The UrbanWire

The official song for the World Cup 2010 is Wavin’ Flag if you ask Coca-Cola, and Waka-Waka if FIFA has its say. Which do you prefer?

It can be billed as the clash of David versus Goliath. In the red corner, we have the sexy, belly-dancing, multi-platinum Latin singer-songwriter Shakira. Over at the blue corner, we have the humble and reserved Somali-Canadian poet and songwriter, K’naan [who recently collaborated with Keane in their latest album].

Shakira has an illustrious career in music such as winning the Latin Grammy Award for Album of The Year. However, there was uproar in Africa when the Colombian born singer’s “This Time For Africa” was named the official song of the FIFA World Cup 2010.

“This Time for Africa” or better known as “Waka-Waka”, continues the trend of World Cup songs not being sung by local artists.

“Waka-Waka” is an adaptation of a traditional soldier’s song “Zangalewa”. The song incorporates African elements since the latter originated from Cameroon. Traditional African percussion instruments can be heard in Shakira’s song.

Sadly, “Waka-Waka” sounds like any other generic pop song.

Tsamina mina eh eh (come)

Waka waka eh eh (do it)

Tsamina mina zangalewa (who asked you to come)

This time for Africa

Even though the lyrics of the chorus pays tribute to Africa, the catchy song doesn’t deliver in terms of making people want to show their patriotism and passion for the countries that are participating in the FIFA World Cup.

The biggest shortcoming of “Waka-Waka” is that sounds too artificial to represent Africa as a whole. It’s true that Shakira collaborated with a South African band, Freshlyground. However, the emotions conveyed by her are somewhat weak.

Before you Shakira fans curse and condemn The UrbanWire to the depths of Hades, there are some qualities of the song that justify the decision of making it the official FIFA World Cup 2010 song.

The track should be given credit for its upbeat tempo and catchy chorus, thus making it an ideal song to serve as a curtain raiser for one of football’s biggest events. Also, the lyrics of the song can serve as bait to entice you to gear up for the FIFA World Cup.

On the other front, the song and artist that have received plaudits worldwide is none other K’naan and his song “Wavin’ Flag”. It made an appearance on the US Billboard Hot 100 on the chart as number 99.

Even though the song was ranked quite low on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, don’t dismiss this song as forgettable and mundane.

In fact, it’s the exact opposite.

Give me freedom, give me fire, give me reason, take me higher
See the champions, take the field now, you define us, make us feel proud
In the streets our heads are lifting, as we lose our inhibition,
Celebration, it surround us, every nations, all around us

The poetic, heartfelt lyrics of “Wavin’ Flag” can be the voice of South Africa. The fervid vocals of the charismatic K’naan echoed throughout the entire song. K’naan takes the listener through the heartwarming verse before unleashing his emotions during the climatic chorus. This was indeed done splendidly.

The action of flag waving has often been associated with patriotism and the football fans will bleed the nation’s colours to show their undying passion for the beautiful game, even if they win or lose.

Moreover, the Somalia-Canadian rapper is rooting for an African team, Ivory Coast, to lift the holy grail of football on July 11, according to an interview he did with National Post.

If you think that K’naan is on the highway to be a one-hit wonder, then you are in for a surprise.

The multi-talented singer and rapper collaborated with multi-platinum, award-winning, alternative rock band, Keane on 2 songs from their Night Train album.

Just like how Shakira’s “Waka-Waka” will make the perfect curtain raiser, “Wavin’ Flag” is the ideal song for the culmination of the FIFA World Cup 2010. Even though the song is not the official song, The UrbanWire holds “Wavin’ Flag” in higher regard.

The UrbanWire gives “Waka-Waka” a rating of 2.5/5 while we rate “Wavin’ Flag” at 4.5/5.

A Somalia-Canadian rapper and a Japanese Funk Carioca emcee. These were the ingredients chosen to create the perfect little EP.

Ok powerpuff girls references aside, these inter-cultural additions proved to be a success as they managed to create a new image for Keane and yet retain their trademark sound at the same time.

Out of the 8 tracks in this album, which debuted at a respectable #1 on the UK albums chart, 2 tracks featured Somalia-Canadian singer/rapper/musician K’naan, and 1 track featured Funk Carioca emcee and musician Tigarah. Pretty obvious what Keane’s doing trying to do here, and it’s paid off.

The first single off this album, ”Stop For A Minute”, is a soothing number with upbeat piano chords until K’naan comes in. His rhythmic rapping, coupled with honest lyrics:

“So I guess I’m just a fiend consumed by the scene, the stage and the screens, where it’s just me and Keane”, goes well with the piano rock melody that Keane is so well known for.

K’naan’s unique Bob Marley-meets-hip-hop style surprisingly goes well with the second collaboration. “Looking Back” starts with a familiar tune, if you think the theme music for Rocky. The catchy tune is enhanced, once again, by the soulful rapping of the Somalia-born rapper. You can almost feel him crying out as he raps out heartfelt lyrics with a repetition that hides a fluctuation of emotions. Both collaborations prove that melodic piano rock can, indeed, be combined with sincere rapping.

The collaboration with Tigarah is another interesting choice. Her name means “girl like a tiger” in Japanese, and while she is not that big in Singapore, she’s a growing icon in Japan and USA. Her music blends in grime, crunk, and Baltimore Punk. Certainly an odd mix when compared to Keane’s style of piano rock and alternative rock. However, paysayers have to admit they were mistaken as Tigarah and Keane produce a lovely track to show the world that even the quirkiest of genre combinations can yield a beautiful sound.

