If it takes us a few listens to really get into the Gorillaz newest album. Can we blame ourselves?

We are forced fed music that is derivative of another. Pop music all sounds the same, with each artist essentially sounding like the one who came 3 months before them. When we hear something as creative and dynamic as Damon Albarn’s latest project, we’re almost left scratching our heads.

This is the reaction that I got when I first listened to Plastic Beach. The sort of “what are they doing here? This isn’t radio friendly!” mentality has invaded my sensibilities and in a word, tainted how I look at music that is not directed at a mainstream audience. Strip all of those fears away and you have a nearly perfect album, from the Orchestral Intro all the way until the end. Is it as good as their sophomore follow up Demon Days? Not exactly, but it’s a capable album nonetheless.

Like the previous two albums, the cartoon characters recruit some unlikely collaborators: Snoop Dog, De La Soul, Yukimi Nagano, and the The Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music just to name a few. However, as a producer, Damon crafts each beat to compliment the artist, making it sound like a whole product rather than the phoned in collaborations that seem to be dominating the music industry these days.

Case in point, “Welcome to the World of Plastic Beach,” evokes a laid back, West Coast vibe, with Snoop talking rather than rapping over the song, giving him a more poetic vibe, while Stylo somehow pulls off having Mos Def bounce over the disco synth beat, while soul legend Bobby Womack somehow is able to fit into place on the hook. Mark Smith, of post-punk band The Fall, is used magically, let sparingly, proving some spooky vocals on for what most would consider an instrumental track, while Couch Sessions favorite Yukimi Nagano’s voice is used to perfection singing hooks on the track “Empire Ants.”

It seems like Damon could even make Gucci Mane sound great over his spooky instrumentals. The production is where the strength lies in this album. Take my favorite track on the album, “Broken.” The track beautifully integrates some Spaghetti Western strings over a dope bassline, making one of the best that hip-hop (or trip-hop) tracks we’ve seen in the past 10 years.

Having all this said, Plastic Beach sounds a little dated after the 5th listen. When the animated troupe dropped in 1999, they were the most groundbreaking project to come to music in a while. Since then, it seems that everybody and their mother has discovered a knack for making great instrumentation. Think Kanye West and 808 and Heartbreaks, or many of the new electro hipster groups that have sprang up in the past few years. Even though Plastic Beach is a cut above a lot of these new groups, the album lacks the “epic” nature of their previous effort, and the pop sensibilities of their debut album, thus limiting it’s staying power. Not a bad thing by any means, but something that I took note of while listening to the CD.

Even still, Plastic Beach is better than most anything that has dropped on the musical market this year and is still worth a buy. True Gorillaz fans need to have this in their collection, and people who may be frustrated with the nature of pop music today might want to get a breath of fresh air thanks to some unlikely cartoon characters.

Washington, DC by way of Queens, NY electronic dance music producer Outputmessage is likely one of the more underrated EDM artists in the genre. The eight year veteran has received terrific acclaim both stateside and abroad for his musically dense but pop trending melodies awakening a sense of early 80s synth pop sounds. However, with his LP Autonomous, Outputmessage seems to have found the balance between masterful instrumentation and pure pop sensibility and has honed his sound into its most commercially viable form ever.

The album, which took two years to complete, is an earnest and personal account of the artist’s various lifelong struggles. The record serves as reflection, and completes as a positive resurgence of a damaged human soul in the face of harrowing human experiences. Love, suicide and other causes of emotional pain are handled on the release without any nod to letting the strife remain internal, instead each song serves as a release of tension, the album listening more like therapy than the exquisite minimal disco house trending dance tracks they seem on the surface.

The key to this release is the addition of vocals from the producer. Multi-talented as a musician, Outputmessage extends these talents to voice as his vocals on this most personal of releases. There are tracks here like “N.Y.R.,” the hook, “I asked you to stay but you decided to go,” when passed through a vocoder becomes far far far more haunting and hollow, the soul of the man that lost his friend echoing into the breaks, easily one of the signature sounds of the producer’s career and one with possibilities of legs in the mainstream. “Get Away” as well is stellar, pop vocals laid over strings and synths, as always, as is the standard and expectation of Outputmessage, an understated elegance in the expression.

When an artist takes the time to truly delve into the realm of the personal and has the innate gift of understanding how to produce their own reality into song and maximize the impact of the emotions, great things typically happen. This album from top to bottom is excellent. Tracks like “I Remember,” “Glintz” and “Undone” are all magical expositions of human passion in electro pop form. If in any way ever wondering whatever happened to the phenomenal and genre defining compositions of bands like New Order, they’re more than present and accounted for in Autonomous. The vocal and songwriting economy blended with the complex yet sonorous and now more than accessible pop rhythms makes this album one with tracks that are certain to be cornerstones of this year in electronic dance music.

