"The Gift": A Review of Caribbean Queen by Alison Hinds

Out of all the wonderful things the Caribbean has to give to the world, the most brilliant would have to be our music as it stands, by far, as the greatest testament of Caribbean culture. Furthermore, it should be to no surprise at all that, despite the very ‘scattered’ and diverse nature of the region, which almost inherently brings forth music of very different styles, the music which comes up ALWAYS has found a home and audiences across the world. Truly, I don’t know if such a study does exist, but in terms of the amount of music produced when compared to populous, the Caribbean would have to be declared the most musical and (and also the most magical and bestest) place on Earth. So, with that being said, I think it would be nice if we could maybe think of someone (a single person), who might be so accurately and wonderfully able to represent Caribbean music as a sort of ambassador to the rest of the world. Of course this person would have to be very well known and command quite a bit of attention. Moreover, it would most certainly help if such person was fairly sans controversy as possible, it wouldn’t look so nice if it came out that they had . . . Oh I don’t know, been a barber or chicken jerk vendor in the past. They would also have to be a very CLASSY individual and it most certainly couldn’t hurt if they were easy on the eyes. My female readership may be thinking of someone like a Sean Paul, however, the ridiculous ‘Dutty Rock Incident’ most certainly disqualifies him from contention, so I’m going nominate an individual who so wonderfully encompasses what it means to be a Caribbean music artist, the incomparable Ms. Alison Hinds. One could very well make the case that, particularly regionally, Hinds’ name carries about as much weight as anyone’s in most circles from Soca and her output is generally not only very well received, but very well covered also. In terms of Bajan artists (which is a HUGE deal because, outside of Trinidad, they probably have the most popular artists), she may just be the single most popular alongside Edwin Yearwood and Krosfyah. And while I’m sure, based on simply being around for quite a long time, that Hinds has accumulated her fair share of controversies, guess what - I can’t think of any (and if you name some, I’m going to place my hands over my ears and yell “la la la la la”, as loud as I possibly can). And of course, she carries herself like Caribbean royalty, she represents where she’s from as much as she possibly can and don’t even get me started on being easy on the eyes. So Alison Hinds is my nomination as an Ambassador of Caribbean Music. All who agree say I and let all who disagree . . . Go and find something else to do.

And maybe I’ll do the same. However, what I’m going to focus on is the fact that said Ambassador Hinds has a brand new album out on shelves now, her second solo efforts (after 2007’s very strong Soca Queen, which had, quite possibly, the greatest album cover I have ever seen in my entire life) following a stay as the face of the venerable Square One which coincided with her rise to prominence, the aptly titled Caribbean Queen. First of all, as you might’ve suspected, I was VERY excited to see this one come up and as a matter of fact, I even predicted it would come late last year as it just seemed like the time to do such a thing and over the course of the last couple of years or so, Alison Hinds has REALLY been pushing her music and her popularity to the proverbial next level, making this album more than just a big deal to Soca heads and fans of Caribbean music in general, I’m sure (my Wife was even interested and she hates pretty much everything). However, when compared to its predecessor, it may not seem to be the case as this album, which checks in at a very healthy twenty tracks (five more than Soca Queen) is much more Soca centered. The album is largely full of Hinds’ singles from the past few years or so, most (if not all) of which were hits on some levels and even though there’re just a few of these tunes that I’m not familiar with, even those lesser known tunes are fairly Soca heavy. There are also a couple of songs which seemingly will never find themselves absent from anything with Alison Hinds’ name on it, but those tunes, of course, have become favourites the world over and it would just be damn pointless to release an album like this without them. It should also be mentioned, as I alluded to (or at least I think I did), that the last few years have seen a pretty major push on the part of Hinds and her ‘people’ to make her even more popular and this movement hasn’t gone alone. Her music, itself, has arguably gotten better as well. While she may forever be seen, amongst the very heavy Soca faithful, as the lead singer of Square One, Hinds is one a very few artists with her stature who, at least in my opinion, ALWAYS seems to be a work in progress. As opposed to some of her longstanding peers such as Machel Montano, the aforementioned Edwin Yearwood & Krosfyah and DEFINITELY the most wonderfulest person in the world, Destra (more on her in a bit), all of whom seemingly are what they are in terms of their music, Hinds still seems to be working some things out in terms of her direction and when you hear that from someone who CLEARLY knows what they are doing, it is absolutely fascinating. Beyond that Caribbean Queen serves, as most Soca albums do, as simply a collection of her songs. Many of these tunes are quite difficult, if not impossible to find, even for the shrewdest and keenest of fans, so having them in a single spot (or even just having them to pick through on the digital side) is a another pretty big deal. Oh yeah, and the fact that Alison Hinds’ Caribbean Queen is probably the best Soca album of 2010 so far, is yet another big deal.

