Consumerism (Follow-Up)

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Bought 3 albums today.

Amerie: first half uniformly gorgeous, love the 86/87 washed-out synth-soul-pop she's using as a template, love the way breaking up songs has become her "thing" post 1-Thing. Second half slows down, I tune out, there's still stuff to like but not itching to hear the back end again.

Dizzee: usual curate's egg - "Pussy'ole" is funny, savage awesome, so is "Where's Da Gs" tho sadly no chicken noises on that one. There is an awful lot of putting ppl down for not being real on this album. DO NOT WANT to know what Dizzee thinks of the state of the world, Lily Allen collab disappointing, enough lust and venom on eg Flex, Bubbles, Da Feelin to make this a "keeper". I'll probably listen to it more than his other albums tbh.

Rihanna - just started listening, very pop but also sounds weirdly thin: where are the BIG ENGINE REVS that have made her number one for eleventy weeks? Futher reports possible. "Breakin Dishes" is good.

What do you think of these PLATTERS? If you've heard them. What else should I be buying in my newly ALBUM-FRIENDLY state?

Comments

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Rihanna's album gets better the further in you get and by the end has turned into sonic awesomeness. I love how the distinctivenes of her voice makes the extreme variety of styles hang together and form something cohesive in a way which 'A Girl Like Me' really doesn't, despite the fact it's more sonically similar overall. 'Rehab' is absolutely phenomenol, 'Say It' is sweet and more of her previous style, as is 'Sell Me Candy' and 'Good Girl Gone Bad' is truly fantastic. 'Push Up On Me' and 'Don't Stop The Music' make more sense in full album context; they somehow don't sound as good as they actually are as openers and I'm not sure why.

Other things to buy I would recommend include, much to my mental discomfort, the new Good Charlotte album. It's one of the most perfect pop albums I've heard over the last few years and so balls-out absurd it's amazing. Also it is all about Hilary Duff which somehow makes the whole thing even better than it is already. I even like the track with the two utter idiots from Avenged Sevenfold (WORST BAND EVER) god help me. It slightly reminds me of Son Of Dork's album, if that had had insane electronic bits and more of a disco sensibility. Actually thinking about it I think it's just his voice that's reminiscent of that. Anyway, it is very very good, for all the fact it quite patently shouldn't be.

Calvin Harris' album is good but not rush-out-and-buy-this-now good. However, if it was in the bargain bin for five quid I definitely would.

I haven't heard the Amerie and have very little urge to hear the Dizzee unless it is exceptionally noisy.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I love "Get Your Hands Off My Girl" to bits but I'm a bit afeard of a WHOLE GC album - is it all like that?

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Not at all- it's all much more delightfully naff than that. I was alarmed by the idea of the full album as well and actually only downloaded (have had zero pence for last ever) it because I was reviewing one of the singles but then had to spend the next week adjusting to the fact it was full-on amazing. Even my ex liked it and he was one of the most in denial poptimists elitist muso types I have ever encountered.

My favourite song off it was this, for ages (now changed to 'Misery' which I can't find on YouTube atm) and I'm very pleased they've released it as a single:
Dance Floor Anthem (http://youtube.com/watch?v=fy1ErypA9yA)
I love the alarm sounds at the start and the propulsion of the whole thing, although that's probably the song that sounds most conventionally like them on the album.

Other highlights include-
Broken Hearts Parade (http://youtube.com/watch?v=4HE5q15qafI) (and we all know what I think about ska, good god)
All Black (http://youtube.com/watch?v=NW0RIDw9jRY) -most ridiculously hubristic intro ever and then hilarious Rolling Stones and Johnny Cash referencing chorus.

Essentially, it's like if Busted hadn't split up and had somehow managed to actually pool James' (alleged) disco influences, Matt's punky hip hop thoughts and Charlie's desire to sing about being a miserable git.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

HAHAHAHA HOW MUCH DOES THE BASSIST* LOOK LIKE MARILYN MANSON IN THAT VIDEO?

*Formerly known as 'the fit one,' now, disturbingly, a title transferred to Joel Madden.

[ms-bracken.livejournal.com]

This sounds totally awesome. I've been wondering whether to buy that since I heard (most of) it in a shop and it all seemed to work together really well.

[koganbot]

"Misery" and a much-better-sounding stream of "Dance Floor Anthem" are both up on the Good Charlotte MySpace page (I much prefer "Misery"; the verse to "Dance Floor Anthem" has too much that's wanky and whiny in the singing, whereas the wanky whininess in "Misery" is confined mostly to the lyrics; couldn't figure out in a couple of listens whether the complaints about "plastic people" were ironic or not; I fear not).

Re: My fave alBUMs of 2007 so far

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

The thing w/ 'Rehab' is that we have had 'Cry Me A River', 'Nowhere' by Bubba Sparxxx, that Brandy album and 'What Goes Around' already, and Timba's thing of vaguely countrified lushness is REALLY OLD AND SAMEY now! I would love 'Rehab' if it hadn't been preceded by so many exactly like it - I mean I was sick of it by the time 'What Goes Around' emerged and if Timba/Justin do it again I will SCREAM.

Re: My fave alBUMs of 2007 so far

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Is that really Timbaland? I don't know who I thought it was but it wasn't him- I was hearing slightly reggae/dancehall-tinged bits, rather than country too although that's probably me being genre-stupid.

Actually listening to it now, I can't believe I missed the fact it was him. I think it's the fact she's so ...loud on it, as she generally is, that made it sound different, to me.