“Hide Nothing” by Matt Alber
Matt Alber grew up the gay, white choir boy, though his debut soul album Hide Nothing has little religious content. His melodies tell stories that range from a 3rd grade crush (“Field Trip Buddy”), love unravelling (“End of the World”) and personal awakening (“Monarch”).
Reminiscent of Ben Folds, Iron&Wine, and Imogen Heap, all of Alber’s songs are built on soulful vocals with lingering melodies. The lyrics feel like his own personal thoughts, told with piano, harp, strings, bassoon, (and I’m told, Matt’s old house keys).
Hide Nothing comes on the heels of a 5-year world tour with America’s premier classical acapella ensemble, Chanticleer, with whom he recorded two Grammy Award-winning albums. His solo album was recorded at home, he boasts, on Macintosh computers with co-writer/producer Jeff Creire of Utmosis.
Many of his songs are quiet and soft like lullabies; only a few are accompanied by minimal percussion. My favourite songs were the opening track “Monarch”, and the soon to follow “Field Trip Buddy”. The last half of the album I found to be quite a snooze...literally...I took a nap and the songs provided a pleasant backdrop that set me at ease.
Says Alber, “I feel like I’m just scratching the surface with songwriting. I don’t have hundreds of songs. I don’t even have 25 songs. These are my first cracks. Maybe I’ll write some more.”
“Workout: Pumping House” by UPhonic Records
The Workout package includes a double-disc set with 16 heart-pumping tracks, and a bonus 72-minute megamix. The album creates an interval-like workout with alternating tempos and unforgettable house vocals. Not to mention that the album cover features Sydney-based personal trainer, fitness model, and former DNA magazine cover boy, Vinny Gough.
The timing is delicious for us to be reviewing this CD this month, which features a number of tracks by our cover celebrity RuPaul! For instance, “Looking Good, Feeling Gorgeous” is a great track – used as the theme song for NBC’s The Biggest Loser, and #1 dance download on iTunes. And of course who wouldn’t recognize the cover track “Workout”, although it sounds quite different as a remake of the Frankie Knuckles house classic.
I also particularly enjoyed the joyful “Found a Cure”, and chuckled over the lyrics to “Ding Dong (Pick Up the Phone B*tCH)”. Though, if you enjoy retro pop mixes, you might also quite like “Mindbuster” and many others.
The bonus CD is a single-track continuous mix that uses many of the songs from the album. This gives you an alternative if the breaks between the tracks take the steam out of your non-stop workout.
“Scream” by Chris Cornell
I found that the somewhat lame cover gives completely the wrong impression about the musical journey on this CD. Smashing a guitar seems a bit cliché, and to me brings a preconception of heavy metal. “Scream” isn’t that. It’s unique, creative, gritty, and in my opinion bloody brilliant! If such a cover was the result of careful planning and not a rush-effort, the only explanation I can conceive is that it camouflages a jewel as something ordinary so people will find it by accident and receive a pleasant surprise.
Chris Cornell is known as the gutsy, wailing voice behind the multi-platinum bands Soundgarden and Audioslave. The fact that such an iconic frontman of hard rock had chosen super-producer Timbaland to helm this new album may come as a shock. While Cornell provides the fiery lyrics and rocker voice, Timbaland brings in a cool air of hip-hop/R&B, and even electronica. “I have never sounded like this,” Cornell admits, “The whole album is a pretty radical musical departure for me. It is the highlight of my career.”
The album starts with a strange cinematic opening sequence before launching into the irresistibly catchy “Part of Me” – its name from its catchy chorus line, “that bitch ain’t a part of me.”
As you continue listening, you’ll notice odd transitions between tracks. The album plays almost like a continuous mix, where foreshadowing of the next track begins near the end of the previous one. But the actual change is jarring enough that you know it has happened, almost like walking through a door into another room.
My absolute favorite was “Never Far Away” with its cascading synths and splashy cymbals that give it a vast, almost epic sound. I also loved the harmonies and stutter-stepped beat in “Time”, and the ominous yet upbeat “Ground Zero”. The last half of the album falls into a slightly tedious groove except for the powerful “Enemy”, and the energetic finish “Watch Out”. Then if you sit through a minute of silence, you’ll hear the bonus track – a slow and simple lament.
“Scream” gives you the best of both worlds: hard rock without the headaches, R&B without the monotony – the result, a modern and danceable pop fusion.
“In a Perfect World…” by Keri Hilson
Keri Hilson’s first R&B album took me a bit by surprise. I was expecting another CD of this genre where I would have to feign interest and try to see beyond my own personal tastes. But I found a number of the songs had some melodic accompaniments that made them rewarding for me to listen to. Funny enough, like the previous review, Timbaland is also credited for this creation - maybe that explains it. Nevertheless, Hilson renders the heart and soul of the songs with her voice and songwriting.
“I deliver my songs with emotion,” she enthuses. “I don’t like a lot of effects. It takes away from the emotion. …straightforward, throwback, and old school. I don’t want that feeling taken away. I’m so particular about those motions. I don’t want anyone to walk away from my album just thinking, ‘that shounds nice.’ Anybody can do that. I’m much more concerned that they walk away thinking, ‘that felt great.’”
“Return the Favor” was the first song to make me realize this wasn’t the average R&B album for me. I found the rich pan-pipe synths and take-off rhythms quite appealing, though still a little repetitive. Then the next track, “Knock You Down” really drove it home – a bouncy and joyful song featuring a rap bridge by Kanye West, that occasionally erupts with a frantic double-time hi-hat. Even some of the slower numbers like “Slow Dance” and “Tell Him the Truth” had a fair amount of appeal.
Another clump of favorites arose later on in the sequence, with the fun, slightly oriental air of “Intuition”. It sharply contrasted the subsequent, formidably epic sounding “How Does it Feel” with its bold trumpets and somber choir, and then the sweet and reflective “Alienated”.
So in my view, not bad at all, for an R&B album. It’s still not my favorite genre, but I’m happy to have taken the time to listen to “In a Perfect World…”.
