Announcement

I have decided to stop posting until further notice. I am starting a new blog (www.playlistzone.blogspot.com) It's a collection of playlists and some other stuff. It's more lose than this blog. If I start to post here again I will announce it. Thanks!

Flo Rida - R.O.O.T.S.

For those have bee following my blog from the beginning you will know that Flo Rida was my first album review. So someplace in my heart I have a soft spot for him. Flo Rida has been one of the most experimental mainstream Hip-Hop artists. He shamelessly samples tons of classics and does it to a lot of downloads on iTunes.

Flo Rida is not known from his rapping as much as his catchy chorus'. This album is full of them. Some great examples are "Right Round", "Touch Me", "Sugar", "Gotta Get It (Dancer)" and "Jump". They all have some amazing chorus' which is really the genius of Flo Rida. The collaborator's on the album are Akon, Nelly Furtado, Ne-Yo, Ke$ha and Wyclef Jean.

For people who are looking for a Rap album your not going to get it here. Even when he rap's it's far from good. The best tracks on the album are all the tracks with guests. Flo Rida is not a rapper as he is a master collaborator. Sort of like Timbaland but he doesn't produce.

The album is all but salvaged by the collaborators. If not for them this would be a trashy album. But the amount of singles on the album are hard to ignore. I would say their are atleast 5 good singles. It's pretty amazing how this album comes out as a good addition to any iPod and any stereo system.

Overall: 73/100 (Best Tracks: Right Round, Sugar, Touch Me and Be On You)

Thunderheist - Thunderheist

I first heard this Montreal/Toronto duo on MTV Canada. Their performance was energetic and I have been following them since. The duo are a DJ (Grahm Zilla) and artist (Isis Salam). The way they make music is Grahm Zilla sends his beats to Isis and then she rap's or whatever she wants to do on the track. It's the magic of the Internet. Once I heard they were coming out with a debut I was excited. This album a dance-floor hit.

You never know what to expect from this album, it's a very mixed bag. But they seem to do all very well. "LBG (Little Booty Girl)" takes experimental side of Crystal Castles and puts some rapping on it to make it a stand out of the album. "Space Cowboy" makes R&B indie again and "Do the Right Thing" has some of the best production I have heard.

The faults of the album depends of the listener. Some may find this album not focused and all over the place. Some may find this album too experimental. Some tracks may seems like copies of The Cool Kids.

Thunderheist seem too have a good foundation for a few more albums. Their debut is something you have to hear and then decide. In my opinion this album is one the best Canadian releases in the past year.

Overall: 81/100 (Best Tracks: Jerk It, Anthem and Freddie)

Peter Bjorn and John - Living Thing

Everyone probably remembers these guys from that annoying and sort of enjoyable song "Young Folks" or the whistle song. But with a new album their showing their more than that. They do that with mixed results.

Peter Bjorn and John seem like masters of production. Their simple yet amazing production is nothing short of masterful. Nothing shows this off like their single "Nothing to Worry About". The delightful children chorus is pretty uplifting and the beat is crazy good. "Stay This Way" sounds like a mild version of Panda Bear. Which is not a bad thing.

But the album does have a few faults. After a few listens the album seems to always mesh and does not seem to have any surprises on the way. Which is a complex way of saying that it's boring. "4 Out of 5" seems like a horrible mistake, its horribly boring.

This album I find strips away the fun sound they had on their previous album "Writer's Block" with more mixed results. It's a step back for a band that can be so much more than on this album.

Overall: 62/100 (Best Tracks: Nothing to Worry About and Stay This Way")

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz

For someone to say this is a change for Karen O is an understatement. She now has rooted herself deeply into disco-experimental lane. But she hasn't lost her footing as one of the most charismatic artists out there.

It's Blitz see's the have a more well balanced path and it works like a charm. "Runaway" is one of the most assured pieces of work that they have done during their career. The lead single "Zero" is one of the most strangely uplifting tracks I have heard in quite a while. But these tracks do not take away from their edge. They still do what they want and they do it well.

