Album Review!

link for Ted

Hello friends. My current state of funemployment lends itself to a plethora of free time. I find myself bored much of the time. Leads exist, but nothing solidified yet. Keep your fingers crossed.

That said, I haven't been able to find a topic to blog about lately. Nothing really has happened in my life of late. But, with the recent dearth of blogging (until the last few days), it became apparent that I had to blog about SOMETHING, or else this blog would be truly dead. So, the natural choice for blog content when there's no content to be had is... an album review!

My first though in the shower this morning was to review Kanye West's latest effort, "My Dark Twisted Fantasy". But, what's the fun in that? A lot of people are talking about it, everyone has an opinion, and I haven't listened enough to really say anything useful. But then, I realized that there's another album that I haven't really spoken to any of you about of which Kanye's new album truly reminds me (and I don't know why). The album we'll discuss today is a seminal effort within hip-hop, considered to be one of the best albums of all-time, a double platinum debut effort by the one-time candidate for the Haitian presidency... the album we'll discuss today is Wyclef Jean's 1997 record "The Carnival".

Let me preface this review by telling you that this album is my favorite, without question. I can be in the midst of a heavy musical boredom, on a multi-day road trip, and pop in The Carnival and suddenly feel renewed. I can sit at home and be sending out job applications while wondering what music I should be listening to, pop in The Carnival, and be set. This album is versatile - just as it could accompany job applications, you could play it at the right party and people would a) think it was the perfect music, and b) be surprised that they'd never heard half the songs before. It's a concept album - it follows a storyline and should actually be listened to in one go.

The Carnival starts with perhaps one of the best album intros of all the time, setting the story for the story to be told over the proceeding tracks. The story is simple: The Carnival is a trial pitting Wyclef Jean vs. The People to determine whether or not Wyclef is "a playa and a definite bad influence". Let me just say, what a baller for making that the theme for your DEBUT album. Anyway, the intro just rocks. It makes you wanna listen and it gets you so psyched to hear the rest of the tracks.

The intro builds, builds, and builds some more, and then breaks into some calm, chill notes for the intro of the first song "Apocalypse". This pattern is prevalent throughout the album - a contrast between strong, loud, intense sounds, cutting to calm, chill, light guitar, and then breaking into sweet flows of melodic rhyme.

Wyclef is a master of sampling, and uses this to his advantage. Tracks throughout the album take advantage of past tunes, everything from the Latin classic "Guantanamera" to the Beegee's "Stayin' Alive", and Willie Nelson's "To All The Girls I've Loved Before". This mix of classic hip-hop lyrics from Wyclef and the rest of the Refugee All-Stars is, for me, amazing.

Sprinkled throughout the album are Interludes that continue the trial concept of the album and pull the music together. In some albums that are meant to be listened to as one, the songs don't actually connect at all (obviously) and artists just say that because they're stuck-up and arrogant. This album is not one of those. The songs actually work, and serve as evidence within Wyclef's trial. Furthermore, the Interludes are hilarious and at times make fun of the Caribbean French accent. Good stuff.

Sticking to his Haitian roots, Wyclef even throws in a few songs in Haitian French. While I don't understand what he sings, they're great tracks that make you want to move. They certainly contribute to the album as a whole.

Bottom line, I think everyone needs to listen to this album. I know that all you Stadium dwellers will be able to appreciate it, and furthermore enjoy it. I still don't know how I've neglected to mention it until just now. It's truly a stable in anyone's listening "quiver", and definitely can serve as one of those trusty fallbacks that will solve any music-enjoyment ennui.

Album Review: Dr. Dog - Fate

I'm going to begin this post wondering why I am even beginning this post (does that make sense?), since I'd rather that nobody else knew about the indie music I am enjoying and about which I am planning to write.  Furthermore, I will respectfully request of all you loyal readers that you do not tell anyone about the indie music I am writing about, since I'd prefer to continue to listen to it, and if everybody knows about it it becomes uncool, I will be forced to delete it from my iTunes, and therefore will no longer be able to enjoy it (but I wouldn't enjoy it anyway, at that point, because it would be uncool).  

iTunes tells me that the genre of Dr. Dog's album entitled "Fate" is "indie".  I try not to pay too much attention to the genre of a specific group - I prefer to listen to music that I truly like.  However, as we all know, I'm a pretty indie guy so I think that the simple fact I am now listening to this "indie" album helps with the personal image that I am trying to project to the world.  I'll probably end up playing this album on my radio show, wearing my Waldo glasses everywhere, and feeling elite about this music (and other stuff that nobody else knows about).