While not a masterpiece, in an era where the market has been deluged by a new female soul vanguard that angles increasingly towards pop, Sade remains regal, calm, collected and steadfast, and merely releases the standard bearer album to define the female expression in R & B for 2010.

Sade’s musical legacy lies in her ability to fill expansive emotion into recounting the deep and defining moments of love. It never feels personal to her, but universally personal to the listener, a skill that none have mastered in quite the same realm. She, as well as her band, have made an entire career of this aim, and for her first album release in a decade, Soldier of Love does not deviate from form. There are huge hooks, solid songwriting, fantastically expressive and even fanciful orchestration, and while not a masterpiece, in an era where the market has been deluged by a new female soul vanguard that angles increasingly towards pop, Sade remains regal, calm, collected and steadfast, and merely releases the standard bearer album to define the female expression in R & B for 2010.

The album feels familiar. While many may see that as a negative, to hear a coherent, six minute long single like the lead single “Soldier of Love” in an era where most singers are barely allowed to fill four minutes with quality material is ultra impressive. It hearkens to the days of her quadruple platinum Love Deluxe album with its deep forays into emotion from a lyric and sonic standpoint. Epic instrumentation outlines the landscape where Sade is loosing this torch song of undaunted romantic aspiration.

But Sade’s had the same band for 27 years. This familiarity breeds a certain contempt for the excellence on the record as there’s very few forays into anything musically jarring or slightly different. Stuart Matthewman’s guitar may still be one of the most underrated yet stirring and distinctive sounds in soul history. While always wonderful to hear him, as well as the rest of the band, their sound is so anachronistic to the current norm that for the mainstream pop listener, this album though overwhelmingly fantastic, may seem frighteningly pedantic.

However, there are certainly glimmers of expansion on the album. Tracks like “Be That Easy,” a pop standard ballad that with it’s Roy Orbison recalling guitars and Hammond organs sounds like something from the Al Green and Willie Mitchell collection is fantastic, while “Bring Me Home” is a surprise with a muted yet still hard hip hop break and a beautiful guitar is crying for a credible emcee for a remix. And “Skin” may feature some of Sade’s most emotionally inspired songwriting since Lovers Rock’s “By Your Side” when she sings “now it’s time to wash you off my skin, and it’s alright, because you’re not right within.”

Sade’s a classic in a class all unto herself. From debut Diamond Life onward, each of her five albums has been a certified platinum splash that has altered the soul and pop music landscape. While the record industry is a different entity entirely in 2010 than ever before, this will likely not be a sixth platinum record. However, Sade, now 51, with 50 million albums sold behind her, is now the stuff of awe and honor. The excellence of her craft, more than apparent on this release, now defines her as one of the all time legends of this generation.

Massive Attack – Paradise Circus

Tomorrow marks the official release date (U.S. and Canada) for Heligoland, the 5th proper studio album by Massive Attack.

Whereas the 2003 release 100th Window glistened with mechanical accuracy and disciplined minimal techno, Heligoland finds the Bristol duo returning to the dirtier, dubbed out sound of 1998’s Mezzanine.  Analog synths bubble around ethnic drums, abstract textures, traditional instruments and vocals in a seamless tapestry only Massive Attack could weave.

Heligoland is not a simple collection of ‘singles’…the album is assembled like the soundtrack to a journey through crowded streets, perpetual darkness and rain, seedy hotels and desperate love.  Texture and mood are given precedence over easy to digest pop song structures.  One gets the idea that Massive Attack could care less about their music being played on radio.  Heligoland is an album, meant to be consumed in its entirety, meant to transport the listener and hold them captive in a distant yet familiar world.

We also note that Massive Attack’s penchant for collaboration has gone unchanged.  Guest vocalists Damon Albarn (Gorillaz), Martina Topley-Bird, Tunde Adebimpe, Hope Sandoval and long time collaborator Horace Andy work wonderfully within the framework of Massive’s moody production, Andy delivering one of his most melodic performances atop the menacing bass line of “Girl I Love You”.  Guy Garvey of Elbow lends his subdued tenor to “Flat of the Blade”, a song that could easily find its home in a Luc Besson film. “I’m not good in a crowd / I’ve got skills I can’t speak of / Things I’ve seen / will chase me to the grave” Garvey croons in his believable, thick, monotone.

