Avid followers of the Blue-Box charts will know that the overwhelming majority of it is about POP... and that perhaps with the exception of rock and some hard rock/metal, it's quite rare for other styles to make the charts... ESPECIALLY r&b and hip hop... so much so that when songs/albums of the latter 2 mentioned styles actually make these charts, it's often thought of as "crossover success"...
Well, enter the latest "crossover success" then... and the biggest one of it's kind in quite some time... this week sees the first "proper" r&b #1 album in well over a decade when... the same artist achieved that feat with 'Daydream'...
I'm of course talking about MARIAH CAREY, as her new album 'E=MC
2' gives her her first #1 album this week since said album in 1995...
Following the huge breakthrough success of Carey's 'Music Box' in '93, she mostly "alienated" the pop-loving Blue Islands following the release of the r&b-leaning 'Daydream'... This is the first time it seems possible she might scale those prior heights again...
And while 'E=MC
2' is an all-out r&b album, perhaps what strikes more chords this time, is the fact that it contains some of Mariah's strongest melodic work in quite a while... (chief protests against r&b before has been it's LACK of strong melodies as opposed to pop/rock...), not to mention that she mostly avoids showing off her "vocal gymnastics" too much this time...
As her new single 'Touch My Body' makes #2 this week on the Singles Chart, it also gives her her highest charting single since 'One Sweet Day' reached #1 back in 1995... "emancipation" indeed...!
| Replied by rohan |
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Post time: 2008-04-17 20:53:29 |
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I would like to add: after a few more spins, I think this is a GORGEOUS album!
Except for the strong melodies and the good songs, it's her SINGING that doesn't annoy me this time... she doesn't sing with that high-pitched "whispering" on this album, neither does she "belt it out" too often... she actually SINGS this time round - but sounds relaxed and confident... well done Mariah!
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