Bedaub [bih-DOB] v. To smear over; to besmear or soil with anything thick and dirty
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
Lupe Fiasco - Lasers Review
So our first couple of reviews will be pretty old but please bare with us....I've been busy as hell with work to the point that all my leisure time been used up by sleep lol.
BTW, THIS IS OUR RATING SCALE:
1/5= POO, 2/5=It's aight, 3/5= Nice, 4/5=The Truth & a perfect 5/5 = EPIC!
So any way, here's some of NERD Inc.'s music staff thoughts on Lupe Fiasco's Lasers album:
Dyshae's thoughts:
After much anticipation, Lupe Fiasco drops his Lasers album. Through all the label problems between Lupe and Atlantic Records, threats of retirement, and fans protesting the label, it is finally here. In 2009, Lupe dropped, Enemy of the State where he destroys other people’s beats for about 40 minutes. This lead fans to believe, Lasers was going to be a hip-hop heads dream come true. Instead, Lupe gives up Lasers, which is not his most impressive work. I was anticipating the Lupe we get on mixtapes, fearless and vicious. This album sounds like B.O.B. meets Kid Cudi, which is not Lupe at all. Now, some people will like this sound. The beats are upbeat and futuristic, similar to The Adventures of Bobby Ray. Definitely, a pop-friendly album. There is nothing wrong with that, but it does not sound like the Lupe we are used to. The lyrics are still sharp, but the music behind it is too annoying to make the experience enjoyable. What the hell is this Lupe? The best song on the album is buried deep, as the 11th out of 12. “All Black Everything” he spits about a dream of Africa being a prosperous place, as well as black history in America. This album will sell records for sure, but has Lupe given in to the record label. Lupe has been seen as one of the few MC’s this era that can be named in the likes of heavyweights Jay-Z, Nas, and Eminem. Lasers is a set back to any claims of him being a legend in this game.His worst album to date.
2/5 (It's aight)
Gabbi's thoughts:
Lasers... The most anticipated from Lupe Fiasco right? Well I will say this.. for us true, ride to die Lupe fans it was not as much as it was hyped up to be.
However, we do have to remember that it was in the meddling hands of Atlantic, and Lupe was basically forced to dumb down his music to the pop standards that we have at this moment. So if you look at it in that perspective, LASERS is actually a SUCCESS.
Even though some of the tracks are quite pop-like (and I personally do not care for I Don't Wanna Care Right Now because of how much of a deviation it is from an actual Lupe song), he still tries to be his politically-challenging self, and I definitely appreciate his efforts to stay in that zone that everyone was pushing him to leave.
Now for all the people who say that it sucks, have you actually LISTENED to what he actually says in his songs? This CD has a mainstream outside and an underground inside that you can only catch if you actually listen for it. In a lot of the songs he is actually BASHING mainstream (such as State Run Radio) and describing his struggles of trying to be himself in an industry where being yourself isn't cool (Beautiful Lasers and Letting Go), especially in Lupe's case.
Not to mention his masterpiece track All Black Everything which stays true to the real Lupe that we all know and love. "Malcom X dies as an old man/ and MLK read the Eulogy for him." Absolutely riveting!
Now when it comes to a comparison of this album with his past albums, of course LASERS isn't going to live up to the lyrical mastery of Food and Liquor and The Cool, and definitely not his mix-tapes. The use of the auto-tuny sounding hooks (comparing the heartfealt singing of Mathew Santos in the live version of Beautiful Lasers to the straightforward notes by Pooh Bear in the album version) makes it a little less sentimental. However, it's not supposed to live up to those albums and tracks. Atlantic needed him to make a mainstream CD that would sell to a vast variety of markets, therefore he had to change it up this one time. And also remember that he HIMSELF was reluctant to release his album.. Cut the guy some slack!
Overall, LASERS is an amazing album under the circumstances, and in my opinion no one could have done it better. I give 4/5 (The Truth).
My thoughts (A.J. The Anti-Cool):
Well after all that stuff Dyshae and Gabbi wrote, they've pretty much summed it up for me. I liked it but it's not touching the first two albums. My rating... 3/5 (Nice)
NERD INC. TOTAL RATING: 3/5 (NICE)
So tell please comment and tell us what are your thoughts and personal rating?
