don't suppose anyone ever came across a matte black truck NO DJ higher than 128/160?
― r|t|c, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:46 (twelve years ago) link
the first sexual "put it on me" => the second demand for commitment "put this ring on me""freeze on me" as in freezing her out/giving her jewellery/giving her a ring"get on your knees" as violent (sexual?) order then as (violent) demand for love, which sums up the way kalenna's approach to love is inextricably linked to displays of temper and violence and demonstrations of her power across the whole mixtape
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:49 (twelve years ago) link
I really haven't given the Kalenna mixtape fair time.
― hologram ned raggett (The Reverend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:50 (twelve years ago) link
... okay listening to this now
I do like this song, but that quoted section is not particularly powerful or overwhelming to me? Furthermore, there doesn't actually seem to be any confusion or contradiction in that second verse; she basically is like "I want you like crazy, let's stop fucking around and get married so we can get back to fucking".
The more interesting thing to me is the declaration of strength through vulnerability; like, the whole song is a pleading "don't break up with me" monologue but everything still functions on her terms. She's deciding it's time for her to be vulnerable, she's willing to change if he changes, she can't fathom life without him so obviously he should marry her.
The song is summed up by:
I want youYou need meSo stay, baby
Everything else in the song speaks directly to this central thesis statement.
― an independent online phenomenon (DJP), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:50 (twelve years ago) link
listen to "Poison," that's the standout imo
― some dude, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:51 (twelve years ago) link
btw I like her voice a lot more than Dawn's partially because I feel like I can actually hear it rather than having it drowning in autotune (part of that is backing track arrangement smoothing out some of the edges autotune puts on vocals)
holy shit "Poison" is great btw
― an independent online phenomenon (DJP), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:53 (twelve years ago) link
kind of also like the way the focus is so much on the cranking of wu-tang and keeping her cup filled up in "matte black truck" that even though it's just a threat in the song, kalenna's focus kind of wills it into existence, which foreshadows the entire final stretch of the mixtape in which she does get thrown over and fucked up
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:55 (twelve years ago) link
just relistened to 'matte black truck' and kalenna wasn't nearly as fierce as I remembered, or was made out to be itt
still a great song tho
― dayo, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:57 (twelve years ago) link
the final stretch is "pain & alcohol"/"poison"/"the morning after"/"party & bullshit" dan - they're all amazing in quite similar ways, the first two are kind of secret powerballads and the last two spacey hermetically sealed trapped-in-your-own-head club joints
she sings the final section of "pain & alcohol" from beyond the grave, a trick i always appreciate
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 20:58 (twelve years ago) link
I mentioned this in my review, but I really like the way Dawn uses autotune. Just lots of layers of both natural and autotuned vocals that complement each other, like she's half feeling human and half tragic android trying to understand human emotion.
― hologram ned raggett (The Reverend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:00 (twelve years ago) link
I pretty much think she's using it for better effect than anyone else tbh.
― hologram ned raggett (The Reverend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:01 (twelve years ago) link
^^^
― Tim F, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:02 (twelve years ago) link
fierce is nowhere near the right word for "Matte Black Truck" IMO, I'd say she's closer to "imperious" than anything else
I really need to remember to go track these down when I get home
― an independent online phenomenon (DJP), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:02 (twelve years ago) link
Also that stretch Lex just mentioned is def. my favourite stretch of Chamber of Diaries.
― Tim F, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:03 (twelve years ago) link
I didn't even realize dawn was autotuning!
― dayo, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:06 (twelve years ago) link
listening to "the morning after" right now and it's just stunning - her UGHHHH after the popeye/spinach line, the "ayo technology" noises that pop up halfway through, the way it all pivots around her singing "i wanna feel like i've been with a rapper the morning after" in tones of anguish and desperation
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:06 (twelve years ago) link
and the way her voice suddenly switches from autotune in-the-club harshness to the sweetness of "hold on to my life" in "party & bullshit"
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:09 (twelve years ago) link
yeah, I totally didn't notice the autotune on Armor On... besides "Automatic," but it fits with the concept there.
WRT Chamber of DIaries, "Matte Black Truck" is far and away the best song... whereas Armor On is consistently stunning.
