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(39 votes, average: 2.97 out of 5)
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Weezer – The Red Album
Reviewed by Mike

There’s a thick buzz in the air as Weezer’s sixth full length release is about to drop. Will it sink to the sad Kid Rock depths of Beverly Hills, or will it remind us of the Weezer who made the classic Blue Album?

1. Troublemaker: 8.2

A fine pop song with a strong backbone. The melody and band is in synch, and come out defiant on this track in both tone and lyric, perhaps a response to the lackluster previous releases. A good start.

I picked up a guitar
What does that signify?
I’m gonna play
Some heavy metal riffs
And you will die

2. The Greatest Man That Ever Lived: 9.2

The song opens with a Springsteen-esque piano sequence followed by a sarcastic vocal that is obviously a parody of the idiotic marketing apparent in so much new music we hear on the radio. This is a humorous, rocking ode to ridiculousness along the lines of Joe Walsh’s Life’s Been Good. The song changes instrumentation and pacing quite often.

If you don’t like it you can shove it
but you don’t like it, you love it

3. Pork and Beans 9.4

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(26 votes, average: 2.77 out of 5)
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The Roots – Rising Down

Reviewed by Nolan Grey

The newest album from Philadelphia’s very own, Rising Down is the group’s 8th studio album. The work follows the Roots recent trend, exchanging real instrumentation for synthy sound. Although a solid CD, Rising Down ultimately does not hold up when compared to the Roots previous work.

1.The Pow Wow: NR (no ranking for skits)

The album begins with a ‘skit’, this word being used ever more loosely these days. The skit fluctuates between Finnegan’s Wake incomprehensibleness and overplayed ranting. NR (no ranking for skits)

2.Rising Down: 7.0

The title track situates itself at the number two spot, which works well within the flow of the CD as a whole. The beat is reminiscent of an overproduced ‘shook things pt. 2’, and Black Thought’s lyrics work well. The hook is in some ways the track’s downfall, but the strength of the rest of the song is able to hold the track together.

3. Get Busy: 3.0

After a promisingly solid moment the CD takes a turn for the worst with the weakest track on Rising Down. After two tracks the theme of overproduction is already apparent, and this track really exemplifies it. Black Thought is at his weakest here, seemingly unsure of how to ride the beat, which was mediocre to begin with.

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