Tag Archive for 'Danity Kane'

FNMTV - Danity Kane, Bow Wow, Chromeo, and Toyko Police Club

Only 4 videos this week? FNMTV is really dropping the ball. Well, I don’t have a ton of time this weekend anyway, so our quickies will have to be even quicker.

Danity Kane - Bad Girl
Diddy’s girls make a mockery and tries to cash in on the comic book movie trend. Missy Elliot drops a verse too. Oh, and there are some costume changes that go by too fast to appreciate. Mannequins have more personality than these ladies.

Bow Wow - Marco Polo
Wow. I have way too much to say about this - so I’ll save it for this week’s full length music video review. Watch out for that early next week. short version: trite unrepentant tween garbage.

Chromeo - Momma’s Boy
This is a 2008 update of A-Ha’s Take on Me with a vocoder and without the falsetto) Not sure I dig the thematic content though. Seems a bit too Elektra/Odepius.

Tokyo Police Club - Graves (Live)
Hey TPC has anyone ever told you that you’re like a really shitty version of The Shins combined with The Strokes?

Chromeo wins the award for least terrible video this week.

Keri Hilson - Flashdancing Takes a Lot of Energy

Keri Hilson just released the video for the lead single Energy off her new album. I don’t know much about Keri, but it turns out she actually has been active for some time. I do know that Timbaland has been promoting her quite a bit these last few months though. So, how does the video stack up? Read on to find out.

The Track: When I realized this was the track from the Verizon commercial I’ve seen at the movies for the last 2 months, I almost shut it off. But I lingered. It turns out the worst part of the song is that keyboard intro before the bass really drops in. The beat is courtesy of The Runaways and not Timbaland. No guest verse, no vocoder, no screechy notes, no skits, no dance breakdown, none of that stuff. It is listenable, and so far, I haven’t noticed the severely flawed logic present in other current hits such as Danity Kane’s Damaged. Love it or hate it - prepare to hear this in the club all effing summer long.


The Video:
Whoever wrote the treatment for this video watches a lot of HBO. This is Million Dollar Baby meets Flashdance meets The Pussy Cat Dolls. Confused? There is boxing, a wardrobe stolen from Jennifer Beals’ closet, and wet hair / dancing that reminds me of Nicole Scherzinger. Perhaps she rubbed off on Keri during the Scream shoot?

It probably went something like this: Ok, We’ll dress up Keri in something totally backdrop-inappropriate and she will alternatively spar and makeout with her trainer; he must have tattoos. Oh - she knocks some other chick out too, and at the end she gets ugly highlights and leaves.

Keri’s silver tapsuit (is that what it’s called?) is as ridiculous as her interpretive dancing/voguing, and I swear I saw some Happy Hands Club choreography in there. It was kind of hard to watch this without wanting to laugh. Hilson does look good and is clearly doing the damn thing, but I’m not sold.

The Bottom line: Energy is better heard and not seen.

Usher - There Is No Love In This Club

Sorry ladies and gents, it has been a long month and I apologize for not posting anything recently. I have this “day job” and it would be unkind to blog while on the clock. But, I am back like cooked crack.

Usher just dropped a new video: Love In This Club, perhaps you have heard of it. By now, you should be familiar with our criteria: beat, video, content, and vocals.

The Beat: When I first heard this, I thought I was listening to the world’s worst house / trance / techno / whatever track. The piano doesn’t fit and either does the dance breakdown. While it screams “remix me a million times”, I can not get into it. Yeah may have been the last good beat that Usher had - and that was a Lil Jon production!

The Video: Usher really must dig Jacksons, because this is not his first mini-movie music video. The concept: Usher hallucinates some cute girl in an empty club, parties with an bunch of celebrity cameos, does a little dance, and then magically she’s gone along with the club and he’s standing in a pile of rubble. Yup, totally ridiculous. It’s kind of like the Usher Raymond version of Thriller - only the girl is in control, there aren’t any zombies, and there is no redeeming or comedic value to it.

The cameos were irrelevant and homeboy jocs Kanye’s style. The sunglasses, the black leather jacket and outfit - all stolen from the Good Life video. Of course, Kanye cosigns with his cameo, so maybe it isn’t a big deal. The video overuses lens-flares more than the new Danity Kane joint and has an orange cast to it. Also, what is with the chains that the girls keep giving out? I don’t think that is ever explained.

On the positive side, the video doesn’t rely on product placement or slow closeups of iced out watches. Although, there was a great opportunity to plug Louboutin heels that went unutilized.

The Content: I won’t spend time on the chorus because there is nothing to say, though I will take issue Jeezy’s mediocre verse.

‘Bout to hit the club make a movie yeah rated R… blah blah blah something about being a trap star.

Jeezy, you really couldn’t find something to rhyme with Rated X? I’ve been to weddings with more scandalous dance floors than your average R-rated movie.

Also - ‘on the floor’ of the club? Have you ever looked at the floor of a nightclub? It’s gross. I’m fairly sure if you stare at the floor long enough you’ll contract the clap.

The Vocals: Does anyone really dig Jeezy’s flow? I do not. Usher could have gotten a much slicker MC to do the verse. I vote for Young Joc. T-Pain’s Bartender may have the Vocoder Virus - but it was infinitely better than this.

The Bottom Line: Seriously Usher Raymond, what the hell? This is by far the worst track I have heard this year. Crappy beat, ridiculous chorus, bad verses, poorly lit and photographed video, etc etc etc. The list just keeps on going. I’m sorry to hate so much, but I can’t help it!

Have a different point of view? Tell me all about it below!

Podcast Episode 024

Back in style as we talk about eggs, grammar, Kevin Smith movies, Estelle, American Boy, Day 26, Danity Kane, Bad Boy Records, songs about strippers, Teddy Pain, vocoders, Irina Palm, The Mist, Wedding Daze, Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins, Jason Biggs, Planet Terror, Death Proof, Grindhouse, Joox, Black Fist, Jordin Sparks, Chris Brown, Lil Mama, The Wire, Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron, Daniel Clowes, Mighty Avengers 12, Black Panther 39, Ms Marvel 25, X-Men Legacy 209, New Avengers 39, Skrulls, Secret Invasion, supervillain psychology, Galactus, Batman, Identity Crisis, Green Arrow, and way too much more.

 
 AudioShocker #24 [74:16m]: Play Now | Download