Heligoland is not all doom and gloom, however.  The album is sprinkled with bright moments of uplifting sonic emancipation.  The near-pop turn around in Pray for Rain.  The beautiful string arrangements of “Splitting the Atom” and “Paradise Circus”.  These moments break through the tech-noir soundscape like rays of angelic sunshine, adding wonderful humanity and balance.

Heligoland reaffirms Massive Attack’s legendary status.  Some will complain that the album is too similar to Mezzanine and doesn’t offer anything new.  But as countless electronica bands fall back on robotic 80’s, overly arpeggiated and soul-less sounds, Massive Attack has returned to do what no one else can.  Blending influences from across the globe, they have created a wonderful work of art, full of light and shadow, free of cliché, imitation and predictability.  Their sound is so unique that an entire genre was created in an attempt to pigeon-hole and market them.  Notwithstanding, Heligoland displays the duos ability to transcend genre and classification to create a wonderfully engaging, aural experience.

Pray for Rain feat. Tunde Adebimpe: Tundes voice exists perfectly in the abstract world of samples, ethnic drums and heavy piano work.  The song builds to an unexpected, near pop-like climax of beautiful harmony only to resolve back into the menace of the main groove.

Babel feat. Martina Topley-Bird: Martina’s voice falls into the track like a lovely instrument amidst the patchwork of rhythm guitars and analog synths.

Splitting the Atom feat. Damon Albarn: Very Gorillaz-esque staccato organ accompanies Grant Marshall’s signature baritone which contrasts wonderfully with Horace Andy’s high tenor on the hook.  Albarn’s background harmonies add mystery and depth and texture as the song is lifted by glorious string textures during its final moments.

Girl I Love You feat. Horace Andy: Horace Andy lends his signature vocals over a menacing bass line and Mezzanine-ish guitar work.  The track is transported to another dimension with intricate horn work.

Psyche feat. Martina Topley-Bird: Chopped, jangly guitars wrap Martina’s vocal in an intricate texture of urgency.  By all means check out the Flash Treatment remix by Christoffer Berg featured on the Splitting the Atom EP.

Flat of the Blade feat. Guy Garvey.

Paradise Circus feat. Hope Sandoval: One of the most hopeful uplifting tracks on the album, production-wise.  Hope delivers her intimate performance in the midst of gentle piano work, hand claps and dub bass.  Lovely.

Rush Minute: Del Naja makes up for any lack of vocal ability with the introspective opening line “I wanna be clean but I gotta get high”.

Saturday Comes Slow feat. Damon Albarn: A very nice delivery from Damon Albarn could almost be accused of being out of place…that is until the guitar textures creep in at the 2:20 mark.

Atlas Air: A building near 8 minute groove that takes us close to 100th Window territory is the albums closer.

It seemed like only yesterday that we saw fresh faced Leeds singer Corinne Bailey Rae burst onto the scene. Her self-titled debut album, laced with pop hits “Like A Star,” and the empowering “Put Your Records On,” made her a critical and commercial darling.

After experiencing the death of her husband, it seemed like Corrinne would be out of the limelight for good. But late last year, she emerged on via the Internet to announce her return, followed shortly by her emotional appearance on Later With Jools Holland singing “I’d Do It All Again,” which was written two months before the death of her husband.

Her sophomore album, titled The Sea, is stronger, more mature, and more refined than her previous effort. The album begins heavy, with the guitar-driven “Are You Here,” and “All Again,” and the “blood on the streets” reference in the spooky “Love’s On Its Way” doesn’t recall the sunny Corinne of the past. However The Sea isn’t as gloomy and dark as a London street. Upbeat and funky tracks like “The Blackest Lily” (think of a Lenny Kravitz track with female vocals), and “Paris Nights New York Mornings,” will most certainly get you dancing.

Rae also explores new territory on this project. The uber-soulful “Closer,” is Corrinne’s attempt at 70’s inspired US R&B, and the listener almost witness her shed her indie rock roots and transform into a sexy female soul icon, while tracks like the organ-laced “I Would Like To Call It Beauty,”and “Diving for Hearts” takes her into a new world entirely.

Even though the album blends several different styles together, the mood and feel of the project remains consistent. Each song, though different, is a well crafted and well written masterpiece, with inspirations from the past yet, forward facing. While most American pop females seem like they were created in a marketing lab (Ke$ha, cough), Corrinne’s second album is proving that the the UK female renaissance started earlier this decade is still strong.

Download: JACK SPLASH – King of the Beats, Vol. 1

Jack Splash was frozen in place conducting a full symphony for Quincy Jones in 1981 at the Hollywood Bowl, unfrozen five years ago after being stored away for almost 30 years and was immediately dropped off at the Compton Swap Meet.

