3/5Quote
The launch of Rihanna?s eighth studio album was so obviously, resoundingly botched that you kept imaging her mentor Jay Z running around the offices of his streaming service Tidal shouting, ?Don?t panic! Don?t panic!? like Clive Dunn in Dad?s Army. After months of careful preparation, involving a mobile-only website that transmitted cryptic messages and the unveiling of the artwork in an LA gallery, Anti mistakenly appeared on Tidal on Wednesday afternoon, was promptly bootlegged, then hastily shunted out as a free download.
It?s tempting to say the confused launch somehow fits with Anti itself, which even the most vociferous Rihanna fan might be forced to concede is quite a confused-sounding album: a Coldplayish acoustic ballad called Never Ending rubs shoulders with wilfully soupy, experimental R&B; psychedelia breathes the same air as a wafty interlude that sounds like a luscious two-step soul number deprived of its bubbling rhythm track and a peculiar combination of Auto-Tuned vocals and 80s AOR guitar ? courtesy of Extreme?s Nuno Bettencourt ? turns up alongside a pastiche of old-fashioned Muscle Shoals soul.
On the most basic level, Anti looks like a concerted attempt to steer Rihanna away from the world of manufactured pop. Amid the sagas of romantic woe and the inevitable references to marijuana, there are a lot of lyrics about doing things her own way, being more creative, and a pointed-sounding line about her ability to ?cover shit in glitter and turn it gold?. The kind of immediate, bulletproof pop smash on which Rihanna?s career has rested to date is conspicuous by its absence, as are the kind of writers who provided them. The closest it comes to the stuff that Stargate or Sia Furler have sold her in the past is Kiss It Better, which has an ineffaceable chorus, albeit sung over a sparse musical backdrop that?s the diametric opposite of the dense EDM-influenced pop that fuelled We Found Love or Diamonds.
The sense that Rihanna might have developed a case of the ?Serious Artists? is compounded by the artwork, which comes complete with an excruciating little poem, written in braille so that the visually impaired can be mortified by it as well. ?I sometimes fear that I am misunderstood,? it opens, before suggesting that ?what I chose to say is of so much substance that people won?t understand the depth of my message?, which is certainly one way of interpreting her oeuvre to date, including Cheers (Drink to That), S&M and, indeed, Cockiness (Love It). ?She may be the queen of hearts, but I?m gonna be the queen of your body parts,? she sang on the latter, demonstrating her unfathomable depth.
Those charged with providing so much substance that people won?t understand the depth of her message come from the hipper ranks of R&B and hip-hop producers. The-Dream, Timbaland and the Weeknd are all present; the CVs of the other collaborators tend more towards Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar than Katy Perry. There?s also a lunge towards alt-rock, although it?s hard not to feel the latter is a bit half-hearted: rather than a new song or a cover, her version of Tame Impala?s New Person, Same Old Mistakes ? retitled Same Ol? Mistakes ? seems to feature her singing over the same backing track that closed Tame Impala?s 2015 album Currents. Still, whether you interpret this as a bold reimagining of the Jamaican practice of ?versioning? endless variations on the same reggae rhythm, or a lackadaisical approach that gives the impression Rihanna has unexpectedly dropped into the student union indie karaoke night, the end result is strangely impressive. Her heavy-lidded vocal conjures up a very different kind of regret to the pained delivery Kevin Parker deployed on the original: a rueful shrug of the shoulders instead of agonised self-examination.
The prosaic reason Same Ol? Mistakes works is because it?s a really good song. There are others here, not least the Southern soul homage Love on the Brain and Work, which features Drake, gallant and enchanting as ever in his dealings with the ladies: ?I know you need to get done if you come over.? But Anti?s big drawback is the presence of a lot of tracks that feel oddly unfinished. There are a lot of great production ideas and intriguing atmospheres conjured ? the distorted bass growl of Desperado, Woo?s peculiar, unsettling combination of muffled vocals, muttering and a jagged chord sequence over a lumbering beat ? and occasionally, there are great lyrics: ?Didn?t I tell you I was a savage?? Rihanna snarls amid Needed Me?s fog of discordant vocal samples, ?Fuck your white horse and your carriage.? But you?re frequently struck by the sense of waiting for a chorus that never comes: Yeah I Said It dissolves into gauzy electronica instead.
Sometimes you get the frustrating sense that strong ideas are being deliberately short-circuited in the pursuit of a slightly self-conscious weirdness. James Joint is gorgeous, while Higher?s combination of slurred vocal and woozy music sounds amazing, like an epic 60s tearjerker performed by people who?ve overindulged so much they?re either on the verge of passing out, or being sick in a bin. Both are so short they feel more like interludes than songs.
In a risk-averse world, there?s something brave about Anti, and at its best, its daring pays off: it remains to be seen whether it represents a momentary swerve off-piste or what you might call a complete Ri-Ri-invention. It?s hard to work out from its contents whether in a few albums? time its author will be back to churning out neon-hued anthems or embedded even deeper into the musical leftfield, because its contents are neither the kind of unqualified success that confidently maps out a future direction or the kind of unmitigated disaster that requires her to beat a hasty retreat. Perhaps the answer hinges on the vexed issue of how fans who?ve previously bought into the idea of Rihanna as an imperious provider of bulletproof pop will take to an album that?s sprawling, uneven, exploratory and opaque: the sound of an artist who?s worked out what she doesn?t want to be, without really deciding what she does.
