Rita Ora's debut album ORA is a generic pop sub genre Bland. It has the pop album problem of tone because one minute it attempts to be hip hop then pop rock and then EDM. There is no character to her voice. There is one good track and that is not even her track; anyone producer made a successful drum and bass track and they tagged it on as the last track.
Cheryl's a million lights starts really really well because the beat of the first track sounds like a hip hop beat but then the song starts...boo. Unfortunately apart from this drum break it is generic electro pop with a few slow numbers because we don't want people dancing all the time. Also how come a lady with the most broad of geordie accents sounds like Rita Ora on this thing. Autotune?
Heatworms is the new album by The Shins and it sounds like a good Belle and Sebastian album. +Office Jukebox +
Worhead is the new Little Comets album and it is just like the last Little Comets album I heard, Life is Everywhere. It's not adventurous or all that interesting. +Office Jukebox +
Sticks and Stones is the debut album but ex X Factor lady, Cher Lloyd. This is straight up awful. It's Eliza Doolittle with synthesizers. The song writing is aimed at early teens, the production is offensive electro pop. She interpolates Buffalo Stance by Neneh Cherry with worse lyrics. She 'puts dub on the track' over dubstep and grime b listers rapping. One track is a pop rock dubstep mash up that no one wanted, she has a distinctive annoying voice. It's just awful.
Day Two
All of these are Prince albums and up until recently I hadn't heard them due to there absence on streaming services. I am a big fan of Sign O The Times and these projects are very good like that album but none of the Flawless.
Lovesexy was a great day opener. Very funky and grooves really well but verges on annoying when virtuosity takes over the feel of a track.
Purple Rain features the first Prince song I remember hearing, Lets Go Crazy, the album is not the greatest as the music papers claim. It is good for a number of the tracks are great.
1999, all the tracks are 12" mix length and some work; DMSR and 1999 but others suffer and are mostly underwritten songs that shouldn't be 8 mins long.
Around the world in a day is a conscise and funky LP and probably my fave of the day.
Parade is namely slow and lacks substance. Girls and boys, kiss and mountains are all fab.
Day Three
Diana Vickers, another ex factor album, Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree and has everything wrong with it that the others do. It has synth pop tracks, pop rock tracks and token acoustic numbers to bring the pace down.
Fleur East, ex factor contestant and an album that jumps on the funk pop thing that Uptown funk brought us. Everyone jumped on it and this album does too even covering it (Uptown funk) on x factor and tagging it on here. No one told Simon that funk it's real and not just made in garage band by the blandest producer. Water down what makes a funk record work and you have this. To be honest they actually forget it's meant to be funky half way through and it just becomes bland electro pop. Do Not Listen to Love, Sax and Flashbacks.
Emma Bunton's album Free Me is radio 2 the album with some smooth classical pop music. It has a great album cover too.
Title by Meghan Trainor is one of the most annoying albums. Lyrically for the most part is patronizing, her voice is unique but really grates on you, the idea of reviving doo woop is an odd concept and hence it only lasted 6 months. It has the worst title too.
Rachel Platten had one hit called Fight Song, it was a bad song. Generic Triumphant 'yeah I fought through ________ today, yeah!. the rest of this album 'Wildfire' filled with some inoffensive bland electronic pop music. Her voice isn't distinctive,carries no weight to it and that might of made this Album a bit less poop but I don't remember any other track.
Day Four
Spice Girls debut album is mostly a fun R &B flavored pop record, it is consistent in tone. Each member brings something new to the range and yeah, the music is of its time but it didn't offend me, I actually quite liked it in spots.
The Saturdays covered the early Depeche Mode hit and it was a smashing success. That's all I know about them. It's not a bad song, it's a great song actually just their version was an exact copy with worse production. This album (Chasing Lights) for the most part is synth pop but for some reason pop rock sneaks in. Why can't a bands album producers talk to each other! I digress, I nearly fell asleep because the voices all sound the same and they are all auto tuned to hell and back.
Bewitched is a nineties album. At its heart it keeps the R&B influenced pop but and this is the good bit: Irish Fiddles, Drum and Bass Passages, classical guitar, string sections and buzz saw guitar. All over the baggy, R&B thing. The lyrics are aimed at kids so can't call them out that much but this album just confused me.
What will the Neighbors say? by Girls Aloud saved the day. I love pretty much all this album. It's consistent, the songs are good (despite the pretenders and pointer sisters covers) and the production is by one bloke and you can tell. Love machine has always been a guilty pleasure but it is a great song, Arctic Monkeys covered it. It has relentless energy. It saved my sanity and now retrospectively makes me looks stoopid for hating on them when they first came out.
Ashlee Simpson's autobiography is an pop rock album. I miss the days when pop stars could be seen with guitars and not need to have very few clothes on. Ellie Goulding, I am looking at you. Yeah, this is a very pleasant pop rock album. This feel genuine as a project not done by committee of record managers in high office closing swimsuits for the album photoshoot.
Day Five
Hot thoughts by Spoon is the best of post punk rolled into one. It's dark, the drums are pounding, and the groveling bass. Political as well, there is a great line about tearing down a certain wall.
The Haze, the new LP by Pulled apart by Horses. Is a noisy noise album the buzzsaw guitar doesn't let up much on these joyous fun garage rock tunes.
Different Creatures, is the surprise of the day by the band, Circa Waves who I keep being told are hip and cool and worth tickets for shows and I hadn't listened to them. This album is a solid indie rock record
In Mind by Real Estate is a dreamy indie guitar album. The first track is amazing with a great rhythms, fab bass parts and lead guitar lines. Then unfortunately it ends up petering out into just dreamy guitar lines and that's it. No song structures just guitars in echo.
Spirit by Depeche Mode is a musically stripped back yet lyrically clunky album. Politically empty lyrics and demanding others for the revolution when you can play just as much a part yourself. Musically it is great though.
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