As usual, there were no surprises about how Drake’s new album “Iceman” was going to sound. There’s fucking too much autotune. Some of the beats are actually quite good, but most of the songs are overproduced and lifeless. As usual, Drake retreats into his comfort zone of using the oversaturated autotune. No one wants it anymore; stop using it.
It brings fuck all to the atmosphere. There are too many tracks just for the sake of it. The record is just utterly shite. My ears are bleeding after that.
I, like many, have been looking forward to the return of Stereophonics after frontman and chief songwriter Kelly Jone explored a different creative avenue with Far from Saints. The burning question was, which direction would the band explore? Well, their new album, “Make Em Laugh, Make Em Cry, Make Em Wait” was recorded in the legendary halls of Stylus, RAK, and Metropolis studios in London, promising something original as they returned to recording together.
It was surprising that they returned with a record consisting of eight tracks, which is quite short for a long play, and therefore, it created a little apprehension. Would these eight tracks feature the explosive energy we have become accustomed to from the Welsh rockers? (I say Welsh Argentinians are also in the band.) To put it bluntly, the answer is a nuanced album.
While it has fleeting moments reminiscent of anthems such as ‘Bartender and the Thief’, the record takes a bold departure from Phonics’ previous styles. It leans more towards an introspective and subdued version, a shift that may intrigue and challenge listeners. It embraces the melancholic beauty of tracks like ‘Maybe Tomorrow’. This unexpected direction may not align with people’s initial expectations, but it certainly opens the door to a new, open-minded listening experience.
However, every cloud has a silver lining, which can be found in Kelly Jones’s songwriting prowess. The slower tempos and stripped-back arrangements allow his storytelling to shine. His trademark gravelly vocals, with a lifetime of experience, cut through the instrumentation, showing his more fragile side that commands your attention. Kelly is one of the great songwriters of our time, and through this album, you can appreciate his craft.
What “Make Em Laugh, Make Em Cry, Make Em Wait” lacks in raucous energy; it more than makes up for with its profound lyrical depth and emotional resonance. While some fans may have been hoping for the band’s explosive, more vintage tone and might be surprised by the subdued pace, those with a more open-minded approach will find solace in the album’s introspective sound. This record may not be filled with the stadium-rocking anthems we were all expecting, but it’s a testament to Kelly’s enduring talent and the band’s emotional journey. After a few listens, the record grows on you, offering a glimpse into the heart and mind of one of the top Welsh songwriters.
Song recommendations: ‘Colours of October’, ‘Backroom Boys’, ‘Mary is a Singer’
I have been a fan of Kendrick’s since I first heard him back in 2019. His flow and lyricism impressed me. He also seldom uses autotune, which is always a good thing. He doesn’t chat a lot of shit that most of the modern rappers talk about. You can see why 2pac is his idol. Like his idol, he also talks less about materialistic things and focuses on political and everyday matters. Fuck what you might have heard from stuck-up journalists snarling at this album because it is brilliant. Of course, there is a trio of tracks that utilise autotune, but the rest of the record is great apart from that.
What I also like about Kendrick’s albums is they are the same as his idol. Creative and original from their predecessors. Lamar includes old-school soul, old-school RnB, violins, Spanish guitars, trap drums and flirts with rhythms. There is also the sample of 2pac’s ‘Made Ni**az ’. It’s a personal favourite of my 2pac songs. 2pac’s influence on Kendrick’s music is undeniable, and this is evident in his sampling of ‘Made Ni *az ‘. However, my only complaint with sampling it for ‘Reincarnated’ is that he seems to be emulating Pac’s style rather than expressing originality. I can still tell it’s Kendrick because of the flow, but he seems to be trying to deliver the same as Pac did on ‘Made Ni*az’. The video is also the same. I am unsure if Kendrick is in it because the one I saw was the original with Pac, or as he was known on that track, Makaveli Tha Don.
