R&B

D. Woods on “Blackbird”, music, acting… and more!

It is rare in this day and age, to find someone talented enough to be considered to be a triple threat. D. Woods is someone who is a strong contender to be that particular kind of entertainer. Already known for her musical prowess and dancing ability, the talented Massachusetts native is keeping her buzz loud and strong by starring in the new feature film “Blackbird”. Alongside Academy Award winning actress Mo’Nique, D. Woods shines in a breakthrough role about acceptance in yourself and others that will no doubt put her on the forefront of who is next in the acting community.

Beautiful, humble and sweet, D. Woods sat down with me recently to discuss her involvement in “Blackbird”, as well as her beginnings in the theater, influences that she has gotten to know and worked with, and what her future plans are outside of all the fab things she is doing right now. Take a look.

A lot of people know you from music obviously, but you are now dabbling in acting. Do you have a particular preference?

Well, I grew up in the theater actually. It was dancing first, then musical theater came after that, and finally it was the music industry. I have never really separated the art forms, especially with musical theater you do all at the same time and that is how I was trained to do it all- dancing forms, singing, acting, delivery, musicality etc. It all comes together for me, I am just now able to do projects that are more visible and show my acting talents but I’ve been on the stage doing acting throughout my life. Now I’m on screen so you are being introduced to a whole other side of me!

It is safe to say that your background in music that we have come to know is R&B based. A lot of people feel as if that particular genre has been dead for quite some time, what is your take on it?

I think because of the way records are selling or not selling, and everyone is trying to appeal to as many people as possible and want the largest demographic, that is where a lot of artist get into this EDM/Euro or Pop N’ B type feel to wherever they think is going to sell. I do believe that there are a lot of artists that are true to R&B, I just don’t put myself in a box however. I do whatever the music tells me to do, so it might be rock influenced or feel more cinematic, you know what I mean? It might be trap or ratchet, but then I might do R&B harmonies and vocals, its whatever I want to play with. I think there are a lot of audiences out there that want a true musical experience whether they are going to an R&B show and they are getting a little gospel thrown at them, or maybe some rock as well in the way that the band switches up the track that people know and love from their recording into the live show. I think the live performance is the best and a lot of R&B singers are the ones that can give you a true live performance as opposed to some overdubbed, autotuned track where they just hit play and walk out.

Growing up, you had to have influences that got you into the entertainment field that you are in today. Do you have any in particular that standout?

Yes, of course! I’ve met a lot of people that I didn’t expect to meet, or that I watched and know so much about their work and having a conversation with them is weird because I don’t want to have a fan moment or weird them out. I got to work with actress Lynn Whitfield on a musical called “Rebirth” and being in rehearsal with her everyday made me think of “The Josephine Baker Story”, which would just freak me out. I thought she was Josephine Baker when I was little! She comes from a generation that had that triple threat feel to it, so that was definitely a great experience working with her.

Working with Mo’Nique was big, because we saw her evolution from a comedienne to a comedic actress to working her way up to winning an Oscar and now she is an executive producer on top of all of that. So working with her was just fantastic. I watched a lot of fantasy movies growing up, so whenever they redo “The Wiz” I definitely want to partake in that on some sort of level. I met Quincy Jones a while back and pretty much told him, “I LOVE the soundtrack to The Wiz”. I mean, this guy has worked with everyone from Duke Ellington & Michael Jackson, the soundtrack to “The Color Purple” and so much more… but that is what I saw when I met him. The Wiz.

Blackbird, D. Woods, Ryan Shea, Manhattan Digest — Credit to: Youtube

So the movie “Blackbird” just got released to stellar reviews. What is your involvement in it?

“Blackbird” is a coming of age story, centered around a character named Randy Rousseau who is played by Julian Walker. He is our breakout star. He is straight up novice, like Julian is still in college right now. I remember he was doing homework while on set! When I read this script, I found out the character finding himself and coming to terms with his sexuality but at the same time trying to live up to the expectations of his family, community and church. I play one of his friends in high school named Leslie Crandall whom he also feels like he has to live up to in his group of people around him. I feel with “Blackbird” at the base of it, it is all about acceptance and love. Loving yourself, accepting yourself, hopefully the people around you love you and accept your choices and are supportive but its trusting that voice inside in being who you want to be.

