Girl Talk: Feed the Animals

Girl Talk: Feed the Animals Gregg Gillis (aka Girl Talk) reached unparalleled heights after releasing his third album 2006's Night Ripper. He quit his day job, started extensive touring, and working on the follow up album. Now, he releases album number four and it has greater expectations than anything mr. Gillis has done before. Gillis' official statements before the release of the album was that he wanted to give his samples more room to breath. The thing that made Night Ripper so interesting was the rapid pace in which his samples changed. Feed the Animals feels in many ways more simplistic than its predecessor. It still has a "crash course in pop culture" feel but it seems not as well done. Some mash-ups sound a little sloppy. "Still Here" has a "Flashing Lights"/"No Diggity" mash-up that just doesn't quite fit. Also in the disappointing section is a lot of the transitions between mash-ups. A quick glimpse of the cello from Butthole Surfers' "Pepper" is among the better transitions but a lot of the transition are non-existent and seem like just quick awkward cuts. But you take the good with the bad. "Set It Off"'s Jay-Z "Roc Boys"/"Paranoid Android" mash-up is much better than any of those American Gangster re-mixtapes that came out. In the end, does Feed the Animals live up to the hype? Not in my opinion. It doesn't match the intensity or dancability of Night Ripper. It is however better than a lot of Girl Talk's early albums. In the end, it is still an incredible snap shot of pop culture right now which is something that seems to be an ability unique to Girl Talk. Rating: 7.7/10 MP3: Girl Talk "Set It Off" Buy: Illegal Arts