I was a huge supporter of Lady GaGa from the moment I watched her music video for ‘Paparazzi’. Her debut album, “The Fame”, and following EP, “The Fame Monster”, are both amazing albums, and there is no doubt that GaGa livened up this once stale music industry. Like many others, I was excited to hear her new album, which GaGa herself said would be the “best album of the decade”. When the first single, ‘Born This Way’, was released, I was disappointed to find that it was a carbon copy of Madonna’s “Express Yourself”. What I loved about “The Fame Monster”, was the originality of it. “Bad Romance” wasn’t only a catchy song, but an innovative masterpiece with a controversial theme.
I have to say that most of GaGa’s new album follows in the footsteps of the first single. None of it is original, and the overproduced tracks make it almost hard to listen to. I expected much more from an artist who made such an impact when she came onto the scene in 2008. The lyrical content in the songs aren’t all that bad, it’s the production that messes this album up. Some of the songs, such as “Marry The Night”, start off great, but after the beat kicks in, we’re in for a really bad headache. I’m sure that America will still eat this up, seeing as in most of the song on the Billboard Hot 100 are similar to the songs on ‘Born This Way – Generic and Bland. Look for a song by song review below.
- Marry The Night – Beautiful opening, reminiscent of Irene Cara’s hit “What a Feeling”. Then a horrible over-produced instrumental kicks in, that makes you easily forget how great the song started off. (6/10)
- Born This Way – Unoriginal, insincere, and corny. The song is catchy and fun, but too similar to Madonna’s “Express Yourself”. The message is great, however, and an inspiring song for the LGBT community. (6/10)
- Government Hooker – Nothing really happens in this song, except some random demonic screaming, and random lyrics. The vocal delivery is on point though. From the title, I expected this to be a much deeper song. (5/10)
- Judas – I was surprised when I heard this song, that it follows the techno-inspired trend many artist have been using lately. There’s nothing special about this except the controversial religious theme. (4/10)
- Americano – This is the song I was looking forward to the most and I’m terribly disappointed. The acoustic version performed by GaGa in Mexico a few weeks ago is probably my favorite vocal performance by GaGa, but the studio version’s production is horrid. Mariachi and Techno are two things that don’t mesh well together, and it shows on this track. This is a great song lyrically, but if there were going to be one ballad on the album, ‘Americano’ should’ve been it. (6/10)
- Hair – A corny pop song that will probably do great on radio. Nothing great about it, and it seems like it was written using a thesaurus. (2/10)
- Sheibe – This song confuses me on what type of artist GaGa is. We have corny pop tracks, whiskey bar tunes, and then this attempt at a techno song. (3/10)
- Bloody Mary – Boring with a bland chorus. (2/10)
- Bad Kids – This song has a great intro. The production is more bearable than on the other songs, but the chorus is weak, as well as the lyrics. (4/10)
- Highway Unicorn (Road To Love) – The song gets lost in the production. (2/10)
- Heavy Metal Lover – The lyrics are useless, and the production is too similar to other songs on the album (2/10)
- Electric Chapel – This is my personal favorite on the album. It reminds me of the GaGa I fell in love with in 2008. I love the lyrics, and the guitar is a nice addition. I love that this song doesn’t get lost in the production like most of the other songs on the album. (7/10)
- You & I – Hands down, the most memorable song on the album. The lyrics are beautiful, and it’s probably one of GaGa’s best vocal performances. The song would’ve been much better if they didn’t add the unnecessary additional instruments that take away from the vocals. Although I don’t think this album deserves any awards, if it were to win any, I think it should be for this song’s vocal performance. (7/10)
- Edge of Glory – Sounds like a blend of a 90′s sitcom theme song and a Pink song. Zero originality. The chorus is hella catchy though. (3/10)
M.O.G. RATING: 5/10
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2011, album, music, New Talent, Pop, review
Natalia Kills caught my eye when she released her single, “Mirrors”, and I saw pictures of this very interesting looking girl all over the internet. I listened to a few of her songs and immediately became hooked. There’s something truly intriguing about Kills. She has a unique voice, and a cool sense of style. I also liked that her music seemed consistant; every song has a similar sound, which is like a Natalia Kills staple.
