Mark Ronson struck gold with Amy Winehouse, by delivering genuine, quality music, usually backed by the production of himself, Salaam Remi, and and the instrumentation of the Dap Kings. This became a new movement in music, which took off heavier in the U.K. than in the U.S., creating a unique fusion of classic funk-soul vibes with modern vocalists. He demonstrated this further on Version, his second solo LP which showcased a series of rock and pop covers by today’s generation of (mostly British) artists. One of the greatest tracks on that LP was “Stop Me”, Daniel Merriweather’s epic cover of the Morrissey classic.

Daniel is signed to Ronson’s Allido imprint, and with Love & War, he constructs what could be looked at as a spiritual sequel to Amy’s Back To Black. The album saw huge success in the U.K., grabbing a platinum plaque (there, 300,000+ sales), fully backed by Ronson’s production and the same type of rare-groovesque live instrumentation found on Back To Black and Version.

However something about Love & War doesn’t quite hit the mark, like it’s unofficial predecessors. For instance, “Impossible” is a surprisingly redundant track that is virtually all-hook, more comparable to the type of formulaic drivel what is found in today’s American R&B hits. Another misstep is the bold interpolation of “California Dreamin’”, on “Could You”, which shamelessly jacks The Mamas and The Papas 60′s folk rock hit, for virtually the same type of song, but with slight alterations. Sampling creatively is one thing, especially when taking it to a different genre (i.e. “hip-hop”), but jacking within the same musical realm is more like stealing.

It’s not all bad, in fact far from it. The album opens up with the gorgeous ode to NYC, “For Your Money”, an equally dope, but somewhat bleaker take on the subject than what Jay-Z and Alicia Keys had to offer. The album’s lead single, “Change” finds Merriweather outside of self-pity, with a perfectly arranged collection of Isaac Hayes inspired pianos, rolling drums, and a massive horn section, not to mention perfectly delivered verses from Wale. “Water and A Flame” is also well executed, finding a lovelorn Daniel joining up with Adele, filling in for Winehouse with equally breathy, alcohol soaked vocals. The climactic “Not Giving Up” finds Daniel channeling that broken-heart into a passionate, cinematic offering.

While we can recognize this as well produced, well thought out music, Love & War‘s moments with greatness are present, but few and far in between. At times the album fails to capture the heart of the listener as it so badly wants to. We see the talent in both Merriweather and Ronson, perhaps next time it just needs to be harnessed right.

]]> http://www.hiphopsite.com/2010/04/13/daniel-merriweather-love-war-review/feed/ 0 http://www.hiphopsite.com/2009/12/18/wale-attention-deficit/ http://www.hiphopsite.com/2009/12/18/wale-attention-deficit/#comments Fri, 18 Dec 2009 09:49:54 +0000 http://hhsblog.covelop.org/?p=1041 [cont.]]]>

Nigerian-American emcee, Wale, first hit the scene in 2006, making noise locally in the D.C. area with a pair of go-go club hits, “Dig Dug (Shake It)” and “Breakdown”, respectively. With “Dig Dug”, he became the first local artist to chart on Neilson’s Broadcast Data System since DJ Kool in the nineties. Shortly thereafter, Wale began to release a series of mixtapes, until he was noticed by Mark Ronson, who eventually asked him to appear on a remix of Lily Allen’s “Smile”. He later signed with Ronson’s Allido Records, and would soon share the cover to URB’s 150th issue with J.U.S.T.I.C.E. (not to mention kill a remix of their global hit “D.A.N.C.E.”).

One might question whether or not someone who essentially began as a go-go artist had the chops to pull off a full-length release in the major label world. Granted, nobody wants to hear a full-length from DJ Kool, but we don’t mind him as a hype man. Thankfully, Wale quickly dissolved any notions of being pigeonholed as this type of artist through a series of five mix CD’s that preceded the release of this album. But still, while these mixes showed that he could definitely rhyme, would he be able to cut it in the big leagues, or be another Saigon, forever banished to crappy CD-R’s and Zshare links?

Attention Deficit manages to defeat any preconceived notions about Wale, and actually surprise with an incredibly solid debut album. Wale seems to have all of the bases covered here, with songs that will please the backpack set, the club goers, and even his longtime local followers. We see an obvious homage to A Tribe Called Quest on “World Tour”, an inspirational, piano driven collaboration with Jazmine Sullivan, as Wale delivers a “Touch The Sky”-esque narrative about his life in the industry thus far. He taps into his Nigerian roots a bit on reggae influenced tracks like “Triumph”, “TV In The Radio” (feat. K’Naan), and the especially saucy “Mirrors”, which fulfills the fantasy of what Bun B might sound like on a Mark Ronson beat.

Meanwhile, the excellent “Pretty Girls” features a show-stopping verse from Gucci Mane, suggesting that the Gooch might come off as a decent rapper if he had better production. While this is beside the point, “Pretty Girls” is one of the album’s best tracks, as Wale sounds right at home remaining the Backyard Band’s DC go-go cover of the Whatnots classic. Producer Best Kept Secret keeps the go-go drums in tact in other parts of the album as well, on both “Prescription” and “Shades” (feat. Chrisette Michelle).

“Shades” actually offers one of the album’s best lyrical moments, as Wale introspectively examines his own behaviors and prejudices towards lighter skinned Black folks, coming to the conclusion that all colors are beautiful. We find him playing amateur psychologist on a few other places in the album, dissecting what makes people tick – whether it be the struggling waitress/actress (“90210″) or the lost soul (“Diary”). On the lighter side of things, we have this year’s certified club-banger “Chillin’” (feat. Lady Gaga), and the always-bouncing-back Neptunes produced “Let It Loose”, featuring a hypnotic hook from Pharrell.

An able lyricist, a deep thinker, and someone that’s not afraid to have fun, Wale has no problem carving out his identity with Attention Deficit. While not a perfect album (peppered with a little too much R&B towards the end), Attention Deficit sets the stage for a long career and defines Wale as an artist, not just another rapper. - DJ Pizzo