thread of miguel

because this dude has outgrown the R&B thread

new ep is fantastic. 'adorn' and 'gravity' are immediately brilliant but 'that i do' has also really grown on me. i only really remember loving 'sure thing' and 'all i want is you' from the album last year but this has made me wanna relisten.

I've come to the opinion that "Quickie" is the best single from the debut

yeah i love the new EP, this after "all i want is you" and "sure thing" were basically my favorite r&b songs of the past 2 years. he's making a case for replacing jeremih as my facvorite male r&b singer

how big is this dude now I have no sense of scale for pop music anymore

genuinely like what I've heard of his

"Adorn" is the best song I've heard this year. Thanks Rev!

how big is this dude now I have no sense of scale for pop music anymore

― puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Sunday, March 4, 2012 12:46 PM (29 minutes ago) Bookmark

"sure thing" was the #1 song on u.s. urban radio last year and his song w/ wale brings his total of big r&b hits to 4, but he hasn't crossed over to pop audiences at all, even to the moderate extent of trey songz or whoever

so sad that adorn is only 2:19 long

i guess he's in that weird robin thicke zone of 'non-black r&b singer whose fanbase is predominantly black'

Miguel Jontel Pimentel was born in Los Angeles.[1][2] He is one of two sons born to a Mexican father and an African American mother.[2]

oh word, i thought he was just full on hoos is mexican

so sad that adorn is only 2:19 long

― flagp∞st (dayo), Sunday, March 4, 2012 10:21 AM (22 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

this is prob the best part about it!

like it ends and I'm all "what a good song that was"

what a good post that was

I grew up w/ indian parents who only listened to indian music but since I grew up in new orleans they also listened to a lot of aaron neville and only nevilee (????) and I think there is something nevilleish abt this that I really appreciate

didn't mean to spell him wrong the second time

"that i do" is incredible

"gravity" is my favourite on the EP i think

"adorn" hasn't clicked with me yet, i think with these reedy-voiced guys like miguel and jeremih, i find myself either falling head over heels with songs where some alchemy makes them sound perfect ("sure thing", "birthday sex", "imma star") or i'm left a bit cold.

the production doesn't grab you?

i don't think anything on the EP touches "adorn" but that's the single of the year so far, so no biggie

it's nice? it might sneak up on me in time.

it's not the single of the year, it's not even the r&b single of the year lol

*shrug*

yah "adorn" is my favorite song this year too i think. out of the 20 i've heard at least

i don't think anything on the EP touches "adorn" but that's the single of the year so far, so no biggie

― J0rdan S., Sunday, March 4, 2012 6:24 PM (25 minutes ago) Bookmark

haven't heard it yet but aren't there only like 2 other songs on the EP? 'best of three' is kind of...anyway "Adorn" is nice but i have absolutely no idea how it's in any way different from or better than anything off the first album.

i'm not saying that it is! just that it's the best song i've heard this year

"gravity" is really good too

al you don't see how "adorn" is stylistically different than like, "sure thing"?

you just gotta vibe to adorn, dude

i vibe to it, but i also vibe to his whole album.

at this point he's only got a fairly small number of songs out that are all good to great and none too similar to each other. so "adorn" is unique but of a piece of that body of work just as "sure thing" is. its brevity is the only thing i see as any kind of departure.

I need to check out this ep. Thanks

So I found this 2005 12-inch in a dollar bin a year and a half ago, and I bought it on the off chance it was the same Miguel. Turns out it was. The song is very much a product of its time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC0JalDPiqI

just went on Spotify to see if they had the new EP, they don't, but they do have a single he apparently released in 2011 called "Strawberry Amazing," which i had never heard anything about before, pretty good, very lo-fi Prince

something i noticed on the Art Dealer Chic liner notes -- Miguel self-produced the whole thing (except for one co-production from Fisticuffs, who did "Quickie" and "Girls Like You"). afaik Miguel didn't really do any of the production on the first album, so it looks like he's really stepping up and getting more involved in that side of things.

"Strawberry Amazing" was on his 2008's Mischief, too, and he co-produced that entire mixtape with Fisticuffs. That mixtape was super lo-fi; it sounds like he recorded it with a Casio and a boombox, but you can definitely hear a lot of echoes of the new EP in it.

i don't really feel like the Jive album sanded off the edges of that aesthetic much at all, give or take a few of the more established producers' contributions

Yeah, I agree. When I first heard the Jive album, I was actually surprised by how low-budget it sounded at times, especially the Fisticuffs productions. Because it came out so quietly at the time (this was before "Sure Thing" had any legs) I was wondering if Jive had cut corners and were just trying to bury the album. It definitely took a few listens for some of the more muffled production to make sense.

I kind of think of that hazy, reverbed vibe as the album's distinguishing characteristic. Gives it a very warm, intimate feel. Although a lot of that is down to Miguel himself, too.

like Strawberry Amazing but always hear a little Lenny Kravitz :/

i don't think anything on the EP touches "adorn" but that's the single of the year so far, so no biggie

― J0rdan S., Sunday, March 4, 2012 6:24 PM (2 days ago) Bookmark

'adorn' is great but the single of the year so far is obv 'climax'

"Climax" hasn't really hit me yet. I'm an "Adorn" partisan.

'adorn' is great but the single of the year so far is obv 'climax'

wanna say "dayo otm", but i guess i got something to listen to when i get home

My ex is friends w his little brother lol. Apparently he sings too tho not professionally afaik

I like miguel. Sure thing was never my thing but he has a great voice and feels like a genuine original

I think EZsnappin nailed it on tumblr where he said "Adorn" sounds like early-80s Marvin. The greater trick though, is that he achieves that vibe without any air of tribute or homage.

ban dayo

"adorn" is so killing me atm

i agree with dayo that "climax" is better than "adorn"

"Adorn" makes me think of Prince fwiw

it makes me think of Prince less than 80% of his material but he definitely wrote it in part because he couldn't write another song called "Adore"

nbd, just a cross between marvin gaye & prince

vol 2, tomorrow

my neighbors always know when I come home because I bump adorn 4 times

^____^

http://www.rap-up.com/2012/03/27/new-music-miguel-art-dealer-chic-vol-2-ep/

haha i d/led it from miguel's site which requires you to fill out a non-optional "Hopes and Dreams" box to download lololol smh

I think I like "Arch n Point" even more than "Adorn"! This is sooooooooooo good... even on my shitty laptop speakers it just sounds fantastic

"Broads" is a tad wacky

yeah, it's just terrible. Like, delete-from-iTunes bad.

god damn "arch n point"

yeah I'm unchecking 'broads'

I love how fucking LOUD "Arch n Point" is... that guitar!

wow, "...all" might be better?

"arch n point" could def be a trey songz album track, but like 10x better

man, "...all" is almost threatening to be organ house

this shit bangs

yeah, i think "...all" might be my favorite from this one

Didn't realize we had a Miguel thread! Although in retrospect, duh.

Vol. 2 > Vol. 1 I think, although Adorn >>>> all the other tracks from the project.

naw, i think (although my opinion on this might change) "gravity" > any of the tracks on vol 2 also

yeah listened to volume 2 today and nothing stuck with me at all really, kinda disappointed

but then went back and listened to vol 1, all i want is you, and mischief, so all is good. i seriously slept on all i want is you for so long

i kinda wonder how many people on this thread are still sleeping on all i want is you

did you ever come around on the title track?