BTW, THIS IS OUR RATING SCALE:
1/5= POO, 2/5=It's aight, 3/5= Nice, 4/5=The Truth & a perfect 5/5 = EPIC!
So any way, here's some of NERD Inc.'s music staff thoughts on Lupe Fiasco's Lasers album:
Dyshae's thoughts:
After much anticipation, Lupe Fiasco drops his Lasers album. Through all the label problems between Lupe and Atlantic Records, threats of retirement, and fans protesting the label, it is finally here. In 2009, Lupe dropped, Enemy of the State where he destroys other people’s beats for about 40 minutes. This lead fans to believe, Lasers was going to be a hip-hop heads dream come true. Instead, Lupe gives up Lasers, which is not his most impressive work. I was anticipating the Lupe we get on mixtapes, fearless and vicious. This album sounds like B.O.B. meets Kid Cudi, which is not Lupe at all. Now, some people will like this sound. The beats are upbeat and futuristic, similar to The Adventures of Bobby Ray. Definitely, a pop-friendly album. There is nothing wrong with that, but it does not sound like the Lupe we are used to. The lyrics are still sharp, but the music behind it is too annoying to make the experience enjoyable. What the hell is this Lupe? The best song on the album is buried deep, as the 11th out of 12. “All Black Everything” he spits about a dream of Africa being a prosperous place, as well as black history in America. This album will sell records for sure, but has Lupe given in to the record label. Lupe has been seen as one of the few MC’s this era that can be named in the likes of heavyweights Jay-Z, Nas, and Eminem. Lasers is a set back to any claims of him being a legend in this game.His worst album to date.
2/5 (It's aight)
Gabbi's thoughts:
Lasers... The most anticipated from Lupe Fiasco right? Well I will say this.. for us true, ride to die Lupe fans it was not as much as it was hyped up to be.
However, we do have to remember that it was in the meddling hands of Atlantic, and Lupe was basically forced to dumb down his music to the pop standards that we have at this moment. So if you look at it in that perspective, LASERS is actually a SUCCESS.
Even though some of the tracks are quite pop-like (and I personally do not care for I Don't Wanna Care Right Now because of how much of a deviation it is from an actual Lupe song), he still tries to be his politically-challenging self, and I definitely appreciate his efforts to stay in that zone that everyone was pushing him to leave.
Now for all the people who say that it sucks, have you actually LISTENED to what he actually says in his songs? This CD has a mainstream outside and an underground inside that you can only catch if you actually listen for it. In a lot of the songs he is actually BASHING mainstream (such as State Run Radio) and describing his struggles of trying to be himself in an industry where being yourself isn't cool (Beautiful Lasers and Letting Go), especially in Lupe's case.
Not to mention his masterpiece track All Black Everything which stays true to the real Lupe that we all know and love. "Malcom X dies as an old man/ and MLK read the Eulogy for him." Absolutely riveting!
Now when it comes to a comparison of this album with his past albums, of course LASERS isn't going to live up to the lyrical mastery of Food and Liquor and The Cool, and definitely not his mix-tapes. The use of the auto-tuny sounding hooks (comparing the heartfealt singing of Mathew Santos in the live version of Beautiful Lasers to the straightforward notes by Pooh Bear in the album version) makes it a little less sentimental. However, it's not supposed to live up to those albums and tracks. Atlantic needed him to make a mainstream CD that would sell to a vast variety of markets, therefore he had to change it up this one time. And also remember that he HIMSELF was reluctant to release his album.. Cut the guy some slack!
Overall, LASERS is an amazing album under the circumstances, and in my opinion no one could have done it better. I give 4/5 (The Truth).
My thoughts (A.J. The Anti-Cool):
Well after all that stuff Dyshae and Gabbi wrote, they've pretty much summed it up for me. I liked it but it's not touching the first two albums. My rating... 3/5 (Nice)
NERD INC. TOTAL RATING: 3/5 (NICE)
So tell please comment and tell us what are your thoughts and personal rating?
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