Serial Hit-maker & Front Man Of The Legendary Fugees; Wyclef Jean Returns To The Music Scene With His Sixth Studio Album, Check Out My Review Below.
Wyclef Jean - Carnival Vol. II Memoirs Of An Immigrant
Track List
- Intro
- Riot
- Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)
- Welcome To The East
- Slow Down
- King and Queen
- Fast Car
- What About The Baby
- Hollywood Meets Bollywood
- Any Other Day
- Heaven's In New York
- Selina
- Touch A Button/ Carnival Jam
- Outro
- On Tour (Bonus Track)
- China Wine (Bonus Track)
From the offset Carnival Vol II shows us the multi-genre nature of this album, Riot is a high tempo, energetic introduction for what is to come. Not so hot on the lyrical content, but the changing, vibrant production does get your attention & gives a solid start to a solid album.
To be honest, that is really enough to sum up this album, it is not a classic, but it does have a longevity to it that will last a get you listening again & again. I found myself almost getting frustrated with this record, at some points I was really feeling the sound & got absorbed by the whole package. Tracks such as Sweetest Girl (the first single) & the Shakira collaboration King & Queen are extremely radio friendly while remaining very enjoyable. While songs like Any Other Day, featuring Norah Jones, made me reach for the skip button on my iPod.
Still, I cannot say that I am not enjoying this album, I really don't want to hate on it, because it is very solid, entertaining & musically strong. With production values from the likes of Akon, Will.i.am & Wyclef himself, The Carnival Vol II really brings some inventiveness & creativeness that builds the signature sound of this album. Hollywood Meets Bollywood is the ultimate example of this, with the very cool Desi-Beats sound of the UK Asian scene & the unmistakable vocals of Chamillionaire they create a special kind of 'club-banger' that makes my favorite up-tempo from the record.
But I can say without a doubt that my top tune of the album is made up from a huge collaboration that has proved hugely successful before. What About The Baby re-unites Wyclef with Mary J Blige for a huge song, powerful lyrics, smooth beats & huge vocals create something magical. Almost a match for the pairs last track 911.
On another good note, Wyclef introduces a lot of collaborations from relative unknown artists (unknown to me anyway), which I always think is very commendable. However one of these tracks is the slightly out of place Touch Your Button, after a lot of listens I cannot 'get' this track, I understand the carnival feel, but it does nothing for me. Maybe it should have been a bonus track?
Generally, I am really liking this record, a hot pick for the year, but not the best. I have been anticipating Wyclef's return to music for a minute & have not been disappointed. Could & should have been better IMO, but when this record gets it right, you can feel the tingles in your spine, always a good sing of a winner.
7/10
(new scoring system)
Have You Heard The Album?
Let Me Know If You Agree, Or Disagree With Me...
Let Me Know If You Agree, Or Disagree With Me...
