Theory vs. Practice

I might take some flack for this post, but I feel compelled to opine on how certain ideas just don't work out. For example: what if Jay-Z and Kanye did an album together? That'd be awesome, right? But Watch the Throne fell pretty flat for me. Granted I'm not a huge fan or knowledgeable listener of either individually, but there's something overblown about the whole thing. It feels like they just emailed their verses to the producer and were like "okay, there, done."

Similarly, and again at risk of flack, I think the album version of "Not in Love" by Crystal Castles is better than the single version featuring Robert Smith. There are some differences in the mix that are kind of a wash, and I think Robert Smith did a killer job on the vocals, but the problem's the pacing; whereas the album version shows a lot of restraint and then explodes into a euphoric haze at the 2:50 mark, the single version is just as loud in the first chorus. It blows its load way too early, and the end of the song loses a lot of its effect. Compare for yrself: