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Rihlana's Best Of 2016 | THANK YOU PAGE 34
Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 19,167
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All I Need is one of the few great tracks in Foxes's album.
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 5,091
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Thank you for all your comments! I really appreciate it. I will now reveal my #6 and #7 albums of 2016.
Rihplies to comments (Albums #8 - #10)
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 5,091
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#7: Josef Salvat - Night Swim
I stumbled upon Josef after reading an articles entitled, "The male Lana Del Rey" Naturally, I was intrigued, so I listened to his most popular song, "Open Season" and I was pleasantly surprised. I decided to purchase Night Swim and gave it a listen and I have not looked back. Josef takes on the role of the lover, crooning over sleek production. He is also a fantastic songwriter and his vocals are splendid. This album feels as though it effortlessly glides through an array of emotions such as lovelorn, bold and vulnerable. Josef has delivered a devastatingly capturing debut and I am so excited to follow him on his musical journey.
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 5,091
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#6: Troye Sivan - "Blue Neighbourhood"
When I decided on my album cut off of between Dec 4, 2015 and Dec 4, 2016, I thought that I would not be able to include Blue Neighbourhood, but luckily for Troye, it was released on Dec 4, 2015. As I have said so many times before this, Troye's music is something I can relate to and he feels like a voice for our generation. Blue Neighbourhood touches upon some truly poignant topics such as LGBTQIA+ suicide and self-acceptance. I am forever indebted to Troye for giving me this album because to see somebody so unapologetic about who they are is honestly inspiring to say the least. The layered electropop production, coupled with Troye's soulful vocals makes for an anthemic and atmospheric record. It retains an incredibly youthful feel, but seems beyond its years. Above all else, it is highly personal and authentic and that is what I appreciate the most. Thank you, Troye.
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Member Since: 8/18/2013
Posts: 61,634
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The Altar making your Top 10 Love it so much, barely any filler
I didn't like All I Need that much except for a few songs It's a shame cause Glorious was a great album
Glory Glory Days didn't deserve the mention tho Mind Of Mine and Thank You have some cute songs
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,973
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Blue Neighborhood is a masterpiece. Troye was my #1 Best New Artist last year.
Wild, Too Good, Heaven. His trinity
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Member Since: 3/14/2013
Posts: 37,294
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Troye
I like Josef too I should check out ha album
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 3,111
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Troye has some cute songs, but his album just don't clicked with me
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Member Since: 5/23/2007
Posts: 65,087
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I still need to listen to Blue Neighbourhood in full
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Member Since: 7/26/2009
Posts: 21,249
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Troye album is cute
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Member Since: 10/5/2009
Posts: 137,162
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Blue Neighbourhood Troye did that. His EP left my weave tattered, then this completely scalped me!
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 5,091
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Thank you for all of your comments! I will now reveal my #4 and #5 albums of 2016 with review style commentary. Stay tuned
Rihplies to comments (Albums #6 - #7)
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 8/11/2007
Posts: 63,796
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 5,091
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#5: The Weeknd - Starboy
"Every time you try to forget who I am, I'll be right there to remind you again."
After releasing two major LPs in 2013 and 2015, The Weeknd has returned to the music landscape with the release of Starboy, an 18-track journey through themes such as sex, vulnerability and codependency.
Many people have lambasted the album for the amount of songs on this record, and I cannot help but agree, to a certain extent. Some songs here do not feel as though they contribute enough to the narrative of fragile luxury and anxious stardom to warrant a place on the already overflowing track list. However, there is a level of self-awareness across the record that makes it seem as though The Weeknd is deliberately serving his flaws on a silver platter for people to deconstruct and if that takes more tracks than usual to do, then he should be congratulated on his artistic integrity.
The production on this album is a strong point. On the track "A Lonely Night", an intense electronic breakdown in the bridge provides an epic crescendo that really packs a punch. Similarly, Daft Punk's signature sound can be heard on the smooth "I Feel It Coming" and it's not too heavy handed which keeps the track feeling light and airy.
The lyricism on this album cannot be understated as well. His writing style and the thematics still separate his from his contemporaries and he gives an insight into both the highs and the devastating lows of fame and power. Whilst not as focused sonically as his previous album, Starboy is still reflective of an artist who is coming to terms with their stardom and the repercussions of such realisations.
