Cordavision Music Reviews

Not a lot of people know this about me, but I’m a sucker for some good pop-punk. blink-182’s Enema of the State is one of those albums that will always stay iconic for me, while I guess if you wanna call My Chemical Romance ‘punk,’ Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge and The Black Parade are some of my favorite punk albums ever. After seeing what Machine Gun Kelly has been doing with his career, I would’ve never expected him to make a full-on pop-punk album, mainly produced by blink-182’s Travis Barker, no less. Either way, this is tickets to my downfall , MGK’s latest album and sort of an artistic risk for him. Let’s see if the risk pays off. tickets to my downfall is a rock album with pop, punk, and hip-hop influences. Now, I have to admit, I was a little worried heading into this. When I heard that this was a rock album, I immediately thought of Kid Cudi’s Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven , his A-for-effort rock venture that fell flat on its face. Somehow, MGK’s turn at punk is… kinda good?...

George Miller has been in the public eye for quite a while, but you may not realize it. Remember the “Harlem Shake?" Why everyone was flailing around to an EDM track was because of him and his now-retired YouTube channel, Filthy Frank. He used that newfound fame, along with his dedicated fan base, to jumpstart a full-time career in music, already having put out two mixtapes under the name Pink Guy, which his final project under the name PINK SEASON debuted at the top of the iTunes charts when it released and has become a generation-defining project in the comedy-rap genre. Now under the name Joji, he’s put out two projects through the 88Rising label, his debut EP In Tongues , a somber and lo-if project that was a strong contrast to his ventures as Pink Guy. Then, in came BALLADS 1 , his full commercial debut and mainstream breakout project. While I did like BALLADS 1 and can appreciate it for launching the sad bedroom-pop sound into the stratosphere, it was a pretty flawed proje...

For those that don’t keep track, this post is my 100th review I’ve done since starting this back in April. I wanna thank each and every person that has looked at my writing and my opinions that I’ve never really been able to share outside of just talking with friends. I also have a pretty cool announcement to make: I will be starting an interview series later this year, with many different kinds of people. There’s no set schedule for these interviews, but they’re going to be existing on this page at some point. The first edition will be with indie-rock artist Garrett Case, and I’m currently in the planning stages of working out an interview with up-and-coming artist Ashnikko in promotion for her upcoming mixtape Demidevil . The Ashnikko interview is not confirmed to be happening yet, and I’ll keep all of you updated on that! Now, onto the review! Frank Ocean has always had a special place in my heart. While I don’t think Frank Ocean has a so-called ‘perfect’ album, he’s a pretty great...

Ava Max is one of those artists that I could never understand why she was on the level of popularity that she’s at now. After the double whammy of “Sweet but Psycho” and “So Am I,” Max seemed prime for stardom. Now, just over two years after that and a couple of delays, Ava Max’s debut album Heaven and Hell is here. With the concept of the album being divided into two sides, ‘heaven’ and ‘hell,’ I went into this album with an open mind and kinda optimistic as well. Enough chit-chat, let’s just get right into Heaven or Hell . Heaven and Hell is a pop album with electronic and dance influences. As for the sound, it’s like a theatrical take on an early Lady Gaga record, emphasis on ‘theatrical.’ The entire album feels like an uptempo Broadway musical, and you’re right in the front and center seat. The song “OMG What’s Happening” is a great showcase of her voice, “Naked” has one of the best choruses I’ve heard all year, and the idea of the track “Torn” being the purgatory of the two side...

I keep talking about Griselda, so I’m just gonna not touch it. I covered Conway the Machine’s newest project From King to A GOD last week, and we now have a new Griselda Records project in the form of Armani Caesar’s debut album, THE LIZ . Griselda’s self-proclaimed ‘First Lady’ is ready to take the rap game by storm, so we’re not gonna waste anymore time. Let’s get right into THE LIZ and see how it ended up. THE LIZ is a hip-hop album with jazz influences. One thing I’ve been loving with these Griselda releases is that they’re all pretty similar, so they could all be ranked! As much as I hate to admit it, this is in the lower category of Griselda’s 2020 releases. THE LIZ has a really slow start to it, and that got me very worried. Thankfully, the track “Drill a RaMa” with Benny the Butcher and 808 Mafia picks things up BIG TIME. I think that Caesar could bring more to the table vocally, but in the context of the jazzy beats, they wouldn’t mesh well at all. Honestly, there’s not a ...

