Rated R and For Your Entertainment album reviews

hey everyone!! so I know I promised a review of the new Rihanna album a little while back, and I am sorry I am just now getting down to it! but I've found some good ass music latley! so I just thought I would make a bigger blog entry!! Today I wanna talk about the much anticipated 'Rated R' by Rihanna, and 'For Your Entertainment' By Adam Lambert.

lets get things started with Rihanna !!!



first of all can we please talk about that hot ass album cover? it clearly paints the picture of what this album is all about, its a dark, moody album, that has a message to tell people, Rihanna dont give a fuck what you think of her, her music, or what happened to her, shes here to tell her story, and say screw you to anyone who stands in her way.

the songs hit hard...her new single is even titled 'Hard' and I guarantee that didnt happen by just chance. Her album opens with a dark, haunted intro joint titled 'Mad House' ...essentially welcoming us to the mad house that now is Rihanna's mind.

She's a woman scorned and we all should realize this new Rihanna is most likely here to stay, and can I please just say , I hope she is? this new Rihanna is hot as hell, shes ghetto fabulous, shes got killer hooks, songs that you wanna give someone a lap dance to, songs you can belt out (which has never really been her style), hell even songs that make you wanna carry around a gold plated gun 'G4L' which stands for Gangsta For Lyfe, is a sexy, bumpin joint and is my new theme song.

Rihanna has always been knowing for her smooth island feel vocals...and on songs like 'Te Amo' , 'Stupid in Love' , 'Photographs' and 'Fire Bomb' all feature that same style of vocals.

songs like ' The Wait is Ova ' , 'Hard', and 'Rockstar' all feature sharp, punctuated vocals mixed in with smooth flowing hooks.

I could probably spend a whole entry focusing on just the lyrics of this album....which are some of the most chilling I have heard in a long time. Even though Rihanna doesn't typically write her own material, you just feel it. You feel her hurt, pain, anguish, longing to be understood, her desire to move on, and the difficulties that come with what happened to her.

Standout tracks to me are ' The Wait is Ova' 'Hard' 'Rockstar' 'Fire Bomb' and 'Cold Case Love' which is possibly my favorite track...tied with 'Fire Bomb'

Rihanna's album "Rated R" was released today and is now on sale for digital download at Amazon.com for 3.99$ ! ! I suggest purchasing it, its a complete step in the right direction for Rihanna in my eyes.


By now i am sure you've all seen the outrageous cover for Adam Lambert's debut. . if not well feast your eyes.




talk about campy! according to Adam the cover is intentionally campy, outrageous and flamboyant.

his album is pretty much the same ! haha.

It took me a while to really get into his CD, the main reason being it wasn't quite the sound I wanted from him....his best performances in my eyes on Idol were his hard rock inspirations 'Whole Lotta Love' , 'Cryin' , 'I Cant Get No Satisfaction' and 'Born To Be Wild' .. though that one featured a little bit more of a techno spin, which is what I should have expected from his debut.

'For Your Entertainment' is what the album is titled, as well as being the title for the lead single. the album opens with a killer song 'Music Again' written by the former front-man for The Darkness, yes it sounds like 'I Believe in a Thing Called Love' but that's what I love!! that song is killer, and so is 'Music Again'.

moving onto the single 'for your entertainment' a song that has for sure grown on me over the past couple of months. . . initially I was really disappointed by it. But now I can appreciate it for what it is, pure pop.

The album then gives us a song written by Pink titled 'Whatya want from me' which is slated to be his second single. Its a good song, but sounds more appropriate as a Pink song in my opinion.

'Strut' co-written by Kara DioGuardi and Adam Lambert...is not too great, and is not very memorable. 'Soaked' however, a song penned by MUSE, is a standout. Opening with a massive chorus of instrumentation, and a lush production, you know this song will be a winner and will be a great addition to any concert tour Adam Lambert goes on!.

There are however, some needless songs, written by Linda Perry 'A Loaded Smile' drags ... and takes forever to get to the best part of the song, the vocal synthesizer that was made famous in the 70s and 80s is back ladies and gentlemen !

'Fever' a track that sounds like a lady gaga reject...is just that! a tune written by GaGa herself, adds a little bit of the camp we come to expect from the album cover, its a fun song, that starts off rather well, but doesn't really go anywhere for me.

