Blackfire Research
Music Review: Mary J. Blige, “Strength of a Woman”

Music Review: Mary J. Blige, “Strength of a Woman”

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The Queen of Hip Hop Soul, Mary J. Blige, is back with her 13th studio album: a tour-de-force, power-ballad brimmed, luscious autobiography that journeys through heartbreak, self-love, and redemption. Blige has never shied away from using her personal life as source material for her music. On “Strength of a Woman,” she pulls inspiration from her recent separation from longtime manager and husband, Kendu Issacs. Each track is better than the last: opener “Love Yourself,” featuring Kanye West, is not only an instant classic, but will be a staple of Spotify Breakup Playlists for years to come. Other standout guest artists include Quavo, DJ Khaled and Missy Elliott on “Glow Up,” a slow jam, hip hop track with biting lyrics. On “Strength of a Woman,” Blige may be down, but she sure as hell ain’t out. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

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Music Review: Feist, “Pleasure”

Music Review: Feist, “Pleasure”

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Canadian singer-songwriter and indie music darling, Feist, is back with her latest studio album, “Pleasure.” Best known for that upbeat ditty you couldn’t get out of your head back in 2007 (which was featured in an iPod Nano commercial), Feist could’ve been a one-hit wonder. Fortunately for her, “The Reminder,” the album that featured her smash-hit “1234,” was actually really, really good. So when listeners got sick of every variation or parody of “1234,” from late night TV skits to children’s educational programming, there was plenty of good music for fans to fall back on. That was 10 years ago. Now, Feist has released her fifth studio album. And although no mega-tech corporations have featured her music in their ads for over a decade, she’s doing just fine. “Pleasure,” Feist’s latest LP, is a bit more rock and roll than her previous work, but still delivers as a solid addition to the Feist canon. Feist’s tone and lyrics have gotten harder as she’s gotten older, and this new-found edge is an unexpected, welcome change. “I’m Not Running Away,” is the best example of Feist’s classic, easy, textured jazz style, while the album’s title track and a song titled “Century” carry out the most overtly rock and roll tones. You may not hear her music every time you turn on the TV like in ‘07, but this latest Feist album has proven, once again, that she’s not fading into obscurity anytime soon.

  

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Music Review: Sylvan Esso, “What Now”

Music Review: Sylvan Esso, “What Now”

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North Carolina indie pop duo, Sylvan Esso, recently released their sophomore album, “What Now.” Their 2014 self titled debut LP, which featured the hit, “Hey Mami,” put them at the top of every indie music lover’s playlist. On “What Now,” singer Amelia Meath and producer Nick Sanborn have grown into their art, continuing with the snarks and style of their humor-heavy first album. Meath’s vocals, paired with Sanborn’s beats, are just as hypnotic this time around. The opening track, “Sound,” draws listeners in through it’s delicate layering, while the album’s centerpiece, “Die Young,” is the perfect mix of textured pop and bitterness.

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Music Review: Caddywhompus, “Odd Hours”

Music Review: Caddywhompus, “Odd Hours”

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Lifelong friends, singer and guitarist Chris Rehm and drummer Sean Hart, the New Orleans-based duo who make up Caddywhompus, have released their third studio album, “Odd Hours.” Over the course of their nine-year career, the duo keeps getting better. Because of their shared history, they have the same adolescent musical influencers, which you can unmistakably hear in their music to this day. Their lifelong friendship also allows the duo to take risks – risks that certainly pay off – like the quick, exaggerated tempo changes within songs that makes “Odd Hours” unforgettable. Highlights on the album include opener “Decent,” and “Waiting Room,” a dizzying, manic jam that throws the listener for a loop on multiple occasions.

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Music Review: Kendrick Lamar, “DAMN.”

Music Review: Kendrick Lamar, “DAMN.”

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DAMN. Kendrick Lamar dropped one of the most influential rap albums of this decade on Good Friday. The celebrated rapper, whose 2015 “To Pimp a Butterfly” won him a Grammy for “Best Rap Album” takes an introspective turn this time around, focusing on our most basic, primal elements, with song titles like: “BLOOD,” “DNA,” “PRIDE,” “LUST,” “FEAR,” and “GOD.” On DAMN. Lamar proves he is not only the most talented rapper around, but a masterful storyteller to boot. Lamar isn’t propagating old narratives, but rather, he weaves the building blocks of his life through breathless raps and unrelenting rhymes. Directly addressing those who criticized his lyrics on police brutality on To Pimp a Butterfly’s, “Alright,” Lamar digs down deep (“DNA”), exposing the contents of his history, as well as those of his haters. His talent in storytelling culminates in “DUCKWORTH,” the album’s mind-boggling closing track, and a story that’s stranger than fiction. Kendrick captivatingly sews together two strangers’ lives, leading up to a confrontation that could have ended in his father’s death at the hands of the future rapper’s producer. The album ends where it begins with “BLOOD” – the life Lamar would have led if his father was killed and his mentor incarcerated – as another victim of senseless gun violence.

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