This is my first listen of a The Weeknd project. There is a lot of fanfare associated with him in R&B circles, but I've never felt the urge to listen. After listening to this I'm not extremely impressed. He has a much better voice than Drake, but that kind of one paced/limited range singing seems present with The Weeknd as well. I don't know if that's as far as his vocal talent extends or that's just the lane he has chosen for this type of music. There are times like on 'Pretty', when I think he is going to take off but his voice stays exactly the same. Whatever the reason, it just ends up feeling like it could've been better. A Michael Jackson, who he does somewhat resemble when he is at his highest pitch, would tear the track up. The production's all pretty dark/a bit cloud rap influenced and is fairly good throughout. Overall it's very solid and I liked it much more on my second listen than my first. A bit more extension in the vocals, a reduction in some of the song's lengths ('Kiss Land'), and no Drake featured, would have made this better. Best Tracks: Adaptation, Pretty, Tears in the Rain

I've given this a few spins and it's an enjoyable listen. Nothing touches the best few from 'Starboy' though. I can't see myself playing anything from this as much as I did the title track from the aforementioned album. The main issue I have with this album isn't exclusive to this release; I don't find Abel's vocals close to the best of them. At times I find him one-paced, whiny and a lil' annoying. Some of the lyrics too - "Stack a couple M's like I was Shady" - if the man he is referring to wrote some of these corny lines the hate would be vitriolic. The first song is boring, and 'Escape From LA' gets tedious, but aside from that, it's a consistent run of synthpop tracks. The bonus tracks and remixes are well worth checking out too. His most consistent album. 3.5-4 Best Tracks: Hardest to Love, Blinding Lights, In Your Eyes, Save Your Tears, Nothing Compares, Blinding Lights (Chromatics Remix)

At 18 tracks, it's no surprise that this is a mixed bag, but at its best, it's amazing. The title track has been played non-stop and then you've got another few that aren't far behind. Daft Punk make up for the bad 'Random Access Memories' with their work on the bookends. Best Tracks: Starboy, Secrets, Six Feet Under, I Feel It Coming

I was a big Captain Planet fan. I had the figurine back in the day and the ring, so you can imagine how excited I was when I saw a Captain Planet game! What more could you want? Four of the five planeteers are playable with a level or two each (the box says 9 levels altogether but that would be pushing it. I think they would be including the bosses as a separate level). Ma-Ti is left out. I guess they couldn't figure out how to adapt his power to the game. He does pop up with some advice before entering each level though. The Planeteers are captured by a separate well known eco-villain from the TV show and are freed by completing the level. They then combine their powers to summon Captain Planet. What's a little different to most games is that instead of having a certain amount of lives, you just have one hour to complete everything. If you die, you can just have another attempt. The levels are different enough from each other but maintain platforming and shooting aspects. As a youngster I was never able to complete all of the levels to then play as Captain Planet in the final level. Going back to it, they really aren't that difficult. The final level with CP is a pain in the ass though. The aim is to destroy all of the weapons on a ship that is housing the villains, then defeat the boss. There are projectiles coming at you from everywhere, particularly under water, and controlling Planet to go the way you want him to can be problematic. I'll be honest, I lost it a few times. The difficulties range from easy, medium and hard, and I think when you complete the game, cheat mode becomes available where you have an unlimited amount of lives/powers. The graphics are decent with some nice touches, particularly in Linka's level. I enjoy some of the music too but there is a huge omission. The theme song isn't featured! Gameplay 3/5 Graphics 3.5/5 Sound 3/5 Difficulty 4/5 Originality 3/5

Shyne's debut is a bit underrated I reckon. Maybe it's the unfair comparison to Biggie that means he was/is critiqued harder. Apart from the extremely slight similarity in the deep voices, I really don't hear much reason for the two rappers to be compared at all. Overall the beats are fairly generic and raw, but Shyne's street raps work well over them. There are still some boring moments, but I like enough of this album. Best Tracks: Whatcha Gonna Do, Bad Boyz, The Life, It's Ok, Bonnie & Shyne, That's Gangsta, Commission