Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Album Review: The Heist

 

  Here we go again, with another album review.  This time it's Macklemore & Ryan Lewis with The Heist.  I must admit, I had no idea what to expect from this album.  I first heard Thrift Shop, like everyone of course, and I wanted to know more of who the duo of Ryan Lewis and the man known as Macklemore was.  I didn't know what to expect when I bought this album.  I didn't even know what to think of Thrift Shop!  But now that I have given the album a fair listen multiple times, I believe I can at least give my thoughts.  What did I think of The Heist?  Did The Heist present itself as a worthwhile collection of music, does Macklemore & Ryan Lewis identify themselves as intelligent and quality musicians, or does the album live up to its name and rob me?  Let's take a look at each song one by one to find out.

Track 1: Ten Thousand Hours

  Now, you already probably know how I believe an album should start.  The question is, is Ten Thousand Hours a worthy opener for an album of 15 songs?  Short answer: pretty much.  Long answer:  Ten Thousand Hours is a pretty good song.  In fact, it does a really good job setting up the rest of the album.  Even Macklemore says "Welcome to the Heist" several times at the end.  It's nice to know when artists tell you what you're getting into before you get into it.  Plus, this song is sort've a summary of the album.  Good line after good line with Macklemore rapping about his past with alcoholism and trying hard to get noticed for following his dreams; it's a great start.  

Track 2:  Can't Hold Us featuring Ray Dalton

  Can't Hold Us starts with a bang as Macklemore just busts out rapping at a rather fast pace. Spilling out his thoughts to rouse the crowd to join him, Macklemore does just that.  Coupled with blaring trumpets and what I take for war cries, Can't Hold Us is a fantastic pump-up song.  Honestly, if Can't Hold Us was the beginning of this album, then I wouldn't complain one bit.  Macklemore wants you to join him as you raise your hands like the ceiling can't hold any of you, and for me he does just that.  Call this the we are the champions of The Heist, or whatever gets you pumped up for some action.  The guest verse here is Ray Dalton, who is excellent in singing the chorus.  Can't Hold Us sets the album up just like Ten Thousand Hours and it's nice to put them both at the beginning.

Track 3:  Thrift Shop featuring Wanz

  Everyone knows this song and for good reason, it's awesome.  Look, there are so many things I can say about this song that I can't even begin for this album review.  With the huge popularity of Thrift Shop, I feel it to be more appropriate to talk about the rest of the album more in-depth.  Bottom line is, a rap song that's on an independent label about spending as little money as possible becoming the number one song of the nation is mind-boggling.  If anything, this restores my faith in humanity as a whole for us to finally realize that the quagmire of raps that are bout nothing but being rich are old and tired and it's time for something new.  I will probably talk about Thrift Shop more in-depth later, but I love Thrift Shop, and expect it to be really high on the best list of the year.

Track 4: Thin Line featuring Buffalo Madonna

  This is how you do a break-up song.  Or is it a love song?  Is Thin Line a combination of both?  A story about an on-again off-again relationship?  I don't know, but I sure like it.  Perhaps Thin Line is more of a story of a relationship between two people.  Not just when they're in a relationship, but more of the intricacies of the two's interaction as a whole.  The more I think of Thin Line, the more confused I become.  That's not necessarily a bad thing, because I like thinking, and I'm glad that there are rappers out there like Macklemore who are intelligent and thought-provoking enough to stir my mind on what seems like a simple love song.

Track 5: Same Love featuring Mary Lambert

  Let me get this straight.  Equal rights for all is something that America hasn't realized yet, and it's up to American citizens, like Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, to set people straight.  However, honestly, where equality for all is great, I don't think it leads into songwriting well.  Similar to the "I'm not going to change who I am, I was born like this, I'm beautiful in my own way" style of music, it just kind've bores me.  Not that I don't agree with what people are saying, that's not what I'm trying get to, but what I do mean is that generally music like this is slow, boring, and filled with nothing but soft piano chords to drag the song out even more.  I've probably heard exactly what the artist is trying to tell me from 10 other songs.  Look, I get it, but if you're going to support equality with your music, then make it interesting.  Make the song good.  Here's where Same Love comes in.  Honestly, how many times in rap does a rapper make a song about hating his own genre for being hateful to people for just being who they are?  Way too often.  Here, Macklemore tries to set everyone straight by making equal rights for all music but still making the music interesting.  Does he succeed?  Well I think it works out fairly well.  Paired with the beautiful vocals of Mary Lambert, Macklemore explains straightforward how much homophobia exists out in the world and how it's destroying equal rights.  He makes some really good cases, that I'm sure perhaps even homophobes could take a second to think about their opinions.  All in all, good song.

