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Album Review:  “Two Different Worlds”  - Ryan Edward Wolf

This is the first album review I have done in some time.  I’m glad to be back with a special review of a friend’s debut project.  Pontiac, IL native Ryan Edward Wolf (also part of Pontiac’s Timber Street Duo with Jordan Vietti), comes onto the scene in his biggest way yet with his first album, Two Different Worlds.  With help from Vietti and other local musicians, Wolf has created an eight-track collection of songs that draw clear inspiration from The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and even Nirvana.  If you’re expecting a lengthy album with all the flash and bang in the world, you aren’t going to get that.  However, you will enjoy a listing of songs that are honest and enjoyable.  Wolf self-produced and wrote each song on the album, and even created the album artwork.  It’s a noticeable debut.

Listen here: https://open.spotify.com/album/4E2DGAU7EuOCbhyjJBP5mx

Favorite Tracks: “Average Joe”, “Someday”, “The Sun Will Wake You Up”

7.5/10

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By Matthew Ferguson

Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

Sub Pop, 2011

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#marvingaye #michaeljackson

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By Matthew Ferguson

Zodiac - Directed by: David Fincher

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Album Review | Lupe Fiasco - Tetsuo & Youth

By Matthew Ferguson

Lupe Fiasco is a Chicago rapper & this is his 5th studio album

Lupe is back, for the most part. After a huge misstep on his third studio album Lasers and a very lack luster follow up with Food & Liquor II, a sequel with only a handful of great tracks and clusters of duds, Lupe returns with an album filled with more good than bad. Tetsuo & Youth’s most prominent improvement are instrumentals. While heavily produced, they do have some bright spots, especially with his use of piano and violin, which show up quite a bit. Most of the beats on this project do not feel as cheap as his last two efforts. The first half of this project is very good, and Lupe is able to mix his notorious lyricism, tackling his traditional topics and complementing them with occasional witty wordplay, and sometimes with complete cheese. “Mural,”the albums biggest highlight, showcases fantastic production and almost nine minutes of Lupe throwing everything at you like a freight train with an instrumental that mixes hard hitting bass, a memorable piano piece, and some well placed falsetto vocals. “Blur My Hands” and “Dots & Lines” show how Lupe can still make a soft catchy track that doesn’t feel corny or overly produced. Even if the banjo on the beginning and end of “Dots & Lines” doesn’t really lead to anything, this track still has some amazing string-work and the same goes for the beginning of “Prisoner 1 & 2”. This string-work is also showcased on the fantastic season-based interludes (Summer, Fall, Winter, & Spring). The instrumental on “Madonna” feels heavily inspired from Kanye’s MBDTF era with its vocoded vocal loop (take that how you will).

Lupe’s instrumental work does falter however. In many cases, he either includes some very weak instrumentals or doesn’t flesh out what great material he has. Tracks like “T.R.O.N" and “Chopper” feel flat out bland and forgettable. I couldn’t believe that Lupe could make “Chopper,” a nine minute posse track, seem so boring and repetitive on the beat while beautiful saxophone pieces on “Body of Work” and “Adoration of the Magi”are extremely underused or buried under so much of the synthetic production that they lost their touch.

Many of the hooks, and some lyrics on the second half in particular feel very forgettable and uninspired. Lines like “you’re like a contemporary museum of art, that farts?” just feel like Lupe ran out of steam, and an even weaker, cornier hook appears on the same track. This isn’t to say that Lupe can’t write a great verse and a great chorus. Take “Dots & Lines” for example, the hook is catchy, it feels genuine, and there are some great lyrics on it, specifically at the 4 minute mark I love the line “if your reflection is a mask, then you’re reflective of mass, To see yourself just look at me, then split your reflection in half.”

