noizemagazine - Index

noizemagazine - noiZe Magazine Issue 58 October 2008 - Index

MUSIC REVIEWS
by Jamie Nicholes
WARM UP Michelle Williams Unexpected
While Sarah Palin's out there making religion look about as
heinous as possible, Michelle Williams shows the world (and
The Gays) that just because there's faith in her life, it doesn't
mean she's a hater. Following her first two devotional
albums, Michelle returns to the pop world she dominated as
one third of Destiny's Child, but this time on her own terms
and with a unique sound. Unexpected is exactly that, the
Michelle you never saw coming and won't be forgetting anytime
soon—an album that radiates confidence and unforced
sensuality over a musical texture that blends muscular urban
funk with Euro-sweetened pop, a marriage of cultures completely
unheard in the American musical landscape.
The Favorites: Hello Heartbreak, We Break The Dawn,
Private Party, Stop This Car
HANDS UP Offer Nissim Happy People
Happy People is a combination follow-up artist album and
mixed compilation—the double-disc release contains every
artist track he's done since the First Time debut album, but
like Forever Tel Aviv, is in a continuously mixed format, chock
full of hand-picked favorites and remixes he's done for other
artists. The catch, however, is that its release is somewhat
fragmented, mainly due to the unlicensed usage of samples
from Britney's "Gimme More" and Michael Jackson's "Billie
Jean." It was allegedly allowed into the U.S. after the tracklisting
was revised not to include the unlicensed content but
then disappeared from distribution and hasn't been heard
from since. The album is still available on Israeli sites, though
whether an order of it would make it across the Atlantic is
iffy. The risk is totally worth it. Tracklisting includes five new
tracks with longtime collaborator Maya, a reconstruction
of Captain Hollywood Project's "More & More", and Offer
Nissim remixes of Deborah Cox, Shirley Bassey, Kim Cooper,
Suzanne Palmer, Tony Moran, Erin Hamilton and Christina
Aguilera.
The Favorites: Love, More & More, Shine, Flame 2008
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Healthy Am I! Happy Am I! (W)holy Am I!