First Listen: Blake Lewis, "Break Anotha"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 16:30:40 -0700

Hey, remember Blake Lewis? The beatboxing American Idol contestant who made women everywhere swoon? We haven't heard much from ol' Blake since he finished second to Jordin Sparks in the Idol finale, but now he's prepping his first album, Audio Day Dream, scheduled to hit stores in early December.

His first single, "Break Anotha," is now streaming on AOL's PopEater, and after listening to it a few times through, I ... kinda like it. It has hints of Blake's signature beatboxing, but it's more outright danceable than anything he performed on Idol, with a pretty great beat backing Blake's falsetto chorus. Just over two minutes in, the song gets all crazy with a horn section break and synth-y vocal effects. It's kind of the sonic equivalent of a strobe light, and I'm not sure I love it, but I respect how weird it is.

Idolator also has another leaked Blake Lewis track, "Know My Name," which is also a strange musical soup. This one is a lot heavier on the synthesizers, and it reminds me of how a slightly lamer Justin Timberlake might sound if backed by a college a capella choir. Which is not to say it's bad. I mean, it's kind of a mess, but it's a mess I'm oddly compelled to listen to, which must mean something.

Check out the songs and let me know what you think. Is this how you expected Blake's album to sound?

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