Following up on that, what would you say if someone was reading this article and having a hard time coming out to their loved ones or had something they want to share with people around them but fear backlash?

I would say, just be who you are. You will be so much happier at the end of the day. If the people around you don’t accept you, there is a pool of people that you can find who can become your family, circle of friends and ultimately your support system. I have a non-profit mentorship program called “Foolish Dreamers” and one of the main things that I tell the high school students is “You have to get the squares out your circle”. I can’t take credit for that, it was Future, but I thought it was so real because the people around you have to support your dream and choices so that you can be the best person that you are. If you are trying to be somebody that you are not, you are not being true to yourself, fair to yourself, and ultimately what you can bring to the world.

I recently saw you on an episode of Bravo’s hit show “The Real Housewives Of Atlanta” where you and her went to back to your old high school. A lot of people know you from the reality world already, so would you consider going back to it?

I’ve been asked many, many times but it has to be under the right circumstances. I’m still trying to get that dark cloud from over me as it is hard to make a first impression for the second time. If you are introduced the wrong way to the general public you have to re-educate them so that gives them the opportunity to throw away the perception they may had of you and what you had presented at that point. At the end of the day- the networks and everyone else has their own agenda, question is- can I get mine? I haven’t felt comfortable with doing it yet so as of now no.

Besides “Blackbird”, what other fabulous projects doing you have coming up in the future?

I’ve partnered up with Patrick Ian-Polt & Tall Skinny Black Boy Productions and my independent label to produce the soundtrack to “Blackbird”. The first single came out Tuesday, shortly after the movie’s release, called “Find Your Way”. It is written by myself and produced by Simon Illa, another long time collaborator of mine. It was a song inspired by the film, and then we have the songs in the film that will all be on the soundtrack.

Anything else you want to add Miss Woods?

You can follow me on social media at YaGirlDWoods on everything! My main site is missdwoods.com and I have a single out right now called “Ur Tattoo” featuring Paul Wall. Paul is seriously president of Texas after all this time. We performed at SXSW and couldn’t even walk down the street, it was crazy.

Thanks so much for sitting down with me!

You are very welcome!

Check out D. Woods on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!

Album Review: Beyoncé – BEYONCÉ- Queen is Back

by Rio Toro

Beyoncé: BEYONCÉ

Similar Artists: Janet Jackson, Ciara, Missy Elliott, Jenifer Hudson

Genre: Pop, Contemporary R&B

Label: Columbia

2013 is over, and overall, it’s been a pretty great year for me: I’ve started a new job, moved into a new apartment, and got accepted to graduate school. It’s been so good, in fact, that I think I owe it to myself to strip myself of my reservations and really fucking enjoy this new Beyoncé record. Now don’t get me wrong, I’ve been known to enjoy a Beyoncé tune or two in the past, but digesting her work through repeated and immersive listens to one of her full-lengths is something that until now I didn’t have the effort to do.

And as it turns out, what a record BEYONCÉ is to finally become accustomed to this era defining pop singer through. The secretly released record is already being hailed as a career highlight for the artist, as here she dabbles in themes that are darker, more sensual, and more complex than her previous work — one such representable track being the monstrous and intricately woven highlight “***Flawless”. She’s returning to some of her grimier, more southern influenced sounds with big breakneck beats and ominous, ghostly textures on tracks like “Haunted”, which couldn’t be further from the soul bearings of her last record, 4. Here Beyoncé is proving that even though she may be a mother quickly approaching her mid 30’s, she can still sound young, modern, and increasingly relevant regarding the current state of femininity. In other words, this queen isn’t ready to retire quite yet, and as she points out on “Blow”, she can still get her ‘cherry turned out’ (whatever that’s supposed to mean). What BEYONCÉ is really about though, is the artist’s life cycle, and all the endless phases that have come along with it: hence her reasoning behind making this a ‘visual’ album. There’s quite a lot of Beyoncé backstory tucked into the corners of this release as well — told through cleverly placed vocal snippets — and it’s enough to make you feel a connection with a woman who otherwise lives a life that is incomparable to anyone else’s.