I didn't know about Mischief, d/ling that now.

yeah i came around on the title track, although the salaam remi stuff on the album is still generally my least favorite

mischeif is not mindblowing or anything, miguel's voice is obviosly the main draw but the production's not great and the songwriting isn't nearly as strong as his recent work

oh word

There are small, scattered moments on Mischief where everything clicks and its like, "oh right, I love this guy." I've gotten a ton of writing done to that mixtape over the last couple of years; it's good background music that still kind of jams

I just still can't believe that he did the hooks on that Blu & Exile album from back in 2007.

saying "gravity" is the best thing off these tapes is clinically insane

you are underrating "gravity", which is amazing, but i don't think anyone said that

yeah i misread you

i'd still rate them as adorn > ...all > arch n point > gravity

the thick bassline + the harmonies on the "shoo-di-doo da-di-da da-di-da-dah" chorus >>>>>>

'broads' is cute enough, what's the big problem

haven't heard his very earliest stuff but at least on all i want is you there was a clear pharrell/nerd vibe going and 'broads' is just some more of that writ a little too large. can't pretend it's not there though

i'd even argue you can make a case for still being able to hear trace elements of it in the new good widescreen stuff too really, but then i guess your imagination would need to stretch to what a decent latter-era nerd song would sound like

in any case it's true what rev says about miguel's elision of "any air of tribute or homage" whoever he may happen to sound like - a very nice trick to have

'broads' is cute enough, what's the big problem

agree with this.

don't really hear the pharrell/nerd thing at all tho

Broads is pretty catchy and all. I just don't see myself listening to it again

the thick bassline + the harmonies on the "shoo-di-doo da-di-da da-di-da-dah" chorus >>>>>>

― if you feeling frogbs, leap (The Reverend), Thursday, 29 March 2012 00:09 (28 minutes ago) Bookmark

was also thinking he has this really great way with harmonies that beautifully tie kinda meandering or seemingly disparate or just idk unresolved songs together - 'gravity', 'adorn' and 'sure thing' only truly become sure things once it happens

think i already said this last year but from 2:25 on 'girls like you' is nerd chapter & verse no question at least - and that's no huge leap from 'broads' really. the more intuitive stuff from then on i'm not gonna harp on about tho cos it's not like i really want to think of him in pharrellian terms that much either - just saying it's a strand in the dna is all

yeah, his way with harmony is n/l

i'll get back to you about "girls like you"

there is TOTALLY a pharrell vibe and i never thought i'd say that about an R&B singer i wasn't trying to insult

no thoughts on this yet but glad r|t|c is back missed ur posts bro http://i.imgur.com/gDeUg.gif

yeah web boo

er, wb

lol

http://i.imgur.com/Rlj7m.gif

"yeah web boo" cracking me up so much

http://mediamrs.com/main/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/lil-boosie-webbie.jpg

"...all" is the standout track imo

relistened to "Girls Like You" and i still dgi. Miguel as a singer sounds effortless, whereas Pharrell, even at his best, sounds labored, and his backing tracks are very loose, whereas the Neptures were always about hyperprecision. Even their more ramshackle moments sound pointedly so, like they made absolutely sure that bongo was just exactly that much offbeat.

you're overthinking it

I just don't hear it at all!

not even on a superficial level

you're listening hard to the singing and the production style when we're referring more broadly to the overall vibe. the 'beautiful girls, intelligent girls, i hate ya' part definitely could've come out of a nerd song.

ok ok, i gotcha now

saying "gravity" is the best thing off these tapes is clinically insane

"gravity" is the best thing off these tapes. it's all about the overlapping shoo-be-doos and ba-ba-bas at the end. i also prefer vol 2 to vol 1, "...all" is stunning.

just don't get what you all see in "adorn", i can never remember a single thing about it after it ends.

gravity > ...all > arch & point >>>>>>>>> adorn > that i do > broads

i can never remember a single thing about it after it ends.

Funny, this is how I feel about Gravity.

Adorn > ...ALL > Arch N Point >>>>>>>>> Gravity > That I Do > Broads

(erhm... so there!)

But I like everything on these tapes, really. They're great on the whole!

oh man every time i listen to volume 1 i'm like "i love 'that i do' so much"

It speaks to the quality of these EPs that there's no consensus whatsoever on which tracks are the best.

And as much as I'm enjoying receiving these songs in drops, I can't wait to glue them together into a nine-song album.

"Broads" is horrible. Only dud thus far.

i can never remember a single thing about it after it ends.

this is how I feel about all the songs I love best, like you can't remember a thing except that you really like it so you play the song again.. I remember having this same feeling about 'umbrella'

"adorn"'s main charm is its warm, woozy atmosphere and miguel's meandering falsetto; more than a song built almost entirely around hooks like "umbrella" i can understand how it'd be "forgettable" after a first listen, even if that's not necessarily a point against it

have described "adorn" to other people as "sexual healing pt. 2"

don't know how accurate that is but there's something in the ease of the delivery, in the airiness of the backing track

"adorn"'s main charm is its warm, woozy atmosphere and miguel's meandering falsetto; more than a song built almost entirely around hooks like "umbrella" i can understand how it'd be "forgettable" after a first listen, even if that's not necessarily a point against it

― recent thug (k3vin k.), Thursday, 29 March 2012 21:53 (30 minutes ago) Bookmark

i think that's true of every ep song except 'adorn' - yeah it seems like it's got the rarefied atmosphere but that monster 808 bass over the shuffling vox sample drives that frailness on and on, the awesome pure monolith of choral harmony proves his devotion with complete certainty. and the absolute confidence in just the sheer brevity of it! very different to, very similar to, on a par with, and about as forgettable as 'promise' imho. the dude fucking nailed it

by which i mean not remotely forgettable obv

(seriously my ipod headphones were broken for like a week after it came out and i literally CRAVED to hear it all day til i got back home)

I listened to "Adorn" about 30 times in a row when it dropped and I never do that.

I just listened to it like 5 right now

http://vimeo.com/39375791

'adorn' is full of hooks btw

'gravity' is my least fav track I think. not a fan of 'dirty basslines' in general

did not like 'all i want is you' that much either

also his new scruffy facial hair look is ... nagl

nagl haaawt

ha I prefer futuristic space streamlined miguel

'adorn' is full of hooks btw

― dayo, Thursday, March 29, 2012 10:32 PM (14 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah sure but they're kind of purposefully obscured, that was my point

great, revelatory rtc post as usual

the sure thing look was v weird and not flattering imo

and hilarious

true

he did look very smashable like this tho:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt3QLI3XYtk

'gravity' is my least fav track I think. not a fan of 'dirty basslines' in general

dirty basslines are the best thing in music

"adorn" is one of those things you crave or you don't i guess, i've made myself listen to it a ton to try to get what you all hear it but i'm not feeling any craving :(

one trusts u are not listening to it thru lappy speakers?

total craving at this end.

nope normal speakers though it doesn't sound quite...mastered?

there's an aqueous synth throughout that i don't particularly like, it doesn't sound quite in tune

just relistening again and omg "gravity" is SO MUCH BETTER i can't believe i'm the only one who thinks that. those backing vox>>>>>>

i just finished listening to "adorn" again and i couldn't sing any of it if you asked.

and that moment where he hits that note for one second and everything drops out and THEN he sings "i'm just a shooting star" <3

THEEESE LIPS drrm drmm drmm drmm

no doubt 'gravity' is really really good but it's also the most predictable by far of the ep songs and thus the least rewarding in comparison. harshly speaking it's kind of the general step-up from the first album you expected rather than the quantum leap you get with the rest

like i know this'll be just me but i'd even go so far as to say i'm more interested in listening to 'broads' again to gauge its wonky badness than i am 'gravity'

do people like "That I Do"? Doesn't do much for me

xp also i don't actually know what the plan is for these songs but i will be more favourable to 'gravity' should it to appear on an album as part of some flow rather than assessing it just on its jones

'Gravity' totally reminds of Neptunes, especially in their more N.E.R.D. rock guise, the intro's real Pharrell-styles. I'm being too harsh to say it's a forgettable track, but it just leaves me a bit cold emotionally.

i guess i'm not actually that convinced by miguel when he's not being somewhat predictable and generic yet - i find the whole "art dealer chic" concept slightly try-hard, i still think the last album is just "sure thing" + varying degrees of okay-ness and i think of him as someone who can turn well-worn tricks into magic rather than blow my mind with new tricks

"Quickie" >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>. "Sure Thing"

(I make no friends)

"That I Do" seems like the least memorable of these songs. I am really taken with "Arch & Point" right now.

The tryhardness of the Art Dealer Chic concept really has no bearing on the quality of these songs whatsoever. Miguel has quite simply transcended his pretensions, whatever they may be.

