Category: reviews

audio review : Nasir ( album ) … Nas

audio review : Nasir ( album ) ... Nas

The first song has Nas sounding like a young KRS-One. “Edgar Hoover was black; Willie Lynch is a myth,” he affirms, “Colombians created crack; the government made stacks.” It’s that first part about Edgar Hoover that represents the rapper’s state of mind. He, like too many Americans, is obsessively focused on race and racism; only the white on black type, of course; to the point of going on to claim, hopefully metaphorically, that his first mansion was haunted by white racist ghosts.

But as a rapper, Nas is better than most. Listen to the baby vaccine bit earlier in that same (Everything) song. He has a knack for conjuring thought-provoking imagery to make a social or political point. That he’s rapping to boom-bap beats, often laced with elegant chords, on songs with; and what a surprise this is; melodic hooks is what makes this not only one of his best albums but the best yet of Kanye West’s seven-song Good Music album series. Unlike the others, Nasir is actually good music.

my rating : 4 of 5

2018
 

Christopher King :

You nailed this…I would argue its somewhere between a 4.0 and 4.5 starts. Nonetheless, hip hop and its original fans needed this album.

Much love.

audio review : Everything Is Love ( album ) … The Carters

audio review : Everything Is Love ( album ) ... The Carters

I don’t have much to say about Beyoncé and Jay-Z as a couple aside from the former being a pretty, and stunningly sexy, woman who probably wouldn’t be romantically involved with the latter if he weren’t a virtual billionaire. He seemed to acknowledge that with a satirical line about being “ugly” on his last album. This one, a duet pompously credited to The Carters, serves as a follow-up. “Yeah, we had marital problems in the past,” the message seems to go, “but we still in love.”

With that, the title would be better flipped around. Love Is Everything or at least the main theme of this set, which happens to include the same amount of songs as Thriller. “Billie Jean in his prime,” Jigga raps, making no sense, “For the thousandth time, the kid ain’t mine.” If he’s referring to Rymir Satterthwaite, it’s a clever bit. But while his wife might be comparable to Michael Jackson as far as popularity goes, the couple are nowhere near when it comes to the quality of the music.

I like Friends. It’s the one song with a catchy hook. The others represent the type of mediocrity I’ve come to expect from two of the most overrated song artists in the world, though I was (am) a fan of Destiny’s Child. Beyoncé, who now raps, has gotten ratchet and annoying over the years. The Summer starter, co-produced by Cool And Dre, sets the tone for the season; the beats are easily the best thing going here; but The Carters aren’t as Nice as they apparently think they are.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018
 

L. Hill :

Yes! Yes! Yes! Beyoncé’s popular but when it comes to quality music, DO NOT compare her to MJ. However, even with her popularity (and overrated status), she hasn’t had a #1 song in a decade.

audio review : Kids See Ghosts ( album ) … Kids See Ghosts

audio review : Kids See Ghosts ( album ) ... Kids See Ghosts

Kids See Ghosts is a fine album title, but I don’t see the point of using it as a group name. It seems unnecessary, silly even, to use one at all. Kanye West did an album with Jay-Z, and Jay-Z did two with R Kelly, without any pseudonyms. That this set, one of what will reportedly become several seven-song releases from West’s Good Music label, begins with a verse by Pusha T is even more confusing.

It’s the quality of the music that should matter most, of course, and there it’s mostly a middling affair. The beats, which sound like lo-fi hip-hop experiments, do sound good, but they’re too often met with vastly inferior, sometimes downright annoying, vocals. Freeee and Feel The Love both contain grating examples of the latter. It isn’t until the end, literally the final song, that a memorable chorus arises.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018

video review : Anderson Silva versus Michael Bisping at UFC Fight Night

video review : Anderson Silva versus Michael Bisping at UFC Fight Night

There are two strikes that should’ve knocked Michael Bisping clean out in this fight. One, a flying knee to the nose, comes at the end of the third round when Silva takes advantage of Bisping foolishly distracting himself over a missing mouthguard. The second comes in the fifth when Silva, backed against the fence, lands the same front kick to the face he knocked Vitor Belfort out with. The fact that Bisping regains composure and continues to pressure his opponent after taking such damage, albeit looking a bloody mess, is a testament to his toughness.

That resilience is ultimately what wins him the bout. That and Silva’s frustrating fighting style, which has him playing “fun games” or standing idle when he should be in attack mode. The former champion seems to overwhelm Bisping whenever he pushes forward, but he doesn’t do so often enough. The beginning of Round 4 is particularly confusing as that’s probably the best chance he has to finish Bisping, still hurt from the jumping knee. Perhaps Silva was fatigued from celebrating his false victory. Whatever the case, I agree with the judges decision.

my rating : 4 of 5

2016

audio review : Ye ( album ) … Kanye West

audio review : Ye ( album ) ... Kanye West

“I love myself way more than I love you,” Kanye West declares, presumably to the general listening public, but surely he could’ve come up with a better title for this… I guess it’s an album, albeit a short one; a mere seven songs, though No Mistakes sounds more like an interlude. It’s better than both Yeezus and Life Of Pablo though, for what that’s worth; and while it’s not quite the old Kanye, it gets close.

Ghost Town, the one song with no rapping, sounds like the karaoke version of an age-old gospel hymn. 070 Shake’s bit is a bit much; they should’ve left the chorus to Kid Cudi; but the song is an easy favorite. All Mine is another, but guest Valee’s falsetto will work your nerves. Like swapping an enchanting synth loop for a basic drum beat at the end of Killing You, it’s the odd artistic decisions that flaw Ye.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018

audio review : Book Of Ryan ( album ) … Royce Da 5-9

audio review : Book Of Ryan ( album ) ... Royce Da 5-9

While an early Eminem feature stands as a major highlight; Royce Da 5-9 rarely outshines his Bad Meets Evil partner; the album’s magnum opus is a Christmas narrative entitled Power and Royce seems to know it. It’s the only song allowed to go long as the rapper sings the title bit like a career crooner.

