J Groban "Illuminations"

                                                                                                                                                                             If there is one thing that cannot be denied, it is that Josh Groban has a great voice. Even if some of the songs can sound similiar, but I think that happens to most every atist; there are only so many notes, keys, etc.  The disc starts off with "The Wandering Kind (Prelude)" a great instrmental that starts off the mood with some nice piano, and are there bagpipes at beginning, and some harmonica? very light though. Then the next song "Bells of New York City" showcases his voice as he sings of New York around the end of year"with the bells of New York City singing around" with a nice string section and steady piano playing the right notes at the right time. However, there is something about "Galileo (Someone like You)" that sounds better with the light string section helping you feel light and ready to fly,dripping with sentimentality and sincerity it makes one feel good.He sings a little higher at the end which is a nice touch. There are always several songs that are sung in Latin, and "L'ora Dell'Addio" is the first selection on this album where it is done. The next song segues nicely from the latin aside and has a positive message which is to let your spirit shine, and do not keep your light "Hidden Away." Make sure you do not regret not doing something, do not let a chance pass you by, and try not to leave words unsaid that should be. "Au Jardin Des Sans-Pourquoi" is the next selection sung in latin verse, with its instrumentals behind his powerful tenor reinforcing his wonderful voice and lower keys in the back. "Higher Window" seems like it is referring to heaven or another being, because he sings "There is a light from a higher window, shining down on you tonight.." addressing how heavenly this union may be, so much to where it is surreal. "If I Walk Away" is the next song which has some nice instrumental, and backing choir vocals; by the 2 minute mark his  voice takes flight and the pace picks up a little, there is a light choir in the background singing his echo of walk away, but is at the right volume for effect. "Love Only Knows" follows with the question of the relationship ending and the keeper of that secret is love, as he sings in the chorus "Love only knows if we'll give in to fear/ and choose life undercover/she said love only knows if it's special enough/ that we'll choose one another, choose each other." I think I remember the next song being one of my favorites with a nice string section opening the song and a  light, percussive marcher's attack. The sound is spacious and ominous, and gives the image of Groban singing in this huge valley, the instrumentals are great with the tempo changing several times throughout,and there is a latin beat, that goes with the lyrics sung in latin, the first two selections were more classical, and did not have the latin flavor that this one has. Oh, by the way, the song was called "Voce Existe Em Mim." The next song is very sentimental and focuses on the struggles of family members without their loved ones who are shipped overseas in the song "War At Home" with a light percussive beat in the background and sincere delivery and powerful vocals There is a choir that comes in about a minute and a half before the song ends while the violin comes in loud and clear for effect, and the message that those of you who are missing someone overseas are not alone. "London Hymn" follows with the choir at the forefront holding the temple until Groban comes to take the reins, but gives them their space, and gives listeners an oppurtunity to enjoy both forces of vocalics. The last song is called "Straight to You," which ends on a nice somber note, and focuses on love and its tender trap, caught enraptured in her love.                                                                                                                                                             Best Songs: The Wandering Kind(Prelude), Galileo (Someone Like You), Hidden Away, Au Jardin Des Sans-Pourqoui, If I Walk Away, Love Only Knows, Voce Existe Em Mim, War At Home, and London Hymn. Though the last song is not that bad, but not my favorite.

Minaj or Dreezy?

