First Impressions: Whitney Looks To A Promising Comeback

We know all about "The Ballad of Whitney Houston". We know about the dramas, we scratched our heads over the men in her life, we know that some certain substance is "cheap", we even gave hearty chuckles at the parodies...now its time to put all that aside and focus on the musical return of one of music's top-notch singing divas. The long awaited, and much anticipated, comeback from Houston has arrived and it glides in quite stylishly, giving the golden songbird room to fully return to past form. While its obvious to the listener that her voice isn't the same as it was when she was belting out "I Have Nothing" in a sequined head wrap and telling folks she wanted to dance with someone who loved her, there is still some spark left in Houston's vocals to know she hasn't fully lost her momentum.
I Look To You starts out mighty strong, with three stellar opening cuts that lean into modern R&B/Pop uptempo territory and are well on their way to radio airplay. The Alicia Keys' penned "Million Dollar Bill" glistens while the excellent Nate "Danja" Hills' "Nothin' But Love" rocks and reels on an electro-dance pulse that is sure to be a DJ's remix dream. Stargate production "Call You Tonight" is slick, sexy and just screaming to be hit single. Akon's bubbly sway "Like I Never Left" was obviously tweaked from the first time it was heard back in 2008 after an Internet leak, and actually, it was altered for the best as it fairs 10x's better the second hearing around. Surprisingly, the ballads are a toss-up and are few in far between, giving inkling that Houston (or supervisor/producer Clive Davis) wanted to wade in the shallow end. The title track, is fashioned with caution and floats on a lullaby mindset, but it is lovely. On the other hand, the Diane Warren and David Foster calculated, "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" just kind of sits in its own soggy puddle leaving not too much to desire.
Weak moments like "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" have me back on my theory that Whitney has never been an "album" artist, where she has had strong singles but never a strong album. Beg to differ, but from my ear, most of her albums are a mixed bag of goods, where some songs are classically and wondrously executed and others compositions border on just plain awful. Like in the terms of Whitney trying her hand at Donnie Hathaway's classic, "A Song For You". While this sounds like a great idea on paper, upon listen you will hear a simple soul ballad transform into a pulsating Euro-dance track. The whole execution is unnecessary and just terrible, considering that it takes the shine away from the original composition and turns the classic tune into an afterthought.

I Look To You colors in the lines for the most part, not straying out of thick bold barriers that it's wrangled in. Even when Whitney musters up some grit on the final track, "Salute", she does the R. Kelly produced track with such sweetness, that she really doesn't belt out. She's at attention, arms at her side, and she doesn't flinch, and for the most part, this type of stance is done throughout the album collectively. While its the most cohesive effort, Miss Houston has had since 1998's My Love Is Your Love, its nowhere near being a classic due to the shaky, somewhat uninspired musical content, but in the sense of Houston's comeback, it will be noted for that reason alone. On the other hand, the best thing about I Look To You is that this is a mature offering, that manages to have Houston with an updated sound that doesn't make her sound like she's trying too hard to connect with a younger set. Nothing pains me more to hear a grown woman talking about boos, being off the chain, and spitting about haters, and thankful Whitney acts her age, and not her shoe size on this.
In fairness, I Look To You is not something to be overlooked, as there are some glistening moments nestled in there that are in league with some of the best material 2009 has to offer. Whitney Houston does succeed at having an album that is structured sharply enough to give her a sizable and well deserved comeback.

Rating: 8.5/10
Release Date: August 31, 2009

Highlights
Nothin' But Love
Call You Tonight

Freebie Adventures: Adventures In Summer 2009 July/August

Since summer has drawn its curtains closed on me, I decided to wrap up with the final bits of summer revelry and deliver the last mixtape of for the season. As I'm in a pinch, I decide to combine the best of what I listened to in July and August into one collection for your listening pleasure. You may have these, never heard of these, or may be sick of these...whatever the case, if you see something you like, or are curious, then by all means download away, and I hope that your summer was filled with love and good music, just as much as mines was!

Tracklisting:
Dimestore Diamond-Gossip
Golden Boys-Res
Million Dollar Bill-Whitney Houston
Don't Bring Me Flowers After I'm Dead-Erik Hassle ft. MPHO
Now I Know You Know-Debbie Harry
Start A War-Colin Munroe
2546 Nice!-Kinny
In A Week, In A Day-Kylie Auldist
What's Done Is Done-Marina Chello
Everybody-VV Brown
New York-Paloma Faith
Tell Me I'm Not Dreaming-Jermaine Jackson & Michael Jackson
Wanna Believe It Again-Eric Roberson ft. Wayna
Driving-Everything But The Girl
Milk & Honey-Goapele
Move On Up-Curtis Mayfield

DL: Adventures In Summer 2009 July/August [Was asked to take down]

Crisp N' Fresh: It's That Time Of Year For Another Abandoned Dance Club Video

Clubs/abandoned dance studio/warehouse videos can get kind of boring, especially if you've seen them done a gabillion times before. It seems almost like a special quota for artists to do a video of this accord sometime in their career, and for Mary J. Blige, I guess she thought that it was that time of the year to do a music video just like this, with background dancers and a rapper in tow. Not that Mary J. is doing anything wrong, as the video is actually entertaining and visually stimulating, but its nothing groundbreaking, just old hat. So for fun, here's a list of things you'll see in the new video for Mary J's new single, "The One". You might recognize the typical club/warehouse video images, it's like Where's Waldo but more obvious:

• Mary J. Blige with a fierce haircut
• Wheelchair Jimmy, rapper Drake doing physically nothing
  
• Shades
• A big thick chain necklace
• Lots of hand movements
  
• Dancing on walls
• Graffiti on walls
  
• Strobe lights
• A room of mirrors
  
• Neon tubing
• A crazy staircase with the neon tubing
• Skittish head turns (aka special effects)
  
• Mary J throwin' down like its "Real Love" video circa 1992
  
• One lengthy fingernail that looks like its going to slash someone's throat and open envelopes with

Mary J. Blige's upcoming album, Stronger, will be hitting stores November 24th.

