Mini Reviews: November 2010 (Kanye, Cee-Lo, Cudi)

Doesn't surprise me...at all.


I wanted to cover some of the big releases this month, so here's some mini-reviews. Read em' and leave me hate comments, and maybe I'll hum on yo dick. :3

Kanye West- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Believe me...Kanye knows he's an asshole.

"Let's have a toast for all the douche bags..."

He knows it, and the thing that has made me grow to love Kanye West is that HE DON'T GIVE A MOTHAFUCK. There's nothing better than a man that's all talk and actually lives up to it. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is easily the biggest statement a man like Kanye can make (yes, even bigger than saying he's the voice of this generation) because it shows that he's so fucking talented he can eat diamonds and shit gold encrusted diamonds.

Everything about Twisted Fantasy screams amazing, from the rediculous guest spots (Elton John, Rick Ross, Kid Cudi, Chris Rock, and mo) that actually work amazingly well, to the fantastic song structure and production values, all the way to the brutally interesting album cover, this album is what mainstream Hip-Hop should be. Kanye's rhymes are clever, thought provoking, honest, and vicious, he brings it on EVERY song. I think I knew this album would be genius about 30 seconds into the opening track when I heard a choir rise into the song and ask "Can we get much higher?" in a glorious roar not unlike the one Kanye's penis must make when he has an orgasm inside a woman's anus, vagina, and mouth, all at once.

I really can't explain how interesting the feel for this album is (let's try eh?), it's a grandiose monster, full of lush beat structures, pianos, orchestral instruments, horns, Bon Iver wailing in auto-tune glory...but at the same time it's full of songs that could easily be radio hits, even though I bet the amount of fuck, pussy, and dicks on each song will probably make it harder to butcher than Cee-Lo's "Fuck You" (more on that later). Monster, All Of The Lights, Hell of A Life, all tracks that I wish I would hear on the pop radio stations, because they teach what the fuck is wrong with mainstream pop and hip-hop today.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is definitely a window into just how egotistical and talented Kanye West is. There's no denying that this is one of the best albums this year, but if you do deny it, Kanye West doesn't give a shit. That's just how that nigga rolls.
ALBUM RATING: 9.7/10

TYNAN'S SECOND OPINION:
If you would have come to me a month ago and told me that the new Kanye West album would be the best album released this year I would have called you a fool. Why? Because Kanye is obviously a giant douche, or at least that's what I'm told. To tell you the truth I've never listened to much of Kanye's music before, but never really went out of my way to do so because of how he's portrayed in the media. Why would I want to give this dick any of my time or money? Now I feel like the giant dick. I now love Kanye West, almost as much as Kanye West loves Kanye West. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is everything a mainstream hip-hop album should be. Catchy beats, great rhymes, amazing sampling, an abundance of well-placed guest stars, it's all there and done extremely well. Kanye is in a tier of his own when it comes to mainstream hip-hop and this album is a definite classic. -Tynan Evans
Rating: 9.5/10


Cee-Lo Green - The Lady Killer

Did you like Gnarls Barkley? Good. Did you think that was the lead singers name? Then really, go eat a poop, because I'm the king of smartassery, and I say so.

Either way, Cee-Lo Green is the voice behind Gnarls Barkley, and he definitely brought the defining factor to Danger Mouse's lovely production. When it was announced that the duo would part ways, many pondered weather or not Cee-Lo would fare well on his own. The good news is that he definitely has, the bad news is that you're definitely gonna be annoyed if you download The Lady Killer thinking it will be like St.Elsewhere.

The Lady Killer is an album that definitely is a homage to the soul-R&B-funk-pop from The Temptations, Al Greene, The Four Tops, Marvin Gaye and the like, and while it may not be classic music like the aformentioned, it's definitely refreshing to see the sound not die but resurface thanks to Cee-Lo Green. I was really expecting an album that, besides, Fuck You, would be forgettable, and while some songs aren't truly big hits, they all have their own taste and talent in them. This album is light, fun, and definitely not for everyone, but if you appreciate that old school sound, this is a great refresher....my only complaint is that Cee-Lo opted for the less interesting mix of "No One's Gonna Love You" (A sweet Band of Horses cover, either way).

The Lady Killer is a nice sound off to the music industry that Cee-Lo Green can separate and flourish, all while bringing the nostalgia ten-fold.
ALBUM RATING: 8.4/10

Kid Cudi - Man On The Moon Two: The Legend Of Mr.Rager

Can you blame Kid Cudi if he didn't put out another smash hit album like his debut? The truth is that while I want to sooooo bad, I just can't, because this album is great in different ways.

MOTM2 is definitely a grower, that's straight up talk. First time I heard it, I thought that it was a bloated mess, one with far too few listenable songs, and far too many emotionally distressed whining from our Cudder buddy. That criticism applies still, just in a less harsh dosage. MOTM2 clocks in at over an hour, with 17 songs, and more than half of these being nothing like the jamming fun of "Make Her Say" or "Enter Galactic". The songs on MOTM2 resemble more of a somber, dreamy, and dark mood heard in "Solo Dolo" or "My World". Also, Cudi definitely shows his bigger interest in singing compared to the rhyming, as a good portion of the album is spent with him singing slowly in a "Pursuit of Happiness" style.

So, with all that against it, what in my shit eating mind makes me like this album?

Plenty. First, while the mood is darker and more dreamy, it very what the kids call "chill", and while I hate thinking of music in this way, it's definitely a great album to get stoned to. Relaxation is something the Cudder executes well, without needing Ratatat after all. Some songs are skippable, others are absolutely engrossing, like the wailingly cool "Don't Play This Song" featuring surprisingly lovely vocals from Mary J. Blige, or the beautiful beat structure and rolling badassery from Cudi on "Mojo So Dope". The big sore thumb on the album "Erase Me" is the biggest grower for me, going from a total piece of shitty shit shit to a mildly enjoyable track. Cudi bringing back the 80's on the chorus and the moody girl-chasing lyrics somehow works on a level that scares me, because I like it.