What I found to be the most striking with BEYONCÉ though, is how overtly sexual it is. Particularly on “Rocket”, which is gorgeous and sensual in the way that only D’Angelo can do better. At 6:32 though, it’s also too long, as you could say about the album in its entirety. With the bulk of these tracks being over 5 minutes, BEYONCÉ does occasionally fall into some of the same pitfalls of Justin Timberlake’s 20/20 experience — another 2013 album that proved to be a strong reevaluation of one of pop music’s biggest icons. I mean, how long can we truly continuously listen to someone with a perfect voice, singing about their perfect life, living in a perfect home with a perfect family?

But for the most part, it does work — mostly for the fact that we know Beyoncé has had to work violently hard to get to the point she is at now. As clearly told through the opening beauty queen inspired number “Pretty Hurts”, the main theme of BEYONCÉ is a debunking of society’s unrealistic interpretation of perfection. Beyoncé wants to show us how she’s just a regular human being: she gets jealous, she gets drunk, and she wants to impress people — specifically her husband, Jay Z: who unlike his wife, hasn’t done an adequate job of impressing us through his increasing age with a string of noticeably sour verses (including one here on “Drunk In Love”).

With the exception of perhaps “XO”, these 14 tracks are far away from the cookie cutter pop songs that have been endlessly rehashed through the decades in mainstream pop. Both in terms of spot on vocal delivery and interesting, layered production, BEYONCÉ — while not 100% perfect – pretty much beats out every other major pop release of the year. It might just be filled with more rawness and honest emotion than you’ll get out of Katy Perry’s Prism, Lady Gaga’s ARTPOP, and Miley’s Bangerz combined.

Track Listing:

1.) Pretty Hurts*

2.) Haunted*

3.) Drunk In Love

4.) Blow

5.) No Angel

6.) Partition*

7.) Jealous*

8.) Rocket

9.) Mine

10.) XO

11.) ***Flawless*

12.) Superpower

13.) Heaven

14.) Blue*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: Kelela – CUT 4 ME

by Rio Toro

Kelela: CUT 4 ME

Similar Artists: Solange, Aaliyah

Genre: Modern R&B

Label: Fade to Mind

Kelela isn’t as typical an artist as many listeners will initially think. Her hotly anticipated debut album, CUT 4 ME — which is cleverly disguised as a mixtape — stands far apart from the lot of female sung R&B currently in existence. While her voice, at times, may evoke previous R&B greats like Aaliyah or even Brandy, what makes this album unique is the fact that it actually has little to do with vocals at all. Instead, Kelela has built her sound around the production styles of her many collaborators. She does this in a way, however, that still keeps her persona at the center of our attention. Despite the amount of collaborators, this is her show, and she doesn’t let us forget that for a second.

As it turns out, Kelela is following somewhat popular trends in the bass music scene, while simultaneously churning them with her own oddly fashioned R&B to make an impressive and daringly accessible whole. It’s a pairing that works to her advantage, as her voice is not yet a completely grasping element in its own right, and it allows for the seductive productions to always be in full effect. This element of vocal restraint makes CUT 4 ME a completely different experience than say, Janelle Monae’s The Electric Lady; and as good as that record was, I don’t think I’m alone in saying we didn’t need another one like it quite just yet.

The production — which is predominantly handled by artists within the Fade to Mind and Night Slugs congregation — is a striking blend of icy synths, plummeting bass, ominous undertones, and the occasional metallic freakout. It’s an R&B album that will appeal to fans of Jam City’s Classical Curves more than fans of Rihanna. Opening track, “Guns and Synths” does a good job of setting the dark and desperate tone, and the Nguzunguzu produced second track, “Enemy”, expands upon it in a very hostile way.

However, while these two tracks contain what is arguably the most engaging music on the album, they don’t showcase just how eerie CUT 4 ME can be as a whole. It’s an album enriched with devious wordplay and an unusual sexual energy; yet another example of why Kelela — who grew up as a second generation Ethiopian immigrant — is not your every day woman. Take the title track for example — what exactly is the phrase “cut for me” supposed to mean? — is it supposed to be the artist’s way of symbolizing her permanent mark on a lover, or merely a violent play on a woman asking a man to “cum for me”. Either way, Kelela stands as a persona intent on devouring traditional views of male and female relationships. Later, on the excellent Jam City produced closing track, “Cherry Coffee”, she sings “It’s a Twisted Cycle/ That You’ve infused with love” , and that essence of lust over love seems to be the dominant lyrical theme throughout the album. Although this is her first release, Kelela just turned 30, and her mature stance on life comes out in subtle ways.

