What Do You Want From An Album?

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XL Middleton

XL Middleton

Sicc OG
#1
Jun 14, 2006
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www.xlmiddleton.com
#1
Yeah that's right I have officially started a general discussion topic :eek: although I'm not gonna lie I'm also asking this question because I wanna hear from THE PEOPLE on what could possibly make my next project better to your ears...but in general, what is it that YOU want out of an album? What qualities...replay value? original concepts? innovative production?

Im NOT tryin 2 discuss what you think SHOULD go into an album...in other words I'm not thinking about "commercial viability" or "radio/club friendly" or "you gotta make girls like it" as answers here...i'm talking about what you personally want out of an album to make it a great listening experience. think about some of your all time favorite albums from the past and what qualities they had that made you love those records so much...

I try my best to be an artist of the people so I wanna make an album for the people.
 
T

ThaG

Sicc OG
#4
Jun 30, 2005
9,597
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#4
A CD with >80% good tracks (if possible, of course, no skippable ones, but I guess that's too much to ask for these days)...

Also I don't want it to have 20 tracks and 10 skits and to be 80 minutes long, 12 tracks are more than enough, if they're all tight; in other words - quality over quantity

I don't want the album to be recorded in 2 weeks or less with cheap beats and freestyled lyrics

I want the lyrics to reflect what the artist truly is about, not what the current trend is

I want a lot of other things but I don't feel like typing them all...
 
B

Bluejakkal

Sicc OG
#8
Mar 1, 2006
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#8
personally, the best albums make me feel like I'm spending day riding around with the artist in his town...Even though I'm not from Vallejo, when I hear the Click's classic album "Down and Dirty" I feel like I've already spent a day hanging with E-40 and B-legit on Magazine Street....I also dont want to feel like I've spent $17 for 1 or 2 songs....
 
S

smigg cant rap

Sicc OG
#9
Mar 20, 2006
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#9
beats/production
production needs to be consistent, & have depth...tracks need to sound unique, while still maintaining tha overall feel of the album. which is why i recommend relying on just or (or 2) producers all the way thru. a different producer on every track hardly ever leads to a classic album, IMO. also, having that laid-back funk-ish westcoast vibe to tha beats helps alot. & don't be afraid ta give tha beats a lil shine, if you got tha rite production, don't cut tha beat off as soon as tha verses end, let it run a lil bit longer. same goes for the begining of the track. tha worst is when an artist jumps rite into his verse tha second tha track starts...that hardly ever works. if you want an idea of what i like when it comes to new beats, listen to G-Macc's album The Graveyard Shift...that shit's got some genuinely classic beats on it, & it came out in 06. another recent album with incredible production was Phonk Beta's Phonkphenomenon (his beats never disappoint). goin back a lil further, Ecay Uno's Mental Scars was another great one (03).

lyrics/concepts
most classic albums i know of don't have any radio friendly tracks. fuck all that hyphy/crunk shallow-lyrics-havin club shit. lyrics should be well thought out, origional, & clever (& being "clever" doesn't necessarily mean you need crazy punchlines or anything). draw from personal experiences & be real with it. modesty is key (see: Mental Scars)...i don't wanna hear about money, expensive cars, and bitches. this is why c-bo fell off. deep tracks are a must, some reflective type shit......something people can relate to. if you can make an album that has listeners feelin like they know you after its thru, then that's a huge accomplishment. & there should be at least 1 track that tells a whole story just for tha sake of tellin a story ("brenda's got a baby," "rescue 911," "goin out like geez" by mc eiht, "talez of a killa" by woodie, "dance with the devil" by immortal technique, etc). when done rite, those are tha tracks people really remember. another dope idea that i think is under-used is when artists trade verses/lines with eachother like they're havin a conversation, to tell a story (1st part of "5 on it *reprise*," "its all bad" by biaje, "rescue 911," etc). & like someone already said, don't over-do it with the features...cuz then it won't feel like a true solo effort. also, keep the skits to a minimal...& NEVER ever attach them to the end or begining of a song. fuck that. they need their own track so they can be easily skipped. not every track needs a chorus...flowin for a few minutes straight without one always catches my attention & stands out. oh, & there needs to be at least one weed track on tha album lol, somethin to smoke to...its not mandatory, but its a nice bonus. nunna that thizz shit tho.

