Part three: 10 essential albums for spring (original) (raw)

Snoop Dogg
Ego Trippin'
Doggystyle, 17 March

In springtime, the sap rises. Rapper Snoop Dogg's man-juices have hit something of a high-water mark with his ninth album, Ego Trippin'. It finds the Original Gangsta-turned-360-degree entertainer in funky loverman mode. His reality-TV sideline and reputation for being a good father have tarnished Snoop's bad-dog image somewhat, but Calvin Broadus remains one of the most elastic and amusing of hip hop's upper-earning echelons, thanks to his frequent collaborations with smoove uber-producer Pharrell Williams. The gangsta Nineties suddenly seem very, very far away. Forthcoming single 'Sensual Seduction' finds a mulleted Snoop crooning through a vocoder, a keytar just creasing his white suit. Reports suggest the remainder of the album is just as in thrall to Rick James and Prince. Naturally, gospel and country rap also figure.

Snoop says: 'I'mma do the whole record, me by myself. I don't want no guest rappers, no singer, nothing. Just Snoop Dogg. I want you to feel me. This record, I'm seriously ego-tripping like, "I don't want you on my album. Nah, I don't need you."

Buy this if you liked: Chromeo's Fancy Footwork. KE

Madonna
Title TBC
Warner Bros, 28 April

It doesn't have a title yet, but the direction of Madonna's new album, her last major release before she turns 50, seems clear: the Barbour-wearing Queen of Pop is hitting the street. Two of the three tracks we heard in an exclusive playback boast productions from the biggest beatmakers in hip hop. Timbaland evidently reserves his best work for the highest-paying customers because lead single '4 Minutes to Save the World' is a mighty effort, powered by superhero horns, ticking clocks and Justin Timberlake's falsetto. On 'Candy Shop', a sticky clutch of not-so-subtle innuendos ('Come into my store/ I've got candy galore') is traded over a snappy Pharrell Williams beat. 'Give it to Me' slinks into more familiar dance-pop territory, but the chatter behind this album suggests that R&B and hip hop will be its main flavours. Not a revolutionary move from Madonna, but at least she's working with the right people.

Timbaland says: '[The album is] kinda like 'Holiday' with an R&B groove.'

Buy this if you liked: Blackout by Britney Spears, Loose by Nelly Furtado.KF

Hercules & Love Affair
Hercules & Love Affair
DFA, 10 March

This debut could be subtitled 'What Antony Did Next', such is the expectation surrounding the contribution of Antony 'and the Johnsons' Hegarty. But the key man is classically trained Andrew Butler (below right), whose house and disco tracks provide a richly textured backdrop for the voices of New York art scene friends, jewellery designer Kim Ann Foxman, Debbie Harry collaborator Nomi and Hegarty. Like LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver, this is an unashamedly grown-up club record, a love letter to 30 years of electronic music, which incorporates the sleek grooves and jazzy rhythms of classic dance anthems, the shimmering synths of acid house and vocal performances modelled on the big voices of the Eighties: Liz Fraser, Alison Moyet and Marc Almond. Despite its nostalgic (and coffee table) appeal, this is not a record for wistful, retired clubbers. Butler cuts vintage grooves with pulsing beats to create sumptuous contemporary dance music.

They say: '[It's] rhythmic, artsy pop music that was made with classic dance music in mind. It's rooted in the soundtrack to my childhood' - Andrew Butler.

Buy this if you liked: LCD Soundsystem. AC

The Black Keys
Attack and release
V2/Cooperative Music, 31 March

He made his name as a hip hop producer, but Brian Burton, aka Danger Mouse, isn't very good at concealing his love of the electric guitar. His Gnarls Barkley project with rapper Cee-Lo Green, and the second Gorillaz record, which he produced, both bear testament to it, and he infamously mashed Jay-Z into the Beatles on The Grey Album. Now he's putting both feet in the rock camp, overseeing the fifth album by Ohio blues-rock duo the Black Keys. Burton originally approached the band to contribute to an album he was working on with Ike Turner. But though the project was abandoned after Turner's death in December, much of the material had already been earmarked for the Keys' own album. You can hear Burton's influence loud and clear throughout - the highly regimented rhythms, the liberal use of Moogs, the inspired little piano tinkle on 'Lies' - enriching the Keys' stripped-back sound. Guitar genius Marc Ribot is another welcome contributor to this fine piece of work.

They say: 'We were ready to go somewhere else. Danger Mouse has a real ear for melody and arrangement and that was a big part of the record.' - Dan Auerbach

Buy this if you liked: Icky Thump by the White Stripes, St Elsewhere by Gnarls Barkley. KF