"that i do" is really busy-sounding but it's totally great to listen to while you're like walking around somewhere

what does he even think is so chic about art dealers, idgi

it's a signifier of new wealth innit

i'm not even so sure he doesn't mean "art dealer chick" tbh

art dealer sheik

i still think the last album is just "sure thing" + varying degrees of okay-ness and i think of him as someone who can turn well-worn tricks into magic rather than blow my mind with new tricks

I think the package itself is something new. What sets Miguel apart from every popular R&B singer is he attempts something new, different or just a little bizarre with literally every track. Most singers take some risks, of course, but for him they're the foundation of what he does. He's really defined by his restlessness.

what are these new, different and bizarre things? assuming you don't mean the art dealer shtick.

what i loved about "sure thing", and what i love about miguel when i do love him, is that he does songs that you can imagine anyone doing, but no one pulling off quite like him.

Listening to "Adorn" and "Gravity" again just now and I realized my love for "Adorn" is greater because I prefer Marvin Gaye homage over Bilal homage.

what i love about miguel when i do love him, is that he does songs that you can imagine anyone doing, but no one pulling off quite like him.

I really can't imagine a Trey Songz or a Chris Brown doing "Adorn" or "Arch N Point" or even "Gravity." Miguel owns his aesthetic in a way those singers don't.

yeah but what do you think his aesthetic is? specifically? i can certainly hear trey songz doing "arch & point". bobby valentino too. omarion's "forgot about love" was something i tended to file next to miguel too.

In a word, "exotic," maybe. Synths that are a little more warped or muffled than you typically hear; tempos that are just a little bit off; song structures that are a little more tightly knotted than the norm (he packs five minutes worth of song into three); guitars and riffs that are strikingly loud. He's not re-writing the book every time, but he's always tweaking it.

And, come on, there's nothing in Bobby Valentino's catalog remotely like "Arch N Point." Just on blunt, first-impression sonics alone, you really can't hear the difference between Miguel and boilerplate Bobby?

dog what are you even

"rearview (ridin')"? that sounds more out-there than anything miguel's done. though all of the things you describe are actually the things i dislike about the art dealer songs and had previously attributed to bad mastering or whatever - the rhythms don't always fit the songs, some of the synths make me feel queasy and elements that are too loud just sound like ass.

Just listened to these after mostly ignoring this guy (thought "quickie" was gross), and they're indeed pretty terrific. Great production, great singing.

"Broads" is kinda cute if it's meant to be a joke (which I think it is) but if not its pretty repulsive.

i can't wait to get my whole fucking team on

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zLh5eR7wAo

o_O

so no vol 3 today, eh?

ha i just checked the site an hour ago and saw there was only a 'coming soon' page for it

I'm always amazed when shit like this actually does come out on time

I'm a bigger stan for "Arch & Point" than for "Sure Thing" at this point.

i'd like to get angry about this sorta thing but i have no leg to stand on when it comes to doing things on time, so...

i'm sure it's more a matter of some intern hitting 'publish' than miggy in the studio until the wee hours last night trying to get THREE WHOLE SONGS tracked and mixed in time

he wanted to make those tracks were sure things

CLINK

http://www.amoureuxauban.net/forum/download/fozzie-bear-waka-waka-i4.jpg

if anything can console me, it's nabisco writing about vols 1 & 2

http://pitchfork.com/features/why-we-fight/8821-why-we-fight/

also i think i dig "quickie" more than "sure thing" now... the production on quickie is so great. the way those spindly guitar lines sorta slowly float away, the liveness of the drums. it's all very post-coital.

i pretty much shake my first at each and every notion that anything is better than "sure thing" but "quickie" is pretty great, yeah

that whole album, man. "hard way" is my fav sleeper cut

thx for the nabs link, i'll have to remember to read that

err i meant "teach me". "hard way" is good too tho

He said on his twitter vol 3 is coming later today

oh dope

We're discussing the release of this thing like we're waiting for Papa John's to deliver that large pie.

going online like "why they gon make that miguel tape?"

miguel just seems very cool & nice!

https://twitter.com/#!/MiguelUnlimited/status/195932768054673408

abebe chic

what is he referring to?

http://pitchfork.com/features/why-we-fight/8821-why-we-fight/

i have been on the internet too much today

http://www.zshare.ma/4jtllbl1rnn9

^ vol3 if it wasnt clear

thank you!

thanks!

digging it

yea 'party life' is p good. feel like it'd serve for some p killer remixes

"ooh ahh" is old tho :(

Weakest of the three, though that's not really an insult

yeah - I find it to be the most even though, like all three songs mesh and flow better than the other two EPs

though arch n point -> ...all is the best 1-2 combo

Yes. "Candles in the Sun" drifts; it's as if he wants to sound like the Gaye of Here, My Dear without having thought through how to realize his political pretensions.

It seems a little odd he choose the 3x-free EP format, since he doesn't seem like a very prolific songwriter. Seems to record at a slow pace, and he sometimes recycles songs ("Strawberry Amazing" as a single; "Ooh Ahh.") I don't mind, since those are good songs and he's perfecting them, I just don't want the new album (if there is one) to be the other songs from Mischief

guys

I can't get "Arch & Point" out of my head.

what order is this one supposed to be in

is ooh ahh from an old mixtape

the tracks are numbered, no?

not on my download (which is the official)

mine goes, candle ->ooh ahh -> party life

it's the opposite way round

that's backwards

is ooh ahh from an old mixtape

― J0rdan S., Saturday, April 28, 2012 5:52 PM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

it's from mischief, yeah

is it the same version or rerecorded?

i'm not sure, i had a 7 minute car ride this morning and skipping after th first minute of that gave me time to finish the last song , ha

Love the new EP, great series!

(except for 'Broads', which I have deleted)

Finally listening to all these, loving it so far.

incidentally have we covered what "That I Do (FTRMX)" is exactly, is there an original non-remix version that's been out there since before the EP?

It seems a little odd he choose the 3x-free EP format, since he doesn't seem like a very prolific songwriter. Seems to record at a slow pace, and he sometimes recycles songs ("Strawberry Amazing" as a single; "Ooh Ahh.") I don't mind, since those are good songs and he's perfecting them, I just don't want the new album (if there is one) to be the other songs from Mischief

― Evan R, Saturday, April 28, 2012 12:27 PM (2 days ago) Bookmark

wouldn't make it the ideal format for him? trickling out 9 or fewer new songs between albums would make more sense than splattering out a couple of 50-minute mixtapes or a weekly series

xpost -- I was going to ask that, that and "...All" are my favorites so far.

i almost want to start a poll but i would feel bad about the slightly overrated "Adorn" crushing everything else

I don't think it's a sure thing that adorn would triumph over all the others

dude have you seen some of the hyperbole itt about that song

ha I was going to start a poll last night. I may yet.

"Adorn" will not top my list.

Who is that at the end of "Candles" anyway, I kinda stupidly assume Lennon but I'm not sure.

it is Lennon

dude have you seen some of the hyperbole itt about that song

― some dude, Monday, April 30, 2012 10:44 AM (6 minutes ago) Bookmark

most of it came before vol. 2 dropped tho

yeah there has been more hyperbole about "Broads" lately, i suppose

you're right, def think 'broads' would walk a poll

"Broads" is the only one I deleted.

dayo we gotta be careful about shooting sarcasm lasers simultaneously, don't cross the streams

bite your head off, man

ships do you wanna do like a "x > y >>> z" format top 5 breakdown on ur miggy faves so i know where ur coming from exactly

or do the poll and do it there, w/e

a) top 5 of ADC or all his stuff? b) where i'm coming from about his music in general or where i'm coming from with some particular post itt?

all his stuff, i guess i was mainly thinking about how far you'd rate 'sure thing' above the newer stuff (i assumed you would) but then wanting to know how overrated you see 'adorn' as being in adc's context

(obv number of arrows is not really a proper metric but we'll be here all day otherwise)

deleting songs off releases is still scarcely conceivable savagery to me btw, does everyone really do that

still kinda feeling out the ADC stuff because from one listen to the next one song might sound great and another drab or tacky and then on the next listen they switch places. to be clear "Adorn" is def one of the better new songs, just think the SINGLE OF THE YEAR talk is a bit over the top.

i didn't delete "broads" but i did uncheck it

i never delete songs (whole albums to make room sometimes, but never individual songs). i don't even skip tracks if i'm going through an album in non-shuffle mode.

just think the SINGLE OF THE YEAR talk is a bit over the top.

