On the making of the album, Common said “I created this music for the summer time, it’s about feeling good… this is the type of music I felt was missing from my body of work.”
Which is why he released it in December!
This album, being the first one I’ve reviewed in ages, is like a horse with a broken leg. It’s struggling to move and it’s dragging it’s nearly dead body through the mud, but you know that it’s going to have to go to the glue factory sooner or later.
This album is like turning up to an empty playground, on your own, in winter. There’s a promise of something fun and nice and exciting, but after 5 minutes of sitting around, maybe going on the swings by yourself, you get incredibly bored and just want to go home, get drunk and shout at the T.V.
There are songs that sound, in the first 4-5 seconds to be kind of entertaining with interesting beats and cool rhythms, but once you hit the 10 second mark, you realize that it’s actually not very good and there ensues the kind of tedium that is usually reserved for maths lessons.
Tedious is probably the best way to describe this album. I may have found a new cure for insomnia.
It’s a shame because I seem to remember Common being pretty cool in the past, but maybe I’m thinking of someone else.
Once I struggle to the end of each song, the next one starts and instantly I recognize the promise of the new song, and again, very quickly, the boredom sets in once more.
Listen to this album: After you’ve brushed your teeth, as you may fall asleep.
Knowing nothing of this band, I turn it on, expecting something very bland and stale, I would have heard of them if they were any good, right?
They’re amazing. The best band I’ve never heard of until 5 minutes ago. The depth of hip-hop, rock guitars, reggae influences and rhythm and blues all working together really works well for me.
It’s like a party in my ears and everyone’s invited. The fun that happens on the record is just one those things that cause you to have fun. Even though I’m tired and my head hurts a but, I’m dancing around in my seat. I would love to find a live recording of this band, as I imagine that they would be a lot of fun. They resemble Black Eyed Peas in that respect and the music, in places, reminds me of the BEP.
The combinations of styles on this record are quite amazing, because they do all of them so well. They have pop-punk on ‘Live a little’ they have hip hop on ‘Don’t tell me it’s over’ and reggae on ‘Blinded by the sun’ among others on others.
The underlying theme on all of the songs is dancy rap.
There really isn’t much more to say, other than listen to this album and I’m quite sure that if you have any kind of interest in happy hip-hop then you will very happy with this album. It will take you to a nice restaurant, offer to pay for your meal (including desert) and walk you home without trying to take advantage once it gets you there. A real gentleman of an album, with a cheeky smile and a glint in his eye.
Listen to this album: With a group of people, watch everyone start dancing.
89%
Extract from ‘Guilty as charged’, ‘Blinded by the sun’, ‘Live a little’ and ‘Don’t tell me it’s over’
You can tell by listening to this album that it would be so much better if you were experiencing it live. It has an energy and entertainment potentiality that is mainly lost on the recording.
I really fell like I’m missing out while I’m listening to the album, not to say that it isn’t a really fantastic album, but the feeling that I’m not getting everything I can, from a band that I know is great, leaves me feeling cheated. I don;t remember their previous albums having this same sense of live expectancy, and maybe it’s because they were more complete albums and this has something missing, or what.
I do feel myself wanting to dance while waiting for my train, while I listen to this album. The beats are really good, the lyrics are not the most profound of intellegent, but it’s all filled wiith fun, and you can tell that NERD really wanted to do this, and loved every minute of it.
The bass is heavy, the drums are big and the energy is fantastic. Go see them live and tell me if they are better live.
Listen to this album: While they perform it live.
Rating: 84%
Extracts from ‘Anti-Matter’, ‘Spaz’. ‘Kill Joy’ and ‘You know what’
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