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jan/28/rihanna-anti-album-review-brave-bold-and-confused
3/5
?I got to do things my own way darling,? announces Rihanna on the opening track of her long-awaited eighth album, Anti. So, are you ready for Rihanna?s experimental phase? She has been the plastic pop queen of the last decade, the malleable, sex-pot superstar whose role was to lend her potent vocals and sassy charisma to hits crafted by teams of top writers and producers.
Read: Rihanna, Anti, track by track
But she tells them where to stick their song submissions on the opening track ?Consideration?. ?Let me cover your s*** in glitter, I can make it good,? Rihanna coos rebelliously, laying her original undiluted Barbadian accent on thick. ?Why you will never let me grow?? she demands.
The answer to that part may lie on the second track, a two minute jazzy tumble of electric piano and scat singing which opens with the woozy declaration: ?I?d rather be smoking weed? and continues with the kind of wayward melodic and lyrical development that suggests that may have been exactly what she was doing while she sang it.
Rihanna on stage in LA last year
Rihanna on stage in LA last year
It is amusing to imagine the response of her record executives and corporate backers when she came in with that. Would you want to be the one to tell your biggest star that the songs she has spent the best part of three years writing and recording may be lacking in some basic elements, like verses, choruses, melodies and hooks?
Samsung have just paid her 25 million dollars for the rights to brand her next tour and album. I doubt they were expecting tracks like Woo, four minutes of breathless emoting dragged out over a tunelessly clashing guitar/keyboard sound, with the only apparent motif being some ghostly backing vocals going ?wooo?.
Up until now, Rihanna has been notorious in the business for not being particularly involved in the creation of her own records, something which has enabled her to keep up an incredible strike rate in her career, releasing almost an album a year from 2005 to 2012, whilst touring incessantly. Since being talent-spotted as a teen by an American producer on holiday in Barbados in 2003, she has been groomed as the ultimate pop front-woman, backed to the hilt by her biggest mentor, hip-hop mogul Jay Z.
Teams of top writers and producers would be assembled to contribute their most commercial prospective hits. Rihanna?s job was to provide sparkle and charisma, coming in at the last minute to lay down a finished performance over guide vocals recorded by session singers.
Rihanna was so in demand that she often recorded her parts in hotels and makeshift studios set up whilst on promotional duties around the world. She has proved her worth to the hit factory time and again with a raw, warm, sassy vocal presence that can brighten any track by several hundred watts. The difference between a catchy demo and a blockbuster hit has often been Rihanna herself. At least, it would seem that is what Rihanna has come to believe.
Sooner or later, every manufactured artist turns against their creators, from the Monkees (with their self-immolating psychedelic opus Head in 1968) to Miley Cyrus biting the Disney hand that had fed her for years by stripping off and twerking. Anti is Rihanna?s overdue bid for some kind of artistic independence and critical credibility, and despite its lack of obvious commercial appeal it might turn out to be a smart move.
The girl can sing, indeed, and on Anti, all of the focus is on that voice and her appealingly wayward personality, singing about sex, love, drugs, desire and frustration as if her life depends on it. Without all the practised song-craft that usually knock the wind out of listeners, what she has come up with is atmospheric, sexy and strangely disturbed, tapping into the kind of distorted beats and chilled tempos that burble through progressive hip hop.
The cerebral, moody influence of Canadian rapper Drake is apparent, and he shows up to duet with Rihanna on the lead single Work. Even that doesn?t exactly sound like a banging pop hit but at least it tugs at the ear and gets under the skin, and in so doing, adds interesting dimensions to Rihanna?s established image.
The cover art for new album Anti
The cover art for new album Anti
This album is all about depth and texture.The prevailing rhythm is mid tempo. The mood is surly, as she affirms her right to do exactly what she wants. This is about establishing the notion that Rihanna is an artist in her own right, not just a glorified glove puppet.
I suppose it was inevitable that Rihanna would start to want to take the reins herself. She?s still only 27 and has been in the limelight since she was 17. She has had song writing credits before, using her real name Robyn Fenty, but this time she is credited on every track but one. There are lots of other backroom talents cited but none of the established hit teams that have powered her career. There is no Stargate, Dr Luke, Max Martin, Calvin Harris or Sia Furler, all of whom submitted songs over the three years of the album?s gestation only to have them rejected.
Rihanna at a charity gala last year
Rihanna at a charity gala last year
The one writer-producer who has been allowed to do his own thing without interference from the star is Australian psychedelic indie-rocker, Kevin Parker, of the band Tame Impala. Rihanna covers his song, New Person, Same Old Mistakes, a dreamy six and a half minute space groove from the critically acclaimed 2015 album, Currents.
This, for better or worse, is clearly the music Rihanna likes: leftfield, stoned and strange. It is Rihanna without hits. This strange album, released without warning over the internet for free, may well be a reflection of the fact that not even her own backers really expects this to be a commercial blockbuster. It is more an exercise in rebranding, transforming the hit girl into a serious artist.
