song reviews
R.E.M.
"Discoverer"
Peter Buck's psychedelic guitar intro gives a tantalizing taste of the new-model R.E.M. — like Jefferson Airplane circa Surrealistic Pillow covering Sonic Youth's "Eric's Trip." A track from the eagerly awaited Collapse Into Now (due in March), "Discoverer" has the widescreen presence of R.E.M. classics like New Adventures in Hi-Fi. But when Michael Stipe bellows, "Hey, baby, this is not a challenge," you don't believe it. Gallery: R.E.M., A History in Photos | More »
Kanye West
"Christmas In Harlem"
Kanye's tinsel-tinted stocking stuffer sounds uncharacteristically tossed-off, as if he's preoccupied with the Xmas shopping spree he says he's planning. But actual Harlem R&B hopeful Teyana Taylor offers warmth from the wind chill, eventually slipping into the comfy melody from the Brothers Johnson's "Strawberry Letter 23." And gruff-rapping Atlanta Santa CyHi Da Prynce promises presents for non-Christian kiddies, too — hauled in a Porsche-speed sleigh. ... | More »
Adele
"Rolling in the Deep"
With the follow-up to her Grammy-snagging 2008 album looming, this London pop-soul singer made a surprising choice for the disc's first single: "Rolling in the Deep" finds the 22-year-old in bluesy gospel mode, sounding powerful but not particularly pop. Starting with a stroked acoustic guitar, this breakup-mourning track builds to a stomping, hand-clapping climax that affirms the English knack for rejiggering the sound of American roots music. "I can't help feeling we could've... | More »
Paul Simon
"Getting Ready for Christmas Day"
"Got a nephew in Iraq/It's his third time back," sings Paul Simon, pondering the fate of a relative spending Christmas abroad. "Jingle Bells" this ain't. The first taste of his forthcoming LP is built around a 1941 sample of the Rev. J.M. Gates (from the gospel comp Goodbye, Babylon), and the end result recalls Simon's golden era, all warm tunefulness cut with mischief. "I may be layin' in some lonesome grave," laments the Reverend. Then Simon's sunny chorus chases th... | More »
Panda Bear
"Last Night at the Jetty"
The Animal Collective crooner evokes the sound of a woozy man stringing together bits of doo-wop at the bottom of a well, backed by wobbly synth, hand claps and the odd shriek. We'll have what he's having! | More »
Das Racist
"I'm Up on That"
These baked Brooklyn MCs got sophisticated since they stumbled into that Pizza Hut-Taco Bell: Moving into jazz rap, they spit witty rhymes — "Every Thanksgivin'/I'm killin'/A pilgrim" — while name-checking the D.C. sniper and Harry Nilsson. | More »
Michael Jackson
"Hold My Hand"
When it first appeared, there was some doubt that this 2007 "collaboration" — circulated in a rough but near-identical version after Michael Jackson's death — really happened. (Members of Jackson's family are among the skeptics.) Musically, the controversy is much ado about little. "Hold My Hand," the lead single from the forthcoming posthumous Michael LP, is a modestly anthemic ballad about sticking by loved ones in hard times, with a melody faintly echoing Bob Mar... | More »
Quincy Jones
"P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"
This version of the Thriller killer, cut by its producer for his new album, finds T-Pain splashing on the Auto-Tune like cheap cologne while Thicke channels Michael more straightforwardly. This at least beats Justin Guarini’s version from Season One of Idol. | More »
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star rating"Discoverer" -
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