Tuesday, 24 June 1997 |
Written by
Jason Karsh
|

artist:
Wyclef Jean
album:
The Carnival
format:
CD,
label:
Ruffhouse/Columbia Records
performance:
8
sound
8.5
reviewed by:
Jason Karsh
All
right, we admit it, this album's been out for months and we're just now
getting with it. The rap--no pun intended--on Wyclef has always been
that he's been carried by The Fugees' Lauryn Hill, 'the only real
rapper' in the group who 'carried them to their success.' So pervasive
was this idea that there has even been a public outcry for her to ditch
the trio and go solo. Still, she said it would never happen, the group
said it would never happen, and they provided a united front. True to
those roots, even as Wyclef goes semi-solo there are no known plans for
a break-up and Fugee brethren Hill and Parkazrel 'Pras' Michel are the
co-executive producers of this album. An album which thankfully never
sets out to prove that Wyclef is a great rapper.
Tuesday, 17 June 1997 |
Written by
Jerry Del Colliano
|

The War Report, Penalty Recordings
| Performance 8 | Sound 7.5 |
Imagine
a meeting of two of the more infamous criminal minds in history. Add a
dash of thug life, a tablespoon or two of twenty-something aggression,
and boil with a subtext of racially polarized America and you'll begin
to understand this album. Then, perhaps you'll be able to take a shot
at comprehending the title figures in this seventy minute return to
beats and rhymes.
Tuesday, 17 June 1997 |
Written by
Jason Karsh
|

artist:
Ben Harper
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album:
The Will To Live
format:
CD
label:
Virgin Records
performance:
8.5
sound
8.5
reviewed by:
Jason Karsh
What
do you do with an artist who's too alternative for 'adult contemporary'
and not enough twang for country? Someone who's got far too much soul
for 'alternative' and just enough folk to miss R & B? I empathize
with the plight those marketing this album have. However, if you ever
wanted to have an accurate definition of 'alternative music' this would
be it. A singer/songwriter and a band that slip through all the labels
at your local record store. Ben Harper is hard to file away. And his
album is harder to dismiss.
Tuesday, 17 June 1997 |
Written by
Jason Karsh
|

Love, Peace & Happiness
Universal Records
| Performance 6 | Sound 6 |
I
once read a review of a soundtrack featuring an L.B. song which said
that if you wanted to know what that song sounded like you should go
pick up any of their albums and play any cut, implying that it's
impossible to discern one L.B. song from another. Well, I won't go that
far, but I will say that you either like this group or you don't. You
know what you're getting before track number one even starts to spin.
In this respect, they're similar to say Gangstarr, or A Tribe Called
Quest, you either want to by their albums or you don't. And while
singles such as "Summer Time" and "Me & My Crazy World" may be more
radio friendly, don't be fooled the Lost Boyz are unchanged as ever.
For my part, though, I've never found the Lost ...
Tuesday, 03 June 1997 |
Written by
Jason Karsh
|

Wu-Tang Forever, Loud Records
| Performance 9 | Sound 8.5 |
If
you like rap--not bouncy radio-diluted hip-hop, not some guy rapping a
remake of a seventies hit, but actual M.C.-ing you should, at the very
least appreciate the Wu. Think about actual raps over tightly mixed
beats, think about buying this album. The only act in rap that can not
only field nine M.C.'s, but juggle them successfully finds record store
shelves with their second album and it is simply too good to be
ignored. Yes it is a double-disc, but the Wu's got rappers to fill the
bill. Hardly a number passes without a verbal display of microphone
mastery by one or more Wu brother, superior RZA production, or both.