It will satisfy the appetite of fans and the curiosity of the internet for the moment but poses interesting questions about what happens next. Because being cool and credible is all very well. But what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/rihanna-anti-album-review-rihanna-without-the-hits/
these back to back 3 stars got me PISSING.
and this part
QuoteBut what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out.
what the heck man
(http://i.imgur.com/3P37CUf.gif)
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 01:56:16 PM
these back to back 3 stars got me PISSING.
and this part
QuoteBut what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out.
what the heck man
(http://i.imgur.com/3P37CUf.gif)
nccncbcbcbcbbcbcb
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 01:56:16 PM
QuoteBut what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out.
I just shouted!!!
:plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop:
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
Quote from: SUPREME on January 28, 2016, 02:00:18 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 01:56:16 PM
these back to back 3 stars got me PISSING.
and this part
QuoteBut what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out.
what the heck man
(http://i.imgur.com/3P37CUf.gif)
nccncbcbcbcbbcbcb
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
Quotethe artwork, which comes complete with an excruciating little poem, written in braille so that the visually impaired can be mortified by it as well.
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
(http://i.imgur.com/ESD5MmA.jpg)
this album is getting the fuck dragged.
(http://i.imgur.com/zocSGNA.gif)
3/5 is not dragged. lol
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 02:05:52 PM
Quotethe artwork, which comes complete with an excruciating little poem, written in braille so that the visually impaired can be mortified by it as well.
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
I'm crying. Yeah, It was cringe worthy tbh
if you come in here and don't participate in the lashing of RIh, ur late, tbh
:feelinmyself:
Just another rave review lols
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna (http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna)
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
not her Portuguese fans writing the only positive user reviews :plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop: :'(
:plzstop: but 3/5 aint bad though it' like C+ of sorts she will prob get like 72/100
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Yep. That settles it. Critics and their reviews agree, Rih could've saved this "curse" to the Navy.
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
2 reviews?
Not even then stans are this up to speed
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:03:16 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 01:56:16 PM
QuoteBut what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out.
I just shouted!!!
:plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop: :plzstop:
D
Dmsndnnd
C
C
X
C
C
C
C
C
C
I am summersalting
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 02:05:52 PM
Quotethe artwork, which comes complete with an excruciating little poem, written in braille so that the visually impaired can be mortified by it as well.
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
SSSSSSSSSSS
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:06:21 PM
(http://i.imgur.com/ESD5MmA.jpg)
this album is getting the fuck dragged.
(http://i.imgur.com/zocSGNA.gif)
n
Omg
They are reading the fuck outta her. Wow.
wow, this really is her Fantasy Ride mess :kii:
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 02:27:14 PM
wow, this really is her Fantasy Ride, Basic Instinct, Ciara, Jackie fuck it. All of Ci's mess except for her first two :kii:
Quote from: FAM? on January 28, 2016, 02:26:47 PM
Omg
They are reading the fuck outta her. Wow.
:feelinmyself:
Quote from: Amara on January 28, 2016, 02:24:03 PM
2 reviews?
Not even then stans are this up to speed
*3 reviews. and they actually are.
Got this directly from them over on ATRL.
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:23:08 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Yep. That settles it. Critics and their reviews agree, Rih could've saved this "curse" to the Navy.
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
but this alber is 30x better than Janets latest alber
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Quote from: G on January 28, 2016, 02:31:12 PM
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:23:08 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Yep. That settles it. Critics and their reviews agree, Rih could've saved this "curse" to the Navy.
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
but this alber is 30x better than Janets latest alber
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Sis.
:damselindistress:
oh gorl
jans gives APE in the face
all you need to know
Dndnndndndndndndnddndnndndnndnd
fffffffdfdfd
wor wor wor wor wor
Damn, yall read NY Times review?
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:32:22 PM
Quote from: G on January 28, 2016, 02:31:12 PM
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:23:08 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Yep. That settles it. Critics and their reviews agree, Rih could've saved this "curse" to the Navy.
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
but this alber is 30x better than Janets latest alber
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Sis.
:damselindistress:
:ATLcameo: NEED A MOD to check my log in mess's
dont think i wrote that
Quote from: Ulysses on January 28, 2016, 02:48:03 PM
Damn, yall read NY Times review?
QuoteThere are vocal powerhouse pop stars, who dominate with the sheer magnitude of their gift; kaleidoscopically vivid pop stars, who dazzle with enthusiasm and energy; diligent pop stars, who chip away at success until they strike oil; cheeky pop stars, who understand the absurdity of the situation but manage to convincingly stay the course.
And there is Rihanna, who is not quite any of these things.
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
QuoteThere are vocal powerhouse pop stars, who dominate with the sheer magnitude of their gift; kaleidoscopically vivid pop stars, who dazzle with enthusiasm and energy; diligent pop stars, who chip away at success until they strike oil; cheeky pop stars, who understand the absurdity of the situation but manage to convincingly stay the course.
And there is Rihanna, who is not quite any of these things.