I was really rooting for Natalia, and I was anxiously awaiting this album her debut album, “Perfectionist”, which was released today internationally. In all honesty, the album disappointed me a whole lot. There isn’t much variety in the record, and at some point during the middle of the album it seemed like I was listening to one very long song. The beats are all too similar, and there aren’t almost any songs that I can see being successful on radio. My biggest disappointment, however, is that there aren’t any standout vocals on any song. I was expecting to hear at least one song with great vocals, but it never came. The more emotional songs were underwhelming. Some of the songs might grow on me, but for now, this album was not what I expected at all.
- Wonderland (8/10) – If there is any song on the album that might be a hit, then this is it. It’s a great pop record, with catchy lyrics, and a sick beat.
- Free (8/10) – Easily, the best song on the album. It’s the stand out track in every way – lyrically, vocally, and production-wise. It’s the most original song on the album and also the most relatable. I’d love to see how big this song could get with good promotion. More songs like this would have made the album much better.
- Break You Hard (6/10) - The beat is sick, and the chorus is catchy, but those are the only good things about it.
- Zombie (5/10) – Too unoriginal. I actually like this song, but it’s just catchy.
- Love Is a Suicide (4/10) – Boring and generic.
- Mirrors (7/10) – Although the song is a carbon copy of Lady GaGa’s “Just Dance”, it is extremely catchy and has great lyrics.
- Not In Love (3/10) – I was waiting and waiting, but the song never went anywhere.
- Acid Annie (4/10) – This song had potential to be the best song on the album, but Natalia’s underwhelming vocals ruined it.
- Superficial (5/10) – A Standout lyrically and vocally, but once again the beat is too generic.
- Broke (5/10) – It’s just OK.
- Heaven (4/10) – The song is good, until you get to the chorus.
- Nothing Lasts Forever (5/10) – Another OK track.
- If I Was God (6/10) – One of my favorites. Her voice actually sounds great, but I don’t like the chorus.
M.O.G. RATING: 5/10
In 2008, Soul-Pop singer Adele released her unbelievably amazing debut, “19″, which earned her some worldwide hits. “Make Me Feel My Love” and “Chasing Pavements” have become classics not only in the UK, but all over the world. Now she has grown a bit, and is ready to give the world a taste of a more matured Adele, both emotionally and vocally. It’s so hard to believe that Adele is only 22, because not only is her voice mature for her age, but her style and music seems like something a 22 year old would never be singing. But everything that may seem wrong about Adele actually works perfect for her. Her album is filled with emotional vocally-driven tracks. There are no fillers here; every track will break your heart, and bring you life that you never knew you had. From beginning to end, every single line in the album is sung beautifully, and the production is even more fantastic. Every song was written by Adele, and is about personal experiences. There is no way anyone can not like this album.