Cover Smother: 100% Beverley

Beverley looks kind of devious in this...eyebrow raise and all. Almost like she's teasing us into saying, "Yeah, my album is the shizz...what are you gonna do about it?" Um...play the heck out of it...

Beverley Knight's 100%, which features production work by Guy Chambers, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and also a guest spot by the legendary Chaka Khan, drops in stores September 7th.

First Impressions: Mariah Finally Acts Her Age With A Foreigner Cover

Ever since Mariah Carey and her team tried decided to neuralize our memories Men In Black style about "Obsessed" being the first single, it has been stated that Mama Lamb will be releasing the "first official single" from Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel in the guise of a cover of Foreigner's classic 1981 hit, "I Want To Know What Love Is". As we still whine about Mariah's ability to pull a ballad out of her brassiere again like old times, the fact that she decided to cover Foreigner is quite intriguing, especially since I feel, I've heard some sort of rendition of it already, whether at a drunken piano bar or a talent show, and it always sounded hokey. Thus, Mariah singing this seems very camp. Personally, the original song was ruined for me back in my freshman year of college due to my old suitemate, as she played this song at 8:00 PM every.freakin'.day on the dot. So for about a semester and a half, this song morphed from being an 80's guilty pleasure, to a stye in my eye. But I digress...

So the monumental thing about Mariah cover smothering Foreigner is that we are getting a sense of Carey's ability to bring back that old feeling of her 90's ballads. Yes, she is still a little shaky as her vocal stylings are like when you kick start a lawnmower, about two to three pulls in and then the thing sputters and then operates. She does the whispery-whispy vocal thing in some parts (especially the chorus) and but just like that lawnmower, once she gets started, she riles up and lets out those signature high whistles when the obligatory church choir come thundering into the background. While its not classic Mariah or even on par with her other covers such as Def Leppard's "Bringing On The Heartbreak" or Journey's "Open Arms", its actually quite nice and extremely safe. All in all, Mariah is inching a bit closer to finally sounding much more like her old self again.

I Want To Know What Love Is

Album Watch: Prepping For N'Dambi's 'Pink Elephant'

Hand me my glitter purple pen, as this Audio Diva is "cosignin'" the return of one of neo-soul's baddest sistas. N'Dambi will forever get monster love from me as she is a genuine artist, has a killer afro, and that she's a born and raised Texan (Dallas, to get the city specifics). From the sound of things, N'Dambi's upcoming fourth album, Pink Elephant is going to be quite the scorcher as words and ideals like "80's hip-hop", "jazz-tinged" and "Blues" are floating about.

As if the kick ass cover art didn't further get you intrigued, N'Dambi worked with long-time producer, Leon Sylvers III, who is noted for being apart of the talented Sylvers family and producing for the likes of Shalamar and The Whispers. Something rather fantastic has to come out of that pairing! Since this is N'Dambi's first release on the legendary record label, Stax, she's making sure it's quite the satisfying musical venture. N'Dambi has been one of soul music's best kept secrets since her debut in 1999 with Little Lost Girl Blues. From there N'Dambi collaborated and sung back-up for fellow Dallas vocalist and neo-soul goddess, Erykah Badu, and has dropped two more albums, with the 2005 overseas release, A Weird Kind Of Wonderful, being the last. N'Dambi's new release has been anticipated, as ever since the crunchy funk, of first single, "Can't Hardly Wait" reared its head (hear below), eagerness has settled in for more punchy tunes from this soul stunner. Pink Elephant drops in stores October 6th.

The Claire Huxtable Side Eye Award: Why Hip-Hop and Kidz Bop Should Never Mix

Is this supposed to be cute? Are we supposed to go: "aww...now ain't that just so precious? He's rapping! Little girls are dancing behind him in tutu's! Presh! Squee!" This post is no way directed to hate on children. Children are cute, tell amazing stories and know no better. This post is designed to hate on the parents who put their children up to these types of catastrophic ordeals that deserve a good old fashioned side-eye from the lovely Claire Huxtable, TV's favorite mother and lawyer.

Before you is the video for Lil' King, an up-in-coming pint-sized rapper who is teaching the new "ideal" called, "Wiggy Wiggy". First off, I'm quite shocked that no one has thought of "Lil' King" as a rap handle till 2009...I guess it shows you how lousy this is all unraveling to be. Second, it should be noted that Lil' King's poppa is none other than rapper, Silk The Shocker. Yes, that guy. Forgot about him didn't you? Third, it should also be noted that this is one of those moments where hip-hop and hip-hop culture gets cheaper than a plastic bowl n' cup set at Dollar General. I like my hip-hop with less farce and less Flintstone's Kids vitamins, thank you much.

Take it away Claire...

Web Salad: So Much Newness

A look-see at what's going on in other parts of the music blog-o-sphere

• Continue to get your Eric Roberson fix. Soul Bounce sits down with Mr. MusicFanFirst for a one-on-one that is sure to be the icing on your 1,000th listen to his latest effort.
• The ever uptight Pitchfork reviewed the Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s...While Buddyhead called foul.
• Need a new voice to worship? Soul UK introduces us to yet another stellar vocalist by the name of Yahzarah.
• So it looks like Kylie Minogue, Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters and Calvin Harris are cooking something up in the studio...PopJustice has the pic to prove it.
• Take a look at The Foreign Exhchange's new video for track, "House Of Cards", which features singer, Muhsinah over at Pinboard.
• Look back at Whitney Houston's career with The QH Blend and reminisce over the good times.
• Backstreet's back, alright! Sorry I couldn't resist, especially since Sexy Never Left has the brand new Backstreet Boys music video.

