Calvin Harris - Ready For The Weekend Review
Posted by Vanessa Willoughby on 09.07.2009
Calvin Harris isn't trying to save the state of music with gut-wrenching melodies or confessional style, sweeping ballads. Ready For The Weekend is all about the here and the now, the carpe diem of the nightlife scene. But is this enough of a reason to hold the attention of his audience for more than a few tracks?
TRACK LISTING:
1. The Rain
2. Ready For The Weekend
3. Stars Come Out
4. You Used To Hold Me
5. Blue
6. I’m Not Alone
7. Flashback
8. Worst Day
9. Relax
10. Limits
11. Burns Night
12. Yeah Yeah Yeah La La La
13. Dance Wiv Me
14. 5iliconeator
Who says all music has to revolve around tortured, brooding souls? Certainly, Calvin Harris doesn’t think so. With the release of his sophomore album, Ready For The Weekend, Harris seeks to capitalize on the head-bopping, electronic rhapsody of his gold selling debut album, I Created Disco. Harris’ sophomore effort embraces the idea of music as an emotional stimulant, rather than a cathartic revelation. However, this sort of motivation doesn’t excuse sloppiness or a lazy execution. Fortunately, Harris knows that despite his preferred genre, this doesn’t mean he’s entitled to slab together thirty minutes of synthesizer beats that mimic a dying Nintendo.
“What I’m into at the moment,” says Harris, “is the idea of stadium dance. Playing football stadiums with massive riffs, big hands-in-the-air moments.”
It’s easy to see, or rather hear, that the DJ and producer kept this ambition at the forefront of his mind while creating this album. The title was an apt decision; as soon as the album opens, it’s blatantly obvious that this is the sort of music reserved for devil-may-care shenanigans. Unfortunately, despite the album’s strong opening and plentiful sprinkling of energy-thumping, body-moving tracks, Ready For The Weekend also contains a few songs that would be more suitable for a cramped house-party or a college kegger, rather than the raging, hormone-induced glory of Monday night football.
The first track, “The Rain,” perfectly captures Harris’ musical vision. Beginning with the crisp crackle of a synthesizer-powered, ascending scale, the song is a pleasant mixture of modern and retro, complete with a saxophone solo. The saxophone quickly gives way to fully electronic notes and rhythms. Similar to “The Girls,” which appeared on I Created Disco, the first track encapsulates the lighter side of the politics of romance, using a chorus that repeats: “these are the good times in your life, so put on a smile and it’ll be all right.”
Although Harris is not exactly a Proust among lyricists, this is very easy to forgive, as the song and its execution are so infectious, that one can’t help but embrace its message. The main thing about this song that makes it work is that although it’s heavily dance/electronic, it’s certainly influenced by pop music. The sound sways on more of a pop side, thus allowing critics of electronic music to gravitate towards the song and the album.
“Ready For The Weekend,” the second song and the title track, maintains the carefree vivacity of “The Rain.” The lyrics are simple and revolve around a youthful hunger for the perfect Friday and Saturday night. It should be noted that the inclusion of the chorus, sung by a female vocalist, has the potential to turn the song into one of those surefire, energy-harnessing favorites found on a Jock Jams CD. Despite the song’s traces of predictable campiness, Harris still does a good job of remembering that music intended for stadium-sized admiration doesn’t automatically mean it should be limited to ESPN after-game commentary.
The party barrels forward in the third track, “Stars Come Out.” Harris’ autotune vocals paint the night sky as a blanket of stars, dabbling with beats and arrangements that strangely though surely enough, bear the influence of Rick James.
He sings:
Lying in the grass
Watching the stars come out
Come on live the dream
Push right through the cemetery
Feel the morning rain
Dancing round the coliseum
I cannot explain,
Something in your chemistry
Power to your brain
Power to your minds museum
The pulsing of the music adds to the illusion that Harris is spinning records under the cover of an enchanted twilight. In contrast to the previous track, “Stars Come Out” drops the contrived giddiness and centers on a driving beat that only enhances the imagery. Every musical choice within the song is beneficial to the overall execution and does not go overboard for the sake of staying “true” to the genre of dance and electronic.
