The Heights - Lopez Lifts ‘The Backup Plan;’ All Else Fumbles

Here's my latest article published in today's Heights.

The Heights - Lopez Lifts ‘The Backup Plan;’ All Else Fumbles

Sharon Jones Make Learning Easy on "Hard Way"

Best known for her hit “100 Days, 100 Nights,” Sharon Jones is one of the hardest working yet most underappreciated artists in the music industry.  She is always on tour, whether or not she has a new album to promote.  She pops up on shows like “Saturday Night Live” to sing with Michael Buble.  She is even featured on David Byrne’s new album Here Lies Love.  On I Learned the Hard Way, joined once again with horn section The Dap Kings, Jones shows that she knows how to turn an album full of songs about heartbreak into a fun, upbeat journey.  Here, she more than borrows from soul artists of the 1960s; she creates her own R&B classics with exciting results.  Packed with tight, gripping tracks, Hard Way is the best example of funk and soul this side of the 1960’s.

As the title explains, Jones has gone through her share of heartbreak.  Most of the songs weave an intricate tales about shattered love.  On “The Game Gets Old,” the horns regally signal Jones’ arrival as she .  The song is at times reminiscent of classics “Heard it Through the Grapevine” and “Elements of “Lean On Me.”  Jones is unlike other artists in that she doesn’t do the typical love songs; rather, she talks about a love who “played with [her] soul,” breaking free from that traditional “broke my heart” cliché.  Rather than fighting it, she accepts her age and loneliness, singing about how tired she is of men who play games with her.

Other songs focus on Jones playing the part of the wronged woman.  On the title track, a thumping, angry drumbeat leads into her feisty musings about how “Now it hurts me inside just to hear your name.”  On the slinky guitar infused track “Better Things to Do” there are peals of laughter as Jones howls and growls at the man who did her wrong.  Sticking it to the man who dumped her, she proudly proclaims that “I’m a better woman than I have been / ‘cause I don’t think about way back when.”  The aforementioned guitars pop up again on “She Ain’t a Child No More,” a surprisingly dark tale of a woman who’s husband drunkenly beats her every night.  Jones maintains her staunchly powerful demeanor as she croons “Her heart still soft, but her skin got bit, she ain’t a child no more."

The band only departs from its “love hurts” format on a few songs.  One, “Money,” finds Jones wailing about the cruelty of wealth as she cackles, “Without money, what would we do?  Money is the root of all evil but ain’t nothing evil about money!”  It shows true innovation when an artist can mix a blast of neo-retro soul with a message about today’s economy.  It creates a lovely time-warp effect that brings together the sounds of the present day with back in the day.  At first glance, instrumental track “The Reason” is just that, a song that doesn’t feature the album’s storyteller.  Upon further listen, it becomes easier to pick up on the bluesy saxophone telling its own tale about despair, dripping with heat on a street corner in a city.  The soulful wails of the Dap King’s horns tell their own story, providing a worthy counterpart for the heartbroken Jones.

The only flaw on the album is also its greatest triumph: I Learned the Hard Way doesn’t deviate from the formula of the group’s first three albums. With its bouncy groove, saucy vocals and bubbly horn interjections, the album is another stellar notch in Sharon Jones’ belt.

New Music: M.I.A.

Check out M.I.A.'s new song "Born Free" after the jump.

The Heights - Kate Nash, We Are Not Your Best Friend

Two articles in a row, that's ridiculous! But it's happening!

The Heights - Kate Nash, We Are Not Your Best Friend

The Heights - Alone They Shine, Together They Faulter In 'Date'

Another new article? That's crazy!

The Heights - Alone They Shine, Together They Faulter In 'Date'

New Music: Marina and the Diamonds

Marina and the Diamonds is the moniker for Welsh powerhouse Marina Diamandis. She stomped onto the music scene in February, guns blazing, with her amazing debut album The Family Jewels. This is the first album in a long time that I find myself able o listen to the whole way through repeatedly. Her songs are absolutely infectious; are they pop, dance, electro, soul? She keeps us guessing with her mix and match tracks. They are filled with snappy lyrics, versatile vocals, and pounding beats. She takes all the best parts of Lady Gaga, Kate Bush, Lilly Allen, and Florence + the Machine, throws them in a blender, and makes them all her own.