That deficit has not proved to be much of an obstacle. More than three years have passed since the release of her last album, and she is perhaps more famous than ever, a star of fashion, social media and tabloids who sometimes, y’know, makes music or whatever.
And while she has just released “Anti” (Roc Nation), her eighth album, that peculiar state of affairs is unlikely to change. “Anti” is a chaotic and scattershot album, not the product of a committed artistic vision, or even an appealingly freeform aesthetic, but rather an amalgam of approaches, tones, styles and moods. Depending on the moment, she is an electric vocalist or an indifferent one, an emotional savant or a naif, a singer who understands what her voice is best at and one who sounds like she’s merely following directions.
Rihanna has always shined when at her most assertive, like on “Needed Me,” one of this album’s highlights. Over a pulpy, throbbing beat by DJ Mustard, Rihanna sings about using men for sex and disposing of them like tissues: “Trying to fix your inner issues with a bad bitch/Didn’t they tell you that I was a savage?” If she were sweating at all, it would come off as a scold, but her singing is reserved and cool — she’s letting a poor sap down and practically has her back turned.
She succeeds at this end of the spectrum, and also the other, like on “Work,” the single released Wednesday morning. A pop-dancehall number that’s all bubble and no depth, it’s cheaply effective. In places, she barely even relies on words, truncating her syllables past patois to something far less exact.
That Rihanna can be post-language and still thrive is among her gifts, and on “Anti,” she is relying on a range of talents rather than a fixed strategy. Around the time of her last album, “Unapologetic” (Def Jam), released near the end of 2012, Rihanna was at her creative peak, having honed a haughty, gothic, erotic sound. But the intervening years have been more curious than productive. The medium in which she’s most excelled has been Instagram — her account was gloriously unfiltered before it mysteriously disappeared. At its apex, it showed Rihanna being exceptional at being famous, a sunburst of unimpeachable cool.
Last year, she released three singles — the winning country-soul number “FourFiveSeconds,” a collaboration with Kanye West and Paul McCartney; the limp “American Oxygen”; and “Bitch Better Have My Money,” probably the most basic and least imaginative of her tough-talk hits.
But none of those songs appear on “Anti,” an album that has been long in the works and that arrives burdened by heavy expectations. The album’s rollout was troubled right down to the final step: “Anti” leaked online Wednesday evening before being officially made available for streaming. (A limited number of free downloads were given away as part of a promotional arrangement with Samsung.)
One of the many hiccups on the path to “Anti” was a recent Twitter eruption by Glass John, a writer and producer who worked on the album and suggested it was being held up because Travis Scott, the rapper who is Rihanna’s rumored boyfriend, was getting in the way. That both men’s fingerprints on this album are so clear is one indication of its patchwork approach. Mr. Scott helped produce the determinedly sloppy “Woo,” with dark, distorted production akin to his hit “Antidote.” Glass John, meanwhile, helped make “Kiss It Better,” an ostentatious sex jam that pulses with 1980s synth-rock sleaze.
“Kiss It Better” is also one of several songs on “Anti” on which Rihanna’s singing takes center stage. It’s true, too, on the three songs that close the album, each of which pulls Rihanna in an unanticipated musical direction, anchored only by her flexible voice. “Love on the Brain” is a calm doo-wop song about toxic love: “You love when I fall apart/So you can put me together/And throw me against the wall.” Then comes “Higher,” a smoldering soul number where Rihanna finds a scratchy, Amy Winehouse-esque part of her voice she’s never used before. Finally, there’s the piano ballad “Close to You,” the most affecting torch song of her career.
As songs, each of these is imperfect, but together they make an improbable argument: Rihanna may be near her vocal peak, at the place in her career where it matters the least. (This is also undoubtedly a testament to the gifts of her vocal producer, Kuk Harrell.)
But there are plenty of counterarguments here, as well: the lumpy “Desperado”; the tepid “Never Ending,” which unimaginatively borrows from Dido’s “Thank You”; and the foggy “Same Ol’ Mistakes” — a cover of Tame Impala’s “New Person, Same Old Mistakes” — a six-minute-thick moat of pseudo-chillwave bringing down this album’s middle.
That all these songs exist side by side reaffirm that Rihanna is our least aesthetically consistent — least aesthetically committed? — major pop star. At this stage of her career, music may be the least essential brick in her house. And as Rihanna has made clear time and again, not only is the sum greater than the parts, but the sum might also have nothing to do with the parts whatsoever.
:kii:
(https://uploadir.com/u/k8p3thch)
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 02:50:25 PM
Quote from: Ulysses on January 28, 2016, 02:48:03 PM
Damn, yall read NY Times review?
QuoteThere are vocal powerhouse pop stars, who dominate with the sheer magnitude of their gift; kaleidoscopically vivid pop stars, who dazzle with enthusiasm and energy; diligent pop stars, who chip away at success until they strike oil; cheeky pop stars, who understand the absurdity of the situation but manage to convincingly stay the course.
And there is Rihanna, who is not quite any of these things.
:feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself: :feelinmyself:
(http://i.imgur.com/NPTetHB.gif)
:dead: Lis, hun
Quote?Anti? is a chaotic and scattershot album, not the product of a committed artistic vision, or even an appealingly freeform aesthetic
:damselindistress:
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:06:21 PM
(http://i.imgur.com/ESD5MmA.jpg)
this album is getting the fuck dragged.
(http://i.imgur.com/zocSGNA.gif)
fume Hun
QuoteAs songs, each of these is imperfect, but together they make an improbable argument: Rihanna may be near her vocal peak
did they just call her trey songz :damselindistress:
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 02:54:14 PM
Quote?Anti? is a chaotic and scattershot album, not the product of a committed artistic vision, or even an appealingly freeform aesthetic
:damselindistress:
yassssss
The Acclaim is rolling in
(http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxbl8muxrf1qfd7yzo1_500.gif)
they're DRAGGING her, beloved bby boo
Bbbbbbb
(http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxbl8muxrf1qfd7yzo1_500.gif)
Hope it doesn't get a 60 or somethin. Now that's bad in this day and age!
Quote from: G on January 28, 2016, 02:49:44 PM
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:32:22 PM
Quote from: G on January 28, 2016, 02:31:12 PM
Quote from: BowDown on January 28, 2016, 02:23:08 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Yep. That settles it. Critics and their reviews agree, Rih could've saved this "curse" to the Navy.
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
but this alber is 30x better than Janets latest alber
(http://i.imgur.com/A1Tre77.gif)
Sis.
:damselindistress:
:ATLcameo: NEED A MOD to check my log in mess's
dont think i wrote that
vvv
:watchit:
Wow guess who know really has better music
poor Goat
Quote from: inluvwitbran on January 28, 2016, 03:51:53 PM
Wow guess who know really has better music
poor Goat
yea..
the critics >>> bias individuals
where can i stream this shit because i am not signing up for that tidal shit
Quote from: H??R J?RD∆Ń on January 28, 2016, 02:26:05 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:06:21 PM
(http://i.imgur.com/ESD5MmA.jpg)
this album is getting the fuck dragged.
(http://i.imgur.com/zocSGNA.gif)
n
DDDDSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Keep the praise rolling in!!
(http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxbl8muxrf1qfd7yzo1_500.gif)
Nobody but her dumb ass stans buy her music hence her wack ass album sales.. Her voice is trash and these songs were handed to her as demos :kii:
Score 50/100 :loose2when:
?I got to do things my own way, darling/Will you ever let me?/Will you ever respect me?? Rihanna asks in her native Barbadian patois on ?Consideration,? the opening track of Anti. To say that the album, her first in over three years, has had a contentious road to release is an understatement, with reports of false starts and, eventually, the promotion of three singles that, though moderately successfully, failed to resonate with fans or critics the way her past hits have. And without missing a beat, Rihanna provides a pointed, unapologetic rejoinder to the rhetorical questions posed in the song's lyrics: ?No.?
But that the album's first three singles, particularly the grating ?FourFiveSeconds? and the dated ?Bitch Better Have My Money,? were mercifully left off Anti points to a lack of creative vision, not to mention Rihanna and her label's commitment to it (notably, the release is her first since parting ways with Def Jam). The early promise represented by ?Consideration,? with its heavy, distorted '90s-style loop and guest vocal by neo-soul singer SZA, suggested that Rihanna is determined to ?grow.? But the remainder of Anti's first half swiftly drifts into frustratingly familiar territory: ?Needed Me? admirably aspires to FKA twigs's brand of experimental R&B, but songs like ?Kiss It Better? and ?Woo,? with their plodding beats and menacing electric guitars, could have been plucked from Rated R or Unapologetic.
The ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
The second half of Anti finds Rihanna dabbling in a handful of previously unexplored genres, and to various degrees of success, never settling on a cohesive direction or clear statement of purpose aside from a decided denouncement of her dance-pop past. Rihanna makes a foray into psychedelic pop/soul on ?Same Ol' Mistakes,? a collaboration with Tame Impala's Kevin Parker, and '60s doo-wop on ?Love on the Brain,? potentially forgettable trifles that emerge as triumphant highlights among the drab, depressing R&B that comprises much of the rest of the album. The likewise retro-minded ?Higher? is marred by a strained vocal performance, which, like that of ?FourFiveSeconds,? consists of little more than pitchy, whisky-soaked shrieks.
The sense that the largely joyless Anti lacks focus is furthered by the fact that ?Higher? and ?James Joint,? which both clock in at under two minutes a piece, scan as mere sketches. The ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/rihanna-anti
the way Slant DUG into her
this alb' is terr'
(http://i56.tinypic.com/x4j9yv.gif)
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 05:03:23 PM
bias individuals
Speaking of which
(http://i.imgur.com/zocSGNA.gif)
Seeing as the critics are agreeing with me.
Think im right on the money :wellheythere:
Quote from: Genesis on January 28, 2016, 04:35:51 PM
Nobody but her dumb ass stans buy her music hence her wack ass album sales.. Her voice is trash
(http://cdn3-www.thefashionspot.com/assets/uploads/2015/03/Ciara-image.jpg)
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 04:10:25 PM
Quote from: inluvwitbran on January 28, 2016, 03:51:53 PM
Wow guess who know really has better music
poor Goat
yea..
the critics >>> bias individuals
remember when you try to come for Jans mess with your flop opinion :plzstop:
"But what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out."