― Peace (peaceful) (The Brainwasher), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:12 (twelve years ago) link
kind of saddens me slightly that its exclusion from armor on means "december sky" will always be overlooked
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:14 (twelve years ago) link
lex you are sad when anything gets overlooked
― dayo, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:15 (twelve years ago) link
I feel the same away about "Stuck On Mad," which is secretly my favorite Dawn song.
― Peace (peaceful) (The Brainwasher), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:15 (twelve years ago) link
Here's your shit you can TAKE IT IT BACK.... I don't want your love like that
― Peace (peaceful) (The Brainwasher), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:16 (twelve years ago) link
yeah stuck on mad is GREAT
― dayo, Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:17 (twelve years ago) link
damn, I never heard that before! amazing.
― hologram ned raggett (The Reverend), Tuesday, 17 April 2012 21:52 (twelve years ago) link
I would not have foreseen that 2 of my favourite albums of 2012 would both include heavy use of autotune and also both include the word "cowabunga" in a track.
― pandemic, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:12 (twelve years ago) link
what's the other one?
― Number None, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:14 (twelve years ago) link
Future 'Pluto', not sure which track, which is lame of me cos I've heard it 10-15 times so far this week.
― pandemic, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:24 (twelve years ago) link
It's on there somewhere though.
― pandemic, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:25 (twelve years ago) link
need to give that a proper listen myself
― Number None, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:27 (twelve years ago) link
he says "i live a cowabunga lifestyle" on "truth gonna hurt you"
― yologram (J0rdan S.), Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:31 (twelve years ago) link
no complete j0rdan s. transcript, no credibility
― some former lust object you've shamefully forgotten (some dude), Wednesday, 18 April 2012 16:34 (twelve years ago) link
I should have known J0rdan would know ;)
― pandemic, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 17:32 (twelve years ago) link
Seriously what Dawn and Dupri do with rhythm on "Heaven" and the outro is just O_O. Someone should book them a residency at the PanoramaBar.
― Tim F, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 22:10 (twelve years ago) link
druski
― r|t|c, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 22:23 (twelve years ago) link
Argh Druski.
Haha I would have loved if it was actually Dupri though.
― Tim F, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 22:25 (twelve years ago) link
I like Armor On a lot but it *sounds* really poor.
― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 22:55 (twelve years ago) link
look at her on the cover. she is a medieval paladin heading off to war on holy love's great crusades. dupri's 1472 production values weren't to come for another few hunna years. the fuck kinda sound quality you expect?
― r|t|c, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:11 (twelve years ago) link
:D alright then
― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:13 (twelve years ago) link
But, for real though.
― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:16 (twelve years ago) link
maybe you have a bad copy?
― dayo, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:18 (twelve years ago) link
The one off iTunes, so not a lift or anything.
― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:19 (twelve years ago) link
ah okay. I think it sounds fine
― dayo, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:25 (twelve years ago) link
The bass clips out on just about every song. I really want to turn it up loud but it becomes too distracting for me.
― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Wednesday, 18 April 2012 23:39 (twelve years ago) link
The strings at the end of "Heaven" are so epic.
― hologram ned raggett (The Reverend), Thursday, 19 April 2012 00:29 (twelve years ago) link
yeah i really have no idea what issues anyone could have with the sound quality of Armor On. although maybe i haven't turned it up loud enough to hear the bass clipping? i dunno
― some dude, Thursday, 19 April 2012 00:50 (twelve years ago) link
could be an issue with your stereo? maybe not likely if you can pump other songs without clipping
― dayo, Thursday, 19 April 2012 01:09 (twelve years ago) link
just had a quick go-through on (nice) headphones - doesn't seem to clip at all, or clip anymore than similarly voiced R&B tracks from other artists
― dayo, Thursday, 19 April 2012 01:28 (twelve years ago) link
Will check it again at work tomorrow.
― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Thursday, 19 April 2012 01:36 (twelve years ago) link
yeah got a slight massive attack vibe from them
the bass in "automatic" gets me so hype
― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Thursday, 19 April 2012 07:29 (twelve years ago) link
The whole record, well most of it, is very 90s coffee dance, in a good way. There's kind of a superior quality Tracy Thorn feel to a lot of it, although Dawn is a much more captivating vocal presence.
― Homosexual Satan Wasp (Matt DC), Thursday, 19 April 2012 09:35 (twelve years ago) link