Freebie Adventures: Revisiting The Best Of Aaliyah

Cover smother yourself today with some unique and fantastical versions of a bushel of Aaliyah's timeless hits. The always on point, Soul Culture has compiled a stellar playlist of familiar tracks done by some of soul's rising stars as they put their spin on tracks such as "Rock The Boat", "I Care 4 U" and "If Your Girl Only Knew". Artists such as Marsha Ambrosius, Sy Smith, Jesse Boykins III, Vula, Nikko Gray and others are present on this 8-track EP that is worth your downloading wild this week. And seriously, what better way to pay tribute to Aaliyah's musical legacy than by keeping the music playing?

DL: Aaliyah Revisited

Cover Smother: Into The Mind Of Wonder

Stevie Wonder's 1972 record, Music Of My Mind where Stevie got bolder with his compositions as the fusions of rock, soul and funk were much more prevalent. "Superwoman" is just a stone cold classic.

First Impressions: Does Naturi Do 'Out Here On My Own' Justice?

Been a bit on the silent front concerning the remake of 1980's cult musical classic, Fame. Why? Possibly because I'm a purist and can only imagine the original New York High School of Performing Arts gang, that's why. Still it intrigued me that they have rehashed a few songs from the original score and added it in to the brand new batch of songs for the film's soundtrack (no love for "Hot Lunch Jam" unfortunately...boo). Former 3LW member, Naturi Naughton has a starring role in the remake, and she takes on the movies biggest songs, the title theme song, and the soul stirring balladry of, "Out Here On My Own". Now we all know that singer/actress, Irene Cara (who played in the original Fame flick as the ambitious Coco) made those two songs monumental 80's anthems that have been sung in many a hairbrush over the years. Still, for Naturi, it's a tricky task to take over the torch, especially when someone else has made it their signature songs for years. As an unabashed Cara fan, my bias will obviously show through, but I will say that Naturi handled these songs fairly well. Especially on "Out Here On My Own", which has her doing the same vocal gymnastics as Cara but in her own style, and it's not too shabby. While her vocals aren't on the same page as Irene's, the props are clearly noted. Compare and contrast below. If you wanna live forever and learn how to fly high, Fame will be hitting theaters September 25th.

Artist Watch: Wherefore Art Thou....Donnie?

Politically correct, socially aware and soulfully sound, Donnie proved to be a breath of fresh air back in the early 2000's when he dropped his debut, The Colored Section in 2002. As a sort of slap of reality with a musicality and vocals that harkened back blended memories of Stevie Wonder, Donnie Hathaway and Marvin Gaye (whom he is related to), The Colored Section shouted above the treetops with its smart, witty and on-point word play. The groove seemed even more just as Donnie released this album on the Motown label, continuing the label's history to deliver quality material circa the 1960's and 70's. Songs such as the horn fused, "People Person" and the swinging Southern soul crawl of "Big Black Buck" struck a chord with me, as they were blunt, honest and didn't seem to be force feeding you with preachings. Pretty much all of Section plays out like that, brutally honest and a straight up needle shot of funk that is infectious beyond belief.


The Lexington, Kentucky native followed up Section with the even more ambitious, The Daily News in 2007. News had Donnie going much more into the political slant than before with tracks that touched on current event topics about the Louisiana floodings of 2005 and 9/11. Donnie possesses a talent to weave in messages that are already tough pills to swallow, and morphs them into listenable soul compositions that feel straight out of a time long gone. This son of preacher parents brings something intellectual to the table, and its quite a shame that he's only known through those who dig underground for those unearthed musical gems.


Maybe I'm just impatient, but it's just seems that he has been absent from the musical game for awhile. While 2007 doesn't seem like such an antique time ago, but for someone of Donnie's caliber, it seems criminal that he still isn't burning the midnight oil and crafting more engaging albums. Digging through the Google files doesn't unearth much, as its been a hot minute since anything new from this cat has surfaced, not even new single info or even some grainy live performances on YouTube. Possibly he is crafting something even more epic than his preceding albums or maybe he's taking a breather, or maybe my sleuthing skills blow but still I would like to know...wherefore art thou, Donnie?

Remember The Time: Always 'One In A Million'

Eight years ago, today, the music world lost a shining star, and her name was Aaliyah. Somehow it just seems that yesterday Aaliyah donned baggy pants, had sunglasses atop her head and was wondering if some boy was her somebody. Now that image is a distant memory, but a sweet memory nonetheless, as Aaliyah's tunes and persona was apart of the 90's R&B elite. From time to time, I often wonder what Aaliyah's musical career would have morphed into as her final record, the self-titled release from 2001, proved to be some of Timbaland's best production work, and some of Aaliyah's slickest material. For this edition of Remember The Time, I decided to dedicate it to Baby Girl and showcase her best video...but alas my indecisive self couldn't pick just one Aaliyah video to satisfy this post, so I manged to whittle it down to two of my personal favorite cuts, 1996's "One In A Million" and 2001's "Rock The Boat".

Wipe Off The Dust: Always Under Phyllis Hyman's Spell

If, by some bizarre fate, I was approached by a Black Magic Weirdo and he gave me the choice of what singing voice I would like to possess, I would not flinch at my decision to say: "Phyllis Hyman". What?! Not Mariah? Not Whitney? Not the Queen of Soul A-R-E-T-H-A? Nope. PH, baby, PH all the way. For the last couple of weeks, I've become a bit entranced by the rich, velvety and peerless tone of the late Miss Hyman. Not that I was naive to her vocal abilities all this time, as I've listened to Miss Hyman as a child, but if you are a music consumer like I, you know that some artists/bands take up more of your ear time because they have that "something" that makes you want to go back for more. Phyllis Hyman has been one of those investments ever since I heard her 1979 single, "You Know How To Love Me" and heard that booming, determined and pitch perfect vocal tone draping over the song's disco swirl exterior, I have been going back for seconds.

