d'angelo - voodoo - classic or dud?

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cant believe this hasnt been posed to ILM before. i say classic, despite its obvious flaws.

― splooge (thesplooge), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 13:55 (8 years ago) Permalink

Heard it the other day for the first time and enjoyed it, but what are the 'obvious flaws'?

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 13:58 (8 years ago) Permalink

I just heard it for the first time lately too and I don't find it as super sexy as they say. This kind of singing (listening to "Playa Playa" at the moment) feels really foreign to me now. Not that I don't think it's very well-done and probably very good, but it's pretty far removed from anything else I listen to these days.

― RS £aRue (rockist_scientist), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:05 (8 years ago) Permalink

i never really thought of it as being super sexy. people just say that about most soul or R&B.

― splooge (thesplooge), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:09 (8 years ago) Permalink

i love this album but i hardly ever make it all the way through. this makes me sad because of that bit in the sleevenotes where the guy from the roots talks about how much you'll love the album after you have one of those evenings when you stay up all night with someone and have this cd on repeat. i haven't done that yet. obviously classic though!

― pete b. (pete b.), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:14 (8 years ago) Permalink

Total classic.
Favourite tracks:
Devil's Pie
Send It On
Feel Like Making Love
Playa Playa

― wtin, Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:16 (8 years ago) Permalink

I'm starting to be really annoyed with most uses of falsetto, actually. So those songs with falsetto I find a bit annoying. (Can't get my head around falsetto as sexiness signifier. Well, sort of I can, but I don't feel it that way.)

(Then again I don't really look to music for sexiness. I only bring up all this sexiness stuff because of the way Tracer Hand and some others have talked about this album on other threads.)

― RS £aRue (rockist_scientist), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:18 (8 years ago) Permalink

This album on the boombox guarantees I will get something done around my house, be it the dishes or cunnilingus.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:20 (8 years ago) Permalink

I love how there is so much playing just-behind-the-beat on this.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:21 (8 years ago) Permalink

The grooves on the album are reeeeeedooooonkulous. It's like cyborg Pro-Tools ultrasoul. The drums are behind, the bass is MORE behind, the vocals are just a touch ahead. No one could actually PLAY like this, but it's so so sexy.

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:34 (8 years ago) Permalink

"what are the 'obvious flaws'?"

maybe not obvious but the songwriting isnt as great as everything else on the record.

― splooge (thesplooge), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 14:43 (8 years ago) Permalink

aLso it's too long and feels impossible to get a handle on (maybe a compliment).

I could never get hugely into this record though everytime i read something by Tracer saying how magnificent it is i go back to it and WANT to love it but it never works.

― jed_ (jed), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 15:05 (8 years ago) Permalink

(Tracer is never going to want to make out with us!)

― RS £aRue (rockist_scientist), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 15:06 (8 years ago) Permalink

pffffffffft, CLASSIC, bovs.

― Forksclovetofu (Forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 15:17 (8 years ago) Permalink

"I could never get hugely into this record though everytime i read something by Tracer saying how magnificent it is i go back to it and WANT to love it but it never works."

right. in a way, voodoo is a little over laboured and thus hard to penetrate. difficult listening isnt always as great as it sounds in concept.

― splooge (thesplooge), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 15:30 (8 years ago) Permalink

I fondly remember this as law-school make-out music, which I'm sure is exactly what D'Angelo intended.

― subgenius (subgenius), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:01 (8 years ago) Permalink

I fondly remember this as law-school make-out music, which I'm sure is exactly what D'Angelo intended.
Maybe at the University of Chicago's D'Angelo Law Library.

I'd definitely say Classic.

― William Selman (William Selman), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:09 (8 years ago) Permalink

Is there any other album so dark and so sexy at the same time?

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:11 (8 years ago) Permalink

Yes, and they're all by Sade.

The S.E.X question

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:22 (8 years ago) Permalink

It's pretty classic, something I come back to fairly often. I'd say its main "obvious flaw" is that the production buries a lot of sonic details underneath the ridiculously loud bass and drums. Horns, vocals, guitars, keys - they are all mixed *super* low, as if they're playing in another room sometimes. Which gives it kind of a "There's a Riot Goin On" muddiness, but I don't think it always works in the albums favor. Or maybe its just my vinyl copy that sounds like this...