Throughout the 88Rising label, there’s a massive amount of talented artists that are rightfully being obsessed over. Rich Brian is a major example of this, and Joji, who is prepping his next album Nectar for release next week (which I’ll be covering), has been a fan favorite well before joining the label. One of the more underrated artists from here is Niki, an R&B crooner who’s music tries its best to not be the same as the others, which I enjoy quite a bit. I’ve been looking forward to her debut album Moonchild for a while now, and I intentionally avoided the singles since I heard that this was gonna be a concept album about the phases of the moon. That’s enough talk, let’s get right into Moonchild and see how it is. Moonchild is an R&B album with alternative influences. Throughout this album, I was getting heavy Lorde, Billie Eilish, and even Frank Ocean vibes. It’s very atmospheric and the production compliments Niki’s voice quite well. The writing is also pretty stella...

I’ve never heard a single YoungBoy NBA song in my life. I haven’t even heard a feature of his, and that’s never happened for me while reviewing a popular artist like himself, especially in the rap genre. I believe this project right here, Top , is his second album and third project overall this year. I mean, he’s famous and is trying to make it big, so might as well start off with a lot of projects to build up momentum. Either way, this is my very first time listening to him. There are only two features on here, and they’re both pretty big. Lil Wayne and Snoop Dogg are big names to have on an album when you’re just starting off. Right off the bat, I feel like this is gonna be long mainly because there are twenty-one tracks on Top , and it’s most likely gonna be a mixed bag. Let’s get right into it and just see how it is. Top is a hip-hop album with trap influences. I tried to go into this with an open mind, but honestly, this was agonizing to get through. If this guy can even be consi...

Whenever I think of rock music, I’ve been trained by my friends and family to think about the 70s and 80s. I grew up with so much of that music that I’ve never really paid attention to the emo-rock phase that was the 2000s until very recently. That included Marilyn Manson. While he may not be the greatest person on the planet, his music defined a generation and that can’t be unsung. While his more recent projects like Heaven Upside Down haven’t hit the same heights as Holy Wood , Manson has always been one of the more consistent artists that’s been going on for so long. Now, in 2020, he’s back with WE ARE CHAOS , a record that’s almost like a return to form for him. Even after his (alleged) appearance on Poppy’s amazing album I Disagree from this past January, it was pretty cool to hear from him again. Let’s get right into it and see how it is. WE ARE CHAOS is an alternative rock album with glam rock vibes. I can say immediately that this is a great entry point to not just Manson’s ...

It’s not just you. Other than the pandemic, Griselda has a giant grip on 2020. The ever-expanding rap label is putting out project after project this year and slowly becoming one of the biggest breakouts of the year. Their reign continues with label co-founder Conway the Machine and his finally-released proper debut From King to A GOD . With how much acclaim he’s garnered throughout his career, does his first studio album live up to the hype? Let’s find out together. From a King to A GOD is a hip-hop album with boom-bap influences. Now, Conway has always been hit or miss to me. His features are always pretty great, but his projects and EPs have been a little long-winded for me, and that’s the problem. They’re EPs, they’re supposed to be shorter. Luckily, it doesn’t feel that way at all with From a King to A GOD . Before I get to Conway himself, the features on here are some of the best I’ve heard all year. Method Man probably has the best feature of this year so far on “Lemon,” Arman...

Before you read this review, I know what you’re thinking. Why am I wasting my time with this guy? First off, I need content, but that’s not the important part. Throughout 6ix9ine’s relatively short career, he’s been grabbing headlines left and right. From being kicked out of a gang to testifying to the court of his former gang members, he’s famous for everything that he’s done except for his music. Just to let everyone know, I do not think this man should have a career in music. His activities, which include pedophilia, are inexcusable for him as a person, and it bewilders me that he has a fanbase as large as it is. Either way, I like to try and separate the art from the artist in this type of situation. I can still think that Thriller is one of the best pop albums of all time, whether or not the allegations against Michael Jackson are true. So from here on out, this will only be about 6ix8ine’s career in music. I will only judge the album from the context of the music itself, not his...

Declan McKenna has always been an artist I’ve enjoyed, but only kind of. I liked his debut album, What Do You Think of the Car? , but I felt like it could be a whole lot more. The person that introduced me to McKenna and his music is OBSESSED with him, but you know, that’s a lot of different people into music these days. So, rightfully so, I had decided to look into his much-delayed second album Zeros . I hadn’t heard any of the singles before this, so this is a whole new listen for me! I got nothing else, let’s just get right into Declan McKenna’s newest album, Zeros . Zeros is a glam rock album with pop and indie undertones. Now, I had no idea what to expect from this album. I thought his debut album was a pretty cool pop-rock/indie album, but I really didn’t think about it too much. Damn, Zeros is an ambitious album. This is essentially a mix between Elton John and David Bowie that I’m totally loving! Throughout each track, he is just oozing with charisma and swagger unlike anythi...

