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| 4/7/04 - 4/8/04 |
Pride Source Schizo review Although he's no Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez proves with "Schizophrenic" that N'Sync was not a one-man operation. "Schizophrenic" is all over the place, paying tribute to pop music in all its Regan-era glory. Chasez borrows heavily from "Off The Wall" era Michael Jackson and 80's new wave (especially in the fun, if lyrically dumb, "All Day Long I Dream About Sex" and the Eurythmics-esque "Come To Me"). On "Some Girls (Dance With Women)" Chasez delves into the lesbian-chic club world. Club giants Basement Jaxx lend a hand on the funky "Shake It." This solo debut isn't ground breaking lyrically or musically, but it sounds like an album that was a hell of a lot fun to make and that makes it a hell of a lot of fun to listen to.
Stylus Magazine Schizo review JC Chasez Taking the inevitable fall-out from his innocuous Mouseketeer upbringing and his work as second-in-command in teen-pop band*NSYNC as career move, Chasez has embraced the backlash, taken some time off from music and returned to the business with Schizophrenic, his first solo album. Chasez as a solo artist isn’t really solo, even with four incarnations of him on the album cover. Instead, the cover signifies two main ideas: the years of mall-approved happiness has developed the singer’s talents into a finely tuned automaton pop-production machine and its taught him an important lesson: appeal to as many people as possible. Enlisting a myriad of producers (Basement Jaxx, BT, Rodney Jerkins being the most famous) and an array of styles for this purpose, Chasez most frequently pulls his strings, swoons and flirts with an imaginary listener—he’s so risqué sometimes that I need to pull a blanket over my ears and cry. I cry less when I picture Chasez the lounge singer, singing slinky renditions of Corey Hart’s “Sunglasses at Night,” with delicious lyrics like “Cause when I'm all alone / I lay awake and masturbate / I love to hear the sounds you make” as imaginary girls scream for his love (as found on Schizophrenic’s “Come to Me”). Amazed? The Disney-graduate has obviously become sexually liberated, proving with “All Day I Dream about Sex” he can tackle an enchantingly warped faux-post-modern chain of signifiers. The Korn-trademarked subversion of a famous brand was originally ingenuous, using middle school acronyms to simultaneously “stick it” to a brand and likewise complete the “brand deity status” for another Adidas generation. Chasez proves that pop can encompass everything, wrapping a strangely chanted electro-beat around the collected pop pastiche phrase—hand claps and all. If you’ve ever heard a german Schlager song and felt intrigued by the dumb energy of it, I’d thoroughly recommend seeking it out because despite my negative associations with Schlager-music, the song’s electro-pop glosses colorfully over Chasez’s lame robotic braggadocio and invites me to play it again. Admirable subtle touches also litter Schizophrenic, such as the lightly glitched string loop on the presumable next single, “Build My World”. The dying loop provides an element of true vulnerability to the song’s rehash of the poetic teen sentiments found in Chasez’s lyrics—“Someone for everyone but no one for me / (No one for me) / Constantly searching for the love I need to / Build my world around, around”. I’m not sure who to credit for this inspired stringed loop as the song’s credits go out to five producers (Chasez included), but the lost identity of the producer gives the song a playful ambiguity. I’ll place my bets on Robb Boldt, who I deduce must also be one the darkened replications of JC Chasez from the cover—odds standing at 2:1 if I was a gambling man. Alexis Petridis recently claimed dance for dead, but on Schizophrenic Chasez attempts to reanimate early-80s electro, disco and new wave back into pop. “One Night Stand” proves a great example of this, digesting Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer with playful tongue-in-cheek indifference. And, you might think that this would continue with the Basement Jaxx produced “Shake It”, as their “Plug It In” collaboration might suggest. However, for Schizophrenic, the absolute mayhem of “Plug It In” is much more restrained— “Shake It” is held to a strangely straightforward Basement Jaxx dance-blues number. What it does do, though, and does admirably is elucidate the strongest theme of the album: a recognition of the “coming-of-age” pop boundaries and just letting the groove take over.
JC's Official UK Website Thanks to charlidos for the heads-up. The official UK site has UK television appearances, news, etc.
More than just a pretty voice? ...JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE, best known for his singing and dancing, and his way with a lady's bustier, is up in Vancouver, British Columbia, working as an actor on "Edison" with Kevin Spacey, Morgan Freeman and LL Cool J. Judging by comedy skits he has performed on shows such as "Saturday Night Live," Justin seems to have screen presence. (He needs to learn to be a bit braver in the face of crisis, but that will come with age, maybe.) In the movie, Timberlake plays a journalist. Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Eddie Adams helped the pop star prepare for the role by introducing him to Associated Press president Tom Curley. Tom then introduced Justin to award-winning reporter Bob Porterfield. (Adams also provides some of his own famous images to be used in the film, as the work of Freeman, who plays a photojournalist.) Timberlake has been grateful for the help. It will be interesting to see how Justin translates from former boy-band sex symbol to movie actor. Believe me, he wants to make this transition. I don't think a reunion of 'N Sync is high on his priority list...
Pin-Up Pop ...Repeated listens to JC Chasez’s recently released solo debut, Schizophrenic, demonstrates Chasez’s musical superiority. Like (Ari) Gold’s effort, some of the songs suffer from undernourished or just plain unfortunate -- and juvenile -- lyrics, but unlike Gold the music nearly always shines. Chasez’s first single, "Some Girls (Dance with Women) " is, lyrically, an irritating ploy to establish his straight male credentials. But the music sneaks up on you, forcing you to hum along. Same goes for the pandering lyrics of "All Day Long I Dream about Sex, " redeemed by its fascinating acoustic meets electronica sound and an extended instrumental bridge that glistens with updated ‘80s synth-pop. (It’s not cold or distant here.) The 27-year-old is not afraid to appropriate musical sounds and styles popular during his childhood that are not top-of-the-charts now. There’s very little hip-hop here. Chasez exudes confidence in creating pop music -- and especially playful pop music of a hot-blooded, dance orientation. You sense his smile after completing each track. Perhaps (Matthew) Duffy and Gold come across as too earnest because they’re too new and too untested in the pop spotlight, which certainly isn’t the case for Chasez. He doesn’t create anywhere near a perfect album, though in its way it matches his ‘N Sync cohort Justin Timberlake’s respectable 2002 debut. Chasez’s is too long, for one thing: 17 full-length songs stretched over 80 minutes is a lot of time to spend with one artist, especially on a debut. At least every track is worth listening to.
Zoo Mag Schizo review What's the story? Timberlakes's innuendo pop sounds like kids stuff next to this filthy offering from fellow N*syncer Chasez. Why buy it? He sings about wanking, lezzers and how much sex he has in a funky style that sounds like Prince had he not become a jazz-experimental God-botherer. How many decent songs? Thirteen out of 17. Just say no to the ballads. The bottom line. Playboy for the ears. **** out of 5 |
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