The Early Bird: Top New Recorded Releases 3-4-22 – 3-10-22 Reviewed
An interesting time for musicians who have been cancelled, Morgan Wallen sold out MSG (here), Ryan Adams sold out Carnegie Hall (here) and DaBaby (his deeply offensive and stupid remarks at Rolling Loud certainly deserved rebuke: “If you didn’t show up today with HIV, AIDS, or any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that’ll make you die in two to three weeks, then put your cellphone lighter up,” he told attendees. “Ladies, if your pussysmell like water, put your cellphone lighter up. Fellas, if you ain’t sucking dick in the parking lot, put your cellphone lighter up.” He then doubled down and his career, from the top rapper in the US to invisible, his singles ignored, taken off Gov Ball for one followed, and is struggling to get his footing. Today’s surprise drop of his Better Than You album with YoungBoy Never Broke Again might do it, and if this doesn’t get DaBaby back to the top nothing will: tough, husky, sharp rapping plus Youngboy autotuned and emo-rap, at 33 minutes it doesn’t stop for breath on a minor masterpiece, “Hit” is a great song, so is “On This Line” but you could take your pick here, it is a superb slice of modern pop (Grade: A).
Over at singles, I reviewed both Fireboy DML fresh drops earlier today (here), one of them another take on his huge “Peru” featuring Ed Sheeran on the R3HAB remix (Grade: A-), the other single is remixed by Sickick, the masked DJ who did a small mix of Madonna’s classic “Frozen”, saw it go viral on Tik Tok and officially release it with Madonna’s approval and Fireboy along for the ride (Grade: A-), Dora Jar made quite an impression opening for Billie Eilish last month, though she didn’t sing “It’s Random” a fuzzed out singer songwriter with an edge of hyper pop (Grade: B+). Robyn covers her BFF Neneh Carey’s “Buffalo Stance” as state of the art pop plus a nice little rap from Mapei (Grade: B+), every year or so New York trips out over English bands like Wolf Alice, and Wet Leg’s female post-punk vibe who make it good with the storming “Angelica” (Grade: B+), Hardy has been on my radar since his duet with Morgan Wallen on “He Went To Jared” and still getting drunk, this time with Cole Swindell on Cole’s “Down To The Bar” (Grade: B).
Over at albums, Diplo’s first EDM album in years has features on every track but still is zero fun, this is the guy who broke up with FKA Twig because she was more popular than him years ago, and his eponymous album is EDM House 101 (Grade: C+), King Von’s posthumous drill album includes the premiere Chicago drill guy Lil Durk, premiere New York drill guy, Fivio Favor, at service to King Von’s hard spitted stories of violence, a world he now clearly represented as he is dead at 20 years of age (Grade: B+), German metal band Scorpions have been at it in one form or another since 1965 and Rock Believer is their first release since 2016 -though it is a double of heads down no nonsense old-school heavy metal (Grade: B)
Down To The Bar – Cole Swindell, Hardy – B
Better Than You – DaBaby, YoungBoy Never Broke Again – A
Diplo – Diplo – C+
It’s Random – Dora Jar – B+
Peru – R3HAB Remix – Fireboy DML, Ed Sheeran – A-
What It Means To Be King – King Von – B+
Frozen – Fireboy DML Remix – Madonna, Sickick – A-
Pa’lla Voy – Marc Anthony – B-
Buffalo Stance – Robyn, Neneh Cherry, Mapei – B+
Rock Believer – Scorpions – B
Angelica – Wet Leg – B+
