Album Reviews | SPIN.com

Rihanna, 'Rated R' (Def Jam)

Peter Gaston — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:01:32 -0600

Rihanna is one of our most malleable pop stars. In the last five years she has grown from sunkissed Bajan sweetie to heaving disco queen to, most crucially, bright-eyed and hopeful balladeer.

But she's never been tough. Rated R, Rihanna's first album since her brutal confrontation with ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, wants to recast her as a searing woman scorned. It doesn't quite take.

The 21-year-old singer has the sort of even-keeled, toneless voice that's rarely expressive enough to convey fury, and the songs here betray her natural affinity for the shimmering. On the otherwise steely "Hard," she laughably blurts, "Where them bloggas at?" melting any chance at toughness. On "Rockstar 101" with Slash, she works terribly hard to roar about her rocker bona fides. "Got my middle finger up, I don't give a fuck," she mewls so preciously you'd think it was her first time swearing.

Rated R succeeds when Rihanna works to her strengths: mid-tempo, middle American ballads. Working with glittering electro-pop production from Will.i.am, she turns "Photograph" into a tender, tense tale of broken love. On the gorgeous, Justin Timberlake-penned "Cold Case Love," she seems to discover the flip side of "Umbrella." Love sucks, it's true. And for a short moment, Rihanna is tough. She just isn't insisting upon it.

The Bravery, 'Stir the Blood' (Island)

onlineintern — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:50:25 -0600

The Bravery, who emerged in the wake of the early-aughts New York post-punk revival that spawned Interpol and the Strokes, are still positively 14th Street. Their petulantly plagiaristic third album -- mired in singer Sam Endicott's uncharismatic Robert Smith–in-a-wind-tunnel moan (imagine that hair) -- continues to stuff downtown Gotham streets into predictable, rhyming-dictionary couplets. "Red Hands and White Knuckles" notably swoons for Tompkins Square Park, but no matter how many historic locales the band invokes, their New Order and Killers castoffs still sound like the work of meek tourists.

Adam Lambert, 'For Your Entertainment' (19 Recordings/RCA)

Peter Gaston — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 06:33:54 -0600

The success of former American Idol contestants is measured not only by who helps them, but by what material they get and how well they make it their own. Everyone from Lady Gaga to Muse chips in here with perhaps the strongest, most flavorful batch of tunes to reach an AI vet, and Lambert's polymorphous vocal skills unite dancefloor strut and hard-rock pomp in a convincing glam package. Flamboyance with a fire underneath, this is mainstream glitz liberated by both guts and chops; the gay equivalent of gospel.

WATCH: Adam Lambert, "Time for Miracles"

50 Cent, 'Before I Self Destruct' (Aftermath/Interscope)

Peter Gaston — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:35:09 -0600

Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson said his long-delayed fourth album would be "like a prequel" to his blockbuster 2003 debut Get Rich or Die Tryin' -- in other words, a back-to-basics return to the rapper-mogul's more aggressive roots.

But after 2007's lackluster Curtis and this summer's abysmal War Angel mixtape, not even A-list producers (Dr. Dre, Polow Da Don, Timbaland) and A-list guest stars (Eminem, Ne-Yo, R. Kelly) can bring back Fitty's glory days.

From unsettling babysitter-sex and street-hustling reminiscence "Then Days Went By" to chest-thumping call-to-arms ("I'm not tellin' you to shoot somebody, but...") "Crime Wave," the first half of Before I Self Destruct recalls the nihilistic ferocity of Fitty's legendary pre-fame mixtapes. But Eminem by far out-raps his former protégé on "Psycho," and 50 Cent's crabby sniping at a who's who of hip-hop stars on "So Disrespectful" only underscores his own increasing irrelevance.

The last several tracks shift to the club -- sometimes smoothly (baby-making Ne-Yo duet "Baby By Me"), more often not (baby-mama dis "Do You Think About Me"). Before I Self Destruct starts with 50 Cent literally growling, and it ends, on "Could've Been You," with Kelly crooning about sniffing his own excrement. Both sound equally laughable.

WATCH: 50 Cent, "Baby By Me"

Norah Jones, 'The Fall' (Blue Note)

onlineintern — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 06:53:46 -0600

Thanks to the involvement of folks like Ryan Adams (who cowrote one song) and Kings of Leon producer Jacquire King, The Fall has been billed as Norah Jones' rock album. In fact, it's something even more surprising: a hot-blooded soul record from the queen of the even keel. In opener "Chasing Pirates," she rides a killer Wurlitzer lick by Roots/Erykah Badu sideman James Poyser, while "Back to Manhattan" describes Jones' breakup with boyfriend-bassist Lee Alexander over a slow-burn funk groove. Who knew ol' S'Norah had it in her?

Them Crooked Vultures, 'Them Crooked Vultures' (DGC/Interscope)

onlineintern — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:03:43 -0600

"Just me and my dead-end friends again," sings Josh Homme on the debut album by Them Crooked Vultures. Homme's pals here aren't exactly of the dead-end variety: In addition to the Queens of the Stone Age frontman, Vultures comprises Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters on drums and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones on bass and keyboards. (Lemmy must've been busy.) Believe it or not, though, this appealingly lightweight set of funky robo-rock jams actually makes good on Homme's promise; sleazed-out riff bombs like "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" and "Scumbag Blues" (the latter with a killer Clavinet solo) sound like the fruit of some weed-smoky rec-room freak-out. Only, y'know, with three of the world's heaviest hitters instead of your older brother's buddies.

