John Legend Evolver

Fuzzy Bits:

Released October 28, 2008

Last Album: Once Again (2006)

Sounds Like: A much needed change of pace for Legend that almost completely pays off.

Overall Rating: 78  

For all the recognition and talent, John Legend generally erred on the safe side when it comes to his musical approach. There wasn’t much wrong with that, but after sticking to formula for two straight albums, Legend smartly decided to look to a new formula for the platform of Evolver. This time around, the music is much more heavily rooted in the 80’s, highlighted by the outstanding single “Green Light,” which features Outkast’s Andre 3000. It’s borderline unfortunate that this albatross of a song is the opener, as it makes the album incredibly top-heavy with jams, a pace that Legend unfortunately doesn’t maintain. “It’s Over” is another great song that manages to work in spite of Kanye West showing up with his insipid, auto-tuned cameo. Meanwhile “Everybody Knows” bridges Legend’s older sound with the new and is quite successful in the process. The reggae vibe on “No Other Love” with Estelle also goes without a hitch.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a John Legend album without grotesque inconsistencies, and Evolver doesn’t escape this downfall. The absolutely pointless “Quickly” wastes a Brandy guest spot, while “This Time” belongs on a top muzak station, or perhaps something that should’ve been written for Yanni.

The fact that there are only two wasted songs on an album of thirteen total tracks is a good omen for Legend. The only problem is that there’s too much partying on the first half and too much vapid, sentimentalism on the second half. A better mix of the two sides would’ve made for a more successful album, or perhaps if Legend, once again, decided not to play it so safe as the album went on, there also wouldn’t be this problem.

That aside, Evolver shows a great deal of promise for John Legend. He’s definitely more than a one trick pony, now he just has to work on that consistency bit.

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Ryan Adams & The Cardinals Cardinology

Fuzzy Bits:

Release Date: October 28, 2008

Last Album: Easy Tiger (2007)

Sounds Like: Arguably Ryan Adams’ best album to date.

Overall Rating: 95

Amazing the difference a backing band makes. While this is the fourth album they’ve worked on together, there’s a clear sense of newfound maturity and steady evolution from album to album that hadn’t been seen when Ryan Adams was flying solo. Despite the length, Cold Roses was long the gold standard for Ryan Adams’ later works, and somehow Cardinology even exceeds that mark with its tighter and slightly more polished sound. To take it one step further, Cardinology, while vastly different from say Heartbreaker or Gold in its overall soundscape, could very well be the best album Ryan Adams has ever made.

The cocky bravado that occasionally tripped up the Adams of old has been replaced by a calm, understated confidence that comes with Adams being genuinely comfortable working with the Cardinals– so much so that he originally wanted the album to be released under the name The Cardinals.

This new sense of self and confidence in his band is immediately apparent with the opening tracks, especially on the single “Fix It.” “Magick,” intentionally silly lyrics aside, is a total blast, and one of the harder Adams tracks in a long time. The laid back productions are a bit misleading, as it suggests that each of the songs were mere impromptu recordings and not anything that was carefully constructed. However, listening to tracks like “Cobwebs,” “Let Us Down Easy,” and the closer “Stop,” one can see the genuine attention to detail on the part of Adams and his band.

As I stated on the preview of the album, Cardinology probably won’t immediately win over Adams’ casual fan base or garner any new fans, for that matter. That being said, for anyone that gives the album a genuine close listen, you will certainly be rewarded with one of the few fine examples of what many would call the borderline-genius side of Ryan Adams.