As you’re aware, Kendrick has recently experimented with a pop element in his music, a move that added a unique twist to his Drake diss track, ‘Not Like Us’. It’s a bit disheartening that this wasn’t part of the album, as I was quite taken with how he dismantled Drake with undeniable truths. However, a similar vibe can be found in ‘tv off’, a track featuring lefty gunplay. While it may not be a diss track, the production bears a striking resemblance. ‘Not Like Us’ was brought to life by Mustard, and Kendrick has once again enlisted his services for this particular track, which is a real bop.
Aside from ‘Reincarnated’, my favourite track for obvious reasons, my other favourite is the captivating ‘Heart pt. 6’. It’s one of those tracks that hooks you in with its production within seconds, and then enthralls you with its lyricism and delivery within a minute. His delivery, in particular, has a unique blend that reminds me of the Ying-Yang Twins with a hint of Q-Tip. But let’s not get too distracted. This is a track that you’ll find yourself drawn to, wanting to hear it again and again.
Another reason to admire ‘heart pt.6’ is Kendrick Lamar’s unwavering respect for 2pac. He once again outshines Drake with his lyricism and undeniable facts. It’s about time that the truth about Drake was revealed. It’s reassuring to see a 2pac fan like Kendrick Lamar stepping up. Drake’s recent insult to Pac , by using his rapping on one of his many subpar tracks , didn’t sit well with Kendrick. He made sure to let the fake rapper know exactly how Pac fans felt about it.
My final favourite is also the final track featuring SZA, ‘Gloria’. This is Kendrick’s version of Makaveli Tha Don’s ‘Me and My Girlfriend’, except that ‘Gloria’ is a girl rather than a gun. It also mirrors the middle, similar to ‘My and My Girlfriend’.
Although you can hear that Kendrick is heavily inspired by 2pac/Makaveli Tha Don, the entire album is a nod to the West Coast Rap scene and its legends—another reason to like the record. While the bitter cold starts to set in, this album is a ray of sunshine with uptempo production to lift your spirits. The lyricism is also on point; you can see why he is highly regarded. I look forward to the follow-up.
Song recommendations: ‘Reincarnated’, ‘heart pt.6’, ‘Gloria’
Oh dear. Yet another Drake album, which is hackneyed, hits the top spot? Seriously, what are people listening to? Once again, it is shite. The biggest surprise was that ‘8am in Charlotte’ had no autotune to spoil it like the rest of the record, so I enjoyed that once I got over the shock.
I won’t lie to you. I was not too fond of this album. I initially gave up after five tracks. However, I went back to it. The excessive use of autotune drives me insane and deems most tracks skippable. 21 Savage has been boasting recently that he is “the best UK rapper”. I can assure you; he isn’t even close to being up there—bloody awful rapper with shit content to boot. As for Drake, he is still droning on about the same things. I miss mainstream rap that had hard-hitting subjects in them. I don’t want to fucking hear about what car they drive or what watch they are wearing. This album was unlistenable. Please don’t buy it. Don’t even buy it for someone as a late Christmas present. It isn’t very good.
Well, last week, as you know, I reviewed Kanye West’s “Donda”, and as you know, I wasn’t all that impressed. I have no idea how long this review will be because I wasn’t impressed with Drake’s “Certified Lover Boy”either. Once again, Drake can’t help himself when utilising autotune. God, I despise that software. Like I have stressed on many occasions, if you can’t sing, don’t try to cheat with that software because you sound worse using it. Drake’s latest album had plenty of potential until some collaborators ruined it with autotune. Drake can go deep with his lyrics as he did on ‘Champagne Poetry’, ‘7am on Bridle Path’ and ‘the Remorse’. Those are the only tracks I liked with Drake on them and no pathetic autotune in sight. My favourite was ‘Yebba’s Heartbreak’ featuring, funnily enough, Yebba on vocals over a soft piano. I first saw Yebba Smith on Later…with Jools Holland in the autumn of 2019 on a Mark Ronson track. Mark has sung her praises for quite a while, and it was great to hear her on this record. It was my favourite because of her strong vocals, and Drake left her to it. It’sunusual for an artist/band’s album to only feature on some of their tracks. I can’t continue the review because the record bored me.