Jack Splash was frozen in place conducting a full symphony for Quincy Jones in 1981 at the Hollywood Bowl, unfrozen five years ago after being stored away for almost 30 years and was immediately dropped off at the Compton Swap Meet. This is the only answer for this man’s sound, style and voluminous talent. Trunk funk and classic soul needed a hero. We’ve strayed too far away as of late from formulaic sounds. Hip hop sounds like electro, electro sounds like house and disco, dancehall sounds like dubstep, and so on, and so forth. The preservation of classic musical elements without total compromise is a goal that very few in music attain at the present time. Let’s not forget that this man produced Alicia Keys’ “Teenage Love Afair,” one of the most swinging classic soul jams of quite some time. After listening to producer Jack Splash’s King of the Beats, it’s readily apparent that tradition is served, and served well, and is in the hands of a maestro from a forgotten era.

This mixtape succeeds when Jack Splash errs on the side of imitating his inspirations. Piano and synth heavy and ultra orchestra friendly, many find reason to think that because Splash’s production style trends toward “wall of sound” stylings, that there’s large handfuls of Phil Spector and Brian Wilson here. That’s a limiting description. That’s like saying that every rapper wants to be Biggie, Nas, Jay-Z or 2Pac. But to listen to this man requires going deeper, and looking to moody and aurally psychedelic and sensual types like Quincy Jones, Sly Stone and the Ohio Players, or the more straight ahead smooth gangsta dynamic of Isaac Hayes. There’s a definite blueprint being followed here when this mixtape succeeds that sets Jack Splash to the left, yet not ahead of the pack.

His sound, at the direct point of synthesis between soul and funky hip hop breaks is not groundbreaking, it’s just great.

His sound, at the direct point of synthesis between soul and funky hip hop breaks is not groundbreaking, it’s just great. “The Maestro (Young Spector)” should be his signature mixtape track for every emcee in the universe, a Don Cannon “CANNON” type track that likely can’t go wrong with anyone flowing over it. “Disko Labyrinth” is beautiful, flutes and melodious mid-register piano with an insistent bass kick breakbeat. “Love is a Symphony” sounds like an Issac Hayes sample over a hip hop track, and “Welcome to the Dance” could’ve been a throwaway from Melanie Fiona’s surprising and adventurous retro trending pop debut.

This mixtape slows because of it’s desire to also meet industry expectations. Pushed single “King of the Beats” sounds like a track meant for bloggers and stylistically lost, struggling to make an impact DJs to attach to, hollow 808 kicks, dubbed synths and electro trills, the Clipse meeting Rusko not something anyone WANTS to hear, but everyone feels like they should. Also, “38 Special” is where we get to hear Jack Splash rap, and while Kanye stated that he “was a producer who could rap better than the rappers,” the same does not apply for Splash whose cadence appears forced, harsh and breathy, his inability to modulate and preserve his voice while spitting lyrics rearing its ugly head. And Cee-Lo being on the track, while exciting, only makes Splash look like a B-grade Dangermouse, as the track, all drum breaks and guitar licks, really isn’t a solid look for either, and is expected and pedestrian at best.

Does Jack Splash want to make money now, or set trends in the industry he can capitalize from later? On a sonic level, he’s pretty much exactly where he needs to be to make the impact he’s already made. However, the inclusion of club friendly and pop radio friendly elements on this mixtape show a desire in the artist for increased mainstream recognition. Is it possible to serve both the master of the musical mainstream while at the same time also respecting your desire to explore your roots and musical inspirations? This question looms on this mixtape and ultimately while enjoyable, only scratches the surface of this man’s motivations and talent.

Download: SMKA – The 808 Experiment Vol 2

Atlanta has been killing the music game lately. It’s a proven fact. Both the overground (Gucci, T.I., Luda) and the underground (Janelle Monae, Brittney Bosco, etc), have been bgreaking barriers and perceptions about the South, and such dynamic acts like Outkast, Goodie Mob, and Jeezy have cemented the city as a “go-to” place for critically acclaimed music for the past decade.

So I’m not surprised SMKA’s 808 Experiment would be fire. If you think that the South is all about spinning rims and stupid dances, think again. The SMKA production team, headed by 808 Blake crafts some of the most diverse beats I’ve heard all year, pulling everything funk, soul, indie rock, and spaced out beats,  the Southern boom that has permeated the airwaves for years. The result is a contrastive mic of songs and instrumentals that avoid the typical pitfalls of most Southern hip-hop you hear on the radio today.

