Rating:  -
It is so refreshing to have an album that represents something. I'm so burned out by Britney, Ashlee and Jessica Simpson. We R In Need Of A Musical Revolution features a fantastic video on Yahoo's Launch. The album is a perfect 5! I like how Esthero can mix up the various music styles and make it work every time. This album is a must have.
Rating: -
I love Esthero..her voice, the words and especially the performance. yeah i seen her "live" so be jealous...cuz its such a thrill of your life....
Rating:  -
Esthero is sure to win the hearts of disgruntled music fans everywhere, in the opening moments of the EP, "We R In Need of a Musical ReVoLuTIoN!" It opens with the announcement, "I'm so sick and tired/of the s**t on the radio/on MTV they only play same thing/no matter where I go, I see Ashanti in the video/I want something MORE!" Well, who can disagree?
It takes a certain amount of guts and flair to successfully harpoon the flaws of the music industry, or to demand to know why "a grown-ass man can videotape a little girl/but we still see his mug up on our video screens." Alas, the rest of the album isn't quite as riveting or as bold. But the Toronto singer's jazzy-funky-trippy-retropoppy sound is colorful enough to keep listeners stuck there.
Things get a bit softer from there on, with a medley of sweet love (or loss of love) songs, such as the romantic jazz-piano ballad "Everyday is a Holiday (With You)," which seems ideal for some future Zach Braff movie, the mournful "Gone," the sweet farewell "This Lullaby," softly trip-funky "I Drive Alone," and the airy, ambient "Amber And Tiger's Eye," which shows off Esthero's vocals to best advantage."
The second half of "We R In Need of a Musical ReVoLuTIoN" errs on the side of trippiness, rather than emphasizing the soulful jazz-trip-funk that makes up the first couple of songs -- as well as her forthcoming "Wikked Lil' Grrrls," which also contains those first couple of songs. In other words, it has one foot in her debut, one foot in her new album.
But this EP does show Esthero to her best advantage -- she can do gently trippy pop in the Portishead and Mazzy Star vein, and then can flip the coin and do jazzier, energetic dance music. Her husky, throaty voice can manage either style, and neither kind of music overwhelms her singing, no matter how many synths, drums or horns are packed in.
"We R In Need of a Musical ReVoLuTIoN" is a good transition EP, moving from her smoldering electronic debut to the newer soul-jazz-flavoured "Wikked Lil' Grrrls." Not quite a musical revolution, but a delight anyway.
Rating: -
This EP is, in a word, excellent. I had no idea what to expect when I bought it; I loved her last CD, "Breath From Another," That I purchased after seeing her perform live in the Chris Rock Show some time ago on HBO. I thought she had a great voice, the music was superb, and not easily categorized. I listened to it often, only to one day realized that, it's been like six years since I heard anything from her.
So when I saw this in the window of an indy music store yesterday, I immediately bought it without question. before I listened to it, I thought that maybe she went all formulaic on me; doing what needs to be done to get airplay, get on TV, what have you. When I finally heard it in the car, I was pleasantly surprised. Ecstatic even! This music is (and I hate using this word), AWESOME. The title track is thumping. I love the message, it sounds very heartfelt, and it works. I'm not one to get into the minutiae of what has been melded with what, or how the music is layered, etc., etc...I'm just one of those people who knows what's good and different when he hears it.
"Gone," the duet woth Cee-Lo, is another standout.
And again, it defies being categorized. Cee-Lo never sounds like he's trying to sound like he's in a hip-hop song or whatever; his voice just always seems to adapt to whatever he's singing. And it works perfectly here.
As for the rest of the CD, I liked EVERY TRACK. I cannot recommend this CD enough. Like she says, We R In Need Of A Musical Revolution, and I sincerly hope that her new CD get picked up, gets played, and allows people to hear what true artistry is all about. Maybe then we'll get more than the few artists we hear and see on the radio and MTV.
And I don't watch MTV anymore, and I subscribe to satellite radio. She hits the nail on the head here regarding the reasons why.
Suffice it to say, after hearing this EP, I pre-ordered her new CD here on Amazon to make sure I don't miss it.
Rating: -
...then you just don't know music.
It's as simple as that.
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