Song recommendations: ‘Yebba’s Heartbreak’, ‘Champagne Poetry’, ‘the Remorse’
In 2004, I bought an RnB compilation album called “Ice”, which also happened to have an artist I was yet to discover called Kanye West, and songs called ‘All Falls Down’ and ‘Jesus Walks’ complete with about three remixes of those said tracks. Back then, I liked his music and was interested in discovering more. Many feel it is offensive to rip off ‘Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger’ by Daft Punk off their iconic “Discovery” album. I didn’t mind Kanye’s sampling of it for his track ‘Stronger’, and I also enjoyed the track featured as the title track for the Saint’s Row the Third console game. The latter was in 2008; that was thelast time I was interested in listening to his songs.
In the previous decade, Hyde Park was beyond embarrassing. His music has been nothing short of cringeworthy since then. His woe-is-me act while wearing a diamond-studded Prada (I think) mask at the British Summer Time Festival was disgraceful. Yes, he came from a low-income family, but you don’t rant about that wearing such a mask. His hijacking of Beck’s award at the Grammys was also a joke. He wanted to protest about Taylor Swift winning an honourand stole what should have been an excellent moment for Beck Hansen. Luckily for him, Beck, although visibly stunned, found it funny and praised Kanye for his work.
So…”Donda” is an album everyone has been raving about and comparing it to Drake’s “CLB” (I forget what it stands for right at this moment.). I wouldn’t say I like Drake’s rapping anyway. He wants to use autotune; that winds me up big time. Now, “Donda” lasts for almost two hours over twenty-seven tracks. I was willing to listen, but there were only three tracks worth listening to. The rest is just autotuned bullshit. It’s a shame because he does have some pretty hard-hitting stories to tell, but all ruined by that shitty software, ‘Donda Chant’ is just not worth putting on a record. It lasted 52 seconds, with a female repeatedly saying “Donda”. The three tracks I did like were ‘Jail’, which is rock-inspired, ‘Heaven and Hell’ and ‘Keep My Spirit Alive’, which took me back to something that 2pac and Tha Outlawz Immortalz might have done during their peak in the 1990s. Apart from that, an album shrouded in hyperbole. Utter shit.
Song recommendations: ‘Keep My Spirit Alive’, ‘Heaven and Hell’, ‘Jail’
What is there to say about the lad from Northampton? He’s a ball of energy that rubs people up the wrong way, and his antics have landed him in trouble, most notably at the NME awards, where he later made a statement saying it was all in good nature rather than malicious. They should have known what to expect from him after the release of his debut album “Nothing Great About Britain”. Even the title would upset those flag-waving loon balls. It had the spirit of Punk in it and has been described as an updated version of the Streets’ classic debut “Original Pirate Material”.
It’s worth noting I am not a fan of Slowthai’s music, but I respect his lyrics and his persona in general, so I will try my best to give a decent review on “Tyron”. Since the first album, he has been out on the road with Liam Gallagher supporting “Why Me. Why Not”, which has garnered him more fans, but enough of that. The record is extremely short, considering it’s a double-disc at 35 minutes or thereabouts with seven tracks on each disc. For most of the first disc, Slowthai is consistent with what we saw on the first album and most of the tracks he collaborated on. There’s still that punk spirit and aggressive attitude blended with hard-hitting bars. However, “I Tried” is inspired by West Coast American rap from the 1990s. Even for a relatively short song, clocking at just over two minutes, it gets his message across, and the production compliments it.
I should have stylised the song as mentioned earlieras “I TRIED” because Slowthai defines the two discs by capital-lettered tracks on the first and lower-case lettered tracks on the second. It doesn’t reflect his mood in any way, as he still keeps up the levels on both.
