Full Moon

by

Brandy

Edit

Based on the opinions of fellow Amazon reviewers ... I was expecting a mediocre album full of relatively "safe" and "uninspired" material; and after hearing it I agreed since I could never listen the album from start to finish. But now I think the real reason I why couldn't finish 'Full Moon' is because it's very rich CD, like a gourmet cake or something. The key (in my humble view) is to listen to 'Full Moon' maybe two to three songs at a time -- then the album becomes an utterly satisfying. Now let's get to the music...

'Full Moon' begins with a funkdafied interlude before moving onto the title track (and second single), a song with a fresh and futuristic vibe that is stunningly on-target. Moving right along, we go into the utterly 'divalicious' "I Thought", which sounds like a fast song Whitney Houston could have pulled off a few years back. "I Thought" oozes a sassy and mature confidence that belies Brandy's own personal growth; I think this song would make an excellent finale single for this album.

Then we go into "When You Touch Me", Brandy's best R&B ballad ever - it's absolutely perfect. Teddy Riley (Guy, Blackstreet, etc) contributes "talkbox" vocals (think Blackstreet's "Don't Leave") that are profoundly plush, and add so much to this already wonderful song. "When You Touch Me" is a modern R&B masterpiece -- I'm thinking this will be the third single. "Like This" is a Janet Jackson-esque ballad in my opinion, musically reminiscent of "Rope Burn" or "I Get Lonely" from the 'Velvet Rope' album.

"All In Me" employs Rodney's flowing harp sounds (a la "The Boy Is Mine") coupled with Timbaland-esque beats that make for an impressive album track. But it's "Apart", a spledid blend of Neo-soul sensibilities and modern R&B (think Michael Jackson's "Butterflies") that gets my vote for most original-sounding song on the album - it was an early favorite of mine. I can't get enough of the sampled vocal riff that occurs repeatedly throughout "Apart"; this is a definite single in my opinion.

The 'Velvet Rope-ish' Janet Jackson vibe continues on the chorus harmonies of "Can We", a decent midtempo; the bridge of the song is cool. Next up is "What About Us", which I find to be only slightly above-average when compared to songs like "Full Moon" and "When You Touch Me". But it's "Anybody" that should have most Pop/R&B fans floored. "Anybody" is producer Rodney Jerkins' blatant update of the original Timbaland sound, but it works -- very well, I might add.

"Nothing" is another one of those pretty sad love songs. Michael Jackson contributes a subtle guest vocal on "It's Not Worth It", a song that vaguely reminds me of "Angel In Disguise" from 'Never Say Never'. MJ's recurrent background vocals on "It's Not Worth It" are beautiful - listen closely. "He Is" musically has the same purity as "Brokenhearted" did from Brandy's first album. "Come A Little Bit Closer" is easily one of my favorites; it has that Babyface/Diane Warren warmth to it, with excellent vocals by B-Rocka (Brandy's nickname).

"Love Wouldn't Count Me Out" is simply beautiful. "Wow" is also one of my favorite songs on the album, it has a very optimistic feel with a wonderfully breezy tempo; I like this one a lot. We finally end 'Full Moon' with "I'd Die Without You", a remake of P.M. Dawn's 1992 masterpiece with a lil help from Brandy's younger brother, Ray J. This version of "I'd Die Without You" is well done -- the violins (and nicely done vocals by Brandy and Ray J) do the original justice; I'm impressed.

At over 70 minutes long, Brandy's 'Full Moon' album is very much indeed a "full" piece of work. I strongly suggest not listening to it all in one sitting, it will probably be too much for most people (myself included) to take in. Start slow, and you'll come to appreciate the work that Brandy and co-executive producer Rodney Jerkins put into this album.

Thanks for reading!

Knyte.

I'm sorry Brandy. I'm happy you're having a new baby, I'm happy you found love, I'm happy you're no longer hearing voices and I'm basically happy YOU'RE happy... but I am not very happy w/ this cd.

Why are there so many songs that sound the same w/ the same topics (What would I do without you, Don't leave me, Why'd you leave me, I thought it was you and me, How could you do that to me, Come back to me, Touch me, I need you, etc... etc.) It's like listening to the same sad song over and over again. Sounds like Rodney locked all his writers in a room w/ Ricki Lake shows, Soap Operas and dramatic episodes of Moesha playing 24/7. I was hoping for songs that dealt w/ feeling good about life and coming full circle or feeling complete("Full Moon"), but it's the exact opposite... and there are soooooo many of them.

Anyway, there ARE some highlights on this cd that seem to stand out for me. They are:

"Full Moon" - I like the overall mood of the song... the production and Brandy's voice and the flow, but I was expecting a whole lot more from the lyrics ( "We can dance if you want, Get it crackin' if you like)... couldn't they think of something better than that? ****

"I Thought" - It's an average song lyrically... a whole lot like "What About Us," but it's alright. I like the little variations Brandy does w/ her voice and the beat is nice. ****

"When You Touch Me" - Average song w/ really good vocals and melody and stuff. I like this one a lot. *****

"Anybody" - Average lyrics again, same relationship theme. The production's interesting though. ***

"It's Not Worth It" - I like this one. The lyrics aren't bad and the production is really good. The song is good in it's own right, but having Michael in the background does make it stand out more and he gives it a lot more character. I like it alot. *****

Well, the rest of the cd is pretty average. It's basically an average cd w/ a lot of production. It didn't satisfy me at all, but it's not bad. Probably worth the purchase, especially if you've never heard this type of production before or you want to hear Brandy sound a little more mature. Definately not as good as "Never Say Never." I wouldn't hesitate to let my cousin borrow it for a month or so, but I wouldn't give it away. 3 stars.