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Pop Rock Nation

Category: Releases

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  • New Release of the Week 4/14/09: Day26

    day26

    Not exactly the most exciting week for new releases (man, how much have I been saying THAT lately?), we begin this week’s column with a group that begs two questions: What happened to the R&B group? and Are there any acts left on Bad Boy Records? Shit, think back fifteen years, and the R&B scene was littered with groups: Boyz II Men, Jodeci, Shai, Silk, Intro, Hi-Five, Color Me Badd…now I can barely think of any besides Mint Condition (the only R&B band left on the scene). BIIM’s last release was a covers record,  New Edition pretty much now exists only as a touring group, and everyone else broke up, it seems. What the hell, man?

    Similarly, remember when Bad Boy’s roster boasted The Notorious B.I.G., Faith Evans, Mase, 112 and a handful of others? Well, Biggie’s dead, Mase found Jesus (again), 112 split up, Faith switched labels, and the only acts left on Bad Boy appear to be Diddy himself, Cassie (who really doesn’t need to release another albums) and Day26. Although I’m not the biggest fan (actually, I’m not a fan at all), I at least give props to these cats for carrying the torch.

    Here’s some other stuff hitting stores this week that you may find interesting.

    Beck “One Foot in the Grave” (remastered w/bonus tracks)– Remember when Beck first came out, he had two record deals? His pop stuff was released through Geffen, while his more indie-flavored, uncommercial stuff was free to be released on other labels? Well, for those who don’t remember, “One Foot in the Grave” was the first of those lo-fi recordings after the success of “Mellow Gold” in ’94. Me? I’m not so much a fan of lo-fi Beck, but it’s nice to see his work getting the deluxe treatment.

    Easy Star All Stars “Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band”-Following in the footsteps of “Dub Side of the Moon” and “Radiodread” (which tackled “OK Computer”), this album features a reggae makeover of the entire “Sgt. Pepper’s…” album. Not sure how appealing that sounds to you if you’re a Beatles fan, but the previous installments of this series have been quite listenable, actually. The album features everyone from Jamaican legends Steel Pulse to the hellbent-on-proving-he’s-not-a-one-hit-wonder Matisyahu. Remember him?

    Fastball “Little White Lies”– Those of you who thought Fastball disappeared after scoring smash hits with “Out of My Head” and “The Way”, well, you’re wrong. The power-pop trio is back with their first album in five years. Although I don’t know much beyond the two singles, I have friends who swear these guys can do no wrong, and they certainly have a way with a hook. This one might be worth a listen.

    Bernie WIlliams “Moving Forward”-Although my body is in Boston these days, my baseball heart will always be with the Yankees (that sound you just heard was me getting kicked in the head by 100 Red Sox fans). Retired Yank Bernie Williams has released albums of his instrumental guitar work before, and they’ve been surprisingly well-received-or at least well-received enough that I can’t think of a comparable athlete’s venture into music that was as successful. Anyway, Bernie pulled in the big guns for this release, as he got Bruce Springsteen to appear on this album. I always knew The Boss had good taste in baseball teams.

    Get your complete list of this week’s new releases here.

  • New Release of the Week 4/7/09: Rascal Flatts

    flattsBased on this week’s articles so far, you might think we’ve turned into a country website. Never fear, the cowboy hat is only temporarry, but country music informs this week’s new release column as well.

    Fresh off their ACM win for Best Country Group (unseating Brooks & Dunn after something like 14 straight wins), Rascal Flatts release their new album, “Unstoppable”, today. Now, I don’t have a problem with these guys per se. Let’s face it, most modern country acts are pretty vanilla. But, as I’ve said in a column before, Rascal Flatts is basically *Nsync with tight jeans and cowboy boots. I’ve honestly got no desire to seek out music by them, but if something’s playing, I won’t change the station. Nevertheless, these guys sell kajillions of records without my help. Watch for them to challenge U2 for the best-selling first week of the year so far.

    Here are some of today’s other hot releases:

    Billy Ray Cyrus “Back to Tennessee”– Talk about improbable comebacks. Turns out all Billy Ray Cyrus had to do to remain relevant was cut his mullet off and have a kid. Since Miley’s career blossomed two or three years ago, Billy Ray has undergone a career resurgence. “Back to Tennessee” is poised to continue that hot streak. Not so coincidentally, it contains duets with Miley, as well as a song that will be featured in Miley’s upcoming “Hannah Montana” movie.

    Fat Joe “Jealous Ones Still Envy 2”– Fat Joe is one of those guys who has just kinda stuck around for no good reason. A couple of catchy singles here and there shouldn’t take away from the fact that Mr. Cartegena is pretty much a one-note rapper. A head-scratcher in my eyes is how he seemed to improve as a rapper as soon as Big Pun came on the scene. While I believe that the man hires some solid ghostwriters, that has yet to be proven. “J.O.S.E. 2” features guest appearances by (surprise) Akon, (bigger surprise) T-Pain, and (oh my God!) Lil’ Wayne

    Jadakiss “The Last Kiss” -Five years between albums for a moderately successful rapper should be a career-killer, and I don’t think anyone expects the former LOX member to break any sales records with this album-he’s simply been away for too long, and as everyone knows, the tastes of rap fans are very fickle. “The Last Kiss”, his first album for Roc-a-Fella Records (does Jay-Z even have anything to do with this label anymore) thankfully does not feature Akon, T-Pain or Lil’ Wayne, but does feature Ne-Yo, several members of the Wu-Tang Clan, and Faith Evans on “Letter to B.I.G.”, which was released earlier this year on the “Notorious” soundtrack.

    Jason Aldean “Wide Open”– Quiet as kept, Aldean’s career has gotten off to a pretty solid start. His 2005 debut went Platinum, and the follow-up went Gold. Current single “She’s Country” has blasted up the charts, which augurs good things for his third album. Will this album bring Jason up to the ranks of guys like Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley? Hard to tell, but this is one to definitely keep an eye on. He’s pretty easy on the eyes, too.

    James Taylor “Other Covers”– I love JT. Really I do. But damn man, think of some more original album titles, PLEASE. His first covers set, released last year, was called simply “Covers”. So he’s releasing a follow-up EP and what does he call it? “Other Covers”. Maybe his next album will be called “Album”. Or “Songs”. Anyhow, Taylor’s getting a little soulful here. Among the songs he tackles are Wilson Pickett’s “In the Midnight Hour” and Eddie Floyd’s “Knock on Wood”. I just got a mental picture of JT doing “Knock on Wood” in disco style a la Amii Stewart. Gave me a little chuckle. Ha.

    You can get a full list of today’s releases here.

  • First Look: Ciara & Justin’s “Love Sex Magic”

    Ciara’s “Fantasy Ride” is one of those albums that was SUPPOSED to come out ages ago, but her record company just hasn’t found a song that caught fire. Enter Justin Timberlake, and voila, not only does Ciara have another hit on her hands, but the album’s finally been given a firm May release date. The song’s called “Love Sex Magic”, and the video is below.

    A lot of folks hate on JT, but I’m not mad at the dude at all. Although he’s obviously not as talented as HE thinks he is, the fact of the matter is that he was behind one of the few 50 Cent songs I like (“Ayo Technology”), finally turned me around to appreciating T.I. (“Dead & Gone”), and was behind most of the good stuff on Madonna’s last album. Hell, I wouldn’t even be caught near a Ciara record if not for this song. While I still won’t buy the album, this is definitely worth the 99 cents (or $1.29 now that their prices are being raised) on iTunes.

    As for the video, well, damn. All I have to say is that if Ciara moves like that, she should be in the circus.