In addition, some of the South’s rising stars are featured, including Alabama’s Yellawolf, Proton, Hollyweerd, Aleon Craft, Playboy Tre. Even hip-hop favorites Nappy Roots and Tanya Morgan make an appearance. Highlights on the tape include the spaced-out Hollyweerd/Aleon Craft collabo “So What,” Yellawolf’s matriarchal anthem, “Dear Mama,” and Brittany Street’s Lykke Li sampling “Let Me Go.”

The SMKA compilation might lack the star power of Big Boi’s Purple Ribbon All-Stars compilation from a few years ago, but it is a solid piece of work, and should do good things for all who were involved. Even though people might say that the South has “killed” hip-hop, the amount of talent in the land of okra and sweet tea is still strong.

Download: Free Gucci: Best of the Cold War Mixtapes

The nature of this mixtape in principle is to explore what Gucci Mane would sound like over musical styles unfamiliar to his typical dirty South productions. Instead, this just sounds like a bunch of ideas that Gucci can explore when he gets released from prison.

The concept of “genres” is dead.

The most important lesson learned from the Free Gucci: Best of the Cold War Mixtapes release by Mad Decent Records is that there are a ton of young production minds in this world now available to the world of hip hop. Now that Snoop Dogg and Nicki Minaj freely flow over dubstep, Pitbull has made a career on electro, and reggae emcees have already been on the dub and reggae tip for quite some time, we’ve reached a musical equilibrium. The nature of this mixtape in principle is to explore what Gucci Mane would sound like over musical styles unfamiliar to his typical dirty South productions. Instead, this just sounds like a bunch of ideas that Gucci can explore when he gets released from prison.

Literally one year ago, Diplo and the gang at Mad Decent released a mixtape taking Alabama’s Paper Route Gangstaz into the underground club scene. At the time, that album sounded fresh, odd and entertaining. Fast forward after 2009, and the same concept with Gucci Mane sounds like his latest mainstream album release. This says a lot about the saturation of electro in mainstream top 40 music, and if anything portents the same expectation for dubstep in the year to come. Instead of reaching far, this mixtape sounds like an amalgamation of competing B-sides for Warner Brothers to choose from for inclusion on white label releases of singles. Music is an odd place, and with this release, we begin to see where the separation of styles of music actually ceases to exist, and the invocation of a fertile, genre-less musical atmosphere can occur.

In just under 53 minutes, some of the brighter young production minds in electronic dance music, alongside a select few veterans attempt but often fall short in creating awe inspiring remixes of Radric Davis. However, there are a few standouts that require spotlight. Chicago Ghetto-industrial band Salem’s take on Gucci’s “My Shadow” is dark, bleak and completely frightening, adding tremendous depth and meaning to the track that clearly was not there prior. The weaving and meandering synths and frankly depression inducing bassline is fantastic. The band has prior experience in the realm of Gucci Mane remixes, so their success here is in no way shocking at all. Chicago’s Willy Joy and DJ Benzi go bonkers on “I’m the Shit,” crafting a fun and funky house remix with Daniel Bedingfield’s “Gotta Get Through This” as a winning track to lay the vocals over. The doubles on the chorus are a particularly entertaining touch, creating some fun UK 2-step type instrumentation.

But the champion here is Diplo. He’s weirder than ever now, and in his fertile imagination lies such far reaching freedom for innovation that by comparison, though everyone here is more than talented, Diplo sets the bar so far above and beyond that it’s truly impossible at this moment to reach. Take for example the mixtape opener “Danger’s Not a Stranger.” I can’t imagine anyone else in the universe re-interpolating Mariah Carey’s “Can’t Let Go” and blending in Gucci’s vocals to create a mid-tempo, drive time radio banger. Mixtape closer “Break Yourself” goes from being a hood anthem about women to being an Ibiza trance inspired bottle service club crusher when Diplo injects the familiar synth lines of ATB’s “9PM (Til I Come)” into it, changing the emotion and expanding the hit potential of the song.

The issue with the mixtape is that many of the younger producers on the album violate the nature of the vocals in attempting to take an acapella in a particular direction seemingly as a route to attaining mainstream acceptance. As solid as Douster and DZ are at providing dubstep for the masses, Gucci Mane’s cadence really just does not lend itself well to deep basslines. Veterans Bird Peterson and Emynd show and prove here, Peterson’s take on “Dope Boys” a downtempo and intropective track that is acceptable, and Emynd gets southern vet Playboy Tre to drop 16 bars on Frowny Face, creating a high hat, bass kick and 808 laden ATL strip club style remix that certainly passes muster as expected.

In final, this mixtape is more than solid. However, it speaks much more to the proliferation of underground musical styles succeeding in the mainstream than to any advancement or celebration of Gucci Mane as an artist. On the strength of Diplo’s, Salem’s and the Willy Joy and Benzi remixes alone, this is a must download compilation, but certainly not a contender for the best compilation of the year.