Don't feel inferior if you aren't familiar with Phyllis' story or even her music. She's one of the immensely talented soul starlets that sometimes gets lost in the cracks, due to bigger diva names snuffing her out in conversation and also because her music wasn't what some considered "mainstream" enough to stay strong on the charts. We know how that particular flute plays, as we see it with some of today's artists that don't get much shine, but it should be known that if circumstances had been different, Whitney Houston might not have worked out the way she did. How is that? History lesson if I must. In the late 70's to early 80's, Phyllis was Arista's (and music executive Clive Davis') diva project but when Arista and Davis collectively "feeling" Phyllis' music direction, they passed and zoomed in on the future golden voiced diva named Whitney Houston. Later on in the mid-80's Arista would fire Hyman from the label after being dissatisfied with Hyman's output. This situation among other personal troubles would haunt Hyman up to the end of her life. Hyman would tragically take her own life in 1995, after suffering with bouts of depression. The channel, TVOne did a great piece on her for their fantastic biography show, Unsung and if you're like me where your cable provider doesn't offer this fab channel (*waves fist in air and cusses out Charter cable*), you can watch it here, if you want to learn more about Phyllis' musical career.

Amidst the scruples of her life, the constant was always the music and her stellar vocal abilities. Phyllis has a hearty catalog of tunes that will forever be revered as soul classics that still sound just as crisp as when they were placed on the black wax. She's best known for the thundering and romantic ballads, like "Somewhere In My Lifetime", "Can't We Fall In Love Again" and "Meet Me On The Moon", as well as her work with producer/musician Norman Conners on her breakout track, "Betcha By Golly Wow", a cover of a 1971 Stylistics hit. Probably her most famous soul burner resides in the brooding 1986 single, "Living All Alone" which haunts every corner of the mind with just one listen. Its truly one of her finest recordings as it provokes the yearn for second chances at love, something we can all attest to feeling. Here is an exceptional vocal performance of the song from a 1980's talk show...this is live singing folks:


Good, right?

Phyllis graced the theatrical stage as well, as in the early 80's she performed in the musical, Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies alongside actors Gregory Hines and Hinton Battle. Hyman would receive a Tony Award nomination for her supporting role in the musical. Watch as Phyllis puts us in a "Sentimental Mood"....



While these two performances just scratch the surface of Phyllis Hyman's musical and vocal collage, its easy to see just from these morsels that Hyman was a tried and true songstress, one that showed such raw diva power, and one who was taken from us way too soon.

First Impressions: The Saturdays Try On A New Pair Of Jeans

The Saturdays are a weak moment of music for me, as probably a part of me jones for a British girl group of approximately five gals to fill the void of what The Spice Girls were to me back in the mid-90's. Sugababes sufficed till their core members rotated on out, Girls Aloud weren't my cup of Earl Grey tea and the idea of All Saints kind of evaporated even after strong promise. So a group named after the best day of the week, came in to make me believe in girl groups again. Last year, The Saturdays debut, Chasing Lights, proved to be a pop delight that didn't seem to take itself too seriously, nor did it pound you over the head with too much sugar pop goodness. It was perfectly balanced and downright delightful. Now The Saturdays are following up their debut with a shiny new album coming out this October, and have quickly dropped the first single. "Forever Is Over" is brand new musical fare from the fivesome, and here they are trying on a rockier set of jeans, as they glide over a soaring pop-rock instrumentation, something a little "edgier" than their last tune output. Note that "edgier" for the Sats is more guitar and less synths. Getting lots of Kelly Clarkson Breakaway vibes from this, and lo and behold, the track is produced by Clarkson collaborators, Sam Watters and Louis Biancaniello. The Sats are on the quickness stick as the video for the song has dropped as well. So why not experience the song and the visual all in one go below? Here, here for multi-tasking!

Adventures In Irrelevancy: El DeBarge Wears It Well On 'The Facts Of Life'

Don't you just love it when musicians pop up in sitcoms? It seems so random and a little bit more exciting than the usual guest star fare, possibly because musicians are cooler and there is usually an opportunity for a impromptu performance or two in the episode. There have been many epic musician moments on sitcoms, like Stevie Wonder on The Cosby Show, En Vogue on A Different World , *NSYNC on Sabrina, The Teenage Witch...just to name a few golden television moments. I have been on a Facts Of Life kick lately....(don't ask me why, but I just am, so just go with the moment, okay?)....and I came across an episode from the seventh season that's probably as old as me and features the musical stylings of El DeBarge as he sings along with the Facts girls (and George Clooney) after they enter a singing contest as the fake group, Sexy Lingerie. Naming the group Sexy Lingerie has to be a nod to Prince somehow. Aside from that, my, my, look at that glorious mane of hair and that shiny gold suit El is sporting...talk about perfection. Things get rolling at about 4:06 if you are of the fast-forwarding persuasion but you're missing some funny moments so watch the whole thing if you need to waste some time. As another cheesy morsel, singer Siedah Garrett (aka Michael Jackson's duet partner and fellow songwriter) makes an appearance as a bitchy contest competitor. The gems you find on the Internet...

First Impressions: The Queen Wants To Take Us With Her

Haven't you heard? Queen Latifah is dropping a new album come Tuesday (August 25) and she's going to be showing us all sides of her character spectrum with the appropriately titled new release of, Persona. While I haven't been on my toes concerning the Queen or her new release (which has a creative album cover), since she is taking a break from the swinging lounge n' jazz standards and diving back into her hip-hop humble beginnings, I should be keeping my ears perked up. Like for instance with the nicely derived pulsating up-tempo, "Take Me (With You)" which features the lovely Marsha Ambrosius on vocal duties and Latifah going from her lush singing voice to a slick little rap. Actually there is more singing in this than any sort of lyrical flow, but I'm figuring that other cuts on Persona fill the void of fans wanting Miss Latifah to do something of the "Ladies First" persuasion. Especially since Cool & Dre and The Neptunes are doing production duties. "Take Me (With You)" is a surprisingly catchy tune that has an electric R&B synth quality to it, and Latifah and Marsha's vocals blend well together, which makes you wonder why these two haven't been singing together all along.

