(The Late) THIS... IS... RAP, HIP HOP AND R&B

I miss liking the radio. In my childhood and teen years I was probably the most rabid
consumer of the airwaves. Top 30 charts, request hours, I'd listen to all that make shitty
mix tapes from the radio where the DJ's would talk during the ends and beginning to "curb
piracy" and just enjoy music. I don't know what's changed, maybe it's the increased ad time,
my taste in music, or the annoying DJs they have now but I fucking hate the radio.

In an attept to try and rectify this I'll attempt a semi regular Blog feature where I'll
take a look at the top 20 lists of local radio stations in the Toronto area and rate them
(yes kind of like the AV CLUB.) This week we go ALL URBAN YO (with horrible stereotypes) as
we take Flow 93.5's top 20 most requested list for a spin. Flow was originally Toronto's
"only urban radio station" but in recent years has buckled to allow stuff like Justin
Timberlake and Gwen Stefani on it. To be fair I've always felt it had a good rotation and is
probably my second most listen to station.

(Note, some songs will be double reviewed because they appeared on last week's MuchMusic
list.)

20. Trey Songz - Can't Help But Wait

R. Kelly lite, rigt down to the corn rows. Cosidering the master of the dirty R&B song is
busy with his Hip Hopera I guess people have been clamoring for this from SOMEBODY but I
always say why have the Big Mac when you can have the filet mignon?

Rating (out of 10): 4

19. J. Holiday - Suffocate

Highlight entry 20. Copy. Paste.

Rating: 4

18. Kreesha Turner - Bounce With Me

Every once in a while Canada tries very hard to push along the next big R&B diva that will
conqueor the fucking world. Jully Black and Keisha Chante quickly come to mind and Kreesha
Turner seems to be the lastest. What Kreesha seems to have is at least aspirations to not
but a diet version of American counterparts. "Bounce with Me" is a fine song, with a beat
that seems liften by fellow "Canook" K-os' "Crabbukkit" but injected with some truly unique
jazzy vocals that know not to go Winehouse levels of overboard. Very good.

Rating: 8

17. Jully Black - Until I Stay

HEY SPEAKING OF JULLY BLACK! Yeah I've known about her recent attempts at trying to come
back and I gotta say if dragging Chris Shepperd from his basement to help you out on your
song with some truly atrocious euro 40 beats is your idea of bringing it back then you need
just end it now. Also only Canadians would get the Chris Sheperd reference...

Rating: 2

16. Enur ft. Natasha - Calabria

The true test of the infectious club song is, after some hefty exposure to it, do you still
like it after a week?

Yes I still like it.

Rating: 8 (Last week 7)

15. Danny Fernandes ft. Jeulz Santana - Curious (Remix)

Apparently this is the remix which if we've learned anything is usually WAY better then the
original if they released it as a single. Is it a little forumlaic? Yes, with the rap
bridge, the spacey beats and a "fish out of water" R&B singer with it all but it kind of
works. I mean, there's definitely worse out there, I like the "wah wah" X-files like effects
and everyone's work on here is competent at worst. Not horrible.

Rating: 6

14.) Snoop Dogg - Sensual Seduction

At this point in time Snoop is more well known for dressing like a pimp, consuming weed and
saying "shizzle" then rapping so hey why not jettison rapping altogether! I know others have
complained but I actually don't MIND Snoop singing. It's a fine turn (albeit with a voice I
would never IMAGINE coming out of his mouth) with a nice mellow beat that just seems to work in that cheesy porn scene way. Awesome.

Rating: 7.5

13.) Jordin Sparks ft. Chris Brown - No Air

Despite relative star power this seems like a very odd pairing. The subtle and gentle Chris
Brown just seems to get drowned out by the (overly) powerful Jordin Sparks which just gets
super muddle by the time the song reaches the climax. Otherwise this is almost early 90's
"All For One" level of cheese production to go along with what is probably a record execs
wet dream as the single makes the only soung they could care about: CHA-CHING!

Rating: 3

12.) Tina Brown feat. Kid Capri - Switch

I listened to this like maybe five times and I really don't have much to say other then it
sounds like everything else I've heard for the last couple of years. I'm not offended by it
nor do I really LIKE it either. Gneric, bland but whatever.

Rating: 4

11.) Ray J feat. Yung Berg - Sexi Can I

Prior to finding our Ray J even had a single I knew Ray J for 1.) Being Brandy's little
brother 2.) Fucking Kim Kardashian (and I didn't even know her until I found out she got
fucked.) That aside this is a nice little R&B song. It's got strong pop playful element to
it which is a pretty nice change of pace from all the R. Kelly wannabe tracks out there that
not even R. Kelly does anymore.