- Rolling In The Deep: The first single. Has the perfect amount of sass. A nice departure from the bubbly ballads in “19″. 9/10
- Rumor Has It: The only song where Adele shows no sympathy; it’s all about the revenge on this one, with lyrics like “Just because I said it, doesn’t mean I meant it”, and “Rumor has it he’s the one I’m leaving you for”. 9/10
- Turning Tables: One of the most beautiful songs on the album. The song has what is probably one of my favorite lines of any song I’ve ever heard; “I can’t keep up with your turning tables, under your thumb I can’t breathe.” 9/10
- Don’t You Remember: Adele really shows her growth as a vocalist on this one. The chorus will melt your heart to pieces. The song is a plea for a man she loves to remember why he loved her, and you can feel every bit of heartbreak in her voice. 8/10
- Set Fire To The Rain: The most radio-friendly song on the album. Most of the song is predictable, but the ad-libs at the end are to die for. 8/10
- He Won’t Go: Different than the first of the song. Very commercial, but still original and soulful. 8/10
- Take It All: Very intense track, with a background choir in the background to make things even more epic. 8/10
- I’ll Be Waiting: Probably the least memorable song on the album. Adele’s vocals are great, but the song isn’t very memorable. 6/10
- One and Only: A great bluesy track with fantastic lyrics. 7/10
- Lovesong: Adele really excels in this track. It’s a very simple song, but it stays on your mind. 7/10
- Someone Like You: One of the most heartbreaking songs ever written. Every note is hit perfectly, and touches the right part of the soul. Everything about this song is perfect, and I’m dared to say it’s probably her best song to date. 10/10
M.O.G. RATING: 9/10
I know it’s a little late, but I just recently had the chance to listen to Jazmine Sullivan’s sophomore album, “Love Me Back”. I’ve never really been into J. Sullivan, but after hearing all the positive talk about the album I had to check it out. I can now say that I have officially fallen in love with Jazmine. This album is simply genius. There isn’t one bad track on here; not one filler. Jazmine Sullivan has brought back real R&B, and in a ferocious, strong way.
We hear a lot of inspiration from older R&B and soul on this album. We hear Jazmine channel Prince in, “Good Enough”, and give props to 90′s hip-hop in the lead single “Holdin’ U Down”. Then we have some serious songs like, “Redemption”, where Jazmine sings about domestic violence. I never saw this coming from Jazmine Sullivan. We also hear some 80′s inspiration in “Don’t Make Me Wait”. The only place the album falls short is with “10 Seconds”, just because we’ve heard too much of these types of songs in the past. I thought she was another Keyshia Cole, or Mary J. Blige, but she’s not. Jazmine is in a league of her own. Throw all those comparisons away, because Jazmine has shown with this album that she is her own woman, and no one else in the R&B game has done an album as good as this since the early 2000′s. Albums like “Love Me Back”, and Kanye’s recent “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy”, give me hope that there are actually some true musicians left in this music industry.
- Holding You Down (Going In Cirles) – 9/10
- 10 Seconds – 5/10
- Good Enough – 10/10
- Don’t Make Me Wait – 9/10
- Love You Long Time – 8/10
- Redemption – 9/10
- Excuse Me – 8/10
- U Get On My Nerves – 7/10
- Stuttering – 7/10
- Famous – 9/10
- Luv Back – 8/10
M.O.G. Rating: 9/10
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2010, album review, end of year, list, review, special
Although radio still hasn’t caught on, in 2010 we got some pretty amazing albums, a lot coming from new artists in the game. Some of the best album’s didn’t get the reception they deserved, but that doesn’t take back from the genius music they put out. I’ve made a list of what I think are the top 20 albums of the year, which was very hard to do because there were about 30-35 amazing albums released this year. After picking out my favorite 20, I listened to every single album in order to put them in the best order possible. It took me two weeks to get through the albums and make this list, so know that this wasn’t just thrown together and was very well throughout. I didn’t base this list on sales, commercial success, or even the number of catchy songs on the album, but on the substance and actual talent showcased. Check out the list below, where I used three words to describe each album, and if you haven’t heard of some of these artists, make sure you check them out!
20. Vampire Weekend – “CONTRA”
19. MGMT – “CONGRATULATIONS”
18. Katy Perry – “TEENAGE DREAM”
17. Drake – “THANK ME LATER”
16. Chromeo – “BUSINESS CASUAL”
15. Bruno Mars – “DOO-WOPS & HOOLIGANS”
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Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: album, Hip-Hop, HipHop, music, Nicki Minaj, R&B, Rap, review
Thanksgiving week will probably be the biggest week for music in 2010. With releases from Kanye West, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Ke$ha, Robyn, My Chemical Romance, Justin Beiber, and Beyonce’s highly anticipated tour DVD, it’s going to be interesting to see who comes out on top. The biggest contenders for the #1 spot seem to be Kanye West and Nicki Minaj, whose projects have gained crazy hype over the last year. I reviewed Kanye’s album a few days ago, and now I’ll be giving my two cents on Nicki Minaj’s debut album, “Pink Friday”. I can call myself a Nicki Minaj fan, and have defended her in discussions with the so many Nicki haters.
