Pick of the Moment: Free the Universe by Major Lazer

If you don’t remember, I made the lead single, “Get Free (ft. Amber Coffman of Dirty Projectors)” a track of the moment a few months back when it was release. That was also when I learned that holy fucking shit I would have another 4 months before the album came out. And then another 2 before it really came out. So was it worth the delay? Short answer – yes.

As explained in the previous article, Diplo is about 60% great businessman, 40% amazing producer, and 100% sexy when he’s on his suit and tie shit. Plus, he’s one of the hardest working DJ’s on earth. He once did a stunt where he played 4 1-hour shows, in 4 different cities, on the same night, traveling by helicopter. He produces a ton of tracks for himself and other artists on his label, produces for other people, constantly tours, runs his label Mad Decent, runs his other label Jeffrees, and, you know, eats and sometimes sleeps, I guess.

For this album, Diplo recruits only the finest of guest stars to sing/rap/co-produce with him. Santifold, dubsteppers Flux Pavilion, Danielle Haim (from the trio Haim), Amber Coffman, Ezra Koenig (from Vampire Weekend), Wyclef Jean. Shaggy also makes a return as a possessive (and possibly abusive) boyfriend on “Keep Cool”. I like to pretend that it’s a sequel to “It Wasn’t Me”, where Shaggy is arguing with his girl, Wynter Gordon, who gives some amazing vocals on the track. Also Burno Mars and Tyga are on this album. I would have thrown them into the earlier group, but that would imply that they’re good.

What I find interesting is that there’s no consistent sound between the tracks. I mean, it feels like a Diplo track, but other than that, there’s no overarching theme or sound Free the Universe has. You go from quiet, reserved tracks like “Get Free” or “Jessica (ft. Ezra Koenig)”, then move to dancehall bangers like “Wind Up” and “Mashup the Dance”, to club beats like “Bubble Butt (ft. Bruno Mars, Tyga, and Mystic)” and “Jah No Partial (ft. Flux Pavilion)”. And then there’s the cheesy, hokey, stupid songs like “Reach for the Stars” who features the king of hokey “inspirational” songs, Wyclef Jean. The track order, the vast difference of styles, and the features kind of reminds me of the mediocre Cruel Summer from last year, although I will say that I like the Free the Universe much better, mostly for the great production.

However, I can’t shake the feeling that this whole album is just an ad for Diplo. There’s no consistency to any of the songs – yeah, you could say this albums is a journey around a Caribbean island, weaving through clubs, ghettos, bars, beaches, and quiet evenings in the forests and fields, and you wouldn’t be wrong. And for a Philly-born white kid who’s stage name comes from a dinosaur, it’s impressive how he can transport a completely different culture, a different way of life, to you, wherever you are, merely through sound. But I can’t help but think that a lot of this is to show off how talented of a producer Diplo is, and the fact no matter what kind of music you make, Diplo is the guy to go to for help. And it kind of lessens the album in my eyes from a well-crafted, well-produced, exciting album to a well-crafted, well-produced, exciting commercial. Not to say there can’t be, or isn’t any value to that, but it just makes the album lose something in my eyes.

So, overall, it’s a fantastic album, and you should be able to find at least one or two singles you can jam out to. And if you can look past that advertisement aspect, it’s a truly great EDM album that deserves a spot in your collection. Except for "Bubble Butt". Great production, horrible lyrics.

Track of the Moment: Get Free by Major Lazer

 

In my last article, I mentioned the song “Get Free”. I love the song, even though it’s been out for a little while. It was released about 5 months ago, and the music video came out a few weeks ago. I was going to wait for the album, but that doesn’t come out until November, and I couldn’t wait that long to talk about this song.

Major Lazer is known for 2 things. The first is the main producer/DJ, Diplo. Hailing from Philly and naming himself after the Diplodocus, he’s one of the biggest producers around today, working on mega-hit songs with Beyonce, Usher, M.I.A. (twice), Chris Brown, doing some production on No Doubt’s new album, and helping out with Snoop Dogg’s transition to reggae.Originally, Major Lazer was Diplo and another DJ named Switch, but Switch left due to “creative differences” (which everyone knows means trouble in bed). Now Major Lazer is just Diplo and whoever he's working with at the time. Diplo also tours around the world, playing around 300 gigs a year. On top of that, he owns his own label, Mad Decent, a charity, Heaps Decent, and co-runs club/music collective, Hooked on Hollerphonix. He’s a rather busy man, but damn is he good at music and business. Oh, and he’s the only white guy who could make Jamaican dancehall music and be featured in a video like this one, which can only be described as “so fucking ratchet, people from Malibu can only see a series of welfare cutback initiatives.”

The second thing they’re known for is not being subtle. Watch this video for “Pon De Floor”. I almost made it my track of the moment, because not only is the song good, but just watch that video. It features the dance style popular in Jamaica called “daggering”, which is what swing dancing would be, if it dropped all pretense and featured 150% more hip gyrating. If that sounds stupid, you haven’t finished watching that video. It would rival Psy’s “Gungnam Style” in viral-ness, if the Youtube video wasn’t age restricted. I mean, just look at what happens at 3:13! (Here’s a gif of it, if you can’t watch/are too lazy to watch). Holy ass loving christ! I’m like 95% sure that wasn’t CGIed. There’s no way someone didn’t break a pelvis. And the music is pretty indicative of their style – loud, lots of bass, and some strange samples played on top. Pretty standard dancehall fair.

This is Major Lazer's mascot, Major Lazer. He's a Jamaican commando who lost his arm fighting zombies in 1984. The US replaced his arm with a laser, and now he flies around on a rocket-powered skateboard killing monsters, partying, and making music for his club. He's my hero from when I was 10.

That’s why this song is such a pleasant surprise. Don’t get me wrong; the old stuff is great. “Pon De Floor” is what got me into Major Lazer and Diplo. But it’s not really my style. “Get Free”, on the other hand, is right up my alley. Now that Diplo is running the show with the rest of the Major Lazer squad merely helping him, Diplo’s unique style is able to shine through. And this song shows it. Heavily influenced by reggae, and featuring some great vocals by Amber Coffman from The Dirty Projectors, Diplo makes a great track. It has a slightly muffled, but amazing, keyboard riff and a funky bassline, and is just so perfectly loudly restrained. It has a full sound, but it’s also held back. Even the crescendos sound like a loud wall of sound, but coming from the next room over. Plus, it has a great music video exploring Jamaica and Jamaican culture.

I wasn’t too excited about Major Lazer’s next album, Free the Universe, until I heard this song. Now I can’t wait until I can get it. In the mean time, I guess I’ll just have to settle for this awesome song. Speaking of awesome and settling, it’d be awesome if you settled for liking our Facebook page to read reviews of all the newest and oldest music you should love.