Track 6: Make the Money

  "Make the money, don't let the money make you."  Words to live by as stated by Macklemore.  Don't let all of the excess of material wealth interrupt your own life.  Just because you're getting rich, doesn't mean you should be frivolous.  Make the Money doesn't leave as much as an impression as some of the other tracks on this album, but it's not bad.

Track 7: Neon Cathedral featuring Allen Stone

  One of a few songs on the album that are about Macklemore's struggle with alcohol.  Macklemore was once an alcoholic in his life and this has thus impacted his music greatly.  Neon Cathedral refers to how he spent more time saving himself at the bar than anywhere else.  Instead of feeling forgiveness in church, he felt forgiveness for himself and his actions at the bar.  His life was a slave to the bottle, and in Neon Cathedral he raps about how alcoholism consumed his life and was more important to him than anything else.  Neon Cathedral is a pretty deep track and is not the only song on the album that deals with his struggle of alcoholism.

Track 8: BomBom featuring The Teaching

  How often is it that a rap album has an instrumental?  Not too often as far as I know.  I love instrumentals, and not that I don't like hearing Macklemore, but this song fits so well.  Letting the music itself carry emotions and feelings is something that I love.  Ryan Lewis is the producer, recorder, and engineer of the duo, and it's clear to see his work on this song in particular.  BomBom is a piano playing while being mixed with other Hip Hop elements.  Changing tunes and even styles, big beats and satisfying pay off, BomBom is a rarity that is definitely one of my favorites from the album.

Track 9: White Walls featuring ScHoolBoy Q & Hollis

  One of the many subjects that Macklemore raps about in The Heist is how many themes there are in the rap scene that have been done to death and have become clichés.  White Walls presents one of the most overdone clichés and brings new life.  This cliché is having a nice lookin' car and driving around with some attractive women like you're the coolest person in the world.  White Walls is more about why life, like I just mentioned, isn't as glamorous as it seems.  He's living the life that is all hyped up to be, but is feeling rather shallow because of it, and all the dangerous "activities" that he partakes in aren't as glamorous as they seem.  That's just what I get from this song.

Track 10: Jimmy Iovine featuring Ab-Soul

  Jimmy Iovine begins with a whole bunch of personal events that happened in Macklemore's life, and this theme continues throughout the rest of the song.  Jimmy Iovine is more about Macklemore & Ryan Lewis not singing with any major label.  How he realized that with singing on a major label, he wouldn't achieve any of his life-long goals, and would become a pawn of the company that he signs with.  So, in the end, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis started their own independent record label.  One of the more personal and story-telling songs on the album.

Track 11: Wing$ 

  I like to think that Wing$ is a more personal and somewhat angrier version of Thrift Shop.  Wing$ provides a pretty bold fashion statement.  What you wear is who you are, and don't let anyone take the privilege of who you are away from you.  Macklemore's references to being young and his pair of shoes was the world to him.  He didn't have much, but his pair of shoes was his identity,  and they made him (metaphorically mind you, I don't actually think that Macklemore is really Hermes) fly.  A really good and meaningful song.

Track 12: A Wake featuring Evan Roman

  Right off the starting gun, I can relate to what Macklemore's saying here.  I can think of a few people who definitely don't act their age.  This describes the rest of the song, which is a recap of how we live today, and what Macklemore has to offer.  He explains that he's not going to rap about money, cars, women, and other subjects overdone today in the rap scene.  A Wake is more of a critique of everything rather than just our culture or even rap music.  It's such a poignant song that I'm sure that everyone can relate to.

Track 13: Gold featuring Eighty4 Fly

  I'm actually not much into this song.  I can't tell if it's like White Walls where it's realizing that living the ideal life isn't exactly the "ideal life".  Or, perhaps Gold is about how everything is sacred and gold, which immediately brings to mind Miracles by ICP...  I'll let that speak for itself.  Rather uninteresting and just downright mediocre when compared to the rest of the album, I'd suggest skipping this track.