Rating: 6

10.) Webbie feat. Lil Boosie and Lil Phat - Independent

Requisite crunky "one hit wonder" that needs to appear somehwere on these charts. I'm half
expecting hearing a Lil Jon "YEAH!" in there.

I guess it does have a good message though!

Rating: 2

9.) Choclair - Chox Y'all

A joke my friend has always made about Canadian rap stars is the fact that they lack
material to talk about due to our EXCELLENT welfare system. However Canada has always had a great rap community with an absolute inability to break out outside of Canada (or even, to
be honest, even within this country) such as the Rascalz, Thrust and Kardinal Offishal. Out
of all them though Choclair probably has stood the best chance and even came close when
"Let's Ride" was a minor hit a few years ago. Now after a long hiatus "Chox Y'all" drops and
it's like he hasn't missed a beat, with Neptunes-esque production Choclair sounds like he's
trying to be the Canadian lower grade Jay-Z and you know what? I think he comes a little
close.

Rating: 7

8.) Alicia Keys - Like You'll Never See Me Again

Still feel the same about it as I did last week...

Rating: 4 (Last week 4)

7.) Flo Rida feat. T-pain - Low

Seems a little odd that the amazing "Elevator" has been released yet the station listeners
still request for "Low" though to be fair "Low" is a wondefully infectious rap song. From
the sci fi X-files beats to the screamable chorus and the sped up flow it had hit written
all over it when it first hit the airwaves.

Rating: 8.5

6.) Keyshia Cole - I Remember

Sometimes a cheesy R&B song is given such a strong vocal performance that is so full of
conviction that you can't hate it for any reason. "I Rememebr" definitely falls into this
category, taking it's otherwise bland genericness to a higher level of enjoyabuility.

Rating: 7

5.) Lupe Fiasco feat. Matthew Santos - Superstar

It seemed very odd that "The Cool" was dropped in the doldrums of December. A time usually reserved for greatest hits efforts probably one of the best Rap albums of last year was  buried under the weight of the Christmas shuffle and missed its chance to appear on dozens of best of lists. However the odd timing might have been perfect in the end, as 'Superstar'  has given Lupe the mainstream success he should've achieved after his amazing guest  appereance on "Touch the Sky" and the heavily underrated first single "Kick Push." While I'll argue Lupe has better songs, both on "The Cool" and "Food and Liquor" it's mostly
because his delivery seems stilted on this track. Matthew Santos does a great job of
bridging the song with the chrous and the beat is absolutely beautiful. Simply put an
amazing song.

Rating: 9

4.) Chris Brown - With You

Ok, maybe I'm waring up to this song a little more. It's a got a sweetness and earnestness
that's hard to to fight against. That said, I still think acoustic guitar in R&B songs are
played out.

Rating: 6 (Last week: 4)

3.) Kanye West feat. Dwele - Flashing Lights

Much like "Lovestoned" on "Futuresex/Lovesound" it was never a question on if but WHEN this song was going to be a single. Simply put "Flashing Lights" is Kanye West at his best and in
my opinion the best song off of "Graduation." Lyrically Kanye is at his wittiest, the
strings are epic without being cheesy and unlike most Kanye guest spots Dwele adds to, and
not tries to overbear, the track. Kanye simply dropping another amazing track.

Rating: 9.5

2.) Mariah Carey - Touch My Body

For me it's all about Mariah Carey's hoochiefied first singles. When she gets all 'serious'
and ballady it usually ends up in a sappy pile of musical drivel. But when she's fun with
like a million rappers guest spotting then we're cooking with gas. "Touch My Body" however
sort of exists in between the two, so it's ends up being a very "ho hum" effort.

Rating: 4.5

1.) Usher feat. Young Jeezy - Love In The Club

Usher to me is probably one of the smartest people in the business today. He doesn't saturate the radio with his content, opting to release albums with long breaks. He truly has a unique voice and he cotinuanlly tries to change his sound and vary things for his latest effors. "Love In The Club" picks up on this, with a very slow but powerful beat sounding nothing like past Usher songs but complimenting his vocal abilities well. The fact that Young Jeezy shows up to rip the track a new one is just an extra bonus.

Rating: 8.5

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THIS... IS.... ROCK (the hopefully regular singles review article)

I miss liking the radio. In my childhood and teen years I was probably the most rabid
consumer of the airwaves. Top 30 charts, request hours, I'd listen to all that make shitty
mix tapes from the radio where the DJ's would talk during the ends and beginning to "curb
piracy" and just enjoy music. I don't know what's changed, maybe it's the increased ad time,
my taste in music, or the annoying DJs they have now but I fucking hate the radio.