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New from Kanye West: “Robocop” and “Coldest Winter”

This will likely be the last post on Kanye for a while, because not only are his songs becoming increasingly embarrassing, they are also wanting me want to stab myself in the ears and I don’t think anyone should have to sit through any more ‘Ye than they have to. It’s clear that the goal behind 808’s & Heartbreak is to polarize as many fans and critics as possible, but even so, one has to wonder what the hell is going on in Mr. West’s head. All that being said, here’s the latest from Kanye:

Kanye West “Robocop” 808’s & Heartbreak

Kanye West “Coldest Winter” 808’s & Heartbreak

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Ryan Adams’ Cardinology now streaming on iLike

As Ryan Adams’ latest release with the Cardinals continues to garner hype, Cardinology can now be found streaming on iLike for those cynics who aren’t yet sold on the latest release based on “Fix It” alone. While early listening suggests the album will do nothing to change the minds of the many Adams haters out there, it seems to be a step above Easy Tiger.

Click here to stream the album, Cardinology, to be released October 28.

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of Montreal Skeletal Lamping

Fuzzy Bits:

Release Date: October 21, 2008

Last Album: Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? (2006)

Sounds Like: Kevin Barnes completely lost his mind… and for of Montreal fans, that’s a wonderful thing.

Overall Rating: 90

When listening to any of Montreal album, there’s a certain weirdness to be expected. However, on this album– a menagerie of sex, sex, and more sex– it’s clear that this is Barnes at his most uninhibited, leading to the most rewarding listen of the year. It’s difficult to be sure, and will even alienate the most dedicated Of Montreal fan, but the elaborate displays of excess appear to be right up Kevin Barnes’ alley on Skeletal Lamping.

If there’s a certain pattern that every song follows, it’s pretty much the following:

Begin as a somewhat familiar Of Montreal song, interject sexual witticisms so blunt that it could make Paris Hilton blush, turn the song on its head, resolve into some sort of harmonic bliss.

Formulas or not, however, Skeletal Lamping is every bit as enjoyable as Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? as it carries that similar sense of “What is possibly going to happen next?” The idea of Barnes playing out this alter ego of Georgie Fruit (a black transvestite with quite the appetite) is enough on its own, but hearing Barnes blurt out lyrics such as “I’m a m**********n’ headliner b**** you don’t even know it” (“Wicked Wisdom”) or “We can do it softcore if you want but you should know I take it both ways” (“For Our Elegant Caste”), is both humorous and, oddly enough, add to the albums overall quirky and perverse appeal.

Unsurprisingly, as unhinged as Skeletal Lamping is, there’s a lot to the album that many would look at as simply over the top for the sake of being so– an opinion which is wholly accurate. As an album about primal excess it only makes sense that the philosophy would also translate musically, and truthfully the whole experience is so much fun, it’s difficult to give a damn.

While Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? was an all out, refined masterpiece, Skeletal Lamping ratchets up the fun and throws consequence to the side. If you can handle Barnes’ innermost impulses as expressed through his wacky world of Georgie Fruit, Skeletal Lamping is quite a romp.

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New video from Beck: “Modern Guilt”

Now here’s an intriguing video from Beck– looks as though he’s been watching a lot of German Expressionism lately based on the results of this video. It doesn’t necessarily do anything for the song, but it’s relatively humorous nonetheless.

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New Kanye West: “Heartless”

While it hasn’t been mastered yet, ‘Ye gave the world another peek inside the world of 808’s & Heartbreak with “Heartless.” Unlike “Love Lockdown,” “Heartless” is, crappy lyrics aside, a pretty decent song. It’s a bit more substantial than the previous release, a quality that should improve even more once it reaches the completed version. While it’d be nice to believe that West has a decent enough singing voice that he doesn’t have to rely so heavily on auto-tune, it’s either simply not the case, or this is merely a part of the digitized aesthetic he’s going for.

Kanye West “Heartless” 808’s & Heartbreak

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Wilco offers free download of “I Shall Be Released” with Fleet Foxes

You may remember back in the beginning of September I posted a video of Wilco performing the Bob Dylan penned classic with Fleet Foxes. Now only a couple months after the August 23rd show that the cover originated from, we have a free MP3 available, under the promise that you vote in November. Listen to the outstanding performance below. To download the song, just click here and fill in your information. Enjoy!