― Shakey Mo Collier, Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:25 (8 years ago) Permalink

does anyone here not think of this as sexy?

i prefer having sex to rock music or jazz like in a silent way than R&B.

― splooge (thesplooge), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:46 (8 years ago) Permalink

I think the thing is with the mix is that it requires the listener to turn it up more, or else all those little details will slip by. It's a tricksy album that likes to be played very loud.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 17:46 (8 years ago) Permalink

I actually think Brown Sugar stands up better. "Devil's Pie" and "Chicken Grease" are classic, though...

― Pete Scholtes, Tuesday, 1 March 2005 20:30 (8 years ago) Permalink

how in thee hell is this difficult music?!?

totally disagree with shakey about the buried tracks/muddiness. that's exactly what I like about the album, and the fact that most modern rnb is brightshinyclean turns me off of it.
nick, you should know that the trick to getting those details to surface is to inhale drugas.

― ()ops (()()ps), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 20:53 (8 years ago) Permalink

i don't think it's difficult at all, i just don't like it as much as i want to.

― jed_ (jed), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 20:56 (8 years ago) Permalink

well, i don't like it as much as i used to. or as much as i thought i did. there are parts of it that are just awesome, and they skew my perception of the whole thing. so when i go back and listen to it again, i'm left underwhelmed: "that's all there is? i remember it being so much more..."

― ()ops (()()ps), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 21:06 (8 years ago) Permalink

I always listen to this at night and fall asleep before it gets to my favorite songs, which are all on the 2nd half.

― Al (sitcom), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 21:20 (8 years ago) Permalink

You need to be driving 1+ hrs with some good friends who are all really into it, with the windows rolled down. Of course this works for just about any album. I'm surprised no one's mentioned my favorites, "Spanish Joint" and "Left and Right". Just the intros to each of those songs makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

I think in that other thread I talked about this as non-climax sex music, which still sounds about right to me.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 21:38 (8 years ago) Permalink

I just finished listening to it again. It always seems too short to me.

I won $5 on a bet with my roomy not too long ago on the fact that, yes Kevin, Charlie Hunter does play on this album. A lot.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 21:55 (8 years ago) Permalink

"spanish joint" is one of my favs, too. i remember seeing some brief documentary (on BET, i think) around the time when this came out. "behind the scenes" type thing. they played "spanish joint" for eric clapton, and he was blown away. it's always cool to see musicians, esp those you wouldn't think were even aware of one another, expressing awe for another musician's work.

― ()ops (()()ps), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 22:14 (8 years ago) Permalink

I've often wondered: is the D'Angelo playing on that Sanborne/Clapton New Year's Show Bootleg THE diamond D? The one singing on "Use Me"?

― Forksclovetofu (Forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 1 March 2005 22:21 (8 years ago) Permalink

3 years pass...

This album on the boombox guarantees I will get something done around my house, be it the dishes or cunnilingus.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Tuesday, March 1, 2005 2:20 PM (3 years ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

― caek, Monday, 26 January 2009 13:50 (4 years ago) Permalink

^^^thats a pretty good recommendation

i like voodoo but i get a sense it was dangelo really trying to make an album he thought he 'should' make, and be the type of artist he was trying to be, rather than just be him...

― uk grime faggot (titchyschneiderMk2), Monday, 26 January 2009 14:03 (4 years ago) Permalink

2 months pass...

this album has a crazy detailed wikipedia page btw

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voodoo_(album)

― Plaxico (I know, right?), Wednesday, 8 April 2009 09:29 (4 years ago) Permalink

2 years pass...

this thread is a bit sad

pretty much my favourite album of all time, the slow release hooks and choruses are masterful. So many fantastic tunes

― merked, Sunday, 29 May 2011 23:50 (1 year ago) Permalink

Just listening to this today for the first time in years while cleaning the house. Great album.

― Professor Respect, Monday, 30 May 2011 02:11 (1 year ago) Permalink

i like voodoo but i get a sense it was dangelo really trying to make an album he thought he 'should' make, and be the type of artist he was trying to be, rather than just be him...