As I said, I think this album is one more aimed at the Soca fans in specific and it comes through in the way the album is presented as well. Despite the very SPECTACULAR looking cover (again, don’t get me started about Alison Hinds being attractive, even I don’t have that much time) (with all that ass), the music is either so definitely aimed at Soca heads, or aimed at pushing Soca to casual fans even more most likely a bit of both. Casual fans certainly are going to take a special interest in the opener for Alison Hinds’ brand new album Caribbean Queen from Black Coral, ‘Call On Me’, which of course, features Jamaican powerhouse Jah Cure. The tune is a remix (via famed Trini producer Shawn ‘Da Mastamind‘ Noel) of the Cure’s tune and it was a really big hit and continues to do damage on some levels. I’ve also warmed up to it quite a bit and for me, it’s one of the biggest tunes here and a special attraction as well. So, there’s a big start. Another big attraction, for the heaviest of Soca fans, might come in at number two on the album, ‘Lock It [bka ‘Wine To Deh Back’]’ over the famed Patti Cake Riddim. This one is another piece which took quite awhile for me to warm up to and I still wouldn’t say that it’s one of my favourites, but it is a big song and stirred up a lot of vibes for a lot of fans who’ll definitely be happy to see it here, myself included to a lesser degree. That changes on the next tune when Alison Hinds releases entirely too much ‘Boom Boom Tonic’ on the masses and absolutely drenches the listeners’ ears in it . . . And I’m not complaining at all because I love this tune! It’s nice and involved and that is a quality which isn’t very easy to convey on form, but given her experience, it isn’t at all a problem for Hinds. And if that doesn’t get your attention for a start, then again - Go and find something else to do.

There’re quite a few tunes on Caribbean Queen which are sure to grab attentions based purely on how they look ‘on paper’ - They’re just very attention-grabbing type of songs. Besides the opener, there’s the second (of three) combination featuring a big Jamaican artist, ‘King & Queen’, alongside Richie Spice. This is another one which I’ve began to like a bit more than I had in the past. Certainly the fact that it has one of the best videos you’ll ever see in your life could’ve helped it. But this one is just a nice vibes, a Reggae song, about the upliftment and the OBSERVANCE of a strong relationship and it also did a major damage as well. And superstar Shaggy also joins the fun with the FUN ’Can’t Let My Love Go’. This one is one of my favourites on the album and while I don’t recall it having much of a damage, it did so for me personally and I love that song (HEAVY riddim on that one). Speaking of damaging combinations - There’s also ’Obsessive Winers’ a very large tune from TnT Carnival 2009 which features both Saucy Wow and the aforementioned magnificentness of Destra. The tune also featured on Ms. Garcia’s 2009 album, Hott where it was a major attraction and is sure to be the same here, as the three legendary artists engage in a ‘wine off’of EPIC proportions where ‘there can be only one’. There’s (the almost obligatory at this point) ‘Faluma’ which I shouldn’t have to tell you about at this point (so I’m not), and a remix of ‘Roll It Gal’ featuring Juggy D from out of the UK, which is very good and also features on the Soca Queen album as well. Speaking of that album, fans should also recognize both the poppish ‘Island Girl’ and the SPECTACULAR sounding ‘Togetherness’ which also appeared back in 2007 (‘Togetherness’ is very strong).