'Aftermath' co-written by Ferras, another one of my favorite male artists , adds that 'inspirational' ballad to the CD. with a soaring hook, and some nice lyrics, the song is a highlight on the album.

closing with the incredibly boring 'Broken Open' was a mistake, and the song should have been left on the cutting room floor. 'Master Plan' an i Tunes bonus is actually much better, and delivers a powerful message to listeners, and should have been included on the hard copy of the album in my opinion.

over all its a pretty solid effort from the Idol Runner Up.

Adam Lambert's "For Your Entertainment" was also released today! go get your copy, if for no other reason than to have that outrageous album cover in your collection.

PS. check out Adam Lambert's ridiculous performance of 'For Your Entertainment' the lead single, at last nights American Music Awards below:




hope y'all enjoyed the blog !! i enjoyed writing it!!

have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!! and remember, eat till you explode, that's what the Holiday is for! haha jk jk

<3MisterTom

Rated R

A review of the new album by Rihanna titled 'Rated R' will be coming shortly.

I need some time to fully understand how terrific this album is

It's a Sad Day

Voters in Maine last night voted to reject Same Sex Marriage. This entry alone is hard for me to write.

Im struggling to find the words to describe how i am feeling right now at this moment.... sort of rejected , I feel unwanted , I feel like I don't even exist. At least not to my fellow citizens of this great Country, yes i still feel like this Country is great for many reasons and I will ALWAYS love America, today however i am ashamed to admit i am American.

Do the people who vote down a bill like this ever take for just one second a step back and think about what if they were voting against themselves ? no they dont, what they do however do is vote FOR themselves, and AGAINST a fellow American... and for what reason?

THE REASON IS HATE.

they will try and justify it in more ways than I care to count, religion, being the main focus. Religion last night drove people to vote against their sons and daughters, nephews, nieces, sisters , brothers , mom's and dad's even grand parents.

every single person who voted on that bill last night has come across a homosexual in their life, and a majority of them clearly couldn't care less to even realize it. because they have no heart. they have no compassion. they have no courage.

im sitting here wanting to continue, but honestly I feel like i've given too much of my energy already today to being upset and heartbroken over this.

THIS IS MY LIFE PEOPLE. is my LOVE any different than yours? no it IS NOT. if anything, we have more in common than they will ever know, we all get hurt, we all feel joy, we cheat, we remain faithful, we have children and raise them to be loving individuals, we PAY our taxes, dammit we should have EQUAL RIGHTS.

and dont give me this civil union bull shit, people who believe that is equal are BRAIN DEAD it is not equal it is FAR from it. so do not come to me with that argument because you will lose.

as a matter of fact, if you read this and you disagree with me, peace out, I have NO interest in knowing you. I am not kidding, I am willing to lose a close friend or 2 over this, I sure hope I don't have to , and i don't think i will need to..but the fact that I am willing to proves that this is far too important of an issue to just ignore.

Tom

Album Review : "Play On"

I was fortunate enough to find an advance copy of the new Carrie Underwood album titled "Play On". This disc marks the American Idol winner's 3rd studio album, and possibly her most versatile.

The album starts with the launch single 'Cowboy Casanova' , a song that grew on me, and one that I definitely enjoy more while she sings it live, did anyone see her on David Letterman last night? OK I'm gay but DAMN I LOVE her legs ! ! , I wish mine looked that good! anywhoodles I'm off track now, after the opening track, one we're all familiar with by now I'm sure, she moves onto a fun mixed-tempo track titled 'Quitter', the song is about her always quitting on her men, which she admits have pretty much always been losers, up until this man shes fallen in love with now. 'when I believe, that nothing lasts forever, you stay with me keeping us together, and make me feel like I never ever wanna give you up, till now I've always been a quitter' she sings on the sudden slow tempo change portion of the song, which happens to be my favorite part.

she then moves onto the beautiful 'Mamas Song' , a track I have discussed at length on here in the past. so moving onto track 4, we have 'Change' a song while very good, sounds a little too poppy for me, it almost seems like a song that could have come from her American Idol days...maybe as the victory single at the end of the season or something, anyways the song features Underwood's often featured strong vocals, with some soaring notes, its definitely not a song to skip, at first....in a month or so however, I will probably be over it.

track 5 is a fun number titled 'Undo It' that is way catchy, and in the vein of some of her more up-tempo hits, but isn't quite as good. track 6 is probably my favorite track on the album and its titled 'Someday When I Stop Loving You' its a very classic sounding country slow ballad, but its the vocals that really bring this song to a totally different level.

first of all , the production is brilliant, its a perfect mix of voice and instrumentation, and the instruments only add to the emotion and sound of the song in such a beautiful way, that the song becomes instantly lovable on a personal level.

everyone of us has gone through a tough relationship or 4 in our lives, its part of the growing process and its really what makes our future relationships healthier, and more beneficial to both partner, and this song really paints the emotions for us. featuring some truly special harmonies from Carrie and her back-up singers, 'When I Stop Loving You' should be and probably will be a single for Underwood.

track 7 brings back the up-tempo selections , with a track called 'Songs Like This' and I LOVE this song!! its way catchy, and I LOVE to sing along to this one!! I think this will be a single, and should be. its irresistible !! the from the opening Banjo to the killer chorus, this is not a song to be missed.

track 8 is 'Temporary Home' and I have also spoken on this song before in the past, so moving onto tracks 9-13.

Nine is titled 'This Time' and though it probably wont make it as a single, its not a bad filler song , and its one I quite enjoy. it features a fun rhythm , with some pretty nice vocals yet again from Carrie Underwood. 'life is short , love is sweet, ain't no time like this time baby' she sings at the end of the chorus, and the lyrics really speak to the feel of the song. its fun, bright and up-tempo , and its one I'm going to be coming back to time and time again !

track 10 is SO close in terms of quality as number 6 that its almost a disappointment, but when you listen through the song as a whole, you really cant help but love it! its titled 'Look at Me' , and its a beautiful love ballad, its almost the answer to track number 6 'Someday When I Stop Loving You', where that song was about losing a lover and finding it difficult to be over the relationship, 'Look at Me' is lighter in subject matter, portraying a relationship full of love and affection.

track 11, 'Unapologize' starts off promising , then when it hits the chorus sort of takes a nose dive for me. come to think of it , the versus are not very appealing either, the song features TOO much of Carrie's big voice, it feels like it reaches the climax at the first chorus!, to those who love big long loud belting songs, this one is probably for you. for the rest of us who don't wish to get a headache while listening to head phones, i suggest you skip this one. I know I do.

12 is a beautiful touching duet ballad that Carrie Underwood sings with the singer from the group 'Sons of Sylvia' and I actually like it a lot. I'm not too surprised to find her adding a duet to this album, it is her first duet to be featured on a Studio Album from Carrie and its a refreshing addition to her repertoire, and it has some killer vocals at the end that any one would love to sing along to !

the closing track , number 13, titled 'Play On' is obviously the title track for the album. It's an interesting choice to title the album after, the message to the song is up-beat and a happy one, but the song just isn't too strong in my opinion. the song is about persevering through tough times, and it really is an appropriate message for today's tough times, that's my guess as to why they titled this album after this song. its catchy, and has a fun to sing a long with chorus, but it doesn't stick with me the way some of the other tracks do.

well that's my album review for the new Carrie Underwood album 'Play On' , if you made it this far and actually read the whole post, then you'll be happy to know the record hit store shelves today ! so run out and grab a copy! I don't think you'll be disappointed !! I sure wasn't !!

MisterTom

Halloween is SO close!!

i CANNOT believe this month is almost over, which brings us to the best holiday (in my opinion at least), the magical night of HALLOWEEN.


how amazing is this holiday i mean for real, one night a year most of us get to be something we'd never dream of being, and its OK !!. i love love love this holiday, and this time of the year just in general! its beautiful, well not lately, but usually, the air is crisp, the wind is chilly , and there's candy candy candy!

whats everyone going to be for Halloween this year?! my outfit is top secret... like most years, i mean i take this shit very seriously, last year i was Hillary Clinton and it was a HUGE hit, so i naturally had to come up with something this year to out do myself from last year... and i think i may have found just the right outfit, now i just need to start planning how I'm going to out do myself for next year! yeah that's right.. i start costume planning on November 1st. hahaha.

another reason i love this time of year? NON-STOP scary movies!! my DVR is full right now of movies I've been taping off of AMC and other misc. movie channels! i watched an awesome old school Dracula the other night starring Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon) and Donald Pleasence (the Halloween movie franchise). it was so old school and just amazing i loved it. Dracula is one of my favorite fables, he never disappoints no matter what the incarnation. did i mention my obsession with vampires before this whole twilight craze? yeah i was ahead of the times with that one. go figure.

at any rate i still have a few pieces left to purchase to really send my outfit over the edge. i cant give anything away... all i will say is like last year, i will be another famous female, could be older, could be younger...she could even be dead! you'll have to wait and see on Saturday, there is a very small hand full of people who know, and i have trusted them with my secret. its going to be pretty funny, i hope.

well I'm off for now, this was just a little rant about my fav. holiday, my next blog will be about the new MUSE CD 'the resistance' which is brilliant.


MisterTom

its a good time to love music

i mean am i right?! the music coming out this year has been pretty great. so many fun new artists that are for the most part original and true to themselves. i love it, and this past month has been a prime example of why i love this year for music!.

at any rate I'm going to talk again about two artists i brought up in the last post I'm sorry, but I've come across the next new song from Carrie Underwood's new album 'play on' due out November 3rd. and i also found two new songs from lady gaga's up coming re-release of her debut 'the fame' , titled 'the fame monster' haha.. i don't know whats up with the monster added to the title, but whatever it for some reason fits Gaga.

then I'm going to talk about some music from Glee , and the new Cartel album 'Cycles' which came out yesterday ! so everyone should hop over to target, or best buy, or wherever you buy your music from !<3 class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">idk anyways, the song took a while to get into, but now I'm singing it even when I'm laying in bed haha its that good!. well i don't know how many people will really enjoy it as much as that, but I'm willing to bet money there is quite a few of us out there!

musically the song is pretty awesome, with some nice layering , to give the techno beats an extra special somethin. the song sounds well produced and it is well sung, with a great hook , what can i say lady gaga knows how to write a good song, she sings them pretty good, and really seems to enjoy what she does.

the next song i found from her is called 'Alejandro' , and if it seemed like i liked 'bad romance' a lot, then you haven't heard nothing.

i loveeeeeeee this song. i don't know what it is about it! , the over all feel of the song is pretty sexy, she sings about her love being as hot as Mexico (REJOICE!) haha. and this song is hot. its also got a sick hook that is so catchy.

i wouldn't be surprised if its released to, I'm willing to bet I'm in the minority of people who like this song more than 'bad romance' but i do, the music is awesome and uses layering the its best potential. the production is crazy good. love it

next up i wanna talk about a few of the songs from glee , if for no other reason than to talk about how much i miss being in show choir!!

I'll admit show choir has sort of slipped my mind the past year, and hadn't been coming to mind at all really. anyways glee came along and BAM I'm right back into it!, to be fair, the show for me is just OK. i best parts to me aren't even the musical parts, i feel they stand on their own better alone with out the over the top productions of musical performances for the show.

the best parts to me are easily sue ( the incredible Jane lynch ) i know i wouldn't watch the show if she wasn't on it, i just find the rest of the plot lines to be sort of cheesy, and not very believable. its almost like they want them to play second fiddle to the musical portions, and i think that's a mistake.

anywhoodles the songs really make me miss show choir, because i can see so many different choirs doing them. 'don't stop believing' and 'somebody to love' are already massive show choir songs, so I'm guessing the producers did a lot of research in choosing those songs, where as 'mercy' and 'rehab' both sound fresh and potential show choir hits, I'm sure plenty have done them already.

my main issue with the show choir portion of the show is its pretty unrealistic to how it really is. but to the average viewer who hasn't experienced show choir before, I'm sure its just fine, which is the majority of America, the flip side of that point is a positive of course, its opening show choir up to many different people who have never seen something like that before which i think is awesome. i hope there are new show choirs being added to schools across the country, i can honestly say show choir was one of the best parts of my high school life and i miss it like crazy !

next up i wanna chat about the new album from Cartel titled 'Cycles'

the set opens with a killer track titled 'let go' its pretty great!. it sounds like the cartel we are used to, where as the rest of the CD takes a slightly different approach to their typical catchy pop punk sound.

one of my favorite tracks is 'faster ride' , its got a fun beat, with a deeper message than the beat and sound of the song would imply. 'you just wanna take a faster ride, lower lows higher highs..' the hook starts off. but that's something we're used to hearing from cartel, darker themes, told through catchy music, its like emo music that's not emo?