Speaking of choruses, no matter how many times Lupe throws Nikki Jean on a hook, she doesn’t live up to, or even come close to a performance like on “Hip-Hop Has Saved My Life.” Instead, her efforts on Tetsuo come off like cheap cuts from Eminem’s last album. However, the biggest surprise on a hook comes from Guy Sebastian on “Blur My Hands,” where he sings with much more soul and personality than his previous appearance on the Food & Liquor II track “Battle Scars.” I also can’t help but feel that “Blur My Hands” feels oddly similar to “Strange Fruition” instrumentally. I guess if it isn’t broken don’t fix it, but don’t copy and paste it either.

Had this album been 10, maybe 11 tracks, and had some of the instrumentals been more fleshed out, I think Lupe would have delivered a great project, but as it stands, Tetsuo & Youth is still a step in the right direction for Lupe, but it still has fat in desperate need of trimming. Most of the lyrics and instrumentals on the first half of this project feel so lively and passionate. Each interlude is creative and gives the album some personality. However, at a point, the LP loses steam and it feels as though Lupe started scraping the bottom of the barrel. Tetsuo is no Cool or Food & Liquor, but it does show promise.

The Essentials: "Mural", "Winter", "Blur My Hands", "Dots & Lines", "Deliver" "Fall"

Least Favourite Track: “No Scratches”

7.3/10

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James Blake has announced his new album, Radio Silence.

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the powers that b

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Movie Review | Selma

By Matthew Ferguson

Selma is the feature length film debut from director Ava DuVernay and shows the events that took place during Martin Luther King Jr’s march on Selma, Alabama.

For only directing a few TV episodes and a handful of short films, Ava Duvernay’s debut feels as if it was directed by a veteran. The film’s pacing was used well even though the movie clocked in just over 2 hours. There was never a dull moment and any time that I was just about to sit back in my seat, the film took a turn that had me right back at the edge. It is shot exceptionally well, and sets felt genuine to the times. One of the surprise characteristics this film does well is in its sound. There are moments when hits feel so brutal that I even winced while watching, and one diner scene in particular that left me feeling choked up, especially with the conversation that took place after.

However, the biggest highlight of the film, as well as its only fault, comes in its characters. David Oyelowo’s portrayal of MLK was, as far as I am concerned, fantastic. David’s acting carried the film, and with every word he spoke, I felt more and more immersed. He was able to contrast the energy and fierceness of Martin’s speeches with the charming qualities that Martin was able to have from just having a casual conversation with friends and family. I was also impressed with the acting of practically every secondary character (especially from Oprah Winfrey and Chicago rapper Common) who acted so well in their parts that it didn’t feel distracting to the story. The only fault I can give to the film comes from Carmen Ejogo’s performance as Martin’s wife Coretta, not that it was a bad performance. I just felt that, being the important figure that she was, never stuck out that much to me. I remembered more from the secondary characters than I did from her.

Selma is not afraid to show the ugly side of the quest for Civil Rights, but also is able to convey them in a way that feels real. Matched with the fantastic performance from David Oyelowo, it is one of the most immersive, harsh, and uplifting films that you will see all year.

8.8/10

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Movie Review | The Gambler

The Gambler is the newest film from director Rupert Wyatt (The Escapist, Rise of the Planet of the Apes) that stars Mark Wahlberg as teacher/excessive gambler Jim Bennett who gets into serious trouble after his addiction leads him to owing money to the wrong people.

This story is not anything new, in fact, there are times when you will feel yourself tuning out because you already know where the film is going. Yes it feels formulaic and there is practically zero suspense, but it does have a few standout moments. For one, the way the film is shot. Some of the shots in this film look fantastic, most is it staying in a blue palette, giving off the cold uncomfortable world that Jim's Character is living in. Mark Wahlberg's character as Jim is pretty hit or miss depending on the situation. At times, he can feel completely unlikeable, doing things that seem so irrational, particularly with the scenes where he gambles. This would make sense given his condition, but there are times when he is teaching his class that he is saying things that feel so contradictory to how he acts outside of the classroom. I would have honestly settled for a film where Jim teaches a college class rather than the gambling story. Every time a classroom scene would happen, I found myself more intrigued, I loved what he was saying and how honest he was being, which is thanks to some of the great dialogue that is sprinkled throughout the movie. Outside of this setting, Jim's character feels much more childish, thus feeling like a completely different film. The side characters in this film are pretty bland as well, and the forced love story is - well forced, and unbelievable. Bre Larson's character and Mark's share no chemistry and have about 1 or 2 actual interactions with one another. The only side character that really stuck out was John Goodman's. It is no surprise that John can give a good scary performance, and while this by no means a Walter from Lebowski performance, Goodman gives a speech that is probably the most memorable thing about the entire movie.

