mixtape maestro (2.0)

Mariah’s twelfth album, the recently leaked Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, may house much of the twinkly keyboards, echoed syllable hooks and silly lyrical turns that have lingered in her previous work with dominant Angel songwriting/ production team Chris “Tricky” Stewart and Terius “The-Dream” Nash (not to mention, the stuff they’ve crafted for themselves and others), but having those quirks on hand don’t at all prevent this collection from ranking as one of her most maturest albums to date.

Having little interest in the sample-based, cookie-cutter R&B-pop thrills of her past, Angel looms heavy with a mostly mid-tempo tracklisting that more often than not finds her dwelling in the depression of post-break-up heartache or selling a sassy kiss-off to a no-good boyfriend. Even the small number of relatively upbeat, “happy” numbers carry a denser musical tone beneath them, causing one to think that Mariah spent some time dipping back into her own catalogue, re-realized what a gem 1998′s under-appreciated Bone Thugs N Harmony collabo/ single “Breakdown” was, and then opted to record an entire album based around the track’s nocturnal-soul vibe.

If we had to pick one as an immediate favorite it would have to be mid-album cut “Ribbon”, a molasses-flowing bump & grinder that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Dream or R. Kelly album. It’s one of the few instances on the disc in which she’s celebrating love, capturing her completely lost in the charms of her lover and on the verge of a near-breakdown when she’s forced to be separated from his touch for the smallest bit of time (“It’s been about twenty good minutes since I kissed you/ Come back boo/ I miss you/ Wish I had twenty million hours to caress you/ And undress you/ To be continued…”).

It’s a puppy love sentiment we’ve heard her wax on plenty times over in the past, but here, when supported by a boudoir-ready groove and a chopped-and-screwed-styled hook that awesomely co-signs her ecstasy with demonic chants of being like a “ribbon with a bow on it”, sounding a bit more grown-up when giddy in love goes a long way.

Hear it below (you didn’t think we would have THE MAN catch us giving out a Mariah MP3 now, did you?), followed by a clip of Miss Carey-Cannon (looking all “Vision of Love”-ly) performing her surprisingly moving cover of Foreigner’s “I Want To Know What Love Is” on Oprah.

Memoirs drops September 29th.

“Ribbon”:

“I Want To Know What Love Is (Oprah Performance)”:

Though she was able to snatch up the 2007 “American Idol” crown, winning over Mom’s and pre-teens with her mega-pipes and “good girl” demeanor, Jordin Sparks’ career post-confetti & tears didn’t seem like it was going to produce anything worthwhile. And that notion was kinda sorta proved with her debut album’s jump-off single “Tattoo”, a somewhat awkward mish-mashing of country and urban-pop that skirted the Hot 100 Top 10, but was ultimately forgettable.

Then arrives “No Air”, a surprisingly fetching duet with (a pre-career-in-crisis) Chris Brown that managed to catch ears beyond her central Disney bubblegum fanbase (as well as a Grammy nomination), despite the fact that it’s “can’t breathe without you” premise felt extremely absurd and dated and the two singers sounded like their throats were gonna explode at the way they shout-sung their teenybop devotion for a majority of it’s over four minutes length.

Apparently, Sparks has decided that this ear-bursting diva pop style could be a continually rewarding niche, as she’s dipped into that well over again, employing the writing/ production skills of fellow melodramatic bellower (and OneRepublic principal) Ryan Tedder for her second album’s lead single and title track, “Battlefield”, which takes “Air”‘s OTT midtempo ballad formula, then raises it a few OTT notches.

Once again she’s all “my world’s nothing when you’re gone”, mourning a relationship’s inability to ever get on the good foot, and this frustration is illustrated with the deafening, widescreen scope of a summer action blockbuster: cries of “Why does love always feel like a battlefield?” and the brilliantly WTF “You better go and get your armor” supported with a bombastic barrage of power rock drums and guitars, all elements that get more and more overblown as the song goes on.

Like “Air”, it’s a winning guilty pleasure that’ll definitely inspire numerous worldwide mimickings of it’s ridiculously huger-than-huge hooks (especially that “armor” line) over the next few months. Our only question is if the rest of the album follows this high-volume extreme (as we predict it will), will Sparks even have a voice once it comes to time to hit the touring rounds?

The album, Battlefield, drops mid-July.

“Until Yesterday” was supposed to be the song of 2007. A quirky pop treat about discovering your girlfriend was pregnant by another man, the song had interesting enough lyrics and production to be the breakout hit the other lead singer of ‘Nsync needed to get his underwhelming solo career going. For some odd reason, his label prematurely ended promotion for it right when it was gathering some critical buzz and opted on the less risky ballad “You Ruined Me” instead. Good thing this new single stands as yet another amazing release from the deserving Chasez.

With a stronger voice and more admirable creative slant than former bandmate Timberlake, JC Chasez should be one of pop’s biggest stars. But the approved, eclectic dance-pop oeuvre found on his solo debut, Schizophrenic, was deemed far too ahead of it’s time, never quite finding a fit with the urban trends that dominated Top 40 at the time. Scaling back his sound with more focus and an educated dedication to classic pop songcraft, his commercial success should be on the upswing as the public slowly falls in tune with the mastery glow of “Ruined”.

A majestic piano-and-strings based love song, “You Ruined Me” soars with a sophisticated lyric concerning a man caught up in the rapture of love. Standing outside his admiree’s home, drenched from a storm, Chasez comes to grips with the burning emotions he can no longer ignore. “I can’t be with anyone since I felt our worlds collide/ It’s like I almost died/ The way you make me feel,” he confesses, his heart pacing with anxiety out of the fear that she may not feel the same way. Blessed with a sturdy vocal range, Chasez efficiently succeeds at the dramatic Freddie Mercury-influenced peaks he reaches for, adding rich bombast to a dramatic orchestration that generously fleshes out the song’s plaintive melody.

Most other artists would’ve sabotaged the song’s simplistic beauty with needless runs, but Chasez understands the need for the lyrics to be heard and felt, forgoing the typical singer/ producer battle for supremacy by not being too much of a distraction from “You Ruined Me”‘s moving soliloquy.

A power pop ballad miles above the shlocky material the tag usually produces, “You Ruined Me” can’t not make Chasez the chart-busting icon he should’ve been years ago.