they have of course the traditional ballads , and even a shout out song to their home roots titled ' deep south '. all of which are pretty good on their own, but my problem with this album is that it doesn't seem as cohesive as some of their other sets, namely their debut album 'chroma' which is still one of my favorite Cd's. i felt their self titled sophomore album didn't meet that high standard, but this set here their 3rd major label release is pretty solid , and a better entry to their discography than their second album.


finally i wanna rant about another new song from Carrie Underwood's new album , the song is called 'temporary home' and its pretty incredible!

the song tells a story through the beautiful lyrics and vocals of Carrie Underwood, this woman is pretty special!

the story begins telling the story of a 6 year old foster child, she sings about being used to being alone, another new mom and dad , etc. this subject matter alone would be fitting enough for an entire song, but she continues on in the next verse singing about a middle aged woman going through a half way home, shes looking for a job , a way for an out because a half way house will never be a home. pretty real subject matter. shes sings to her baby someday we'll find our place here in this world, because this is our temporary home, a stop on where we're going, I'm not afraid because i know this is our temporary home.

the song ends with a dying old man in a hospital bed, room filled with people who love him. ending with some pretty touching lines , sung beautifully by Carrie Underwood.

the song brought tears to my moms eyes earlier, its pretty powerful, all thanks to the vocal delivery of Carrie Underwood... what a talent

well that's all for now! i hope you enjoyed my rants

<3MisterTom

i guess its been a while

wow its been a while since i wrote a substantial blog entry!! i apologize !

its been a good couple of months for me when it comes to music, I'm constantly coming into contact with new and amazing music and i am just LOVING it!! i cannot ever express fully how i feel about music and how much it means to me

the last time i really talked about music was when i talked about the new paramore and mariah carey albums!!. well i have gotten a lot of music since i wanna rant about some of it !!

first off the song I'm listening to right now! its another new track from Carrie Underwood's upcoming album titled 'Play On' and the song is titled "Mama's Song" and it is just beautiful! her voice is soft and delicate in all of the right places, really adding another level of emotion to the song, making it fully believable and completely authentic.

the song is of course about the unconditional love a mother has for her child, told through a love story between her daughter and her new man. its also about life lessons passed on, and its just a gorgeous song! i cant recommend it enough.

the next artist i wanna talk about is Shakira, and her new English album ' She Wolf '

I'm not sure if the album has a set in stone release date here yet in America, but its already been released in parts of Latin America and Europe. this album is just awesome! its so fun, and you certainly can shake your ass to EVERY song in some way or another!

shakira is kinda pulling a beyonce-Britney move here, but what sets shakira apart is her use of other cultures instruments and beats! its so much fun, its like going on a trip around the world theres so much to choose from.

of course the lead single 'she wolf' is insane and i just love it! , what a fun song i wish i would have thought of it! the next single is set to be 'did it again' which she just performed on the results night for DWTS.

love this album. check it out

next up i wanna rant about this collection of lady gaga songs i found called 'disco heaven' and it is just that, a slice of pure pop heaven. from some extensive investigating via google (how else would you do it ?) i have come to find no info on this album other than the songs seem to be a collection of recording songs for 'the fame' that were left on the cutting room floor.

OK can i please just say these songs (theres 16 of them plus 3 bonus tracks of remixes for a total of 19 songs!!) could easily be a second album for the lady.

its crazy to think these insanely catchy tracks where left to be mashed together by some blogger online into a extra-cuts type of album to only be found online. there really is some true gems in h ere, and it really gets me excited for another gaga album to be officially released as her sophomore effort, because she really seems to have no shortage of fresh fun ideas for pop music.

just a quick side comment on a new song by leighton meester, does anyone else think she sounds like shes having sex on the joint? the track is called 'somebody to love' and its a duet with robin thicke. i think that's his name its a pretty good song

next up i wanna talk about the new Dead by Sunrise album titled "Out of Ashes" and it is a good solid rock album from linkin park front-man chester bennington.

it has some really interesting samples mixed into the music and its pretty rockin, it made me miss going to rock concerts back in the day, and it really made me miss linkin park.. i want them to make a new album ASAP

chester has one of those voices that's great for recording , plain and simple. and he doesn't disappoint on this album as the front man for this new band.


on my next blog I'm going to chat about some of the music from Glee and how it makes me miss my old show choir days from North. and i will be talking about the new Cartel Album 'Cycles'


till we meet again bloggers

<3MisterTom