LMFAO, FTWish

In a lot of ways this album is like herpes: Infectious, obnoxious, and most likely found on the dance floor of a south miami club. Or maybe, with the amount of 80's inspired checkered sneakers and bushy hair this due rocks, it is more analegous to glitter. Whichever blows your skirt up. And, ladies, this album will attempt to blow your skirt up. With enough shout outs to the women's posteriors to make Sir Mix-A-Lot blush and enough ciroc to keep you and everyone within a ten foot radius silly drunk, this album smashes - about 50% of the time. While the constant drunken choruses make you feel like you're involved in something special, make sure you're within reaching distance of the speaker system, because theres a lot of skip on LMFAO's "Party Rock."

I have a hard time deciphering between weather the two cousins that form LMFAO, Redfoo and Sky Blu, are just two bros with a sense of humor and a garage band expansion pack, or if they are marketing geniuses. Keeping in mind that they are both related to the founder of Motown Records Berry Gordy (R. is his son and B. is his nephew) I think its a fantastic combination of the two. The two gems on the record, "I'm in Miami Bitch" and "Shots", have identical construction and yet both over ride my white girl sense of propriety and have me asking "where are all my alcoholics at?" and trying to get girls drunk enough to suck my...well, you get the point. And the greatest part at all- these boys have no idea what a euphemism is! They lay it all out, plain and simple and ready to go. Love it or leave it, but if you love it remember that it wont be there when you wake up in the morning looking for two aspirins and a cigarette.

Outside of these two songs, there are a handful of other singles that deserve their chance to be spun, but here in lies the problem: LMFAO are hit makers, not album worthy artist (although their grammy nom begs to differ). This album has too many duds to be listen to cohesively, let alone played for the 50 minutes that it is. Songs like "Get Crazy" which encourage girls that "if you wanna have fun than do something crazzzy, like flash yo tities" are fine and dandy, but the over use of high pitched synthesizers grates after about thirty seconds.

Feminists, recovering alcoholics, and the upper middle class beware - the high points of this album will make you want to abandon your morals, if only for three and a half minutes. But with a video as simple and unashamed as "Shots" - how could you not want to party rock?

Listen to I'm In Miami Bitch (like you haven't heard it already.)

Hey Champ, here's your victory march.

Occasionally you come across a mashup of two or three songs that seem to go together so well you wonder if they aren't, in fact, from the same song. And then, very rarely, you come across a DJ who can make this occasion happen again and again, and compile them all into one beautiful mix. And on an even rarer occasion said DJ will put the album out for free! Sasquach and Nessie stand asides, we have our new wonder on hand.

Heavy with 1970's disco sentimentality, but kept light with pop and rap tunes of the last few years, this album manages to an entirely listenable dance record. One of the highlights of the album, "Little Secrets", features 2009s most bloggable band, Passion Pit. Now, while I have been decidedly reserved about Passion Pit and I don't mean my bias to over ride this tracks potential; chanting children went out with MGMT's 2008 track "Kids". Asides from the fact that the playground chorus should have been left on the original track, Michael Angelakos' space aged soprano helps set the Saturday Night Fever mood for the rest of the album. While this vibe continues through out, a touch more versatility would have been appreciate. After several rounds it almost seems like they stripped a bunch of songs down and added the same back beat to eat of them.

The mix features two guest DJ tracks, Only Children and Raw Man. It is shocking how these two remixes of Hey Champs songs blend into the album. Listened to cohesively I would bet against even the most trained ear to pick out the guest DJs. My favorite tid bit about this album is the lyrical transition from victory marches to songs about girls that think their shit don't stink. Highlighted by Mike Posner's vocal description of a girl who "probably thinks she's cooler" than every one around her; "You need every one's eyes just to feel seen/ Girl, your so vein, you probably think that this song is about you." Perhaps I'm reading into it too much, but I can't help but imagine the progression of this album as the following:

"Good morning fine ass girl who I've never met before. We should fall in love and I'll remix a bunch of songs about it."
"I agree. Now, fetch me my chai tea latte. Half fat."
"Awah?"

Regardless of the monotony, when the sound being repeated is this good there will be swiveling. So, plan on having this album blasting at your next beer pong game - victory dances will ensue.

Now: Download the whole album for free!