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6 out of 10
"Seeing Sounds" is the third release from Nothing Ever Really Dies, a.k.a N*E*R*D, and the follow up to the much lauded "Fly or Die" (2004). The etymology of "Seeing Sounds" is a reference to 'synesthesia', a cognitive process where sensory information can be substituted, for instance sound being experienced as colour and vice versa. Such extra normative abstractions allow other ways of seeing or hearing, reputedly inspiring Vincent Van Gogh and Pharrell Williams.
The intro track is like the opening to a movie, albeit quite a corny one, which seems to drop into a wavery Willy Wonker acid trip of sound transmuting into colour, before suddenly falling into a seedy funk groove of electronic breakdowns. This is quickly followed by "Everyone Nose", a break neck flurry of rapped verses and chants, "ALL THE GIRLS STANDING IN THE LINE FOR THE BATHROOM",Electronic bleeps, honks of saxophones, jazz drumming, it comes across almost like an early pre- John Frusciante Red Hot Chili Peppers track, briefly relenting into a calm piano breakdown.
The record from here on out toes the line between Parliament-Funkadelic style grooves and Pop hooks that Jagger and Richards would be proud of, like "Windows". More sedate Hip Hop is encountered in "Yeah You", while "Anti-Matter" sounds like a collaboration between Led Zeppelin and Tupac, hard dirty riffs with smart flow smacking you on the upside of your head.
"Spaz" is a weird experiment; break beats backing Pharrell's ghetto version of "I'm a little teapot". I am unsure whether N*E*R*D are aware that the Spastics Society changed their name to Scope a while back and the term ’spaz’ is outmoded, particularly for reasons of political correctness. If Pharrell and his friends were trying to do some goodwill promotion work for Scope they could have done a better job by giving them something with a little thought than a bizarre half-baked B-side.
"Sooner or Later" makes up for the short fall of "Spaz", demonstrating N*E*R*D as an outfit with multi genre prowess. Though at first it seems stalled somewhere between The Beatles and Kayne West it never the less works as a more subdued and sentimental moment which suddenly leaps into crashing chorus complete with blistering guitar solos akin to a Guns and Roses epic.
"Happy" is a straight out Rock number from the Van Halen school of floating guitar riffs sent through a battery of processors and matched to catchy feel good lyrics. "Kill Joy" could go head to head with Califronication era Red Hot Chili Peppers in terms of hard-edged Funk Rock with ultra busy bass lines and haunting guitar riffs. "Love Bomb" is another laid back ballad, which does seem slightly samey when considered in relation to "Sooner or Later". "You Know What" and "Laugh About It" play it safe in N*E*R*D's familiar territory of Funk/Rock/ Rap fusion. "Lazer Gun" is a decent conclusion, the group wearing their influences on their sleeves beginning with a shout out to "Purple Rain" and laid back groove complete with a riff that sounds vaguely like "Rock Star" from their first album, seemingly taking little pieces of all the other ideas that play out on the rest of the record.
The main short falling of the record is given the influence behind the title and the Intro track you are almost predisposed to expect a recurrence of this theme throughout the album, investigating this idea, and bringing it in and out, such as how Lupe Fiasco's "The Cool" flirted with the concept album format. Yet apart from the Intro any investigation and experimentation with the idea of the synesthesia is kept covert. Instead for the most part the proceedings stick to what N*E*R*D are already known for; bringing a multitude of genres into one place with super slick production and great hooks. It just feels like "Seeing Sounds" could have been an opportunity for the group to take their art to a new level, but instead is never anything more than a collection of songs, albeit very good ones.
What could have been an epic journey into unknown territory is instead simply a wander down the garden path.
Listen: www.myspace.com/nerdofficial
Tracklist:
1. Time for Some Action
2. Everyone Nose (All the Girls Standing in the Line for the Bathroom)
3. Windows
4. Anti Matter
5. Spaz
6. Yeah You
7. Sooner or Later
8. Happy
9. Kill Joy
10. Love Bomb
11. You Know What
12. Laugh About It
13. Lazer Gun
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