The theme constantly plays through the music as well, as heard on the narcotized beats and synths on “Do It Again” — which to me enacts visions of dominatrixes dominating their male slaves. Unfortunately, all of Cut 4 ME isn’t some weird psycho sexual drama. There are quite a few mellow tracks that don’t fully keep a hold on our attention through multiple playthroughs. This can be seen as a fault in Kelela’s vocal performance, as it rarely will kick the listener with a lasting oomph. “Bank Head” is the exception to this, and in addition to Kingdom’s perfect production, it shows Kelela can sing some devastatingly beautiful vocal lines when she wants to. It’s the best track on the album, even if there are quite a few second runners, and it will be interesting to see where she takes her vocal delivery from here. Still, from her work with Teengirl Fantasy and onward, we were given hint after hint that Kelela was an upcoming talent to look forward to. We may have had to wait quite a while for it, but CUT 4 ME proves that there is most certainly a place for Kelela in modern R&B.

Track Listing:

1.) Guns and Synths*

2.) Enemy*

3.) Floor Show

4.) Do It Again*

5.) Go All Night

6.) Bank Head*

7.) Cut 4 Me*

8.) Keep it Cool

9.) Send Me Out

10.) Go All Night

11.) Something Else

12.) A Lie

13.) Cherry Coffee*

Album Review: Janelle Monae – The Electric Lady

by Rio Toro

Janelle Monae: The Electric Lady

Similar Artists: Erykah Badu, Solange, Santigold, Funkadelic, Grace Jones

Genre: R&B, Soul, Pop, Funk

Label: BadBoy/Wondaland

Janelle Monae is a fan of big statements. This was made abundantly clear starting with her first ever release, the Metropolis, Suite 1: The Chase, which was already more grand and ambitious than most artists’ career defining releases. Of course, she happened to top herself on her 2010 semi-masterpiece The ArchAndroid, in which she further chronicled the story of her alter-ego, the rebel droid Cindy Mayweather. It happened to be one of the most confident and resonant debuts in recent memory, and Janelle knew it too. It was quite clear that Janelle was head and heels above the competition, and that she was intent on forming her own league of equally talented singers/songwriters who were hoping to change the current state of R&B, Neo Soul, and the musical world itself. On her equally massive, guest loaded, no filler 2nd LP, she may have just accomplished that goal.

Of course, Janelle isn’t reinventing the wheel with her music, she’s working within firmly established genres, and through all the spectacle that her music provides, groundbreaking is never a term that comes to mind. This is fine of course, because her music happens to be accessible in the best possible way. She goes deeper than your average pop star, both in lyrical themes and musical direction. Early single “Q.U.E.E.N” — which by the way, is a surefire contender for song of the year — sees Janelle at her most freakish /Is it peculiar that she twerk in the mirror, and am I weird to dance alone late at night/, reminding us all of a certain Miley Cyrus, yet Janelle herself never comes off as peculiar, only that rare, hard earned talent we don’t see enough of in pop stardom. Although some may dub her music as alternative, these are songs that could easily appeal to the masses (her record sales might say otherwise though). These are finger-snapping tunes that will stick with you for weeks on end, coming in and out of your consciousness long after you have parted ways with the album itself.

Her 2nd full length, The Electric Lady, is a perfect follow up record, as it continues the themes on ArchAndroid in even bolder ways than before. Just check the guest list if you don’t believe me. This year’s roster includes talents such as Miguel, Esmeralda Spalding, Solange, Erykah Badu, and yes, even Prince. This is the soundtrack to the party that everyone wants to go to, and the good news is, as long as you don’t mind some shiny robotic booty (and aren’t a bounty hunter), you’re absolutely welcome to join in on the fun.

