Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Common - The Dreamer/The Believer

As we finish the calendar year out, very few new releases come out. Record companies focus on their catalog artists/greatest hits shit at retail. But both Common and Jeezy got a new one out and I jumped on this one as I know nothing about the other.

Common is clearly taking himself more seriously here, focusing on a lyrical theme of dreaming and reaching past your limits. For example, after the opening track runs through its mellow, decidedly non-hip-hoppy shuffle beat, it ends with a coda of Maya Angelou reading a poem. The album ends with an inspirational speech by Chicago b-baller Lonnie Lynn.

He sometimes throws out some shitty similes. "Get my drink on like coasters." and "friends' pass out like pamphlets" and on the other hand he blows out genius lines like "blows a breath of fresh air for you asthmatic rap addicts". But his themes are always sincere; whether about being the voice of optimism or by tracking the obligatory pro-strong-will-ghetto-woman song. The positivity is a plus without being ridiculously boastful like the Beastie Boys last piece of shit. And the rhymes are cool without being awe-inspiring.

I was also a little disappointed altogether with the production. One of things I like about the more underground rap that I listen to is the interesting ways that whichever crew can manipulate a beat. On TD/TB, there are no big name producers, and it shows. The tunes mostly seem ready-made/corporate. A steady-beat over some mellow soul or some smooth jazz.

Being the hopeless romantic, my favorite track is going to be "Lovin' I Lost"; which laments and praises the past relationship all at the same time. And is bedded with a fantastic Curtis Mayfield mix to bring some old soul to the bedroom. (2.5 of 5 stars)

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Charlotte Gainsbourg - Stage Whisper

While a Beck fan, who has worked with Charlotte in the past; and also a fan of Gainsbourg as an actress; this will be my first foray in to her music. Although I'm not generally the biggest fan of indie-electronic music led by women, my curiosity got the better of me. (I did just watch Melancholia...)

The Depeche Mode influence is obvious. There is an effort here to bring the dark dance vibe. The addition of Beck, I'm going to assume, adds the additional flavor of something more fun; something more funk. Without him, I'll bet that Charlotte would just have chosen straight-ahead dance beats to carry her songs forward. And that may have been enough for many people. But I appreciate the playful poppiness of "Terrible Angels" and echo-y drums of "All The Rain".

Outside of Beck, Charlotte's performance is largely unnoticeable. Her voice is monotoned in the upper register and muddled by enough echo to make her cloudy/smokey... veiled. Her personality does not come through. Maybe I'm being prejudiced against a singer/not-songwriter, but lines as interesting as "into the eye of a needle you can fly like a mosquito and turn into a million different people" should be able to be sold without too much effort. This becomes especially evident in a couple of non-Beck tracks, "Anna" and "Out Of Touch", which seem electronically lifeless.

The standout, though, is a tremendously written track by Conor O'Brien, aka Villagers, who I am a big fan of. I can hear his voice when Charlotte sings his "Memoir" as if it were her own. If Beck's not going to carry you with jams, she should have been doing this with the rest of the tracks. Something more organic. The album comes with a live disc which shows a much more dynamic performer playing livelier indie-pop tunes. Decent, but not what I'm basing this review on. (2.5 of 5 stars)

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

The Black Keys - El Camino

I do have to hand to the Keys on one standpoint. They have gotten out a product by themselves or a side-project virtually every year of their existence. Plus, they are consistenly good. Amped-up garage blues is a tried and true format and they haven't run it aground quite yet. I do see, however, a pattern of sameness in the last couple of releases. I do not blame the common element of producer Danger Mouse for this, as he seems to be the one who has pushed their sonic boundaries beyond their two-man limitations. It's more of a songwriting stagnancy that I see. As if Dan were leaning on the production to compensate for playing virtually the same riffs. It all sounds great, but will it always sound great? This will weigh on me as we proceed with their newest.

For example, the first single has taken the old feel, and added a shuffled-up surf beat; pushed up the chorus to arena-sized singalong status and created a ready made radio hit. The same kind of thing that I loved about "Next Girl"; but still without teeth. "Gold on the Ceiling" employs the same synth-hum that made "Howlin' For You" a distinctive sound - which makes this less disctinctive.

There are highlights. "Little Black Submarines" begins with Dan alone and acoustic. Singing with a passion he hasn't in some time about the losses that broken hearts take from us. The melody reminds me vaguely of Bob Dylan's "Love Sick" but feels good. Then, the crunchiest electric wave crashes on the proceedings. "Hell of a Season" is more of a Patrick highlight, giving us the strongest backbeat of the record. And for some reason, everything that makes me roll my eyes at the new Keys comes together all at once in "Nova Baby". Clearly the poppiest thing they've almost ever done, but somehow one of my favorites.

The same things that made a favorite of Brothers are all here too. Decent songs. 3:00-plus minutes. The anxious blues riffing of old Keys's music have been traded happier sounding sing-alongable structured tunes. The basement production of old has been rounded out to include full pop instrumentation and background vocals. And at a paltry 38 minutes long, easily digestable. I'm afraid they're going to get bored to a Rolling Stones level. My worries are completely founded on this record- it's still a recommended listen. That old El Camino still has that old smell of nostalgia, even if you're less excited to drive it now. (3 of 5 stars)