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Somewhere in Blue Note's music dungeon collecting dust (whether physical or virtual), sits Van Hunt's third and still-unreleased studio album, Popular. There are record industry tragedies and then there's the shame of a relentlessly daring and creative album like Popular never being offered up for public consumption. Word from Van Hunt was that Blue Note had neither the money nor the vision to properly market Popular, a collection of songs of varied tones, textures, and moods -- not to mention a genre-mash fronted by an artist who has clearly diverged from his previous two albums. If you want Van Hunt the neo-soul crooner from his eponymous debut, look elsewhere. This music is punk, it's funk -- ethos-wise, it's even a little hip-hop. His guitar solos are angry. The grooves dig in deep with wah-wah guitar riffs and filthy basslines rummaging through the album with destructo force. "Blood from a Heart of Stone" sports a polyrhythmic funk so pungent, it's an instant body mover, zeroing in on your shoulders and hips...that is, until you realize that the song's theme is flooded with resentment. Thematically, love gets punched in the gut and tossed in the alley. Optimism, wonder, and romance are practically nowhere to be found. Instead there are P-funked joints fit for strip club anthems ("Prelude (Dimples on Your Bottom)"), hyper-sexed grooves backing lyrical F-Yous ("Lowest One of My Desire"), and songs like "UR a Monster" that take candor to that scary place. Sonically, "Monster" is a ballad, but ballads don't come this ornery ("I respond with rage whenever I hear your name"). Van Hunt doesn't pander like so many of his male brethren. In fact, the collective tone of the album makes you wonder if this album is Hunt's Here My Dear. Above all else, though, this album is the exhibition of a self-described "creationist." The man is never out of ideas. Just when you think you've got "Feelings" figured out, or just when you think you've predicted where "Ur Personal Army" is going, Van Hunt pulls you across a bridge or smacks you in the face with a coda. This music is fearsome. On the title track, Van Hunt takes turns commenting on the quest for artistic and social popularity -- always a relevant subject, especially in the era of Myspace. His concluding monologue is too apt, given that this album is still being held hostage. "It's all depending on who you ask and how much they know." For those in the know, it's unnacceptable -- but not unthinkable -- that an album like Popular was sentenced to jail. It does not, however, diminish its art. [In 2017, Blue Note released the album on streaming platforms and as a digital download.]
© Vincent Thomas /TiVo
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Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Dave Pensado, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Harry Kim, Trumpet, AssociatedPerformer - Fred Wesley, Trombone, Horn Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - TONY MASERATI, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Ernie Fields, Alto Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Everett Harp, Tenor Saxophone, AssociatedPerformer - Curtis Whitehead, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Michelle Shaprow, Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Douglas Smith, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Jarvis Green, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Rabhi Hines, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Clinton Harris, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Truth, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Millicent Hunt, ComposerLyricist - George Gordon, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Elizabeth Nation, Mellotron, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Count Bass D, Speaker, Voice, AssociatedPerformer - Curtis Whitehead, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Dwight Farrell, ComposerLyricist - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Truth, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Dave Pensado, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Stevie Blacke, Steel Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Grady thomas, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - George Gordon, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Elizabeth Nation, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Patrick Warren, String Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Dave Pensado, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Richard Dodd, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Daphne Chen, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Eric Gorfain, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Leah Katz, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Tracy Williams, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - George Gordon, Trumpet, Horn Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Fred Wesley, Horn Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - TONY MASERATI, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Douglas Smith, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Jarvis Green, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Rabhi Hines, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Clinton Harris, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Dave Pensado, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Elizabeth Nation, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - Truth, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Patrick Warren, Conductor - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Dave Pensado, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tracy Williams, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Elizabeth Nation, String Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Kevin Guarneri, Acoustic Guitar, Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Truth, Organ, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - TONY MASERATI, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Curtis Whitehead, ComposerLyricist - George Gordon, Trumpet, Horn Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Elizabeth Nation, Mellotron, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tony High, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Lola Troy, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Van Hunt, Producer, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Patrick Warren, Mellotron, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Coyne, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - TONY MASERATI, Mix Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Stevie Blacke, Mandolin, AssociatedPerformer - Lola Troy, Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Keith Gretlein, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Melissa Matty, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
Album review
Somewhere in Blue Note's music dungeon collecting dust (whether physical or virtual), sits Van Hunt's third and still-unreleased studio album, Popular. There are record industry tragedies and then there's the shame of a relentlessly daring and creative album like Popular never being offered up for public consumption. Word from Van Hunt was that Blue Note had neither the money nor the vision to properly market Popular, a collection of songs of varied tones, textures, and moods -- not to mention a genre-mash fronted by an artist who has clearly diverged from his previous two albums. If you want Van Hunt the neo-soul crooner from his eponymous debut, look elsewhere. This music is punk, it's funk -- ethos-wise, it's even a little hip-hop. His guitar solos are angry. The grooves dig in deep with wah-wah guitar riffs and filthy basslines rummaging through the album with destructo force. "Blood from a Heart of Stone" sports a polyrhythmic funk so pungent, it's an instant body mover, zeroing in on your shoulders and hips...that is, until you realize that the song's theme is flooded with resentment. Thematically, love gets punched in the gut and tossed in the alley. Optimism, wonder, and romance are practically nowhere to be found. Instead there are P-funked joints fit for strip club anthems ("Prelude (Dimples on Your Bottom)"), hyper-sexed grooves backing lyrical F-Yous ("Lowest One of My Desire"), and songs like "UR a Monster" that take candor to that scary place. Sonically, "Monster" is a ballad, but ballads don't come this ornery ("I respond with rage whenever I hear your name"). Van Hunt doesn't pander like so many of his male brethren. In fact, the collective tone of the album makes you wonder if this album is Hunt's Here My Dear. Above all else, though, this album is the exhibition of a self-described "creationist." The man is never out of ideas. Just when you think you've got "Feelings" figured out, or just when you think you've predicted where "Ur Personal Army" is going, Van Hunt pulls you across a bridge or smacks you in the face with a coda. This music is fearsome. On the title track, Van Hunt takes turns commenting on the quest for artistic and social popularity -- always a relevant subject, especially in the era of Myspace. His concluding monologue is too apt, given that this album is still being held hostage. "It's all depending on who you ask and how much they know." For those in the know, it's unnacceptable -- but not unthinkable -- that an album like Popular was sentenced to jail. It does not, however, diminish its art. [In 2017, Blue Note released the album on streaming platforms and as a digital download.]
© Vincent Thomas /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 14 track(s)
- Total length: 00:48:23
- Main artists: Van Hunt
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Blue Note Records
- Genre: Soul/Funk/R&B R&B
© 2017 Capitol Records, LLC ℗ 2017 Capitol Records, LLC
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