― uk grime faggot (titchyschneiderMk2), Monday, January 26, 2009 2:03 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

haha such a titchy post

― lebroner (D-40), Monday, 30 May 2011 02:33 (1 year ago) Permalink

maybe the single best album i've listened to due to ILM enthusiasm. heard it for the first time only a couple years back (smdh).

― contenderizer, Monday, 30 May 2011 02:37 (1 year ago) Permalink

2nd best album ever.

― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Monday, 30 May 2011 02:59 (1 year ago) Permalink

dunno, maybe best album ever

― WHO THE FUCK READS THE (a hoy hoy), Monday, 30 May 2011 03:32 (1 year ago) Permalink

These 'slow release hooks' must be really subtle because this album still washes over me. Must try harder (I loved Brown Sugar fwiw).

― sam500, Monday, 30 May 2011 03:51 (1 year ago) Permalink

Geez, maybe I need to revisit. Bought it used three or four years back a looong time after I'd first considered purchasing it, and it just didn't connect for me. It might have something to do with D'Angelo's tic of singing every line a little more than hair behind the beat, a neat idea in theory which ends up ratcheting everything up another order of difficulty (it's forbidding enough to begin with with). Chances are that I just don't get it, but something Dave Marsh said in an interview a few years back stuck with me - he suggested that "Voodoo" was basically a failed attempt to capture the vibe of "There's A Riot Goin' On." Generally I don't trust Marsh on music after the 1980's, but I'm a giant "Riot" fan and "Voodoo" still kinda leaves me cold.

― thewufs, Monday, 30 May 2011 05:23 (1 year ago) Permalink

It took a long time to connect with me and Marsh is wrong.

― The Reverend, Monday, 30 May 2011 05:25 (1 year ago) Permalink

i mostly see it as a successful attempt to capture the vibe of a d'angelo album

― contenderizer, Monday, 30 May 2011 05:25 (1 year ago) Permalink

Ha, well I'll check it out again, then. Does he do that behind-the-beat thing on "Brown Sugar" too?

― thewufs, Monday, 30 May 2011 06:06 (1 year ago) Permalink

its a 'vibe' album largely, not a song one (though yes, it does have a few great songs on it).

― titchy (titchyschneiderMk2), Monday, 30 May 2011 14:55 (1 year ago) Permalink

its not really trying to recreate the riot atmosphere exactly, but it is something similar, that same sort of very slurred, hazy, drunken kind of vocals and ambience, though the clarity of the sonics are far too good to = riot. the main prob with voodoo is that cos it took so long to make and nothing has come after it you can throw a million things at it (fair and unfair) and it has to stack up to all of them, rather than simply be an evolutionary, feeling-my-way-around-for-something-new album which is what it seemed to be.

― titchy (titchyschneiderMk2), Monday, 30 May 2011 15:18 (1 year ago) Permalink

this album is so much more about sex than 'riot'

― lebroner (D-40), Monday, 30 May 2011 16:56 (1 year ago) Permalink

True true

― thewufs, Monday, 30 May 2011 21:24 (1 year ago) Permalink

Quit thinking about it so much and just vibe out to it.

― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Monday, 30 May 2011 21:33 (1 year ago) Permalink

Skipping 235 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

^was coming here to post that piece, too slow

― an old penis drawing is now "new and notable" (forksclovetofu), Monday, 28 January 2013 05:31 (3 months ago) Permalink

Is that really him?

― tsrobodo, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:37 (3 months ago) Permalink

nah jokes

― trench marianas (some dude), Monday, 28 January 2013 05:39 (3 months ago) Permalink

No, not me.

I try to waste my time with people that are clearly only cogs.

And imagine writing for the Village Voice. I'd pretty much have to become the person that I want to punch on the bus every morning before even considering it.

I will, however, take this opportunity to plug my real blog: http://austintayeshus.blogspot.com/

Warning: no posts about D'Angelo v. Maxwell there.

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:43 (3 months ago) Permalink

TRY NOT.

Jeez, as if you guys didn't hate me enough already.

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:43 (3 months ago) Permalink

listening to blacksummersnight for the first time o_o

― Butt Trump tweet (Matt P), Monday, 28 January 2013 05:47 (3 months ago) Permalink

Flag post.