this is ILM

well i mean, better "Adorn" than the new Bieber, but still

ftr "adorn" is still my favorite song this year -- or at least my most listened to

actually that's not true, it's behind a grimes album track

is vol 3 meant to be the last ADC?

it's aight but like the others i'm not really...enraptured. something seems off with the sound, it's like i'm listening to it through a drainpipe or something

smh j0rdan

can't get behind Vol. 3 either. It sounds tentative; he's trying sounds and lyrical ideas that aren't realized.

it's funny, you'd think that releasing music in 3-song sets would at least ensure that nothing is disposable but on each of these there's one song i don't particularly care about hearing again

and actually across them all only three real keepers for me, and none of those even close to "sure thing"

that assessment of the entire project isn't totally off but i'm willing to overlook a few forgettable tracks on account of three of my absolute favorite songs of the year being included (along with a bunch of good tho not great tracks)

idk yeah i don't really ever think in single of the year terms (altho i know it's not 'adorn') but i do believe it has an iconic kinda one-shot calling card quality about it that sets it apart from the equally-good songs it comes with. the brevity is a huge part of it, another couple of minutes and i'd probably rate it behind 'arch n point' and 'all'

re "uncheck", right yeah i was thinking maybe it's an itunes culture kinda thing (i don't really do itunes)

hmm well i think the best of these might scrape my top 50 tracks of the year so far. might.

I'd rank them in descending order:

Arch n Point
...All
Adorn
Gravity
Party Up

vol.3 is a shade of miguel that i know is in all his stuff but don't really like arranged together quite so pat

bandnames are failing me right now but i guess "sounding like the killers or whatever" will do for starters

haha i like the clunky guitar stuff on "ooh ahh"

bandnames are failing me right now but i guess "sounding like the killers or whatever" will do for starters

vicious

...all > arch & point > gravity >>>>>> the rest, don't really care

is vol 3 meant to be the last ADC?

― liberté, égalité, beyoncé (lex pretend), Monday, April 30, 2012 12:14 PM (13 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i've seen a lot of mentions of it being a series of 3, this being the last of the series, etc. although without seeing it in any official pr/interview or anything i'm not really 100% sure.

the website makes it seem so -- it's only listed three volumes for weeks

personally i think this "shabadoo" backing vocals on "gravity" are kinda corny

the*

does the 'vol 3' link on the ADC site still go to vol 2? i had to dl it off the link itt.

nah i got an email for vol 3

corny maybe, but at least somewhat memorable

as far as overt prince rips go i think "party life" is pretty good -- something about the cadence of his singing strikes me as very accurate but not in an obvious way

Not ready to definitively rate or rank these yet. Everything this dude makes has a way of growing on me over time (which is a pretty cool feat given how short and direct so many of his songs are)

i think in general i'm actually more bullish on vol 3 than the rest of y'all, the more i listen to it. def nothing that tops the titanic tracks on the other 2 vols but i think it's a nice bow on top if you listen to all three straight thru -- a bit of a stylistic pivot but not obviously so... and still idiosyncratic in the little ways that he his. and i guess i think "candles in the sun, blowin in the wind" is being a bit underrated. certainly hamhanded as far as its politics go but i think it's a pretty good tune.

yeah i like that one a lot

Thematically and sonically it's of a piece with the call to arms aimed at misfits and outcasts in "...All."

altho i do deduce a few points for pronouncing "other" like "uhva" as if he was british

"adorn" is my most-listened to non-dawn richard (who is in her own league, obv) track this year by more than twice over

me too probably. i like most of the other stuff just fine but imo most of "all i want is you" > most of ADC

...alll >>>>>>>>> adorn >>> arch and point

there's always that bit in 'all' with him going "tee-tee tell em how to elevate" where it totally breaks the blippy springsteen vibe picturing him misreading his iphone lyrics

i mean it kinda works actually but still

I know it's a horrific epidemic, but "babies on crack" will never not be unintentionally funny. Any message track that wants to be taken seriously needs to recognize that

that opening line's resonance with "Be Thankful for What You Got" really throws me off every time. I assume it's intentional, but him singing "babies on crack" instead of "sunroof top" makes that phrase stick out even more.

this is from evan's ADC review

"arguably the most engaging singles run of any R&B album since Usher’s Confessions."

interesting position imo -- how do we feel about it? i may be inclined to agree w/ it, but that's a long time

i agree -- there are probably a couple albums with 3 hits as strong as All/Sure/Quickie, but might be cluttered up with a couple duds too

fav post-Confessions R&B singles campaigns: first Ne-Yo album, B'Day, Double Up, first 2 Keyshia Cole albums, BLACKsummers'night, first The-Dream album, first two John Legend albums, Emancipation of Mimi, second Ciara album

I was going to say Ne-Yo through Year of the Gentleman, Ciara, and Maxwell myself.

but none of these guys has excited me like Miguel; I have no idea what shit this guy's gonna do next.

I should also point out that I don't particularly care for the Confessions period of Usher's career.

yeah 'love/hate', 'goodies' and 'emanicpation' were my first three thoughts, but i think i'd take the 'all i want is you' trio over mariah, and probably have it tied w/ ciara behind the-dream

'blacksummersnight' is an interesting pick too... i didn't think of it but "pretty wings" and "bad habits" are monsters... i like "fistful of tears" a lot but it doesn't seem on the level of those two

"when you're mad is good" but it's kind of a major dip in b/w "so sick" and "sexy love" imo (last of which is my favorite late 90s max martin song that max martin never wrote in the late 90s)

yeah i love the album itself more than the singles per se, was just spitballing. "Fistful of Tears" came alive for me as a single, though.

haha want to hear a song called "when you're mad is good"

excuse my sloppy quotations there

ha

i LOVE "when you're mad" and think "sexy love" is kind of eh personally

man it's weird that they only released two singles off 'rappa ternt sanga', that coulda been in the running imo

actually fuck i'd rate the YOTG singles over everything -- "closer" -> "miss independent" -> "mad" was the most exhilarating singles run i can remember... anytime you got in the car was like a race against time before you had to get out and maybe not hear whatever the big ne-yo song of the time was

yep

yeah i thought about 3rd ne-yo too after i posted. love the first two but was never real into the sneezing song.

"Sexy Love" taught me to love "So Sick." "Because of You" was an even better use of the same template. The only thing that killed the run imo was whatever followed up "Because of You." I can't even remember it.

"Do You," which yes, was awful.

huh interesting, sh!p. I'd gladly read a defense of BOY, a worse album than even Libra Scale.

"Can We Chill" and "Go On Girl" were admirable non-hits, though

wiki says his next album is called The R.E.D. album, which can't be right

BOY is actually the only album of his i haven't heard, at the time the singles just disappointed me too much

there was a whole thing recently about him announcing that and the game politely responding that he was okay with it

i'm kind of disappointed that he isn't running with the astoundingly bad original title: The Cracks In Mr. Perfect

Crack on My B.E.D.

if i had to do a rough ranking of best three consecutive singles off a post-confessions r&b album i'd go w/

1 year of the gentleman
2 love/hate
3 goodies
4 all i want is you
5 blacksummersnight
6 chris brown s/t
7 basic instinct
8 futuresex/love sounds
9 thr33 ringz
10 konvicted

? i'm probably forgetting something tho

sorta fudging it i think cuz in some places i'm not necessarily counting the best three FIRST singles, but hey

I'd thrown in Marsha Ambrosius, although I prefer her album in toto.

oh good call

lol had to throw in Basic Instinct huh smh

The Miguel singles were all great tracks in their own right, but they were also really effective at introducing this new singer; each one revealed a little bit more about his act and persona. Really smart campaign.

So for me it's neck and neck between AIWISY and YOTG, with Goodies and BlackSUMMERSnight a bit behind. Those Ne-Yo singles were just so damn good; that was a singles campaign that really felt that a movement

that was a singles campaign that really felt that a movement

yes

was that the name of a dipset compilation?

it really bums me out btw that "Girls Like You" was kind of an afterthought 4th single that got lost in the shuffle of the Art Dealer Chic stuff coming out around the same time, that song is fucking awesome.

any of the 'art dealer' stuff getting a sniff at radio or any promotion whatsoever? just curious mostly, but it seems like something miguel has been doing on his own

afaict no, although MTV Jams does play the "Adorn" video

I wonder how he's going to present his sexuality, which is ambivalent at best.

uh have you seen the "quickie" video?

yep and I've read a few of his press clippings

so he's not a girl-crazy horndog in his press clippings i take it?

