New Music: Torae & Marco Polo, Hold Up [ft. Masta Ace & Sean Price]

05.22.09

Song: Hold Up [ft. Masta Ace & Sean Price]
Artist: Torae & Marco Polo
Label: Duck Down Records
Producer: Marco Polo
Notes: none
Analysis: The first two leaks from Torae & Marco Polo’s upcoming Double Barrel album were pretty good, but ‘Hold Up’ is fucking great.

Music Video: D-Block, Get That Paper

05.21.09

Song: Get That Paper [ft. S.I.]
Artist: D-Block
Album: No Security
Label: Def Jam
Producer: unknown
Notes: 1st single from LP
Analysis: ‘Get That Paper’ is actually more a LOX song than a D-Block song, but all D-Block is is the LOX with some excess rappers, and I’d rather hear a LOX song anyway. This is one of my favorite hip hop tracks of the spring and the video’s actually not your run of the mill rap video, although all the elements are there. Instead, it’s Jada, Styles P and Sheek Louch (and a Kid Capri cameo) throwing a party to raise funds to not get evicted. It’s even shot kind of hazy to fit with the flow of the song, and I’m digging Styles’ throwback Charlotte Hornets hat on an unrelated note. This song is still on repeat for me though, which is a good sign for the new album.

Music Video: The Killers, The World We Live In

05.21.09

Song: The World We Live In
Artist: The Killers
Album: Day & Age
Label: Island Records
Notes: 3rd single from LP
Analysis: If you weren’t feeling the first two singles (‘Human’ and ‘Spaceman‘) from The Killers’ late 2008 release, you might enjoy ‘The World We Live In’ a little bit more. It’s less house music and more prog rock anthem. The video’s a little too icey for my springtime/summer mood, but it’s shot really nicely and Brandon’s wardrobe is only slightly less outrageous than previous videos. It’s as close to Hot Fuss as the album gets, which is the best compliment that I can give a Killers song lately.

Album Review: Eminem, Relapse

05.17.09

So here’s what you probably already know by now: Eminem still hates celebrities, still raps about killing and raping women, still uses that silly voice that he used on the song dedicated to dissing a hand puppet, and has become a lesser version of himself from nine years ago. But his relevancy has dropped considerably over the years and so has his ability to stay in touch with what the fans want to hear. Sure, in 1999 we had never heard someone so vocal in their lyrics about how cheesy American pop music was. Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, N Sync all got taken down a peg or two, and at the time it was a relief to hear someone stand up against that crap. Now that it’s 2009, all we see is ridicule of our pop stars and celebrities all over the tv, papers and internet. We don’t need Eminem to join in anymore and put his two cents in about these stale topics – it’s already taken care of everywhere else. We also don’t need a grown man (almost 40 now) rapping in character of a psychopathic murderer/rapist with a voice that sounds like Conan O’Brien’s evil villain impression. What we do need is a fired-up, aggressive and lyrically dominant Eminem – a ‘The Way I Am’/'Soldier’/'Lose Yourself’ Eminem. We need a heartfelt, thoughtful, smart ‘When I’m Gone’/'Stan’/'Like Toy Soldiers’ Eminem. Neither of those sides of Marshall Mathers show up for very long on Relapse, but I think I’ve figured out why.

Album Review: Busta Rhymes, Back on My B.S.

05.16.09

Coming off of the most complete album of his career in 2006, Busta Rhymes has experienced plenty of label fuckery: Back on My B.S. has gone through 2 years worth of pushbacks, 2 different label deals, 3 different “lead” singles, and several name changes. Regardless of all of this, Busta has remained optimistic, and has consistantly been releasing new music to the internet as possible tastes of the new album. Unfortunately, the best of those tastes are nowhere near the finished product.

Music Video: Modest Mouse, Satellite Skin

05.15.09

Song: Satellite Skin
Artist: Modest Mouse
Album: No One’s First And You’re Next EP
Label: Epic Records
Notes: 1st single from EP
Analysis: Modest Mouse is one of the most important bands in of my generation for me. Back in early 2004 when Good News for People Who Love Bad News came out, they really cracked my taste in music wide open. Before I heard that album I was mainly big into the emo/post-hardcore genre, as well as alternative metal & popular hip hop stuff. But Modest Mouse really introduced me to a lot more sounds and types of music, which happened perfectly right before I went away to college, which was also obviously a huge turning point in my life. Not to get all sentimental, but to this day that album is one of my most played favorites, and I’ve since caught up greatly on the group’s influences, influencees, and learned to love so many new bands and genres in a way that I never could have had I not been given a copy of their cd in 2004. With that out of the way, ‘Satellite Skin’ is a new Modest Mouse track off of their upcoming EP of unreleased joints from the Good News sessions, as well as the We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank b-sides. The sunny, crunchy tune has a bizarrely cool video to go along with it featuring walking birdhouses, alien cults and a disgusting patch of pulsating hairy flesh. You have to wonder how Tool music video animator Kevin Willis could even think up an idea for a storyline this odd, but Modest Mouse is a very imaginative band also so I’m sure they had something to do with it.

New Music: Mr Hudson, Supernova [ft. Kanye West]

05.15.09

Song: Supernova [ft. Kanye West]
Artist: Mr Hudson
Album: Straight No Chaser
Label: GOOD Music
Producer: Mr Hudson
Notes: 2nd single from LP
Analysis: The industrial-sounding ‘Supernova’ is more like a Gary Numan song than something you would expect Kanye West to feature on.

Music Video: Little Joy, Next Time Around

05.14.09

Song: Next Time Around
Artist: Little Joy
Album: Little Joy
Label: Rough Trade Records
Notes: 2nd single from LP
Analysis: For those who don’t know, Little Joy is the side project of The Strokes’ drummer, Fabrizio Moretti. There’s more ukelele in this group though, which is never something to complain about. ‘Next Time Around’ is a saltwatery pop tune, the type that you’d have to either be crazy or lying about to not enjoy. The music video is exactly as I would describe what a music video for this song would be, and it makes me want to be where they are.

Music Video: Phoenix, 1901

05.14.09

Song: 1901
Artist: Phoenix
Album: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Label: V2 Records
Notes: 2nd single from LP
Analysis: Phoenix is arguably one of the hottest bands around right now, thanks to some Saturday Night Live exposure and a stellar new album. I love music videos that can play with lighting effects and come out looking better than an over-expensive cgi’ed video would. That’s pretty much what we have here for ‘1901′, Phoenix’ hyper second single. For those who haven’t heard Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix yet, ‘1901′ is a pretty good representation of everything about it; re: it’s really good.

Music Video: Mos Def, Casa Bey

05.14.09

Song: Casa Bey
Artist: Mos Def
Album: The Ecstatic
Label: Downtown Records
Producer: unknown
Notes: 1st single from LP
Analysis: Unique video here, it’s a close-up shot of Mos’ mouth rhyming, until eventually the screen literally becomes flooded with his words. Not the energized, electric video I was hoping for but the song’s too nice to gripe about.