Search - Mariah Carey :: E=MC2

E=MC2

Geminigirl | Philadelphia, PA United States | 05/04/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"About a year & a half ago when I heard that Mariah was working on a new album with the proposed title of "Sweet Soul Odyssey", I was ecstatic. As a fan, of course I'd been overjoyed at the reception to and success of EMANCIPATION OF MIMI and thought that having regained her supposed lost place in the world of pop music, she'd be confident enough to produce an album of tracks like SUBTLE INVITATION, HOW I WISH U KNEW, FLY LIKE A BIRD, etc. I love those kinds of tracks from Mariah because they're unexpected - they're not hip hop and especially SI has a jazzier production than some of her recent work.



Unfortunately as the time passed I started hearing that this album would NOT be the anticipated soulful music that I'd hoped for but a replica of EMANCIPATION. I hate to compare the two albums but I have to in order to be honest about my feelings for E=MC2. From the 1st time I listened to EMANCIPATION, I loved all but 2 tracks and still to this day, enjoy listening to the album on a frequent basis but after listening to E=MC2 a few times, there are only 6 songs that I love and 4 that I think are just "ok".



This album reminds me of my feelings for her RAINBOW album - there are a few tracks that I like but overall I'm disappointed in it as a whole and skip over more than a few tracks. I feel like with EMANCIPATION, Mariah & the writers & producers worked really hard to present strong tracks and the result is an album that I love while this one seems to want to follow the same production path but with weaker lyrics and unmemorable tracks.



My favorite tracks are:



I'LL BE LOVIN U LONG TIME



CRUISE CONTROL



I'M THAT CHICK



THANKS FOR NOTHING - just wish JD wasn't "shouting out" throughout



I WISH U WELL



OOC - interesting arrangement, it's growing on me the more I listen to it





My "ok" tracks are:



MIGRATE - it's a catchy track but I really dislike T-Pain and his guest spot really doesn't add anything special



LUV STORY - I'd have liked this track more if JD wasn't screaming all over it



LAST KISS



BYE BYE - although I like the lyrics & sentiment behind the song, it just left me "cold" for lack of a better word. Mariah has written other tracks regarding the loss of a loved one that moved me to tears but this track didn't move me in any way



The only other two notable tracks are:



TOUCH MY BODY - I hate this song, truly it stays in my mind like an annoying radio jingle because it's being forced on us on all levels



FOR THE RECORD - the lyrics are really personal and once again, Mariah is letting us in on what marriage to Tommy Mottola was like but the song itself hasn't really resonated with me yet so I feel like it's TMI



As a fan of course I was excited just to get new music from Mariah, I added it to my collection because I want to have a complete Mariah catalog but I can't say that I'll ever get the same enjoyment out of listening to it say, 5 or even 1 year from now - it'll just be in my collection and I might listen to it from time to time.



I'm torn about recommending it to people so I'll just say that if u want to get it, proceed with caution & try to listen to a few clips first. I will continue to wait and hope that we will get a "Sweet Soul Odyssey" from Mariah some time in the future.

"

Not bad...although she is capable of so much more.

QN822 | Toledo | 05/02/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I have been a fan of Mariah Carey every since her debut album emerged in June of 1990. I have followed every album since then and I know what a remarkable singer and talented song writer she is. What bothers me is that I've seen her go from a beautiful classy singer to someone who still sings well but belts out tunes that are so beneath her.



This latest CD E=MC2 has a very intellectual title, nice cover and a few songs that takes me back to 90's Mariah. There are some songs on there with lyrics that are just ridiculous and I can't believe she recorded it! I love the song Bye Bye however if you listen to some of the words, it's obvious she's forgotten how to use the proper English. Forgive me but using "Ghetto Slang" in such an inspirational song takes away from it (ex. This is for my peoples who just lost somebody???). You can be down with hip hop and use the proper English! That's the main issue I have with her material lately.



Some of my favorite songs on this CD are:



I wish you Well: very beautiful and inspirational, even quotes passages from the Bible.



For the Record: a very nice ballad with no rappers yelling through it.



I Stay in Love: Another beautiful ballad minus the obnoxious rappers.



Bye Bye: Has a beautiful message and she sings it well (minus some of her word choice).



Loving you Long time: Very Catchy tune. It samples one of my all time favorite songs; Stay with Me by Debarge. Even better, it samples a section that hasn't been used!! About time! Others that have sampled it in the past used the same hook.



Migrate: The music is hype and fun to dance to but the lyrics....not for a mature 38 year old woman! As someone said in their review, leave the kid's stuff to the kids!! I like T-Pain because he has brought back the ZAPP Roger Troutman sound and he does it very well on this song.



Touch my Body: Cute for a 20 year old. The music is catchy but once again those lyrics!! I think someone needs to remind Ms. M that she is 38.



The other songs haven't really done much for me, I'm still trying to warm up to them.



Overall it's an okay CD. If you love the 90's Mariah as I do, you may be disappointed. I know what she is capable of bringing to the table and it seems as if lately she is selling herself short however I am a devoted fan and I will continue to buy her music. I know that no matter what she puts out, she will always deliver at least two good powerhouse ballads and that's enough to keep me a fan.



I love her and I think she is an incredible vocalist."

Not her best work

William Wilson | Lubbock, TX | 06/28/2008

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, so I'm not going to do the whole spill on "Old Mariah, New Mariah".



We all know the old Mariah back in the 90's is gone.



"The Emancipation of Mimi", in my opinion was one of her best Cds....this however, is quite forgettable. I put it in my CD player once and rolled my eyes. I sold it back to FYE the next day. Mariah's music has, in my opinion, gone downhill. Mariah has a great gift, but she didn't use it on this cd. There's mabey 3 good songs on here, but that's about it. Not reccomended."