One of the tracks that immediately caught my attention was "Skeletons". It has a hypnotic tone to it but it does not lose the groups personality. "Skeletons" is one of the best tracks of the year by a mile.

The only fault I could give to the album is it slows down the last 2 tracks and it does lose your attention. But after all the great tracks it may have been the right decision.

The album is one of the best of the year. It's not all out ballsy but it never sucks. Which is a big statement since the band always went a little overboard.

Overall: 87/100 (Best Tracks: Skeletons, Zero and Heads Will Roll)

My Thought of the Grammy's

I have thought forever that the Grammy's were just a marketing ploy to get your ass into the nearest record store. Which it is. But this year the Grammy's were surprisingly okay. That may not seem very enthusiastic but it hasn't been better in 5 years. I'm going to break down each section of the Grammy's.

Performances: This year didn't have any amazing performances in my opinion. Maybe Jennifer Hudson considering the circumstances. But other than that their weren't many great performances. Another okay performance was the so called "rap" pack (T.I., Jay-Z, Kanye West, Lil Wayne and M.I.A.). But M.I.A. just looked foolish on that stage. She was a distraction. I love M.I.A. . But she took away from the performance. The worst performances included Neil Diamond, Jonas Brothers/Stevie Wonder and Miley Cyrus/Taylor Swift. Neil Diamond just looked like a joke singing "Sweet Caroline". It's time to leave that song in the closet and never let it come out. Stevie Wonder and the Jonas Brothers were a mess. Stevie did his best with what he was given. But the Jonas Brothers had the nerve to forget the man's lyrics. Even I knew the lyrics and I hadn't listened to that song is years. The Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift performance would have been great. If Miley Cyrus didn't decide to sing off pitch the whole time. Taylor Swift was pretty good actually. That's all I'm going to talk about the performances.

Award Recipients: This year the Grammy committee mostly chose good recipients for the awards. My highlight of the night was Adele winning 'Best New Artist' and Robert Plant and Allison Krauss winning 'Album of the Year'. Frankly, Coldplay did not deserve to win the awards they did. I know that the Grammy committee thinks Coldplay is the safest option of the night. It's true that they are. But in my opinion they are no more than a crowd pleaser. Them winning 'Rock Album of the Year' was a big joke. At least they acknowledged they aren't real rockers.


Overall Grammy Score: 6/10 (It was a better than average year. More than ever this year great artists were recognized.)

Where is Sufjan Stevens?

Does anyone know what Sufjan Stevens is up to these days? It's been a while hasn't it? Almost 4 years since Illinois. "Chicago" has been on my Ipod for that long. I need something new by him. So if you know about what he is doing lately please comment.

I Can't Believe It!

Did you know that Flo Rida was #1 in 3 countries. He's back already. I mean the song is okay but people actually pay 99 cents for that track? I'm not trying to be mean but the track isn't that strong. I'm always confused on how the mass thinks. But I have to give him credit, he must be a hard worker. The guy is releasing 2 albums in one year.

Exquisite!

How did I not fall upon this track before! I want this album to come out in North America now!




Please Kleerup! Release it or else. *wink*. When has Lykke Li ever dissapointed me.

A French Track I Like!

I know right! It's pretty unbelievable. I don't even know how I stumbled upon this gem but I just couldn't resist to post it. I don't care how much criticism I get for liking her music. It's just so cute and it sounds like gummy bears dancing. Oh! Je t'aime Coeur de pirate!

Chester French

I was searching around the blogs and found a remix of Chester French. It's really awesome but I couldn't find it anywhere else. So I thought I would play you guys the original track. This is "She Loves Everybody".




By the way I love this band. Yeah it's a really old find but I thought I would introduce it to you for those who didn't know about them.

Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You

Lily Allen's previous CD (Alright, Still) was an ultra trendy ska affair. But with her new release she goes for the mainstream pop route. But she doesn't take away her artistic ability along the way. Which is a real talent for someone only 23. This album has only two mediocore tracks. Which is pretty good considering the genre she's dipping into, pop.

The best spots of the album come from Allen dumping on ex's which she does with expertly. The highlight of the album is "Not Fair" where she trash talks about an ex's ability in bed. It even incorporates Bluegrass for a cherry on top.

