I know, I know, I know. Not only has it been 6 months since my last post, it’s been 2 months since Lasers actually came out. I really wanted to keep this blog updated more often but school has a way of crushing your dreams and aspirations. Anyways, since I don't have to worry about school for the time being, you can expect this blog to be update quite frequently. So, finally, as I promised in my previous post, here is my long overdue review of Lupe Fiasco’s Lasers. Better late than never, I suppose.
Before we get started I wanted to talk about why this is a “technical review” rather than just a “review”. See, I have a pet peeve with the concept of critiquing art. I could tell you which songs were my favorite, which beats I found catchy or which lyrics resonated with me but ultimately I’d just be telling you about something you would never understand or experience. If we’re both looking at ball and I’m wearing yellow tinted glasses and your wearing red tinted glasses, would it do you any good if I tell you what color the ball is? I’d rather comment on it’s shape or size. Perhaps a truly objective critique might be impossible but I think if I compartmentalize my critique, by assigning equal weightings to each aspect of a song, it would certainly be a step in the right direction. With that said lets jump right in.
Beat:
Letting Go
Before we get started I wanted to talk about why this is a “technical review” rather than just a “review”. See, I have a pet peeve with the concept of critiquing art. I could tell you which songs were my favorite, which beats I found catchy or which lyrics resonated with me but ultimately I’d just be telling you about something you would never understand or experience. If we’re both looking at ball and I’m wearing yellow tinted glasses and your wearing red tinted glasses, would it do you any good if I tell you what color the ball is? I’d rather comment on it’s shape or size. Perhaps a truly objective critique might be impossible but I think if I compartmentalize my critique, by assigning equal weightings to each aspect of a song, it would certainly be a step in the right direction. With that said lets jump right in.
Criteria:
Beat:
- Melody: Melody affinity is usually pretty subject but I’ll try to keep it consistent with melodies I think are unique and original
- Hook: Usually the hook would be a part of the vocals section but seeing as how this was indeed Atlantic’s album (more on that later), where by the hook was given to Lupe with the beat, this classification seem appropriate.
- Execution: A good beat/song is nothing without the proper execution, specifically the structure, form and mixing of the beat
- Wordplay: Clever lines said in creative and original ways, a cornerstone of popular modern hip hop
- Flow: How well the verse fits within the context of the beat. Higher points will be awarded for complexity
- Content: Overall quality of writing in the song. Usually this immensely important to me but to be as objective as possible I’ll give it equal weighting
Tracks:
Letting Go
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
4
|
Wordplay:
|
4
|
Hook:
|
3
|
Flow:
|
4
|
Execution:
|
5
|
Content:
|
5
|
Average: 4.2
Notes: Easily the best song on the album and the type of writing you would expect from Lupe. Unfortunately, its it's all down hill from here. Were it not for the obnoxious "ohweohwe oh oh" in the chorus it would have been a perfect song.
Words I Never Said
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
Wordplay:
|
2
|
Hook:
|
4
|
Flow:
|
2
|
Execution:
|
2
|
Content:
|
4
|
Average: 2.8
Notes: This is very similar to a song he made for F&L called American Terrorist... except American Terrorist had a better chorus, better beat, better flow and much better writing. His openly controversial political views in this song scored him an appearance on The Colbert Report.
Till I Get There
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
Wordplay:
|
3
|
Hook:
|
5
|
Flow:
|
3
|
Execution:
|
4
|
Content:
|
4
|
Average: 3.6
Notes: It's hard not to love the playful writing style. This is what I imagined most of the album to be like when he mentioned that the album was gonna be similar to And He Gets the Girl.
I Don't Wanna Care Right Now
I Don't Wanna Care Right Now
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
2
|
Wordplay:
|
2
|
Hook:
|
4
|
Flow:
|
3
|
Execution:
|
2
|
Content:
|
1
|
Average: 2.3
Notes: Atlantic's attempt at making a club song. Great club chorus but just a completely undanceable verse.
Shameless Plug:
I Don't Wanna Care Right Now (ALJO Remix) by ALJO
Out Of My Head
Shameless Plug:
I Don't Wanna Care Right Now (ALJO Remix) by ALJO
Out Of My Head
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
2
|
Wordplay:
|
2
|
Hook:
|
3
|
Flow:
|
2
|
Execution:
|
2
|
Content:
|
2
|
Average: 2.2
Notes: A song for the ladies which was 60% Trey Songz and 40% Atlantic.
The Show Goes On
The Show Goes On
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
Wordplay:
|
1
|
Hook:
|
3
|
Flow:
|
2
|
Execution:
|
4
|
Content:
|
2
|
Average: 2.5
Notes: Windoo? Really? Lazy and cliché themes result in overall weak songwriting. Apparently the first verse is Lu's big F-U to Atlantic.
Beautiful Lasers
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
3
| |
Hook:
|
3
|
Flow:
|
4
|
Execution:
|
4
|
Content:
|
5
|
Average: 3.6
Notes: A beautiful song but it was completely unnecessary to auto-tune the chorus, especially for such an acoustic, organic vibe.
