Is that a "I Get Lonely" sample on "Be My Baby"? I don't think it is, but there's a few similarities between the two. And from that, I'll use this comment to add that even though her voice is Mariah-like, the music itself feels closer to Janet to me.
This preview has actually made me a bit excited for the album, something even "Problem" (blame Iggy) and her debut couldn't pull off. I'm a bit more poptimist about it now. Strangely though, the third song is the one I liked the least even if she really invests a lot of her vocals on it. "Love Me Harder" and "Be My Baby" are the best songs she has here so far, I think. The first might even be my favorite Abel feature in a while (as brief as it is).
"I can't think straight, I'm so gay" - I don't why I love this line, but I do. Well done, Mary Lambert.
Also, I have seen Meghan Trainor's name charting for a few weeks now, but I just assumed it was another generic dance-pop shit by the title (like that terrible Britney/Will.I.Am song "Big Fat Bass"). I had no idea it was about bass as in Motown bass for a Supremes-like single, and that the song would be so fun and positive. And she's kinda funny too. I like when pop artists make good use of their sense of humor, and what's especially great about this one is how confident she comes off, like the pretty talented girl she is even if her weight isn't the beauty standard. That song was a nice surprise.
That beat and the hooks in "BO$$" really is all kinds of awesome, I'm surprised. Finally an exciting pop 2014 song (could never really get behind Problem as much as I wanted to because of that lame Iggy verse). Too bad it's not crossing over like it deserved to though.
No offense to Charli and this new girl, but while good music is always something to cherish, I find it hard to get excited about this kind of popstar recently. I miss when artists like Michael, Prince and Madonna did pop that was so bold and really demanded your attention, you know? People who make great music and also aim for world domination. This year there's some good pop, but not very ambitious pop (Beyoncé being the exception).
1999 is my favorite album of all time and I find it unforgivable that it's not even top 5 (and behind freaking Batman, for fuck's sake). The Black Album is also way too low, and in favor of some of Prince's weakest material. Other than that, I appreciate you finally doing this, thanks.
My list:
1. 1999 (MASTERPIECE STEREOGUM, THIS IS A MASTERPIECE)
2. Purple Rain
3. Dirty Mind
4. Controversy
5. Sign O' The Times
6. Prince
7. Lovesexy
8. Around The World In a Day
9. The Black Album
10. Parade
11. Love Symbol Album
12. The Gold Experience (even though it's a tad overproduced)
13. 3121 (underrated, best late Prince album)
14. The Rainbow Children
15. Come
16. Emancipation
17. Musicology
18. Graffiti Bridge
19. For You
20. Batman
21. Diamonds and Pearls
22. Chaos and Disorder
23. New Power Soul
24. Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic
25. Lotusflow3r
26. MPLSOUND
27. Planet Earth
28. 20Ten
But why should/would a gender-specific version in anyway deprive people to identify and sing-along with him? If people can't correlate that the themes of love and desire of the song are universal even if he is singing about a man (and making that clear), than well, it just comes to show there's still a lot of progress to be made in how people view homosexuality if they would make an issue out of that, or even simply feel distanced by that aspect. I also think the best way to build equality is to expose all people to all kinds of experiences and worldview, so they can truly get used to and understand other perspectives, but you won't get that by instead opting to be so neutral, so guarded about it.
But of course, I also don't think there should be pressure on Sam about this, as it is (and right now, really hope it's based on) ultimately about his choice. But at the same, it still feels a bit like a cheat. Maybe Sam just doesn't feel comfortable creating exposure based on that aspect. But that doesn't change the thing about neutrality - it doesn't necessarily causes harm, but it also won't necessarily bring any good either. Hopefully with time, people will learn how to deal with it, and/or he'll finally feel comfortable let this side of him come through naturally, but at some point, someone has to take the first step for that to happen.
Oh, please. Sam is a gay man and the song uses a male pronoun in the original, there's no reason for changing just to avoid disturbing straight people, and people shouldn't defend a gay men feeling the need to downplay an aspect of his to please mainstream audiences. I have nothing against Sam, but it was clear there was an agenda behind this decision: to make him as inoffensive and non-threatning as possible.
I also disagree with the false equivalency you bring up. I'm not offended by your post and your opinion because it's clear you are giving a respectful and short response, but I still disagree. Yes, we are all human, but there's a difference between downplaying the specificities that makes us human in the first place in favor of majority-minded driven acceptance rather than the majority really being able to see universality in the differences and diversity without having to change or ignore them, people would just be able to enjoy and identify with Sam without him needing it to be so neutral about the gender he desires. While people complain about how everything is sexualized these days, I also worry about asexualizing gay people in name of accessibility. And I can't help but feel the way he is promoted is at least partially built on this.
It's the old "He's gay, but you won't even notice!", as if being noticeable that someone being gay or someone truly owning that aspect of their lives is somehow less admirable, or as if there something special about having that aspect more or less removed from your general identity (which is NOT to say that a gay men always needs to be outspoken about his sexuality, as that's too personal to judge based on). And I'm really not judging Sam's sexuality or anything, just how it has been handled by his people and the label so far, and I have to say, yeah, it bothers me a bit. He still has a great voice though, of course, even if his album is a bit underwhelming.
(And yes, I recognize that I wrote a long ass post for someone who posted casually and probably never thought someone would say all this, and also never got to elaborate further before getting this reply. What I can say? I have strong feelings about this).
Maybe a little too similar to Don't Look Back and Arch N Point, and without the energy that made those so fantastic. Solid song, but rather underwhelming compared to his usual output. Gotta love Miguel's productivity though.
