Review: Gorillaz, Plastic Beach

 Gorillaz

Plastic Beach 

A-

What I like best about the Gorillaz is that no two Gorillaz songs are alike. Keeping with this tradition, their innovative new album Plastic Beach is an eclectic blend of new sounds that surprised me at every turn. It is soothing, funky, and utterly alien throughout. Standouts for me were: Superfast Jellyfish (perhaps biased because I love De La Soul), On Melancholy Hill, Pirate Jet, To Binge, Some Kind of Nature, and Empire Ants. I would also advise that all who listen to this album avoid track #8- Glitter Freeze- because it actually gave me a migraine listening to it. Seriously it sounds like a bird’s mating song that’s been autotuned. So there are a few bad apples here and there, but overall this album is a delightfully good listen.

-- Andrew Rennie

"Bangers and Mash," Sunday mornings at 8am on WGTB

Listen to an Interview with Big D - & Concert Review

DJ Andrew Rennie (Host, "Bangers and Mash," Sunday mornings 8-10 AM on WGTB) caught Big D's performance at the 9:30 Club on Feb. 26, and spoke to the band before they took the stage.

Catch the interview below.
Interview with Big D by wgtbmusic

Review: Wale, Attention Deficit

Wale

Attention Deficit

Grade: A

Put a smile on, DC, Wale’s Attention Deficit has landed and will not disappoint. Although Attention Deficit is Wale’s formal debut, he needs no introduction.

It was three years ago that I first saw Wale's name while on a transcontinental flight, skimming through a Rolling Stone hoping to find a distraction from my boredom. Soon after, on the magazine’s recommendation, I downloaded “W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E,” a mixtape masterpiece from his humble beginnings, and it was love at first listen.

With a number of hit singles (“Nike Boots,” “Family Affair”) already under his belt, Wale’s reputation proceeds his album. Nonetheless, Attention Deficit has finally satisfied a hunger only curbed by his mixtapes and singles for his many followers. All 14 tracks (16 with bonus tracks) showcase Wale’s raw talent as a lyricist over some top-notch producing. Always one for wordplay, Attention Deficit requires a trained ear, featuring puns and allusions that take several listens to fully recognize and appreciate. Like all his works, it is serious at times (“Contemplate”), just plain fun at others (“Chillin”), all killer, no filler, and peppered with collaborations. Though I was sad to see Gucci Mane rear his ugly flow, I was thrilled to see Wale paired with the likes of K’naan, Bun B, and fellow DMV rapper J. Cole.

Having caught him at Rock the Bells in Boston, I can tell you firsthand that he delivers on stage like few else are able, and I suggest that you see him in concert.

Otherwise, big ups to the hometown hero, and be sure to check out Attention Deficit.

-- Andrew Rennie

Host, "Bangers and Mash," Sundays 8-10 AM on WGTB

Review: Deadmau5, At Play Vol. 2

Deadmau5

At Play Vol. 2

A-

         Although I’m not normally one for techno or house music, when given the opportunity, I couldn’t help but take a peek at the newest work of Deadmau5, aka Joel Zimmerman, a critically acclaimed Canadian electro house producer who has taken the scene by storm in only a few short years. Entitled At Play Vol. 2: 10 full length DJ friendly tracks, this latest album is a full hour of rich, thumping bass and hypnotic synthesizer. Of the ten songs, two are done in collaboration with Billy Newton-Davis and not only feature well-chosen vocals but are some of the most captivating songs on the CD. Two others feature Melleefresh, and although they too stray pleasantly away the homogeneity in many of Deadmau5’s songs, the female vocals laid on top are both inharmonious and, in the case of “Sex Slave,” too vulgar to be taken seriously. Overall, I enjoyed At Play Vol. 2 very much, despite my untrained ears. Even if some of his songs to me seem too much alike, they still have the desired effect. The beats contained within this album are irresistibly catchy and entrancing. Whether raging beneath a strobe light or hanging out playing the latest Call of Duty, At Play Vol. 2 is just plain sexy music; a must-have for any diehard house fan’s repertoire. 

-- Andrew Rennie

Host, "Bangers and Mash," Sundays 8-10 AM on WGTB