The sci-fi elements remain abundant, and intrinsic to the album’s main themes. The events of this album actually take place before those of The ArchAndroid, making this a prequel of sorts. Taking a cue from Blaxploitation films, the album cleverly deals with racism and prejudice being brought upon the Android community. The story — if you could call it that — is told largely through droid friendly radio station WDRD in some downright hilarious skits; my favorite being one in which the Andrada sisters talk about a party in which there will be an atomic kissing contest, among other droid specific activities.

The individual tracks go back and forth from being Cindy Mayweather dance jams, like “DanceApocolyptic” and “Electric Lady”, and more personal and heartfelt Janelle Ballads, “Primetime” and “Victory”. As you’d expect, the album flows masterfully, and is ornamented through heavenly interludes and dynamic instrumental snippets. While the album isn’t any less orchestrated than previous releases, it’s more indebted to classic rock and the electric guitar itself. There are some serious, painstakingly produced guitar solos throughout The Electric Lady, harkening back to 60’s and 50’s musical trends. The “Suite V Electric Overture” is particularly old-timey in its structure, and there are even some references to spaghetti westerns (possible Django influence?). Janelle has clearly done her homework when it comes to digging out archived soul releases, as she has implemented exquisite multi layered harmonies that remind us of what used to be the worlds most powerful instrument: the voice.

It’s true, with all the fancy production techniques and overdubs, what makes this music as good as it is is how great the vocals sound. Even when Janelle’s oohing and ahhing is at its most extensive and drawn out, she pulls it off because of the urgency in her tone. She often gets so emotional that it sounds as though she’s singing in order to save her life; and who wouldn’t want a girl with pipes like those to live forever? As the title of the Prince featuring early standout “Givin Em What They Love” suggests, Janelle knows what makes her audience tick, and she isn’t afraid to do exactly that. Lets all hope The Electric Lady does as well as it should on the charts, that way Janelle will be able to make this same lovely spectacle again, and again, and again. I’m about ready to get me some more of that chrome booty.

Track Listing:

1.) Suite IV Electric Overture

2.) Givin Em What They Love*

3.) Q.U.E.E.N.*

4.) Electric Lady*

5.) Good Morning Midnight

6.) Primetime*

7.) We Were Rock & Roll

8.) The Chrome Shoppe

9.) Dance Apocalyptic*

10.) Look Into My Eyes

11.) Suite V Electric Overture

12.) It’s Code

13.) Ghetto Woman*

14.) Our Favorite Fugitive

15.) Victory*

16.) Can’t live without your love

17.) Sally Ride

18.) Dorothy Dandridge Eyes

19.) What An Experience*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: The Weeknd – Kiss Land

by Rio Toro

The Weeknd: Kiss Land

Similar Artists: R. Kelly, Michael Jackson, Prince, Danny Brown

Genre: Cinematic R&B, Trip-Hop

Label: Republic

In some ways, it has always been a part of our culture, but it seems like every year, society becomes increasingly obsessed with the self-destructive behavior of its celebrities. From Britney Spears, to Lindsay Lohan and Miley Cyrus (the ones who get into the business too young), we have highlighted these artists’ downfalls and enjoyed them as entertainment. These stories, as we know them, have become inescapable, as they are reported over the airwaves and printed in magazines on a near 24 hour basis; feeding into a sort of collective social consciousness. As of late, even widely respected publications like CNN have posted a leading article about Miley’s much maligned “Twerking” episode at the VMA’s. I’m not bringing up these points to talk about the failure of the human race or anything boring like that though, as I feel this infatuation of ours is hardly unwarranted. Why wouldn’t we be intrigued by this unknowable, parallel world that is the Hollywood lifestyle? After all, it has managed to capture and wreak havoc among so many of the world’s most gifted and talented people. As it happens though, we’re only examining this phenomenon through a highly distorted lens, and as common folk, we can never truly understand this alien world without first succumbing to it. As The Weeknd puts it, /this ain’t nothing to relate to, even if you try/.

Abel Tesfaye, main-man behind the Toronto based R&B outlet The Weeknd — who along with producers Doc McKinney and IIIangelo made a commercial and critical splash with three self-released 2011 mix-tapes — happens to know a lot about this parallel world. Over the past year and a half, the once enigmatic figure has rapidly been pulled away from his quiet hometown into the fast-paced, drug addled, sex crazed life of stardom. On this proper debut LP, he chronicles his voyage into this horrifying place — the place he likes to call Kiss Land — and it stands as a heartbreaking concept album of love vs. fame. This Kiss Land is a dark, loveless place, riddled with loneliness, a lack of honest emotion, and most of all, a lack of human connection. While The Weeknd have dealt with similar themes in the past, here it is implemented on a much grander, deeper, and thought provoking scale.