― Zero Dark 33⅓: The Final Insult (Eric H.), Monday, 28 January 2013 05:47 (3 months ago) Permalink

sorry, a little off-topic but at least i didn't post my blog. xp

― Butt Trump tweet (Matt P), Monday, 28 January 2013 05:48 (3 months ago) Permalink

listening to blacksummersnight for the first time o_o

That bad, huh?

Why don't you, Matt?

(and to be fair, at least no one accused you of writing for the Village Voice)

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:49 (3 months ago) Permalink

i'm just glad that i have so much more maxwell in my future. and d'angelo.

xp fuck off retard

― Butt Trump tweet (Matt P), Monday, 28 January 2013 05:50 (3 months ago) Permalink

Ooops, you actually *do* write for the Village Voice?

(my initial invitation to post your link was genuine)

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:52 (3 months ago) Permalink

troll

― The Reverend, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:55 (3 months ago) Permalink

xp
Ahh. Seemed too convenient.

xp
Some fawn over Maxwell others fixate on D'angelo. Stop acting as if there's a stock narrative to this.

These are two fiercely talented, multifaceted artists and your boneheaded blanket declarations of Maxwell's superiority does neither any justice.

― tsrobodo, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:56 (3 months ago) Permalink

Troll?

Me?

Hardly.

Just a kid who bought Voodoo when it was being touted as the next big thing and felt duped.

I will argue that D'Angelo is not talented, nor "multifacted."

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 05:58 (3 months ago) Permalink

Besides, if I was trolling, don't you think I'd be the one accusing other forum members of authoring unfavorable blog posts?

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:00 (3 months ago) Permalink

stop

― queef ka queef (Spottie_Ottie_Dope), Monday, 28 January 2013 06:00 (3 months ago) Permalink

I will argue that D'Angelo is not talented, nor "multifacted."

And I will laugh at you.

― The Reverend, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:01 (3 months ago) Permalink

Yeah I'm done.

― tsrobodo, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:04 (3 months ago) Permalink

your blog posts and postings in this thread make me wanna give you a big hug and introduce you to tessa netting

― an old penis drawing is now "new and notable" (forksclovetofu), Monday, 28 January 2013 06:06 (3 months ago) Permalink

Oh dear, how outcast am I?

Woe is me.

What shall I do?

Oh right: listen to Maxwell's wonderful music. And think about how I saw him in concert.

I laugh when D'Angelo releases nothing in 2013.

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:09 (3 months ago) Permalink

pwn

― ❏❐❑❒ (gr8080), Monday, 28 January 2013 06:14 (3 months ago) Permalink

I've seen Maxwell in concert too bubba, funnily enough it didn't make me hate D'Angelo.

― The Reverend, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:20 (3 months ago) Permalink

That is funny because I don't hate D'Angelo.

I just see his ever so obvious flaws.

And that's without having seen him attempting to play a guitar in person.

(hiyoooo!)

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:31 (3 months ago) Permalink

But honestly, look at the songs writes: they're aimless and non-directional. Really not good.

xpost: still too busy with my post no-limit romanticizing
― queef ka queef (Spottie_Ottie_Dope), Sunday, January 27, 2013

I missed that. Glad to know someone's keeping tabs on me here.

― Austin, Monday, 28 January 2013 06:35 (3 months ago) Permalink

And that's without having seen him attempting to play a guitar in person.

measuring guitar playing ability, if not entirely objective, is at least a bit quantifiable. he plays the fucking guitar.

