazing, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE the opening line of “let me sit this AAAAASSSSSS… on ya baby”, it totally makes me laugh. However it’s a little too Maxwell/D’Angelo sounding and I’m currently not all that in the mood for the babymaking songs. “Heaven” was such a sad emotional video, I just can’t bring myself to listen to the actual song for fear that I’ll be balling like a baby on the subway. From what I remember though it was a pretty song, just not something I’m into right now.

Wow, Did I Write Enough? You know I get carried away when it comes to my favorite artists and Beyoncé gave me lots to talk about. And it doesn’t end here. Hearing about the numbers this new album has done, I MUST have another blog post about her very soon.

Christmas with the Divas; Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson and Tamar Braxton : ALBUM REVIEW

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There’s something about being in New York City during Winter Time that has got me feeling really festive. Normally I just stick with my three favorite Christmas Albums; “Jackson 5 Christmas”, Mariah Carey’s “Merry Christmas”, and the “Motown Christmas Carol” compilation. This year, with three of my favorite singers all releasing Holiday Albums the past few weeks I decided to give them a fair listen and I’m glad I did. All three albums are really cute, and give three different Holiday vibes, and the vocals on all three are amazing. Here is the breakdown.

Mary J. Blige “A Mary Christmas”

Mary J. Blige has fully transitioned from a Hip Hop Queen to a more mature adult-oriented artist, and her Holiday offering “A Mary Christmas” is perfectly timed. She displays a nuance and growth in her voice that allows her to tackle the challenging material found on this beautiful album, and she also displays her fearlessness on an album that has those traditional standards but also sees Mary singing with Vocal Goddess Barbra Streisand, as well as singing in Spanish and French.

The album is very diverse as Mary gets jazzy (“Rudolph The Rednosed Reindeer”), soulful (“This Christmas”) and extremely traditional (“My Favorite Things”). The highlights are when she shows what a true virtuoso she is, owning French and Spanish on “Petit Papa Noel” and “Noche de Paz (Silent Night)” with Marc Anthony. “A Mary Christmas” is a really well rounded and beautifully arranged Holiday album that screams Classic from the moment you hear it. This is one that will be heard for decades to come.

Kelly Clarkson “Wrapped in Red”

Kelly Clarkson has sung in basically every genre imaginable in her 10 year career. Though her Holiday offering “Wrapped in Red” is very pop-leaning, she still manages to keep it diverse and show off her vocal dexterity with a bit of country (“Blue Christmas”), some rocking Holiday tunes (“Run Run Rudolph” and “4 Carats”), incredibly soulful crooning (“Every Christmas”), and fun Pop (“Underneath the Tree”).

Though the album is slightly over-long, there’s a lot of great Holiday tunes to chose from and overall every one of them works well. It’s a fun Holiday Album, original, eclectic and an overall great showcase to Clarkson’s true talent.

Tamar Braxton “Winter Loversland”

SHE delivers a unique Holiday album idea with “Loversland”, a Holiday album geared towards lovers. Listening to Tamar’s sultry and relaxed (but still powerhouse) vocals, the album calls to mind a couple hugged up by the fireplace listening to more romantic-tinged Christmas songs. Braxton’s mission was accomplished as this album is very comforting, fun and just the right length. The albums’ songs flow into each other nicely, making for a very cohesive outing that never gives you a dull moment. On top of that, HER vocals are insane on tracks like “Silent Night”, “No Gift” and “Away in a Manger/Little Drummer Boy”.

There’s also a fun side to “Loversland”, like the opening “Sleigh Ride” which has an  urban production behind it, and her too cute for words duet with sister Trina Braxton “The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)”. There’s also a song for the Single Ladies of the Holiday season “She Can Have You”, making for an adorable fun and urban Holiday experience.

 

Fall Music Reviews – Lady GaGa, Drake, Paul McCartney, Arcade Fire and the rest : Album Reviews

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Here’s What! With my move to New York City and all that surrounds making a new life for myself, I have allowed too many albums to go Un-Reviewed on this blog. I didn’t want to just let my opinions go to waste, because there are thoughts I have on a number of albums that I wanted to share. The solution I came up with is to do quick reviews on all of the Fall Albums that I’ve gotten a chance to check out. Starting with one of the most anticipated, Lady GaGa’s “ARTPOP” which comes out officially TODAY November 11th.

I’m not ranking the albums, I’m just posting my reviews in order from most recent release to the earliest, which is a lot of ground to cover but let’s do it!

Lady GaGa “ARTPOP”

Grade: B+

Favorites: Manicure, Gypsy, Do What U Want

“Applause”, the first single from GaGa’s 3rd full album, is a song that I don’t hate, but don’t love. A song that’s enjoyable, but not ground breaking to me. So it was the perfect set up for “ARTPOP” which has it’s highs and lows, but overall is just a decent Pop album. It’s definitely a lot more fun than her previous outing “Born This Way”, and maybe I liked the darkness and diversity of that too much and wanted more of it on “ARTPOP” which is mostly uptempo’s that actually remind you of some stuff from her debut phenomenon “The Fame”. On the plus side “ARTPOP” does seem like a grower, the production is complex and the lyrical content is laced with double entendres and deeper meanings that one might not catch the first or even fifth time listening to it. “ARTPOP” is fine, not great, but definitely enjoyable.

Arcade Fire “Reflektor”

Grade: C

Favorites: Flashbulb Eyes, Here Comes the Night Time, Normal Person

I’m not the biggest Arcade Fire fan, I knew of them but never listened to their music until their Grammy winning “The Suburbs” which has some amazing songs (the same for “Neon Bible”, the album before that). Their latest album “Reflektor” does have some truly stand out cuts as well, but the album overall strikes me in a weird way. At times it feels like they are uncomfortably out of their comfort zone experimenting with drum machines and more up-tempos. And at times it’s just a tad boring and overlong. When it’s good it’s great though, and maybe I just need a little more time to get into it.

Katy Perry “Prism”

Grade: B+

Favorites: Legendary Lovers, Love Me, Roar

Coming off her successful, and really good, album “Teenage Dream”, Perry got married and divorced and hinted early on that the follow up would be much darker. She stated later on that “Prism” ended up being a lighter album, and I’m wishing she stepped on over to the dark side as this third album plays as just more of the same from Katy. That’s not really a bad thing, the album is fun and funny and enjoyable. It just reads as a continuation of “Teenage Dream”, and I feel that the producers failed Katy on this album as they seem to deliver stale re-treads of former stuff, just with slight tweaks for the 2013 listener. Perry does her job vocally and lyrically trying to take the songs and make something new and different, but there’s only so far she can go. In general it’s a very cute pop album with plenty of hit potential. I would eventually like to see a darker, harder edged Katy emerge because I know it’s in her somewhere.

Paul McCartney “NEW”

Grade: A-

Favorites: Appreciate, Alligator, On My Way to Work

Sir Paul Delivers. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the “New” album, as I haven’t really followed McCartney’s solo career at all. However I was really pleased with what is a very satisfying and diverse album. Overall it’s very mellow, but he gives us different tastes of his talents with some very Beatles-like tunes, some Wings-like Rocker stuff, and he also provides some very beautiful contemporary songs. And with all this he seems so comfortable vocally and lyrically that it just seems like great and relaxing Jam session.

Sleigh Bells “Bitter Rivals”

Grade: C

Favorites: Sugarcane, To Hell with You, Young Legends
Don’t really have too much to say about this album. I do enjoy the Noise Pop of Sleigh Bells and I really enjoyed their two previous albums, and this third album is an enjoyable follow up. I just feel like they might have hit a peak as there’s not much new to report about their musical style. Yes there are some really fun peppy tracks, and some strangely beautiful down-tempos, but that’s just like their last album “Reign of Terror”. I think melodically they go into a more R&B/Pop terrain on this effort but that’s really the only thing that sets it apart and even that is very subtle. Good album, but nothing real unique or stand out.

Justin Timberlake “The 20/20 Experience 2 of 2”

Grade: C

Favorites: You Got It On, True Blood, Amnesia

I wasn’t expecting anything more than filler from this “Part Two” of Timberlake’s successful “The 20/20 Experience” from earlier this year. I thought it was a lazy attempt at getting his fans to spend more money on him (which, it still is let’s be honest), but I actually enjoyed a lot of what he had to offer here. I still believe that he could have done some editing and made ONE GREAT album, but it is what it is, and it’s pretty okay. You get pretty much the same of what you got on the first one, some electro’d out up-tempos and some soulful numbers. There still isn’t much as far as excellent lyricism or mindblowing vocals, but it’s still a fairly decent album overall.

Drake “Nothing Was the Same”

Grade: C+

Favorites: Furthest Thing, Wu Tang Forever, Own It

You guys know I love me some Drake, but ever since I got this album it has bothered me that I didn’t like it, and I couldn’t put a finger on why. There is a block of songs that I really love, but after they are done I lose interest and here’s my theory. On Drake’s last two albums he was the rapper who was hoping for legendary status, and then the rapper on his way to that status and just enjoying the moment. There was a sense of humility in him, and I think the problem with “Nothing Was the Same” is that all humility is gone and the record plays like a “Bow Down Bitches” as his confidence and ego are on 150. The album is fine, but I just want Drake to come back down to earth.

MGMT “MGMT (The Optimizer)

Grade: B

Favorites: Introspection, Cool Song No. 2, Astro-Mancy
MGMT are just weird, and I love it. Their third album “MGMT (The Optimizer)” follows suit with their last album in that it’s very mellow and very psychedelic, but somehow it’s a different type of mellow. It’s a more mature sound, and while there are a lot of tracks that feel very up to date there are others that go back to a 60’s sound (and seems like The Who was a big inspiration for at least two cuts). It’s a very balanced album, and at 10 tracks it’s the perfect length. These guys are still progressing which is a great thing, and still delivering very pleasing sounds which will make for a very diverse and interesting discography overall.

Tamar Braxton “Love and War”

Grade: A

Favorites: All The Way Home, Stay and Fight, Pieces

I talked about how much I loved this album on my YouTube channel, but I won’t hesitate to sing it’s praises one more time. Tamar Braxton, I would imagine, is a difficult artist to create a sound for as she is so fresh and current, but she’s also a grown woman who shouldn’t devote an entire album to “ratchet” club songs for fear of trying to be something she’s not. Thankfully Vincent and company pulled some amazing songs for her that show off her insane vocal abilities and provide some of the urban fun she enjoys. I love the fact that these songs are FULL songs and not the current standard of a half a verse, hook, same verse and repeat. I also love that vocally she fills each song to the very end with beautiful runs and vocal technique. It’s just a great R&B/Pop album that hasn’t gotten stale to me yet.