;;X;;X;CCXCCCCV
Quote from: Amara on January 28, 2016, 05:30:01 PM
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 04:10:25 PM
Quote from: inluvwitbran on January 28, 2016, 03:51:53 PM
Wow guess who know really has better music
poor Goat
yea..
the critics >>> bias individuals
remember when you try to come for Jans mess with your flop opinion :plzstop:
Janet doesn't matter ok?
and speaking of Flop. :ohwow:
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 05:03:23 PM
Score 50/100 :loose2when:
?I got to do things my own way, darling/Will you ever let me?/Will you ever respect me?? Rihanna asks in her native Barbadian patois on ?Consideration,? the opening track of Anti. To say that the album, her first in over three years, has had a contentious road to release is an understatement, with reports of false starts and, eventually, the promotion of three singles that, though moderately successfully, failed to resonate with fans or critics the way her past hits have. And without missing a beat, Rihanna provides a pointed, unapologetic rejoinder to the rhetorical questions posed in the song's lyrics: ?No.?
But that the album's first three singles, particularly the grating ?FourFiveSeconds? and the dated ?Bitch Better Have My Money,? were mercifully left off Anti points to a lack of creative vision, not to mention Rihanna and her label's commitment to it (notably, the release is her first since parting ways with Def Jam). The early promise represented by ?Consideration,? with its heavy, distorted '90s-style loop and guest vocal by neo-soul singer SZA, suggested that Rihanna is determined to ?grow.? But the remainder of Anti's first half swiftly drifts into frustratingly familiar territory: ?Needed Me? admirably aspires to FKA twigs's brand of experimental R&B, but songs like ?Kiss It Better? and ?Woo,? with their plodding beats and menacing electric guitars, could have been plucked from Rated R or Unapologetic.
The ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
The second half of Anti finds Rihanna dabbling in a handful of previously unexplored genres, and to various degrees of success, never settling on a cohesive direction or clear statement of purpose aside from a decided denouncement of her dance-pop past. Rihanna makes a foray into psychedelic pop/soul on ?Same Ol' Mistakes,? a collaboration with Tame Impala's Kevin Parker, and '60s doo-wop on ?Love on the Brain,? potentially forgettable trifles that emerge as triumphant highlights among the drab, depressing R&B that comprises much of the rest of the album. The likewise retro-minded ?Higher? is marred by a strained vocal performance, which, like that of ?FourFiveSeconds,? consists of little more than pitchy, whisky-soaked shrieks.
The sense that the largely joyless Anti lacks focus is furthered by the fact that ?Higher? and ?James Joint,? which both clock in at under two minutes a piece, scan as mere sketches. The ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/rihanna-anti
Holy sh*t....
QuoteThe ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/rihanna-anti
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
Quote from: RIG on January 28, 2016, 05:31:35 PM
"But what, really, is a pop star without hits? Rihanna might be about to find out."
;;X;;X;CCXCCCCV
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 05:51:39 PM
QuoteThe ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/rihanna-anti
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
omffffff
They're LIVING :stressed:
(http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxbl8muxrf1qfd7yzo1_500.gif)
CRIKEY! what a lashing!
the whites don't use anymore! down, she goes!
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
wow, rih is donezo!
(http://static.socialitelife.com/uploads/2013/04/03/Michael-Fassbender-Irish.gif)
This thread BXBXBXBBBXBXX
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692843565802586112
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692843752839258116
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692844338246619138
Ddfdfddfddddffdfddfff
:tistheseas:
Quote from: Herbie on January 28, 2016, 05:53:37 PM
Quote from: sumcatbroad on January 28, 2016, 05:51:39 PM
QuoteThe ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/rihanna-anti
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
omffffff
They're LIVING :stressed:
(http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxbl8muxrf1qfd7yzo1_500.gif)
Ccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccctr
Not Az getting a piece of Rih's free wig :omgwatshappening: this just isnt the Navy's week.
Quote from: FINE. on January 28, 2016, 06:02:45 PM
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692843565802586112
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692843752839258116
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692844338246619138
Ddfdfddfddddffdfddfff
:tistheseas:
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
She told the truth tbh
SSSSSSSSS
Wow she's fucking losing
(http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxbl8muxrf1qfd7yzo1_500.gif)
it was crazy how rih could always fly out the gate with a #1 smash single.
and now she can't. wow :omgwatshappening:
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 06:05:07 PM
Not Az getting a piece of Rih's free wig :omgwatshappening: this just isnt the Navy's week.
will rih take action
:omgwatshappening:
Quote from: LiiVE on January 28, 2016, 06:08:27 PM
it was crazy how rih could always fly out the gate with a #1 smash single.
and now she can't. wow :omgwatshappening:
(http://i.imgur.com/T6oRyVt.gif)
Quote from: LiiVE on January 28, 2016, 06:08:27 PM
it was crazy how rih could always fly out the gate with a #1 smash single.
and now she can't. wow :omgwatshappening:
ddddddddddddddacm
(https://uploadir.com/u/adoinama)
Quote from: FINE. on January 28, 2016, 06:02:45 PM
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692843565802586112
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692843752839258116
https://twitter.com/azealiabanks/status/692844338246619138
Ddfdfddfddddffdfddfff
:tistheseas:
omffffff
All this damn hype and excitement
I know queen is in her gloryyyy : :plzstop:
the gorls just don't quite GET the album. It's like this generation's "Purple Rain", in a sense.