The best track on the album is “Oh No!” in which Marina wails about only wanting success in life as she sings, “I know exactly what I want and who I want to be!” At 24, that’s quite a hefty achievement, but she proves it on every single track. If this is who she wants to be, god bless her future endeavors; if only all albums could all be as fresh and wonderful as this! Her voice is silky and gorgeous; it reaches heights and depths like nobody else her age can possibly hit. Her vocals alone convey an amazing breadth of emotion, and her lyrics only lend to that cause.

Some amazing remixes of her sparse, haunting track “I Am Not a Robot.” The best, by Passion Pit, takes what was essentially an acoustic track and ships it straight to the dance floor. It is quite literally the best of both worlds. Passion Pit initially seems like an odd choice to rework Marina’s tracks, but on further inspection it makes perfect sense; the band knows how to work a synthesizer to their advantage and work it they do on “Robot.” The second remix, by Lovers and Gambles (anchored by electro princess Little Boots), also transforms the single into a dance smash, but a smooth, sexy, synthy anthem.

Passion Pit:

Lovers and Gambles:

And the original for comparison:

I would like to personally thank whoever was responsible for signing Marina Diamandis to her record label and for believing in such a fantastic, exciting record. I would also like to thank her promotional team for successfully picking singles that slowly expose audiences to her genius. I can’t wait to see what Marina has up her sleeve next.

Girls:

Shampain:

Are You Satisfied?:

The Heights - David Byrne And Fatboy Slim Mash Brains

Newest article is here! Check it out: The Heights - David Byrne And Fatboy Slim Mash Brains

Concert Review-Florence and the Machine

On the hottest day of the year so far, a fiery haired goddess swept into the Paradise Rock Club in Boston and put on such a big show, the club could barely contain it.  I’m speaking of the British band Florence and the Machine, and with all due respect to the musicians, this concert was all about lead singer “Flo” as she likes to be called.  She is quite an odd little character.  With shocking red hair and creamy white skin, she looks like a porcelain doll.  Before she went on, the stagehands scattered flowers all over the stage and the instruments, furthering the sweet image surrounding the girl.  When Florence Welch stepped foot on stage, the audience went absolutely insane, knowing full well what it was in store for.  It was like people were bracing themselves, and rightfully so; as soon as she opened her mouth, Florence blew the roof off the club.  Her voice is so powerful and absolutely gorgeous in complete opposition to her looks; you expect sweet, she gives you brash and boisterous.

            Starting with the vocal roller-coaster ride “Howl” was a bold move, as it literally runs through every note that Florence can possibly hit.  I almost wondered how she could top it, but as she powered through her album, she proved that she was a truly diverse and engaging artist.  This was the only the second concert that I’ve been to where I really felt like it was a true “rock experience”, the first being fellow—yet quite different—British songbird Little Boots.  Perhaps they do a better job of teaching manners on the other side of the pond, because Florence made each and every audience member feel special and unique.  She bounced around the stage with the energy and vivacity of a hyperactive child, but knew how to restrain herself too.  Whenever she would howl, the audience screamed, feeding her immense voice.  Whereas in other shows that I’ve seen at the Paradise, the artists’ hits were greeted with the biggest applause, each and every one of Florence’s songs—even the one off of the “special deluxe box set.  I swear I’m not trying to sell you shit!”—were heralded with wild applause.  Big winners were “You’ve Got the Love” which the entire audience sang along to, “Kiss With a Fist”, and “I’m Not Calling You a Liar.”  Vocally, the woman is unparalleled in the music industry.  Nobody can hit notes and hold them as amazingly as she can, and still continue to sing right after wailing like that!  Thin-voiced pop stars like Rihanna and Miley Cyrus cant even hold a candle to this remarkably talented songstress.

            Florence showed off her charm and quirk in between her songs.  She really couldn’t thank us enough, and whenever she did, she seemed so genuinely gracious.  She came close to tears when the encore ended as she said “Really though, Boston, you’ve opened your hearts to me and I hope that it seemed I did the same to you.  You’re all so truly lovely!”  I, for one, can’t wait to have her back.

Here's a medium quality video of Florence + The Machine doing "Howl":