LITTLE ROCK — Colbie Caillat BreakthroughUniversal RepublicB+
Breakthrough? A better name would have been Break Room. Colbie Caillat's charming and chill second release is not particularly revolutionary, just relaxing.
With help from collaborators like songwriters Jason Reeves and Kara DioGuardi and producer and father Ken Caillat (best known for working with Fleetwood Mac), the 24-year-old California pop singer returns with the same soothing voice, modest melodies and sweet vibe that madeher 2007 song "Bubbly" an Internet and radio sensation.
Not one to belt or to brood, Caillat sings of love and heartbreak with rare sincerity and simplicity. She's at her innocent best on songs like the catchy first single "Fallin' for You" and the even cuter "You Got Me."
- JENNIFER CHRISTMANKonyak Enter Da Gangsta:Da Mixtape Vol. 1 GTD/Key IngredientA
Little Rock's Konyak follows his dynamic debut Hell or High Water with an excellent opus that shows he has what it takes to be a major star.Konyak's skills transcend rap's current monotony. His proficiency allows him to tackle an array of subjects on track after mesmerizing track. The title cut is an opulent masterpiece. On the banging "Solve It," Yak teams up with A-State rhyme-slayer E-Dubb. Other guest turns include some of A-State's best - Playa Mone,T-Cox, Tony T, 5th Weel, AG, DA, Big Shae, Big Dolla and the incomparable Big Keys.
Hip-hop is cluttered with young artists chasing ringtone sales and flash-in-the-pan status. On Enter Da Gangsta, the gifted Konyak assures that his star will shine on as others flame out.
- SHON MCPEACEIrma Thomas Soul Queenof New Orleans 50th Anniversary Celebration RounderA-
The golden-voiced Irma Thomas has been a New Orleans fixture since the 1960s when she was making hits such as "Wish Someone Would Care" and "He's My Guy." The past 25 or so, she has been making soul and blues music at Rounder and this one CD grabs highlights from that work plus her best performance ever, the chilling cover of Bessie Smith's"Back Water Blues" from the Our New Orleans benefit album. It's a true classic. The brilliant Thomas soared on last year's Simply Grand and 2006's post-Hurricane Katrina CD, the wondrous After the Rain. Three of the 15 songs on Soul Queen are new, including Thomas' original, "Your Ship Has Sailed." No filler here. Soul queen of New Orleans? How about the whole world?
- ELLIS WIDNERSkillet AwakeLava/INOB
A hugely popular Memphisbased Christian rock band that at times veers very close to Evanescence-esque hard pop dynamics while maintaining one foot in classic prog rock, Skillet is a slick and tuneful witnessing machine for collecting Dove and Grammy Awards, as well as the occasional bottomed-out burnout trying to wean himself off the Sabbath. In short, it's like a lot of professional modern rock, all compressed sugar crunch, hard hooks and dull to vapid words - Skillet's "Hero" isn't at all dissimilar to Foo Fighters' "My Hero" (though the former's, being omnipotent, isn't at all "ordinary") - forced up from the diaphragm (which isn't the same as the soul, but will fool some of the people all of the time). To paraphrase Grand Funk Railroad, Skillet is Good Singin', Good Playin' by Good People. But it ain't no kind of art.
- PHILIP MARTINSlaughterhouse SlaughterhouseE1 MusicABoys and girls, how about some real hip-hop? No disposable songs, quick-hit ring-tone raps or goofy dance tracks here. Slaughterhouse has relentless, unmerciful rhymes over exemplary beats; a grimy breeze of fresh air that hopefully will usher hip-hop back to its musical roots.
Solo lyrical masters Joell Ortiz (New York), Crooked I (California), Joe Buddens (New Jersey) and Royce da 5-9 (Michigan) come together like Voltron. Each MC dominates his time, then falls back to allow his counterpart to shine. The worst of this concrete-hard album is better than most of what listeners get over today's airwaves.
If you need a reminder of what hip-hop was and, hopefully, soon shall be again, cop this album. You deserve it.
- SHON MCPEACE
Style, Pages 58 on 09/06/2009