Unfortunately for Slowthai, it could also be interpreted as the caps side is, well…shit and the lowercase side is an improvement from the first half. I would describe the album as schizophrenic in that regard. I’m sorry, but I am, by and large, not a fan of most rap out of America at the moment, and that’s precisely what the first disc sounds like. I don’t think he wanted that. Instead, it was forced upon him because that is what sells now. It ruins “CANCELLED” because it doesn’t fit into his flow and delivery. It needed to be harder and have a grime or drill instrumentation. I want to hear that from rappers on this side of the pond. For me, it makes it more authentic. I don’t want to fucking hear Drake-style production over here. The only time this works is when Slowthai collaborates with an American rapper. For instance, A$AP Rocky on “MAZZA” because he is used to rapping over those beats, and it works, but Slowthai’s flow seems unsuited to it. I mean, there’s a track early doors he does with Skepta, and it’s just fucking awful because the wrong production was chosen. Again, it should have been a grime or drill beat.
Of course, then you have tracks like “WOT”, which is Slowthai in his originalform at his very best. No shitty American beats ruining the listen. Although the aggression and the attitude are still up, because of the use of the American rap commercial beats, a lot of the Slowthai temper is nullified, and therefore it doesn’t add to his sound. Overall, the first half of the album is very disappointing. However, in the second half, the American beats are at a premium, and we get to see Slowthai being sincere yet laid back, a change from the angry side we are used to seeing. The bars are even more thought-provoking.
I especially liked “Push”, which featured Deb Never, as Slowthai brings some conscious bars over soft beats throughout the second disc. Deb Never is one of the most unlikely collaborations you would think of to be on the record, but as Slowthai gets more relaxed, the collaboration fits quite nicely. On more of his aggy material, it would look entirely out of place.
However, with it being such a short record, you need to remember what you heard on the first disc, so you have to listen again to recall what happened. You have to commend him for an original approach, even though he does fall victim to the shitty commercial American rap and RnB beats that never saw the light of day on his debut. It’s great that he has evolvedand is forward-thinking, but that aggression has yet to be lost here by the watered-down beats. I enjoyed the second disc more than I enjoyed the first. The more relaxed and serene side is great to listen to; if only the songs were at least four minutes long, he has plenty to say, and it’s great hearing his many fables of the struggles of life and his social commentary. As I said earlier, he isn’t my cup of chai, but I respect him for what he says and does; he is very much like the late Joe Strummer with his outlandish comments and unapologetic attack on the establishment. It’s apt that he supported Liam Gallagher when you come to think of it. Both of them have the same outlook and energy. It will be interesting to see what Slowthai does with his third album because he has shown that he dares to change it up and keep the listener interested. The best body of work I have seen by Slowthaiis on Mura Masa’s “Deal wiv It”. Give that one a listen.
Well, where to start? Like Justin Bieber’s review, I will not say much about this piss-poor effort by the world’s most overrated rapper. The only thing I like about Drake is he is an avid follower of the Toronto Raptors. (I’m surprised they won the NBA playoffs when he showed up because he seems to jinx teams and players across all sports when he is in the vicinity.) and Toronto Blue Jays. He has the potential to be a good rapper if he would just fucking stop pissing about with that shit autotune that fucking ruins every tune made (I am starting to get turned off of Reggae, Ragga and Bashment because the majority of artists think it is “great” to use. It fucking sounds awful. I’m glad I grew up in eras where this useless piece of software did not ruin the songs. Well, plug-in, to be exact.) I do not care less what the sales of his records say; he is vastly overrated and can’t even touch the rappers I listen to. I prefer real rap like N.W.A, Public Enemy, Ruff Ryderz, Tha Dogg Pound, Thug Life, Outlawz Immortalz, Ice Cube, Professor Griff, DMX, Kurupt, Big Syke, 2Pac, Nas, Eminem and Black Thought to name some outstanding rappers. What they speak/spoke about was the real shit they saw out on the streets and experienced. Not materialistic things (To an extent, they did, but not too much.) like most of these fake rappers do now.
Everyone was taken aback by this release of demos and other odds and sods when Drake said he planned to release an album later in the year rather than this compilation. I had hoped after the first track that he wouldn’t use that god-awful fucking autotune, but alas, he did, and I ended up skipping track after track because I would rather swim in mud than listen to an album packed with autotune songs. I’m pleased he focused more on what he is good at than singing. The collaborators are a better choice, too.
