Check out this mashup of Ye's Auto Tuned weirdness. Ill Vibez have teamed up Mr. Wests vocals with Dizzee & Calvins 'Dance Wiv Me'. What might seem like an odd combo on the surface is actually a nice tune. Enjoy!
Melo-X has remixed some of the tracks off of Mr. Saadiq's new masterpiece. Some would say why mess with something thats already that good. But it is actually an interesting instrumental remix EP with some real nice live instrumentation too. Well worth a listen.
We all know what Mr. Saadiq is capable of from his superb cataloque of past exploits. From the new jack greatness of Tony Toni Tone, to the leftfield appeal of Instant Vintage & the smooth delivery of Ray Ray, plus his outstanding list of production credits, questions have never had to be asked about the music that this man delivers. What must be questioned, however, is how the man is going to be able to superseed The Way I See It. To take a sound that is both classic in its style & being redone very well by many an artist is one thing. But to be able to put your own individual stamp on proceedings & take said sound to the kind of level shown throught this album is damn near ridiculous. Getting straight to my new favourite song of the year as a case in point. The gloriously moody Oh Girl is wonderfully elegant, quietly sophisticated & a pounding head nod all rolled into one. Adding to that the bonus remix featuring the Hova himself means that alone is reason enough to get this album. As for the album as whole, the cover photo should give you a clue as to where this album is conceptually. The rich Classic Soul, Funk & Bebop sound is carried throughout. While some of todays Nu albums will take one of the above & make it something great, Raphael has effortlessly dipped his feet into the pools of all 3 & meshes them to clasic effect. The unmistakable voice of the man seems more at home over this type of backdrop than anything else ive heard him over. The guests, although steller, are rightly kept to a minimum. Joss Stone, the aforementioned Jay-Z & especially Stevie Wonder all more than hold their own. I'm struggling to find a negative about this release & thats probably because there is nothing negative to report.
Phenomenal from the 1st note to the last, TWISI is a musical feat of classic proportions. You'd have to be certifiable not to want this in your collection.
p e a c e
Now translate some of what goes on in Chris' life to Beyonces' current situation. What situation? Imagine being thee RnB superstar of current times. You have one of thee most well known female face of recent years. You sell millions upon millions of albums. You have released arguably one of thee most recognisable songs of any genre of the current millenium. You have modelling & make up contracts with some of the leading fashion houses. And to top it all off your boyfriend/fiance/husband (i forget which) is arguably the biggest Hip Hop mogul alive. Then your little sister releases an album that is far superior to anything you have released to date (group or solo). That situation.
I actually bought a copy of Solanges 1st album (Solo Star) & I would never have thought that 5 years later she would be at the helm of such an accomplished project. I've said many times that i'm a sucker for live instrumentation & that is where the immediate appeal of Sol-Angel & The Hadlet Street Dreams lies. There is an accesibility throughout that in most cases would be to the detriment of the overall sound. But in this case the sultry tone of Solanges' voice marries perfectly with what's going on behind her. The spacey yet soulfully understated vibe of the opening track, God Given Name, show exactly how far this Lady has come in 5 years. Listening to the middle part of the vocals of this song there is absolutely no denying that the younger Knowles can go a long, long way. The live instrumentaion also means the music is able to move in the same circles as the Amy Winehouses, the Duffy's & the Kylie Auldists of this world & more than deserve to be in there company. Songs such as Dancing In The Dark, Sandcastle Disco & the superbly crafted tracks 6 O'clock Blues & Ode To Marvin, take this album to a level of maturity that Beyonce hasn't even got close to. Even the more out there cuts, Valentines Day, This Bird & Cosmic Journey, are so much more than filler. Especially the latter which features Bilal & an unexpected but superb change of pace. All that, then the seductively uplifting Champagnechroniknight-cap rounds things off masterfully. This album manages to cover such a variety of genres in such a accomplished fashion that I actually cant believe the name Knowles is associated with it. Solange is now officially on my favourites of the year list. If she continues with future releases of this quality, she could very well knock big sis' off of her lofty perch.
As for Beyonce. let's be honest. As much as her voice truly is a thing of greatness & as catchy as her singles are, her albums thus far are standard RnB fair. So, seeing her li'l sis' raise the bar so high must surely inspire her to reach new heights next time too.... right?
p e a c e
"When I did a recent interview with Vibe magazine I asked, 'Why can't I get the cover? This is a magazine I love. If there's one magazine that I'd want to be on the cover of, it's Vibe.''
This, apparently, was Vibes response.
"Their response was they don't have white artists on the cover; that the only white artist they've had on the cover was Eminem. I guess if that's what it is, it is what it is. And I respect that because I live in a house with a black woman."
The situation as it is is bad enough. But what disgusted me even more were some of the responses i've been reading on various web sites. There are people out there who are actually siding with vibe. Black people saying things like 'How dare Robin Thick complain about his white ass not being on the cover of Vibe!' & 'fuck Robin Thicke and his hitler moustach look a like !! fuck this white piece of shit!'.
Just how ignorant & bigoted can some people be. For all those people that refuse to accept that racism goes both ways, perhaps this will help to sway your opinion. some commentors even had the temerity to use slavery as valid reasoning for their comments. As a black man i'm embarrassed that after everything that our race has been through (slavery included) that there are people who not only have such ridiculous views, but actually think that they are doing themselves any favours by expressing them. The only thing Robin may be guilty of is a little big headedness in asking for the cover on the 1st place.
Yes racism does go both ways & although one type obviously gets more airtime than the other, the problem won't go away until both ends of the candle are burned. Which leads me to think that racism will always exist in some shape or form