In an attept to try and rectify this I'll attempt a semi regular Blog feature where I'll
take a look at the top 20 lists of local radio stations in the Toronto area and rate them
(yes kind of like the AV CLUB.) This week we'll take a look at Edge 102, toronto's New
Rock/Alternative station (http://www.edge.ca) and their "Thursday 30" which at one point I
would never miss.

A little background on the edge: Formerly CFNY it's been seen as a "cutting edge" rock
station, jumping on many recent trends and as much as advocate of independent and candian acts as much as mainstream rock hits.


20.) Neverending White Lights - Always (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=obIBXJ0_UkY)

Neverending White Lights is a collaborative project from Canadian song writer Daniel Victor
with the emphasis on using mainly different vocalists (notably Raine Maida of Our Lady
Peace, Melissa Auf Du Mar formerly of Hole and Sune Rose Wagner of The Ravonettes) over his different melodies. On "Always" however he sings himself, a slightly punchier version of his massive (Canadian) hit The Grace (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=My0FyN72Phc) which sort of  reminds me of LCD Soundsystem's "All My Friends" toned down 20 notches. Ultimately a passable pop rock song.

Rating (out of 10): 7

19.) Yoav - Club Thing (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=v_GbUWnx7Lk)

It seems my years away from rock radio things still remain the same; namely some weird
shitty "electronic" track somehow creeps its way onto heavy rotation. Yoav looks to be
channeling the combined forces of White Town and Primitive Radio God here, with its night
rider-esque beats and falsetto chorus. I like it when people realize the joke of these songs
is Passe so they fall off the face of the earth faster then Jimmy Hoffa.

Rating: 1

18.) Chevelle - I Get It (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=MsyNNKb4wLg)

So uh, Chevelle are a big fucking deal now? I never knew that there was a big demand for a
band that sounds like Tool but with the image that would appeal to frat boys. It seems now
though they've decided to co opt the worst elements of the last two Nine Inch Nails albums
and Muse. Fucking horrible.

Rating: 1

17.) Foxboro Hot Tubs - Mother Mary (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=mvdRGHREoNQ)

At first I thought this was a band I NEVER HEARD of but a little bit of research on teh
intarwebs reveals that this is a secret side project of those Green Day guys setting
themselves up as a faux "Garage rock" band. And as begrudgingly I admitted I liked American  Idiot (fuck I was listening to it on the way home last Firday) I have to say, this is ONE FUCKING CATCHY song that seems to have been lifted from some "Is This It?" b-sides. Also probably the best band name on this list.

Raing: 9


16.) Stars - Take me to the Riot (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=sxeIivNDtFU)

About as challenging as a Stars song will ever get. Ultimately (thanks to the chorus) it's
an uplifiting indie pop song but during the verses the bassline and Amy Milan's whispering
vocals just build a little sinisterness to it. Definitely not their best song but a solid single.

Rating: 8

15.) Serj Tankian - Sky Is Over (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=GY9kQcWLvEM)

Guilty pleasure admittance here: I actually like System of a Down. Out of all the "nu metal"
bands they do two things right: one they steep and soak in their ludicrousness and two they
seem to have a blast doing it. Admittedly I haven't heard much of Serj's solo suff till now
(he showed up earlier this evening at #21) but I gotta say this attempt at trying to make
a SOAD ballad shows that maybe Serj does need others to reign his ideas. The song sort of
tries to work on a few different tangents, the piano intro, the orcehstral chorus overture
and the eventual breakdown into baltic gruntal "la la la las" it seems the song is ready to
leap and then decides to never take off.

Rating: 4

14.) The Bravery - Believe (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=6G7ZLaiPxu0)

These guys aren't even trying anymore...

Rating: 0

13.) Attack in Black - Hunger of Young (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=3xQB5x5G-bw)

Part of major (Canadian) upcoming label Dinealonerecords (who also have City and Colour,
Alexisonfire and Bedouin Soundclash signed with them) Attack in Black seem to be following
the footsteps of the aformentioned Alexionfire and Billy Talent in trying to turn Canada
into the ultimate post hardcore factory on the planet. It's not terrible but like a bad
xerox it they seem to be a pale imatation of thos earlier mentioned bands.

Rating: 5

12.) Billy Talent - This Suffering (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=FoSYdreac64)

Billy Talent are part of a long line of Canadian bands who are the fucking shit in the great
white north and get a "huh who?" in the States. If these guys were born in New York instead
of Toronto I'd imagine they'd be huge. As for "The Suffering" it follows the Billy Talent
mould, alternate vocals, hyper fast guitars and the whole "slow fast" tempo deal however it
doesn't offer anything exciting that their countless other singles usually do.