The "Arch N Press" video was what got me thinking: his combination of tuffness and feyness, the art direction, the way he presented the ladies.

isn't that every R&B star and half the rappers out these days though?

"arch n press" would be a good jingle for a nail salon

nah I get it specifically from him. Usher and Maxwell certainly don't. Ne-Yo -- lol maybe.

i went and turned our lil spitball discussion into an article

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/2012/05/miguel_singles_best_album_ne_yo.php

good one, although you prob didn't need the Maxwell caveat, it's not like anyone really knows or cares that "Cold" was a promotional single in between radio hits

yeah, i was just being a pedant

don't think i would've ranked it any higher or lower tho had i included "fistful of tears" instead

i don't really dig "Sexy Love" or "Mad" so i think my favorite Ne-Yo run is "Stay"/"So Sick"/"When You're Mad" but of course two of those weren't very big hits.

v nice j0rdan though i disagree with a few. hadn't realised this discussion happened!

(i'm impressed that you can even untangle what the singles even were for the more recent ones)

i was mostly going off wikipedia tbh

definitely some interesting choices there...............

- i think "cold" is definitely worthy of inclusion in any three-single run from blacksummer'snight
- not down with the terius selection but you know i hate "falsetto" - would've chosen "rockin' that shit"/"my love"/"sweat it out" easily (and "my love" is the high point in that) (i'm assuming we can skip "walkin' on the moon" but i like that better than "falsetto" anyway)
- i'd have included estelle's "wait a minute"/"american boy"/"no substitute love" (or "come over") myself
- think "get up"/"promise"/"like a boy" is pretty unbeatable when it comes to ciara but it's remarkable that THREE of her albums have three-single runs that'd qualify

i'm assuming you just classed beyoncé as pop, right?

wikipedia says "honey", "the healer" and "soldier" were singles, also "window seat", "turn me away" and "gone baby, don't be long"

(hang on i don't even believe that last one)

ha if JT is R&B then how on earth would Beyonce not be

did "Cold" do well in the UK or something? i never heard it on the radio once and the other 3 were inescapable.

i almost put 4 on there but really i'm not the hugest beyonce fan -- i like "b'day" as an album but not overwhelmed by any of the singles

the thing about B is that every album has 8 singles out of which only 3 are good so the odds of them all being in a row are slim

yeah it's sorta hard to suss out the badu stuff cuz her radio presence is so minimal, plus those albums seem like such whole pieces to me

did "Cold" do well in the UK or something?

haha NONE of these songs did well in the UK

i exaggerate slightly but british listeners have experienced almost none of these singles as singles, esp in latter years

although when i mentioned B'Day upthread (in terms of the whole singles campaign, not necessarily 3 in a row), i was thinking of "Ring The Alarm"/"Irreplaceable"/"Get Me Bodied," which you could do some backflips to call a consecutive trio if you throw out the soundtrack song, the deluxe edition-only Shakira collab, and the non-single airplay hit "Upgrade You"

xpost

or just include "upgrade u" cuz it's brilliant

ha wow maxwell hasn't charted in the uk since the kate bush cover

which apparently charted...last month? what? did someone perform it on tv or something?

he hasn't charted properly since his debut, 1997

erykah badu hasn't had a charting single here since '97 either

hmm yeah that is weird!

Damn I was hoping one of you could explain the resurgence of "This Woman's Work." I heard it a ton this winter, and couldn't figure out why

apparently the song is a favorite on various reality singer/dance competitions, but that still doesn't explain it. And it was used in the season 6 finale of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," but that really doesn't explain it, either

oh here we go smh

16-year-old Hope Murphy won over the Britain’s Got Talent 2012 judges tonight, with a take on Maxwell hit This Woman’s Work.

The Essex teenager explained to hosts Ant and Dec before her audition: “I’ve been singing since a toddler. I’ve come to Britain’s Got Talent today because it’s my dream to make it worldwide.”

But kicking off with a performance of Jessie J’s Mamma Knows Best, Simon Cowell was immediately left unimpressed.

He moaned: “I’ve heard that song so many times.

“I want to hear something different to whatever anyone else is singing.”

Under pressure, Hope instead performed Maxwell’s cover of Kate Bush classic This Woman’s Work, to a standing ovation.

only criminal omission there is b'day obv, but otherwise good job

pissed i missed this debate a few days ago haha

btw do you have an equivalent site to this for US chart runs? http://www.polyhex.com/music/chartruns/chartruns.php

not that i know of but i sure do hope so!

when i saw maxwell, he performed "this woman's work" on one knee backlit by a spotlight, which would have been amazing if not for the fact that the spotlight was pointed straight at my eyes.

hahaha

One of the highlights of the winter Trey Songz tour was when one of Songz's backup singers sang that track while Trey was offstage. The crowd went absolutely ape shit when the guy hit those notes

One of the highlights of the winter Trey Songz tour was when Trey was offstage

Ha, yeah, I know. Whole show was great, but I know I'm in the minority opinion here about Trey Songz

speaking of trey, i like his new single

which one

yeah "Heart Attack" is dope

I could probably make a kick-ass mix of unreleased Trey Songz tracks from the last several years... "When I See You," "Flatline," "For The Sake Of Our Love." Dude probably has nearly a dozen unreleased songs that hold their own against many of his singles

xp that one

Cool article Jordan! Downloading a couple of these records that I haven't heard. Cheers!

Re: Miguel, can't say that Quickie is my favorite from those singles, but it's an interesting choice :)

i would most certainly listen to that mix evan

thank u for this, ilm/j sarge p4k review

"All" might be my fav song off this right now but it was funny today to see an R&B mixtape with it as track 1 with '(HOT!!!)' next to the song title

that low sustained moaning coursing through "All" is the best

"party life" and "candles in the sun" are just great

yeah i really love "Candles," works so much more than it has a right to

I haven't gooten into any of the tracks on vol. 3 as much as I have "Adorn"/"Gravity"/"Arch N Point"/"All"

"party life" is cool but not really as amazing as the "arch & point"/"...all" pinnacle of this series

"candles..." gets away with what it does but only barely imo

haha otm

hmmm, i think "party life" just hit me in a big way

it's kinda sad but i think we're gonna keep on dancing

::swoon::

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0yMV8B1v18&feature=related

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNm1kNYbg0o

hmmm, he can't really play guitar, can he? the subway station vid was cool tho

mike breen is such a republican

lol that was the wrong thread -_-

yeah he's wayne-esque on that guitar, but maybe that was a while ago

his voice is so good

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3pPBANdfok

<3

GODFUCKINGDAMMIT MIGUEL do u even know how often i'm there on that platform

His guitar is just fine on "Arch n Point."

is there any reason to assume that's him playing it? the track was produced by Fisticuffs

I only think so because they're easy lines and his fingers match the chords.

alright, looks like he has stepped his guitar game up at least to the level of competence. and covered madvillain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrTpcIeeuCM

where are production credits

most of the places where the mixtapes were released have a back cover graphic w/ production credits

er where the EPs were uploaded i guess

man i'm impressed as hell that he produced "...all" -- that's a pretty damn nuanced take on dance music imo

1.Adorn 02:19
2.That I Do (FTRMX) 03:11
3.Gravity 03:38

credits
released 27 February 2012
All songs written and produced by Miguel
"Gravity" co produced by Fisticuffs
Artwork painted by Miguel

he's playing PS.1 warmup lol

"Play some Duchamp, Dilpo!!"
― Whiney G. Weingarten (whineyg), Sunday, January 8, 2006 2:23 AM (6 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

even fucking "Broads" kind of grew on me

haha it's the opposite for me, i only really care about 3-4 songs of this, albeit i REALLY care about those, but that's the same ratio as like the melanie fiona album, which this series isn't actually substantially more interesting than

and the estelle album is way better

and like there are more amazing new nikkiya tracks this year than miguel ones :(

the estelle album is not better

and neither was that old nikkiya album but i haven't heard the reissue

maybe they're not ~faded~ enough for you but they are definitely more enjoyable to me. just better songs, better production, singers you want to spend more time with...miguel is trying very hard to be an auteur rather than the semi-anonymous guy behind "sure thing" but in the process hasn't remotely come close to "sure thing"s impeccable standard

and i really love "...all" but c'mon FELLOW OUTCASTS! AND WEIRDOS! stfu you try-hard

maybe they're not ~faded~ enough for you

oh fuck off

also, i do want to spend time with miguel. in bed.

trying to reduce miguel to some tumblr-wave thing is so NAGL.

and he's done at least 5 songs better than "sure thing"

i'm pretty sure if i was forced to spend time with estelle i'd want to cut my head off in short order.