& i think that's about it for me...just my opinion on what goes into making a great album. hope it helped...& if not, at least i passed some time by typin all that shit up :cool:
 
XL Middleton

XL Middleton

Sicc OG
#10
Jun 14, 2006
205
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www.xlmiddleton.com
#10
good lookin out 4 all the responses...i can see there's a definite general consensus here. im glad to hear that there seems to be some hunger for the funk cause thats what i do...NOT g-funk that shit is played out, but i definitely feel like there's a way to rework the funk so it sounds viable in 2007.

it seems like music has hit has hit an all time low as far as shallow content and disposability...unlike the early 90's for example, how many of the songs that are hits today will be remembered 20 years from now? it seems like people are realizing that and a huge backlash is forming, and maybe the demand for more original/conceptual music is getting bigger.
 
Gemini

Gemini

Sicc OG
#12
May 16, 2002
8,502
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#12
Maximum 12-16 tracks. Bring something new to the table and keep me entertained throughout the Cd.

Beats? I think that's a matter of prefrence, so I'll skip that.

I don't care about how many features they have...if the artist comes tight and tells a good story; that artist is carring his weight (reguardless).

I don't care if the featured artist is just on the hook (meaning the album artist has all 3 verses)...that's cool.

I don't want to hear one artist rapping for 20-30-60-74-80 minutes (get's boring).
 
D

Daddy Rich

Sicc OG
#14
Dec 20, 2003
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#14
this is a good thread topic XL doin his thing fareal he makes alot of trips up to the bay if u are an artist network with him he can spit a hot 16 or give u a dope ass beat real talk
 
drunkaholic707

drunkaholic707

FUCK LA
#16
Sep 20, 2005
26,014
58,937
113
FUCK YOU
#16
what i want from an album is what big tone and woodie (r.i.p.) put out quality beats and lyrics albums that i can listen to all the way through i never once think twice about picking up an album they put out as soon as it drops. Same shit from the done deal label they put out quality music.
 
L

livemanikins

Sicc OG
#17
Aug 7, 2006
2,005
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#17
from my opinion.

most heads have this. Most of the albums i hear have beats that slap sound not mastered quality sucks. For me it seems like the harder you want the beat to slap the quality starts to suck. so to summarize what i mean make sure the whole album sounds like a quality album and not a mixtape.

lyrics do not sound cheesy and they mean something packed with visuals

dont focus on one single make the whole album dope and dont make every song sound like a clubbin song or gangster shit. we all know you aint clubbin 24/7 or thuggin 24/7. there are times when you just enjoyin a bbq or chillin wit the fam or your lost in thought we want to hear who "you" are not just what you do at a club or when your mad

last thing..

show us you have a personality. like when you fuck up and embarrass yourself so that it makes you look like a normal ass person instead of being perfect you make money and you have no problems ya feel. i like some comedy in a album because i dont want to be just havin the mad and angry feel i want to laugh and act a fool sometimes
 
XL Middleton

XL Middleton

Sicc OG
#20
Jun 14, 2006
205
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www.xlmiddleton.com
#20
livemanikins said:
show us you have a personality. like when you fuck up and embarrass yourself so that it makes you look like a normal ass person instead of being perfect you make money and you have no problems ya feel. i like some comedy in a album because i dont want to be just havin the mad and angry feel i want to laugh and act a fool sometimes
Click to expand...
i definitely feel this...when you release an album you're showcasing you as a personality, if it's not a personality that people like or can relate to then people probably wont feel the music.
 
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