Crack A Bottle - Eminem

From Mahalo.com "A completed version of Eminem's "Crack a Bottle," which features 50 Cent and Dr. Dre, leaked online January 6, 2009. "Crack a Bottle" will be released on Eminem's forthcoming album, Relapse  Originally believed to be titled "Number One," an early version of the song was leaked in December 2008.

Fast Facts

1. Producer: Dr. Dre
2. Leaked on December 5, 2008
3. Was originally believed to be called "Number One"¹
4. Released on the DJ Big Mike and Neptune mixtape4th Quarter Pressure Part 2
5. Eminem's label, Interscope, has refused to comment on the leak²
6. Eminem said he is filling in on a couple of verse's that are meant to be for Dre³
7. Dr. Dre apparently put his own solo album, Detox, on hold to help Eminem finish his upcoming solo album, Relapse.^2"

This beat is good stuff, vintage Dre.  But the Chorus is kind of "meh".

Beat:  ****

Lyrics:  ***.5

Apologize - One Republic

This CD is good stuff. Fun Fact: Timbaland was training Ryan Tedder (One Republic's front man) as his production protege back in the day. Fun Fact: Swearing helps you make a point more effectively!

Lyrics: ***

Beat: ****

Sensual Seduction - Snoop Dogg

I know Snoop caught a whole lot of flack for recording this, but the video was funny as hell. Just random.

Beat: ***.5

Lyrics: *** (Snoop actually pulled off the Autotune thing)

Crank That - Soulja Boy

Youuuuu!!! The track that bought Soulja Boy three houses, this is just good stuff. The steel drums, the nonsense lyrics, the whole thing. He's failed to repeat this success yet, and who knows if he ever will? (I'm betting he won't).

Lyrics: hahahaha, yeah **

Beat: ***.5

The Real Slim Shady - Eminem

Eminem's gonna be dropping that new album soon (I'm assuming, giving that he's started to drop more guest appearances than usual). I'm really looking forward to it, cause I've really liked some of the work Dr. Dre has been doing lately("Get It In", the stuff with Stat Quo) when not lifting trucks over his head.

Real Slim Shady was the track to launch Eminem's pop career.

Beat: ***.5

Lyrics: **** (at the time, this kind of crazy, irreverent rapping was a breath of fresh air)

Gives You Hell - All American Rejects

These guys seem like a genuinely nice group in all the interviews, but the guitar solo in this song is probably the worst thing ever recorded.  Nice little pop tune.

Beat:  ***

Lyrics:  ***

Gotta Be Somebody - Nickelback

Nickelback just gets hated on like crazy, but somebody must enjoy them, since they sell like a bazillion units.  But I guess the Jonas Brothers do to, so that's not really much of an argument.  Another Nickelback hit, play it loud while drinking MGD.  

See You In My Nightmares - Kanyeezie

I really like 808s and Heartbreaks, but reviews are all over the map for it.  I think if you're expecting another College Dropout you'll be crazy disappointed, but if you want some different kind of, I'd almost say trip-hop, then I think you'll enjoy this.  I think I remember Kanye sampling Portishead for Breathless for this MTV Making The Beat special, and at the time I thought it was kind of a fresh sound.

Make My Day - Common

This CD is garbage.  But Common disagrees, check out this awesome quote:

"On a scale of 1 to 10 this CD is like an 11."  That's not even on the scale!  

Clap Again - Akon

I'm telling you, this CD is hot from like front to back.  Just good pop music.  There's a reason that Akon has like a trillion dollar mansion and lambourghini (hint:  his short stint as a porno star).

Beautiful U R - Deborah Cox

Man, Cox is on fire with this one.  Lovin' Cox!  With a beat this good, everyone's gonna be on Cox. Put some Cox on your phone.

...

Cox

I Hate This Part - Pussycat Dolls

Remember when Nicole went off to do her own thing and failed horribly?  Seriously, what was up with that?  "I Hate This Part" is good stuff, liking it a lot more than the "When I Grow Up" trainwreck that they put out as lead single.

Kiss Me Through The Phone - Soulja Boy

I really liked this song when it was called "Whatever You Like" by T.I.  Such a blatant ripoff, seriously.  I'm not even looking at the production credits on this, but I'm betting it's Jim Jonsin again.  Jim Jonsin=good.  Soulja Boy=the next Mc Hammer

Poker Face - Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga puts out another pop hit.  Oh yeah!  Can't read my...can't read my POKAH FACE.  Or can I?!?!?  The mysteries never end.

Get Up - 50 Cent

I love this song.  Anytime I throw it on, it gets the people moving.  This sees Scott Storch returning to top form after the bankruptcy thing, and cranking out another hit.  If he keeps this up he'll be able to get the Bentley off layaway.  I'm a little concerned about 50 cent not switching up his lyrics enough.  Will people still check for him with another album with songs about drugs, clubbing, and getting money?  But definitely check this song out. 

Beat:  ****

Lyrics: **.5 (same "in the club, get your butt on the floor" stuff)

Human - The Killers

In my opinion, the Killers have really fallen off since their first album.  I think with the first album, they were just having fun, trying to emulate that 80s sound, and they put out their best work.  But after that album, they started taking their sound more seriously and started to focus on sounding more mature.  The result being kind of boring music.  This song is decent, but nothing to write home about. 

Beat:  **.5

Lyrics: **.5

Beautiful - Akon

This song is excellent.  I get a lot of flack for listening to Akon, but rest assured, I'm all man!  This is a really good CD, seriously.  Since T-Pain showed Akon how to use Logic for production, you can hear how much his production has advanced.  Seriously, I was listening to Akon's "Trouble" the other day and it's like night and day how much better this CD sounds.  If you're into production, definitely check into Apple Logic and a cheap midi controller.  My CD player is a piece of garbage, so I have to put the CD in like 20000 times to get it to play, but it's still worth it.   Some people claim that lyrically Akon has actually been deteriorating, but if you've been listening to Akon for lyrics, then you're probably watching Baywatch for the plot.