Did Pink Friday live up to the hype? Yes and No. The album does a great job at maintaining it’s “Barbie” theme throughout, with some fun and cute tracks with features from Rihanna and Natasha Bedingfield. But, the album falls short a bit in terms of the beats and memorable lyrics, which are the biggest things about hip-hop. Most of the beat’s on the songs sound extremely cheap and underproduced. The track with Kanye, “Blazin”, sounds promising, but Kanye is the only positive thing about the record. The same thing happens with her song featuring Drake.
Still, Pink Friday does do what Nicki said it would, which is “bringing female rap back”. The album is better then a lot of hip-hop albums out, and can even compete with Drake’s “Thank Me Later”. The best song on the album is no doubt “Roman’s Revenge”, which is probably the biggest collaboration of 2010. My personal favorite is “Save Me”, a heartfelt, original song, where Nicki finally shows her real singing skills. “Dear Old Nicki” probably features the best lyrics after Roman’s Revenge, and has the best mix of Rap and Singing on the album. The Natasha Bedingfield track surprisingly works really well, and makes for a perfect single choice. The rest of the songs fail to make much impact and could have been replaced with some harder songs like Roman’s Revenge which I’m sure she recorded in the album sessions. Check out the ratings below:
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I’m The Best – 5/10
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Roman’s Revenge f. Eminem – 9/10
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Did it On ‘Em – 7/10
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Right Thru Me – 7/10
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Fly f. Rihanna – 7/10
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Save Me – 8/10
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Moment 4 Life f. Drake – 6/10
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Check It Out f. Will.I.Am – 8/10
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Blazin’ f. Kanye West – 6/10
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Here I Am - 6/10
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Dear Old Nicki – 8/10
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Your Love – 9/10
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Last Chance f. Natasha Bedingfield – 8/10
M.O.G. RATING: 7/10
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2010, album, Hip-Hop, HipHop, Kanye West, music, Nicki Minaj, Rap, review
The highly anticipated fifth album from Kanye West will be released in a couple of weeks, and with all the hype around it, for the album to not deliver would be really bad for Kanye’s career. Well, the album does deliver, and it’s probably Kanye West’s most exciting and consistent album to date. MBDTF proves that Kanye is on his way to becoming the most respected rapper in the game, and that he remains one of the most unique, original artists out right now. Every song on the album is amazing, not only for hip-hop junkies, but for music lovers in general. If you have any knowledge about real music, then you know that My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is a classic.
As of now my favorite song is the opener “Dark Fantasy”. Kanye’s flow on the track is INSANE, and the beat can make even a baby in it’s womb bob their head to it. “All of The Lights” is a star-studded hip-hop anthem that was produced to perfection, with all the right lyrics and features. “Monster” will probably run down in history as one of the biggest collaborations of all time with Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross, and Kanye all giving epic verses. Yes, maybe we’ve already heard half of the album with Kanye’s Good Fridays project, but so what? The album is still amazing, and it’s so great to have some excitement back in the hip-hop game. Check out the ratings below:
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“Dark Fantasy” – 9/10
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“Gorgeous” – 7/10
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“Power” – 9/10
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“All of The Lights” – 8.5/10
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“Monster” – 9/10
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“So Appalled” – 9/10
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“Devil in a New Dress” - 9/10
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“Runaway” – 7/10
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“Hell of a Life” – 7/10
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“Blame Game” – 8/10
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“Lost in The World” – 7/10
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“See Me Now” – 8/10
M.O.G. RATING: 9/10
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Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2010, album, Hip-Hop, Indie, music, Rap, review
Only two years ago, the world was introduced to Kid Cudi with one of 2009′s most memorable songs, “Day ‘n’ Nite”. Now the Alternative rapper is one of the biggest artists in the hip-hop and indie world of music. Kid Cudi has proved that all rap music doesn’t have to all sound the same, and he has done that by combining all different genres together to create a genius sound that makes his debut album one of the best in hip-hop history. I have been anticipating the sequel to Man on The Moon since it’s release last year, and I am excited to say that the album has lived up to my expectations. This album is literally a diary, where Cudi is revealing everything he feels to the world. The album is full of happiness, sadness, confusion, excitement, and pretty much any other emotion you can think of. The best thing about the album is that, just like his debut, there aren’t necessarily any “radio-friendly” songs on the album. A lot of artists fill up their albums with safe songs that sound like everything else on the radio, but Kid Cudi is brave enough to give us real, raw, original music that isn’t made for radio, but for the fans that understand who Kid Cudi is.