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Member Since: 5/27/2016
Posts: 5,091
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#4: Lady Gaga - Joanne
“I might not be flawless, but you know I got a diamond heart.”
Joanne is the fifth studio album by pop star Lady Gaga. After 2013 bought us the experimental and genre-hopping ARTPOP, Gaga went seemingly quiet on the solo music front, instead opting to focus on other creative outlets such as acting in American Horror Story and recording a jazz duet record with Tony Bennett. Throughout the years, it seemed as through Lady Gaga began to trade out the meat dresses for simple and stunning ones, instead focussing on the substance instead of the theatrics. It was the beginning of a more demure Stefani and it comes as no surprise that it has translated into her music and has birthed Joanne.
A reference to her late aunty, Joanne features music of a more subdued and refined nature than its predecessors. Instead of brashly and brazenly exclaiming that “you’re just a pig inside a human body” as she did on ARTPOP track “Swine”, she has opted for subtlety in her lyrics without reducing the impact and gravity of her message. This subtlety ultimately makes it easier to connect with Lady Gaga’s emotion, and the record is all the better for that (a fundamental problem with ARTPOP). On tracks such as “Joanne” and “Grigio Girls”, the relative delicateness in terms of vocal delivery makes sure that the emotion remains the focus, remaining authentic and earned. This can be contrasted to tracks such as “Angel Down” and “Million Reasons” where she progressively becomes more aggressive in her vocals, but this serves the same effect, especially considering the topics. She is not attempting to create faux sentiments by haphazardly overstepping in terms of her vocals (which some lamented for example, on her ARTPOP track “Dope”). However, her vocals are still the highlight of this album. On the Florence-assisted “Hey Girl”, she effortlessly intertwines her voice with her counterpart to create vocal nirvana (This reviewer agrees with Spectrum Pulse that it would have lifted this song further if the two singers harmonised more often, not only to showcase their vocals, but to support the subject matter of the song).
The production on the album, handled mainly by Mark Ronson, cannot be understated either. On “John Wayne”, the production takes on a cool Western vibe to create a true album highlight. The build-up to the chorus of “Diamond Heart” is also another triumph, and is ultra-effective as an album opener and overall, Ronson rarely missteps throughout the album.
As the initial quote in this review, extracted from the chorus of the track “Diamond Heart” suggests, whilst this album might showcase Gaga’s powerful sentiments, it does not do so without flaws. Tracks such as “Just Another Day” seem tacked on without contributing much more than a way to fill up space. “Come To Mama” also seems redundant given that it has a similar subject matter to that of the superior “Hey Girl”, just with more universality. However, these minor faults are more than made up for by songs such as the unique “Perfect Illusion” which sees Gaga’s crescendo into full blown realisation that it was not love all along, but merely a figment and “Dancin’ In Circles” which coyly pulls in back during the chorus, keeping the listener wanting more.
Overall, Joanne is a triumph. It does not conform to the stereotypical archetype that Gaga has previously created for herself. She needed this album to happen for her to finally feel in control and she takes the wheel confidently. By reining herself in, she has been able to refine her message, whether that is personal, political or otherwise. Joanne does not merely feel like a costume. Even if that is what Gaga intended, she has worn it so well that it seems to naturally fit into her trajectory without seeming like a phase. Through both initial subtlety and subsequent powerhouse vocals, Gaga's diamond heart shines brightly and she is able to incite real emotion in the listener without the listener questioning its authenticity.
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 8/11/2007
Posts: 63,796
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Cute bops
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Member Since: 8/18/2013
Posts: 61,634
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Starboy has a few bops like Rockin and False Alarm
Joanne is... well... it's creative I love Dancin' In Circles and Million Reasons is growing on me a lot but overall it was disappointing
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,973
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Yes at Starboy!!
I loved PI but Joanne didn't do it for me
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Member Since: 10/5/2009
Posts: 137,162
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Starboy Abel did a great job on that one. Way better than BBTM in pretty much every way possible. Plus there's way more bops and standout tracks!
Joanne Just a phenomenal album, there's really nothing else to say.
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 22,126
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Abel, Josef
ur Review on Joanne was a nice read sis & well written
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