Can’tNeverDidNothin’
Album Review time! It’s summertime and labels are scrambling to release new albums for the recently let-out High School and College crowd, and this year is no exception. So MANY good albums from both new and established artists have dropped in the past two months, and here’s my review of them:
Nikka Costa
Can’tneverdidnothin’
Released May 24, 2005
Yes, Nikka has a new album! Finally this funky soul singer has graced us with her velvety pipes and pushed out another groundbreaking record. The “second album” by an artist is usually what makes or breaks them. They either show tremendous growth and originality, or they put out more of the same and fizzle out before anybody even notices. Nikka, luckily, is the previous of those two. From track 1 to track 12, every song sounds not only different than the last, but also grabs you in with everything from funk to blues to rock. Personal favorite tracks so far: Till I Get To You, where she remorses over all of her past lovers with letters A through T (till I get to “u”, get it?), I Gotta Know, a touching song about giving up her solidarity and independence and opening her heart to someone, and Happy In The Morning, where she states “You make me happy in the morning/and when I go to bed/you take all my naughty thoughts and they get put to use instead.” Five stars, and dare I say it, better than the first album.
Gorillaz
Demon Days
Released May 24, 2005
Gorillaz is made up of an entirely fake and animated crew. The actual band is a side project of Blur frontman Damon Albarn and Tank Girl artist Jamie Hewlett who designed the “characters”, as well as Talking Heads & Tom-Tom Club member Tina Wheymouth and underground hip-hop artist Del the Funky Homosapien. Some of my favorite music videos are Gorillaz songs, and the newest song, “Feel Good, Inc” is no exception. You can go to their extremely entertaining website and check out any of their past and current videos, as well as explore the complex where the “band” lives.
The second album is strange and unlike any other album i’ve heard lately. Gone are the hip-hop heavy songs from the first album (with only two or three that make the exception), and increased amounts of strangly arranged songs such as “O Green World” and “Last Living Souls.” This doesn’t make the album terrible despite this; if anything it’s even more catchy than the first one. Dirty Harry, Feel Good Inc, and DARE top my favorite tracks on this album, and DARE is quickly moving up the list of all-time favorite dance songs. Three stars.
Ben Folds
Songs for Silverman
Released April 26, 2005
Ben Folds has always been a favorite artist of mine. From the very first song I heard from his then Ben Folds Five group, “Battle of Who Could Care Less”, I was hooked.
The follow up to Whatever and Ever Amen was a somber release titled The Unauthorized Biography Of Reinhold Messner and took a steep turn from the typical upbeat songs that peppered the first self-titled album and Whatever..
Following the disappointing sales of the Reinhold Messner album, BFF broke up and Ben Folds went off to a solo career with his first album Rockin The Suburbs which was more comparable to the Whatever album. He also released three seperate EP’s afterwards (Speed Graphic, Sunny 16, and Super D), however with the latest full studio-released Songs for Silverman toned down his tongue-in-cheek humor on tracks for a more personal and introspective look. Favorite tracks: The strings version of Landed, Sentimental Guy, and Give Judy My Notice for sounding just like something off of an old 1970’s TV show. Three stars.
Self
Porno, Mint, & Grime
Internet Release Only
Ah, Self. The only band that can take a Doobie Brothers song and make it BETTER (See “What A Fool Believes” on Gizmodgery). Since the last studio released album, Gizmodgery, Self has released nothing but B-Sides on a fan site for free downloads, and I couldn’t be happier. While I long for a full-on studio produced release, these little crumbs Matt Mahaffey feeds us to tide us over fill me up enough to get by, and this latest Free Internet album is no exception.
Tracks for this album are B-sides of the up-and-coming studio album that were recorded for either fun or to impress his record label, and some of these show more than others. Standout tracks include While The Gansters Sleep, Donating to Science, I Knew What I Know Now, and Busy Sending Me. If nothing else, at least download them and check them out. They are free, after all. Three Stars.
In the coming weeks I will also be reviewing Coldplay’s “X & Y“, Audioslave’s “Out of Exile” and Weezer’s “Make Believe“. Stay tuned!
Link: Can’tNeverDidNothin’
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