In my opinion, the biggest and most exciting song on the album is “Ashin’ Kusher”, a feel-good uptempo where you can barely understand a word Kid Cudi says, but when broken down the lyrics are absolute genius. My personal favorite is “Worries”, a the second duet on the album with Mary J. Blige. You can feel the sincerity in this song, it shows that Kid Cudi’s music has substance, which is one of the reasons why I’m a fan. I don’t really have anything negative to say about the album, only that it drags on a bit, with a lot of same tempo songs back to back. Check out ratings of each track below, and an overall rating below. Don’t forger to get your copy of MOTM2 on November 9th, you won’t be dissapointed!
- 1. Scott Mescudi Vs. The World Ft. Cee-Lo – 5/10
- REVOFEV – 8/10
- Don’t Play This Song Ft. Mary J. Blige – 6/10
- We Aite (Make Your Mind Up) – 6/10
- Marijuana – 7/10
- Mojo So Dope – 8/10
- Ashin’ Kusher – 9/10 **
- Erase Me Ft. Kanye West – 9/10
- Wild’n Cuz I’m Young – 9/10 **
- The Mood – 7/10
- Manic Ft. Cage & St. Vincent – 8/10
- Mr. Rager – 8/10 **
- These Worries Ft. Mary J. Blige – 9/10 **
- The End - 7/10
- All Along – 8/10
- GHOST! – 7/10
- Trapped In My Mind - 7/10
M.O.G. RATING: 8/10
** – my personal favorites from the album
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“Only By The Night” has become one of my favorite albums of all time. It might not have been the most original, but it will always hold a special place in my heart. That album is Kings of Leon most successful album, which had hits like Use Somebody and Notion. Unfortunately, there latest offering, “Come Around Sundown”, isn’t as great. I actually think this is their worst album to date, which sucks because of the anticipation it has from the public. The album isn’t horrible, but it’s not much different then “Only By The Night”. I think the band wanted to do something similar to that album because of its commercial success, but it makes it just look like a copycat. The only difference between this and Only By The Night is that OBTN was original and actually effective. The standout tracks on Come Around Sundown are Radioactive, No Money, and Pickup Truck. The rest of the song just don’t make much of an impact. I won’t do a song by song review of this album, because each song would probably have the same comments since the songs sound so much alike. I hope Kings of Leon make another album and actually try to take some risks and go left field, which is why I fell in love with them in the first place. You can’t make amazing music and try to replicate it, it just doesn’t work.
M.O.G. RATING: 5/10
Buy “Come Around Sundown”: Click Here
Shakira has been America’s “Latin Queen” ever since the start of the new millennium. She has had a large number of worldwide hits (e.g. Hips Don’t Lie, La Tortura), and has made a name for herself as a force to be reckoned with in the music world. Shakira is known for her original style and sultry image, with her music videos being among the best of this generation. In 2009, after four year hiatus, Shakira returned with “She Wolf”, which became her lowest charting album ever. The album only spawned one hit in the U.S. with the title track of the album, but did manage to gain much more success worldwide. The reason for the low sales were probably due to the electronic/dance sound that the album had. It was a big turn from what Shakira fans were used to, and some people just didn’t buy into it.