Track 14: Starting Over featuring Ben Bridwell

  Starting Over is obviously a song about starting over.  Remember Neon Cathedral and how it's a song about Macklemore's dependency on alcohol?  Well Starting Over is about Macklemore when he relapsed.  How he had to face the shock of his friends and family when he had to tell them what happened.  Plus it becomes even more emotional when he talks about a story of when a fan whom thanked Macklemore for giving her inspiration for getting sober.  This song is pretty emotional and I can even relate to it, despite never going through alcoholism.

Track 15: Cowboy Boots

  Combining country and Irish drinking songs into a rap song?  Yeah, it's interesting.  I actually really like this song, and as an album closer, it's fitting.  Is it about Macklemore's dependence on alcohol, or maybe about Ryan Lewis' favorite type of ceiling fan?  I don't know, but it's all in all, a fitting album closer.  Brings the whole story, if you want to call it that, of The Heist to a close.  You look back on your past and what you long for, which makes you think of the album even.  I like it when albums end like this, and thus brings me to my final thoughts on the album.

  To quote Thrift Shop "This is ******* awesome!"  That's what I think of the whole album.  That's perhaps what many people think, as The Heist has sold several hundred thousand copies since its release, and for good reason.  This album has entered into what is perhaps a new age of rappers.  We are seeing more intelligent rappers making more intelligent raps that are becoming mainstream.  Thrift Shop is the first rap song to reach number 1 to be signed on an independent label, and this amazes me.  Plus, with more Macklemore & Ryan Lewis songs becoming more and more popular, I am seeing a bright future for rap music.  Artists like Lupe Fiasco, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kendrick Lamar, B. o. B. and many others are becoming mainstream and people are taking notice.

  Verdict: The Heist does not rob you of anything, and I am proud to have bought and supported such a great album.  One of the best recent albums I've listened to, and I am extremely proud to give this album such a high rating.  The Heist provides something for all fans of rap and hip hop, and if you haven't bought it yet, then what are you waiting for?  Final Score: 9/10

Ke$ha Album Review: Warrior

  Welcome to my very first album review, and what an interesting start to album reviews, as the album I will be reviewing this time is the latest by one of pop's biggest divas, Ke$ha.  It seems like it wasn't that long ago when Ke$ha made her big debut with TiK ToK.  Back when she was releasing single after single, I didn't know what to think of her.  I thought that she was either trying too hard to shock or was just obnoxious, but I kept hearing that she has a lot of talent.  I never saw that.  I was perhaps a bit too judgmental.  I really didn't feel like checking out her non-hit songs, and it wasn't until a few months after her latest album, Warrior, came out that i decided to give a fair and unbiased listen to Ke$ha's music.  Well what did I think?  Let's first see how each song fairs on its own before I make a full decision on how the album works out in the end.

Track 1: Warrior

  I'm a firm believer that albums should start off with an awesome shift-into-gear intro.  Why?  Because what's the point of putting album filler at the beginning of an album?  I believe you should put one (not the best song of the album, but one of them) of the best songs of the album at the very front.  The intro, the attention getter, is what the listener should expect so they know what they're going into.  For instance, what if Pink Floyd put The Great Gig in the Sky as the first song of The Dark Side of the Moon.  I'm sure the album wouldn't of turned out like it did in regards to how successful and memorable it was.  Well... how does the album's title track fit at number one?  Unfortunately, Warrior is perhaps the worst song of the album...  I'm not joking.  This is not a good song to start off the album.  If someone is on the verge of liking Ke$ha, such as I was, then do not bring yourself to listen to this song.  If you enjoy it, well that's fine, but I don't.  I don't usually let my hatred of dubstep change how I view songs critically, because I know a lot of people rather enjoy it, and I think it's rather weak to hate a song just because of the beat, but that's where I find this song to be unlistenable.  To be honest, they should've started off the album with something else...

