I know I typically review hip-hop/rap music, but I have not listened to that genre in a little while. I have found myself listening to a lot of alternative, pop, rock and even threw on some classical this past weekend thanks to Professor Salimbene. In terms of recent music, Slime Language 2 was released this past Friday. I have not given it more than a brief listen, but the only song I have been intrigued by is “Proud of You” featuring Lil Uzi Vert, which had been teased for a while. Some other lowkey releases include two new iann dior songs and a Conway the Machine album. I have not listened to either yet and am looking forward to giving them spins. The review today will consist of Justin Bieber’s new album Justice and Beethoven’s final movement in his 7th symphony.
The Bieber album was released a few weeks ago and has been on repeat for me. It mostly consists of upbeat pop, but also contains a few great slowed down love songs. My personal favorites on the record include one of each. The first is called “Die For You” featuring Dominic Fike, who delivers what is easily the best guest vocal performance on the record. The other is “Deserve You”. “Die For You” starts out with a synth instrumental as Bieber comes in ad libbing over the infectious rhythm. He sounds incredible throughout the entirety of the song as he sings with many different flows and displays his tremendous vocal range. Dominic Fike enters for the second (short) verse and introduces his lower tone to the track. My favorite part about his feature is the harmonization between him and Bieber on the pre-chorus, it is beautiful. As for “Deserve You”, this is the second track on the album and is what initially made me realize that this album had genuine potential. The beat is really nothing special, it is pretty simple actually. But, Bieber’s vocal performance here is what makes for a fantastic track. He is singing about how he does not feel worthy of, what we would imagine is, his wife here. I believe the chorus here is his best on the album. He represents true emotion in his voice as his passion feels genuine. It is rare for me to find music where the vocal performance significantly outperforms the productions, but that holds true for a lot of tracks on this record. Some other notable tracks where this is the case include “Off My Face” and “Peaches”. Those two tracks in particular sound like they should be from different albums as the energy created in either will elicit opposing emotions. I truly recommend this album, this is the first Bieber project I have enjoyed and I think it is a good representation of the talent he has maintained throughout his career.
Now I will deliver a few comments on the final movement from Beethoven’s 7th symphony. As for classical music, I have minimal experience as a trombone player for my high school’s symphony for a few years. I know my fair share about dynamics and tempo changes. This movement was actually very entertaining as it takes you through a nine minute journey with many recurring patterns. It is mostly carried by triumphant string instruments, but my favorite moments involved the little flute interludes. There is an octave change about four minutes in, but the excitement in the track is retained if not bolstered. There are several dynamic changes throughout this piece which always have you anticipating what is coming next. I am trying to imagine the conductor during this piece, and I figure that s/he would have a tough time staying on top of the frequent changes throughout. This was a fun experience that took me back to my band performance days. I could not imagine trying to perform this piece.
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