Coming Up
Coming Up
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
Wordplay:
|
2
|
Hook:
|
3
|
Flow:
|
2
|
Execution:
|
2
|
Content:
|
2
|
Average: 2.3
Notes: A lot of people seem to like this but I've listen to it a bunch of times and couldn't tell you a single line from it.
State Run Radio
State Run Radio
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
Wordplay:
|
2
|
Hook:
|
3
|
Flow:
|
3
|
Execution:
|
3
|
Content:
|
4
|
Average: 3.0
Notes: A favorite on tour but the stans were shocked and disappointed to find out that this guy sang the chorus and not Lupe. The distortion guitars in the chorus sound awkward, especially with in the context of the entire album which was more synth based.
Break The Chain
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
5
|
Wordplay:
|
4
|
Hook:
|
4
|
Flow:
|
5
|
Execution:
|
1
|
Content:
|
2
|
Average: 3.5
Notes: A great mix of European and American cultures (both the beat and vocals) but everything that got epically built up throughout the verse completely falls flat during the chorus. Someone failed songwriting 101.
All Black Everything
All Black Everything
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
4
|
Wordplay:
|
3
|
Hook:
|
4
|
Flow:
|
3
|
Execution:
|
4
|
Content:
|
4
|
Average: 3.6
Notes: Lupe's self proclaimed masterpiece is definitely one of the best of the album and showcases Lupe's classic method of conveying a message through analogy. That being said, I can't help but notice that in Lupe's fantasy, where slaves got payed, that the only thing that changed was peoples names got switched around.
Never Forget You
Never Forget You
Beats
|
Vocals
| ||
Melody:
|
3
|
Wordplay:
|
2
|
Hook:
|
4
|
Flow:
|
3
|
Execution:
|
3
|
Content:
|
3
|
Average: 3.0
Notes: Lupe gets nostalgic. I'm pretty sure the last verse, if not the whole song, is about his father who passed away a couple years ago.
Album Beats: 3.25
Album Vocals: 2.88
Album Average: 3.07
According to Lupe, Atlantic told him they would shelve the album until he signed a 360-deal. See, when you hear all this propaganda about pirating music and how it is “stealing” from an artist, it’s really only the record labels that suffer. The artists themselves usually benefit through increased popularity and higher attendance at their concerts, which happens to be a more direct from of income than record sales. To counteract this, record companies have started employing a "360-deal" where by they get to grab a percentage of everything the artists does, including concerts, t-shirts, book deals..etc. Not only does this mean they have control of all business decisions but, more importantly, their artistic decisions as well. Lupe Fiasco, who has been dealing with record labels for about a decade know, knows quite a lot about this deal with the devil and refused to sign, while Atlantic stayed true to their word and shelved Lasers indefinitely. After months of arguing and fighting, Lupe seemed to accept the fact that the album may never come out and even went through a bout of depression, documented in the song Beautiful Lasers.
Throughout all this, however, Lupe had been touring for 3 years straight, save a short break to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro with his celebrity friends. A big part of his set during these tours was dedicated to featuring some songs off Lasers, which not only increased anticipation of the album but also aggravation towards Atlantic for the lack of a release date. So much so that the fans actually created a petition which got over 32,000 signatures including some from celebrities such as Talib Kwelli and Big Boi. After an unsatisfying “Lasers is coming” twitter response from Atlantic, the fans collaborated to prepare for the next logical step; a protest. The stench of bad PR reached the noses of the top dogs at Atlantic HQ and forced them to give in and announce the release date before the protest. Suddenly everything was butterflies and rainbows. The protest became a celebration. The fans didn’t seem to care that they had to wait another 5 month for the album. It didn’t matter. It was actually coming out. Lyor Cohen, CEO of Warner Music Group (parent company of Atlantic) came out of the building with a boom box playing the first official single on Lasers, The Show Goes On. There was only one fan there who managed to not get caught up in the hype and actually confront Lyor and ask him why it had been shelved for a year and a half in the first place. Of course all the stans fans thought she was crazy that she dare speak while a distorted version of the new single (which was coming out the following week) was being played. Through the early releases of some songs officially and unofficially the fans soon realized what compromises Lupe had to make to get this album out.
The album that was eventually released was actually the fourth version. One can only imagine the disappointing board room meetings with talks of “autotuning everything because that's what the kids are into” or perhaps, more ironically, being told to "dumb it down". A lot of the songs on the album ended up being about the making of the album itself, garnished with Atlantic’s commercial grade glitter and filtered through euro trance synths. The final product turned out to be worse than expected. The album’s metacritic score landed a horrendous 57% based on 23 reviews, by far his worst score yet. Conversely, and perhaps this speaks volumes on the current state of the music industry, the album was quite commercially successful, debuting at #1 on Billboards top 200 while his single peaked at # 9 on Billboard's hot 100. That being said, even with terrific first week numbers, I still doubt the album will have enough steam to reach gold before his previous album, “The Cool” did in 2008. Marketing will only get you so far and, of course, it didn't help that Lupe himself said he hated the album and was only proud of about 4 or 5 songs.