"sure thing" is great, but so are "adorn", "arch & point", "...all", c'mon. dunno why it always has to be this vs. that, devolve to bickering abt the cultural positioning. weirdo art outcast is no more contrived than any other pop persona.

also, i do want to spend time with miguel. in bed.

― The Reverend, Saturday, June 2, 2012 4:27 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

^^^^

this is pertinent!

maybe they're not ~faded~ enough for you but they are definitely more enjoyable to me. just better songs, better production, singers you want to spend more time with...miguel is trying very hard to be an auteur rather than the semi-anonymous guy behind "sure thing" but in the process hasn't remotely come close to "sure thing"s impeccable standard

― kanye kardashian (lex pretend), Saturday, June 2, 2012 3:43 AM (8 hours ago)

yeah you do not get miguel at all

Despite the miguel songs I love I think you might be right there

Miguel ‏@MiguelUnlimited
URGENT: I need an artist in NY with experience or technical know-how in mask making. ASAP. @ Me Por favor.

lol

tweets very much in character

"adorn" is now an OFFICIAL SINGLE + a minute longer

will take some time to get used to the new version but his singing at the end is fantastic imo

http://soundcloud.com/miguelofficial/adorn

Was just coming to post this. like. FUCK. so good.

Can we also talk about how the synths riff that emerges just around/after the point where the Art Dealer Chic Vol. 1 version trailed off is very very Prince's "If I Was Ur Girlfriend"?

didn't think it was really missing anything before but it definitely feels more complete now, love the bridge xpost

Brevity was a big part of Adorn's mystique, but I'm not one to complain about more of a good thing.

One of the blogs I follow shared the track and teased "Bigger news to follow..." which I can only imagine means an album announcement.

lovely.

this morning "Arch n Point" became my most played 2012 song.

or *fingers crossed* the launch of a new 'bike messenger chic' social networking site

xpost

championing fellow fixed gears and beardos

lol

Brevity was a big part of Adorn's mystique, but I'm not one to complain about more of a good thing.

otm

or to complain about more of a sure thing

literally just clapped my hands to the side of my face and exclaimed "OH MY FUCKING LORD" when I got to the end of the new version

why isn't rev one of those people that does youtube reaction videos as he's listening to records for the first time

haha

my fav part is 0.00 to 3.16

^^^^

i don't really feel that this adds much to the song, and the false stop is kind of jarring, but it's fine

on the other hand if this is your first time hearing it there's no sense that the song faffs around.

yeah it still sounds weird to me... but i don't think that's really unexpected considering how attached i am to the original version

it still sounds great tho, and i feel less weird about naming it my favorite song of 2012 (so far) now that it's an actual single

I feel like the best song of the year just got ten times better.

and yeah his voice is terrific. As much as I love the tension borne of restraint in A&P the abandon in "All" and the love-man vigor here are just as satisfying.

that new 'pop' sound is kinda weird

'pop' sound?

All the kids are into it

sounds like idk an eggcup being hit?

high pitched water drop

When you have the best fucking song of the year, you can get away with teasing people for four months before the climax.

does anyone have a link to an interview in which he discusses writing and recording these EPs?

i haven't seen one...

high pitched water drop

― Faith in Humanity: Restored (dayo), Wednesday, June 27, 2012 5:46 PM (16 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

this was on the original version too, at least mine

well it is and it isn't - something like it is there but not so high pitched and forward in the mix

oh I dunno -- it was always prominent

112 'Cupid' is still the best song featuring the water drop.

maybe I just have an earlier mixed version of the 2:19 one? xp

112 'Cupid' is still the best song featuring the water drop.

― Spottie_Ottie_Dope, Wednesday, June 27, 2012 6:11 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i was thinking about starting a thread on this actually. "laundromat" all the way

Brainwasher, Rev and I did an outoud.fm theme night on this, it turned up some great jams.

Ha, I forgot about that. Earliest example I can think of is Prince's "Crazy You"

anyone have a download?

http://www56.zippyshare.com/v/10600021/file.html

^______________________^

I listened to the new versh on headphones and yeah the little 'pop' sound is not very noticeable, it really pops on my speakers tho

this has been your 'pop' update

definitely sticks out more in this mix, i feel like the bassline is more at the forefront, too.

miguel is so good w/ backing vocals. i could listen to an entire album of his just layering oohs and ahhs w/o even writing actual "songs"

not sure how I'd restrain myself if I watched him record the "ahhhs" in "All"

fuck it, everybody's selfish

Not sure the extra bit of Adorn really makes it a measurably better or worse song, but that's mostly cause it was already great.

Arch N Point also my most played 2012 track thus far.

i dunno if it feels obvious to anyone else but it seems really clear to me that "Adorn" was 3 minutes long to begin with and the first version released was truncated, rather than the ending being added after the fact. the awkward 'ooh ooh' on the original ending actual fits now.

actually

I kinda doubt that. Seems like his label decided they wanted to push it and needed a more conventional structure/length.

hopefully someone will ask him in an interview at some point, i'm genuinely curious

ditto

Not much to add. Art Dealer Chic EPs are the shit. But hey, let's make a pact not to mention Prince for a while, let this breathe.

full version doesn't make me care about "adorn" any more than i did already, no matter how much i listen that song goes in one ear and out the other

"adorn" is my favorite song of the decade after "lemme smang it"

"Adorn" is now the most-listened to song on my last.fm

fwiw the top three most watchec videos of "adorn" on youtube total 5m+ views w/ zero promo

I watch the A&P video at least twice a week lol

is there an official video?

i haven't been able to watch youtubes for about a month on this dying laptop

yeah, "adorn" & "arch & point" have official videos

the "arch & point" one is fantastic

if i can ever stop dithering and buy a new laptop maybe i'll get to see them one day

hopefully

Arch n Point video is almost as sexy as the song.

The Miguel and Jhene Aiko show is one of Myspace's two free secret shows in July, brought to you by the makers of Trojan® Charged™ condoms.

nyc kids, he's playing w/ jamie xx & pearson sound on aug 4

xp I bet Miguel and Jhene are pretty damn good for condom sales

i just thought there was something kind of amazing and perfect about the triangulation of Miguel, MySpace and Trojan

haha word

MySpace is such a harsh connotation, though. I'll forever associate that site with a whole movement of mostly disbanded emo acts I was slightly too old to fully understand

http://www.spin.com/articles/stream-miguels-three-song-kaleidoscope-dream-water-preview

lol at thread of miguel btw

Use Me sounds great.

"use me" is amazing

"don't look back" i'm not so sure about

"use me" is as good as anything he's put out this year imo

both songs are really dense... "use me" really gives off this vibe that he's, like, in the middle of a thunderstorm or something. but in a way that really works.

chorus is killer

serious jaw drop at "use me"

like 2:50 onwards is DDDDDDDDDDD:

where is the CDQ mixtape downloadable from the website???

dunno about anyone else but I love when Miguel belts

I need to stop listening to this off the website, I'm gonna burn out

man, dude packs so much music into just two new song; this is so much to digest. Love how substantial both of these tracks are

minor miracle I was somehow able to get the Spin site to stream these for me. Never has any luck accessing anything on that site before, so glad it came through for me when it counted

"adorn" is slowly rising on the r&b chart too

"use me" is stunning

"don't look back" sounds a bit too much like a ryan tedder collaboration or something but i don't dislike it

so i guess the album has 11 songs, if my math is right? good number imo

I've learned never to underestimate the dude's capacity for writing songs that grow on me. Even fucking "Broads" eventually wormed its way past my "i should hate this" shield

you're a brave man, Evan

his singing on "don't look back" is good tho

how prince is the title "kaleidoscope dream" btw? love it

Stay tuned: On Wednesday morning, August 1, SPIN will also be exclusively premiering a stream of Miguel's performance from an upcoming secret live show.

really excited about this, there's not tons of video of him playing live out there. especially the new stuff, if at all.