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Ray LaMontagne Gossip in the Grain

Fuzzy Bits:

Release Date: October 14, 2008

Last Album: Till the Sun Turns Black (2006)

Sounds Like: LaMontagne has hit on a very promising direction.

Overall Rating: 84

If anything, Ray LaMontagne has proven that he can change musical directions on a dime, as his first two albums are near mirror images of each other. On Gossip in the Grain, one only has to go as far as listening to the near-perfect opener “You Are the Best Thing”– a song so good with its heavy R&B influence and Joe Cocker-ish flare, that it would seem to set the rest of the album up for certain failure. Surprisingly, that’s not entirely the case. While “Let It Be Me” makes for an awkward juxtaposition with the former track, the Cat Stevens influenced “Sarah,” haunting “I Still Care for You” and the incredibly intimate “Winter Birds” all carry their weight in their own respective ways. The ode to White Stripes drummer “Meg White” is more than just a clever tune, Ennio Morricone intro notwithstanding. Sure, the lyrics won’t win LaMontagne any awards (“Meg White, you’re alright/In fact I think you’re pretty swell/Can’t you tell?”), but the song works because of its quirks and LaMontagne never taking himself all that seriously during the song. The two definitive roots tracks, “Hey Me, Hey Mama” and “Henry Nearly Killed Me” are both novel, but lacking in substance– although the former is a much easier listen between the two (“Henry…” is all the hootin’ and hollerin’ without any real soul, paling to the delta blues prototype LaMontagne is going for). Finally, Gossip in the Grain finishes strong with the slow country-influenced piece “A Falling Through” and the closing title track.

LaMontagne never appears to be afraid of showing his versatility, and while that doesn’t always make for the most coherent albums, it can make for a very interesting and enjoyable listening experience as heard on Gossip in the Grain. It’d be an interesting prospect to see what would happen if LaMontagne looked to expound his R&B sound further, but in the meantime Gossip in the Grain will continue to impress his supporters as well as those outside of his fan base.

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Rachael Yamagata Elephants… Teeth Sinking Into Heart

Fuzzy Bits:

Release Date: October 7, 2008

Last Album: Happenstance (2004)

Sounds Like: An album full of good ideas is weighed down by an unnecessary approach.

Overall Rating: 80

After releasing a commercial and critical success debut, Rachael Yamagata found herself without a label. After four long years, Yamagata was finally able to release the second album that had been delayed for over a year, this time with Warner Brothers. As most know, a four  year absence has a way of heightening expectations, and perhaps to counteract that Yamagata and company went the safe route. The Elephants half of the album contains songs that are a mere continuation of the saddest or prettiest moments from her debut, and she only begins to really change course on the comparatively jarring Teeth Sinking into Heart side. This formula almost never works, and it’s no different here, as Yamagata would’ve been much better off trimming the fat from the first bit and taking the best two or three tracks from the second disc rather than releasing a double album. That being said, she shows some true maturation on the nine-minute “Sunday Afternoon,” a pure gem that manages to grow increasingly beautiful over time. The opening title track is another beautiful piece that somehow seems fitting for a Damien Rice album, and her duet with Ray LaMontagne (appropriately titled “Duet”) is another very impressive and intimate song.

On Teeth Sinking into Heart, Yamagata seems to have a lot of good ideas that miss the mark on execution. “Sidedish Friend” is a semi-clever song that never quite accomplishes the edginess that Yamagata’s capable of, instead falling off into the realm of KT Tunstall. “Pause the Tragic Ending” is a much more successful attempt, with its uneasy lounge feel serving as the perfect background for Yamagata’s ever smoky vocals.

The problem with Elephants… Teeth Sinking Into Heart isn’t so much in the songs– although there’s nothing on the album that will instantly grab you in the way that Happenstance could– the problem is in the organization. Fourty minutes of slow, sad ballads is far too much, and to tack on that with five songs that comparatively “rock out,” doesn’t allow the album to unfold in any natural order. That being said, it’s good to finally hear Yamagata making music again, and one can only hope it won’t be another four years before her third release.

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