Why are you getting downvoted? Macklemore is clearly a rapper who is very conscious of his public image, and he is aware of the rejection he has in sections of the rap fanbase. This was a way for him to pander to that fanbase and continue his nice guy image just the same.
That Zendaya song is very solid. I also enjoyed Replay quite a bit. She's like the new Cassie.
I usually like Shakira (especially when she does that ridiculous howl in She-Wolf), but I thought this was a weak single, even though it has Rihanna, who I love. It feels like it tries too hard to combine the styles of the two for me, but in the end, both come off as fish out of water in their own song.
Also, can we talk about that impressive climb that Pharrell's "Happy" is making on iTunes? Just today he reached top 5.
Also, that Aloe Blacc song is doing very well, and I'm glad, I actually find him somewhat overrated when he is nto doing uncredited vocals for cheesy EDM anthems.
I love Human. I even love the line about human/dancer, cheesy as it is, and I don't care if the downvotes rain on me for it. It's the ultimate cheesy line, in that it's very melodramatic in translating that feeling of loving to dance. I love songs about how dancing can make you feel like nothing else, and it always bothers me when people treat them as of less value than songs about love or other things in life, because I consider dancing to be damn essential. And the production is a marvelous thing, one of the best Stuart Price has ever done.
Yay for standing up to racist, full of themselves jerks!
Just because Moz is talented doesn't mean people need to make excuses for him or think his stands up for important beliefs. The guy is an asshole. A talented asshole is still an asshole.
It's the most indie-ish song on the album, along with the Panda Bear track, so it became the go-to place for people who don't want to admit Get Lucky is really great. Personally, I agree. Instant Crush is one of the least interesting tracks of the album for me as well.
I agree that Angel Haze's beef was the most intense and the one that damaged her reputation. but her feud with Gaga was probably the one that hurt her the most. It's bad enough that she never found mainstream success, it's even worse that you make a lot of people's first impression be hating on one of the most popular music stars on the world when you don't even have an album out. During that time, I remember I could go to her twitter page, refresh every 5 minutes, and you would just see her hemorrhaging viewers. But really, you could pick almost any of them for beef #1. Girl is extremely committed to her feuds (not so much actually making music).
Mainstream radio hasn't reacted to indie world? What world are living in? The indie/hipster music aesthetic is all over radio. Just because it doesn't come from the actual indie/hipster bands, doesn't mean it hasn't influenced pop music. It has. Big time. Wake up, man.
I truly think you people are all just bitter that Stereogum and sites like this are making harder and harder for people to be anti-populism snobs that irrationally hate artists like Beyonce.
Those "wonky" sounds are very Prince too. Again, Miguel, the actual songwritter of the song, is extremely guided by Prince's music aesthetic. I get why people are reminded of "Untitled", but again, I think it's just a coincidence, since both songs borrow heavily from Prince.
I love D'Angelo, and yet I can't see how anyone could say he has influence r&b just as much as Prince. I really can't. They are both huge points of reference, but Prince's influence is seismic and felt though all different genres and subgenres of not only r&b, but hip-hop, and hell, music in general.
Considering Rocket was written by Miguel, who holds Prince as kind of a personal God (with reason!), I think it's safe to assume the similarities to "untitled" are a coincidence, and that this is yet another Prince homage from him, just so happens it's similar to D'Angelo's Prince homage.
I agree on the pairing of "Heaven" and "Blue". Even though they are very emotional, they are also very tasteful and elegant without sacrificing the story behind the songs. Pretty much a knock-out way to close an album. Blue specifically has some early Kanye inflections (Family Business-like) without feeling like it's straight up emulating that. And both manage to be very sophisticated in production and very touching in songwriting and performance. You can tell this is a special album for her by the way it ends with such special and personal songs. And it doesn't feel like personal indulgence, but feels like sweet and caring vulnerability on display.
Did the person who downvoted me ever listened to Prince? Do people get Prince's influence is pretty much everywhere in modern r&b? Now let me see this getting passive aggressive downvotes for pointing the downvotes and the importance of Prince...
You're limiting the concept of vision by process and you ideas of what vision must be out of rock habit. Why can't someone who uses a highly collaborative process be a visionary? If there's a distinct personal point of view, it's visionary in some form. I don't think anyone can deny this is a very personal project no matter how the process came to be. Every aspect of this feels like it could've only come from her, even if she has people along elaborating her vision with her.
And they are being judged by their own terms. Their producers and songwriters matter to the process, hence her album is judged on every single aspect that matters to the end result, just like every album should be no matter the process the artist in question uses. You're saying only the aspect of the artist performance themselves must be considered on reviews for popstars like that, which I disagree, and come from a place that associates artistry as something from a singer/songwriter or band, rather than thinking a process like Beyonce's can be and must be respected even if it's different from what rock criticism and fans are used to have as way to determine vision and quality.
Rihanna actually takes more risks than given credit for. She was one of the first popstars to include dubstep/garage leaning sounds on singles and album tracks, and she has some of the most adventurous producers.
I disagree. This is a perception that comes from the rock-criticism-based world. The work of producers and songwriters must absolutely be considered, as pop comes from a much more collaborative process rather than a band/artist sole vision. And a collaborative process is not of less value than a singular point of view, especially because in case of some artists, like Beyonce, the collaboration happens to drive a point of view forward anyway. You say you don't want to appear "rockist", but different genres and artists should be judged on their own terms. You don't need to create a rule to determine quality. You take into consideration what the genre does and needs and how it's made into account, and that will never be in equal footing, but it doesn't need to be, and it doesn't invalidate any of the many different sides to the story.
Comments