A letter to Gregg Gillis: All Day Review
Dear Gregg,
I’m a huge fan. When I say huge I mean it. I’ve seen you 4 times live and have been on stage at each one. I touched you one time because someone next to me did and I thought it would be cool. I even hung out with you once at remedy at the afterparty for the cheswick show you did on one of the coldest days two winters ago. I have listened to all the music which I could find by you and even have an exclusive mix you made for a pitt radio station which I cherish and played to start many of my own radio shows.
Musically I like you because you unabashedly do your thing and I think your sound really progressed from unstoppable and secret diaries to night ripper to feed the animals. The glitch-pop thing continued but you toned it down. You let the blends run longer and made them more recognizable. You sampled from more rap music especially focusing on southern rappers like 3-6 mafia soulja boy and gucci. I was mad at none of this.
The problem is that the new cd (All Day, released today, Nov. 15th on illegal art: http://www.illegal-art.net/allday/ ) is a continuance of this progression, but not enough so to keep it relevant. We all know that mashups are not really cool any more. If you want to do that still (and I think you should!) I have a few ideas for how it could work better. One idea is to release the best mashups on their own as singles A La hood internet. Of course dj’s will still be able to go through and pick their favorite moments and create edits (here’s mine for the black and yellow mash towards the end of the disc: http://www.mediafire.com/?n18bt1in3r7qqi4 but this way people will be able to access and interact with your music in a more 2010 way and a less 2005 way. Additionally if you release songs one at a time the sampled material won’t have time to get stale there were a ton of verses and beats on this album which I am really bored with and wasn’t pumped to hear (but might have been 6-14 months ago).
Another gripe is I thought night ripper and feed the animals sounded more cohesive and this one is a little hodgepodge. One big problem (exemplified by the freeze me accapella over time after time on down for the count) is the songs’ only similarity or point of connection is a similar tempo. Mashing together songs in the post-mashup era should involve more as far as I’m concerned.
I’m looking forward to seeing you in December, and really appreciate what you do musically and for Pittsburgh in general. All my best,
B Tips
P.S. I included some notes I made when listening to the CD. +s are things I liked –s things I didn’t like and $ signs are things I noticed I didn’t think everyone would and wanted to call attention to. Have fun listening to all day!
http://www.illegal-art.net/allday
Girl Talk-Painted Black and Yellow B Tips Edit by djbtips
Track 1: Oh No
-Eq on dougy vocals off (diy accapella)
$ Empire state of mind drums are cool
-First rock mash tempo fluctuates in a dance/challenging manner and is too long
+/-Ice cream paint job old, w/ strawberry letter 23 cool but too long also
-Blitzkrieg bop off key
Let it Out
+/-Corny (and off cadence) Juicy J verse (Twerk) but cool guitar
+Mr. blue sky is one of the greatest ever. No accapella over it (good) just a little extra beat
+Great moment with http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nf50swcp2_w Willie mitchell and flava in your ear (craig mack) chorus
-Pop champagne feels suuuper slow (and old) over drop it like its hot
+The taste of the butthole surfer’s pepper he gives is amaaaazing (puts wale over the top and its pretty good)
+/-Mr. Big Stuff is played un-altered for three full bars. (a first?) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nf50swcp2_w the break at 1:19
-Diplo already did my posse’s on broadway on top ranking (santogold)
-I get the gas face when rude boy comes in super off key and stays that way for just under a minute
That’s right
+Trent (closer) is used well (layered with vocal samples and good lyrics)
+This song feels very complete (mastered?) unlike the first two
+/-Wish the original drums were on the spacehog during the mash but when the chorus drops it sounds fantastic (a little compression I think)
3:10 +/- The off cadence single ladies intro is an obvious miscue but the buildup and ante up drop are cool this one is also off key but doen’t bother me that much
+Very cool how he uses the ante up accapella after this at 4:05 and I’m not mad about the party in the USA beat (get those 15 year olds into it they’re the ones buying all the shirts at lollapalooza!)