LISTEN: Them Crooked Vultures full album stream

Kid Sister, 'Ultraviolet' (Downtown)

Peter Gaston — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:05:56 -0600

There's been hope for some time that Melisa "Kid Sister" Young could resurrect that ever-struggling subset known as the female rapper. Her relentless bark -- like a crocodile clomping its jaw shut, swallowing tracks whole -- instantly made her a commanding and charming spitfire back in 2006. But rather than go fierce, Kid Sis has gone house, crafting a debut that's high on her Chicago hometown's pulsating synthetic beats ("Right Hand Hi") and '80s freestyle reinventions ("You Ain't Really Down"), but low on chiseled rhymes. Move along; no savior to see here.

WATCH: Kid Sister, "Pro Nails (ft. Kanye West)"

Wale, 'Attention: Deficit' (Allido/Interscope)

Peter Gaston — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:06:56 -0600

Attention: Deficit is Wale's first official album after numerous online releases, including last year's Seinfeld homage The Mixtape About Nothing. But the Washington, D.C. rapper already feels beset by celebrity. "D.C.'s never seen such progress / So bitches on the scene seem quite stalkish," he observes on "Center of Attention." Seemingly stressed by daily coverage on Nahright.com, he adds, "I wouldn't wish fame on my enemy / Paparazzi's like a lifetime sentencing."

Despite all the Internet notoriety, this is Wale's show-and-prove moment. And somewhat surprisingly, he takes an introspective turn, with songs about unwed mothers ("Be Right"), wayward Lauren Conrads ("90210"), and being dark-skinned ("Shades"). But his best tracks retrace his go-go roots: On "O.G.," the Dap-Kings' horn section swoops over producer Best Kept Secret's crackling rhythms, while mentor Mark Ronson loops a hard funk bass line for "Mirrors." Elsewhere, Wale talks to the ladies over glossy, symphonic pop, though "Chillin'," with Cool & Dre's plodding beat and Lady Gaga's wanna-be-M.I.A. cadences, gets unnecessarily crass.

Straddling the line between street and pop, Attention: Deficit doesn't quite capture the pop zeitgeist. But it sheds light on Wale's evolving personality, and his circuitous story raps reward deep listening. "I asked Mr. West for a little help," he notes (referring to Kanye) on the David Sitek–produced "Triumph." "Realize us new niggas gotta get it ourselves."

WATCH: Wale Live at SPIN Office

Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, 'Xenophanes' (Rodriguez-Lopez Productions)

onlineintern — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:33:28 -0600

At this point, a new Omar Rodríguez-López album sounds about as thrilling as a Law & Order rerun: Excluding Mars Volta recordings, Xenophanes is his 11th release since 2007. But there's reason to take notice this time, as the album relegates the guitarist's often-tedious sonic experiments to mere interludes. The majority of these tracks are well-drawn interstellar metal songs, featuring López spouting operatic choruses in Spanish (assisted by Mexican singer-songwriter Ximena Sariñana). The result is a listenable, more conventional version of his primary band. Though refreshing in a solo-career context, we've heard most of this stuff before.

Dashboard Confessional, 'Alter the Ending' (Vagrant/Interscope)

onlineintern — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:47:16 -0600

All Chris Carrabba’s albums as heartthrob-in-chief of Dashboard Confessional have been about tension, primarily romantic: He can't help comparing his current love to the idealized version in his pretty little head. But an aesthetic battle also rages within Carrabba, one pitting Dashboard's solo-acoustic roots against the frontman's desire to move arenas with the intensity of his emotion. After making a pair of big-budget rock records with A-list producers Gil Norton and Daniel Lanois, Carrabba stripped down for 2007's The Shade of Poison Trees, which successfully convinced early-decade Dashboard fans that he hadn't left the campfire forever.

On the band's latest album, Carrabba plays it both ways. Produced by power-pop whiz Butch Walker and Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger, Alter the Ending contains no shortage of high-gloss thrills: In "Blame It on the Changes," tolling church bells underscore the regretful lyric, while the jangly "I Know About You" might be the best song the Gin Blossoms never recorded; later, "The Motions" opens with a synth trill straight out of "Stacy's Mom."

Yet there are also plenty of folky, intimate moments here, such as "Hell on the Throat" and "Even Now," the latter of which openly echoes Dashboard's signature tune, "Screaming Infidelities." (Carrabba even revisits the intoxicating smell of laundry.) Which Chris represents the real deal? He's still not sure himself.

LISTEN: Dashboard Confessional, "Belle of the Boulevard"

Album Reviews | SPIN.com

Rihanna, 'Rated R' (Def Jam)

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The Bravery, 'Stir the Blood' (Island)

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Adam Lambert, 'For Your Entertainment' (19 Recordings/RCA)

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50 Cent, 'Before I Self Destruct' (Aftermath/Interscope)

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Norah Jones, 'The Fall' (Blue Note)

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Them Crooked Vultures, 'Them Crooked Vultures' (DGC/Interscope)

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Kid Sister, 'Ultraviolet' (Downtown)

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Wale, 'Attention: Deficit' (Allido/Interscope)

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Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, 'Xenophanes' (Rodriguez-Lopez Productions)

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Dashboard Confessional, 'Alter the Ending' (Vagrant/Interscope)

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