Concert Review: Prince funked up Vancouver

Prince  sparkled and funked Vancouver up during what may have been one of the best concerts to hit this city in 2011.

The show started an hour late but all was forgotten when a voice boomed through the speakers: ”Is everyobody here? Is everybody present? Tell me that you’re ready for me!”.  Then the lights came on and we all squealed like school girls at the sight of Prince decked out in a gold sequinced suit (the jacket was killer….I want it), gold heels, bling, eyeliner, and sparkle hair gel galore. Honestly, how is it possible that a 53 year old man has sexier legs, walks better in three inch heels, and shakes what his momma gave him like it’s no one’s damn business, all better than me? I’m half his age (and latin – isn’t that shit supposed to be in my blood) and pathetic at all of the above.

The show featured one hit after another (my favourite being “Kiss”) as Prince and his equally decked out band shimmied their way to and fro across the stage (stage is the shape of his love symbol by the way).  Sometimes we only got snippets of hits but other times we got ten minutes jam sessions where Prince really flexed his musical ability. For example, we only got a minute of “When Doves Cry” but we got ten of “Purple Rain” and Prince rocking out like no other on his guitar. Oh man he’s good with that thing (I know, that’s what she said right?)

He also did a few awesome mash ups like  “Let’s Go Crazy”/“Delirious” (sick saxophone on the latter) and “Everyday People” (Sly & the Family Stone)/“Come Together” (Beatles )/ “Alphabet Street” (Prince). He also played “Nothing Compares 2 U (written and performed by Prince but made popular by Sinead O’Connor) and “If I Was Your Girlfriend” (written and performed by Prince but made popular by TLC). And to my happy little surprise, he covered my all-time  Michael Jackson favourite, “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough”.

Prince graced the crowd with two encores because after the first, no one was leaving Rogers Arena. The second encore was one big mash-up of hits which had everyone dancing all the way home.

What was that? You don’t have tickets to his show? Well….what the hell are you waiting for!

Album Review: Paulina Rubio Brava!

 I never delve into a Paulina Rubio album with high hopes because I find that even with a neutral stance I still end up dissapointed. I wouldn’t say her latest effort Brava! is super disspapoiting but it’s just “another” album.

As per usual, Rubio has a few catchy  tracks that are pretty good (Me Gustas Tanto, All Around The World, Heat of The Night – they could all be a little faster for night club purposes but are good nonetheless). There’s also a few tracks that’ll be radio hits only (Olvidate De Mi, Sabes Que Te Amo, Me Voy). There’s also the token ballad (Que Estuvieras Aqui) which is alright. Then there’s the rest of the album…..a few tracks that were just…..meh.

The thing with Rubio is that she always has a few tracks that make it huge but albums that are mediocre. You don’t dislike her music but you don’t care much for it either. I guess that’s better than hating every song on the album.

Rating: 5/10
Label: Universal Latino
Favourites: Me Gustas Tanto, All Around The World

Album Review: Lady Gaga Born This Way – The Remix

I generally tend to like remix albums because they usually feature a lot of great dance/workout music. Lady Gaga’s Born This Way – The Remix is no exception.

I should probably start by saying I dislike Lady Gaga yet I do like her music. I can appreciate her need and want to be over the top but I think most of the time she’s ridiculous. For example, what the hell is going on on the album cover? That being said, she puts out one hit after another of music that is catchy and generally liked by all.

The Remix album features 14 of the 17 that are on the original Born This Way. Most of the tracks were given a techno treatment (Born This Way-Zedd Remix, Edge of Glory-Foster the People Remix & Sultan and Ned Shepard Remix, Black Jesus + Amen, Sheibe, Americano, and Judas-Hurts Remix) whereas others received an electro remix (You and I-Wild Beasts Remix, Marry the Night, Born This Way-Twin Shadow Remix), and some got a dark, sultry remix of sorts (Bloody Mary, Judas-Goldfrapp Remix, You and I-Metronomy Remix).

It’s a pretty good album in the sense that most of the remixes are either better or just as good as the original. There’s a few let downs in my opinion (Judas-Goldfrapp Remix, You and I-Metronomy Remix) but I’m sure even those tracks are liked by Gaga afficionados.

Rating: 7/10
Label: Steamline / Kon Live / Interscope
Favourites: Americano, Electric Chapel, Born This Way (Zedd Remix)

Album Review: Rihanna Talk That Talk

Rihanna is back with Talk that Talk and she’s landed with a bigger sex drive than ever.