Side note: The beat is made by Dr. Luke who makes much of the pop music of the last 4-5 years that makes it to the top 40. He was also raised Jewish (Shwinggg – idolize someone: Dr. Luke Discography )
Jump on Stage
+/-Unremarkable until I wish accapella (sounds good)
+Creep with girl talk drums sounds awesome haha
3:25 +/- Wow shimmy shimmy yesssss. Wish he dropped out the drums for “I get psycho killer norman bates”
-Creep chorus is ruined by Gregg in my opinion if he’s gonna play parts of tracks unaltered (see mr. big stuff from track 2) he should have done this for this one as well
-Transition at 5:08 is kinda ragged… fetty be would not approve
+Hey ladies mash is fun. 5:40
This is the remix:
-Did he already use I want you back? If he didn’t everyone else did regardless
+/-I respect the toadies usage but it always will sound messed up cause its not in 4
-The salt shaker accapella is off cadence (Killin me!) the cecilia joint is disjointed too…not in a good way especially at the beginning
$ Threw a little egyptian lover in there (5:00)
On and On
$ 3:50 drums from funky cold medina cool
+/-How did he get the twista verse for wetter yessss but when bono starts yelling its kinda ruined
+/-5:00 out of tune gaga and, here’s my aphex twin mash
Get it Get it
+/-This is the mash with soulja boy and aphex he was talking about in interviews. It’s okay vocals are a little loud
+Killing in the name of and rye rye works well. Cool kind of underplayed accapella (Bang)
+Good stuff on the digital love sample (OG is George Duke:)
Down for the Count
-This is nightmarishly off key and makes me cringe (1-1:47)
+/-Crystal Waters is cool but the vocals: “Shake that ass” are too loud
+Bust a move at 4:50 over Kylie Minogue Can’t get you out of my head is amazing why do some of these run over a minute and that one ends just when I want more…(again, release the good ones as singles and let people choose how long to play them)
-6:30 Sounds like his copy of get ready was downloaded from limewire… (more enjoyable: )
-Freeze me over time after time doesn’t work at all for me.
Make me wanna
+The wheres’ your head at over Rick Ross Blowin Money Fast at 1:30 is fierce
+Blue oyster cult http://morecowbelloriginal.com/
Steady Shock
$ BOB (outkast) samples 5:00-end
Triple Double
$ Pop lock and drop it at 1:30
+++ Everyone’s gonna be talking about the Wiz Khalifa over Painted Black. I made a DJ edit of this and called it: Painted Black and Yellow. How witty am I.
Download:
Every Day
+/-This one is anthem material. Coming soon to a frat party near you. I think the John Lennon sample is what dude was talking about when he said not everything on the cd would work at his show…
That wasn't a review. That was surgical procedure.
ReplyDeleteI love you MG
ReplyDeleteyour "review" is complete bullshit, go home, where's your mashup album?
ReplyDelete"Where's your mashup album?" What kind of question is that? Just cause I haven't stollen the original ideas of someone else and turned them into very similar but equally or even more shitty unoriginal ideas, that means I don't have the right to criticize. That doesn't make any sense, I think Greg Gillis shouldn't be allowed to steal others peoples music to make more poppy trash until he makes a REAL ALBUM (Aka something he actually produced)
ReplyDeleteThere is no such thing as a mashup "album" anyway. I would call that a mix, not an album. You actually have to make music to have an album, you can't change just change the channel on top 40 radio with a crossfader with absolutely no coherent plan or style and call it original music.
I don't understand why Girl Talk insists that he is "not a DJ". I would have SO MUCH MORE RESPECT for him if he made music like this live and on tabels.
Everyone knows how to use the Warp function in Ableton, it doesn't impress anyone except the young and the ignorant.
Great review for an awful album!
totes agree
ReplyDeleteit is kinda 2005/2008 isn't it?