Osaka Popstar - Osaka Popstar & the American Legends of Punk

70%
The rather simple concept of a "supergroup" (a band featuring members who have been previously successful individiually) leads to some logical problems: clashing egos, lack of clear direction, and high, possibly unreachable expectations.

Though Osaka Popstar is, strictly speaking, a punk rock supergroup (founded by producer John Cafiero, who sings, featuring ex-Ramone Marky on drums, ex-Misfit Jerry Only on bass, ex-Black Flag Dez Cadena on lead guitar and ex-Voidoid Ivan Julian on rhythm guitar) the band fits an entirely different vision: essentially, fun, old-school punk mixed with Japanese cartoons.

Though it sounds weird on the surface, it's not that weird when you think about it: there's a certain quirkiness and fun that you can find in both punk and anime. Osaka Popstar makes the connection explicit by covering the themes to "Astro Boy" and "Sailor Moon".

Punk music is largely built on "punks" as musicians, that is, amateurs. So in a lot of ways, the mere idea of a punk supergroup seems self-contradictory: how can successful, proffesional musicians be amateurs? However, the members still play with a lightness and fun, plus sincere enthusiasm for the subject matters (which is many times ridiculous). The band can pull out the tricks if need be, but usually they just blast the songs out, which is preferable. Cafiero is a competent, if unremarkable vocalist. Some of the leads are also highl melodic by punk standards, which help bring more personality to the songs musically.

The band's cover of the bluegrass standard of "Man of Constant Sorrow" breathes new life into an old song, though it feels overly long (not that it is in any other standards besides punk, it's only 3:20). Songs like "Insects" would sound perfectly in place as the theme to some Saturday morning cartoon.

Marky Romane gives a stellar performance, giving the music a tight Ramones beat, and it only makes sense: he invented and defined it. The christmas song, "The Christmas That Almost Wasn't" has weird percussion to it that make it interesting, but it ultimately suffers from a symptom of the whole album: a lot of it to fels too kitschy, too much like a novelty to really have a lasting value. Two back-to-back Richard Hell covers ("Love Comes in Spurts" and "Blank Generation") are standouts, especially the latter. "Monster" continues the punk rock anime theme song trend, the bizarre "Where's the Cap'n?" (about the tragedies of running out of cereal - I feel your pain, brother), and the final song "Shaolin Monkeys" sounds like another bizarre cartoon theme song.

The album suffers from too much of a gimmicky feeling; how many times can you play punk rock songs that sound like they want to be cartoon theme songs? Even still, it's a fun listen, and the musicianship is supergroup-worthy (in terms of punk music). The artwork included is also well-done and fun to look at. It all boils down to what kind of a reaction you have to the idea of "punk rock supergroup plays anime theme songs". If you think it's too stupid to listen to, stay away. If you find it to be the work of absolute genius, by all means, get it, its execution is top-shelf. If you are like most people and think "hah, that's cool", you will most probably grow tired of the idea quickly, though you will get some enjoyment from it. It's as simple as that.

-Luis

Masta Killa - Made in Brooklyn

73%
It might be a cliche to say it, but Masta Killa is, far and away, the most under-appreciated member of the Wu-Tang Clan. After being the last member to join the group, he only made one verse on the Wu's ultra-classic debut "Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers", and while other members went on to various solo releases of varying degrees of artistic and commercial success, it took Masta more than 10 years to release his solo album. Suprisingly, "No Said Date" became a modern-day Wu classic.

Now, a couple of years later, Masta Killa has to find a way to follow up a great album. The suprise factor is gone, and the amount of time given to the creation of this work is a lot less. It's a difficult situation, but one which I looked optimistically towards.

"Made in Brooklyn" begins with a really nice omnious (in a Wu way) beat, although for some reason, it does not feature Masta Killa's vocals. In it's place are 4 or 5 unknown little kids rapping - he did this on "No Said Date" but it was only two or three and the song was noticeably shorter. Though the kids try their best to sound like Wu-Tang Jr., the fact of the matter is that they have yet to develop the kind of voice or lyrical ability to pull anything like this convincingly, which is a damn shame.

The album's real opener is "E.N.Y. House", produced by M.F. Doom. Doom re-uses a beat from his "MM... Food" instrumental release. It ultimately lacks enough coherence to exist as more than a sample looped over a drum machine, which of course is what it is, but it's not ultimately what it should sound like (both elements should work as a cohesive unit, not run seperately). Another shame, since the vocals here are actually good.

Raekwon and Ghostface pop up for "It's What It Is", which is cool since Masta has a tendency to shine near his crew mates. However, though the beat is alright, it is way too repetitive. The next track opens up with bits of inane dialogue, but segues into a mellow beat, which Masta Killa turns into a good love song (think "Queen" off of his first album). The Wu posse cut "Iron God" features U-God, RZA, and Method Man, which again is a good thing. A funky horn-laced beat helps a lot, although the lack of a real melody makes it seem repetitive (instead of catchy) over time

There's a remix to an old, obscure GZA song called "Pass the Bone". The soul-heavy beat helps put the song over the top, though you have to question whether life really needs another rap song about weed. Following is "Older Gods, Pt. 2" with trademark funky horns from Pete Rock. The problem: a buncha guys who I do not know talk for 4 MINUTES about god-knows-what over the beat, and it is not even slightly interesting. By the time Masta Killa steps in to deliver a few lines, the beat feels tired and it all becomes a large 5 and a half minute throwaway. It's a damn shame.

Following this is a heavily R&B-tinged song "Let's Get Into Something", with singer Startlet.
Again, it takes more than half the song for Masta to show up. Overall, if R&B/rap is your kinda thing, you will like this. I can't really take any of this modern R&B, but I do enjoy the rap portions. Following is another Wu cut - "Street Corner" featuring GZA and Inspectah Deck. Bronze Nazareth makes a good RZA impression on the beat, and the song avoids any overdone introductions, which makes for one of the album's best cuts so far. Following is another Bronze Nazareth cut - "Ringing Bells", another killer beat and another killer song (no actual bells in it though).

Next is "East MC's", which features two more obscure Wu-affiliates: Free Murder and Killa Sin. The beat uses a super high-pitched string, and the two guests do a good job. However, another overdone introduction follows. After a minute of irrelevant bullshit, the actual song, the reggae-tinged "Lovely Lady" (featuring Ski and Government Tools) begins. It's actually incredibly fresh sounding: digital strings do the familiar reggae guitar crack while the drums are done live in a mix of reggae fills and hip-hop beats. Again, it takes a little time for Masta to even show up (4 minutes!). A little out of place, but it's pretty cool.

Overall, some bad choices (wasted beats, overlong introductions) hurt throughout the album, although Masta Killa manages a good run of impressive songs to close out the album. Masta stays on top lyrically throughout most of the album, but some beats get repetitve and others aren't too good. It's a step back from "No Said Date", and sadly, a bit of a classic case of the "sophmore jinx". It's a solid effort, but nothing that would make Masta raise his profile anymore than "No Said Date" did.

-Luis