I like Rihanna. I generally find her songs catchy and I think she’s a babe. I don’t mind that she’s uber sexual in life and music. That being said, I don’t get how Hollywood transforms girls from virginal kitty cats to sex mavens over night, especially when fans aren’t making that transformation either at all or at a completely different pace.

Also, didn’t she just came out with an album less than a year ago? I get she can drop albums often because she’s popular and that’s how you make money. However, if you’re going to drop an album shortly after another, and expect people to want to spend more money on you, shouldn’t it be more of a gem? Maybes that’s a silly question: quantity over quality.

It’s not a bad album but a lot of it is quickly forgettable. The album actually starts off really strong with the best tracks on it: You Da One, Where Have You Been (my favourite song…I’ve been listening to it on repeat, love it), and We Found Love (featuring Calvin Harris. Other standouts are the ballads “Drunk on Love” and “Fool in Love”, “Roc me Out” which reminds me of “Rude Boy”, and “Talk that Talk” featuring a mediocre intro by Jay Z. All of the other songs are just ok or bad.

I guess I shouldn’t be complaining about it being a bad album; most albums only have so many good songs anyways right?

Rating: 5/10
Label: Def Jam
Favourites: We Found Love, Where Have You Been

Concert Review: The Sounds

The Sounds brought short skirts and high kicks to Vancouver last night on the last show of their 2011 tour. Despite releasing their last album in March of this year, they only played five songs from it and the other 12 were a mix from their three other albums. Although they played a great array of songs, they played several (12 of 17) songs that they played at their last concert in Vancouver which was a bit of a let down. But then again, you play what the crowd wants right?

Last time I saw the band, Ms. Maja wore leather and platforms. This time around she had a feminine, Victorian look going on. When she came out I thought, pretty. Then she started doing high kicks in her very short dress and I thought, ‘atta girl….that’s the Maja I remember. Have I mentioned that she has great legs? Don’t think I’ll eat for awhile.

Album Review: Drake Take Care

Happy to see Mr. Drake back: big fan.

I really liked Thank Me Later so I figured his latest release Take Care would have big shoes to fill. Result? It fills them, but in a different way. Take Care is mellow and deeper in it’s sentiments. You get the feeling that he’s got some more experience under his belt and as such is wiser and possibly a little more jaded too. Actually significantly more jaded. Whereas on his first album you got the sense he was ridin’ the fame wave, on his latest effort you get the feeling that he still may be ridin’ that wave but this time with both eyes open and a set of reins.

If you’re thinking that with mellow, deep, and jaded you might hear some more straight up rap, don’t hold your breath. He continues with the singing/rapping mix to the point where his rapper cred waivers a bit and leaves you thinking he’s an R&B/Hip Hop star with the ability to rap.

Like most albums these days, expect plenty of collaborations: Chantal Kreviazuk (apparently on “Over My Dead Body” even though I totally don’t hear the resemblance), The Weekend, Rihanna, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj Rick Ross, Stevie Wonder, Birdman, and Andre 3000.

There’s a few standouts worth mentioning such as  “Headlines” (an upbeat ode to his own fame), “Crew Love” (featuring a sick intro by The Weekend……”This ain’t no fuckin’ singalong, so girl what you singing for”…love that line, makes me laugh), “Take Care” (a reggae beat with steal drums, quick rhymes, and featuring Ms.Rhi Rhi), “Underground Kings” (a badass beat, rhyme solid classic), and “Make Me Proud” (featuring his “wife” Nicki Minaj ).

Overall, it’s a good album. I would have preferred a few more upbeat tracks instead of a few songs emo-esque, sad-ish tracks that still do nothing for me after hearing them a ton but I suppose they make other people happy.

Rating: 7/10
Label: Republic
Favourites: Crew Love, Underground Kings

Interview: Two Door Cinema Club

Intro by David Thai, Interview by Alicia A

Two Door Cinema Club has been on the rise since their inception back in 2009, granted not everyone may be familiar with the band, but they would recognize their songs as they’ve made appearances in countless commercials and television shows. Personally I remember receiving their EP from Kitsuné back in January of ’09, not giving it much thought I gave it a quick scan and was thoroughly impressed with the initial offering and since then they’ve remained on my radar. Spending the past year or so touring and especially putting in a ton of work in the North American market in support of the album Tourist History, we were lucky enough to get an opportunity to chat with TDCC. Here’s how that conversation went…

What’s difference between touring North America and the rest of the world?
When we first started touring America obviously it’s was not as good as everywhere else for us. But now we’ve been to most places around the world and doing the small shows and building it up slowly, which is something we’ve always been very passionate about doing, starting small in every territory. So I guess there are some places still where we’re not very well known asides from Dublin and London. But we’ve been to some cool places, like our show in Rio for example, it was our first time there and it was just crazy, one of the best shows we’ve ever been to. The crowd there just went nuts.

