Robin
1 star
This record is the first record I was asked to review by someone. I totally admit new-school R&B music isn’t my thing. I’ve tried to be impartial, but I can’t help it. The Evolution of Robin Thicke is mostly garbage. Robin Thicke, the son of actor Alan Thicke, reminds me a little bit of Justin Timberlake, in that he sings in falsetto way too much. But even when he’s not singing in falsetto, he sounds like a wuss (for lack of a better word). While I was listening to the album, I couldn’t help but think about the field day Beavis & Butt-Head would have with Thicke.
The mostly cheesy lyrics bottom out in “Lost Without U”: “Tell me how u love me more and how u think Im sexy baby/That u dont want nobody else/U dont want this guy u dont want that guy/U wanna touch yourself when u see me/Tell me how u love my body.” Yes, all the lyrics are written in text language.
The musical sound is incredibly generic. It sounds like most of the R&B rubbish that dominates the charts nowadays. The opener, “Got 2 Be Down,” features Faith Evans and is perhaps the most generic of all. “I Need Love” sounds like that stupid McDonald’s jingle: “Ba-da ba ba ba. I’m lovin’ it.”
The record’s a little frustrating because it’s way too long. It’s also frustrating because Thicke shows some signs of potential. In “Ask Myself,” Thicke makes it clear he actually has a good voice. He’s almost Stevie Wonder-like in it. Why couldn’t he sound like that throughout this mess? “Wanna Love U Girl” features Pharrell and is funky and danceable, but the lyrics are very weak. “Can U Believe” is a well-written pop song, but Thicke’s vocal style ruins it. That high-pitched “Ooh” has to go. The two highlights of the album are “Everything I Can’t Have” and “Cocaine.” The former is a cool Latin song that is undeniably catchy. While listening to the latter, I found myself dancing around like an idiot in my living room. It’s great. The bottom line with this record, though, is don’t waste your time. Ba-da ba ba ba. I’m not lovin’ it.
Scale:
0. Shoot yourself
1. Poor
2. So-So
3. Good
4. Excellent
5. Instant classic
May 1st, 2007 at 9:25 am
Wow! I actually thought Lost Without You was a pretty good track! Considering Robin Thicke has written songs for the likes of Mary J Blige, Usher and Christina Aguilera. I guess he’s the epitome of Blue-Eyed Soul. This is wooing music. So, I guess if your not a blurry-eyed romantic, it would be hard to get into.
May 1st, 2007 at 11:24 pm
I think part of it might be that not everyone who can write/produce needs to sing, yet writers/producers all yearn for the acclaim singers get. Think of country icon Willie Nelson. When I was younger, I absolutely despised his nasaly twang. Now he is something of a counter culture country music icon. While my appreciation of him has gone up in the years that have passed, I still think the world is much better off with him writing than singing.
Given the reviews of Timbaland’s cd, it’s the case there, too (although one album isn’t really enough to make a decision like that off of).