AltWeeklies Wire
Lil Wayne Proves He Can Make a Cohesive Albumnew
Tha Carter III is pop rap to giggle to and marvel at, from "Phone Home," where Wayne gives his outer-space shtick the full treatment, to "Misunderstood," in which he disses Al Sharpton and imparts that he lives next door to a child molester.
Mates of State Satisfy with More Catchy Cutsnew
For the most part brushing aside the experimental flourishes that informed some of their earlier work, here the two instead focus on what they do best, setting oft-devastating lyrics to electric-organ- and drum-based tunes.
Death Cab for Cutie Already Made This Albumnew
Narrow Stairs sounds just like Plans, right down to the obvious production, weepy lyrics and inoffensive guitar, continuing Death Cab's tradition of aping Morrissey lyrics without Moz's counterintuitive turns of phrase or dark jokes.
Bob Mould Sounds Sugary Once Morenew
Although remnants of his electronic era linger on District Line, it mainly follows the playbook of his last CD, Body of Song, sounding more like his earlier stuff than something you'd hear at a club.
Tags: Bob Mould, District Line
Souja Boy May be a Good Marketer, But ...new
This is what rap would have sounded like if it had been invented in the nineteenth century: simple snaps, barely pronounced syllables, minimal percussion and a guy yelling "Youuuuuu!" in the background.
Tags: Soulja Boy, Souljaboytellem.com
