Comic Books, Drag Race, & Life in New Zealand
by krisis
*riotHERO was so nice that he went and found a bad review of Radiohead’s totally unbearable new album for me. I realize that everyone but me loves them to death, but over 90% of the album is utter worthless crap. But, the critics seem to enjoy it, so maybe they’ll get another shot at getting it right. Or maybe they’ll write some more “art” ,… yeah, sure…
by krisis
(Almost) All masochism aside, I should be whipped and flogged for every day that i went by not buying Aimee Mann albums. I know now to put blind faith in everything Furia tells me. May Aimee deliver us all from boring and illiterate music. The great thing about most of her songs is that they’re so incredibly simple; not one of them has been a challenge for me to learn to play on guitar or bass. Their simplicity is so very complete that they become marvellous capsules of perfect genius, with no over-important production or performance to discredit. My four-tiered pyramid of musical preference is getting a bit rearranged tonight. More, later.
by krisis
What i truly love about this Madonna album is that it feels musically organic. First of all, whoever finally convinced Madonna to let guitars shine through in many of her songs deserves a pat on the back. Perhaps the country-gal album art is a nod to the overwhelming acoustic force on this album, but the simplicity of tunes like “Gone” that are just guitar, beatbox, and a few tracks of Madonna’s voice (with some electronic toys showing up as the song progresses) exemplify the newfound strength of her voice as well as the simple but heartfelt lyrics she’s come up with (and i still would love to know exactly how the writing process for a Madonna album occurs, but i fear that we’ll never know). “Music” at once doesn’t fit into the album at all and is perfect to kick it off… a bridge from “Beautiful Stranger” & “American Pie” to the present, showcasing all of her recent influences. “Impressive Instant takes us further in that direction, but by “I Deserve” it we see where the album’s true center is. I am left wondering what the next single might be… Ray of Light started off subtle with “Frozen” and then slammed us with the title track. “Music” is by far the best possible clubland single, so will Madonna try to top it with pop (“Amazing”) or grace (“I Deserve It”)?
Well, i’m off to Philosophy, so MadonnaBlog will be back later :P