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R&B
Trax
By:
Christopher
White
Beyonce
Dangerously
In
Love
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After
the
confetti
bombast
of
Beyonce’s
first
single
and
track
“Crazy
In
Love”
fades
out,
the
rest
of
“Dangerously
In
Love”
plays
like
a
90’s
R&B
mixtape
-
all
youthful
thump
and
steamy
sex
urge,
all
showy
vocals
and
industry
pressure.
I
urge
mixtape
because
no
one
with
this
much
expectation
on
them
could
really
expect
to
do
a
complete
album
with
one
theme,
a
defined
album
sequence
or
experiment
too
much.
Even
Marvin
Gaye
had
to
do
the
Motown
shuffle
for
some
years
before
doing
his
thing.
But
as
much
as
this
is
second-quarter
sales
fodder,
it
doesn’t
mean
that
this
is
forgettable
fare
at
all.
“Crazy
In
Love”
is
strong
enough
to
stand
up
to
the
barrage
of
radio
requests
without
failing
much.
“Hip-Hop
Star”
finds
a
tempting
Beyonce
and
Outkast’s
Big
Boi
strutting
around
in
style
over
a
beat
begging
for
car
speakers.
The
title
track
is
a
great
testament
to
what
modern
R&B
can
accomplish:
a
song
of
undying
love
over
skittering
Timbaland-era
drums
and
a
radiant
chorus
to
piece
it
together.
At
the
end
of
the
song
when
she
repeats
“I
love
you”
over
and
over
again,
you
get
caught
up
in
the
mushiness,
but
you
really
don’t
care.
The
album’s
triumph
is
not
one
song
though,
but
a
three
song
stretch
of
sexiness
in
the
form
of
the
songs
“Be
With
You,”
“Me,
Myself
and
I”
and
“Yes.”
“Be
With
You”
is
a
hazy
midnight
love
session.
With
its
feet
in
the
past
of
George
Clinton
and
Shuggie
Otis,
“Me,
Myself
and
I”
shows
the
independent
woman
side
of
Ms.
Knowles
while
a
warm
and
human
bass
churns
along
in
the
background.
The
crown
of
this
triptych
is
“Yes,”
a
slow
grind
that
has
appeal
coming
out
along
with
the
reverse
instruments,
but
the
aesthetics
here
are
deceptive
-
this
isn’t
a
love
song,
but
a
breakup
song
over
the
man’s
persistence
for...
sex.
Poor
guy.
The
album
has
its
drawbacks
as
most
debut’s
do,
so
they
are
understandable.
“Signs”
is
a
gimmicky
song
using
zodiac
signs
that
goes
nowhere.
“That’s
How
You
Like
It”
is
a
predictable
summer
thump
that
is
as
believable
as
a
movie
car
chase
scene.
“Baby
Boy”
is
the
main
offender,
that
employs
this
year’s
two
fads
from
the
third
world:
pseudo-Indian
loops
and
Sean
Paul.
As
good
as
Sean
Paul
usually
is,
he’s
a
lost
man
here.
But
although
Beyonce’s
solo
has
its
flaws,
it
is
still
an
important
snapshot
of
the
superstar
as
work-in-progress.
An
album
of
a
singer/songwriter/producer
that
has
to
bend
to
trends
and
record
labels
that
find
it
safer
to
follow
said
trends
than
to
create
them.
The
album
title
“Dangerously
In
Love”
could
be
just
a
title
of
a
love
song,
but
given
the
number
of
times
this
album
has
been
pushed
back
and
the
Pepsi
deals
and
such,
it
could
be
a
commentary
on
the
pop
star’s
wishes
coming
true
in
the
music
industry
machine.
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