Since I do consider this a concept album, I’ll start with the first track, the 6 minute “Professional”, which expertly documents The Weeknd is their fresh, cinematic skin. Tesfaye immediately sets the tone with the lyric /You’re a somebody now, but what’s a somebody in a nobody town/, and speaks of his strife in keeping a hold on reality, along with the feelings that come with it. The production chops kick in at full blast during the midway point with an eerie, whispering female vocal sample and an epic bass drop that will likely scare away anyone not ready for the remaining themes to come. Expectedly, the story starts to unravel on “The Town”, as we learn about Abel’s love interest — a girl he left to go on tour — who as many will see it, remains a central theme on the remaining songs to come. Once again, this track is treated with a surprising direction change halfway through when we are greeted to a shimmering, metallic synth pattern that makes everything sound twice as serious, without catering too easily to dance fare.

There’s loads to enjoy here production wise — this is indeed a step up from the already expensive sounding Echoes of Silence. In an interview (of which there are very few) Tesfaye stated how the sound here is as much indebted to film scores as it is to Trip-Hop, which is easy to tell, as the fragmentary ambiance from horror films seems to be constantly leaking through the pores. The producers really get to show off on “Wanderlust”, which impressively stacks layers of pitch shifted vocal samples and disco infused synth patterns to delirious effect.

The Portishead sampling “Belong to the World”, ends up being the emotional centerpiece of the album, as it’s where Tesfaye gives up on trying to find “the one”; at least for the time being. Emotional disconnect is a theme on several tracks, and as the album unfolds Tesfaye comes to the conclusion that he isn’t meant to find love; his life draining personality is simply too much for the few people he wants to be with. When he sings /We’ll find a love in the sky/, he’s basically saying “we’ll find a love when we die”. He also ends up admitting that he isn’t a good person — which is a good thing, because with his repulsive, chauvinistic lyrics and women-as-objects philosophy, he truly isn’t.

Like Danny Brown, much of the subject matter here revolves around, well…being a douchebag, but if you’re listening correctly you certainly wouldn’t be tempted to follow in Tesfaye’s footsteps. Take the title track for example, which revolves around using a photographing groupie wandering backstage for sexual gain, /the only thing you’re taking, is your clothes off/. It’s a beguiling track that’s riddled with blood curdling screams, self provoked insomnia and the want to die young — but the harrowing tone makes it immediately clear that this is representative of Abel at his most distraught. One must realize that Tesfaye is playing the villain in these tracks. He’s testing his boundaries as a vocalist, and is eager to see how much he can get away with while singing in his majestic, silky smooth voice.

Kiss Land ultimately works because we feel like Tesfaye is trapped in this alternate, success bearing universe, in which all choices he makes are inevitable. On the chorus of the Drake featuring “Live For” when he sings /this the shit that I live for, with the people I die for/ he may be boasting, but it’s because boasting is all he has left. When you think about it, that’s actually quite traumatic, especially when one gives up their freedom to do so. All the built up emotions come to a close with the spectacular, piano driven “Tears in the Rain”, in which Tesfaye mourns his faded love affair and the lack of any remaining spark in his life.

Reviews so far for Kiss Land have been very mixed (currently holding a 67% on metacritic compared to the combined 83% of their previous releases), but I feel people are missing the point. There’s all this talk about this being an album about “the good life”, and to some extent, it is, but the word “good” becomes twisted to such an unrecognizable degree that we begin to fear the life we crave. Sure, there’s an abundance of questionable lyrics, but The Weeknd want them to be questionable. I dare you all to look a little deeper with Kiss Land, The Weeknd aren’t kidding around when they say this is their debut.

Track Listing:

1.) Professional*

2.) The Town*

3.) Adaptation

4.) Love in the Sky

5.) Belong to the World*

6.) Live For

7.) Wanderlust*

8.) Kiss Land*

9.) Pretty

10.) Tears in the Rain*

Album Highlight – *

Album Review: AlunaGeorge – Body Music

by Rio Toro

AlunaGeorge: Body Music

Similar Artists: Purity Ring, Charlie XCX, Inc.