Take Me (With You) (ft. Marsha Ambrosius)

Audio Vision: Amy Sends Us Flying Into Possibilities Of A Comeback

Believe your eyes (and ears) that that is Amy Winehouse and she's actually coherent, sober, and singing. Not warbling, singing. Over the weekend, Miss Winehouse appeared along side 80's Ska group, The Specials at the V Festival and surprised concert goers with her appearance as she stepped on stage to sing, "You're Wondering Now" from the band's debut album, Specials, from 1979. Still sporting the ratty beehive, Amy bounced around and acted more like how we saw her back in early 2006. Back when the bubbling chatter of Amy's Back To Black started to grace the Star-Spangled shores of America and folks got excited about some real singing gracing the mainstream. One can only hope that Winehouse will continue to get right and be on the track to a comeback, as her spin on classic soul sounds is deeply missed. The hat tip goes to Pinboard who gave this Audio Diva the heads up.

Album Watch: Meshell To Unveil 'Devil's Halo' This Fall

Dust off and put on your smarty pants as you soak in some intellectual tunes this Fall from one of Neo-Soul's defining sistas, Meshell Ndegeocello. Honey Soul Music has reported that the singer/guitarist is releasing Devil's Halo this October, the follow-up to 2007's The World Has Made Me The Man Of My Dreams. Common knowledge tells you that this is one album to invest in this year, as Meshell continues to add her unique style to the Soul/Jazz/Hip-Hop markets. Meshell mentioned that on Devil's Halo, she has crafted songs out of influences from groups Wu Tang Clan, Yes and The Human League. That's quite a melting pot right there and of course I'm anxious to hear the outcome. On the new album's tracklisting, a song called, "Mass Transit" has recently performed and its all kinds of interesting, which no doubt gets you excited for what's in store for Meshell's eighth studio record.
Meshell is forever a favorite of mines thanks to classic straight through listens like 1993's Plantation Lullabies, which features the eternally epic, "Outside Your Door". No doubt that Devil's Halo will be an album that Meshell listeners will sop up like bread to some melted butter. Devil's Halo will be in stores, October 6th.

First Impressions: Turn Me Out, Turn Me Loose

Ledisi has always been an artist that never played by the rules, always colored outside of the lines, and was never a scooped out vanilla flavored soul singer. Her collection of albums have showcased her ever-evolving state as each long player varies from one another. Though there is variance, they still all possess Ledisi's multi-layered vocal styles, which should make your ear drums rejoice. 2002 brought the straight lounge essence of 2002's Feeling Orange But Sometimes Blue and 2007 was the introspective jazz-funk of Lost & Found and least we forget the homegrown Southern soul of her 2000 debut, Soulsinger. Now in 2009, Ledisi returns in upbeat spirits with her now fifth album release. If the electric-pink album cover and title didn't give us inkling enough to Ledisi's new jubilant attitude, the musical content is evidence enough. On Turn Me Loose, the New Orleans native does just that as she twists n' shouts about with songs that spread over the structures of classic rock, Blues and funk, but with a modern take. While Ledisi rocks n' reels she brings a couple of friends along for the joyride. Producer Rex Rideout is back with Raphael Saddiq, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Chucky Thompson and Chief Xcel taking on production duties as well adding their prospective talents into Ledisi's musical mix. The theme of the album resides in "changes", with three songs taking on the word, and Ledisi having a change of musical direction on this. Changes in sound come in the form of Ledisi tackling optimistic R&B flavors with great ease, such as the punchy mid-tempo, "Higher Than This" and the gusty psychedelia of "Trippin'". The title track revolves on a swaying gut bucket Blues polished for the 21st Century and is a mighty persistent number. Favorite, "Alone" is heavily laden with percussion and it chugs along wondrously while "Knockin'" takes some cues from the 70's age of Ike & Tina Turner with its rousing rock n' soul quality, that really "let's loose". Another highlight, "I Need Love" is a tumbling synth number with a killer arrangement that bounces into stark drums and synths into a tinkling light piano.

Tight arrangements, cohesive flow and infectious tunes are what make this a stellar effort in Ledisi's body of work, but the real showcase is Ledisi's vocal chops as her vocal techniques alone are intricate enough to marvel at. She dips and dives into varying octave ranges so swiftly and stunningly, you won't have a chance to blink. Turn Me Loose is a thoroughly thought out effort that proves that Ledisi is one to keep a hawk's eye on as her talent runs deep. Clearly, this is one of the best albums you'll hear all year.

Rating: 9.8/10
Release Date: August 18, 2009

Song Stuck In My Head: So We Can Be One Together

"Like To Get To Know You Well" - Howard Jones (1985)

It seems like critics like to dismiss British vocalist, Howard Jones and his contributions to 80's synth-pop and pass it off as pure mindless piffle. While its explainable since his hit, "No One Is To Blame" has been jammed down the throats of every music listener from the ear lenders to 80's hour on local soft rock radio stations and to being blared over grocery store loudspeakers, but who said that was bad? You know me, I always like the song less traveled. "Like To Get To Know You Well" was the first single released from Jones' second album, Dream Into Action, before the madness of "No One Is To Blame" and "Things Can Only Get Better" ensued and in my opinion, its his best song. "LTGTKYW" is creatively Reggae influenced with a bit of light funk mixed it and it's a infectious little sucker. It may be "annoying" to some, as it seems a bit too perky for its own good...but who gives a flying squirrel's ass anyway? It's a fun tune with a bit of social conscious wrapped into it, and it just happens to be one of my favorite 80's jams, so there! Dig on the video below, it's soooo 80's with its squiggly and symmetric drawings and artsy fartsy modern art concept...fun indeed.

