Nothing But The Beat

David Guetta

Virgin/EMI, 2011

http://www.davidguetta.com

REVIEW BY: Melanie Love

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 01/05/2012

On today’s pop charts and dance floors, French DJ David Guetta is the go-to guy. While he’s best known for producing hits like The Black Eyed Peas’ “I Gotta Feeling” and Akon’s “Sexy Bitch,” this year found him releasing another album of collaborations with some of the biggest names in hip-hop and pop. Nothing But The Beat is jam-packed with singles but it flow surprisingly well as an album, offering one tasty, catchy song after another.

Launching out with lead single “Where Them Girls At,” Guetta gets a propulsive beat going as Flo Rida delivers the lyrics and Nicki Minaj swoops in for the sultry chorus. I normally can’t tolerate Minaj’s cartoonish shapeshifting when she raps, but in this sort of small dose, her shtick manages to elevate the track. It’s a carefree, shimmering song, and a perfect introduction to what’s to come from Guetta and company.my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

Most of the songs here follow a sort of formula: popular rapper on the lyrics, equally trendy singer handling the rafter-reaching choruses, all paired with throbbing house beats. And yet, none of the material here blends together. Whether it’s Guetta’s remix of Snoop Dogg’s “Sweat,” which turns the track into a smoky, doubletracked haze, or the electronic flavor of “Turn Me On,” which finds Minaj singing for a change, every cut is its own neatly packaged three minutes of dance-pop bliss.

One of my particular favorites is the endlessly romantic “Without You,” which pairs some lovely crooning from Usher (“I won’t soar / I won’t climb / If you’re not here, I’m paralyzed, without you”) with a swirl of instrumentation that provides a nice break from the frenetic, clubby pace of the rest of the album. Meanwhile, there’s a nice turnout on Nothing But The Beat from some of music’s big divas. Jennifer Hudson on “Night Of Your Life” is all soul and passion, turning lyrics about a token moment on a dance floor into something epic and everlasting: “Love me / Baby, treat me right / Make it eternity and not only one night.” On “Repeat,” up-and-comer Jessie J makes a mid-tempo breakup song into something sassy, toning down the wash of synths to let lines like “I wanna know / Was I the one, or just the chick on the side?” hit home in all their girl-power glory. And closer “Titanium” (featuring Sia) is a ballad in epic form, the sparkling synths dueling with Sia’s distinctively throaty vocals.

The only song on this album that I consistently skip is “I Just Wanna F.” (featuring Timbaland and Dev); it manages to be both crass and cheesy at the same time. I like my pop with a little substance, so rattling off the alphabet as a pseudo pick-up line is just not my bag. It’s nothing compared to stuff like “Lunar,” which pairs Guetta with another standout producer, Afrojack for five minutes of wordless yet strangely awesome galaxies of beats.

I know this isn’t the most deeply affecting album of 2011, but Nothing But The Beat is a fun listen start to finish. It’ll stick in your head and get you on your feet, and sometimes that’s all you can ask for.

Rating: A-

User Rating: Not Yet Rated


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© 2012 Melanie Love and The Daily Vault. All rights reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of Virgin/EMI, and is used for informational purposes only.