To quote Grantland editor Sean Fennessey, Kaleidoscope Dream “feels like ‘Darling Nikki’ 11 times.” While the comment was intentionally hyperbolic, the sentiment is very true. Which rapidly takes us to the only person that truly matters when discussing Miguel’s career arc: Prince Rogers Nelson. That’s all me.” It’s very Jay/Bey of him. It’s also cocky as hell, screaming, “Oh her? Yeah. It’s a bold move, putting your love life out there for all to see. This song’s video, released this week, is a love tale between Miguel and a woman who (gossip alert) happens to be his actual girlfriend. Miguel’s second single, “Do You,” has a hook that sometimes uses drugs as a metaphor and other times uses them quite literally:īut do you like drugs, do you like drugs. There’s also The Weeknd, a singer who, overnight, became the undisputed king of drugged synth soul, something Miguel isn’t completely separated from but seems to approach in a more casual way. They’re young, they’re both quite connected with the hip-hop landscape, and they both sing terrifyingly well, fearlessly embracing their higher registers, be it Miguel’s falsetto in “Adorn” or Frank’s haunting wail in “Bad Religion.” And in the same vein of fearlessness, they both produced albums this year that are highly unconventional filled with songs that are far from radio-friendly but are good enough to have bulldogged their way into heavy rotation. Because of the year that male R&B-ish music is having, it’s a knee-jerk reflex to hear Kaleidoscope Dream and immediately think of Frank Ocean’s Channel: ORANGE. It’s easy (and often lazy and disrespectful) to race to play the comparison game upon hearing new music, but as long as the comparison doesn’t limit how one thinks about the artist’s potential, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Neither release felt like a complete work by any means, but all of the songs were good, the standout being song-of-the-year candidate “Adorn,” a track that unblasphemously screams “Sexual Healing 2012.” For a singer whose efforts at being taken seriously as a solo artist (and not just a hook singer) has been a gradual uphill climb, would his highly awaited album simply be “Adorn” & Friends, falling in Kanye’s 2012 Cruel Summer trap, or would the rest of the album hold its own against the smash single and the following five tracks? That was the question going into this past Tuesday’s release.Įven after a first full listen, it quickly became clear that “Adorn” was less “first single” and more “first track.” From start to finish, this 11-song genre-bending album is a triumph of what someone heavily influenced by artists across the entire musical spectrum (Davie Bowie, Prince, James Brown, Notorious B.I.G., Freddie Mercury, Phil Collins) can pull off. First in July, then again in September, the singer released separate three-song free EPs with the general assumption being that the six tracks would land on the album. In what was perhaps an exercise in overexposure, Kanye showed too much of his hand too early, releasing most of the great tracks far in advance of the album’s release - the only remaining surprise being a handful of tracks that unfortunately fell flat.Ī hybrid of Kanye’s two methods illustrated the lead-up to singer Miguel’s sophomore album, Kaleidoscope Dream. But fast-forward to September 2012 and the release of G.O.O.D’s compilation album Cruel Summer, and it became clear that the formula wasn’t foolproof. It was the perfect mix of high-quality music, excitement for the album, and a sincere appreciation from fans for the weekly teases. Friday releases, a series of free songs that would either end up on the album or serve as the Internet equivalent of b-sides. In 2010, it seemed as if Kanye West found a formula for success with his buildup to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, by way of his weekly G.O.O.D. It’s very much still the Wild West, with no one truly mastering the art form. Some struggle with accidental leaks, while others purposefully leak. Artists of all levels and varying degrees of cultural importance are feverishly attempting to figure out the most efficient way to get the public excited about their music without giving it all away, and hopefully making a few dollars somewhere along the way. 2012 is an interesting time to release music for the masses.
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