Boyfriend and girlfriend? Who knows or who cares? Damnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn... I thought it was going to be easy, but after listening to both records again, I seem to like Drake's album more than I did the first two times,some of the songs took several listens to get to like.i want to say that with this entry i wanted to compare both of their records track by track. So this time we'll go song by song. Both albums start with great songs "I'm The Best" and "Fireworks", Minaj and Drake, respectfully tie the first round. I love both songs that are placed in slot two, but one cannot deny the fire the Minaj Brings in "Roman's Revenge," or the appearance by Em, so the second round goes to Minaj. Round three is Between Drake's "The Resistance" and Minaj's "Did It On 'Em," and I think this one is pretty close, so another tie. The next one is no contest as Drake's "Over" does it on Minaj's "Right Thru Me." Sorry, I have no disrespect for the artists, I just had to use that cheese, I'm out and I need to make a grilled cheese sandwhich! "Fly"by Minaj and "Show Me A Good Time" by Dreezy tie because both songs are too close in quality to call a winner. Minaj's "Save Me" beats out her own appearance in "Up All Night," so Minaj wins this round. The next is another tie between "Moment 4 Life" and "Fancy," by Minaj and Drake respectfully;both songs too equally matched to have a winner. I think Nicki's "Check It Out" beats "Shut It Down," because it is short and sweet, fun to listen to and a great beat. While this song goes a little bit too long, and is good, but cannot top her song. At one point I though it was over and that it went to another song, but it was the same song still after a small lull. "Blazin" and "Unforgettable" are both tied because these adjectives fit their creators well. Drake's "Light Up" and "Miss Me" are tied with Nicki Minaj's "Here I Am" and "Dear Old Nicki" because of great quality songs and delivery,et al. Sincerity can really help a song if it exists, but if it's fake, can kill one. I believe both are sincere in their confessions or desciptions in the next songs "CeCe's Interlude" and "Your Love," performed by Dreezy and Nicki Minaj, respectfully, but I think that I can detect more sincerity in Dreezy's song, and the guitar soloat the end helps him win.  Although "Last Chance" is a good song, it cannot top the singability and positive message of "Find Your Love," so Dreezy, this round goes to you. Since Drake has one more song off the regular album, the title track, we will go with the first bonus track from Nicki, which is her current single "Super Bass." So which song wins? It's another tie!So It ends up being a tie, seven ties and both won three rounds each. After first listen, I thought it was going to be easy, but as said before after a few listens of dreezy's album I found that he had more good songs than I originally thought there were.Both albums are great buys!

Drake "Thank Me Later"

                                                                                                                                                                        His first full-length record starts off with "Fireworks". A great song to start off with that deals with love, and how the kiss can lead tofireworks, or maybe not. Either way, the assistance of Alicia Keys really helps the song,Drake has a good singing voice too, and lets that show. From one slow song to another, Drake sings some "Karaoke",but the song is not bad at all,it takes a few listens and then it becomes a nice song to listen to. "The Resistance" follows the same pace, speed is not a priority, and it does not need a quick pace to be effective, this song has a good flow and deals with love as the resistance. One of my favorite songs is next: "Over", I love the flow of this song, and the conviction he reveals. The opening lines/chorus are funny" I know way too many people here right now/ that I didn't know last year,who the f--- are y'all?," but work with the song. The instrumentals are great as well, just a good song all around. the Next song asks to show him a good time. I guess he deserves it because so far the record has been pretty good to listen to in the background. The beat is great, and so is the flow. Nicki returns the favor by appearing in "Up All Night," a good song, but one that holds the carpet for another one of my favorites: "Fancy."  Even with its repetitive and laughable chorus, the flows elsewhere, the beats, and the rest of the song make up for it without trouble. "Shut It Down," is a more low-key song showcasing Drake's pipes with nice instrumentals.  "Unforgettable" seems pretty sincere and has a great opening line "This is one of my dumbest flows over/ I haven't slept for days/ and me and my latest have agreed to go our seperate ways." Young Jeezy guest stars and really helps the song with his flow that goes with the flow of the song and works with the beat. Another great song features King Hov, "Light Up, " and there's nothing else to say about it except that it's a great song, and a great line in this song comments on Hollywood's  bad rep when it comes to bright eyed and bushy tailed workaholics: " yeah, that's what life becomes when you're doing you, welcome to hollywood, don't let the town ruin you..." The next song "Miss Me" featuring Dreezy's mentor, Lil' Wayne is great as swell with an awesome flow from sensei and student.  We take a short break with "CeCe's Interlude," as he reveals he wishes he was still in school, so he could be close to the girl this song is about, and  be able to "put it up on her," but it sounds classier in his delivery. There is a great little guitar solo at the end. One of the biggest songs from this album, when it comes to singles and crossover, that showcases his pipes again, with a great beat and instrumentals, and the focus is on love and the tenacity of will when it comes to waiting for someone is called "Find Your Love". The final song is the title track "Thank Me Later," which is almost a self-congratulatory song that rivals Ms. Minaj's first track from her album. It is a great way to end the album with a light braggadaggio (I probably spelled it wrong), and confession. A great flow keeps this song going, and shouts out to Nas, as well. "I'm the black sheep, and Chris Farley wears the crown" is a great line.                                                                                                                                                                           Best Songs: Fireworks, Karaoke, Over, Show Me A Good Time, Fancy, Unforgettable, Light Up, Miss Me, Cece's Interlude, Find Your Love,Thank Me Later.

Nicki Minaj "Pink Friday"

                                                                                                                                                                        Great things come to those who wait! For a while, I thought she was just an attention hog, and was being wierd just to get attention, and didn't really give her a chance. Then, I heard her album, some say that it is a little too poppy and that she is just a Lil' kim wannabe, but what's great is that she is her own person, and does not try to be anyone but herself, which is great. I have much more respect for her now.She has a great flow as well, she spits fire,though sometimes it's not in the usual color of fire, it changes colors like a chameleon, as her style does throughout the record! She starts with "I'm the Best," a self-congratulatory anthem for her hard work breaking through and having her chance to let people hear her music. The next song, "Roman's Revenge," spits the fire as Nicki becomes the dragon spitting fire on the haters, and matches the ferocity of her guest Eminem! There is a great beat that keeps the song going. A great team they make, but because it is Nicki, you cannot forget her humorous delivery at the end. "Did it On 'Em" is next, which is another song dedicated to her haters, which has some voice overs included one of which says "I don't know what Lil' Wayne looks like!" a great line and one that shows her humor is intact, as well as Weezy's. We go to the first, or second, poppy song called "See Right Thru Me" which is about a  dysfunctional relationship where the love is runninhg on empty, but those caught in the relationship just cannot leave each other for some reason. The next song is one of my favorites, it is called "Fly," and features Rihanna. The keys are in the background and the beat is in the forfront, as it should be because the synergy of the instrumentaion gives the feeling of floating in the clouds if one closes their eyes, awesome, great vocals by Rihanna, and delivery from Minaj! Next song is another awesome one called "Save Me" Which has a great beat in the back, that gives the feel of a heartbeat going normal pace and then speeds up at the bridge. The other instrumentals reinforce this musical  allusion to a heartbeat monitor. She sings in this one, and does well, she has a great voice. ANother awesome song follows with a great beat, flow, and message. It is almost as if her call for help from the last has been answered, and her flow is revived. Drake comes in to work with Nicki on this song, and they make an awesome team as well. This is probably one of the most popular singles from the album. As for the message, it is living in the  moment, and how she feels as if she is on cloud nine and would love to stay in this "Moment 4 life"...sorry had to do it! Another favorite is "Check it Out" with Will i Am that addresses haters, but is very positive. The sample of  1979 hit "Video Killed the Radio Star" give the song it's positive vibe. The chorus is kind of repetitive, but it doesn't matter the song puts a smile on my face, as it is a fun song to listen to.  The beat hits it stride at the last minute and works well. Kanyeezy is in the buildin' and is "Blazin," which is the title of the next song, a great one. The flow of Minaj is quick and is performed with conviction! One of my favorite lines is between "before the storm come the calm, hope you can take the heat like Lebron" or " as long as I am in the game/you'll never win/ i'm on a different type of high /heroin/put on my cape and hit the sky/heroine"  both by Minaj  and one of my favorites from Kanye is "hello all my bad girls this just in/ Weezy heard the beat like he f---ed a best friend/ and she let 'em back in, and he just did it again/ he crazy, he blazin' he off the deep end." Another short song with great instrumentals is "Here I Am" following the smoke of the last track, and calling her haters to come for her, she's here, and ready! She tells the haters to take her as she is because she will not change for their sake. Now it's time for "Dear Old Nicki"to listen to her newfound self in a heartfelt shout-out that reads as a letter to her old self in interpersonal fashion; this delivery really makes a song such as this more interesting, and works well. "Your Love" is another one of the poppy songs which is about her love for her samurai in golden yoroi, kind of cutesy but heartfelt, and not there just for airplay, or is it? I'm just kidding, I can hear the sincerity! "Last Chance" featuring Natasha Bedingfield has great instrumentals and a positive tone. Good way to finish a record! But if you had bought the deluxe version, you would have the awesome new single "Super Bass," which is very poppy, but is one that oozes sincerity as she speaks of a love that causes her heart to work as drumbeat going away. I love "Blow Ya Mind" which starts with a nice little guitar, slow tempo, and then the beat kicks it up a notch with a dance hall beat and vocals saying "nobody" there are several beats/tempos in this song, and her delivery is good.The chorus is kind of silly to make it rhyme i'll end with billy. Actual chorus: She said her name was nicki, she came to play and her body was sicken/ she get what she wants, so sexy when she talks/ you know she gon' to blow ya mind." The next song talks about the almighty green, but is called "Muny"; not a bad song, in fact, all three bonus songs should have been added to the record, they were all good enough to be on the original album.                                                                                                                                                       Best Songs: Roman's Revenge, Fly, Save Me, Moment 4 Life, Check It Out, Blazin, Here I Am, Dear Old Nicki, Super Bass, Blow Ya Mind, Muny.

