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Channel Orange - Frank Ocean
by MsTricia
I remember hearing Frank Ocean's voice last year on the radio with a track called "swim good" off his mixtape Nostalgia. At first it kind of washed over my head, but the more and more it played it became catchy and I was in love with his soulful voice. Another song off his mixtape "Novocane" is an absolute favourite ... of mine and I used to listen to it on repeat having a shower or getting ready to go out as his voice is so smooth and although his song topics are a bit mish mash (if that's a terminology!)
So this year when he decided to release his debut album - Channel Orange - I decided it was a must buy and for £7.50 into my amazon wishlist (and later basket!) it went!
Frank Ocean is part of the OFWGKTA (Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All) an American alternative hip hop collective from Los Angeles, California. The collective is led by rapper/producer Tyler, The Creator, and Frank Ocean is one of their other big names. As a singer song writer, the tracks are all written by himself and contains a lot of melodies with electronic keyboards to create sounds of electro-funk, pop-soul, jazz-funk, and psychedelic music which blend to make an eclectic album but the sensuous undertones of his voice help it blend into one. It is hard to pin a genre on Frank Ocean's music as it isn't quite R&B but more a blend of soul, hip hop, electro and jazz. A strange combination but he works it well!
The cover case is bright orange and Ocean titled the album as a reference to the neurological phenomenon as the colour he perceived during the summer he first fell in love. The album cover itself comes in bright orange cardboard with one side with the CD in and the other side has a booklet which contains the song lyrics for those who want to sing along!
The track list for this album is:
1. Start
2. Thinkin Bout You
3. Fertilizer
4. Sierra Leone
5. Sweet Life
6. Not Just Money
7. Super Rich Kids (featuring Earl Sweatshirt)
8. Pilot Jones
9. Crack Rock
10. Pyramids
11. Lost
12. White (featuring John Mayer)
13. Monks
14. Bad Religion
15. Pink Matter (featuring André 3000)
16. Forrest Gump
17. End/Golden Girl
My absolute favourite track on this album is "Thinkin About You" which had some controversy brought behind it as Ocean penned a letter which he posted on Tumblr in which he discusses his past experience during a summer when he found himself falling in love for the first time and it was with a man. In the stigmatic genre of hip hop/R&B/soul (whichever category should he be narrowly placed in) this is of course a topic which isn't sung about with open arms so to speak. Listening to the song he says lyrics such as "Do you think about me still? Do you not think so far ahead?? 'Coz I been thinking bout forever....No I don't like you I just thought you were cool enough to kick it..." I honestly could listen to this song all day, and while it may not have any personal reflection on my situation it is so filled with emotion I can almost feel Frank Ocean's heart pouring out over my car radio! He performed this song at the VMA's in LA this summer and it was so moving to see him sing his heart out live, I am hoping he comes to the UK (again!) where I can appreciate his art in a small intimate gig.
Another great song on this album which I enjoy is Pyramids, which at almost 10 minutes long is the LONGEST track on the entire album (in fact on any album of any artist I own!) Whenever the track begins I can't keep still and have to sway or bounce in my chair lol! It begins in an up tempo track, the lyrics being an array of words referring to Cleopatra and the Pyramids and the moody tune finds Ocean oohing over ethereal swirls and pulses while cooing about "working at the pyramid" and finding "my Black queen Cleopatra". The song is almost a story and is more uptempo and R&B sounding for the first half then drifts off into an extremely slow and sensual rhythm detailing Cleopatra as a prostitute and here Ocean is her pimp but through years of working together, he eventually falls in love with her. It really sounds like a song with a lot of loose screws but yet it is is so enthralling I find myself listening to it over and over again!
Oddly enough I found there to be a lot of skit's and short snappy songs on this album, which were quite sporadic and didn't seem to flow with the album but in all honesty not much flows! It jumps around as I think it is Frank Ocean's intention not to be too samey in the sense of having variety and not too much similarities all through his tracks!
A lot of the other songs on this album are brilliant such as Pink Matter which features Andre 3000 of Outkast who I am a big fan of. Their voices are really compatible and the duo make a formidable team and bring a slow song of "pleasure" to my ears. Frank hit's some high notes I didn't know he had in him and he almost makes me a bit gutted if he is gay as he's sooo sweet!
Overall I am a big fan of his debut album and I will be impressed to see what he can bring out to rival this in the future. This album is for someone who likes a lot of slow, sensual songs filled with emotion. Although not a tear jerker (not for me anyway!) you can hear Frank's heart almost beating as he says each line and I just want to find him and give him a hug! He is an enigmatic character who doesn't particularly do interviews etc so he is somewhat of a mystery and I think this reflects in his album. As a quiet and perhaps misunderstood artist his true sexuality is not actually known (ie. is he bisexual, gay, etc) and so I think channelled through this album are feelings of confusion and love and lust which can be heard and I really appreciate his music and talent.
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The Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem
by passion10
Every generation has its own taste in music. Granted not as clear cut as the creation of rock and roll, but every few years we see a change in the music world. My generation was grunge/indie but presently we are seeing the focus shifting towards hiphop and rap. I am not saying that this is now the most popular musical genre but perhaps ... the fastest growing. There will always be the demand for boybands etc as they have their fanbase secured.
Anyway, I am not a fan of EMINEM as such. But by the same token I am not anti EMINEM. I respect his musical talent even though I probably would never buy any of his albums. Having said this, however, I do like several of his singles.