Perhaps the most disappointing thing for the fans was finding out which song didn't make the final cut:
I suppose though, in the end, everyone did in fact win. Originally Lupe had said he wanted Lasers to have a positive message for a wider audience and he definitely reached that result. The fans learned about the power they have as consumers from the protest and perhaps Atlantic learned that throwing glitter on crap still makes it crap and thus non economical in the long run. Lupe said once in an interview that it’s like playing chess, he had to give up a few pawns but now he gets to take the queen. He is, of course, referring to his follow up album ambitiously titled Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album set to come out later this year. He has already apologized for dumbing down Lasers and said that he has a deal with Atlantic to not step into his studio during the making of F&L II. Better yet, he says this album will be for his core fanbase who were disappointed with his lackluster lyrical effort on Lasers. With all this hype I’m optimistic but who knows, I’ve heard this story before.
Album Beats: 3.25
Album Vocals: 2.88
Album Average: 3.07
The Making Of a Mess:
Truth be told, this album looked better on paper, or more specifically, in the form of a manifesto. Lupe said he made this manifesto before he recorded or wrote any of the songs, and it was to serve as a guideline while making the album. The first supposed release date, from the man himself, was to be May 2009, more than 2 years before the actual release date of March 8th, 2011. So why did it take so long for the album to drop?According to Lupe, Atlantic told him they would shelve the album until he signed a 360-deal. See, when you hear all this propaganda about pirating music and how it is “stealing” from an artist, it’s really only the record labels that suffer. The artists themselves usually benefit through increased popularity and higher attendance at their concerts, which happens to be a more direct from of income than record sales. To counteract this, record companies have started employing a "360-deal" where by they get to grab a percentage of everything the artists does, including concerts, t-shirts, book deals..etc. Not only does this mean they have control of all business decisions but, more importantly, their artistic decisions as well. Lupe Fiasco, who has been dealing with record labels for about a decade know, knows quite a lot about this deal with the devil and refused to sign, while Atlantic stayed true to their word and shelved Lasers indefinitely. After months of arguing and fighting, Lupe seemed to accept the fact that the album may never come out and even went through a bout of depression, documented in the song Beautiful Lasers.
Throughout all this, however, Lupe had been touring for 3 years straight, save a short break to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro with his celebrity friends. A big part of his set during these tours was dedicated to featuring some songs off Lasers, which not only increased anticipation of the album but also aggravation towards Atlantic for the lack of a release date. So much so that the fans actually created a petition which got over 32,000 signatures including some from celebrities such as Talib Kwelli and Big Boi. After an unsatisfying “Lasers is coming” twitter response from Atlantic, the fans collaborated to prepare for the next logical step; a protest. The stench of bad PR reached the noses of the top dogs at Atlantic HQ and forced them to give in and announce the release date before the protest. Suddenly everything was butterflies and rainbows. The protest became a celebration. The fans didn’t seem to care that they had to wait another 5 month for the album. It didn’t matter. It was actually coming out. Lyor Cohen, CEO of Warner Music Group (parent company of Atlantic) came out of the building with a boom box playing the first official single on Lasers, The Show Goes On. There was only one fan there who managed to not get caught up in the hype and actually confront Lyor and ask him why it had been shelved for a year and a half in the first place. Of course all the stans fans thought she was crazy that she dare speak while a distorted version of the new single (which was coming out the following week) was being played. Through the early releases of some songs officially and unofficially the fans soon realized what compromises Lupe had to make to get this album out.
The album that was eventually released was actually the fourth version. One can only imagine the disappointing board room meetings with talks of “autotuning everything because that's what the kids are into” or perhaps, more ironically, being told to "dumb it down". A lot of the songs on the album ended up being about the making of the album itself, garnished with Atlantic’s commercial grade glitter and filtered through euro trance synths. The final product turned out to be worse than expected. The album’s metacritic score landed a horrendous 57% based on 23 reviews, by far his worst score yet. Conversely, and perhaps this speaks volumes on the current state of the music industry, the album was quite commercially successful, debuting at #1 on Billboards top 200 while his single peaked at # 9 on Billboard's hot 100. That being said, even with terrific first week numbers, I still doubt the album will have enough steam to reach gold before his previous album, “The Cool” did in 2008. Marketing will only get you so far and, of course, it didn't help that Lupe himself said he hated the album and was only proud of about 4 or 5 songs.
Perhaps the most disappointing thing for the fans was finding out which song didn't make the final cut:
I suppose though, in the end, everyone did in fact win. Originally Lupe had said he wanted Lasers to have a positive message for a wider audience and he definitely reached that result. The fans learned about the power they have as consumers from the protest and perhaps Atlantic learned that throwing glitter on crap still makes it crap and thus non economical in the long run. Lupe said once in an interview that it’s like playing chess, he had to give up a few pawns but now he gets to take the queen. He is, of course, referring to his follow up album ambitiously titled Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album set to come out later this year. He has already apologized for dumbing down Lasers and said that he has a deal with Atlantic to not step into his studio during the making of F&L II. Better yet, he says this album will be for his core fanbase who were disappointed with his lackluster lyrical effort on Lasers. With all this hype I’m optimistic but who knows, I’ve heard this story before.
