Quote:
Originally posted by Iron Steve
By the by, any new CDs?
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As a matter of fact, yes. Not that you were asking me, but it's a good opportunity to post about some new CDs I purchased, thanks to a nice gift card I received for Best Buy.
Now, I'm not a music critic and I'm not one of those people who searches for the most obscure bands out there in an attempt to be ahead of the music curve. So, take these reviews for they're worth...
Black Eyed Peas - Monkey Business
8/10
The BEPs have always done some of their best stuff when featuring other artists. This album is no exception. The tracks featuring James Brown (They Don't Want Music), Jack Johnson (Gone Going Gone), and Sting (Union) are some of the best on the album, though the track with Justin Timberlake (My Style) is crap. That being said, the absolute best track on the album, IMHO, is Dum Diddley. If you don't want to dance when you're listening to that song, something's wrong with you.
If you like hip hop/R&B/Dance-type music, you'll like this album. I especially recommend it for anyone who used to listen to De La Soul. BEPs are really the 2000's version of De La.
AudioSlave - Out of Exile
9/10
I'm a sucker for this band. I admit that when I heard Cornell was getting together with the remnants of Rage, I was sold before I even heard one song, so I may be a little biased.
AudioSlave's first album was fantastic, and I think this one is just as good, if not better. The reason is that this album gets the band one step closer to being a perfect melding of Cornell's vocals and Rage's music. I mean, let's be honest, Cornell is what made Soundgarden so good. Same goes for Tom, Tim and Brad of Rage. Most people (me included) could've cared less what de la Rocha was screaming on the mic. It was the music that made Rage so good, not the lyrics or the vocals.
The problem with the first album (if there was one) was that it didn't give Morello and Commerford enough air time. From the first 4 bars of the new album, you can tell that isn't going to be the case anymore. In fact, we get lots of nice base lines and some killer guitar solos, which is just what you'd expect from the band formerlly known as RATM.
The album slows down a little on the final few tracks, which is somewhat disappointing. I would prefer if they had kept up the same energy as they had in the first 3-4 tracks. That being said, I still recommend the album for anyone who likes rock.
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