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Review Summary: How early is too early for nostalgia? Now that the recent obsession with the ‘80’s is beginning to wane, it’s only a matter of time before ‘90’s nostalgia comes in full force. Rochelle Jordan’s second full length, P R E S S U R E, plants itself at the forefront of that coming wave. Jordan, however, decides to skip over the early to mid ‘90’s, and goes straight for the smooth jamz that flooded the radio near the turn of the millennium.
With its syncopated beats and sultry, overlapping vocals, P R E S S U R E is more reminiscent of Aaliyah than TLC. Whether it’s 13 years too late, or 13 years too early, the album sounds stale. Every track on the album could have easily become a one-hit wonder for a soon to be forgotten ingénue in 2001- all that’s missing is a gratuitous verse from Ja Rule.
P R E S S U R E does make an attempt to be innovative, drenching many of the songs with crashing synth, but it isn’t innovative enough to forgive its shortcomings. With cheesy, clichéd lyrics that border on the laughable- “You were my king, I was your queen (your number one lady)”- and superfluous vocal runs on every track, it’s difficult to take Rochelle Jordan seriously. Her voice is good, but it’s nothing to write home about. Too often is her voice about to crack as she scrapes the bottom of her lower register, and her upper register is breathy enough to be a caricature of sexiness.
Rochelle Jordan was that girl in high school. The one that wanted to be a famous singer. The one that thought she could sing like Mariah Carey, but got turned down when she auditioned for American Idol. P R E S S U R E isn’t a terrible album. It just isn’t enough. In an age when anyone with a laptop can record an album and upload it to Bandcamp, it takes more than a pretty face and a good voice to be noticed, let alone remembered.
| other reviews of this album |
kyliep (4.5)
Rochelle Jordan - The "P R E S S U R E" of Love - Album Review...
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Album Rating: 2.0
This comes off as a bit harsh. Oh well.
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I must've missed this so called obsession with the 80's
good review though mayne
| | | Album Rating: 2.0
In terms of music, there were the revivals of New Wave, Synthpop, and Dream Pop. In terms of fashion, bright neon
colors, tight pants, and leggings all made comebacks. Along with limited resurgence of acid wash, shoulder pads, and
American Apparel's attempt to bring back exercise clothes like leg warmers and unitards.
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you have a couple of grammatical and spelling errors but a nice review
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yea how could you not have noticed the 80s resurge calc i mean fuckin a man
| | | Album Rating: 5.0
I disagree with original post. Cliche lyrics? Maybe she should sing about popping molly then? Let me let you in on a
secret.. LOVE IS CLICHE. Her being compared to Aaliyah is a great thing.. you may not know much about R&B music but
aaliyah was a pop star in her own right..so..your argument/point isnt really valid.
Excellent album, long time fan of Jordan's and her album was one of the best indie albums imo of 2012. Your opinion is
yours of course, mine is different. On this album i did not hear one time where her voice was about to crack.. thats just
not true. Rochelle Jordan reminds me of Aaliyah.. keyword reminds.. Nothing on Pressure made me feel like she sounded
dated as you are implying. She sounds current to me and fits right in the bloody sink with The Weeknd (whom she shares
bandmates), Frank Ocean, Jhene and Jessie Ware. I LOVE the fact that she sounds like that old school feel but at the same
time shes current.. Its hard to explain but when i hear Rochelle Jordan I hear a girl with a whole lot of potential that makes
great music.
Also.. i saw her live in Boston.. stunning. (Check her out if youre in NYC i think is her next stop) She is opening on tour
right now for Jessie Ware. SO.. Jessie Ware may agree with me (and others) as well. Even if she wasnt..shes still awesome
to me.
Really, what you are saying sounds personal to me.. this girl is a breath of fresh air.. and much needed in R&B or music in
general. She makes good music. period. You are completely wrong. a 5/5 for me.
Standouts WORTH HEARING :
Shotgun
Losing
Somebody
Too Long
Touch
Make Me Wanna
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Rochelle Jordan ladies and gentlemen.
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edited because kevin is very scary and i am very scared
| | | Album Rating: 5.0
Hey i dont mind being a fan girl.. i admitted it already.. i saw this site randomly and could not add my 2 cents! Me being a fan girl has nothing to do with the fact that she is amazing!
| | | Album Rating: 2.0
The fact that she's touring with Jessie Ware is what made me decide to check her out.By itself, comparing
Jordan to Aaliyah is neither a compliment nor an insult. It's a fair description of her sound. This is a statement that you
seem to agree with me on. Where it goes wrong is that Jordan sounds far too similar to Aaliyah and Aaliyah's
contemporaries. It's nothing new or innovative. It's music that's been heard before, is still in recent memory, and has
been done better. "LOVE IS CLICHE" Yes, you're right, love is indeed cliche. It's not the themes I found fault
with, it was the actual lyrical content of her songs. "You opened up my eyes, now I see," (Dedication) is cliché. Those
words have been sung in other songs before. Those words have been written in books and poetry before. When Jordan
sings it, she's not making an allusion to other works, she's singing it as if it's profound. Rochelle Jordan sings
R&B and uses synthetic sounds in her song. So yes, she is absolutely similar to Frank Ocean, Jessie Ware, and The
Weeknd. Just because she's making music in the same genre as good artists doesn't make her good. Of Monsters and
Men is pretty good. Mumford and Sons suck.The tracks on the album all blend together. She uses almost
the same damn beat for every song. Your "standout" tracks are half the album. How are they "standout" if it's most of the
album?
| | | Album Rating: 2.0
You tell me that I'm entitled to my own opinion, but then you tell me I'm wrong. You say that you're a fangirl regardless of whether or not she's amazing, but you say that I have a problem with Rochelle Jordan for "personal" reasons.
You can disagree with me all you like, but using vague descriptors like "breath of fresh air" "has potential" and "great" are not actually explaining why I should like her.
Admittedly, my closing paragraph in the review is a little bitchy, but whatever. I'm a bitch. More important critics than I have said worse things about more important people.
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@kyliep
Ok, disaggreeing with the post and liking Rochelle Jordan is one thing, but saying that he's wrong because he doesn't like her and saying that he doesn't like it because of "personal" reasons is probably going to get you punched in the face. Especially on this website. Believe me, I haven't been here that long and I've already met people who are total dicks to me beacuse of the stuff that I like. So if I were you, I'd shut my mouth and if you feel like sharing your views, then at least be nice about it, otherwise, don't talk.
And I'm not trying to be a total dick to you or anything, but if I am sounding like one, than I apologize. But seriously, think about it.
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