Wonder if Miguel is paying incredibly in-depth homage to Smashing Pumpkins by naming his multi-part digital album Kaleidoscope Dream.

lol i was listening to "use me" w/ the door partly closed while my boyfriend was in the kitchen and when i got up and went in there he said he thought it sounded like a smashing pumpkins song

Wonder if Miguel is paying incredibly in-depth homage to Smashing Pumpkins by naming his multi-part digital album Kaleidoscope Dream.

― Evan R, Thursday, July 26, 2012 11:45 PM (Yesterday)

that was my first thought too haha

"don't look back" >>>>>>>>>>>>

miguel's doubletracked vocals when the bass drops out on "use me" >>>>>>>>>>>

these new tracks are fucking stadium shit

we're gonna find out miguel's been bumping muse for the last six months or something

ok "Don't Look Back" just blew my mind

Yeah didn't grab as much at first, but it's good.

This guy has a gift for smuggling melancholy into unexpected places. "Use Me" is probably the saddest kinky sex song I've heard this year.

("Birthday Cake" doesn't count, because it is sad for other reasons.)

when he double-tracks the guitars on "use me" >>>

"Use Me" is probably the saddest kinky sex song I've heard this year.

he does sing the line "my pride is waving a white flag"

i hate myself for even bringing this up but anyone who dug the weekend's last two mixtapes should feel fucking embarrassed hearing "use me"

as well as in a more general sense

well yes that too, lol

right on cue Lex!

"Use Me" has a pathos that the Weeknd's songs don't, though. Abel is the predatory; Miguel is (at least for this song) the victim

word

Plus, Miguel knows how to use sound and space to complement his voice.

His productions consistently point outward, away from the self, as opposed to The Weeknd's insularity.

yup

"use me" really conveys the parallel nervousness and excitement of new sexual encounters/experiences imo. like you have this towering, expansive song & in the middle of it a guy singing "use me when you're taking control / with the lights off / i can just let go" and "it's the very first time / and i'm nervous / can i trust you, huh?"

tho he also sings from the other perspective as well & i guess it's up to debate which (if either) is him

It's songs that "Use Me" which have me give his songs queer readings.

*like "Use Me"

yeah totally

I was really engrossed by the sheer, uncompromising horror of those last Weeknd mixtapes (plus I think they sound great), but Tesfaye was never very interested in exploring his the roots of his monstrosity; he was just a ghoul. I love how Miguel, on the other hand, uses these small details to suggest the motivations behind sexual desires. He can use his voice to hint at the heartbreak the drives one-night stands, for instance, but its rare to hear a song that equates kinky sex to damaged goods as devastatingly (and as sweetly) as "Use Me."

that drive, excuse me. Gah, I gotta proof my posts better. Whenever I am on allergy meds I am typo city.

and he can makes kinks delicious (e.g. "Arch N Point").

ya good point

(I'm having trouble with subject-verb agreement too)

I was going to mention "Arch N Point" re: Miguel sad-kink

wow @ the "time of the season" interpolation at the end of "don't look back"

and jordan otm about the ryan tedder vibes but miguel wields them incredibly

from 4/12/12

https://twitter.com/MiguelUnlimited/statuses/190618069792604162

It's songs that "Use Me" which have me give his songs queer readings.

I don't usually speculate about artists' sexuality, nor do I really care about it—I have that sort of apathetic and maybe naive quality a lot of straight guys have where we just assume everybody is straight unless they say otherwise—but I kind of wonder if Miguel is just waiting for somebody to bluntly ask him about his sexuality so he can just give them an answer.

part of the questions about him stem from his look & image which is probably unfair but he definitely writes from a different perspective than a lot of singers

on the other hand a lot of his songs code as totally straight to me

Yeah, "Use Me" is such a passive depiction of sexuality, and he positions himself (for lack of a better term) as the receiving partner, which isn't a position that a lot of R&B singers take. Combined with his soft imagine, it just seems to me like if he's gay he's not even really trying to hide his sexuality.

But again, I'm the wrong guy to speculate. Songwriters can write from a wide range of perspectives, so I never would have suspected anything about Frank Ocean from his music along. (Actually, I never suspected anything about Frank Ocean even after seeing this on his Tumblr: http://frankocean.tumblr.com/post/24525846895)

he's explicitly denied gay rumours before, fyi - http://www.bet.com/news/fashion-and-beauty/2011/06/03/miguel-defends-sexuality-explains-his-electrik-style.html

which, like. doesn't necessarily convince me one way or the other. i don't want to be hem in the permissible modes of existence for str8 r&b dudes - more power to them for funky clothes and receptive narratives etc. like, Prince is the greatest and I could give a shit if he was ever actually queer or just played with the codes and imagery.

but still, i wouldn't be entirely shocked or entirely disappointed. he's also stunningly pretty, so... [Rev, back me up on this, please]

although now that I read that article, " “For anyone who questions my sexuality, the honest truth is I love women. I’ve always openly loved women." isn't realllllly a statement of "i am not queer" so much as "i love women openly" and do not comment on the rest of it.

Singer Miguel Denies That He's Gay
He thinks people should expand their horizons

^this is pretty amazing

although now that I read that article, " “For anyone who questions my sexuality, the honest truth is I love women. I’ve always openly loved women." isn't realllllly a statement of "i am not queer" so much as "i love women openly" and do not comment on the rest of it.

― twinkin' and drinkin' and ready to fly (Alex in Montreal), Friday, July 27, 2012 5:33 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark

yeah i had this thought as well

It's a fun denial, and I'll take his word for it. But Miguel's whole career trajectory has involved catching up to the margins, working from the inside out. He started as an industry favorite in the safe Usher mold; then became a commercial act working on the periphery of a major label making slightly eccentric music, before embracing independent distribution models and nodding to outsidery trends with his free EPs. He's obviously very interested in breaking from commercial expectations, but he works with safety net; he's cautious about the conventions he upends. Now that the climate is suddenly a lot more inviting for urban artists who might want to come out, I wonder if he'll seize the opportunity.

When was he ever in the usher mold? His early staff seems more left coast hippie shit with Blu and Emanon etc.

He's always been a little bit of a weirdo, no? I mean even 'Sure Thing' is weird insofar as it's totally spare except for the screwed vocal hook.

I think it took so long to grow on me because I wanted to hear it as a pop song in context and it felt too anemic.

On March 5 in this thread I posted the video for his 2005 single. Check it out if you haven't; it kinda speaks volumes about where he's coming from.

He was definitely a lovable weirdo on his debut, but I think Jive had so little invested in him that he was given the freedom to do pretty much whatever he wanted with that record, a luxury that he definitely made the most of.

haha holy shit @ that 05 video

He still pals around with west coast hippies! Jhene, Thundercat, FlyLo, J Davey, etc...

If Prince is queer, it's because of his gender presentation, nothing to do with his orientation.

if?

If he chooses to identify as that.

apropos of nothing, this is dope

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPpHgm5nRXE&feature=relmfu

i get why people are using the word "sad" to describe miguel but i dunno if it's the most accurate - it has connotations of inward-facing timidity and moping to me, but the best of miguel's work this year is just so...full-blooded and cathartic and really physical, it's as much about frustration and anger as melancholy, and there's a lot at stake in his songs. i'm suspicious of fetishisation-of-melancholy in general and i think this is a different thing.

heard "Adorn" on Baltimore radio for the first time and, interestingly, they played the 2-minute version. the DJ sounded really excited about it before and after the song, so maybe she was a fan and pulled it straight off the EP instead of using the label promo.

that is interesting

yearning is prob the word that comes to mind with migs

urgency tinged with tangible need, every song sung sincerely on his knees

that was somewhat more lyrical miracle than i intended

can i get a refill

http://www.inflexwetrust.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Miguel-Elle-Varner-IFWT.jpg

D:

lex's post makes some good points

is he very petite or is elle a way bigger gulp than she normally looks

miguel is petite as hell

def true that for me Miguel's attraction as a singer is how anger and a libidinos streak intertwine.