The fourth track, “You Used To Hold Me,” seems to be the perfect blend of pop and techno. Within the first minute, the listener realizes that this is what Harris meant when he wanted to create music fit for raucous football stadiums. Once again, like the previous three tracks, there lyrics aren’t an existential labor of anguish. In fact, the track’s title appears to be sufficient enough to form all of the verses, in addition to the bridge and chorus.
“Blue” follows the ironically uplifting spirit of “You Used To Hold Me.” Opening with stripped down vocals and guitar, Harris confesses:
I've got to stop waiting for you
And move onto someone new
But everything around me is blue
The color that reminds me of you
It’s kind of a jarring jump, in terms of energy and tone. However, the arrangement is what saves the song from being strictly filler material. With this song, although the lyrics can run a bit repetitive, (after all, there’s only so many times before you can tolerate someone exhausting the metaphor of blue for sadness), the arrangement choices show that Harris isn’t afraid to play around with the expectations of the techno sound.
“I’m Not Alone,” the first single from Ready For The Weekend, showcases what Harris does best: combining the familiarities of pop and techno to form an undeniable, feel-good dance track that would be just as appropriate for a stadium-sized rave or a small, homey club.
The song opens without the help of the expected synth chords; Harris’ unaccompanied vocals create a diversion that quickly reveals another compositional framework made up of pop sensibility and techno beats. The mood of the song can be traced back to the juxtaposition of the opening verses and the subsequent instrumental break. The softness and vulnerability of the opening builds up a tension that is resolved through the addition of the synthesizer.
You can untrain yourself to notice
To feel pain and swallow fear
But can you stay up for the weekend 'til next year
God I can't do this anymore
Oh I'll be laid down on the floor
As many feet walk through the door
I'm not alone
The atmosphere and energy are maintained in the seventh and eighth tracks, “Flashback” and “Worst Day.” The tracks are in line with the rest of the album; Harris doesn’t so much as challenge himself to reinvent his sound with each song, as much as he sticks to the basics. “Flashback” makes use of the piano, while “Worst Day” contains a tight bass line that is almost buried beneath the barrage of synth beats.
“Relax” lives up to its namesake, as the techno influence is toned down to an almost mellow ease. The instrumental break around 2:30 kicks up the energy without diving off the deep end; the inclusion of the guitar chords ground “Relax” in a way that make the song lack the obvious techno-fury of tracks such as “You Used To Hold Me” or “Worst Day.”
“Burns Night” is a slow-tripping instrumental that has a sliver of the surrealism witnessed in “Stars Come Out.” Normally, one would think that adding an instrumental break so far into the album would distort the flow of the entire album. However, due to its short length and its other-worldly vibe, “Burns Night” is an unexpected though appropriate addition to the album.
“Yeah Yeah Yeah La La La” is the sort of track that inspires mixed feelings. It’s catchy, sure, and with the arrangement, it’s apparent that Harris is an avid fan of The Neptunes. But considering the rest of the album, there doesn’t seem to be anything on the track that hasn’t been already established. Instead of embracing a sound that goes beyond providing the soundtrack for every club-hopping, techno-enthusiast, “Yeah Yeah Yeah La La La” wobbles the line between forgettable and average.
The second to last track, “Dance Wiv Me” brushes off the doubts cast by “Yeah Yeah Yeah La La La.” Featuring Dizzee Rascal, the collaboration of Harris and Rascal is a successful partnership that feels fresh and cohesive. Finally, “5iliconeator” closes the album, providing Harris’ favored mixture of piano and the electronic. Steady and assured, it’s both complimentary closure and a well-suited bookend.
The 411: For some, Ready For The Weekend may get a bit repetitive. On the other hand, the album's intentions are never exaggerated or falsely advertised. Although Harris may not have exactly nailed his original vision of stadium-sized, take-no-prisoners techno, he comes close enough to warrant forgiveness.
