More than three years after releasing his last album "Version" (2007) to critical acclaim, English DJ and music producer Mark Ronson has returned on the scene with a new moniker Mark Ronson & The Business Intl. and a new album "Record Collection." The album, released stateside on Sept. 28, displays his love of collaboration with other artists, as well as his affinity for songs that have both a modern feel while drawing strongly on musical conventions from the past.
Ronson & The Business Intl.'s first single "Bang Bang Bang," featuring hip-hop artist Q-Tip and Amanda Warner from New York's electronic duo MNDR, was released on July 11 and fared well on the international charts, becoming one of Ronson's most successful singles to date. On Monday night, Ronson performed with Warner and Q-Tip on "The Late Show with David Letterman."
"Bang Bang Bang" is mind-blowing and innovative, enveloping listeners in a futuristic, heavy-drummed, synthesized trance. The catchy chorus, "No way, bang you're dead, here's your silhouette/Je te plumerai la tete/Je te plumerai la tete," references the French children's song "Alouette," explaining the repetition of the phrase, translated as "I will pluck your head." He does indeed, with an infectious beat, distinctive and bubbly leading vocals by Warner and one of Q-Tip's stellar, deeper message-laced verses.
The video for "Bang Bang Bang" is every bit as mind-blowing as the track. It begins with a commercial of a young girl singing "Alouette" while spreading "Ronson" spread which, in appearance, bears an uncanny similarity to Nutella on sliced bread. It then pans to a curiously bilingual Japanese/French talk show circa 1970 where Ronson is a guest describing his new project, which he ultimately decides he would show rather than tell. He then transforms into a super suave character with slicked hair and a sharp suit, surrounded by a huge system of synthesizers. Warner materializes next to him with graphics that make her look like she is traveling through outer space; soon Q-Tip appears looking like a modern-day Malcolm X with an old-fashioned microphone, as if performing on a 21st-century "American Bandstand." Children appear as well, dancing in front of the synthesizer machine to Ronson's creation. The video ends with a cut to an European tennis match where a male player loses and freaks out after the official calls that he stepped outside the boundary line, taking a stab at the Serena Williams fiasco during the 2009 U.S. Open.
The second single off the album, "The Bike Song," was released on Sept. 19 and features Kyle Falconer, of Scottish band The View, and rapper Spank Rock. "The Bike Song" is similar to many of the songs off of "Version," yet it has a catchy chorus about an effortless hobby that everyone loves and wants to do: "Gonna ride my bike until I get home." The video involves Ronson leaving the Japanese talk show and commanding his robotic bike to assemble in front of him. He then teleports as a '60s bleach blond on his bike in London, where he meets Falconer and Spank Rock in a town where everyone is riding their bikes. Ronson appears to do just about anything in style.
Other noteworthy songs off of Record Collection include the upcoming third single "Somebody to Love Me," featuring a return of '80s icon Boy George from Culture Club; "Glass Mountain Trust," featuring '90s R&B singer D'Angelo sounding very similar to artist Cee Lo Green; and "Lose It (In the End)," which features Ronson on vocals. Overall, the album is a great follow-up to "Version," with rhythmic interludes such as "The Colour of Crumar" and "Selector" that make it a joy to listen straight through the entire album.
