Music Review: Carly Rae Jepsen's "Emotion" & "Emotion Side B"

By Reginald Kaigler (DEMCAD)

Carly Rae Jepsen and Taylor Swift are the best pop acts in the world, but most people only know about the latter. The former produced one of the best pop albums of 2015: Emotion. Carly Rae Jepsen's Emotion was a fusion of sophisticated contemporary pop and a 80's influenced pop. It was an 80's album that managed to provide the audience with music that perfectly utilized what we loved about the 80's, while giving us a fresh and unique sound.

I've listened to "Emotion" for months and I still love every song on the album. Frankly, any song on the album is better than anything I'm hearing on pop mainstream radio. Now, there are some standouts that I must mention.

"Run Away With Me" is a catchy, rhythmic and incredibly fun confession of love. Much of the album projects a theme of a young woman who isn't afraid of reaching for love. Sometimes it complicated, sometimes its simple, sometimes its messy.

Songs like "Boy Problems" and "I Didn't Just Come Here To Dance" are the kinds of songs I can dance to all night. The albums strike s a great balance of dance pop songs with clever lyrics and chill ballads.

The song "All That" represents everything that I love about ballads. The song is honest and beautiful. The song makes me feel like I'm watching a women strip down and bare her soul.

What's fascinating is how naturally and authentic the music comes across. Many singers pipe out love songs, but it's obvious that the songs were entirely written by someone else.

"Emotion Side B" continues where "Emotion" left off. Actually, it expands the range of "Emotion" without deviating too far from the themes of A side albums. The song "Store" incorporates the beautiful melodic contemporary/80's sound of sounds like "All That", but switches up the sound with a more high energy tempo.

The brilliance of the song is that it tells the story of a woman who clearly cares for her lover, but also includes lyrics such as "I'm just goin' to the store. You might not see me anymore, anymore. I'm just goin' to the store". The is playful, soulful and funny.

I'm not going to discuss every song on the album. But I will tell you that both "Emotion" and Emotion B" are some of the very best pop creations that I've heard in years. I highly recommend both "Emotion" and "Emotion Side B".

MUSIC REVIEW: Jason Derulo's "Everything is 4"

Review by Reginald Kaigler

Jason Derulo's 2015 album "Everything is 4" seem crafted for the pop charts. Many of the songs can be play in nightclubs as originals or as a remix of some kind. Many of the songs make my head rock, but there isn't much substance. In a year that has given up albums such as Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp a Butterfly", I expect more from hip hop (and pop).

At times, Jason Derulo's music shines as bright as his "So You Think You Can Dance" persona. When he sings, he projects a charisma that pulls you into the music. The album is more pop than r&b and is perfect for a drive to work. His song with JLo is a wonderful, breezy pop track ("Try Me") that's worth replaying over and over.

Many of the songs are catchy and upbeat, but a few songs seem awkward and immature. For example, his duet with K Michelle in "Love Like That" feels silly and forced. Listening to him sing about sleeping with his best friend's girlfriend feels insincere.

His duet with Julia Michael in "Trade Hearts" is a joy to hear. It's a beautiful duet that belongs on the Top 40 Charts. It also makes me want to break out and dance one of those breath-taking Mia Michaels' contemporary dance number, except I have no dancing abilities and I would probably look like a flopping whale.

By the way, Mia Michaels is a choreographer on the TV show "So You Think You Can Dance".

Anyway, Derulo proves that he can still carry his own weight with "Cheyenne". The song "Painkiller" is awful. The lyrics in the song are tasteless and pedestrian. The tracks "Pull Up" and "Get Ugly" almost demand that you get off your ass and dance. Overall, the album is a strong effort. "Everything is 4" deserves a score of 7 out 10. If you enjoy "Want to want Me", you'll enjoy the album.