In 2010, Shakira is back with her seventh album, and she is ready to put that crown back on. “Sale El Sol” shows Shakira going back to her roots but still keeping up with what’s hot, making this the perfect Shakira album. The album is full with authentic Shakira songs, that remind us why we fell in love with Shakira in the first place. I think she might finally have another crossover spanish-language record with this one. My favorite thing about “Sale El Sol” is that Shakira isn’t trying too hard. Everything about this album sounds so effortless and original, and we finally we see growth from Oral Fixation. The only problem I have with this album is that the songs are way too short. Most of the songs on the album are only 2 minutes and change. Check out a song by song review below:
Sale El Sol: This was definitely not a great choice to start the album. I understand the reason for selecting it, but the song doesn’t do what it’s supposed to, which it inspire; it actually has this gloomy feeling that I’m sure wasn’t the intention. With that said, the song isn’t the worst on the album, and it does have some great lyrics. – 5/10
Loca: In my opinion, the spanish version is the best cover of a spanish song EVER. I’ve never heard a latin cover song that is as effective as “Loca” is. It’s exciting, refreshing, and just plain fun! The song brings me back to those days were I used to be so excited by Shakira’s lyrics, because they were so out of the blue and hard to understand. Diseccting the lyrics to Shakira songs is so much fun, but with “She Wolf” I wasn’t all that excited. The english version of the song is also great. Dizzy Rascal is an unusual choice that surprisingly works well. Urban radio really needs this song to bring back some life, becuse the radio today is so boring. – 9/10
Gordita ft. Calle 13: Amazing song. This song is a tribute to Shakira with Calle 13′s singer rapping about Shakira’s great assets. Shakira sounds like the latin legend that she is on this track. It’s the best spanish Shakira song since “La Tortura”. - 9/10
Antes De Las Seis: Good vocals and lyrics. It reminds me of the Shakira that I love from the “Laundry Service” days. There is something missing from the song, but I can’t really put my hand on. Maybe it’s just the fact that the song is short in length. 7/10
Addicted To You: Exciting! Shakira really went back to her roots with this album, and you can tell especially on this song. The voice sounds perfect and the song is the same. The chorus is catchy, and easy to catch on for english speaking fans. This could be such a huge hit worldwide if it gets similar promotion to “La Tortura”. – 9/10
Lo Que Mas: Not many artists can simply “sing it with piano” (IRT Beyonce), but Shakira has shown that she can with this song. The piano is beautiful, and the combination of Shakira’s distinct voice with the track makes the song work. One of the most emotional Shakira songs I’ve ever heard. – 8/10
Marisposas: The weakest song on the album. It’s a nice track, but it doesn’t have the same feel as the rest of the album which makes it stand out in a bad way. 5/10
Rabiosa ft. Pitbull: Potential hit! This song can easily be a U.S. hit, especially with Pitbull being on it. I do feel like there might be too much going on in the song. After the song was over I felt like I had just turned the page in a book and forgotten everything I just read. This song probably has the best beat on the album. 8/10
Devocion: It’s a nice filler track, but nothing special. 6/10
Islands: One of my personal favorites on the album. It’s classic Shakira with that unusual beat and random lyrics. I don’t think a lot of people realize the risks that Shakira takes with her tracks. A lot of the tracks she uses wouldn’t work with anyone else, but that’s what makes her unique. The song has a great concept, which is Shakira singing about staying on an Island with her lover because she doesn’t need anything else anymore. “I am yours now, so now I don’t ever have to leave.” – 8/10
Tu Boca: She sings the song effortlessly, but something just falls short with this one. I do love angry shakira, and this song is a bit on the aggressive side. – 6/10