If you are not familiar with Eminem's music then you must have been shut away in a sound proof room with no radio or TV for last year or so.
In my opinion (given that I am not a big fan) Eminem is a white Dr Dre. He produces typical rap records and has collaborated with Dr Dre on a few occasions. Every now and then, however, Eminem manages to "communicate" with a wider audience rather than just hard-core rap fans.
This particular album contains 18 tracks but 4 of these are "intermission-speaks" known to Dave Matthews fans as "Dave Speak" that you get every now and then! Eminem just has four on one album! Fills up the epmty space I guess.
The best track, Stan is pure genious. Musically it is nothing extra ordinarily special but it is just genious. Stan is about excessive fans and the trials and tribulations of dealing with them but here the twist its from the fans eye view. You get an undersatnding of how obcessive some fans can get, how caught up they can become with their favourite artist. This kind of experience nromally arises from documentaries not from a song!
Furthermore, the use of dido's very underated classic is out of this world. This song fits Stan perfectly, especially when you see the video. Whe
reby the long suffering wife of the obcessed fan suffers to the extreme!
The rest of the album is also pretty good but for us not so big fans it can get a little repetitive after a while! Other highlights include The way I am and Real Slim Shady. These were both fairly successful in the UK singles charts.
Stan still stands out as Eminem at his very best!
If you are against bad language in music then stick well clear of this artist and this album. If you like rap, then don't let the fact that he's white put you off.
EMINEM may or may not be here to stay but he has a solid fan base, a growing fan base and more importantly a diverse fan base! This album deserves the credit it is getting.
This album is worth a listen but just be prepared to be offended a little (or may be a lot).
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Wild Ones - Flo Rida
by helenc72
Flo Rida is a rapper and singer from Florida. His music style is not really the style which I normally listen to, but sometimes I am in the mood for something catchy and a bit dancey and I have been listening to this album quite a lot at those times.
The tracklist is as follows:
1. Whistle
2. Wild Ones ft. ... Sia
3. Let It Roll
4. Good Feeling
5. In My Mind Part 2 ft. Georgi Kay
6. Sweet Spot ft. Jennifer Lopez
7. Thinking of You
8. I Cry
9. Run ft. RedFoo of LMFAO
It is quite short as it only has 9 songs.
Whistle is a song which I'm sure a lot of people will have heard again and again this summer. I have just come back from two weeks of working at a camp full of teenagers and this song was definitely one of the most popular among them (beaten only by Nicki Minaj Starships which some of my kids sang constantly!) It is a simple song where Flo Rida instructs "blow my whistle baby" with this innuendo being in a repetitive chant style which gets stuck in your head along with a cheeky whistling tune. I like it because it is funny and infectuous and probably will be a song which will always take me back to this summer when I hear it!
Wild Ones is the best song on the album by far in my opinion. It features Sia, an Australian singer who has often collaborated with other artists (e.g. at the moment she is well known for being on Titanium by David Guetta). She has a clear and strong singing voice which really contrasts to Flo Rida's rapping. The song has an uplifting dancy atmosphere.
Let It Roll is not a stand out song for me and I find it blends in a bit, even though it was actually released as a single from this album. It is nice enough, but a bit repetitive, saying "come on baby let the good times roll" as the chorus along with rap and a dancey beat.
Good Feeling is another song which has been a massive hit this summer and I seem to have heard it everywhere I go - so it is a good thing that I like it! It is also extremely catchy and a feel good song with simple lyrics such as "Oohhhh, sometimes, I get a good feeling!" It features a sample of Etta James Something's Got A Hold Of Me and the rap is over the top of Avicii's track Levels. It is a great song for late summer nights and easy to dance to.
In My Mind has quite a soft and chilled atmosphere to me, seeming lighter and more delicate than the previous ones, even though it does have a strong dance beat in the backing which builds up urgently and dies down again as the song goes on. The guest vocals of Georgi Kay (not sure who that is) are nice and she has a pleasant, listenable voice. I really enjoy this one.
Sweet Spot is another song in similar style to the previous ones, with guest vocals from Jennifer Lopez and rap from Flo Rida over a dancey track. I like it but I find the lyrics a bit cheesy, like "hit the sweet spot... I want candy tonight" and I wouldn't say it's a favourite one of mine on the album.
Thinking of You is a laid back one and it is not as upbeat as most. It shows a softer and more tender side of Flo Rida as he sings about hurt and wondering if someone is thinking of him. I like this one especially the tuneful chorus and the bittersweet atmosphere of the song.
I Cry is another pulsing dance song and I think the flow between the previous song and this one is a bit off. I am not crazy about this one - it is okay but definitely not a stand out for me. I can sometimes find it a little bit annoying, as there is something about the vocals which annoys me as they sound a bit grating or screechy.
Run is another one which I am not so keen on. I don't really like LMFAO and this features one of them, so that is a contributing factor why I don't like this one so much. The song is okay, and it is catchy, but it just doesn't appeal to me in the way most of the others do as it seems a bit one dimensional and the beat is too repetitive without as much variation as some of the others. This one can be slightly headache inducing for me at times!
=== Overall ===
I would recommend Wild Ones as there are some great songs on it, but I definitely would not say it is a flawless album. Even though it is pretty short already, there are a few songs which I can skip.
I would have given it 3.5 stars if possible, as I feel 3 is a bit harsh considering I do love some of these songs, but it didn't quite merit a 4 from me.
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