What’s the music scene like back home, is it much different than say in North America?
Yeah I think we have a really strong music scene, there are loads of bands that we grew up with over here that kinda only did well in Belfast and Ireland. So we were lucky in that we had a lot of extra different bands that the world didn’t know about. I think the trouble is being from Ireland it’s still kind of remote, like it’s still separate from the UK so a lot of bands still don’t get noticed by the industry in London, only if they really move over and do lots of tours in the UK , so it’s real unfortunate that a lot more bands don’t get discovered. With the Internet though, it’s hard for people to ignore the music scene.

The Cars Move Like This

To be honest, I had no idea who The Cars were when I volunteered to review their latest effort Move Like This. After some research, I figured out they are the masters of “Just What I Needed”. GREAT song. Oldie but very goodie.  Other than a few songs that we might all recognize from the 70′s and 80′s, we don’t really know much about the band because their last album was produced in 1987.

So how did a new album come about after 24 years? Well, as per their press release…

“The project’s genesis came in the fall of 2009 as Ric Ocasek considered how to proceed with his latest sheaf of songs, his first batch of material since 2005’s solo Nexterday.  As he debated how to record – On his own?  With a new group of musicians? – he realized that his best option was the three players with whom he had the most symbiotic relationship.

“I just thought, it’s been a long time since I played with these guys,” Ocasek says, “but they’re the ones that will do the best job.  They’re the ones that I wouldn’t have to explain things to, they wouldn’t have to get used to the way I write, they’re already inundated with all that.  I’ll just put out a feeler and see if they’d be interested in doing it.””

Concert Review: Rihanna teases Vancouver

What do you call the rating that is between PG13 and R for sexuality? Despite Rihanna’s Loud tour featuring an elaborate set full of colour and pizazz, as well as relatively strong vocals, the whole show left something to be desired. For example, I wasn’t quite sure how to feel when she went from having her crotch groped continuously during “S&M” to ending it with a cute pillow fight. Tease.

Don’t get me wrong, I know she’s 23 with a lot of young fans and as such needs to keep it slightly PG, but the point is defeated when you raunch it up and then try back-tracking. It also doesn’t help matters when you’re practically naked by song two.

That being said, let’s face it…Rihanna is hot. Her big, light coloured eyes, dusted with shimmering emerald eyeshadow, that foxy red hair blown out with curls….prrrroowww. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for the plethora of girls who showed up at Rogers Arena dresses in clothing I didn’t even know you could buy. No really, where do you find such clothing? I mean, I’ve seen bad outfits before, but never so bad that I actually went out of my way to thank the girl sitting beside me for dressing normally.

Sam Roberts Collider

Typical. That’s the only word that comes to mind as I find words to describe the Sam Roberts Band (official new name by the way) latest effort, Collider. It’s not a bad album, in fact, it has a lot of tracks that I’m sure people will highlight as their favourite summer songs. That being said, the album doesn’t offer up anything new, it’s the typical sound we’re use to hearing from the Sam Roberts Band.

When I think of Sam Roberts, I can’t help but think of summer, open-air concerts, patios, light beer, etc. Maybe that’s because I only ever listen to him whilest partaking in any of those things.  I won’t be surprised if while on a patio somewhere I hear “Without a Map” or ”Twist The Knife”. I’m sure “The Last Crusade” and “Graveyard Shift” will be the concert favourites. And I bet “No Arrows” or “Longitude” will make it onto some tv show: I’m envisioning two characters laughing away as they drive towards the beach in their convertible.

I suppose I lied when I said that Sam didn’t bring anything new to the table: he brought horns to a few tracks. Actually, I think the tracks with horns, “The Last Crusade” and “Streets of Heaven” are my favourites. Other standouts are “Let It In” with it’s cool rock harmonies, and “I Feel You” which is raw and sultry in The Black Keys kind of way.

Unfortunately, the last few tracks, well actually, almost the last half of the album as a whole, fall a bit flat and as such leave something to be desired.

Nonetheless, as noted before, I’m sure many fans will be content to add some of the band’s new music to their summer playlists.

Label: Universal Music
Rating: 6/10
Favourites: The Last Crusade, Let It In, Graveyard Shift, Streets of Heaven