Genre: Pop/R&B

Label: Vagrant

I was at first disheartened when I came face to face with the wave of “indie” artists who were embracing the sounds of modern radio — specifically the sounds of bubblegum pop and electronic focused R&B (the ones which nearly always contain some kind of glitchy vocal samples from the female vocalist). Don’t get me wrong, I adore pop music — I have no qualms admitting this — but I also feel that the radio has failed us when it comes to variety, or in awarding us any perceivable freedom with our choice of selection. After all, many of us entered the world of “indie” music for the sole purpose of escaping the hollow, cookie-cutter sounds that are endlessly rehashed over the FM waves. However, after further listening, it turns out that the best artists from this indie pop revolution are indeed advancing the limitations of these tainted “pop-radio” genres by approaching them with an experimental aesthetic and a keen ear for sound design.

The London duo of Aluna Francis and George Reid are the next in the wave of “hotly anticipated” acts who are said to be ushering in a new era of pop music. Granted, while there’s nothing on AlunaGeorge’s debut album that sounds miles away from the current strands of top charting radio, Body Music manages to be accessible, catchy and left of center all at the same time. You’ll immediately be reminded of groups like Purity Ring; although I would say that AlunaGeorge are less formulaic and more innately talented than them. Through the 13 tracks, the duo seem to go back and forth from maximalist, club oriented songs like those from Charli XCX, to minimalist, sensually moving tracks like those from Inc.’s debut No World. The thing is, the duo seem to not know which one of these styles they have perfected (hint: it’s the latter). It’s during the more somber, melancholically led pieces where we hear some real hard earned honest emotion from the duo. The songs that tackle these themes, such as “Outlines”, “Diver”, and “Friends to Lovers”, all contain lower BPM’s and are close to perfect in their own right, whereas the more dance oriented tracks such as “Lost & Found” and “Superstar”, are tightly sung and smartly produced, but overall unremarkable for a lack of ingenuity.

The musicianship on the album is consistently excellent, but after AlunaGeorge topped the UK charts a few months back with “White Noise”, they probably felt a lot of pressure to bring out the bangers with this release. Still, they should know that they don’t need to “go big” to make the necessary splash. The fact that major label artists are often pressured to make chart topping singles might be the main reason they are so frequently forgotten with time — as another artist is sure to outdo the last when it comes to louder drums and more radiant synths. The previously released “Your Drums, Your Love” happens to be the album’s one exception to big = forgettable, as it ends up sounding crowd pleasingly massive as well as acutely tuned emotionally — like every great single should be. Sadly, while “Best Be Believin” does its best to become the pivotal album climax — as it includes a grander array of instruments, such as acoustic guitar, piano, and a choir — in the end, it feels as if they tried too hard to make a spectacle out of it. Consequently, it doesn’t feel as honest or real as the best material here.

It’s quite ironic that the best bits off of an album called Body Music happen to be the least dance oriented ones, but it turns out the album title has more to do with the album’s lyrics — which deal with the most basic of human needs: to have physical human interaction. Aluna deals with this theme accurately lyrically, and as it turns out, the two are indeed good songwriters — although certainly not yet in the top tier. Still, although the album is far from perfect, it shows undeniable promise, especially when it’s at its most introspective. Few pop acts have the power to keep us enticed without the use of in your face bass and frenetic sampling; while AlunaGeorge certainly do bombard us with these elements a handful of times, it’s during the quietest moments where we peer into their hearts and realize their true potential.

Track Listing:

1.) Outlines*

2.) You Know You Like It

3.) Attracting Flies

4.) Your Drums, Your Love*

5.) Kaleidoscope Love

6.) Bad Idea

7.) Diver*

8.) Lost & Found

9.) Best Be Believin

10.) Superstar

11.) Just A Touch*

12.) Body Music

13.) Friends to Lovers*

Album Highlight – *

Rihanna and Chris Brown Split- WHO THE F CARES

by Ryan Shea

I have had my fair share of stating how I feel about not only Chris Brown but Rihanna in the past couple of years, and when I heard all over the news this morning from The Wendy Williams Show to Newsday to E! that they had broken up yet again so Rihanna can focus on business opportunities I literally LOL’d. Here comes my rant about how I feel about these two, so buckle down everyone.