It is, however, the balance of Caribbean Queen, which I found to be most interesting. Two tunes in particular, because they’re two of my own favourites from Hinds, stick out. Check the very strong ‘Again’ which I had to hear all of about a dozen times or so before I REALLY started to pay attention to it. This one is EXCELLENT. It’s a song which is a pure celebration of the music itself and it’s VERY colourful and such tunes are almost always strong ,with this one being a near definition and certainly not an exception. Oh and did I mention that it’s MAD? Madness with a message, gotta love it. The only tune which rises above ‘Again’ to my ears is a tune from . . . 2008 (I THINK), ‘Soca In Meh Body’, which is outstanding and one of my personal favourites from Hinds’ ENTIRE catalogue. The woman clearly has been infected with the ridiculously infectious and contagious disease known as Soca! Should you ever become infected, seek help immediately (or don’t) and have a great time like Alison Hinds does with this midtempo piece of BRILLIANCE, the best song I hear on the album. Following that topping tune is ‘Chocolate & Vanilla’ (which might’ve also been from 2008), which is another real winner on the album and a hard to find one so, definitely enjoy it here. The tune is just COOL and was a nice sized hit for Hinds as well. She turns the heat wayyyyyyyy up on another favourite of mine, ‘Wukking Crazy’. This one, unlike a few of the others, didn’t have to grow on me at all, I loved it from the very first time I heard it and even though it has bit more ‘pounding’ on it, I think it could do a big deal on international radio as well with its highly addictive vibes. Going back, Trini artist Lyrikal also makes an appearance the big tune ‘All Over De Gyal’. I’ve never really been a big fan of Lyrikal’s and it was somewhat surprising that he got Alison Hinds for this tune (it’s a remix of his earlier tune, which was WICKED), but I have to give credit where it is due and Lyrikal is big on the big song which will STAY with you for quite some time, surely its intent.

Shaggy himself made an earlier guest stop on Caribbean Queen and his riddim, the cool madness that was the Street Bullies Riddim, also chimes in later on, backing Alison Hinds on the ‘Rags [Give It To Dem]’. Certainly with the name, you’d expect some type of ‘jump and wave’ madness, but that isn’t what you get. Instead, the tune finds Hinds turning STRAIGHT DANCEHALL DJ and deejaying on the Street Bullies heavy. Again, you’d expect her to be able to do such a thing given her vast experience, but it makes it no less impressive because of it (and tell me I’m not the only one who’d like to dump about a hundred Dancehall riddims at Hinds’ front door just to see what she could do with them!). She changes it up again when she joins Moses Charles on the Chutney-fied ‘Indrani’. These songs generally aren’t my favourites, but I find myself becoming more and more in tune with the vibes because this song is just BIG. It almost seems kind of too simple at times with the very standard back and forth style, but that works here almost perfectly. Wining things down, the last great tune I have to mention is the somewhat hilarious ‘Hooked', which finds our plotting and scheming heroine trying to capture the VERY TEMPORARY attention of a guy she has her eye on. All she wants is the wine, she doesn’t want to know your name, she doesn’t want to give you her number and she most certainly doesn’t want to go home with you after the party done (she doesn’t even want to talk to you!), but she’ll do whatever she needs to do to get what she wants. The tune isn’t gimmicky either as it probably has one of the, if not THE, strongest choruses on the whole of the album and it is one of my favourites and will be one of yours as well. Lastly is a double-shot of the catchy ‘Believe In Love’. The song, in both forms (and I THINK I hear differences between the two available versions, but they’re minimal to my ears), isn’t something I’m very impressed by, but it’s almost certainly aimed at that kind of techno heavy/electric dance crowd. If you’re a part of that, you’ll absolutely love it, otherwise, it’s still (like everything else on the album) catchy as hell and ultimately pretty harmless and with a nice message.

Overall, I have absolutely no problem recommending Alison Hinds’ Caribbean Queen to MUSIC FANS IN GENERAL (and I don’t know if I’ve EVER said that before). Unless you listen to straight Opera, Heavy Metal, Gospel or the hardest of Hip-Hop, you’re probably going to find SOMETHING hear that appeals to you and I’d be willing to say that you’d probably find more than one pieces of something actually. And she does it so, again, without really alienating the hardcore Soca fans in the process. If you are that crazy and ridiculous Soca all day and night type of fan, you’re going to get your fill with Caribbean Queen (and it‘s actually a better album than Soca Queen, in my opinion). There is certainly enough material here that you’re going to be familiar with (and in a good way), and largely unable to find through other ways, which will keep you happy and I think that goes back to the earlier point that I was making that, despite her very advanced career, we still see Alison Hinds as a developing artist and one who, in still finding her voice, can please a variety of fans almost instinctively. There’s a lot to be pleased with on this album which stands as the finest Soca album I’ve heard thus far in 2010 and also stands as a testament to the talents of Caribbean Music Ambassador, Ms. Alison Hinds: Our gift to you. Very well done.

Rated 4.65/5

Black Coral

2010

CD & Digital

Alison Hinds

HAPPY 40th EARTHDAY MS. ALISON HINDS!