Man On The Moon 2 feels like when you walk around in a head cold (or stoned LOL 420 every day, BLAZE IT!), you're in a fog, everything feels weighty, but you don't really give a shit, because you're drowsy and dizzy. This album works on a different level compared to old Kid Cudi, it isn't easily listenable, it's meant for fans of hip-hop, music, and Cudi's way of doing things.

Man On The Moon 2: The Legend Of Mr.Rager is definitely an album that will leave people more split than Ke$ha's legs on any given night of the week...either way it seems I'm a fan of the new album...after many listens and a new found pleasure for relaxingly cool "stoner" music. Fuuuuuuck, just typing the word stoner makes my penis invert a little bit.
ALBUM RATING: 8.2/10

Strange, three albums from 3 interconnected artists in one month: Cee-Lo is on Cudi's new album, who is on Kanye's new album, who is also on Cudi's new album. It's like the six degrees of nigga bacon up in this trick! (relax, I'm black, I can say that) So, dislike my reviews? Think I'm a fuck-tard? Want nude pics? Leave comments plz!
-Matt Galey

Album Review: The Roots - How I Got Over

The Roots have been around. Their first studio album dropped in 1993, a year after I was born. Now for me, I've been listening to the roots for only about a year now, mainly to 1999's Things Fall Apart and what amazes me is how little these cats have been noticed. The critic community loves em', but as far as the average music listener is concerned, they're that one band with the drummer who has that afro and stuff, or even worse, the back-up band for fucking Jimmy Fallon. It's unfortunate, as The Roots have always seemed to be active in promoting a beautiful type of hip hop I wish would catch on; the kind that focuses on true lyrical content, sly beats, and a passion for honesty. These are things you don't find in radio hip-hop now-a-days, which focuses on club tracks with "ticks" and "booms" instead of interesting beat backing.

It's been 17 years since the release of their first album, and I'm very surprised to say, The Roots still got it. Their new album, How I Got Over is a definite change-up from their last album, Rising Down, which was claustrophobic, pent-up, and dark. How I Got Over to me feels more like when you stretch your legs on your bed toward the cool areas of the sheets for relief from the heat, it's airy, cool, and soothing in a way. The lyrical content is still there, full of cautionary wisdom of a life you've never lived, but at the same time, the contradictory beats and tone lead your mind toward a softer place, away from the problems mentioned in the album. This is the best thing I can say about How I Got Over, the album is a strange corral, it takes your mind off of The Bad of our world, but whispers it in your ear at the same time.

The album really doesn't kick off, as much as it slowly takes off, like an assistant levitating in a magic show, there's no big bang, just the act. "A Piece of Light", the first track, is just a vocal lead in, harmonies of "Do Do Do" are mixed with light keys to lead the listener into a smooth jive, which will hold for the spine of the rest of the album, as the smoothness hardly ever wavers. That leads into Walk Alone, a piano driven soul-hip-hop song that holds that smoothness. The new single "Dear God 2.0"features The Monsters Of Folk, a move that captures my love for the album. The Roots blew me away with the tenacity to try and mix artists like Monsters of Folk and Joanna Newsom into their message conscious hip-hop. I know that part of me just likes it because they are up my alley in the folk area, but at the same time, it's more entrancing because they work. "Right On" is my favorite track on the album, part of that reason is because it samples "The Book of Right-On" by Joanna, but at the same time, it's my favorite because it's so smooth and perfect to me, in mixing and lyrical work, that I had to add it to my "Top Hip-hop tracks" playlist on my iPod.

Another favorite is "The Day", a beauty of a track featuring the smooth rhymes by Blu and Phonte, but my favorite addition is Patty Crash lightly singing "I should start living today/ because today's gonna be the day". There are two tracks on the album featuring John Legend, and when I first saw that on the track listing, I was worried, but the beauty of it is, he fits in just as nicely as Common did on older albums. His smooth, soothing voice that even my Mother loves is perfect for this album, and the fact that The Roots knew that he would work wonderfully is why they must be one of the smartest hip-hop acts around.

If you've skipped all the bullshit I've written just to see what I gave the album, you'd know I have some problem with it. How I Got Over is a surprisingly great album, definitely one of my new favorites of the year, but my problem comes from how the album decides to end. We spend the whole album jiving to the light, smoothnessity of How I Got Over, and then, on the last two tracks, we get punched in the face with two harshly contrasting songs, "Web 20/20" and "Hustla", which feel simply out of place. It's like we've spent 40 minutes soaring on a nimbus cloud above war-torn Iraq to have an RPG shoot us down right before we decide to land. The beats are strong and the lyrics are harsh not only in content, but in delivery. I suppose this was The Roots' way of ripping us back into the reality of the issues, but, it would have been more polite to do this at the beginning of the album, saving me from having to finish in a mood that asks "Why'd you have to go and do that?" It isn't a big deal, just something that leaves the bad taste in my mouth I thought I wouldn't have to worry about.

Basically, How I Got Over is a gem. It's an album worthy of summer, perfect for a cool backyard party or an afternoon fuck, it's smooth and works perfect as a backdrop for nothing to happen. At the same time, the album works beautifully at the forefront of the mind, something I was skeptical about when I first read about it. In essence, How I Got Over is what you need, without you ever knowing you needed it. Album Rating : 9.0/10

-Matt Galey