Although it is fucking an awful compilation, I did like “Chicago Freestyle” for its hook sung by Giveon, who is a new and up-and-coming vocalist (Shame, he used autotune, though.), which shows once again that Drake can still spot talent. The biggest surprise, and the one that’ll leave his fans open-mouthed and disappointed, is the collaboration on “Not You Too” with Chris Brown, who went from a rising RnB star to a villain in an instant when the news broke that he beat Rihanna up when they were dating. There are several blurred lines to the story, but most believe that Chris did it and has no case for innocence. It shows complete disrespect by Drake to the lady he has collaborated with and had a relationship with, and the subject matter of the song doesn’t help as it’s about him being betrayed in a relationship by a woman, which not only shows his ego, but the fact he has Chris Brown on it seems like, this song was really made for Chris to get across his side of the story via a song.
It could also be that Drake is pissed off with her that it didn’t work out, but either way, it is very coarse and in poor taste. Pretty much like the mixtape, which is musically uninspired, poor guest selection and just shit. I will give “Dark Lane Demo Tapes” a rating of two, but even that’s being generous.
I first heard of Abel Tesfaye in 2013 after listening to a live concert on YouTube, and I remember him for his unique look with his mad hair and crazy spelling of his alias. I was impressed with the songs “Wicked Games”, “Love in the Sky”, and “Pretty” off his debut album and a mixtape that featured his fellow Canadian Drake. Some have said that the debut “Kiss Land” was highly disappointing and didn’t live up to his work featured on the mixtapes from 2011 and 2012, but every album since “Kiss Land” has gone to the summit in his homeland.
Due to the critics panning his debut record, he changed it up for his sophomore record “Beauty Behind the Madness”, which came out in 2015. The best song off that record was the commercially friendly disco funk “Can’t Feel My Face”, which was a very clever way of concealing the song was about meaningless sex and drug use (Listen carefully, and if you’re of a certain age, it doesn’t take a genius to work it out.) There were also songs like “the Hills” and “in the Night” that stood out. For the third album, “Starboy”, the following year, he got Daft Punk on board, which were easily the best two songs on a rather overcooked record.
On his latest record, “After Hours”, Abel is trying to make music that appeals more to the fans of the 1980s with the sound and traditional melancholic lyrics.”Blinding Lights”, which is the lead single off the album has been number one for the last five weeks in the UK and sounds like nothing he has ever done before. It’s definitely a track that will appeal to the fan of 80s music. Then, the other track that sounds different from the norm is “Hardest to Love”, which sounds like a commercial version of drum n bass, and I could certainly hear it being included in a vocal section of a mix by Nicky Blackmarket and the like. I’ve heard that “Too Late” sounds like a UK garage vocal song, but I honestly disagree; I didn’t hear anything remotely like any form of garage on it, and the last song that sounds original, “Save Your Tears”, is very experimental. If I didn’t know I was listening to the record, I would have mistaken it for a new track by MGMT.
What about his lyrical content and song subjects? Have they changed much? Well, not really. He does venture out, but it’s for a short time. Although on tracks like “Faith” and “Save Your Tears” (The latter, I have mentioned regarding the originality of the sound.), he is reflecting on what happened in past relationships and apologising, but he can’t do it without being self-indulgent. His reflection and apology appear like it is to him rather than the ex-girlfriends. The record is entirely egotistical, too, as he brags about fucking women in the studio and then proceeds to mock the plastic surgery they have had done on their faces. He might pause and say, “I don’t criticise” when he talks about that on “Escape from LA”, but it’s more about him once again congratulating himself for his mistake of mocking those women for their physical appearance rather than being sincere.
You may be thinking, after reading my review, “Is it worth even listening to?” the answer is yes. This record is very much what got his name out there originally. It has a consistent story, the songs all fall in together, and although the record may have 14 tracks of pretty much the same with its production, it does change for three songs, so that’s something to look forward to with his next album because I can’t see him playing safe all the time. The deluxe album has 20 tracks, but the additional 6 are just remixes. My other laptop is closed, so I can’t be bothered to go and check on the remixes (I think it is the singles so far.). “After Hours” differs from the rest of his records and offers a preview into the next phase of his career. 7/10
Honest Opinions 