If the formula for album sales were to include multiplying intellectual quotient and sheer amount of intellect used to craft a release, the boys of Vampire Weekend would be the highest selling artists of this generation.

If the formula for album sales were to include multiplying intellectual quotient and sheer amount of intellect used to craft a release, the boys of Vampire Weekend would be the highest selling artists of this generation. However, that’s not the case, so the Harvard graduates with a Ph. D in African polyrhythms merely exist as the quirky champions of independent rock, a title they still are holding steadfast to after their letter of stylized Martha’s Vineyard summer style heartbreak, Contra.

The record, clocking in at just under 37 minutes is an absolute delight. The band’s jack of all trades Rostam Batmanglij is once again behind the boards, and with all things on this record, the skill of his production, as well as the skill apparent in the band is at a much more polished and fully actualized level now, as seemingly the humorous novelty of being able to record their smart boy prep concept rock has gone from hobby to full fledged career. The Ivy Leaguers have cleaned themselves up from being scruffy and winsome at graduation, to being worldly, pressed, shaved and well on their way to climbing the corporate ladder in the Fortune 500 company that is the commercial mainstream.

Vampire Weekend can say anything they want, and that you really hope that in the end, they get the girl, because they already have your ears, and your attention.

The secret of Vampire Weekend’s success lies in a full knowledge of the expansion and contraction of their unique sound. On this record, the band explores a very new wave inspired sound on tracks like “Giving Up the Gun” where Batmanglij apparently reached into his bag of tricks from his side project band Discovery and added a heaping dose of synthesizer to the Vampire Weekend mix, creating something that approaches Talking Heads or Devo out of the Afro pop equation. “California English” shows the ability of the band to now contract, as the rambling gazelle of Ezra Koenig’s lead guitar isn’t followed with noisome drumming by Chris Tomson as on their early winner “A Punk.” Instead, they opt for a full invocation of their African sound, creating a pleasant ditty discussing summer vacation. Certainly the appreciation that the band received globally for their attempts at crafting a true African vibe have steeled the creative direction of the production, instrumentation and vocals of the band.

For fans of the plaintive and peaceful side of Vampire Weekend that brought them fame, there’s plenty of fodder here, too. Lead singles “Horchata” and “Cousins” are quite awesome. “Horchata” is a delightful mid-tempo African folk hymn with effervescence breathed into it from the voice of Ezra Koenig. Ezra Koenig is one of the cornerstone voices of this musical era and delivers here, Batmanglij’s various percussive instruments being played on the track only adding to the airy freedom therein. “Cousins” allows Vampire Weekend to once again revel in their ska punk roots, tracks like these being the most fun as the very straight laced instrumentalists in the band really get to let their hair down here and create a dance pop explosion, Chris Tomson’s drumming here being the punk influence as his playing sounds insistent and makes the song a sweeping wind through an otherwise wistful creation.

But the two most intriguing tracks on this album that may show the new creative motivations of the band are “Diplomat’s Son” and the eponymous album closer “I Think Ur a Contra.” “Diplomat’s Son,” the song about the boy about to steal a girl from a boy,” is a beautiful yet funky ballad blending disparate African and Indian rhythms to create a multicultural oddity that moves the soul. Sad song on the bottom of the mix and M.I.A.’s “Galang” on the top, Ezra Koenig glides effortlessly through the middle, crafting a masterfully depressed heart-string puller. The big bad shotgun of a slow tempo champion here is “Contra,” where in four minutes and 30 seconds of an ambient folk jazz track, Koenig’s painful recognition that he’s going to lose when a girl should “never pick sides, never choose between two” closes the album like so many Lloyd Doblers holding boomboxes in the front yards of so many Diane Courts. This means that Vampire Weekend can say anything they want, and that you really hope that in the end, they get the girl, because they already have your ears, and your attention.

We’re nearing the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the release of Mary J. Blige’s industry changing debut What’s the 411? As was then is still now with the release of Blige’s ninth studio release Stronger With Each Tear. The pretty girl with the razor sharp exterior has had that exterior pierced on record now multiples of times, with varying levels of commercial success. Mary’s calling card as an artist now is in being every woman’s emotionally scarred homegirl, every man’s fragile flower, an elegant disasterpiece of hip hop and R & B soul, her “queendom” of the genre completely dependent upon her desire and ability to plunge into the depths of her soul and unearth gems of songs like most of her amazing discography, her cover of Rose Royce’s “I’m Going Down” and the Grammy winning “Be Without You” two of the most noted classics. This album does not ascend to those levels, but in once again cleansing herself of her pain on record, Blige succeeds as an artist of note, legend and appreciation.

