New Mariah....A Perfect Angel

SO i got a first listen to Mariah's newest album "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel." I gotta say, and don't let my publicly known love for Mariah be any bias, it's actually some of the best work she's done in years. I can admit when i don't really like a Mariah song, but it's got a totally different feel than her last 2 albums. It's pretty much a straight RnB album, and it's going against that hip-hop feel she was trying to do the last 2 albums. I was listening to it on an airplane for 3 hours, so i could get into it and i was actually able to go through it a couple times completely, without skipping a song, which is something i do on pretty much all of her albums at least once. It's a brilliant mixture of her tamed sound, with that belting voice we're all used to. If you want a reference to what it's similar to, think back to the Butterfly album. She's not blowing us away song after song to try and show us she can sing. We know she can. It's that whisper sound a lot of people usually hate, but i don't know what it is on this album that makes it so different and not just tolerable, but enjoyable.

I'll say this, it probably won't be a commercial success with several #1 singles and tons of top 40 play, but for someone who just likes soothing smooth RnB music, it'll do just fine. Honestly, what i think might be the key on this is that Jermaine Durpi is nowhere near it. Produced entirely by Mariah, Tricky, and The Dream, and they've definitely done something serious on this. Taking snippets from classic songs, even taking a throwback to some Jodeci "Forever My Lady," Biggies "One More Chance," and "Back In The Day." My favorites so far are H.A.T.E.U, Standing O, Inseparable, and Angels Cry. The only weird part of the album i think comes from "Ribbon" which has this weird robot sounding opening thing, which could totally turn you off to the song, but once that's over it's actually a decent song.

The album probably isn't for everyone, but if you take into account that she's not trying to be a hip-hop artist on this, and just listen to the album for what it is, i think you'll be pleasantly surprised. We don't need Mariah to make us dance, we just want to be moved by her voice, and i think she's done that for us here. It's actually an album full of slow to mid-tempo songs that lets her do what she wants. I think most of the credit should go to the production, and in my opinion it was the overuse of JD on E=MC2 that took that album down. And now that he's not on this at all, she's got fresh ideas and voices behind her letting her experiment, and using her voice the way she should.

As far as lyrics, Mariah has always been a good song writer when she wants to be, but i think what they took away in the uptempo songs, she put into the lyrics of the slower songs. She's just having fun with some songs, so hopefully no one holds that against her that some lyrics you're like wtf, but you're not supposed to take it seriously. I dunno if it's just me, but listening to songs like "Betcha Gon Know" and "H.A.T.E.U." the lyrics hit home and really make u feel something. So you can see the versatility.

I won't try and compare this to Whitney's album. Although in the comparison of comeback albums, i think Emancipation of Mimi was a better comeback that Whitney's. Both tried to do the same thing, but Mariah did it better cause she can still sing. But no need to get into that. Still got love for Whitney, it just wasn't for me.

Looking at these Vegas she's doing, these songs play perfectly into that intimate setting she wants to have, and possibly a string of intimate shows she'll probably do as a tour. Hopefully people give the album a listen, and feel it. I'm into it.

Fame....why a remake!??!!

OK, so i've been seeing more and more clips of this new Fame movie. I'm convinced it's gonna be awful, but i'm hoping i'll be proven wrong. The original was so awesome at its time, and is in no need of a remake. It was a cult classic in its own right, especially to those kids who know about LaGuardia and that whole lifestyle. From the get go i already hate the new take on the theme song. It's slowed down, doesn't make me wanna bounce around to get the movie started. And then at the end, there's no Body Electric!!! WTF! That's what makes the ending so great. Hopefully there's another song they've come up with. The best we can hope for is that they've got actors who can really sing, play instruments, dance, and ACT! Ugh, this movie is gonna suck but i'll probably see it anyway. And i'll be back to hate.

Possible WNBA fix?

Quick thought. I"m sitting here watching A League Of Their Own, and you see how they made womens baseball interesting to fans, both men and women. Even though it takes place in the 40's, there are a few things the folks over at the WNBA could take notes on. First and foremost, i think, notice that they took women that were probably 95% attractive. If they wanna bring in the men, they gotta have chicks who are worth looking at. Men who loved sports back then aren't really all that different than guys who like sports today. Not sure what the basketball equivalent would be, but a little "dirt in the skirt" could get a lot more viewers. Even the possibility of "oops, my bosom pops out" would make me maybe even consider watching. Maybe a change to the uniform is needed. Another big part, the members of the All American League, had to attend charm school! Call me old fashioned, but if you've ever seen a WNBA player you would agree that they could all use a little primping and beautifying.

They always want to be considered equal to the men, but lets face it, they're not. They've got skills, but they also possess assets that men don't, and they should use them to their advantage. Even look at tennis, while the women play just as hard as the men, and a lot of people are into the women, you can't beat seeing a hot tall Russian running around in a short skirt, or crouching those long legs down while waiting to return serve. I mean, i've got my favorites for who's game i like to watch, but there are others who are just nice to look at and tons will watch for the latter reason alone.

Seems like every other sport has these average-good looking women, and find ways to make them hotter and more appealing to viewers. But what do they do with the WNBA? Just a bunch of tall, manly looking women who make layup after layup for a few months. That's not gonna get people to pay money to watch.

NO one knows what could possibly make the wnba more appealing, but just some suggestions. Keepin it REAL

New Whitney :(

Ok, i know everyone's been waiting for the new Whitney album, to see if she's still got it. Sad to say, i don't think she does. We never look to her for any good lyrics or anything, just wanna hear that booming voice that was so amazing once upon a time. It's a great story and all, for her to come back after being with the King of R&B for all those years, and a clear drug problem, but it's obvious that all that took a toll on her voice. It's still kinda there, but you can hear her struggling through some songs. She just has this rough airy sound to her which is not what we're accustomed to hearing out of her. I shudder to think of what it'll sound like hearing her sing some songs live. It's not like with Mariah where you know she can still sing, although obviously not as good as she was in her prime, but when she wants to she can still make the hairs on your neck stand up.

I'll always love Whitney, and all the hits. But i think we've just been spoiled over the years by that voice, and it's sad to hear that it's gone. Musically, it's not a bad album. And it's not bad to listen to, but it just got a once over. I can groove to some of it, but it's the power ballads we want to hear out of the likes of Whitney and Mariah. I don't really want to dance, but i want to be moved by that voice. I'll wait for a couple live performances that she doesn't blame on Oprah, and see what she's got. If she can sing all these songs tolerably, then she'll deserve the title of "best comeback of all time."

Blueprint 3

Just gave that new Jay-Z a quick once over. Gotta say it's impressive, and i don't think anyone would've expected anything less. I've just given it a quick listen all the way through, so i haven't gone into detail on all the tracks, but i go off that first listen to see how i'm feeling about it. Straight off, i can't say it's better than American Gangster, but then again that was a concept album which was easily a classic. Just proving jigga can do an album any way he wants. I gotta go through this and catch the lyrics, and see if he's throwing anything out there that blows our minds, making us think. Hopefully i'll have an update in the next few days