So which record was better?

First, I was going to say the first one, but both records have their virtues and vices, good and bad songs, strengths and weaknesses.They both have a pretty good variety,but the second record doesn't stray too far from the formula of the first one. The first record has the great: We Cry, The Man Who Can't Be Moved, If You See Kay; Super single "Breakeven," and the awesome "Rusty Halo." While the second record starts wonderfully with a trio of good songs "You Won't Feel a Thing" which segues into the equally catchy "For The First Time," and "Nothing". Then, follows with a few more great songs such as "Dead Man Walking," "This =Love," and the powerful anthemic sincerity of "Exit Wounds." "Bullet From a Gun" I'm still deciding how much I like it or not, but "Walk Away" is good. So, I think it might be a tie; the second record is more of the same, which isn't neccessarily a bad thing, and both records have good songs. But I guess the second record, might be a little better because there are more songs that I like, but I'm not sure. If we're going that route, then the second one wins

Science and Faith!

 

The Script's second record starts with a mildly percussive track called "You Won't Feel a Thing," which is not a bad start; it has a slightly quicker pace and great instrumentals. The next song is "For The First Time," a song that takes a few listens to get in your head, but once it does it has you singing the chorus. The message is about experiencing love as if it is the first time every time, with two lovers down on their luck; it has a positive tone even if the story unfolding is a little depressing, but it doesn't cause one to feel depressed. "Nothing" is a good song to follow, and has a great intro, slightly existentialist, "Am I better off dead? Am I better off a quitter?" depressing, but then works its way into the chorus well as the tempo speeds up slightly. The title track is next, which basically describes the struggle between the two sides, and how they are as oil and water,unable to compromise, which does not seem open-minded, because it basically says that science has no passion " You won't find heart and soul in the stars/ you can break everything down to chemicals/ but you can't a explain love like ours, basically because you can have a passion for learning and exploring new ideas, just because science may be more calculable does not mean it is devoid of passion. Just Sayin'. However the next two songs,  "If You Ever Come Back," which is almost like this album's answer to "The Man Who Can't be Moved", and "Long Gone and Moved On" are good, but are just there. The next song, "Dead Man Walking" has a great intro, nice steady light bassline and good percussion, with a nice lil' bridge; This is one of my favorites from this album. "This=Love," is the next song and it's subject is easy to determine, its tone is positive, and it's beat is steady, but not in the forefront, but keeps the song going with the vocalist's desciption of love in the chorus, and a little freestyle by O' Donoghue toward the end. "Exit Wounds" is another good song, and a great stadium anthem for those people who feel downtrodden, but not to be afraid to show,or be, who you are. Great message and instrumentals! The next song,"Bullet From A Gun" isn't too bad either,but I think I like the last song, "Walk Away," better which has a nice drumbeat, great guitar and piano backing instrumentals. BEST SONGS: You Won't Feel a Thing, For The First Time, Nothing, Dead Man Walking, Exit Wounds,(Bullet From a Gun?), Walk Away.

The Script"S/T"

