PunchBook

Grade: C-

There isn’t a Crazy on this album that can wash out the fact that Gnarls Barkley front man, Cee-Lo Green, sounds like the offspring between Gilbert Godfried and Whitney Houston in the hay day of her crack is whack phase. That voice enough to drown out the lyrics and heavy hip-hop beats and then some. This album was leaked over the internet, consequently moving up the release date, I laugh at those poor fuckers that couldn’t wait to get their hands on this train wreck, seeing as St. Elsewhere was Crazy surrounded by a dozen tracks of forgettable mediocrity.

Overall the album is lacking anything crisp and fresh and is very average. Whatever is one of the better tracks on The Odd Couple. The way Cee-Lo throws “whatever bitch” in at the end of the song, it sounds a lot like someone on their way out the door after fighting with their roommates girlfriend. Gotta get that last word in before the door slams just to yank her chain - I love it. That’s also my favorite lyric of the song for those counting at home. Not an original line, but and A+ for context and style points.

There are two other decent tracks on the album, the single Who is Going to Save My Soul has shades of Otis Redding (small shades) and is a good representation of where this band should go. Their strong suit is a more blues inspired version of hip-hop with softer bass driven tones. When they get loud that voice sounds like a herd of 13 year old girls at a future David Archuleta concert. The other song I didn’t mind was Don’t Be Surprised.

Overall it seems like this album was rushed off the production like to cash in off the success of St. Elsewhere. This was not worth the money, and I was left scratching my head trying to figure out if these guys are going to be a one hit wonder?

Maybe you’ve got a different opinion of this album, or are catching something I’m totally missing? If so, please leave a comment