ALBUM REVIEW: “Kush and Orange Juice” by Wiz Khalifa

April 16th, 2010 • Album Review, Hip Hop
Tags: Kush and Orange Juice, Wiz Khalifa

Though hip-hop suffers less from it, just as in any other genre the most popular artists are never the ones pushing the envelope (I’m looking at you Jay-Z, Wayne, Kanye). Then who is? Without giving these two guys too much credit, for me it’s Curren$y and Wiz Khalifa. Khalifa’s usually the sidekick character (see How Fly) but on his latest mixtape Kush and Orange Juice he brings his trademark rap/speak to a new plane.

Yes, nearly every song is about weed, money and girls but the production is staggering. Anybody who listens to Kid Cudi should be listening to Wiz. The flow of the album is impeccably crafted. “Mezmorized” lives up to its name before giving way to “We’re Done”; easily the best use of a Disney movie sample in music history. This is where Khalifa carves out a place for himself, taking risks that others wouldn’t without the end product sounding like 808s and Heartbreak (thankfully autotune only makes one brief appearance on “Pedal To The Medal”). Read more »

Middlebury, VT

March 19th, 2010 • Commentary, Hip Hop
Tags: Middlebury College, YouTube

In case you have been living under a rock outside of the Northeast Liberal Arts College circuit, a group of students at the esteemed Middlebury College in Vermont came out with the following video a few weeks ago, and, not surprisingly, its gone viral.

One thing that I think is clear about this video (other than the fact that, excepting the quidditch verse, you could basically replace Bates and Midd and get the same effect) is that us liberal arts kids love to lampoon ourselves and our athletic departments. It is sometimes shockingly scary how truly generic we can all be in our attempts to be original, which, at some level, is where The Allen Jokers’ humor comes from in the 5 minute song. Read more »

Concert Review: Snoop Dogg in Lewiston, Maine

February 28th, 2010 • 1 comment Concert Review, Hip Hop, Maine
Tags: Dephonic, Snoop Dogg

There are few things that I can imagine more ridiculous than me meeting the rapper Snoop Dogg, the mastermind behind such classics as Gin & Juice, Drop it Like it’s Hot, and Beautiful.

Now, if you told me when I was a young naive first year student that not only would I, within the next four years, not only see Snoop Dogg live in concert but also that I would meet him, I would not have believed you in the slightest. Furthermore, if this was all to happen at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, I would have categorized this among the mythological, something only possible in the world of Harry Potter.

However, this actually did happen. I did see Snoop Dogg perform. I did meet Snoop Dogg. This did happen at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. Read more »

Commentary: Musician for our Generation

January 1st, 2010 • Commentary, Folk, Hip Hop, Op-Ed, Rock
Tags: death cab for cutie, eminem, jay-z, kanye west, Lil Wayne, mgmt, Radiohead, red hot chili peppers

Looking back in time, every generation has a small handful of bands and singers with which they are culturally linked, such as the Beatles and Bob Dylan for my parents’ generation and Bruce Springsteen, who gave a voice to the subsequent generation. Up until the present because it was extremely expensive and difficult to record and distribute music, it took real talent just to get an LP pressed, but digital technology has really changed the playing field. Popular music now transcends the confines of a single genre.

So as I sit at home watching the various New Years countdown specials, I started to think about who is the musician or band that defines my generation in music as many of the performers put in front of me I had never even heard of. So I wondered, in 2050, when I will be 63, who will the kids talk about as being emblematic of music of the late 1990s and early 2000s? Read more »

Editor’s Picks: 30 Best Albums of the Decade

December 24th, 2009 • 1 comment Commentary, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Op-Ed, Rock
Tags: Amadou & Mariam, Animal Collective, Bjork, Bon Iver, Brian Wilson, Bruce Springsteen, David Sanford & The Pittsburgh Collective, DJ Danger Mouse, Fleet Foxes, Gregory and the Hawk, Gui Boratto, Jens Lekman, Jonsi and Alex, Lil Wayne, M83, Noah and the Whale, Phoenix, Radiohead, Ryan Adams, seabear, Sigur Ros, Sin Fang Bous, Spoon, Sufjan Stevens, The Arcade Fire, The Hold Steady, The Shins, TV on the Radio, Yeasayer, Yelle

1. The Arcade Fire – Funeral

This album made baroque pop cool again, something that seemed unachievable after the Beach Boys fell apart.

2. Ryan Adams – Gold

Gold is alternative country at its very best, chocked full of sublime instrumentation and sentimental lyrics.

3. Bruce Springsteen – We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions

The Boss sings Pete Seeger and brilliance results; there is something fantastic about the combination of Springsteen’s voice and Seeger’s lyrics.

4. Yeasayer – All Hours Cymbals

All Hours Cymbals is an album for the decade lyrically, thematically, and instrumentally.

5. Jonsi and Alex – Riceboy Sleeps

Jonsi and Alex’s post-rock/ambient masterpiece is an album to listen to all the way through (8+ times) to really catch it’s flavor. Read more »

Editor’s Picks: 10 Best Songs of 2009

December 15th, 2009 • 4 comments Commentary, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Rock, Top Ten
Tags: Karen O and the Kids, Matt and Kim, Mum, Noah and the Whale, Passion Pit, Phoenix, Regina Spektor, The Lonely Island, Top Ten, Weezer, Zee Avi

With just 16 days remaining in 2009, and the music calendar winding down, its time to look back at the year in music as I provide you with my picks for the 10 best songs of the year.