(https://45.media.tumblr.com/d6c598887582acb1620e22f80bb00bb0/tumblr_mr72k0JT311qd8zg3o1_250.gif)
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:52:33 PM
the gorls just don't quite GET the album. It's like this generation's "Purple Rain", in a sense.
(https://45.media.tumblr.com/d6c598887582acb1620e22f80bb00bb0/tumblr_mr72k0JT311qd8zg3o1_250.gif)
Yall said the same thing about rated r and it's already forgotten
Quote from: Genesis on January 28, 2016, 06:54:58 PM
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:52:33 PM
the gorls just don't quite GET the album. It's like this generation's "Purple Rain", in a sense.
(https://45.media.tumblr.com/d6c598887582acb1620e22f80bb00bb0/tumblr_mr72k0JT311qd8zg3o1_250.gif)
Yall said the same thing about rated r and it's already forgotten
bbmb
boy...I never praised that album as much as the other gorls and I was kidding.
The album is fairly lackluster minus about three songs. Definitely not worth the year long wait or the huge Samsung rollout.
So nice of her to give it away for free though. Pop music's Mother Teresa tbh.
I need videos for Consideration & Yeah, I Said It tho :flamebroiled:
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:52:33 PM
the gorls just don't quite GET the album. It's like this generation's "Purple Rain", in a sense.
(https://45.media.tumblr.com/d6c598887582acb1620e22f80bb00bb0/tumblr_mr72k0JT311qd8zg3o1_250.gif)
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVvvvvvvvvvhdn
queentine knows wtf shes talmbout
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:57:53 PM
I need videos for Consideration & Yeah, I Said It tho :flamebroiled:
those are my only favs
:kii: :kii: :kii:
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 28, 2016, 02:17:29 PM
http://www.metacritic.com/music/anti/rihanna
Her score is going to be so low but expected.
The album is gross. :sittingontopoftheworld:
I agree. She sucks
I'm sorry but no one can deny that this album isn't a cohesive body of work or lacks direction. It may lack her usual commercial appeal but every song fits the whole progressive trap indie vibe she clearly was going for and tbh the opinion of others who aren't even hip with that culture don't hold any merit.
I love Rihanna's alber now. I had to listen with an open mind and actually carefully get in. I'm here for this moody, mellow, trap mess. It sounds so fucking good in the Car too.
Quote from: H??R?R∆Ń on January 28, 2016, 11:44:09 PM
I'm sorry but no one can deny that this album isn't a cohesive body of work or lacks direction. It may lack her usual commercial appeal but every song fits the whole progressive trap indie vibe she clearly was going for and tbh the opinion of others who aren't even hip with that culture don't hold any merit.
I love Rihanna's alber now. I had to listen with an open mind and actually carefully get in. I'm here for this moody, mellow, trap mess. It sounds so fucking good in the Car too.
Your review of it yesterday bby >>>>>
Quote from: MelMel on January 28, 2016, 11:45:59 PM
Quote from: H??R?R∆Ń on January 28, 2016, 11:44:09 PM
I'm sorry but no one can deny that this album isn't a cohesive body of work or lacks direction. It may lack her usual commercial appeal but every song fits the whole progressive trap indie vibe she clearly was going for and tbh the opinion of others who aren't even hip with that culture don't hold any merit.
I love Rihanna's alber now. I had to listen with an open mind and actually carefully get in. I'm here for this moody, mellow, trap mess. It sounds so fucking good in the Car too.
Your review of it yesterday bby >>>>>
n
It pulled me in a bit bby
All reviews in here count towards metacritic.
POP MATTERS
Anti*clearly tries to echo Beyonc??s superb self-titled album similarly released with no warning in December 2013, but does so very faintly.*Anti*shares the sparse beats and minimalist electronic synth riffs of*Beyonc?, but unlike Beyonc??s album there aren?t enough strong melodic hooks to pull it off, and the sparse arrangements only emphasize Rihanna?s mostly lackluster vocal performances. Unfortunately, on*Anti*she seems lost and unsure about what she?s trying to do and where she?s trying to go.* :ohwow:
RATING: 4/10
http://www.popmatters.com/review/rihanna-anti
There's more than what I singled out. Clearly. But that was my fav'
this is the best review yet. They gave Bey a 80 :wellheythere:
omfg YES.
keep them talking quee!
(http://j.gifs.com/0R0MoN.gif)
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 29, 2016, 08:18:03 AM
All reviews in here count towards metacritic.