― Garth Brooks In ... The Life of (Sufjan Grafton), Monday, 28 January 2013 06:44 (3 months ago) Permalink

Hey I brought brews for everybody, lets all chill and watch a Prince concert film from 1993

― Raymond Cummings, Monday, 28 January 2013 11:46 (3 months ago) Permalink

did you?

http://lightintheattic.net/releases/809-voodoo

― Garth Brooks In ... The Life of (Sufjan Grafton), Sunday, January 27, 2013 10:44 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

THANK YOU

― keef qua keef (Jordan), Monday, 28 January 2013 13:34 (3 months ago) Permalink

1 month passes...

http://www.brooklynbowl.com/event/234209
AAAAUUUUUGHGGH just found out about this, not sure when it was announced but holy fuck i am making so many calls

― forks is lucky he didn't get stabbed over a marilyn monroe cd (forksclovetofu), Friday, 1 March 2013 18:56 (2 months ago) Permalink

whoa

― queeple qua queeple (Jordan), Friday, 1 March 2013 18:58 (2 months ago) Permalink

i got a ticket, i hope it's not just a bunch of covers

― J0rdan S., Friday, 1 March 2013 19:08 (2 months ago) Permalink

it'll be a bunch of covers, but not "just". hopefully.

― queeple qua queeple (Jordan), Friday, 1 March 2013 19:10 (2 months ago) Permalink

fucking hell, how'd you hear about it jordan? was this a twitter thing?

― forks is lucky he didn't get stabbed over a marilyn monroe cd (forksclovetofu), Friday, 1 March 2013 19:16 (2 months ago) Permalink

?uestlove tweeted a couple days ago that something big was happening at BB and tickets were going to go super fast.

― queeple qua queeple (Jordan), Friday, 1 March 2013 19:20 (2 months ago) Permalink

over/under on "untitled" going longer than 90 seconds

― ❏❐❑❒ (gr8080), Saturday, 2 March 2013 02:03 (2 months ago) Permalink

fucking hell, how'd you hear about it jordan? was this a twitter thing?

― forks is lucky he didn't get stabbed over a marilyn monroe cd (forksclovetofu), Friday, March 1, 2013 2:16 PM (7 hours ago) Bookmark

yeah i saw someone in my timeline RT something about it so i rushed to get ticks

― J0rdan S., Saturday, 2 March 2013 02:32 (2 months ago) Permalink

found a connect who could sell me a single; i'm doing cartwheels
i've literally been waiting fifteen years to see this guy live.
sarg u wanna meet up?

― forks is lucky he didn't get stabbed over a marilyn monroe cd (forksclovetofu), Saturday, 2 March 2013 03:55 (2 months ago) Permalink

i can't believe you just called sarge "sarg"

― some dude, Saturday, 2 March 2013 03:56 (2 months ago) Permalink

i was g00glepr00fing, way to faux pas

― forks is lucky he didn't get stabbed over a marilyn monroe cd (forksclovetofu), Saturday, 2 March 2013 04:04 (2 months ago) Permalink

sarg tankian

― kendrick delmar - good kid, f.U.C.k. you (The Reverend), Saturday, 2 March 2013 04:11 (2 months ago) Permalink

SargDun

― some dude, Saturday, 2 March 2013 12:40 (2 months ago) Permalink

well that was fucking great

― the 'dirty sprite' is implied (forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 06:51 (2 months ago) Permalink

so you kicked it with sarge

― ❏❐❑❒ (gr8080), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 12:10 (2 months ago) Permalink

how does it feel

― Shuwopley (some dude), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 12:14 (2 months ago) Permalink

d and ?uest went on two hours late. did covers of cosmic slop and new position, lotsa new material and most of it sounded great. Africa, the root, lady, alright. was pretty much just what i wanted. very noodly, very jam session. dude sounds great.

― the 'dirty sprite' is implied (forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 14:49 (2 months ago) Permalink

― the 'dirty sprite' is implied (forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 15:03 (2 months ago) Permalink

― queeple qua queeple (Jordan), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 16:08 (2 months ago) Permalink

― queeple qua queeple (Jordan), Tuesday, 5 March 2013 16:17 (2 months ago) Permalink

the "lady" jam was amazing

his voice sounded great all night but esp on "the line"

― J0rdan S., Tuesday, 5 March 2013 16:24 (2 months ago) Permalink

2 weeks pass...

https://soundcloud.com/soundbetter/dangelo-questlove-brooklynbowl-complete

― i petted a bodega cat today. (forksclovetofu), Monday, 25 March 2013 01:38 (1 month ago) Permalink

less "new music" and more "songs that were covers that I couldn't name" than i thought

― i petted a bodega cat today. (forksclovetofu), Monday, 25 March 2013 02:13 (1 month ago) Permalink

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