Crisp N' Fresh: VV Brown Plays Dress Up

VV Brown takes some cues from Grace Jones and the Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome clothing catalog to give us a fabulous video for her newest single, "Game Over" from her delightful debut, Travellin' Like The Light. Physically, this is a video that features nothing but VV wearing outlandish clothing (how many yaks did she kill for that first outfit?) . But mentally, this is VV Brown proving that even though she may come off as a "try-hard" narcissistic oddball in this visual display, she still manages to strut it out and entertain the hell out of you. Even when you're totally not aware of it.

Remember The Time: Bamboo Earrings, At Least Two Pair

Taking a look through the camera lens with LL Cool J as he cruises NYC for his "Around The Way Girl". Things to note...

• The single reached #9 on the Billboard Top 100, and is from LL's 1990 album, Mama Said Knock You Out
• "She looks like she's from the Addams Family"...more like Breakfast At Tiffanys to me, LL
• Doorknocker earrings, off the shoulder overalls and backwards caps...I always wished to dress like that when I was a mere six years old, but Audio Mom wouldn't allow it *grumble*
• How many Kangol hats did LL possess throughout the 80's and 90's? One must know these things.
  
• Those girls are way too calm as LL is filming them walking down the street, I'd be like Nisi and Mickey in B.A.P.S if I saw LL...screaming and acting a right fool in front of everybody
• Note that LL is shirtless in this...as it should be
• @1:53...I dance like that sans green overalls
• @2:22...I dance like that whenever something good happens to me
• LL needs to stop being reflective and pass that wine over to me, it's just sitting there as he yaks on
• Okay, that's a little stalker-ish @2:30
  
• @ 2:55...brotha you lost, with your hot dogs
  
• This song has some of the best lyrics of ALL-TIME..."perm in your hair, or even a curly weave, with your New Edition Bobby Brown button on your sleeve". LL is a true wordsmith.
  
• Bart Simpson makes a surprise guest appearance in this video

Album Watch: Do You Think Mariah Carey Can Pull Off "Vision Of Love" In 2009?

Mariah Carey announced over the weekend that she will be releasing her first official single off of her much delayed, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, in the very near future. What? You thought "Obsessed" was the first single right? You aren't alone in your thought. From reports, "Obsessed" was merely "fun summer trifle" and it was purely a "buzz single" that was meant to be an appetizer till the main course made its way onto the table. Well, at someone got the "trifle" part right. Mariah Carey's team announced that the real first official single from Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel is to be a ballad in the frame of what Mariah's very first single, 1990's "Vision Of Love", was. You know, epic, soaring and #1 hit material. Hmm...we'll just see about that as we all can attest to Mariah's vocal chops not being as sharp as they used to be but maybe Mariah may indeed give us that vintage feeling if she gets her ducks in a row. To me, this whole scenario is clearly Mariah's PR team covering their asses after seeing how "Obsessed" hasn't been fairing with the public. To be fair, the "fun summer trifle" wasn't a flop single, as it rests on the Billboard chart at #14 and has reached its highest peak at #11. Not shabby, but the fact that there was a crusty-old back story to the song and that the song wasn't even remotely good possibly led to its stalling. Now it's back to the drawing board for Mariah as she pushes Memoirs back for a second time and reaches back in a early 90's mindset. So why all this re-draft of plans?

What's rumored to be bringing on the pressure is Whitney Houston's comeback, as it has been reported that L.A. Reid (CEO over at Island Def Jam, and the one overseeing Mariah's career at the present) was at Houston's listening party for her I Look To You record, and probably started feeling a bit squeamish at what he heard. Thus plans A and B were scratched and plan C is in the works. Still that rumor is just the right ingredient to start up an all out diva war, and we don't want to see the earrings come off, nails ready to scratch and the weaves a-flying. Just downright un-ladylike.

With all these delays, single changes and some wimpy hype, the Memoirs project is looking more and more "Imperfect" by the moment, yet, sometimes more scrutinizing and more allowed time could have Mariah pushing to make a more refined and listenable album. Here's to hoping.

Artist Watch: Why Kylie Auldist May Be My New Favorite Singer

There is another singing Kylie and she's from Australia? You bet your koalas! Kylie Auldist is one of those discoveries that this Audio Diva lives for. An unexpected find that comes from the blurry eyed searches of the interwebs in the wee morning hours for something that tantalizes the ear buds and gets my mouth in motion to ramble off about "my new discovery" to anyone who will listen. Call it music nerd-ish, but I call it life. Kylie Auldist's musical style isn't anything we haven't heard before from countless other artists, as her tunes sound ripped from some black wax circa 60's and 70's. Don't let that turn you off, as one can tire of the trend of Motown Soul that has been sweeping the music market these days. But be aware that it's all in Auldist's execution. Auldist possess a rich yet gruff moody tone, that is effortlessly delivered and grabs your attention right from the first note. With the help of her backing band, The Bamboos, you're getting two great pieces of a soulful puzzle that fit together wondrously. In the spirit of Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, Kylie Auldist and The Bamboos bring back age-old arrangements tweaked for the 21st Century, with a little Samba, a smidgen of Jazz, and a gob of Blues into the mix. You can hear the cookin' results of the two entities on Auldist's first two albums, 2008's Just Say, and this year's Made Of Stone. Just Say leans on a more sophisticated soul mantra while Made Of Stone blossoms with its funky wild child stomp, both are great and have been occupying my ears for a good week. From the first couple of listens to both sets you'll be hard pressed to find anything you dislike, as Auldist's voice is winning enough to make you kind of sigh to yourself and go, "This is the real deal, this girl can sang!"