                                                                                                                                                                       Either I will review one album at a time or compare records to see if one is better than the other one. This time it is both albums from The Script! We'll start with the first record form them. The self-titled record starts off with a great song "We Cry" that has this great backing bassline, and a stories are told of lives started and dreams that failed because of circumstances the people could not change. Depressing, yes, but what do you expect from a song called "We Cry". The next track is called "Before The Worst" which is a good song to follow, has almost a muted jazz feel, with a lighter tone than the preceding track. "Talk You Down" has a slightly quicker pace than the last song with a slightly quicker vocal delivery in the choruswith the same piano part played throughout to keep it going. Another one of my favorites would be "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" which tells of a story of a man, possibly the vocalist ,O' Donoghue, who will wait for his missing love and will stay there waiting until she comes back, no matter what. It has a nice hip hop drumline, and steady guitar, with a positive tone and story of the  power of the human spirit or love. The biggest song from the album is probably "Breakeven" which technically was released as a single after "The Man Who Can't Be Moved," but hit radio before that song. It is a good song, and has a good drumline followed by some pretty nice guitar (low-key). However it is back to the depressing story of how love can tear someone apart! Never fear! Their best, or close to their, best song is next: "Rusty Halo," which channels the vocal delivery of October-era Bono ( most apparant in the woah-oh-ohhh-oh), and channels the Police with an awesome bassline in a reggae/punk delivery; The drums sound great as well changing pace several times, ever so slightly. This is probably their "heaviest" song, the killer bass makes it, and sounds the most different from the rest of the songs, which are good, but at points sound the same.The lyrics are great, though at times repetitive, the chorus goes "Everytone's runnin' from something/ but not sure when it's comin/ so we keep runnin' and runnin' gotta..." It's true though, most of us are moving so fast we don't even pay attention to what is goin on sometimes, or pay attention to life passing us by. Hard to follow up a song such as "Rusty Halo," but they do so with "The End Where I Begin" that starts slow, but then at the chorus speeds up the pace and releases a quicker vocal delivery that emanates sincerity, and goes back to slower pace; predictable, but it works! I like the next two songs "Fall For Anything" and "If You See Kay". The message of the former is simple: stand up for something you believe in or than just fall for anything, which is almost the chorus word for word. Great instrumentals and message. I do like the latter a little better. It has a hip hop beat again, and guitar that almost sounds like a bookend to "We Cry," but with a slower pace. It also tells the story of someone looking for a friend who is lost, I don't think literally, and a girlfriend gone. I do not like how it ends with "I'm Yours",it seems as if the song were before "If You See Kay" the ending would make a little more sense, I'm not sure. It is a somber, and reflective song, but one that does not sound right at the end. Best Songs : We Cry, Man Who Can't Be Moved, Breakeven,Rusty Halo,Fall For Anything,If You See Kay.