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Pop Rock Nation

Category: Releases

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  • The SonicClash Mini-Review: Keri Hilson

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    Keri Hilson’s debut has been one of the more anticipated recent releases in R&B. The beauty has made a name for herself as a songwriter, and a cameo on Timbaland’s hit “The Way I Are” raised her profile and set the stage for her first official album, In a Perfect World…. Having already spawned three hit singles, my curiosity was piqued. I had to find out what Keri was all about.

    I could’ve done without it. Perfect World is a mixed bag. Hilson has a pleasant singing voice. It’s a thin but deceptively versatile instrument very much like the voice of fellow R&B diva Ciara. The fact that Hilson writes her own material should vault her over the anonymous singers that share her style, but her songwriting is no great shakes. Unlike fellow soul singer/songwriters like, say, Ne-Yo (who co-stars opposite Hilson and Kanye West on the current hit Knock You Down, one of this album’s highlights), Hilson’s pen game is generic, and she hasn’t mastered the one art every great songwriter knows-melody.

    My other issue with In a Perfect World…? Everything sounds super-canned. I have nothing against synth-pop, usually. However, the best of that sub-genre usually has some feeling behind it. Keri Hilson? Not so much. Even Aaliyah had an air of concentrated cool that permeated her records. This album has no soul, and I would think that the average person looking in the R&B section for an album would be looking for some kind of soul, right?

    Keri Hilson’s definitely a talented lady, but maybe just not as talented as the press and hype machine would like us to believe that she is. In a Perfect World…sounds like it was focus-grouped into oblivion, tailor-made to fit onto pop and R&B radio circa 2009. The end result is listening to something like “Loose” or “FutureSex/LoveSounds” with all the character sucked out of it, which leaves you with danceable beats and not much else. And danceable beats alone do not make for a good album. So, ultimately, in a perfect world…, you’d be best off leaving this album in the rack at the record store.

  • First Look: DMB’s “Funny the Way it Is”

    What was the name of that ridiculous Adam Sandler movie where he and Kevin James played two straight firefighters posing as a gay couple for marriage benefits? I may not remember the movie’s title, but I do remember the brief appearance of Dave Matthews in the movie, a wordless cameo as a flamboyant clothing store employee. Based on facial expressions alone, it was obvious that Dave had the chops to be a fabulous comedic actor. Well, in his new video, Dave spends a ton of time mugging for the camera. “Funny the Way it Is” actually kinda reminds me of some of Peter Gabriel’s excellent 80s videos.

    One thing kinda weirds me out, though. This is a Dave Matthews Band video, right? Then where the hell is the band? Stefan and Carter appear in the clip for about 3 seconds each, while Boyd Tinsley isn’t in the video at all. Weird. Why do I get this sinking feeling that this current tour will be the band’s last?

    Anyway, check the clip out and let us know what you think.

  • Chart Chat 6/10/09: The GrooGrux King is On the Throne

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    It’s a good week to be Dave Matthews. His band’s album “Big Whiskey & the GrooGrux King” makes a grand entrance at the top of the Billboard charts this week. DMB scores the 3rd biggest first week of the year (behind Eminem and U2), with over 424,000 folks picking the album up last week. It’s DMB’s fifth consecutive album to debut at #1 on the charts. Interesting to note that the three biggest sales weeks of the year have come from veterans, all with over 10 years in the industry. Are newer artists just not coming with good music, or is there just a different concept of fan loyalty with the newer generation?

    It’s a pretty big week for debuts, with 311’s new “Uplifter” coming in at #3, the supergroup Chickenfoot at #6, and the new one from Taking Back Sunday right behind at #7. Rancid’s return to the indie label world nets them a #11 debut, Elvis Costello pops in at #13, and Mitchel Musso (I don’t know who he is, but I guess I’ll find out) enters at #19.

    At this time last year, only one album had crossed the million-selling threshold (Jack Johnson’s “Sleep Through the Static”). In what must be good news for the ailing indistry, two albums have passed the million mark so far (Taylor Swift & the “Hannah Montana” movie soundtrack), and Eminem will jump past the million-sold mark next week.

    Speaking of Slim Shady, his much discussed incident with Sasha Baron Cohen wasn’t the only highlight of the MTV Movie Awards. Kings of Leon’s performance catapults them from #15 to #12 on a 50% increase in sales. This is the highest chart position yet for “Only by the Night”, which is already the band’s best selling album. Multiple award winner “Twilight”‘s soundtrack also shows some life, jumping two places to #15 on a 19% increase.

    Kings of Leon have the third biggest increase of the week, following singer-songwriter Matt Nathanson (with a 69% increase) and British soul singer James Morrison, whose sales jump a whopping 232% to send him back onto the chart for the first time in a couple of months.

    Is it too early to consider Green Day’s “21st Century Breakdown” a flop? I mean, in this day and age any album that crosses Gold territory in four weeks can’t be a total failure, but I think the general consensus is that better sales out of the gate were expected following the success of “American Idiot”. New single “21 Guns” is right in the pocket of pop and rock radio, so I wouldn’t count these guys out yet.