The E.N.D. (The Energy Never Dies) [Expanded Version]

Editors’ Notes

Falling in step with T-Pain and Kanye West, The E.N.D. proffers a vision of retro futurism in which the sparkling electronics and club beats of the 1980s are recast as the sound of the present. From the squirmy disco of “Rock That Body” and “Meet Me Halfway” to the New Wave revivalism of “I Gotta Feeling” and “Alive,” The E.N.D. is the most focused Black Eyed Peas album since their debut, Behind the Front. The band has moved past the mishmash of influences that pervaded Elephunk. Instead they remain squarely situated within a neon panorama, a place where Prince, Madonna, and Flashdance reign supreme. Daft Punk are an obvious touchstone, especially “Missing You” and “Rockin to the Beat,” although “Imma Be,” “Alive,” and “Electric City” are resolutely rap — Daft Punk as reimagined for Young Jeezy. While nothing on here is as poppy as “Let’s Get It Started” or “Where Is the Love?” tracks like “Boom Boom Pow,” “Now Generation,” and “Ring -a-Ling” have the same unstoppable catchiness that made a sensation of Fergie’s breakout hit “My Humps.”