Rating: 5

11.) The Flatliners - Eulogy (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=d0swGZXbW7I)

WOW A BAND I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF. I guess this is what happens when you get old, you hear things and say "geez I guess this what the kids all love today." I'd imagine 14 year old
TWIGby would love this song. 26 year old TWIGby, eh, not so much. I mean now that mall punk has jumped to all sort of weird directions playing it safe is just fucking boring. I'd take
*gasp* Fall Out Boy over these guys any day of the week.

Rating: 3

10.) Jack Johnson - If I Had Eyes (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=mVmbGsEtmFI)

So I heard that Jack Johnson was attempting to unlock his inner Brian Wilson on his latest
album. However this sounds less like Beach Boys and more like Jimmy Buffet. About as lazily
executed as anything from the Man "If I Had Eyes" should come with a warning: don't listen
to this song while operating heavy machinery.

Rating: 2

09.) Againt Me! - Stop (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=8FX2fc2Mzxw)

Can I admit to eating some crow? I read in "Rolling Stone" or "Spin" or somethingthat they named this song as one of the top songs of 2007. Like not just on the list but somewhere in the top 10. I mean I was thinking "fuck, Against Me? What the fuck?" SOmeone didn't tell me they dragged these guys to a European disco and forced them to listen to "Echoes." It still retains the "punk" edge that "dance punk" never really did with the Harsh vocals but the song has an awesome beat and a catchy chorus. Definitely awesome, as hard as it is to admit.

Rating: 8.5

08.) Linkin Park - Shadow of the Day (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=P_eEE12R8Gw)

It's the BALLAD! With the utter ball-lessness Linkin Park took with "Minutes to Midnight" it
shouldn't be a shock that this song exist let alone become a single. Now nothing wrong with
going with a softer song but I'd rather it'd take the route of "In The End" or "My
December." There's nothing that really differentiate "Shadow of the Day" from a Goo Goo
Dolls track.

Rating: 3

07.) Bedouin Soundclash - St. Andrew (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=bsVp48XWZJk)

Moreso then ever with all the hype surrounding Vampire Weekend I'm shocked that US music bloggers/media/whatever never picked up on these guys. Now granted I've never been a huge fan of Bedouin Soundclash but if the world is ready for sunny reggae inspired music why not from a bunch of Canucks? St. Andrew pretty much continues from their mega (once again only in Canada) hits like "When the Night Feels My Song" and "Walls Fall Down" offering a sunny fun reggae tinged hit. Not awesome but not offensive either

Rating: 6


06.) Rise Against - The Good Left Undone (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=JGxLPV19tO4)

This sounds exactly like "Ready to Fall", like, they're the same song

Rating: 0

05.) Foo Fighters - Long Road to Ruin (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=68qqyM-_K4w)

Sometime after the "Colour and the Shape" Dave Grohl made a concious decision for the Foo
Fighters to be the "de facto" band on classic rock stations 30 years from now. In in an
interview he said the decision to make "In Your Honor" a double album was to emulate the
greatness of Zeppelin's "Physical Graffiti." Long Road to Ruin was birthed for the stadium
arena tour, a chorus that you can sing along to, a wild guitar solo and a melody that will
infect the brain for days to come.

Rating: 6

4.) USS - Hollow Point Sniper Hyperbole (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=q_27Aig4kD4)

W.T.F. Seriously I'm stunned at what the fuck this is. Dub beats over whiney vocals?
Apparently USS stands for "Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker" so you know where these guys are
coming from but seriously it's time to pull the amiga away from some people. AND THIS IS #4, GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY!

Rating: 0

03.) Radiohead - Bodysnatchers (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=LB8Hxeq8Clw)

"Bodysnacthers" comes out like a tour de force from the calm left at the end of "15 Steps" on "In Rainbows." A hybrid of the experiemntal tracks from "Amneisiac" and "Kid A" while containing much of the raw power the band seemed to have left behind after "The Bends", "Bodysnatchers" is pretty much the epitome of the best Radiohead singles, strong, bold, odd but ultimately listenable and able to exist as a solo piece as well as a cog in an album.

Rating: 9.5


02.) City and Colour - Waiting (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=hDieZbG3KT4)

"City and Colour" is Dallas Green's of "Alexisonfire" side acoustic project and if you lived in Canada this would be a little bit of a big deal. I still say Dallas has a great voice and works very well with the work he does with "City and Colour" though "Waiting" musically isn't as interesting as previous tracks like "I'm Coming Home" or his work with Neverending WhiteLights in "The Grace."

Rating: 7

01.) Queens of the Stoneage - Make It Wit Chu (http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=V5ivZ-4DmPY)

Probably the oddest "Queens of the Stoneage" single ever mainly because it's NOT totally fucked up. Never really figured out for myself if Josh Homme wrote this song as some sort of twisted joke but taken as some novelty I do enjoy it slightly. Entirely not shocked at its radio popularity however.

Rating - 7.5

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