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Pop Rock Nation

Tag: Janet Jackson

  • New Releases: 2/19/08

    There are slow signs that the release schedule is picking up after sleepwalking through January, but this particular week is a week where a couple of artists and bands that are still under the radar are releasing albums. Next week promises a soul diva showoff between Janet Jackson & Erykah Badu, but in the meantime, check out new albums by:

    The Raveonettes: This Danish duo has gotten tons of press notice over the past couple of years, along with their counterpart in female singers, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. They don’t do a hell of a lot for me, but I don’t know that I’m hip enough to enjoy them! At any rate, “Lust, Lust, Lust” was released internationally last fall, and finally gets it’s U.S. release for those of you who haven’t yet shelled out cash for the import.

    http://www.theraveonettes.com/

    Mike Doughty: Former lead singer of alt-rock with a twist band Soul Coughing back in the Nineties, formerly named M. Doughty, former columnist for the New York Press, Mr. Doughty’s latest solo effort, “Golden Delicious” arrives today. You know I love me some literate rock stars.

    http://www.mikedoughty.com/

    Allison Moorer: I’m not as familiar with Allison Moorer as I am with her sister, Shelby Lynne. Moorer aparently traffics in more “country” circles, but by all accounts, she’s just as talented. Her new album “Mockingbird”, like Shelby’s recent effort, is a covers album. Nina Simone and Joni Mitchell (two of my favorites) are represented here. I wonder if her husband, Steve Earle, makes an appearance on this album.

    http://www.allisonmoorer.com/

    Also coming out today: a brand new “Kidz Bop” CD for those of you who have kids that haven’t yet graduated to the “High School Musical” phase, new albums from long dormant Brit acts Kula Shaker and Morcheeba and the comeback album you’ve all been waiting for from Seven Mary Three. Woo hoo! Long live bad grunge!!

  • Rediscovering Robyn

    Has an artist that you liked ever fallen off the face of the Earth? I’m not talking literally, of course. I’m talking unexplained absences. It’s even more confusing when the artist actually has a hit and then disappears. I mean, I can understand if it’s a situation where you’re the only fan of a particular singer, but why would an artist who sells a shit-ton of records just vanish into thin air?
    Case in point: Robyn. Just before BSB and Britney hit the scene, Robyn scored big with a refreshingly poppy sound, honed by Swedish writers and producers like Max Martin. Robyn also had the benefit of actually being Swedish, so she was getting some of that homegrown. She also had a voice heavily influenced by soul singers (I seem to remember her touting Faith Evans as an influence), so she got love from the R&B crowd as well. Released in the summer of 1997, Robyn’s debut album, “Robyn Is Here”, sold a million copies and spun off three Top 40 pop hits, with the biggest one being “Show Me Love”…
    …which bears more than a passing resemblance to a certain song called “…Baby One More Time” (http://youtube.com/watch?v=_bsniYwSaWg) . The way I see it (and to protect the innocent, I’ll say that this isn’t necessarily the truth), the suits up at Britney & Robyn’s respective labels (who share a distribution company) figured why deal with Robyn when they could find a more pliable, American, and traditionally “sexy” star to promote? After only one album (and a successful one at that…I’m still scratching my head…), Robyn was doomed to a footnote in American pop music culture.
    BUT WAIT…Robyn didn’t exactly fall off the face of the Earth, she just fell off the face of America. The talented Swede has released several more albums in Europe, and they have been commercially and critically well-received. Sensing the time might be right for a comeback (after ELEVEN years), Interscope Records has signed Robyn and released “The Rakamonie EP” in the States in late January. This 5-song collection proves that Robyn has moved far beyond boilerplate Swedish dance/pop, featuring everything from songs that position her as a Missy Elliott/M.I.A hybrid to heartbreaking piano ballads to an uproarious cover of Prince’s “Jack U Off”. In a world where Gwen Stefani, Fergie and Nelly Furtado are among the top pop stars alone (and fading ones like Britney and Janet Jackson are desperately adapting their styles to fit in with the aforementioned three), Robyn provides a sound that doesn’t sound out of place among any of those artists while still managing to forge her own little unique lane.
    So, head to your local record store (or go online) and check out “The Rakamonie EP”. It only cost me 6 bucks and was well worth the money spent.
    For those of you who want another taste, check these clips out:

  • Out Of "Control"

    So the big music news in the blogosphere right now is NOT the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame inductions (I don’t know who The Ventures are, either), but the new Janet Jackson single, “Feedback”, which premiered today.
    As everyone with a pulse knows, Janet’s career has been on a bit of a downslide since the whole tittie at the Super Bowl incident. Her last album, “20 Y.O.”, only sold about 800,000 copies. Not bad for most artists, but not good for someone who used to sell 5 million copies of an album at a clip. An unofficial blacklist by MTV has not helped, not to mention the fact that her last couple of albums have decreased sharply in quality. To be true, she hasn’t released a better than average album since 1997’s “The Velvet Rope”.
    At any rate, “Feedback” has a very Timbo/Justin sound to it (ironic much?) with a hint of Britney. Lyrically, it’s Janet talking about sex, which is only novel to someone who stopped listening after “Rhythm Nation”. Not that it’s a bad song per se, but she can do much better. Her new album comes out 2/26. Let’s hope the material within is better than this…