Okay, okay, I've sung my praises long enough...So what does she really sound like, you ask? Take a gander at three cuts that, I feel, should give you a clearer picture of what Miss Auldist brings to the musical table. Prepared to be funk-ta-fied:

Just Say (from Just Say)

Cut You Loose (from Just Say)

In A Week, In A Day (from Made Of Stone)

Web Salad: Everyday People

Salad is back...crisp and fresh like always and serving up the best of the blog-o-sphere this week (with some dressing on the side).

• To honor the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, Mainstream Isn't So Bad explores Sly & The Family Stone's Woodstock experience.
• Melismatic loves Kid Sister, and The Audio Diva does too.
• Soul UK has served up another great compilation, this time focusing on some True Soul Sistas
• *We need to be prepared for Usher's Monster...Pinboard has another great leak from the upcoming set.
• Love Eric Roberson? I thought so. Follow Erro on his YouTube page, BlueErroSoul where he is counting down to the release of his upcoming album, MusicFanFirst, with sneak peeks and all that good stuff to keep you high in anticipation.
  
• Who in high hell are The Bots and why should we head bang away to them? Soul Bounce gives us the details.
• FourFour looks into the lost art of the female MC.
• Speaking of Hip-Hop, Honey Soul Music gives us a heads up that Hip-Hop music turned 36 years old this week. In Grandmaster Flash we trust.
  
• Remember Kylie Minogue's Body Language? Pop Trash Addicts does an take us back to when Kylie was a "Red Blooded Woman".
• Natalie Imbruglia is back with a new album, entitled Come To Life, and Muumuse has the new Chris Martin penned single, "Want".

Crisp N' Fresh: Amanda Diva In Living Color

Amanda Diva hasn't been featured around these parts and shame on me for the neglect. We share the same last name plus we love leggings and neon colors...we are practically kindred spirits! Well, if you haven't gotten a whiff of her utterly divine EP, Spandex, Rhymes and Soul, then you need to get on the stick and hunt it down, especially if you are salivating for a female MC with wit, charm and clever rhymes. One of my favorite cuts, "Neon" now has a video accompaniment featuring fellow rapper, Johnny Polygon. The video takes us on a nostalgic trip as it takes inspiration from the opening title credits of the hit 90's sketch show, In Living Color, complete with neon sqiggly lines and shapes. Of course the video lives up to its title with day-glo explosions all around, from signs, to T-shirts and back to Ray-Bans. Retro cool in every sense of the word. Shouts to Pinboard for the heads up!

Cover Smother: Annie Trips The Light Fantastic

I'm a little hot and cold when it comes to Annie's music, but considering that this album cover looks absolutely fantasmical (neon lights! red nail polish! fingerless gloves!), I might take a gander again...The Norwegian electro-pop vocalist's long-awaited sophomore album, Don't Stop will be appearing in stores come November, much to the relief of fans who've been waiting for nearly four years for this. Sadly, her version of Stacy Q's classic 80's romp, "Two Of Hearts" won't be on the tracklisting...sometimes you can't always get what you want...

First Impressions: Anjulie's Big Ray Of Eclectic Sunshine

Perky, charming and saccharine, Canadian vocalist, Anjulie bounces her way into the industry with a debut album that gives you that warm fuzzy feeling of being musically satisfied. If Anjulie seems like unfamiliar musical territory to you, then you aren't alone in your thinking, as Anjulie has been skimming the Canadian music scene for a couple of years writing her own material and penning tunes for others. Anjulie got her chance to shine individually when she hooked up with popular R&B producer, Jon Levine, also a native of Canada, to craft the songs that would ultimately end up on her self-titled debut. What followed next was the release of her Boom EP, which has been making blog rounds since last year. Anjulie plucks the best elements from various musical genres and fashions it into a bundle of eclectic grooves and moods. Sometimes it feels like it wouldn't work, but in fact, this is what keeps the album a fresh listen every time the play button is pushed. Fresh is quite an understatement right from the start of the divine bizarre contents of first single, "Boom", a song that is unique in every sense of the word. Anjulie, as an artist, resides in good company with the likes of Nelly Furtado and Esthero, as she exudes that quirky yet enduring musicality, songs like the poppy "Addicted2Me" showcase this. On the melodic "Rain", Anjulie grabs inspiration from the singer-songwriters hey-day of the 1970's as she gels hip-hop with folk lyricism. The crisp and utterly perfect, "Love Songs" remains to be a favorite, as it poetically touches on 60's girl group mannerisms. "Some Dumb Girl" is my track of choice, with it being immersed in a slick "blue lights in basement" spell, right down to the peppering of horns and oozing synths. From the first straight through listen of Anjulie you get a sense that it tries to cover everything from Samba numbers like "Columbia" to the Motown sing-a-long of "I Want The World To Know" that it almost seems like Anjulie has no central genre she wants to truly stick to. Yet, my guess is that's what the objective is, as Anjulie and her debut take the road less traveled.

Rating: 9.7/10
Release Date: August 4, 2009

Album Watch: Janet's Back...Let The Stanning Begin!

<---Yes, that is THE Miss Janet Jackson as she poses shellacked and android-like in a "new" promo shot that leaked online last night (apparently its not new, just someone had fun playing around with Photoshopping). Still, that is Janet in the picture, not Michael, like some people have been squealing about on various forums and blogs...but I digress...

Last week, Mama Jan Jan (my pet name for her cause well...I'm crazy) dropped a gaggle of new things on her unsuspecting stanbase fanbase. First, Janet jumped aboard the 21st Century social networking and launched her official Twitter page. At the moment, Janet has only Tweeted two things and has over 42,000 followers...in stans we trust! Then she revamped her official website with some photos from the Damita Jo/20 Y.O. eras (I'm guessing she wants to forget about that Discipline stuff too...) integrated in a crisp and easy to function site. And then, if that wasn't enough fabulous news, there has been constant yap of 2010 being the Year of Janet as she will release her 11th album with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis back where they belong in the producing driving seat.