Big Sean has had a bad rap in the music industry. While I believe that he’s a very talented and gifted rapper, he’s always been out of the G.O.A.T. talks because he simply doesn’t have an album that is great. Sure, his first two albums were fun, and Dark Sky Paradise and I Decided. are fine, but it was never really anything to be shocked at. With his latest project, Detroit 2 , he’s trying to make that great album that he hasn’t had yet. He definitely has the talent to build up a classic: Post Malone, Anderson .Paak, Young Thug, Travis Scott, and even Earlly Mac appear on this album, among many others. There are even spoken-word tracks from three huge names about their experiences with Sean himself, the city of Detroit, or both. They’re from legendary comedian Dave Chapelle, pioneering singer Erykah Badu, and iconic R&B legend Stevie Wonder. Names like that alone can have the potential to upstage an artist like Sean, but we’ll just have to find out for ourselves. Let’s dive into ...

I haven’t covered a lot of Top Dawg Entertainment reviews mainly because I haven’t had time and I’m waiting for the next Kendrick Lamar album to drop so I can do a bunch of TDE albums. Now, I decided to review one of the higher reviewed debut albums of 2017, SZA’s Ctrl . One of the newer members of the TDE family, SZA has been on the rise for a long time, and this is her highly anticipated album. There’s pretty much all there is to it. Kendrick has hyped her up quite a bit since joining TDE, and I think it’s about time to look over her debut album. Let’s get into Ctrl and see what I think of it. Ctrl is an alternative R&B album with soul influences. Now, the genre of alternative R&B has been beaten to death for the past decade. SZA has been around since the early 2010s, releasing her first projects at around the time that The Weeknd was putting out his Trilogy mixtapes. I like it when artists try to keep changing the genre they call their sound, and if it’s good, it could ha...

I already covered Rich Brian’s music very recently, so I’m not going to get into the details of his career. Getting right into it, this is his new EP titled 1999 , named after his birth year. Today’s his birthday, by the way, so happy birthday! 1999 is reportedly a teaser of what his sound will be like on his next album, not unlike Drake’s latest mixtape from a few months back. Alright, I’ve talked enough about this, let’s just get right into it. 1999 is a rap EP with pop influences. There are three types of Rich Brian on this project: Bangers, acoustic tracks, and pop. Now, I can also say that the more minimal songs like “Sins” are my favorite tracks of his. There’s something about this that just rubs me the right way. Either way, the bangers on here are pretty good, which I consider to be “Don’t Care” and “Long Run.” The rest of the tracks don’t do as much for me, though. They just feel like filler for this to be a full EP instead of a couple loose singles. Also, this really remind...

Everyone has that one song that just happened to be on the radio during their childhood. For me, it was “Latch” by Disclosure, a British house duo. They didn’t handle the vocals, though. That went to Sam Smith, who might just ascend to their fifth gender within the next few years. “Latch” was all over the place, and that was the song that got me into dance music. That song was on their 2013 debut album Settle , and then when their next album Caracal came out two years later, it just didn’t feel the same. Yes, Sam Smith was on this album too. Then, after a whopping five years and two EPs, Disclosure is back in the studio for ENERGY , a brand new album that takes inspiration from world music to make a new sound in the mainstream house genre. Let’s get into ENERGY and see exactly what I mean. ENERGY is a house album with UK garage, R&B, disco, African pop, Afrobeats, and soul vibes. Let the record show that for the first half of this album, I was dancing in my seat. The first half ...

Summer is one of the best times of the year in general, but it’s also one of the best times for music. There are some summers where an artist or album dominates playlists throughout the season, like in 2018 when Travis Scott dropped ASTROWORLD . That record was all over the place, but along with that, it’s also one of the most iconic albums of the 2010s. When producer Calvin Harris decided to ditch the EDM music that made him a household name, the type of music he gravitated towards was practically made for summer: funk. This one-off project called Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 united an eclectic group of performers on a playlist curated for the hottest season of the year. Let’s get into it and see what makes this project so different from the rest of the pop world. Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 is a funk album with pop, disco, and R&B. Now, call me crazy, but I think this is one of the most enjoyable albums of this decade. Before Funk Wav , I always thought that Calvin Harris was a one-tric...