Prolific R&B artist Robert Sylvester Kelly, better known by his stage name R. Kelly, releases the followup to his 2010 album Love Letter with his eleventh studio album.
Much like his last album, R. Kelly again gives a disc chock full of throwback R&B jams. The album opens with the eponymous "Love Is" which samples from the slow jams master himself (Barry White) with a melody that is borrowed from "Can't Get Enough Of Your Love, Babe" in a sweet and simple ditty that tries to define what love is.
That throwback feel lasts for the entire album. "Feeling Single" has a melody straight from Michael Jackson's Off The Wall while "Lady Sunday" sounds like a late The Commodores song (minus Lionel Richey's silky vocals, of course)--and those are just the opening tracks!
Love Is comes off almost as an homage album with nods to past greats like Barry White, Al Green and even a little Michael Jackson. Unfortunately, while the music echoes those past greats' classic hits, it doesn't come close to emulating them in terms of freshness, originality, or catchiness.
As much as I like classic R&B and as much as I wanted to like this album, it just doesn't hit on all cylinders. The album's lack of a true hit single plus songs that fail to leave any lasting impressions makes this a hard disc to recommend You're much better off sticking with his Grammy nominated Love Letter from a couple of years ago.
Score: 5/10
Song(s) to Sample: "Love Is" and "Lady Sunday"
The Grammy winning, Adam Levine fronted pop rock band from Los Angeles release their fourth studio album
First off, thanks to Maroon 5 for our first nomination for the worst album cover of the year. It's new millennium pop art at its ugliest. Let's hope the music on the disc is better than the artwork that surrounds it.
On this album, the band seems to be searching for its sound bouncing back and forth from jangly bubblegum pop songs with their customary big hooks to tracks with techno-heavy beats and disco-lite melodies.
On some tracks they are able to blend the styles better than others. On the second track, "Payphone", where Levin's high alto singing voice blends well with the hook of the song, but guest artist Wiz Khalifi ends the track with a rap that seems to come out of left field and completely disrupts the flow of the music.
In what will come as no surprise to anyone, the band seems to shine brightest when they make the infectious and upbeat singles that will become staples in your local nightclub like on the track "Lucky Strike." On that track, the beat is fast tempo with a get-stuck-in-your-head hook and the Levine's vocals screech to perfection as he sings about finding his "one in a million."
Unfortunately, Overexposed, just like its album cover, is all over the place and that scattered nature makes it a hard album to immerse yourself in. There are some quality singles but the album itself lacks direction trying too hard to be too many things. The album is worth a listen but you'll be better off just buying the singles you like rather than purchasing the entire disc.
Score: 6/10
Song(s) to Sample: "Lucky Strike" and "One More Night"
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