You've seen The Gambler before, but outside of a typical story and some poor character development, it is well shot, and does have moments with its dialogue that really shine.

6.3/10

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Toronto Jazz trio BADBADNOTGOOD team up with rappers GHOSTFACE KILLAH & MF DOOM for their awesome track “Ray Gun” off of the upcoming album Sour Soul.

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Death Grips drop a spontaneous instrumental album? With track titles that spell out Jenny Death When. I can’t even say I’m surprised at this point, but these beats hit hard.

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Looks like there's now a semi-official release date for Death Grips' double album The Powers That B: a few separate listings show that it will be released

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By Matthew Ferguson

Mount Eerie - Wind's Poem

P.W. Elverum & Sun, 2009

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New Ye track features Sir Paul McCartney on keys

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By Matthew Ferguson

Miles Davis - Kind of Blue

Columbia, 1959

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Album Review | Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels 2

Run The Jewels is the hip-hop duo consisting of rapper Killer Mike and rapper/producer El-P, and this is their 2nd album together under the Run The Jewels name. Although they have several solo albums out, their first collaboration was actually on Killer Mike's latest solo effort R.A.P Music, where Jaime provided production for the entire album.

In Run The Jewels however, they work together on both sides of the project. Mike & Jaime collaborate on everything that goes into Run The Jewels to the point where they have even said that part of the writing process included finishing each other's verses when the other began to stumble. In fact, one of the strongest weapons that these two have as a group is their chemistry. It is apparent nearly every verse. Their ability to work so well together on the mic, both on this sophomore album and their self titled, makes listening extremely enjoyable. On RTJ2, the guys turn everything up to 10, delivering some of the most hectic & energetic jams that they have ever made. I feel that this is thanks to Jaime, who stepped up on this effort, not only lyrically, but instrumentally. El-P's contribution instrumentally is one of RTJ2's brightest moments. The first 9 tracks flow almost seamlessly into one another and keep the momentum going until the very end.

The guys even manage to handle several features on this thing very well, most notably the Zach De La Roca sample/feature, the appearance of Travis Barker on drums, and the fantastic hook from BOOTS on the track "Early."

If there are any weak moments on this album, I would say that they are very slim. The track "Love Again" feels a bit too cartoonish, even for Run The Jewel's sake, and even though it has one of the grimiest beats on the entire LP, I feel that is was bogged down by a corny hook and a weak verse by Gangsta Boo (which only appears on the digital release, so anyone with a physical copy might not know what I mean). Lastly, I felt that the album fizzles out rather than ending as explosive as it began. This might seem nit picky, but track-listing is just as important as anything else here, and as much as I love "Crown" & "Angel Duster" lyrically, I wished that (particularly on Angel Duster) that the instrumental and delivery carried more energy as a closer. Heck, the brightest moment on Run The Jewels 1 was its closing track.

Short and Simple, Run The Jewels 2 is one of the most essential hip-hop albums of the year, and possibly years to come. It steps up on nearly every level from its predecessor, and proves that Jaime & Mike still have plenty of tricks up their sleeves. The instrumentals hit hard, each verse hits hard, and you will feel each punch by the time you finish listening.

9.3/10

The Essentials: "Close Your Eyes (And Count To Fuck)" "Oh My Darling Don't Cry" "Blockbuster Night Part 1" "All Due Respect" "Early"

Least Favourite Track: "Love Again"