Usher, The Arsonist

I've cracked the code! I've figured out what it is that distinguishes slows jams of the past from modern day slow jams.

As I sat last night listening to Usher's critically acclaimed Confessions album, I became unusually impressed with how well the album was put together, how well Usher swithed from sultry to energetic, and even more so, just how smooth the album was- it would almost be like a baby-making album for the early 21st album. I was impressed.

And then the album got to track 14, called 'Can U Handle It', and as I listened to it (and played it at a moderate volume which added to its baby-making value), it took me back to the real gentle soul music of the 70s and 80s. I was impressed. But I stopped allowing it to take me away, and spent a little more time listening to the lyrics. Then, a glitch was found in the system...

The chorus goes, "Can u handle it, can I go there, baby, with you | We gon' set it off, we gon' tear it up | Baby can you handle..." You know those anticlimatic moments in movies where the dramatic transition music comes to an abrupt end as the scene gets turned on its head? That's how I felt. "Set it off??? Are they lighting a fire? Tear it up? Are they using a paper shredder?" How does one set a mood by promising to 'set it off'?

And that in essence summed up the thing that's lacking in alot of our mainstream modern-day music- that lack of depth and substance. Now, I'm not declaring all oldies to be crammed with the most profound or poetic hooks, nor am I saying that all mainstream stuff could be written by a 5-year-old (or R. Kelly). You can argue those points if you want. But in terms of what gets airplay (and I'll be the first to admit, I'm very much a mainstream music person), very little hits the spot (aka, leaves a lasting impression). To hit that spot I have to go to Norah Jones, or to Boys II Men albums (including the newer ones that get very little attention)- in other words, the music that you won't catch on MTV or BET. There are the wonderful exceptions like John Legend or Alicia Keys- true musicians. But they're rare.

All that said, 'Can U Handle It' still works, and the album is still great to listen to. I just can't afford to overthink the issue much.