Customer Reviews

Pandemonium!

5 star:		(55)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Why do I say expectedly? Well, when I heard that this album dropped, I was like, "Didn't they already release two albums this year?" Now, I didn't say one; I said TWO (their self-titled debut and their Christmas album, Santa Hooked Me Up). Everyone knows that when an artist releases a second (or in this case, third) album during the same year, it usually sounds like it was thrown together (Nastradamus, anyone?), and Pandemonium! is no exception.

But songs like "Sleepin'" and the hidden bonus track once again prove my theory that B2K are better at slow songs. "Everything" is great also except for two things: the fact that they're spelling the word EVERYTHING at the beginning of the song, and when I hear Lil' Fizz's rap I start getting Do Or Die-isms (as in, "Why would you be rapping fast over a slow song?").

A lot of the other tracks on here sound like songs that other people already did...or sometimes, songs THEY already did. "The Other Guy" is too reminiscent of "Last Boyfriend" from their first album, "My Girl" is like Usher's "I Can't Let U Go", and "Back It Up" sounds like a generic remix of "Bump, Bump, Bump". And correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't "Why I Love You" on their first album?

The rest of the songs on the album sound the same; most of them have obvious Neptunes or wannabe Neptunes beats. "Would You Be Here" uses the all-too-familiar subject of not wanting them if they didn't have money, but what really makes this song bad is the lyrics. They start asking if their girls would they be there if they didn't have a phone, and during the bridge they say, "What if I was ugly/And struggling/And crummy", and I'm like, "Who wrote this?" "Boys For Life" sounds like it was written in two minutes, and the bonus track "Dog", which is from Lil' Fizz's cousin Jhene (pronounced ja-NAY), should have been left behind. Not that Jhene can't sing, but the lyrics are dumb and the song is so disorganized that you can barely hear her voice.

I know a lot of people may give me an unhelpful vote from my rating alone, but it's not that I don't like B2K; I just don't like this album. Their harmonies actually have improved from their first album, but what they have to work with just doesn't impress. Sorry.

B2K is a well-oiled machine. Despite the fact that on Pandemonium their second cd, they try to convince you that this isn't a manufactured, image thing - we all know the truth. Just like boy groups before them - each fella in B2K fits a particular mold. Since you probably don't care about their personality traits - let's not even get into that, but suffice to say that B2K, the machine is doing something right. With a gold album tucked into their belts the quartet is poised for even more success.

- Who The Hell Is B2k? -

Lil' Fizz, Omarion, Razz B, J-Boog

- they do have working in their favor is talent and some overly chiseled adolescent bodies that apparently make girls swoon from coast to coast. Remember - image is everything. "Bump, Bump, Bump" is probably the dumbest single to be released in 2002 and for good reason. Not only is it written and produced by R. Kelly, but it sounds like a cheap rip of "Fiesta" and features P. Diddy, and ends up sounding like a complete mess.

The biggest hindrance on "Pandemonium" is the production. Many of the tracks produced by lesser name producers sound like budget Neptunes tracks. Some of them are so close to what I expect from The Neptunes that they require a look at the liner notes. There's also the question of roles within B2K. Omarion sings lead almost implicitly and Lil' Fizz is the "rapper" the Left Eye of the group if you will. The other 2 members are essentially relegated to background vocals and you don't hear much of them throughout the whole project.

"One Kiss" is a nice mid-tempo ballad where the group seems cohesive and the vocals are sharp and mature. In fact, although B2K are known for putting on a good show and being excellent dancers - they sound much better on their mid-tempo tracks and ballads. "Sleepin' which is nothing spectacular lyrically, is vocally one of the strongest songs on the album.

"Everything" keeps up the pace and strength of the middle tracks on "Pandemonium". Appealing to teenage love - "Everything" is about the boys trying to maintain "relationships" while balancing careers. It's endearing and it makes you smile - and they sound good doing it. "Tease" features Jhene and Romeo of IMX who both happen to be related to different members of B2K (well-oiled machine remember?). No doubt, this should be released as a single - not only to help launch Jhene's career, but as one of the faster tempo tracks - it's a solid dance number.

"Pretty Young Thing" keeps up that Neptunes sound - very bass oriented, very electronic but unlike most of the others, this one almost manages to work except that the production is so heavy that the vocals and it (the production) are fighting for attention and the track ends up just sounding crowded. And, because B2K loves you...they put their biggest hit "Why I Love You" on Pandemonium. It's a good song and as it stands, probably the best showcase of their harmonization and strength as a group.