I have said this before and I will say it again, I DON’T GET HOW CHRIS BROWN IS STILL RELEVANT. How in gods name is a man who brutally and viciously beat the living hell out of a woman still celebrated, awarded and adored by millions of people who can blindly look past what he did? On top of that, he’s a wannabe thug who has gotten into so many altercations with people who actually merit respect and should be celebrated for their talent (Miranda Lambert, Frank Ocean, Robin Roberts). So once again, like Aubrey O’Day on Rupaul’s Drag Race this year, what is their appeal?

What is his appeal exactly? Can someone explain it to me? He wins the Grammy last year for Best R&B Album for an album that was all synth and nothing R&B. He won because The Grammy’s wanted to stir commotion and get viewers, so I get that. When every other person winning an award that night and getting standing ovations up the wazoo and people are barely clapping for you, how do you take that? When are you actually going to wake up and realize all of these childish, petty things you have done since you beat her up still don’t warrant a real apology or anything of the sort? I don’t get it.

As for her, I have my own personal feelings. She has her own issues with press I get it, but beyond that I really just can’t stand her attitude throughout all of this. If someone had beat up my sister and then tried to get back together with her, it wouldn’t happen. Doesn’t she have anyone around her telling her this isn’t right? A good girlfriend, family, SOMEONE. I mean I know she is grown and all, but the fact that no one seemed to stop this from happening over and over again really says something. And the fact that she really is “unapologetic” really says a lot about her character and how she really doesn’t want to be viewed as a role model no matter what.

This is just my gist on how I feel. Everyone is different, but quite frankly it bothers me that this continues to be headline news. It shouldn’t be. There are bigger things in the world to deal with than the modern day Ike and Tina continuously breaking up and getting back together for nonsense reasons. That’s it.

Even if it’s Frank Ocean’s fault, why we will never side with Breezy.

by Ryan Shea

A recent story in the media that has been huge is of course the fight between Chris Brown and Frank Ocean that happened the night of January 27th outside of a recording studio parking lot. This fight was over a parking space. Yes, a parking space. Today, The Boombox has stated that Ocean will not press charges over the alleged incident in where Brown punched him and got jumped, stating-

“As a child I thought if someone jumped me it would result in me murdering or mutilating a man,” the R&B star wrote on his Tumblr page Saturday. “But as a man I am not a killer. I’m an artist and a modern person. I’ll choose sanity. No criminal charges. No civil lawsuit.”

If you have been living under a rock or in a country where music doesn’t exist, Chris Brown has had quite a few altercations over the past couple of years with several different people. The most noted one is four years back where he beat the living hell out of Rihanna the night before the ’09 Grammys. Now, they are allegedly back together and doing music as well (“Nobody’s Business”, “Birthday Cake Remix)”. That is a story I could write about forever, but as I’ve stated in the past, it’s her choice. She wants to go back to that, and not listen to the millions of people who think she’s a fool to go back to the modern day Ike Turner, then go for it. Be an idiot.

He has also gone after a slew of other people from Jenny Johnson, Raz-B from B2K, Miranda Lambert and so many more. I find it interesting when this cat came into the game about eight years ago. He screamed rising star, and was the nicest guy in all of his interviews and I generally loved his persona and music. I don’t get why he went from that to now looking like a Dennis Rodman lookalike who has to be so freaking gangster in everything he does. It’s baffling to me that he wants this image, but then again he still has ten million fans on Twitter, so he must be sadly doing something right. Sadly.

All the reports online don’t really favor Chris in this because of said history with other artists and of course Rihanna. He was seen with a cast on his arm recently, which should garner some sympathy, but for the masses of people who believe he shouldn’t be a celebrity anymore with his abuse against women, it falls on deaf ears. Plus Frank Ocean really isn’t know for being controversial in that kind of arena. He is just a talented dude. This fight better not have been over homophobia either, because that would just further Chris Brown on his tour of ultimate douchebaginess. Both of them are up for the same Grammy Sunday- Best R&B Album. Go Frank.

R&B

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