The History Of Pop Part 58 aka All I seem to get is the other other

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Let's pause a moment to reflect on Now 57, which saw our second ever 100% vote - for "Toxic" - and also the highest ever percentage score for a non-winner ("Milkshake"). We will not see its like again. Probably.

And now for Now 58 - also packed with fine tracks, with attention surely resting on the debut of Kristian Leontiou the SONG THAT BROKE THE INTERWEB, Outkast's "Ha Yeah". Included somewhat late on this Now poll, which otherwise celebrates the summer of '94. Let's see what you think about it.


[Poll #771642]


TICK ME.

Comments

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

Quick, tell me how to change my vote!

The bi-product of this might be a Kelis victory, ironically. Still, this is shaping up to be another clash of the titans!

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Click on where it says Poll#xxxxx, then go to 'fill in poll'.

GOOD

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

cos Kelis was robbed last time.

I think 'Hey Ya' is v good but am also prepared to withdraw my vote for it because it is nowhere near even the top 10 best songs on this.

Re: GOOD

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

RIGHT. Hey Ya taken down.

IT'S NOT RACIST TO UNTICK HEY YA!

Re: GOOD

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

It is def racist to say that Outkast are innovative or one of the best hip-hop acts ever though.

Re: GOOD

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

It was a complex argument.

Are Outkast innovative? Their sound/perspective/etc. seemed quite fresh to me. The particular argt that rubbed people the wrong way in 03 though was using Outkast's - or specifically Andre 3000's - particular innovations as a way of dismissing or downplaying everything else in hip-hop. You can call something innovative without implying that it's a set of innovations that other workers in the genre should try and follow.

That said it's odd that more groups haven't tried to make a "Hey Ya!".

It is virtually impossible now to get any cash for a copy of Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, by the way.

Re: GOOD

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Wasn't their sound/perspective pretty much the same as Prince's though?

I can't believe I actually own S/TLB - the reason I have not tried to sell it is because I do not know where it is.

Re: GOOD

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

No not really - well not the Outkast tracks with rapping on them anyway. A lot of the good vibes felt towards "Speakerboxxx" were probably 'hurrah it's the new Prince', I'm sure.

Re: GOOD

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I have got SBoxx and the Love Below confused, sorry cis et al.

Re: GOOD

[cis.livejournal.com]

not toward Speakerboxxx! The Internet Critix Consensus seemed to be more like "oh ignore Speakerboxx it is no more than the usual hip-hop blah, look at The Love Below and how Andre 3000 is Just Like Prince OMG".

Re: GOOD

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

i thought 'Happy Valentines Day' was k-amazing the first time i heard it and the fond memory of that makes me love it still.

Re: GOOD

[cis.livejournal.com]

Actually 'happy valentines day' is the only TLB track I have on iTunes, it is indeed k-awesome.

Re: GOOD

[cis.livejournal.com]

Speakerboxxx is still an awesome album! Dear world: stop being so fixated on Andre 3000's semi-solo stuff already etc etc etc.

Re: GOOD

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

i don't understand this S/TLB hate. there are SO MANY good tracks on there to balance out the rub bits. i suppose my point is that it's at least 50/50 and the good parts make it well worth owning/keeping.

Re: GOOD

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

This was my position at the time but I have felt not the slightest twinge of desire to listen to any of it for ages now.

Re: GOOD

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

i haven't listened to anything from it in a long time either but this doesn't really make it any different from any other album i own released before 2005...

Re: GOOD

[lockedintheatti.livejournal.com]

Wassn't a lot of Andre 3000's just taking Prince's template from the mid-to-late 80s and updating it? The Love Below just sounded more like a Prince album than anything Prince has created for years.

Re: GOOD

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

It is def racist to say that Outkast are innovative or one of the best hip-hop acts ever though.

some people thought this BEFORE 'Stankonia' you know. not me tho really but only because i'd only heard their singles up to that point (which always WERE actually quite novel and scintillating - esp. the druggy 'Elevators' - to the extent that they had not managed to break into UK charts prior to 'B.O.B.' strangely and sadly)

Re: GOOD

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Also I think there was a huge critical groundswell before "Hey Ya!" - Stankonia and the album before that had got massive cred and lots of people had got hugely excited about "B.O.B." and "Ms.Jackson" so there was MASSIVE anticipation for whatever they did next, and when it turned out to be a nerdy new wave bubblegum track the OMG SO INNOVATIVE bandwagon wasn't derailed but just went down a strange track.