November 26, 2008
By Jeremy Blacklow
HOLLYWOOD, Calif.
It’s hard to avoid Beyonce this month – In the last two weeks alone I’ve watched her on “Saturday Night Live,” the American Music Awards, at the World Music Awards in Monte Carlo, on the red carpet for her premiere of her new movie “Cadillac Records,” on “Ellen,” on the finale of “TRL” and on the “Today” show.
And she’s got a lot more to go in promoting her third studio album, “I Am… Sasha Fierce,” which came out last Tuesday, November 18. This morning we all learned that her album debuted #1 on the Billboard album charts.
So, how does the rest of her album measure up?
Read on and find out…. after the jump!
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November 25, 2008
By Alex Bandy
LOS ANGELES, Calif.
On “Day & Age,” the third studio album from Las Vegas quartet The Killers, the band seems to have found a perfect compromise between the post-80’s new wave sound of their debut smash, “Hot Fuss,” and the larger than life Americana of their critically panned sophomore effort “Sam’s Town.”
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November 24, 2008
By Alex Bandy
LOS ANGELES, Calif.
Heartless,” the current single from Kanye West’s highly anticipated upcoming fourth disc — “808’s & Heartbreak” — perfectly blends the cold, metallic 80s synth sound he’s been known for of late, with his older bouncing more straight forward Hip-Hop style.
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November 22, 2008
By Breanna Hughes
LOS ANGELES, Calif.
I haven’t heard much of Tracy Chapman’s music in the past, except for what I’ve heard on the radio. I must say, every time “Fast Car” comes on in my car, I turn it up, roll down my windows and sing along with it. I knew a lot of her music consisted of protest and freedom songs about politics and a revolution, so in this time of political unrest and change, I was curious to see what her new album, “Our Bright Future,” would be like.
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November 21, 2008
By Jeremy Blacklow
HOLLYWOOD, Calif.
Deborah Cox is back with her first new full studio album in six years, “The Promise,” and it’s the best full-length disc she’s put out to date.
No longer on her old Arista / J label, the Canadian songstress is now controlling the reigns of her own destiny – this is her first album with Deco Records, which, in fact, happens to be her own personal label that she launched with her husband earlier this year.
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November 19, 2008
By Jeremy Blacklow
LOS ANGELES, Calif.
After a five-year absence, British songstress Dido is back with her third studio album, “Safe Trip Home,” which was released on Tuesday, November 18.
Like her previous two outings, “Safe” is no deviation from formula for the woman who is best known for her mega-hits “Thank You” and “White Flag.” The British chill-out sound is alive and well here, and if you listened to her previous two albums on constant repeat (and if, in the 90s, you listened to a lot of Everything But The Girl), this album will please.
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November 18, 2008
By David Greenwald
LOS ANGELES, Calif.
Too many successful bands have forgotten that there’s more to rock than chugging power chords and angst-ridden vocals. While Paramore plays as loud and heavy as its more established peers, the young Tennessee quartet tempers its pop-punk noise with sophisticated, textured songwriting — it didn’t earn a Best New Artist Grammy nomination in 2008 for nothing.
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November 17, 2008
By Jeremy Blacklow
LOS ANGELES, Calif.
Twenty five years after I first saw The B-52s’ “Legal Tender” video on MTV, I finally caught the band live in concert. My first reaction when the band came out with their latest album, “Funplex,” in the spring of 2008 was that, “They really shouldn’t still be making music this good.”
Unlike Madonna, The B-52s have stayed small and true to their roots and their original identity.
And their show last night in LA was no exception.
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