Hootie & The Blowfish were one of those bands that I always wound up buying records from, but couldn’t figure out *why* I bought them. Because, let’s face it, Hootie’s material was pretty forgettable (in an enjoyable bar-band kind of way). A greatest hits album from those guys is generally all you need.
I must admit that I was quite intrigued when I found out that Darius Rucker, the band’s lead singer, was releasing a solo album. I was even more intrigued when I found that he was abandoning Hootie’s generic rock/pop sound to embrace a funkier, more soulful vibe.
The album that resulted, 2002’s “Back To Then”, wasn’t a superb album. Hootie sounded a little at sea sharing mic space with the likes of Lil’ Mo and Snoop Dogg (who will apparently rap on *anyone”‘s album. However, there are a couple of songs on the album that soar enough to make it worth a purchase-especially nowadays, when you can probably find it dirt cheap.
I’d known for a while that there was a video for “Exodus”, the album’s second single and my favorite track on the album by a fairly wide margin. I couldn’t find it anywhere, until the song popped into my head last night and I decided to check (again) on Youtube. Check the video out. You might be surprised at how good the song is.
For the record, I think that’s Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon (AKA Fancy from the Jamie Foxx Show) in the video, and Musiq Soulchild and Kenna (who’s gonna get a spot on his own in this blog soon) sing background vocals. The video, if I’m not mistaken, was shot in South Africa. What a beautiful song. Of course, after this album flopped, darius went back to Hootie and THEN started making shitty Burger King commercials.
Granted, this is only my third season of even watching one episode, but damn if this isn’t the sorriest crop of contestants I’ve ever seen in my life! Was I spoiled by Season 5? ‘Cause damn, I’d take McPhee, Bennett, Daughtry, Yamin and Taylor over any of this year’s final three.
David Cook is bland beyond milquetoast, David Archuleta is a pretty-singing cipher, and Syesha is in a bit over her head.
Moreso than the blandness of the finalists, though, this season’s episodes have had the slightly sour air of a fix. The product placement is amazingly obvious, and this episode seemed as much of an advertisement for Switchfoot and Diane Warren as it was anything else. (Is it me, or does it seem amazingly obvious that Cook has won this competition?-or at least that the judges are pulling ridiculously strongly for him?). This just feels a little preordained for me, and it makes me feel more than a little uncomfortable. Not like I should care at all, but still…
Sorry, folks. Last week’s set of releases was so crappy that I just couldn’t bring myself to post. Consider yourselves lucky. You avoided a hearty round of Clay Aiken and Chris Sligh jokes (yep, both former “American Idol” contestants released albums last week).
Thankfully, this week’s set of releases is much better. Here’s what’s on tap:
Death Cab for Cutie: Narrow Stairs : It’s kind of hard for me to explain what Death Cab sounds like. Think really strong indie pop with great songwriting. Ben Gibbard is an expressive vocalist, even though he won’t make anyone’s great singers list. Long story short, these guys deserve the hype. I found them with their last album, “Plans”, and if you’re not familiar with these folks, you should start now.
http://www.deathcabforcutie.com/splash/
(yes, the video is 8 minutes long. You’ll get over it.)
Duffy “Rockferry”: It’s not difficult to explain what Duffy sounds like. Think Amy Winehouse. That is all. Amidst the wave of British female singers that have crashed our shores in Amy’s wake, Duffy is the one who has been compared to Wino the most-minus the whole drug addiction thing. Kinda sounds to me like a whitewashed copy, but I’ll be checking the album out anyway.
Jason Mraz “We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things”: Remember Jason Mraz? In the wake of John Mayer, Mraz was the smart-alecky, Boradway kid version of Mr. “Your Body is a Wonderland”. His second album, “Mr. A-Z” overdid it on the pretentiousness, which had already reached fever pitch by that time (remember when he popped up at the Gramy nomination ceremony only to receive ZERO nominations? There were a lot of happy people there). Anyway, everyone deserves a second chance, and this release (which has been preceded by a couple of EPs) might find Mraz dialing down the obnoxiousness a little bit. OK, I just took a look at the website. So, maybe not.
Keith Sweat “Just Me”: It’s been twenty years and Keith Sweat still ain’t too proud to beg. The master of R&B begging is back after a six-year absence, and he’s changed absolutely nothing. Sweat may be approaching 50, but the grooves are still smoove, and Mr. Sweat is still whining and begging for you to love him down, baby!! Keyshia Cole guests.
http://www.thesweathotel.com/
Foxy Brown “Brooklyn’s Don Diva”: I say Li’l Kim, Remy Ma and Foxy should have linked up behind bars and put together a group or something. At any rate, with two of the three out of the clink, that won’t happen, so Foxy’s long-delayed fourth album finally arrives (this album has been pushed back so many times that she’s served her entire term since it’s initial release date). If you don’t buy this album, she might throw a BlackBerry or some hair glue at you. Watch out.
(apparently, Foxy doesn’t have a website)
Most of this week’s releases similarly come from the “Where The Hell Have YOU Been?” category. Remember Filter? They’re back with an album. How about Ashlee Simpson’s former boyfriend Ryan Cabrera? He’s back with a skeevy new look (and now is dating one of Lisa Marie Presley’s kids) and an independently-released album. And if you’re hankering for some of that mid-Eighties pop/rock flavor, you might want to check out Bryan Adams’ new album, cleverly titled “11”. Hint, it’s his 11th album.
OH!! Speaking of long vacations, the New Kids on the Block return with their first group release in fourteen years. “Summertime” is available for purchase at iTunes and all the other major subscription/pay-download services. Hangin’ tough!!
Happy shopping, folks.
And here’s the full list…
http://www.pauseandplay.com/cdfront.htm