- Final Thoughts -

Like most of all the contemporary acts in music right now B2K is there to fill a void. Their particular market just happens to be adolescent girls with raging hormones and they fill the void well. Despite the fact that they are indeed manufactured (just like all the other boy bands) they can sing and they harmonize nicely together. The material isn't groundbreaking but if you have a 13 year-old girl in your life odds are 9 to 1, she'd love this.

Better CD overall than the debut in my opinion. Even though my CD only included "one" bonus track, it's still worth your money.Just because I am a 44 year old music lover, I stay current and I can appreciate a good group like these young men. They remind me a lot of the Jackson 5/New Edition/Sylvers in their heyday. B2K's music is what's happening now, but their lyrics, phrasing and overall demeanor makes them classic and intricate at the same time. Trust me, this talented group will go far in the music industry. As far as "pandemonium!" goes, the best cuts are "One Kiss", "My Girl", "Sleepin'", "Would You Be Here", "I Beat You To It", the previously released "Why I Love You" which by the way is a great song and my favorite, "The Other Guy". The only drawbacks in B2K's albums is that the uptempo stuff all sound alike to me. But this is a great group and I'm expecting bigger and better things from them in the future. Way to go guys!

Intro- the intro reminds me of when i bought the cd
Bump Bump Bump- Best fast song on the cd, really catchy
U Can get It- I like it, it's a good song, hehe
One Kiss- VERY BEAUTIFUL, tearful song
My Girl- A song that makes you think why is Omarion still with this girl, good song
Sleepin- Very pretty
Would you be here- A song that makes you think about a lot, very pretty
Everything- VERY PRETTY! My fav slow song on the cd, shows Omarion's true feelings
Tease- I like this song because it reminds me of myself teasing guys, nice beat
Back it up- Like it, club song
Where did we go wrong- VERY FUNNY AND CATCHY LYRICS, I love it!
Pretty Young Thang- Nice dance song
I beat you to it- Cool song, dance song
The Other Guy- VERY BEAUTIFUL another one of my fav slow songs on this cd, makes you want to hug Omarion and kiss him!
Why I love you- ??
Boys for Life- Great song to the fans explaining what they have been through
Dog- I LOVE THIS SONG! GO JHENE!
What U get- Lovely song, great hidden track

If I could give this CD a 0, I would. It's almost a shame there isn't a 0 stars option. Call me a "player hater" if you want, but this isn't just some of the worst music i've ever heard it's the most obnoxious. This band is obviously out there for the money and just like your MTV told you to you go out and buy it. It's sickening, this really is an easily impressionable generation. Go listen to some music with substance you morons. I swear you trendy bastards are so much in love with these untalented generic boy bands you don't realize how bad the music really is. And I take that back my original statement, you really can't do worse than this cd; this IS as bad as it gets.

I didn't like the lyrics to "BUMP,BUMP,BUMP",but the beat was off the hook though.I really had to give this album a chance,because I really wasn't feel'in it!It was okay,but not all that.As a matter of fact there first debut is better than this one in my opinion.They just just got more seductive about girls on this one,that's all!But I finally got used to it. I really liked "What You Get" which is the last song on the cd.That's my absolute favorite,as a matter of fact,I think that's the best song on there.But I also like "One Kiss","My Girl" and "Would You Be Here".Those were pretty good songs.And "Everything" is not bad either.But the only thing I didn't get is why they have "Why I Love You",from the first album.That seemed stupid and crazy!And why did they put out two cds in the same year,but one with different songs on it.That puzzled me,and it seemed stupid.But now I know why,they were trying to make more money.And it surprised me when I heard they worked with R.Kelly on this album.I almost didn't want to have anything to with the album,because he was involved.

I must say that there is no more originality in music today.Everyone is stealing music off of other artists and taking ideas off of others.B2K is no exception to this fact.After seeing the success of boy goups like the backstreet boys,some greedy label decided to put together another boy group to make themselves some quick money.This album is as corny and cheesy as it gets.All the songs sound the same and they probably dont even write their own lyrics.Most people fail to recognize that artists arent about real passion or skill now adays and only do it for the money.You could skip on this horrible release by a bunch of 15 year old wannabe players.DO NOT BUY THIS TRASH!!!

