The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies)

Performer: Black Eyed Peas
Engineer: Will.I.Am; Padraic 'Padlock' Kerin; Will.I.Am
Producer: David Guetta; Jean Baptiste; Printz Board; Will.I.Am; Will.I.Am
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Hal Ritson (vocals, guitar, keyboards); George Pajon (guitar); will.i.am (piano, synthesizer, drum programming); Printz Board (keyboards, synthesizer, bass synthesizer, drum programming); Adam Walder (keyboards). Audio Mixers: Joe Peluso; Dylan Dresdow. Audio Remasterers: Chris Bellman; Brian "BC" Catena. Arranger: will.i.am. Black Eyed Peas, the hip-hop crossover juggernaut that propelled singer Fergie and producer Will.I.Am to superstardom, have, since 2003's ELEPHUNK, been audaciously plugging away at their bombastic but lighthearted style of rap-cum-dance pop--an effort that has translated to a run of successful chart-topping singles including "My Humps," "Pump It," and "Don't Phunk with My Heart." Eager to follow up on the platinum-selling success of 2005's MONKEY BUSINESS, Black Eyed Peas have returned with THE E.N.D. (an acronym for "Energy Never Dies"), their third studio effort. Combining Will.I.Am's thumping 808 kick drum-infused beats with production assistance from a host of collaborators (including vocoder-loving Torontoians MSTRKRFT and French house veteran David Guetta), BEP's infectious party-time rhymes are an easy match for the album's Ed Banger-style of electro rapping and Auto Tune jamming, especially on lead-off single and sure-fire 2009 summer anthem "Boom Boom Pow." The Black Eyed Peas make effective pop/crossover music, but they aren't content to be disposable pop stars; they also want to write anthemic, vital songs that speak for a new generation. And so comes The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies). For every hyper-sexualized, by-the-numbers track like the hit single "Boom Boom Pow," there are message songs like "Now Generation," which begins, in cheerleader fashion, with the lines: "We are the now generation! We are the generation now!/This is the now generation! This is the generation now!" Led by will.i.am's production, which is continually the best thing about the album, the Black Eyed Peas move even farther away from hip-hop into the type of inspirational dance-pop that has become ripe for advertisements and marketing opportunities, including "I Gotta Feeling" ("I gotta feeling that tonight's gonna be a good night") and "Party All Night" ("If we could party all night and sleep all day, and throw all of our problems away, my life would be ea-say"). Granted, there's nothing here as embarrassing as "My Humps," and the production is a shade better than previous material from the group or Fergie solo (although still not as good as will.i.am solo ventures), but The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) becomes a mess of pop/dance/rap crossover. ~ John Bush The Black Eyed Peas make effective pop/crossover music, but with all the limitations of the form -- vapid lyrics, clumsy delivery, vocals smoothed over by Auto-Tune, and songwriting that constantly strains for (and reaches) the lowest common denominator. Worse yet, they aren't content to be disposable pop stars; they also want to write anthemic, vital songs that speak for a new generation. And so comes The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies). For every hyper-sexualized, by-the-numbers track like the hit single "Boom Boom Pow," there are message songs like "Now Generation," which begins, in cheerleader fashion, with the lines: "We are the now generation! We are the generation now!/This is the now generation! This is the generation now!" Led by will.i.am's production, which is continually the best thing about the album, the Black Eyed Peas move even farther away from hip-hop into the type of blandly inspirational dance-pop that has become ripe for advertising and marketing opportunities, including "I Gotta Feeling" ("I gotta feeling that tonight's gonna be a good night") and "Party All Night" ("If we could party all night and sleep all day, and throw all of our problems away, my life would be ea-say"). There's also a call for unity titled "One Tribe," which gradually descends into confusion -- and nearly self-parody -- with a line about the dangers of making enemies, rapped this way: "If I had an enemy, then my enemy's gonna try to come kill me 'cuz I'm his enemy -- one tribe y'all." Between tracks, there are also occasional cameos from a narrator, who sounds strangely like Star Trek's Worf, intoning nuggets like these: "There is no longer a physical record store, but we will continue to let the beat rock!" and "The most powerful force on the planet is the energy of the youth/But when this powerful youth becomes activated and stimulated and collectively decides not to buy things, what will happen to the economy?" Granted, there's nothing here as embarrassing as "My Humps," and the production is a shade better than previous material from the group or Fergie solo (although still not as good as will.i.am solo ventures), but The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) is a mess of pop/dance/rap crossover. It certainly won't change the minds of everyone who thinks that the group's pandering approach and clumsy execution make it the worst thing about pop music in the 2000s. ~ John Bush

Rolling Stone (p.72) - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "'Rock That Body' tosses up everything from huge kick drums to synth figures that sound like crow caws to a famous Rob Base sample..." Entertainment Weekly (p.60) - "[W]hen the group's glitchy future-funk beats sync up with Fergie's unabashedly feminine melodies, as on the sweetly insidious 'Meet Me Halfway,' they find pure Top 40 nirvana..." -- Grade: B Billboard (p.36) - "15 high-powered rave-rap jams that rarely lack for melodic hooks or rhythmic thrust."

The Los Angeles-based hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas has made a name for itself by taking an eclectic and organic approach to rap, R&B, and funk. Led by vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Will.I.Am., the band also includes two other MCs, Apl.de.Ap. and Taboo, along with vocalist Fergie, and a live backing band. Building a steady buzz with its first two releases, Black Eyed Peas garnered mainstream attention with the 2003 album, ELEPHUNK, which launched Fergie's solo career and helped make Will.I.Am one of the most in-demand producers in hip-hop, pop, and R&B for several years to come.

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