A$AP Rocky is impressive on debut album

A$AP Rocky
``Long.Live.A$AP‘’
(RCA Records)

Rapper A$AP Rocky meshes his laid-back lyrical persona with a melodic sound, delivering an impressive piece of work with just a few flaws on his debut album, ``Long.Live.A$AP.‘’

Much of the 12-track set is an easy listen with solid production from Jim Jonsin, Hit-Boy, T-Minus and Clams Casino. The 24-year-old, who hails from Harlem, N.Y., raps with abstract rhymes and metaphors that are easy to grasp on songs like ``Goldie‘’ and ``Phoenix.‘’ He shows an abundant amount of bravado on ``LVL,‘’ declaring his emergence as hip-hop‘s next big star. And he holds his own on the catchy hit, ``(Expletive) Problems,’‘ which features Drake, Kendrick Lamar and 2 Chainz. The only thing missing from ``Long.Live.A$AP’‘ is a theme or story line to help us learn more about A$AP Rocky and what he stands for as an artist.

(AP)

Joy Formidable roars again on ’Wolf‘s Law’

The Joy Formidable
``Wolf‘s Law’‘
(Atlantic)

Two years after The Joy Formidable barreled to the fringe of the rock mainstream with the lush and brute ``The Big Roar,’‘ the Welsh trio returns with an even bigger and squalling encore. ``Wolf’s Law‘’ is the arrival of a headliner.

It‘s a deserved reward. This is wonderfully noisy and hooky, shimmering with guitar-pop accessibility. So what if standouts such as ``Maw Maw Song’‘ and the whirlwind ``Bats’‘ have the nagging feeling of sounding familiar _ maybe a head-bopper from the alt-rock heyday of the `90s or another Brit rocker making massive songs for arenas like touring mates Muse. In the voice and guitar-hammering hands of frontwoman Ritzy Bryan, surprises (usually loud ones) are around every corner.

In the opener ``This Ladder is Ours,’‘ Bryan begins with an inviting ``Let’s take this walk/It‘s long overdue.’‘ She isn’t kidding. Where was an exciting rocker like this in 2012, and how soon before we can have another?

(AP)


James delivers on ‘No Beginning No End’

Jose James
``No Beginning No End‘’
(Blue Note)

After a lackluster 2010 U.S. recording debut, Jose James has returned with the self-financed and co-produced ``No Beginning No End.‘’ The album, eventually released by Blue Note, spotlights his songwriting skills and a unique musical persona that comfortably navigates between neo-soul, R&B, hip-hop and jazz.

James‘ romantic baritone on the sensual, slow-tempo title track might evoke comparisons with neo-soul singer D’Angelo, but on original tunes like ``Trouble,‘’ with its funky bass and organ lines and horn blasts, he shows the influence of R&B legends like Marvin Gaye. On ``Vanguard,‘’ co-written and performed with genre-bending jazz keyboardist Robert Glasper, James shows a modern jazz sensibility as he deftly handles the rhythmic shifts and complex harmonies.

James also teams with R&B singer Emily King on two of her sultry ballads, ``Heaven on the Ground‘’ and ``Come to My Door,‘’ and stretches even further on his collaboration with French-Moroccan singer Hindi Zahra on the North African-spiced ``Sword + Gun‘’ as he confidently takes his listeners to unexpected places.

(AP)