B2K definatly stepped it up this time. This album is tight. They've matured a lot from their first LP. The beats are crazy (Although The Neptunes could prob. sue for plaguerism on a couple cuts..but it's g) I can see B2K moving right into the shoes of New Edition and Boyz II Men. With this album they rise heads and shoulders above their counterpart, Imx. "My Girl", "One Kiss", and "What U Get" are great slow jams, but "Sleepin'" shows that these kids aren't kids anymore and they've got the "Slow Jam Ability" to become the new Boyz II Men. "You Can Get It" is almost too crazy, a club banger for sure. "Tease", and "I Beat You To It" will find their way into a club near you. The biggest suprise on the album is "Boys For Life", a great song that shows that B2K will always hold it down for eachother. Best song on the album for sure. This album will be taking R&B Album of The Year honors easily. Keep it up boys. Peace

...is me! I say this because I am 21 years old and used to be so ashamed of the fact that I loved the group (considering they are 5-6 years younger than I am) that I bought their first CD online as opposed to in person. However, I absolutely love their music. "Pandemonium!" is an excellent CD as well that, like their debut, I can listen to from start to finish. And this one folks, I bought at a music store. That has to count for something!

You know, it pains me and a lot of other guys, when girls compare us to the likes of so called 'artists' like Bow Wow or B2K. And just when I thought it couldn't get any worse than my (ever-so-great! =D ) girl-friend constantly listening to this garbage, I then come to Amazon and see people treat them like Kings, its just...MAN! I can't even say it.

Its also rather messed up, especially when you get right down to it, I mean what do these guys (B2K) have other than good looks, money, and fame? Nothing. It seems as though (most) girls look at their faces and clothing and immediatley fall in love with them and claim them to be musical geniouses. And thats totally unfair to the REAL musical geniouses who inspired them to get where they are today, nor is it fair to aspiring artists with REAL talent who can only seem to get notice in church. C'mon, these guys can't sing, and they certainly can't rap. People call B2K talented young artists? PLEASE! I'm all for young people (my age and up) making it in the show/music biz, but COME ON! These guys could easily be rivaled at any high-school talent show. I'm not gonna hold the fact that they don't write or produce their own songs against them, because not all good artists do, and I'll admit some of their dance moves are pretty impressive. But what else is there?

And seriously, listen thoroughly to some of these songs, their voices are digitally pitch-corrected and tampered with so much, that you have to wonder just how bad these guys sounded before the producers went in and worked their 'magic'. And might I add, that the whole 'come out with a semi-innocent image, then turn raunchy' method has been cliched to death, and doesn't earn them any points with REAL music fans by any means. And if you ask me, I think these guys are trying WAY too hard to sound like R. Kelly, vocally and lyrically (although I know Mr. Kelly tends to write for them sometimes).

On top of all that, I know I speak for a lot of other guys, when I say I'm a bit disgusted at how our gender is being portrayed through 'artists' like these. I mean... "The way you shaking that sexy (ooowww) body shaped like an hour glass let me spend some time" is that supposed to be a compliment? As many 'ghetto' guys as I'm around on a day to day basis (myself included to some degree), I can tell you, not even the most horniest/raunchiest of them talk like that. I mean God, its no wonder people think we're so perverted and sex-hungry now days.

So in conclusion, I'm not tryin' to 'hate' as some may put it, I'm simply stating my disgust with acts like this and advising that if you're looking for real music, from artists who DON'T rely on machines to help them hold a note, or rely on corny overused lyrics/themes to sell, then this is definitly NOT the place to look. Look for anything by the peops who pretty much started it all, like New Edition, Guy, Blackstreet, or the Jackson 5 even. Or if you're into OLD old-school listen to some stuff from the O'Jays or the Delfonics etc. But leave this B.S. to the hormone driven teeny boppers, and spend your extra holiday cash on something worth-while, you'll be so glad you did.

So if you agree with what I'm saying then click on 'yes' where it asks 'Do you find this review helpful?', if you disagree and like this kind of 'music', then kindly click 'no'. One thing is for sure, acts like this don't last very long. Maybe if the B2K boys learn to sing, and cover some new ground, I'll give them another chance, but at this point, these young lads have NO spot in my valuable music collection.

*Takes a bow, and steps off soap-box*