“Ishin Denshin” (You’ve got to help yourself) marries Tim’s vocals, experimental instrumentals, and Tigarah’s surreal voice, giving birth to a wonderful song with both English and Japanese lyrics. The light and catchy tune nicely backs up her vocals and together with Tom Chaplin’s voice for the chorus, a somewhat cute and happy melody comes out. The song makes you feel like you’re riding a carousel, spinning round and round as the repeating melody mimics the repetitive view you see while turning around.

Lest you think the success of the album solely relies on featured artistes aside, another notable song is Your Love. Tim Rice-Oxley replaces Tom Chaplin as the lead singer for this song, showing off his equally clear and powerful vocals. The experimental sounds in this track should not be missed, as the instruments come together to create a soundscape as surreal as a Sslvador Dali painting, as if you were in a dream. The song does get slightly monotonous after the 3-minute mark, but it doesn’t fail to establish Tim as an equally talented vocalist compared to his fellow lead singer.

Diverse, fun, and experimental. These are some words that best describe this album in its entirety. Night Train is an album that attempts to break down cultural and stylistic barriers, in order to create a new sound that you can listen to while still being reminded of the signature sound of Keane. As Adam Tudhope, the band’s manager, puts it in an interview, Night Train “may be a mix of styles and genres of music, but it’s full of the hallmarks that make Keane…”

The Urban Wire gives Night Train a rating of 3.5/5.

Released: 10 May 2010
Recorded: April 2009
Genre: Alternative Rock
Length: 31:24
Tracklist:

1. “House Lights” – 1:23
2. “Back in Time” – 3:52
3. “Stop for a Minute” (feat K’naan) – 4:06
4. “Clear Skies” – 4:53
5. “Ishin Denshin (You’ve Got to Help Yourself)” (feat Tigarah) – 3:56
6. “Your Love” – 4:36
7. “Looking Back” (feat K’naan) – 3:46
8. “My Shadow” – 4:49

Before you pick up a copy of Perfect Symmetry, you should be warned that the album will showcase a side of Keane you probably never thought possible.

Tom Chaplin and gang have abandoned their penchant for gloomy piano-driven anthems about love, loss and yearning for a good ol’ (literally) bold 1980′s synthesiser-heavy sound.

The new Keane even features, surprise, surprise – the added use of electric guitars.

A journey far from perfect

Released last month, Perfect Symmetry represents the British band’s third studio effort since their 2004 debut.

In their 4 years so far,  Keane has certainly come a long way between battling critics about their sound and coping with lead singer Chaplin’s constant drug rehabilitation problems. Fortunately, Chaplin finally got cleaned up, and Keane headed to Berlin on a night train ride to seek inspiration for their new album.

But perhaps seeking ideas on the German railway wasn’t that inspired an idea because Perfect Symmetry crudely resembles something of a sonic trainwreck.

Like getting “Rick-Rolled”

While there are certainly a few well-crafted tracks, much of the album sounds too formulaic and uninteresting.

The lads clearly aspired to move away from their old sound but failed to muster enough, if any, fresh and exciting material.

The track “You Don’t See Me” is an example of this. The band sounds tired and the song lacks the edge and direction to move listeners. In the end, it winds up sounding like a bland filler track left in just to make the numbers on the album.

The band’s elaborate use of synthesisers circa 1980 throughout the album to expand their sonic palette also at times borders along sounding overtly cheesy (“Black Burning Heart“). The inclusion of hand-claps, and saxophones that sound like they were ripped off from an 8-bit video game soundtrack doesn’t help either.

Even lyrically, the band has opted for cliche verses (“Give me your hand/Cut the skin, let me in/The molecules of us/Bleeding into one again”) that would surely have no problems making its way into a Rick Astley song.

Perhaps taking a listen to Perfect Symmetry is a little like getting Rick Rolled – a fun prank that can get frustrating if it happens one too many times.

The upside

However not all is lost on Keane’s third studio outing. There are a handful of bright sparks where the trio’s pop sensabilities pull through and remind listeners why they are still one of Britain’s biggest acts in recent years.

The track “You Haven’t Told Me Anything“, manages a fine and tasteful balance between the new 80′s synthesiser sound and contemporary pop, while giving it just enough edge to make it relevant to young listeners.

Other notable tracks include “The Lovers Are Losing” and “Perfect Symmetry“. However both tracks seem to be drawn more from the sound of their previous albums than the current direction of things. Take a listen to the former, and you might just mistake it as a B-side to the single “Crystal Ball” from the band’s previous sophomore album.

In a nutshell

Keane certainly didn’t break new ground with the release of Perfect Symmetry. While it might please the casual listener, you would be hard-pressed to find a critical listener or fan who isn’t dismayed at the album’s lack of depth and innovative content.

Then again, Keane doesn’t claim to be an art rock group like Radiohead and by that standard, Perfect Symmetry isn’t too terribly far off from being a decent pop rock album.

For their retro album, this UrbanWire writer gives it a rating of 3 out of 5.

Now let’s just hope that Keane doesn’t look further back in time and start mimicking Sgt. Pepper for their next album.

Track Listing

01. Spiralling

02. The Lovers Are Losing (Sample)

03. Better Than This

04. You Haven’t Told Me Anything (Sample)

05. Perfect Symmetry (Sample)

06. You Don’t See Me (Sample)

07. Again And Again

08. Playing Along

09. Pretend That You’re Alone

10. Black Burning Heart (Sample)

11. Love Is The End