Pound The Alarm – Nicki Minaj

My poor ears. Such an unnecessary fall from grace after the slightly well cooked Pink Friday. It’s not clear whether the idea for this track was attempting to ditto a carnival theme (apparently), or to tuck nicely into the post-dubstep era of pop and weak dubstep scat.

Pound The Alarm screams for focus, as it Nicki begins to lay the smackdown after the intro. The quick feeling of redemption fades ever so quickly, leaving my mouth was agate, uttering the sentence ”Starship episode 2?”  The powers that be have treated the masses to an even more brain dead, reechoing thud to cleanse the senses from what Starships infected us with.

The tracks only high point doesn’t last for no longer than a single minute. Autotune and unimaginative, generic, lyrics are forever rampant. Please, let me have free reign. I propose to strip this track bare from all vocals, and compile it on disc rightly named ”Piss off your neighbours, Vol 1.” If I head this screeching from across the street I’d buy a 12 gauge.

Right By My Side (ft. Chris Brown) – Nicki Minaj

Now this is more like it. I haven’t listened to Roman Reloaded. After Starships, I didn’t want to listen to it and be subjected to a list of Starship doppelgängers. It’s a step in the right direction, but only on the same level to what a sprinter does to prep himself before a race. Hints and nods to what Nicki Minaj can do best are unwrapped and taken away like a tease.

Right By My Side features Chris Brown. There is no need for his often unmanageable temperament to back our thoughts into a corner and come to the conclusion that he is better vocally than she is on this track. What’s scary for her is the way this song makes notice of this. The vocal talent canyon between the two is larger than Nicki Minaj’s arse. Her voice still auto tuned, as the simple fact is, she can’t sing. But thank you Chris for giving us breathing space between verses, and not let us suffer through them.

In the final third of the track, just after Brown finishes, that’s where you reach the peak of what the song has to offer. Nicki delivers a finely executed rap. This makes me wonder if the song would be better flipped on its head, the majority of it rapped by Nicki. Leave her vocals to the chorus. The truth is, she can keep up with some of the best in game when she does rap.

 

Starships – Nicki Minaj

For any album to be noted across audiences it’s essential that they cross-genre at some point in the track list. This is the idea of Starships. Appropriately, it’ll probably stand out like wearing white to a funeral. If it can do that then it’s purpose has been achieved.

It is just a dance anthem created to generate attention, yes. More importantly, this track will be the most likely thing to come out of your speakers as soon as you turn on your radio. Starships kills two birds with one stone, becoming one of the summer anthems of 2012. If you disagree, just listen to the opening line. ‘Let’s go to the beach’ screams seasonal feelings at you and forces them down your throat. The songs agenda is more obvious to pick out than strippers in St Paul’s.

It’ll feel wrong to dwell on it’s down points because it’s high notes are what will sell it. Starships is viciously catchy. It’s up for discussion whether it manages this through simplicity, or some sort of hidden witchcraft only visible to those deep within the industry. Instead of a hook, the verses are conjoined by a speaker penetrating buzz.

And if the writings of William Shakespeare interest you most then it should be best to pass on somebody who manages to rhyme fly with sky. But with that said, hearing it won’t make anybody collapse in a heap. The bass is intended to shove those thoughts straight out of your head.

Turn Me On ft. Nicki Minaj – David Guetta

Putting faith in David Guetta to create  another soon to be massive club hit is like relying on the sun to provide light and warmth to everybody on planet Earth. He collaborates with Nicki Minaj for this one – called Turn Me On. Essentially, it’s a very similar sounding track to his previous other hits. I would understand if you’d say that you have heard this somewhere before. It’s the fifth single from his album Nothing but the Beat.

Let’s approach the check-list. Is it loud? Yes. Is it catchy? Of course. It’s deadly. And finally, does it feature someone other than David Guetta? Check. The vocals that Nicki Minaj fit seamlessly into the track – even if the rap at the end is a little questionable. David said himself  ’The world is gonna be shocked. Because they don’t know her like this.’ That’s right David, as this song has received a heavy critical reception for being extremely auto-tuned, even if it’s not that noticeable.  It does fulfil its purpose then, can’t argue with that. It provokes an energetic reaction.

A quick mention on the video. David Guetta said he wanted it to be ‘risqué.’ I’m not sure whether a mechanical humanoid, pre-built, singing on a table is symbolic of the word risqué, but what I’d definitely commit to saying is that the video is different. And it’s also below.