I know that Dr. Dog came to Carleton during a previous spring concert, and to be quite honest, I don't really remember much of it at all.  In fact, when my friend mentioned Dr. Dog to me, I thought he was talking about a rap group.  Nobody knew about Dr. Dog, and maybe that was better for the few people who did know about Dr. Dog, because they were probably infinitely cooler when they were even more indie and nobody knew about them.

But, let me tell you, their album "Fate" is currently just about the only thing I'm listening to.  It's a really enjoyable album, and I would recommend it to anyone that has any interest in any type of music at all (but only if you can truly appreciate it, and if you won't tell anyone else so it stays cool).

The album starts with a delightfully mellow song "The Breeze", where Dr. Dog ponders the movement of time, asking the listener if we think we're moving too fast, or if we're stuck in time.  Then, Dr. Dog encourages us to make a snow angel and freeze.  Maybe that's the solution to controlling time.  Snow angels.  Finally, Dr. Dog gets quite deep and recognizes that, in the end, it's the breeze.  And the breeze, ahh, it will blow us all away.  This song ponders a lot; time, renewal, weather patterns, and eventually (I believe) death and the afterlife.  I see "the breeze" as a clear metaphor of somehow moving on.

In the second track on "Fate", called "Hang On", Dr. Dog grapples with some identity issues that he himself is feeling.  This is a common indie theme, but he examines it from a new perspective.  He tells us he is not a stranger, and that we both get it wrong.  It is unclear whether "we" refers to the listener and the Dr., or another unknown subject.  But after this, Dr. Dog explains that he needs his heart mended, but in doing so, he belittles his own profession by explaining that he "don't need no doctor to tear [him] all apart" but rather just needs "you, to mend his heart".  Again, who "you" is is rather unclear: listener? unknown subject?  It's up for interpretation.  Lastly, Dr. Dog once again weaves the subject of varying weather patterns into this track, mentioning how our unknown subject (or the listener, "you"?) thought that a hurricane was just the "rustling of the wind".  Maybe we need a now-discredited Dr. to examine "your" nervous system?  Are "you" feeling numb, and unable to differentiate between varying degrees of wind speed?

Perhaps the best song on the album is the third track, entitled (quite nostalgically), "The Old Days".  This song is catchy, has a lot of repetition, longs for the old days, and does not mention any weather patterns in the lyrics.  I find all of this rather refreshing, like a breeze or the rustling of the wind (but not a hurricane).  The Dr. gets rather prophetic in this song, telling us that "down down down, the moon's going to fall down, thump thump thump, the house is going to fall down", and therefore we must go "back back back, back to the old days".  Finally, as we go back to the old days, we must "wrap up the money, and save it for a sunny day day day".  We are strongly encouraged to both save money with an eye toward the future, but at the same time go back back back to the old days.  Once again, the theme of the speed of time, and even time-travel, is explored in this epic tune (and it's only the third track!).  There are 8 more!

As the album continues, Dr. Dog wrestles with a variety of themes, conquering them all in his own unique, doctorly way.  The sixth track, "The Ark" is evidence of a valiant attempt by Dr. Dog to tackle weather patterns (again!), war, love, religion, and human existence as a whole.  All of these themes are discussed with the back of a rather chill guitar riff that helps the listener to understand these heavy, heavy themes.  After explaining his how he built an ark and rain didn't come, how he built a gun but was unsure about war, how he tried to give more to his love but made her poor, he finally asks the question "what does it mean to be here?".  I can't answer that, but he repeatedly tries, telling us "well, I know, because I can and I will".  However inspiring this lyric is, it still doesn't really tell us what it means to "be here".  But maybe that implied uncertainty is the essence of what he's getting at.

The second-to-last track, "The Beach" discusses weather patterns (again!), alcoholism, fate, marijuana, and memories.  This is some heavy-hitting shit; the ominous and dark guitar that plays in the background as the Dr. examines these themes makes them seem ever more serious.  It works quite well.  With each successive verse, the Dr. explains a situation, such as running aground in a beach during a rainstorm as rain pours through the roof of a boat (how terrible), and then explains how "fate has a funny way of coming around".  It's all deep, as previously recognized, but the Dr. does a good job of linking the themes and creating a bold and profound, yet easily enjoyed, track.

Overall, the album exemplifies the versatility of both Dr. Dog, but also the indie genre as a whole.  I would highly recommend this album to anybody (but don't tell anybody else!).

Alright, I'm off to take photos of my feet and strum my guitar before I hop on my fixed-gear to go buy a new (old?) sweater at the vintage clothing store.