The worst part of the album is the last two tracks. Where it gets a little too boring. "Him" talks about God and if you think he cares about small things. It has a good melody and good intentions but it just rings false. The last track is just bad.

This album just puts Lily Allen on the map as not just another one album hit. This album has very good tracks which should live on for a long time. Can't wait for what's coming next from her.

Rating: 88/100 (Best Tracks: Not Fair, F**k You, I Could Say and Who'd Have Known)

K'Naan - Troubadour

The Somalian born rapper K'Naan has not received any major attention since the beginnings of his career. But with his latest release he hopes to crack the mainstream market. Unfortunately, him attempting this seems like his main focus.

I liked his previous releases, but this one seems too much like the mainstream music for me. I mean c'mon, he would have never had Adam Levine on an album before. I think he's just trying to sell some records.

The whole album is not horribly mainstream though, "Wavin' Flag" is a great uplifting track which is the highlight of the whole album.

Overall, the album has some good tracks. But the rest of the album just gets on my nerves. It's the type of record that you would only listen to once. Then it sits on the CD rack. It's too bad because this album could have been career defining.

Overall: 44/100 (Best Tracks: "Wavin' Flag" and "ABCs")

An Overlooked Album From 2008

I am enjoying very much the new album by Japanese artist Shugo Tokumaru. Some people have compared him to the Japanese Sufjan Stevens. But the language he uses set's him apart from the competition. Like all good foreign artists, you should hear something beautiful even though you don't know what they are saying. He acheives this.

(Newest Album: Exit)

Most Anticipated Release for Febuary

My most anticipated release is Lily Allen's upcoming album "It's Not Me It's You". From what I hear the album is pretty good. I heard the Itunes previews and I thought they were excellent. My favorites from what I head is "Everyone's At It', "I Could Say", "Who'd Have Known" and "Back To The Start". I am very hopeful that this album will be amazing. Her debut was also a treat. But this one seems like more of a delight.

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion

It's not very often that in the month of January (in 1 week) two possible album of the year contenders come out. But it has happened. Antony and the Johnsons and Animal Collective's new album "Merriweather Post Pavillion".

This album is full of twirly production and anthemic sounds. The highlight out of all this is "Girls". It has wonderful production and sweet lyrics. It will be an instant favorite to people who listen to the album. One of the best songs so far this year.

Another thing that should be noted is that the sound is a little more hypnotic than usual. Almost like your in a hypnotist's office. Some pretty cool stuff.

Thr album cover is also pretty cool. I don't know the reasoning behind it. But I love the effect on the buyer.

Overall the album is a wonderful collection of songs that will please any music fan. Some will love it and some will appreciate the artistic merit of the album. But I love it.

Rating: 94/100 (Best Track[s]: Girls and Daily Routine)


Note: If you focus at the album cover for a while it seems like the cover is moving

Antony and the Johnsons - The Crying Light

Antony and the Johnsons are back after their astounding album "I Am A Bird Now". No suprise, they are still in perfect form. Antony still has amazing vocals and the simple production is amazing.

The album's highlight is "Another World" which Antony mourns the death of the world by humans. It is so simple yet so effective, like the rest of the album. But really does Antony even need complex production. His voice itself is an instrument.

Another theme throughout the album seems to be nature, highlighted in the track "One Dove". Although at points these songs do het a little carried away with the nature theme. They are pretty effective.

Overall this album is amazing. It's not as gender-bending as the previous album, yet it is still beautiful. If you don't buy this album you will be missing out on probably one of the albums of the year.

Rating: 83/100 (Best Track[s]: "Another World" and "Daylight and Sun")

Update

I will start blogging everyday again next week (Tuesday). So check in!

Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You

After the major disappointment of her previous album. Kelly Clarkson is back to her poppy roots. She's doing it pretty well to. The chorus is top notch and Kelly seems to be into the bit beat and catchy lyrics. It's nice to see someone going back to where they began. Rather than trying to make a non-commercial album to make a point.

Rating: 72/100