Most notable on this album is Blige’s attempt at straddling and not crossing the line of adult contemporary pop inaccessibility to the streets that brought her to the mainstream. It would be simple for Mary to release an album filled with standards and simplistic tracks without gravitas. Let’s remember, this is a woman who is on the speed dial of Bono of U2. But she doesn’t. She certainly stays true to her roots which are absolutely now at play in the mainstream more than ever, her use of The-Dream, Ne-Yo and Stargate, Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins and The Runners not a strange choice for pop radio in the least. This is a far cry from the days where her work with Sean “Diddy” Combs set the industry forward 20 years. Possibly the only thing about this release that holds it back in the eyes of many is that what Mary did 20 years ago is no longer groundbreaking, but completely expected. It takes the teeth out of her work and makes the heights she still reaches the accepted norms for music. Being a trendsetter becomes a completely different issue when you become a legend. Everyone else has the vitality now that you introduced and no longer have complete control over.

Lead single “The One” features rising to anointing hip hop heavyweight Drake dropping sixteen bars as Mary effortlessly handles a rumbling Darkchild track with snaps, breaks, synths and drums popping off everywhere, a non peak time club champion where Mary asserts that she’s the one her man is looking for. Drake states “while my brother Wayne’s rockin’ out like a White Stripe, I’m a kill the game I’m a Young Money white knight,” and he does so with his typical understated lyrical fury. Follow up single “The One,” written with album executive producer Johnta Austin, and, as expected, the Norwegians bring the sparse, yet room filling instrumentation, this time with violins and a piano, a “Be Without You” soundalike that succeeds, as Mary sings about “the type of love that you get from me, that you can’t find nowhere else.” The album kicks off with “Tonight,” a moody Runners and Konvict Music jam, subtly racing synths and a downtempo break that Mary excellently verbalizes a desire to not contact a man that’s nothing but a world of trouble.

The album’s twin standouts are the Trey Songz duet “We Got Hood Love, wherein in the chorus “I be cussin, I be screamin like it’s over, them I’m lovin then I’m feeling just to hold ya and that’s how we do,” Blige cooks up another R & B winner that shows that she still hasn’t lost her roots. Originally a duet with her and album producer Johnta Austin, stepping aside for it loverman of the moment Songz was more a nod to mainstream accessibility than talent, as Songz is merely perfunctory in his performance. Album closer “Color” from the Mo’Nique superstar turn film “Precious” is a collaboration of Raphael Saadiq’s production and Mary J.’s voice, and the turbulent old soul of Saadiq melds beautifully with the dark colored timbre of Blige’s voice to perfection.

Ne-Yo chimes in with two uptempo adult contemporary tracks here, as is the expectation from the most accessible yet soulful producer in the game, “I Feel Good” and “Good Love” both solid, with the latter featuring a very excited to be on the track T.I. over production that really doesn’t suit his laid back delivery. The album closes with classic Mary J. songs for her longtime fans, as the Polow the Don produced “I Love You (Yes I Du)” is a mid-tempo number that expands with synths into a dance pleaser. “In the Morning,” is a ponderous soul winner that aims classic and succeeds, Mary totally at home with a song chronicling the expectation of heartbreak. The-Dream’s contribution of “Kitchen,” a brilliant piano driven track where Mary advises “to never let a girl cook in your kitchen,” sounding like a G rated Millie Jackson in the process.

In final, to expect groundbreaking and next level work from Mary J. Blige is an exercise in futility. She is the standard by which women in R & B are measured. Like Ella, Aretha and Whitney before her, her ascension to legend status merely means that new material is a continuation of setting the bar, and not making it in any way higher. On Stronger With Each Tear she does walk down roads that are already well worn in her career, but with a voice that has become at it’s most emotive weary and evocative, and at it’s brightest robust and colorful, she now stands as the nature of excellence in soul music.

Adventuresome without being abstract, authentic without being inaccessible.

Analogue Transit – 1983

The group Analogue Transit comprises of vocalist/guitarist Kwaku Aning and producer Jeff Shreiner.  The opening lines of their debut album, Gearheart, set the tone for the duos philosophy – “I am the truth / the thing you long to hear / I am analogue”.  Thankfully, the album is not a mere rehashing of the analog vs. digital battles that litter forums across the internet.  Rather, Analogue Transit aim to incorporate both worlds into their audio landscape…and the results are impressive.

