Missy Elliott
“This is Not a Test”
By Kevin Brooks, Revelry Writer
Since the release of her debut solo album “Supa Dupa Fly” in 1997, Missy Elliott has revolutionized the hip-hop world with her original and unique beats. Her fifth album, “This is Not a Test” is no exception.
Once again, Elliott teams with Timbaland to deliver some of the hottest sounds guaranteed to make bodies move and car windows vibrate. Unlike previous albums, Elliott delivers thought-provoking socio-political messages along with her music on the new album.
This album shows a more introspective Elliott than her previous albums. She says in her intro to the CD, “As I grab my pad and pen and talk from within…I am only human but the world has put me on a platform since the day I was born to only wait for my downfall. But like a brick wall I’m too hard to break.”
On many of the tracks, Elliott gets help from the likes of Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Nelly, R. Kelly, Faboluous, Monica, Beenie Man and Elephant Man. She describes this CD as ranging from “old-school rap to old-school R&B” on “Is This Our Last Time,” coincidently an old-school R&B track.
Elliott collaborates with Nelly on one of the hottest tracks on the album, “Pump It Up.” This song praises the full-figured Southern girl in a bass-driven track sure to be another club hit for Elliott. She gives fans a little bit of everything on this CD and she saves her best material for her Timbaland-produced tracks.
“Toyz” is a disco track praising her favorite toy – vibrators – where she says “I got a bag full of toys and I don’t need none of your boys … I’m gonna be alright once I turn this power on, ya dig?” Elliott also pays homage to old-school rappers such as Big Daddy Kane on “Let It Bump” featuring everything including mixing, cutting and scratching.
“This is Not A Test” provides a variety of distinctive beats that outshine her previous albums. For example, “Pass the Dutch” begins with Elliott screaming “Run for cover, m***** *****r!” before alarms, whistles, clapping and kettledrums take over the track.
Elliott has done it once again with “This is Not A Test.” It would be a “misdemeanor” not to include this album in anyone’s CD collection.
A
Nelly Furtado
“Folklore”
By Kim Moreau, Revelry Writer
Nelly Furtado is known best to some as the singer of “I’m Like a Bird.”
But although the stigmatism of over-played radio hits and the hype of her debut might deter listeners, smart fans know better.
Her sophomore effort “Folklore” paints a beautiful portrait of modern society. She sings of love, obsession, addiction and family. Furtado uses all her talents to meld her Portuguese heritage with electronica sounds, making what may be one of the best albums of the year.
Nelly Furtado begins proving herself from the first track. She sings on the opening song “One-Trick Pony,” “Yeah you do it for a price, I can see it in your eyes, see that role was never mine.” Furtado’s sound is all her own, and she will not compromise for sales.
Furtado has an uncanny ability to write a song that launches listeners into the exact moment it was written. Her songs paint portraits, giving Furtado the edge that separates musician from artist.
On the track “Explode” the guitar swells for the chorus “stuck in a teenage waste, as we explode.” She sings of the torments of youth gone awry. With the song’s final refrain “we’re gonna go far,” she satirizes the perceptions of success and the lives troubled youths lead.
This album is less overtly sexual than her first album, perhaps due to the recent birth of her first child. On the track “Childhood Dreams” the opening lines “I can’t believe you need me, I never thought I would be needed for anything,” immediately give the listener a sense of how much motherhood has changed Furtado’s sense of self.
Furtado sings of themes universal and deeper than those on her last album. She took her songwriting to the next level, and not just with her lyrics.
Musically the album is more advanced than any of her peers’. She blends hip-hop instrumentation with folk-inspired and Asian-inspired instrumentation to create a signature sound that separates her from the rest of the pop landscape.
Furtado makes folk for this generation. She is the hip-hop Joni Mitchell, and her album “Folklore” proves it.
A+