The rest of the Book follows the same theme; Royce reminiscing à la Masta Ace on his last two albums; but he’s best when free to rap without conceptual restrictions. He’s worst when he’s just talking, as on the Skits, because his bravado gets annoying when it isn’t encased in clever rhyme schemes.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018

audio review : The Sex Tape ( album ) … Too Short

audio review : The Sex Tape ( album ) ... Too Short

Sex tapes, the secret video type, are an effective defense against women who engage in consensual sex acts with rich men only to allege rape months, sometimes years, later. Too Short recently found himself in the news on said charges and who better to target than a pimp who’s made a decades-long career on misogynist raps? But the drama isn’t addressed here. This, album number twenty, is business as usual, except it’s one of his best.

Short Dog sounds stylistically rejuvenated as he spits his signature pimp/player shit over an impressive array of hood bumpers. Feelin Somethin and Pull Yo Trophies Out, while no slouches in terms of quality, should’ve been swapped for different songs because they have little to do with Sex, and what sounds like a beat tag just nine seconds into the album is somewhat disconcerting, but the set is surprisingly satisfying on the whole.

my rating : 4 of 5

2018

audio review : Dirty Computer ( album ) … Janelle Monáe

audio review : Dirty Computer ( album ) ... Janelle Monáe

Janelle Monáe refers to sex a lot. It seems to take precedence over romance. She is bisexual, after all, as I suspect most women are. The difference is that she embraces it to the point of celebration. So Take A Byte is a double entendre and Pynk is about vaginas. Why that “y”? Why not? Why not put one of The Beach Boys on the album while you’re at it?

The intro sounds better than most of the actual songs, but Dirty Computer is better than The Electric Lady… if only by a pussy hair. Make Me Feel and Classic Life channel peak Prince; he reportedly contributed to the demo sessions of this album; while Django Jane establishes Janelle Monáe as a force to be reckoned with in the rap world.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018

audio review : Throne Of Game ( album ) … Spice 1

audio review : Throne Of Game ( album ) ... Spice 1

The title is a play on Game Of Thrones, but the cover photo brings to mind E-40’s Hall Of Game; an album released the year 2Pac died that features both him and Spice 1. That’s a relevant mention because Spice 1 makes several references to his dead homie here. There’s also a 2017 version of Welcome To The Ghetto and lyrical interpolations of other old Spice 1 songs. Perhaps the rapper; who, with exception of a few verses that have him spitting like the “BG” rappers of today, hasn’t changed much after all these years; is sort of stuck in the past.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing for longtime fans. The nostalgia is as thick as the weed smoke and most of these beats do bang. When the hooks are left to singers with actual talent in that department; the crown goes to D Perry, though the track he’s on sounds more like what should’ve been the outro than an actual song; the album sounds surprisingly good. With that, aside from a more careful mastering job, Throne Of Game would be better if it were edited down to, say, the best twelve cuts. The “Fuckboy” Flex diss, for example, is mixtape filler.

my rating : 3 of 5

2017

audio review : Joyride ( album ) … Tinashe

audio review : Joyride ( album ) ... Tinashe

There’s some confusion as to whether Tinashe’s previous release, entitled Nightride, is supposed to be an official album or some sort of mixtape-like side project. As fifty minutes of mostly full-length songs with original beats, it sounds like the former; that’s certainly what I’d classify it as; but is widely publicized as the latter. There’s no such distinction with this follow-up Joyride. Everything suggests it’s the new Tinashe album. The problem is that Nightride is bigger and better in almost every way.

That’s “almost” because Faded Love, a drunken sexcapade featuring rapper Future, would be my jam on either set. The other thirty minutes or so offer “little” in the way of Joy. No Drama is a banger for sure; several tracks stay true to the album’s overall theme with highkey and lowkey vehicle references; but Tinashe’s vocals are generally less melodic and more annoying this go around. That means Joyride, while fun, even thoroughly enjoyable at times, is a comparative disappointment.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018

audio review : Electric Café ( album ) … En Vogue

audio review : Electric Café ( album ) ... En Vogue

Though the title song has them sounding more like The B-52s, En Vogue are back. Member changes, getting older and what looks like some cosmetic surgery make them virtually unrecognizable, but they’re still Funky Divas who were Born To Sing.

They do so quite Good here. Yeah, the old hits are better than most of what’s playing in this Electric Café; their trademark harmonization seems to be lacking; but it works as decent-enough background music to energize yourself with a cup of java to.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018
 

HereWeGo :

These girls look exactly the same, and have not have aged, or gone under the knife at all. Maybe you were on meds when you wrote this?? smh..

RJ Mr No Nonsense :

Fool there is no cosmetic surgery so stop that silly shit now!

audio review : Connected And Respected ( album ) … E-40 + B-Legit

audio review : Connected And Respected ( album ) ... E-40 + B-Legit

Fans have been waiting for a new Click album for several years. I guess this, the first set from its two best rappers, will have to do. E-40 and B-Legit have long gone together like peanut butter and jelly. While the former is the obvious star, the latter is no slouch on the mic. He says he’s “mad underrated”. Replace “mad” with “a tad” and I’d agree. He never alters his monotone style, but it works for him.

With that, the duo, who also happen to be cousins, have the verses on lock. They’re the best parts of the album. The worst parts have to do with the songs themselves, specifically when it comes to the breaks. Nearly every one of these songs has a dull; or in the case of Tap In, Whooped and Boy, downright annoying; hook. That’s a major aesthetic problem, along with the abundance of vapid hood beats.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018