Mr. Shreiners sound tapestry takes analog elements and melds them seamlessly with the editing and arranging techniques common  in modern pop-electronica.  Acoustic guitars and pianos, full of room noise and ambiance, find their way next to synth warbles and stuttered vocal effects.  Small touches, like the ‘roomy’ claps in the song 1983, add a welcome warmth, a human element that is usually missing from modern productions.

The song-writing and vocal arrangements are solid and radio ready.  Not many cliched lyrical concepts are to be heard.  Mr. Aning lends his capable, honest vocal to the songs.  His vocals are very clear with an ever so slight edge – reminiscent of a Darius Rucker.  One could even imagine that with a slight change in intonation Kwakus vocals would easily fit into a pop-rock or modern country context without sounding forced.

All in all this is a good release, adventuresome without being abstract, authentic without being inaccessible.  We should keep a close eye on the duo as they continue to grow stylistically and get comfortable in their own skin.

“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” – Anais Nin, “Risk”

The great joy of Alicia Keys is in her ability to meld the heights of the pop and soul sound to create aesthetic brilliance. On fourth studio release The Element of Freedom, Keys wholly divests herself more than ever before in this aim, and the product of this is easily her most robust work to date. Clearly a woman scorned and hurt by love in the past, Keys pours the entirety of her emotions regarding the subject into this release creating an album both wistful and hopeful and the same time. Keys has new love in her life in producer Swizz Beatz, and it shows. On this album, her release from her turmoil and woes in romance is quite obvious. She covers the entirety of the feeling in this cathartic 53 minute journey into the soul of someone who on this record ascends to being one of the most brilliant songstresses in the history of music.

The album opens with the quotation of Anais Nin’s “Risk,” one of the most brief yet terrifically effusive statements on relationships in the literary realm. It is the unerring desire to have strength in the face of heartbreak that absolutely makes this album a success. This strength mainly comes through on a production level from the work of Plain Pat and Jeff Bhasker, the two individuals most responsible for Kanye West’s 808s and Heartbreak, and all over the album, most specifically on “Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart,” those trademark drum patterns and extremely dark synth work rear their head and take Keys’ typical yearning down a path of hurt insistence, the scorn more than readily apparent. The use of the production team on the album is not necessarily curious, but it does allow for a more than deepened expression.

The element of freedom in this release is Alicia Keys’ ability to stand up and be herself.

This album also marks a move from Alicia Keys from sheer insistence upon her piano and minimal production values. This move is executed beautifully on tracks like album opener “Love is Blind,” where an aforementioned Plain Pat/Jeff Bhasker production is stripped from the realm of hip hop, and taken completely into the realm of pop by Keys’ piano melodies. Even her duet with the omnipresent Drake, “Un-Thinkable” succeeds, as Keys’ maturation as an artist is more than apparent, the element of freedom being far more than just an expression of love. Big and expected hit track “Put It In a Love Song,” a duet with Beyonce is solid as well, featuring those insistent drums again, and direct songwriting by Keys that shows her other talent that is shown as unparalleled on this album. “Like the Sea” as well features drums programmed to crush and crumple instead of crash and smash, into a deepening abyss of a production. The result? A track that Keys makes triumphant by the end by strength and melodious quality of her voice alone.

However, those who are fans of Keys’ mellifluous piano work need not stress, as, well, the album’s absolute success, her broken down and bone stripped take on her duet with Jay Z “Empire State of Mind” is majestic, a pop remix of the hip hop instant classic. Much of the piano driven tracks on here have the feel of classic pop standards, “That’s How Strong My Love Is” sounding like it was stolen straight from the Richard Marx playbook, and the polite dub of “Love is My Disease” sounding like Frampton coming alive once again, both comparisons meant to be positive as both tracks hit #1 and are instantaneously recognizable.

Keys closes out the album with three tracks produced with a direct nod of the head to the purple pride of Paisley Park, Prince, as “This Bed,” “Distance and Time,” and “How it Feels to Fly” all recall the syrupy, overwrought production method of the legendary master, horns, keys and drums combining to create amazing showcases of the emotive qualities of the human spirit. The attempt is faithful, and even if not completely successful, Keys’ virtuoso talents makes her attempt and near perfection better than 100% of the people who would dare to try.

The element of freedom in this release is Alicia Keys’ ability to stand up and be herself. A child driven by the sound of pop music, she now has found the ability and renown to meld so many influences and styles into her mainstream leaning voice, and she does so effortlessly on this album. The album succeeds on the strength of Keys’ otherworldly voice and songwriting, and is buoyed by solid production that merely takes a backseat to the elegance and expressiveness of the artist herself. Though subtly divergent from the formula in which this reviewer finds her to be iconic and most successful, she extends new limbs into new fields and successfully broadens horizons and extends the depth, scope and length of her career.