Track 2: Die Young

  The album's magnum opus, simply put.  This was one of the main reasons that led me to buy this album and give it a fair listen.  I'm just gonna say it, I love this song.  I love it so much that you might see it on the best list of 2013.  I'm dead serious.  What is so awesome about this song?  Well, for one, party songs in general seem to be having a huge dramatic turn.  This is definitely a party song, but it seems like it could be a trend sender for many others to follow.  The huge party jams of 2010 were all about partying for the sake of having fun, but lately club jams are more about trying to find any solace at all in your life of complete misery.  Die Young works so well, because it's a song about partying because you need to keep yourself from losing your mind.  Instead of just shouting cliches like too many other party jams out there, she actually shows that she has emotion.  You came with somebody else and she has to go home alone?  Well she feels pretty upset because of it.  You're here, she's her, and just enjoy this moment before you have to go back to your own lives.  Just enjoy the moment you're here with her, because afterwards you're gonna have to face reality once more.  That's a really intelligent statement coming from someone who I thought was absolutely devoid of emotions.  All in all, this song is just so forceful with how enjoyable it is that I am in love with it.

Track 3: C'mon

  The second single from her album, C'mon lives up to it's title well, the fact that well, C'MON!  It's actually somewhat a more glamourous version of Die Young that's still really enjoyable.  I really enjoy it, but refer to what I said mostly about Die Young, except C'mon isn't as desperately seeking solace as Die Young is.

Track 4: Thinking of You

  Thinking of You surprisingly has a whole bunch of things that normally would turn me off from pop music.  It has a lot of heavy bass, snarky singing and lyrics, and is an angry break-up song.  Somehow this song fits in the midst of all of those things and is actually really really enjoyable, but I can understand why someone would dislike it.  Thinking of you isn't what the title would lead you to believe.  You see, Ke$ha's fed up with all of your passive aggressive business over the years and with this break-up she feels absolutely fine to get rid of you.  But every time she hears that certain song on the radio she's thinking of you.  Not exactly the most original song, but it's a rather better way of breaking up than staying too close to the I'm glad I'm over you or the I can't get over you sides.  Whenever a song does just that I feel really happy inside.

Track 5: Crazy Kids

  This song right off the bat has a lot of potential.  The guitar intro is really nice and repeats throughout the song and I will admit is refreshing to hear.  But, the rest of the song is just trash.  The lame stiff ugly beat coupled with some aggressive shouting lyrics really destroys this song.  Honestly, it gets better, but in the end, I can't stand this song, so moving on.

Track 6: Wherever you Are

  Honestly, it's boring.  I know I should say a lot more, but there isn't that much to say.  It drags on and isn't as satisfying during the payoff as the other tracks on the album.  Skip it.

Track 7: Dirty Love featuring Iggy Pop

  All right, here we go!  This was the number one reason that I bought this album.  I heard a rumor that Iggy Pop of all people was going to be doing a duet with Ke$ha, and I finally bought the album mainly because I wanted to just see how this would work.  Well of course I heard it online at first, but I ended up buying the album because of it.  Let me just say that this is not only one of the best songs on the album, but surprisingly Ke$ha's part is much more memorable than Iggy Pop's verse.  Now, no disrespect to Iggy Pop, because Iggy Pop is awesome, but he has like 4 lines in this and sings the final choruses with Ke$ha.  Rather underwhelming to be waiting more than half a year to hear this song just for Iggy Pop I must admit.  But Ke$ha and Iggy Pop, as strange as a combination as I thought it would be, perfectly mesh together in their own brand of weirdness.  This is an awesome, even jam-tastic song, that brings everyone together to have well... Dirty love.  She doesn't want to be your girlfriend, she's never gonna be your wife, she just wants it here and now, and you're gonna give it to her, and you're gonna feel the same way.  There's no wrong doing here, it's all just dirty love.  One of the best on the album, only falling behind Die Young.

Track 8: Wonderland

  Wonderland is an interesting combination of country, pop, and even some R & B elements thrown together.  If you like softer rockish ballads, than this is for you.  It's more or less ok, not exactly a star hit, but I wouldn't be too surprised if someone would tell me that this is one of their favorites of the album.

Track 9: Only Wanna Dance With You

  Short, sweet, and to the point.  Ke$ha only wants to dance with you.  It's rather enjoyable for what it is, but not that memorable.  Honestly, stick to track 11 is what I would recommend.  By the way, this song features the Strokes.

Track 10: Supernatural

  I'm gonna be completely honest, I hate this song.  Pretty much all that I said about Warrior applies to this song, and I'm sure some people can enjoy it, but I certainly can't.  Skip.