*libidinous

i guess i read that anger as a resiliency i.e. "...all"

yeah, or a certitude

wouldnt take him seriously if i thought he was ever angry

he seems very controlled and confident to me, just as a person/performer, in a way that informs how he expresses any emotion in hi smusic

not at a Prince level of icy remove but definitely closer than any of his contemporaries that i can think of

Agreed. I didn't at all mean his anger was inchoate or anything; it's closer to seething.

sure but even that seems overstated

these new tracks are definitely mastered way grungier right

paranoid about my hearing/stereo lately so i'm not even sure

i get why people are using the word "sad" to describe miguel but i dunno if it's the most accurate - it has connotations of inward-facing timidity and moping to me, but the best of miguel's work this year is just so...full-blooded and cathartic and really physical, it's as much about frustration and anger as melancholy, and there's a lot at stake in his songs. i'm suspicious of fetishisation-of-melancholy in general and i think this is a different thing.

Great post, Lex. I totally hear the frustration.

damnit I thought we had lex so close to fetishizing melancholy

Late to the party but "Use Me" and "Don't Look Back" are just so... damn miguel how have you made so many of my favourite songs this year already.

xp This is probably the part of Lex's "indie is ruining everything" conspiracy theory that I agree with the most. Melancholy is too often mistaken for substance, and I would hate to see it become a rampant empty signifier in R&B the way it did in indie rock. (That being said, I do obviously love it when it's done right)

these new tracks are definitely mastered way grungier right

there's certainly a density to them but i thought everything sounded pretty clear.

the guitars are kinda 90s rock tho.

the guitars are kinda 90s rock tho.

what with wynter gordon too, we just need one more for a TRENDPIECE

yearning urgency is exactly right btw re: miguel

melancholy implies a sort of resignation - you've given up - that's not present in miguel's work

Yeah "resignation" is where melancholy starts to become indie. Perhaps a sense of (self)alienation too.

Neither of which Miguel does really.

he just wants a quickie iirc

Actually arguably "Broads" is resigned.

I cannot get over the depth of this stuff.

I want to see the waveforms when we finally get high quality versions, because (just based on my ears) this feels like a perfect opportunity to contrast tracks with lots of layers that have been recorded and mixed properly vs. stuff like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy which is just overstuffed and overcompressed etc.

Like, 'Use Me' is the kind of song that could be a total mess sonically if it wasn't so impeccably put together. That round at the end! over top of the guitar strum!

He still pals around with west coast hippies! Jhene, Thundercat, FlyLo, J Davey, etc...

This list is like my ultimate wkiw (esp if it includes Miguel)

Anyways way late to this party but glad I made it

It occurs to me that part of what makes "Adorn" so special is where in most r&b songs you have a static chorus with ad libs over the top, here the chorus is single-tracked and there's this tension where he has to find this balance between embellishing and carrying the melody. Does he toe the line? No, HE GOES ALL THE WAY FUCKING IN.

I might be wrong but I don't feel like there's much of a distinction really between the verses & chorus, and that the choice between 'toeing the line' and 'going all the way fucking in' as you put it, is kind of the main demarcation between the two. That and the short running time of the orig version (I haven't listened to the single edit yet) maybe gives it a sort of sinuous slipperiness where you can feel like lots of stuff is happening but you can't quite get a handle on it--or at least I can't. Which is one of the things that compels me to listen to it again and again.

you need to listen to the single version

...to know what Rev is really talking about. Ok yeah, listened and got it.

Yeah, that element existed in the ADC version, but it wasn't til the single version that it was made really clear.

i just realized that miguel wrote this which totally makes sense in light of the adc shit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ye-cmRfwFxM

WAIT REALLY? HOW DID I NOT KNOW THAT??

man i love that song. also shame he didn't do more work w/ jam & lewis.

is he playing ny tomorrow? little google bird told me he might be

that SPIN post said they're gonna have a video of a performance from a "secret live show" on wednesday morning, so yeah he's prob playing somewhere tomorrow night

he's also playing PS1 w/ jamie xx & pearson sound on 8/4

WATER PREVIEW also available on itunes now

he's also playing PS1 w/ jamie xx & pearson sound on 8/4

holy shit

right?

It's not on the Australian iTunes. I'm distraught.

http://youtu.be/8dM5QYdTo08

Video is out though.

weird

yahhh

Cool

Shot in Los Angeles and directed by Jason Beattie(Steve Aoki, Mike Posner, Good Charlotte), features Miguel in a moody underworld searching for a mythical, unattainable woman.

lol, whatever. i preferred just staring at his face, obviously.

but he looks ~fine~ here also, so it's all good.

he sure wears makeup well

his getup is a bit too Bruno Mars

Rev, didn't you once have a similar haircut?

he's so pretty http://i824.photobucket.com/albums/zz166/smrougifs/Gifs/EmmaRachelSwoon.gif

xp yeah, but I never paired it with a retro teddy boy suit

so nice hearing this on the radio

i think i'm talking to him tomorrow fyi if u want to get any questions in

Friday August 3rd Line-up
The-Dream
Miguel
at the Ohio State Fair

WAIT WHAT

i think i'm talking to him tomorrow fyi if u want to get any questions in

― lex pretend, Tuesday, July 31, 2012 11:38 AM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Tell him your friend Rodney has a thing for him and would like his number.

Friday August 3rd Line-up
The-Dream
Miguel
at the Ohio State Fair

― curmudgeon, Tuesday, July 31, 2012 2:38 PM (16 minutes ago)

http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20101229043821/headhuntershorrorhouse/images/3/3d/Exploding_head.gif

Rev, if we cannot work out a way to timeshare Miguel's phone number/affections, our friendship may be hitting a speed bump.

Can I take every other weekend?

Also, excuse me while I google how long a drive it is from Montreal to Ohio.

It is only 12 hours! Um. Hm. Probably not.

threesomes

haha. deal.

ok, also, calling this "Kaleidoscope Dream: The Water Preview" looks ridiculous. Is it less silly to call it "Kaleidoscope Dream: Water" or "Kaleidoscope Dream: The Water" or what?

I'd rather call this an orgy.

guys, srsly, let's keep it in teh gayz thread, shall we? i know it's summer and everything but restraint!

been up so long it looks like going down

ewww, who invited Alfred?

ima stand up for 'don't look back', dude is thom yorkeing his ass off

"don't look back" is cool... i'm just hoping that it's the seventh best song on the LP and not the fourth

i am not holding too much stock by the album itself really

i mean it'll doubtless have good stuff on there but won't i think quite add up to what you want it to, really capture what the eps sketch out and imply

adorn is the only thing off the art dealer chics to make it on the album, is that right?

when it comes to Miguel I've been telling myself not to turn into one of those loathsome The Dark Knight Returns fans on Facebook. The EP's weren't perfect but so far they comprise my favorite music released this year. I won't raise expectations about the full album.

adorn is the only thing off the art dealer chics to make it on the album, is that right?

― r|t|c, Tuesday, July 31, 2012 5:15 PM (31 minutes ago) Bookmark

i'm not sure if anyone knows. maybe he'll throw "arch n point" on there, we'll see.

I can see Arch n Point on there. Maybe ...ALL. Don't imagine anything off Vol. 3 would show up. Maybe a version of Broads with a guest verse? I mean, I hope not but it's possible.

i doubt it. i'd say "arch n point" only because it also got a video but my guess is that they'll throw some of the tracks together for the deluxe LP or w/e

http://new.livestream.com/miguel/LivefromNYC?&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=live&utm_campaign=miguel/LivefromNYC&utm_content=7_31show

miguel's gaze is v pretty

although I do get kind of a http://i.imgur.com/kufBH.jpg vibe from him tho

someone watch this with me

new neighbors blasting the same justin timeberlake song over and over so I am blasting adorn over and over

what in the complete fuck this song has like a whole extra minute now, maybe I should read the thread

show running late? hasn't started yet on the stream...

that's good, gave me time to make a sammich first.

excited 4 this

seeing miguel live thursday

opening for cee lo :-/

here???????????????

duhhhhhh

fuck

i will see you there