Ellie Goulding – Halcyon (2012) – Review

Review: Ellie Goulding’s first album Lights took a while to catch on in the States (as she found success much quicker in her native United Kingdom), with her biggest hit (also titled) Lights climbing the billboard Hot 100 for forty-two weeks, reaching number two. Her sophomore album Halcyon again shows off Goulding’s wonderfully unique voice and electronic pop sensibilities. Goulding started 2012 off releasing her cover of The Weeknd’s High for This (which is fantastic) and followed it up with her cover of Active Child’s Hanging On (which is on the album), setting the stage for Halcyon’s atmospheric dream pop sound and lyrics dealing with love and loss – escaping the dark into the light.

The album is littered with great tracks (which made it difficult for me to pick three for my ‘essential tracks’), showcasing Goulding’s voice – both her singing ability and the use of her voice as an instrument contributing to the music or beat of a song (for example: Explosions and I Know You Care). She has one of the most interesting and different voices in pop music. It has a raw quality to it that seems to add emotion and power to her songs, making them all the more compelling.

Her single Lights and its subsequent remixes have placed her among the most popular dance pop artists right now, but instead of trying to capitalize on that market she has gone another way with her sound. The album is still very much electronically influenced and infused. But it is not a dance album, though there are a few songs that are club ready (and certainly remix ready). It is much more atmospheric, with almost an ethereal feel to many of the tracks. Goulding has great producing chemistry with Jim Elliot who co-produced most of the songs with her. Billboard, Starsmith, Calvin Harris, John Fortis, Justin Parker, and MONSTA also worked on the album.

Unlike many pop artists (especially younger popular singers), Goulding writes her songs. Halcyon is a very personal album. It is not really a commercial pop album in as much as the songs are not particularly catchy in terms of having killer hooks (that fans can sing along with and get stuck in the heads of casual listeners). Again, the album is more a complete work creating a feeling for the listener, and not a collection of singles.

Halcyon is a better album than Lights (I think), with Goulding growing and blossoming as an artist. It is well worth checking out for fans of dream pop/synthpop. 4/5

Essential Tracks:

1)      Anything Could Happen – Produced by Ellie Goulding and Jim Elliot

2)      Only You – Produced by Ellie Goulding and Jim Elliot

3)      Hanging On – Produced by Billboard, featuring Tinie Tempah

Available on CD and Digital Download

B.o.B – Strange Clouds (2012) – Review

Review: Atlanta MC B.o.B is one of the most unique artists in hip hop, and one of the most talented. He can rap with the best, sings very well, produces many of his records, and plays many of the instruments on the record too. B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray was a great debut album, showcasing his talent and new sound (merging hip hop with pop and pop rock). His sophomore effort, Strange Clouds is seemingly a triumph and disappointment at the same time. On one hand, it features B.o.B on the top of his game musically, as this album does not sound like anything else right now, but on the other hand it is plagued with a number of very weak throwaway tracks (easily could have dropped five songs) and a slew of features (Taylor Swift, Lil Wayne, Chris Brown – it is too bad people continue to work with this guy – T.I., Nicki Minaj, and Trey Songz) that in some cases overshadow B.o.B. The album is also very poppy, and it could be said that this album is placating to the masses of generic pop fans over being a hip hop record. While it is a good track, his collaboration with Taylor Swift, produced by pop super producer Dr. Luke, is practically a paint-by-numbers attempt at a platinum song. Swift’s hook is right in the wheelhouse of popular music, so much so that essentially the rest of the track in meaningless (economically, and musically for many as well). Dr. Luke provides the most interesting and infectious beats on the album (and many of the best tracks). He infuses a dub-step sound into B.o.B’s collaboration with Lil Wayne Strange Clouds to great effect. B.o.B’s flow on his first album sometimes sounded akin to Andre 3000’s delivery; that is not the case on this album, rather he sounds a bit like Tech N9ne on a few tracks (which is not a bad thing, it just stood out as I listened to the album). Overall, Strange Clouds is a good album, and will please B.o.B fans (in most cases, though it is his most poppy album to date by far). 2/5

Editor’s Essential Tracks:

1)      Bombs Away – Featuring Morgan Freeman, produced by B.o.B

2)      Out of My Mind – Featuring Nicki Minaj, produced by Dr. Luke and Billboard

3)      Both of Us – Featuring Taylor Swift, produced by Dr. Luke and Cirkut

Available on CD and Digital Download