Track 11: All That Matters (The Beautiful Life)

  I can't talk about this song without constantly thinking about Beautiful Life by Ace of Base.  Why?  Because I remember her shouting "Beautiful life" more than she shouts "All that matters" just like the Ace of Base song Beautiful Life, except this is Ke$ha, not the Berggren siblings.  Honestly, it's just as enjoyable as Beautiful Life.  I would recommend this song more than Only Wanna Dance With You, because they have similar meanings, but I find All That Matters (The Beautiful Life) to be a lot more enjoyable.  What's it about?  Right here, right now, that's all that matters because this is the beautiful life.  Pretty simple, but powerful enough to be memorable and enjoyable.

Track 12: Love Into The Light

  I doesn't take a genius to immediately pick up how similar this is to In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins.  Yes, the two sound so similar, but I'm a firm believer that rip-offs can still be done well.  Is Love Into the Light done well (or is it even a rip-off)?  I think so, for the most part.  It's not ungodly boring like I thought it would be, not saying In the Air Tonight is boring, and also has a nice jam-out drum breakdown like In the Air Tonight.  It's a nicely put together song and I enjoy it.

Well, since I bought the deluxe edition, might as well talk about those tracks as well.

Track 13: Last Goodbye

  Another break-up song.  More like one of the album's more mediocre tracks, but if you don't buy the deluxe edition, then you won't have to worry about it.  It's overall ok.

Track 14: Gold Trans Am

  This is a song about having sex in a car.  How do I know that?  Because she tells me right at the beginning.  It's a sex jam and a car jam rolled into one.  Actually it is a jam.  No other song on the album has a guitar solo.  That's right, a Guitar Solo, which is always welcome.  I really enjoy this song. It's definitely not the subtlest song in the world, no, it's straight to the point like a newly sharpened pencil.  Get into her car and she'll take you for a ride.  Literally.

Track 15: Out Alive

  I used to hate this song until I gave it an honest listen.  It does have a slight, albeit slight, dubstep breakdown, but it's not as annoying as most and I can just learn to get over that part.  Honestly, it's a powered-up dance and party jam, with a similar message to Die Young, but it's not as memorable.  Overall, I'm sure I could learn to like it a lot more in the future, but for right now, it's more or less decent.

Track 16: Past Lives

  Strange how no matter if you bought the deluxe edition or not, both versions end with a rather slow song compared to the rest of the album.  Both past Lives and Love Into The Light were the only songs on the album that were written by Ke$ha only.  Past Lives doesn't have satisfying drum moments like Love Into The Light, but it's actually really sweet, and it's cool listening to Ke$ha opening up her feelings and emotions.  I usually find these songs boring, but I find Past Lives to be a bit more enjoyable than other slow-moving love ballads.

Well there's a track-by-track review of the album, but how does it stack up?  Honestly, very well.  I'm glad I didn't devolve myself into the Ke$ha haters category, because after giving her a fair listen to her album, Warrior, I get the feeling that Ke$ha is really really intelligent and completely self-aware.  I enjoyed TiK ToK, but I didn't enjoy any of her other singles to be honest.  Now, I can actually learn to like Ke$ha despite how many around me don't see much to be offered by her.  Ke$ha finally proves that she is intelligent, and is full of emotions.  Fortunately, I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees this, because the album so far has sold over 200,000 copies.  Also, it's amazing how so many people were affiliated with this album.  Nate Ruess of fun. Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips, Dr. Luke, of course Iggy Pop, and many others were involved in the making of this album.  Only two songs have 1 writer, all are written by at least Ke$ha (some have her mother as a writer too), and Dr. Luke proves once again how good of a producer he is.  I'm looking to be surprised by you more in the future, Ka dollar sign Ha, and I hope you churn out more intelligent party jam pop music.  I can fully recommend this album to someone who was on the verge of liking Ke$ha like I was, as long as they start with Die Young.  Ke$ha proves how much potential she has with Warrior, and I look forward to hopefully her one day coming out with a 10/10 album.

Verdict: While it may take some time for new listeners to Ke$ha to appreciate Warrior, this album provides many enjoyable songs for Ke$ha fans and even for non-Ke$ha fans.  Despite a few missteps in the album, I can recommend this song to most people.  If you are not a huge fan, I would say just listen to Dirty Love and Die Young.  Final Score: 7/10