Beat: ****.5

Lyrics:  ***

 

Danny Fernandez - Fantasy

Out of all of CP Records, Danny Fernandez is the only one I think has a decent chance of blowing up as an artist.  He tends to have good production, good hooks, and decent videos.  I'm a little curious how he's going to give a girl "trips around the world" given that CP Records isn't turning a profit yet.  Maybe he's flying with Sunwing, or helping her get a job as a stewardess.

Beat:  ***.5

Lyrics:  **.5

Swing - Savage

I want to dislike this song, for the simple fact that it will inspire a zillion crappy youtube parodies by people who want to be famous but are future fry chefs.  But I can't.  Just like "Crank Dat" a simple beat with a catchy chorus.  The musical equivalent of McDonald's.  Sometimes you wanna eat it, but you don't want it everyday.  If that makes any sense.  Which it doesn't

Beat : ***.5

Lyrics: **.5 (does it really matter for this type of music?)

And the above review is the reason I only write on Blogger.

T-Shirt - Shontelle

Don't know much about Shontelle but she's got a lot of potential.  Good voice and nice production on this one.  Girls will love it, boys will pretend to dislike it, but put it on their ipod anyway.

Beat:***.5

Lyrics:***.5

Shontelle, that's a terrible cover for an album single.  What's the message with the trident?  That you're Captain Nemo's daughter?  That you've sailed the seven seas and lived to tell about it?  I don't know.  But I do have a hankering for Long John Silvers.  Shiver me timbers!

Love Lockdown - Kanye West

You'll either really like this song or totally hate it.  There's no happy median.  The version on the VMAs was better (the chorus sounds like garbage on the radio version) but I still think it's good.  Your results may vary, some conditions may apply.

Beat:***.5

Lyrics:***.5

(Note:  Still way better than "jockin jay z",aka. lame attempt to cash in on the popularity of "a millie".)

Right Now (Na na na) - Akon

This song kicks too much ass.  The beat is sick, hook is crazy, good work Akon.  This song will own radio for the next 6 months or so (the reason why Akon literally has garbage bags full of money, with big dollar signs printed on the side to draw attention to his wealth).

Beat : ****.5

Lyrics: ***.5

Disturbia - Rihanna

The same dude who helped Polow Da Don produce "Forever" for Chris Brown, turns in another nice instrumental for Rihanna.  Slight deduction for naming it after that Shia LeBeef movie.  

Beat:****

Lyrics:***.5

When I Grow Up - Pussycat Dolls

When my friend first heard this song on the radio he was like "I've lost all hope in humanity."  Our other buddy who djs says this song tested really well with girls, but seriously.  What the hell is this?It's really really annoying.  One of the worst pop tunes to come out in a while and a good example of how the record label hype machine can push a song enough times until people start to like it.  

Beat:**.5

Lyrics:*

William Hung was better than this.  

Got Money - Lil Wayne ft. T-Pain

I'm a big fan of this.  The beat is Play N' Skillz, the dudes who brought you Ridin' Dirty and T-Pain turns in a chorus catchier than herpes.  Sorry for that mental image.  

Beat:  ****

Lyrics : ***

You've heard this song four thousand times by the end of this message, so you really didn't need me to review it too much

Don't Think I Don't Think About it - Darius Rucker

Don't think I don't think about it!  What Darius is talking about is this thought "Won't this guy realize the horrible backlash he'll get moving from Hootie and the Blowfish to all of a sudden doing country song?"  Like WTF?  I guess next Garth Brooks will start doing Reggaeton or something.  He's a good singer though, and if you dig country you'll probably enjoy this.  It's a little generic for my tastes, and even though I'm not a huge fan of the genre, I know good country when I hear it.  

Beat:  ***

Lyrics :**.5 (Meh.)

Let It Rock - Kevin Rudolf ft. Lil Wayne

You know when you see a poseur looking kid with his Clash t-shirt who probably thinks that Good Charlotte is the best punk group ever?  That's the feeling that I get when I watch Kevin Rudolf in the video.  Why is the guy holding a guitar?  Is there any guitar even in this song?  What's the point.

Beat : ** (Sounds like something Danjahandz might have hooked up in like 3 minutes while dropping a deuce).

Lyrics:** (Crappy).

Basically, don't buy this song.

What Dem Girls Like - Ludacris Ft. Chris Brown

Darkchild drops another hit on this.  Didn't like the production on that Pussycat Dolls "When I grow up" piece of garbage, but this one has a cool, hypnotic melody.  Ludacris keeps delivering the heat, and Chris Brown brings in the tween crowd (even though the chorus is kind of lame, "I know what dem girls, I know I know what them girls like!".  Yes, they like millionaire superstar singers and rappers.  Thanks, captain obvious.)

Beat: ****

Lyrics: ***.5

Swagger Like Us - T.I. and Jay Z

Wasn't a big fan of this song at first, but it really grows on you. And T.I., who's not usually rated for his lyrics, steals the thunder with a stellar verse.

Beat - ***.5

Lyrics - ****

Nice track from a surprisingly good album ("Paper Trail" check it out.)

I'm So Paid - Akon ft. Lil Wayne

The hook king Akon puts in another good performance on this.  The beat is pretty knocking, smooth melody with some nice drums.  

Beat - ***.5

Lyrics - ***

Note to Lil Wayne: You don't have to do that autotune thing on every single song you put out.