POP MATTERS
Anti*clearly tries to echo Beyonc??s superb self-titled album similarly released with no warning in December 2013, but does so very faintly.*Anti*shares the sparse beats and minimalist electronic synth riffs of*Beyonc?, but unlike Beyonc??s album there aren?t enough strong melodic hooks to pull it off, and the sparse arrangements only emphasize Rihanna?s mostly lackluster vocal performances. Unfortunately, on*Anti*she seems lost and unsure about what she?s trying to do and where she?s trying to go.* :ohwow:
RATING: 4/10
http://www.popmatters.com/review/rihanna-anti
There's more than what I singled out. Clearly. But that was my fav'
this is the best review yet. They gave Bey a 80 :wellheythere:
Minus all that beyonce talk. i agree. i listened to it last night on my sound bar and it was not hittin
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 29, 2016, 08:18:03 AM
All reviews in here count towards metacritic.
POP MATTERS
Anti*clearly tries to echo Beyonc??s superb self-titled album similarly released with no warning in December 2013, but does so very faintly.*Anti*shares the sparse beats and minimalist electronic synth riffs of*Beyonc?, but unlike Beyonc??s album there aren?t enough strong melodic hooks to pull it off, and the sparse arrangements only emphasize Rihanna?s mostly lackluster vocal performances. Unfortunately, on*Anti*she seems lost and unsure about what she?s trying to do and where she?s trying to go.* :ohwow:
RATING: 4/10
http://www.popmatters.com/review/rihanna-anti
There's more than what I singled out. Clearly. But that was my fav'
this is the best review yet. They gave Bey a 80 :wellheythere:
keep those draggings coming Baph!
"Oh better and more genuine music!"
:kii: :kii:
(http://i.imgur.com/3P37CUf.gif)
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 29, 2016, 08:18:03 AM
All reviews in here count towards metacritic.
POP MATTERS
Anti*clearly tries to echo Beyonc??s superb self-titled album similarly released with no warning in December 2013, but does so very faintly.*Anti*shares the sparse beats and minimalist electronic synth riffs of*Beyonc?, but unlike Beyonc??s album there aren?t enough strong melodic hooks to pull it off, and the sparse arrangements only emphasize Rihanna?s mostly lackluster vocal performances. Unfortunately, on*Anti*she seems lost and unsure about what she?s trying to do and where she?s trying to go.* :ohwow:
RATING: 4/10
http://www.popmatters.com/review/rihanna-anti
There's more than what I singled out. Clearly. But that was my fav'
this is the best review yet. They gave Bey a 80 :wellheythere:
I'm fucking crying
cvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv;
Quote from: Baphomet. on January 29, 2016, 08:18:03 AM
All reviews in here count towards metacritic.
POP MATTERS
Anti*clearly tries to echo Beyonc??s superb self-titled album similarly released with no warning in December 2013, but does so very faintly.*Anti*shares the sparse beats and minimalist electronic synth riffs of*Beyonc?, but unlike Beyonc??s album there aren?t enough strong melodic hooks to pull it off, and the sparse arrangements only emphasize Rihanna?s mostly lackluster vocal performances. Unfortunately, on*Anti*she seems lost and unsure about what she?s trying to do and where she?s trying to go.* :ohwow:
RATING: 4/10
http://www.popmatters.com/review/rihanna-anti
There's more than what I singled out. Clearly. But that was my fav'
this is the best review yet. They gave Bey a 80 :wellheythere:
Wow. They said what they said.
:wellheythere:
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:56:48 PM
Quote from: Genesis on January 28, 2016, 06:54:58 PM
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:52:33 PM
the gorls just don't quite GET the album. It's like this generation's "Purple Rain", in a sense.
(https://45.media.tumblr.com/d6c598887582acb1620e22f80bb00bb0/tumblr_mr72k0JT311qd8zg3o1_250.gif)
Yall said the same thing about rated r and it's already forgotten
bbmb
boy...I never praised that album as much as the other gorls and I was kidding.
The album is fairly lackluster minus about three songs. Definitely not worth the year long wait or the huge Samsung rollout.
So nice of her to give it away for free though. Pop music's Mother Teresa tbh.
do you think there's any truth to this supposed part 2 "hey guys! This is the real album!" Mess? People around her have been teasing that more is comin
This metacritic score is low as fuck! Wow!
Quote from: RIG on January 29, 2016, 12:57:35 PM
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:56:48 PM
Quote from: Genesis on January 28, 2016, 06:54:58 PM
Quote from: ANIMMAI on January 28, 2016, 06:52:33 PM
the gorls just don't quite GET the album. It's like this generation's "Purple Rain", in a sense.
(https://45.media.tumblr.com/d6c598887582acb1620e22f80bb00bb0/tumblr_mr72k0JT311qd8zg3o1_250.gif)
Yall said the same thing about rated r and it's already forgotten
bbmb
boy...I never praised that album as much as the other gorls and I was kidding.
The album is fairly lackluster minus about three songs. Definitely not worth the year long wait or the huge Samsung rollout.
So nice of her to give it away for free though. Pop music's Mother Teresa tbh.
do you think there's any truth to this supposed part 2 "hey guys! This is the real album!" Mess? People around her have been teasing that more is comin
IDK :dead: I think they might release something else this fall though