From the looks of things, Janet is gearing up for something quite huge, and while I don't want to get my hopes up, I can't help but be excited for something fresh from Miss Jackson. Even though it may seem far-fetched or just blind hope, the passing of Michael may play a hefty role in the material that Janet may produce this time around. There could be the possibility that she may even delve into her "Velvet Rope" mode (aka "moody" and "reflective") and our ears may get to hear some classic and ambitious sounds like her highly-acclaimed 1997 release. Then again, I could be just reaching and grabbing nothing but air...Still whatever Mama Jan Jan decides to do on this new effort, it will no doubt entertain and satisfy all of music hungry fans.

The Tape Deck: Week #5

1. Now I Know You Know-Debbie Harry: While "Backfired" continues to be lodged in my brain, another single from the KooKoo album has consumed me and its this eerie composition of jazz balladry. Oddly Debbie sounds like Kate Bush in some parts, yet she retains a soulfulness in her tone that is mesmerizing. Chic really put their producing foot into this and sadly, it went unnoticed.

2. Million Dollar Bill-Whitney Houston
3. Celebration-Madonna

4. Golden Boys-RES: As I'm revisiting How I Do this week, the opening cut possesses a hypnotic musical swirl that continues to draw me in. Complete with orchestral swells in the chorus and the punchy lyric delivery, it makes me hungry for Res to give us more quality tunes. She's been sticking to the underground too long...she needs to come up for some light!

5. Dirty It Up-Robin Thicke
6. Don't Bring Me Flowers-Erik Hassle ft. MPHO

7. Can't Stand Your Mother-Lucy Pearl: Of all the songs off of the engaging collaboration between Raphael Saddiq, Dawn Robinson and Tribe Called Quest's Ali Shaheed Muhammad, this is probably my favorite song. Its the simplest of songs with its acapella and bare bones musical backdrop but the premise of the song is chuckle-worthy...especially if you run into this sort of situation before.

8. Everybody-VV Brown


9. Milk & Honey-Goapele: Warning: This video will make you want some cookies...real bad


10. Love Songs-Anjulie

First Impressions: Maybe We Have 'Heard 'Em All'

Yes, this was leaked during my absence, but I feel the need to talk some noise about why I'm getting the case of the "samey-sames" with this track....

Question: Why must Amerie try and chase "1 Thing", especially to the point of making songs that sound almost exactly like it?

Possible answer: Oh, yeah, because she's in dire need for a hit and apparently this is the way to go to make music listeners' brains associate to the fact that she is the "1 Thing" girl. Thus high sales and interest commence.

Here we have a song that tries to be "above" what Amerie's 2005 chart topper was, and that is the Eric Hudson produced, "Heard 'Em All", a sort of "I'm back bitches!" type of number that is to showcase Amerie's fierce nature. For me, the track ends up sounding akin to that cousin who's always is trying to be in competition with you. It's genetically intact to what "1 Thing" is with the clunky drums and skittish two-stepper rhythms, but it still doesn't compare and therefore just stands there looking like a shoddy imitation. I'm not blaming Amerie. Why would she bite the hands that are feeding her? Still, if she wants her upcoming (and heavily pushed back), In Love & War to be a take-off success with the chance for it to not replicate the mishandled release of 2007's Because I Love It, she needs to hit it out of the ballpark better than this and not try and fool her listeners into getting reheated leftovers.

Heard 'Em All

Cover Smother: Hey...Over Here!

Labelle's 1976 cover for album, Chameleon, the group's last album...well, till their comeback record in 2008. This album contains the quirkiness of Nona Hendryx's songwriting and some clever song titles...such as the cheeky title of "Going Down Makes Me Shiver"...oh, Labelle, how coy you are...

The Scramble: Tuesday Tag...You're It

Feuds: By now you've heard that Roisin Murphy got a bit pissy at Lady GaGa for stealing her style...well, let's all climb aboard the OBVIOUS Wagon then shall we?

Tribute: The Michael Jackson tribute concert is a-go-go, as the location has been chosen for (Vienna ) and three major acts have been exposed (Whitney Houston, U2 and Madonna).

Bizarre Notes: I think I gave a massive side-eye, a headdesk, a swoon and a gag all in one reflex from this piece of news... Maxwell, Robin Thicke, Tyrese and The Dream are all to be on a new R. Kelly song entitled "Pregnant". Maxwell and Robin, please do not go to the Dark Side...

In WTF News: These spoilers of the Spike Jonze directed film about Kanye West lead me to believe that we Americans have been lied to about the Recession as we are wasting precious film on narcissistic garbage such as this.

T-Shirt Talk: Christina Aguilera takes the words right out of our mouths about auto-tune

Ice Queen: Posh Spice aka Victoria Beckham has filled in Paula Abdul's seat at the American Idol auditions in Denver, Colorado, and well, folks are saying she was "stiff" and "icy" ...well duh, she's been stiff and icy since 1996!

Crisp N' Fresh: Get Bowled Over With Paloma Faith

With a velvety rich and soulful tone, Paloma Faith mourns the lost of her man in this engaging video for new single, "New York" from her soon-to-be released debut, Do You Want The Truth Or Something Beautiful? Appealing visuals of a glittering cityscape of the Big Apple mixed in with the central location of a bowling alley, make the video quite charming. The track itself is gorgeous enough to keep you watching. Yes, the tune may seem a little "showy" especially with a Gospel choir backing her up (cause you know it wouldn't be a big ballad without it), but their is no denial of the song's lovely arrangement and how Paloma's classy persona approaches the track. Frankly, I like this better than her last single, "Stone Cold Sober", probably because I've been in the mood for a swanky ballad without all the gimmicks (aka over-singing). Nicely done.