Beyonce - 4

was anyone else surprised this only got an 8.0 from pfork?

did anyone else give a shit?

I really don't understand how US radio works, but it's probably preferable to the UK where every song will be automatically playlisted on every relevant station purely by virtue of being by Beyonce.

terius displays his pitchfork rating on his website as a badge of honour btw

"best thing i never had"

i really like this one and i'm not surprised it's catching on or that it resonates with lots of people. i'm confused that it's been specifically criticised for being bitter and petulant - it reminds me of the reaction to kelly clarkson's "never again", as though clarkson had somehow committed a giant faux pas by making an angry, bitter pop song - i got the distinct impression that people were demanding that pop should only be happy & uplifting.

beyoncé's been covering "you oughta know" live for a while. alanis morissette and her confessional/cathartic aesthetic may be considered both uncool and uncommercial right now (though if you think this, you're an idiot), but the audience is totally there to be tapped because it is REAL, and beyoncé understands real.

i don't know if it really 'resonates' that much or if it's just a new Beyonce single that's more radio-friendly than "Run The World" -- after "Irreplaceable" it just feels like more of the same tbh

there are critiques along those lines?? that is very weird to me. it doesn't even sound bitter to me. it sounds reflective and ultimately positive.

i thought songs putting other people down were pretty common.

it think it resonates and i think it sounds very different than irreplaceable.

it has a pretty distinct angle on a break-up from "irrepaceable" though

i think it sounds less spiteful and more like she is celebrating how far she's come

I just can't get over the Bruce Hornsbyisms

I mean, I do like "The Way It Is" but I never really had any desire to hear an R&B power vocal over it

i think there's spite in "bet it sucks to be you right now" and also in her delivery throughout. spite is not a bad thing!

very true - but the chorus and the music overall sounds so much more joyous and personal than irreplaceable, don't you think?

i wouldn't call either of them joyous at all

with "irreplaceable" i get the impression of someone who's actually still in love with him but knows rationally that she should end it, and how much better she is, but it still hurts, and she might cry when she's closed the door on him/when the song's over. it's pure head-over-heart.

with "best thing i never had" i get the impression of someone who isn't so over him that he's not on her mind, but i think she just wants to grind him down, she doesn't have any residual positive feelings left

weird, the singing in the chorus of "best thing" sounds very joyous to me. finding joy thru the pain, after a long journey.

I don't think there are exactly many layers to read into either song really but the best bit in Best Thing... is the sarcastic "boo-hoo".

i actually think the lyric/concept of "Best Thing" is pretty good and clever, i just dislike the production/melody, and it's probably the one song on the record where her vocals are TOO over the top and kind of ruin it. and even if it's not exactly the same sentiment as "Irreplaceable" it would feel more novel or less 'safe' if not coming after that song being one of her biggest hits.

this has been bugging me for a while but i basically don't understand why the single edit of "run the world (girls)" is on the actual released version of the record

i mean, the piano in the intro of the unedited version connects it more effectively to the rest of the record, i think? plus the drum hits that start the song are pretty similar to the drums that end "i was here"

i rly just think that song is hilarious bc while albums usually have 1 or 2 songs u rly don't like, it is kind of rare to have an album that is just so good RIGHT up until the very end and then BOOM

the One Terrible Song

it's like it is just begging to be lopped off

especially without the intro piano, it seems

Are you referring to "Girls" or the Diane Warren ballad? I prefer the former, which is at least a failed attempt at Beyonce-ness; the latter is treacle.

girls - it's the last song right?

"run the world" is preferable to "party" and "i was here" imo, though it definitely doesn't feel like part of the album to me

omg it's downright jarring!

i generally like the 'jarring uptempo album closer' thing in principle but obv it's only as good in practice as the song being used

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vXXiku0580&feature=channel_video_title

can't stop listening to "countdown"

i'll listen with you

it's kind of unreal

ha, @19:45 beyoncé says "every hipster loves countdown, that's their favorite song". she probably checked with her sister on that one.

lolll

Another pitfall in my quest to be a hipster.

hipsters otm (also R&B radio)

it is intense on headphones

At a red light a few minutes ago I was listening to "Countdown" and was all ME AND MY BOO IN MY BOO COUPE RIDIN'

(for a while I thought she said ME AND MY POOF POOF RIDIN')

i still think it's boof boof

yeah it's definitely "boof"

yeah I'm not sure I trust the lyric sheet I just read online.

it's probably my favorite thing by her (alongside "love on top") since "suga mama". so much stuff on 4 destroys i am... sasha fierce.

she don't fuss around with her f's

i sometimes sing "me and my BOOF and my BOOF BOOF WRITING", like she and jay-z are just sat at desks penning their next hits together

and then going into the vocal boof to sing it

they're not at desks -- they're sitting in a boof.

the girls video helps that song out a lot

it's really cute how they're at the desk together on her laptop in the documentary

i have opinions following the GMA live show but preemptive tl;dr : the woman has backup dancer charisma but she moves as well as anyone in the world, sings like a house on fire and is looking fucking awesome

I realised just how much I love this album when a loathsome local newspaper review (effectively: she has no sense of humour (?? did dude even listen to "Best Thing I Never Had" or "Countdown") and is no mary j blige so should stop trying to be soulful) made me tremble with barely suppressed rage.

there has been a whole lot of rage-inducing commentary written about this album/beyoncé of late

BTW Lex I don't think I mentioned how great your piece was (not least by comparison!).

Also before I read it I vaguely thought Kanye was saying "you got that swag sausage (something) swagu".

I didn't know what "swag sausage" might be but the thought of those two words together was quite upsetting.

thanks. the kanye verse is quite upsetting anyway.

also, http://twitter.com/ragusauce/status/81732910348120064

;_; ;_; ;_; ;_;

lmao @ that

lol