By
Chad Taylor
soundcheck@dmcityview.com
 Justin
Bieber
‘Under the Mistletoe’
Island
Sample
Tracks
If you’re buying a Justin Bieber album, you
either have pre-teen daughters or a shitload
of cats. Either way, you know what you’re getting
into, so there’s really no reason for me to
take Biebs to task simply for being Biebs. For
“Under the Mistletoe,” Bieber gets assists from
everyone from Boyz II Men to Usher, with mixed
results. The collaboration with Usher is… not
the worst thing ever (hello, pull quote!), his
duet with Mariah Carey on “All I Want for Christmas
is You” is an inoffensive take on the best Christmas
song of the last 20 years, and Bieber’s solo
rendition of “Silent Night” is subdued and gentle,
if not particularly memorable. But when Biebs
fails, he fails spectacularly. Most egregiously,
“Little Drummer Boy” (feat. Busta Rhymes) is
an abomination. When Bieber’s star falls, or
your daughters/cats are gone, there’s nothing
here that will garner even a nostalgia play.
CV
 The
Black Keys
‘El Camino’
Nonesuch
Sample
Tracks
If there was ever a group that seem perfect
for scoring an entire Quentin Tarantino flick,
it pretty much has to be The Black Keys, right?
Over the past six albums, they have perfected
a sound that is both completely unique and endlessly
cool. “El Camino” is everything people love
about the group — the fuzzy-amped blues sounds
and catchy hooks apparent in closing track “Mind
Eraser” — but is not an album that rests on
the rather spacious laurels established by their
last album, “Brothers.” The Keys have attained
a stunning amount of commercial success but
can’t convincingly be accused of selling out
because they’ve not let success stop them from
growing and exploring musically. Their sound
has meandered through blues and R&B stalwarts
like Junior Kimbrough and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins,
and now, tracks like “Lonely Boy” clearly throw
a wink in the direction of punkabilly bands
like The Cramps. The exploration continues.
CV
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