Black Eyed Peas, Green Day, Franco 'El Gorila,' Mos Def and Method Man & Redman
the music press
mon 6/15/2009
- Black Eyed Peas' latest, The E.N.D. (The Energy Never Dies), is "likely to dominate radio and the Internet this summer, its sharp flavors simultaneously driving listeners nuts and drawing them back," according to The Los Angeles Times. The quartet's fifth album gets a "B" from Entertainment Weekly: "When the group's glitchy future-funk beats sync up with Fergie's unabashedly feminine melodies… they find pure Top 40 nirvana." The U.K.'s Guardian has mixed feelings: "Many of these electro-pop-rap tracks sound as though they were recorded with DJs in mind, rather than fans."
- Five years after the release of the critically-acclaimed American Idiot, pop-punkers Green Day deliver their eighth album, 21st Century Breakdown. Punk magazine Alternative Press is impressed: "Breakdown brims with a type of self-confidence the band never before expressed on tape – the kind that only comes with a multi-platinum, universally acclaimed success and the attached feeling that you can do no wrong." Rolling Stone can't get enough: "[It's] so masterful and confident it makes Idiot seem like a warm-up."
- Reggaetonero Franco "El Gorila" makes his debut with Welcome To The Jungle, a "sure-fire reggaetón fix for fans of Wisin y Yandel and other high-profile players," according to About. Blog Real Talk Reggaetón says its a surprise: "Franco shows his soft side."
- Veteran rapper and actor Mos Def is back with The Ecstatic, "easily his finest full-length since Black on Both Sides, his 1999 solo debut," according to Spin magazine. USA Today agrees: "In the intervening years, he's probably drawn more critical acclaim for his acting than his interesting but inconsistent music. But he fully realizes his promise as one of hip-hop's most contemplative rappers." Hip hop blogger/hater Bryon "Bol" Crawford is yawning: "The whole thing just plods along, with Mos often sounding worn out and bored. It’s only when guest emcees show up that Mos sounds invigorated."
- A decade after they teamed up on Blackout!, Method Man and Redman release a sequel, Blackout! 2, a "blast of nostalgia that doesn’t sound bitter or even particularly dated," according to The New York Times. "The veteran dynamic duo brings electricity and a desperately needed sense of humor to the hip-hop scene," writes The Boston Globe, adding: "Only they, and their weed dealers, know why it took a decade for them to drop these sizzling tracks." Vibe magazine says it passes the smell test: "Red and Meth never stray too far from witty punch lines and their Cheech & Chong-of-rhyme act."
fact-similies
daily dos
mon 5/26/2008
Rappers Kanye West, Method Man, Redman and Common are being sued by the daughter of jazz musician Joe Farrell for using uncleared samples of his music. (via Nah Right)
LaCangrylicious Says:
