While technically classified as hip-hop due to his funk laced beats and heavy sampling, RJD2 (or Ramble John Krohn) has always had a very soulful sound to his work. Both of these qualities were largely downplayed, however, on his last full length, The Third Hand. Dominating his signature sound with a near ambient indie pop production left his fans somewhat alienated, while the remaining traces of his hip-hop orientation put off his intended audience. The good but ultimately adequate songwriting wasn’t enough to carry everything, and it ended up being extremely unpopular. Three years later, RJD2 returns with The Colossus, which brings some of his early turntablism and instrumental hip-hop back into the mix, as well as an array of guest vocalists. It still sounds like Krohn doesn’t want to let go of his new found indie experimentation, but while The Colossus isn’t likely to pacify fans of his older material, the fact that he’s playing a bit more to his strengths definitely pays off.

That looks like a teardrop! What a COLOSSAL PUSSY LOL ROFL

The large amount of live instrumentation from 2007’s The Third Hand is still present, though scaled back a bit in favor of light sampling, which is scattered throughout but used largely in the instrumental tracks. The instrumentation style has broadened as well, which results in a very eclectic yet cohesive album; The opening Let There Be Horns and Salud 2 (an obvious nod to his debut) are more turntable driven, but don’t negatively rub up against tracks like The Glow’s irrestistable neo-soul or the upbeat Chicago-esque closer Walk with Me.

The guest spots help out a lot as well; Kenna’s vocals shine on Games You Can Win, a perfect fit for the smooth, progressing beat. Phonte Coleman sounds great on The Shining Path as well, and the combined effort sounds like a more spacey, psychedelic Gnarls Barkley song. It’s A Son’s Cycle that really steals the show though; Krohn stitches together a cleverly progressing beat and loads it with hooks, and while The Catalyst, Illogic, and NP each have great raps to contribute, the beat’s blend of instrumentation and sampling is done well enough to detract attention from them. The instrumentals have a great deal of diversity as well; Tin Flower recycles a folkish flute loop while tastefully adding more harmonies over until finishing abruptly, and the basic A Spaceship for Now is dominated with intensifying synths and drums, with an eerie keyboard underlying them.

The Colossus doesn’t always work as well as it should, however; there is a bit of fumbling with lackluster melodies. Giant Squid’s flat out doesn’t work, and too much is added on, resulting in an overwhelming production with no direction. The other notable example is The Stranger, where the production is very tastefully done, but there is simply nothing to work with, and the result is a frustrating listen that, again, doesn’t go anywhere.

That's right.. my hedge maze is so amazing EVEN I CAN'T ESCAPE IT

RJD2’s latest sees him continuing on in the vein of his last album, but with more balance and a stronger sense of confidence. One of the things that made The Third Hand awkward in places was the fact that he didn’t seem sure how thick to lay on which aspect of the hybrid he was going for, but here most of the proverbial wrinkles feel ironed out. The Colossus may not be as grandoise as was intended, but it does show an artist gaining momentum in a new direction, comfortably leaving an old sound behind.

It was easy to be unenthusiastic about Relapse, Eminem’s first album in nearly five years. And not even just because of the large amount of time that had passed; his previous release, Encore, came across as little more than Eminem by-the-numbers. It lacked the heart of even The Eminem Show, which showed maybe three quarters the heart of his two previous albums, at best. Instead of cutting loose with his morbid sense of humor, he was streamlining it with celebrity parody (Just Lose It) and generic hip hop sentiments (Ass Like That). While admittedly, the political stances were appreciated, all of the rest was lackluster by comparison to the rest of his discography, and it didn’t look too promising for Relapse. However, Relapse delivers the goods, and more; I daresay that this is his strongest effort since The Marshall Mathers LP.

...I have definitely taken too many of these.

Relapse probably has the best introduction on an album all year in Dr. West. Half darkly funny and half mildly disturbing, he addresses his demons while making fun of the whole situation at the same time. Eminem actually seems the most comfortable he’s ever been with making fun of himself, which is a must for somebody like him (“And this Christopher Reeve shit? You know the guy’s dead, right?”). The Steve Berman skit near the album’s finish is the best example of this, showing Eminem at the receiving end of the following mockery: “Oh poor me, I had a drug problem!” The skits alone this time around are the best they’ve been in quite a while.

Loosely telling a story of Eminem resurrecting his Slim Shady persona, Relapse starts with 3 a.m., a song so violent and fearlessly offensive that it’s just… it’s just great. What makes it so endlessly fascinating is not just how over the top he gets, but how eloquent he is as he unveils these tales of horrific carnage as well(and to think, they just get worse after this!). The following pair of My Mom and Insane explore his childhood (with his usual exaggeration, the latter in particular) has wordplay that tops anything he did on Encore by leaps and bounds; Mom’s chorus of “That’s why I’m on what I’m on ’cause I’m my mom” or Insane’s opening line, “I was born with a dick in my brain, yeah, fucked in the head” are absolutely brilliant. Insane reintroduces us to the off the wall jokes that have been gone from his repertoire for far too long, such as “Well this is called Ass-Rape and we’re shooting the Jail scene,” as well as some that would probably be best not repeated here.

After that we return to fantasies involving kidnapping and murdering celebrities, or simply banging them (Same Song and Dance and single We Made You, respectively). For all its name dropping, We Made You sounds like genuine Eminem talking shit, as opposed to Just Lose It which sounded like borderline posturing. After these we have a series of drug related songs which culminate in the Mr. Mathers skit, leading into the surprisingly honest and soul searching pair of Déjà Vu and Beautiful, the latter actually being produced by Eminem himself. The rest of the album’s production is handled by Dr. Dre, who does a fantastic job all throughout Relapse. The beats all snap and sound fresh, matching whatever mood is being conveyed to a T.

Closing out Relapse is Underground, ending with a cameo from everybody’s favorite creeper, Ken Kaniff. The beat is extremely smart, playing with its time signature (unheard of in commercial rap) with Eminem’s flow sounding aaaalmost disjointed, but he keeps up effortlessly. Throw in his reliably intelligent rhymes, and you’ve got six minutes that will fly by every time. A spectacular way to close a truly outstanding album.

Hmm... I've never noticed this one before

Relapse shows Eminem at the top of his game once again. Brilliant rhymes, great beats, and he flat out sounds more confident than he has in nearly a decade.  After hearing this, I personally don’t think Relapse 2 can come fast enough.

Once having listened to Scott Mescudi’s (a.k.a. Kid Cudi) debut album Man on the Moon: The End of Day, it’s easy to believe that he had a part in Kanye West’s 808s and Heartbreak last year; it’s got the same amalgam of electronic influences as well as dealing with the same somewhat morose subject matter. Kid Cudi is able to avoid immediate comparison to West’s last album thanks to a broader assortment of influences and sounds, which could be in part thanks to the larger number of collaborators.

Kid Cudi's impression of McDonald's eighties mascot, Mac Tonight

While Kid Cudi’s debut is definitely impressive, it hits a number of snags. One big thing is Common’s completely unnecessary narration, which appears at random. It’s as though Mescudi feared that the unity among the tracks as far as the production and lyrics were concerned wasn’t enough to make the album feel conceptual, so lines for a narrator were tacked on between certain songs. It doesn’t flow, and doesn’t feel genuine; it only serves to disrupt Man on the Moon’s momentum. Speaking of flow, another issue is that Kid Cudi barely has one. This isn’t exactly crippling, as the vocal patterns are very well constructed, but his voice is caught awkwardly betwixt singing, rapping, and talking voices, not really registering as any of these. Lyrically, while Mescudi certainly can’t be accused of being empty or bereft of feeling, as there’s a lot of that here, more often than not he sacrifices any sense of poetry for directness to the point of coming across as self pitying. Up Up & Away is an unfortunate example of this, with the embittered cheerleader-esque refrain “They gon’ judge me anyway, so WHATEVER.”

Jinkies, yo!

Issues are indeed abound in Man on the Moon, but as mentioned before, the album is far from a flop. One of the record’s best qualities is the production; not only is it fairly diverse, but the elaborate construction in many cases is remarkably accomplished. The best moments come when Kid Cudi runs with the spacey feel that underlies the album; on Alive and Pursuit of Happiness in particular, both helmed by indie electronic outfit Ratatat (with help from MGMT on the latter track), the beats are trippy while with an alluring, head bobbing rhythm. Pursuit’s music is also a perfect match for the deformed hope in the lyrics, psychedelic with a hint of sadness.

Soundtrack 2 My Life is a perfect example of how capable the melodies are. The vocal harmony is so compelling that the cheesy Charles in Charge reference, Jay-Z quoting, and dramatic lines like, “it’s close to go and trying some coke, and a happy ending would be slitting my throat” are barely distracting. The following Simple As… has a beautifully layered intro and startlingly clever wordplay (“as simple as that for your simple ass”), and the piano leading along the heavy synths and Mescudi’s bitter lyrics is absolutely beautiful. Great as these moments are, the highlight has to be Kid Cudi and Kanye West’s send up of Lady Gaga’s Poker Face on Make Her Say, which carries an amusing energy on par with The Roots’ single Birthday Girl.

Man on the Moon fumbles a bit at the end with the generic slow jam sound of Hyyerr as well as Common popping up once more to conclude his narration, but the album doesn’t quite end on a sour note. Kid Cudi is able to largely live up to the hype that has surrounded him for the past year, and his interesting perspectives on the genre will no doubt yield even better works in the future.

Reformed Muslim albino MC? That’s the last thing you expect when you listen to Brother Ali’s mesmerizing, almost smoky flow, but that’s exactly who’s spitting it – and on Us (his latest opus) he is damn near in top form. Backing him up on his third full length release (as he has for the previous two, as well as an EP) is Ant, a producer best known for his work with the alternative hip hop duo Atmosphere. It’s safe to say that he is performing even better than Ali himself; despite the obvious looping, nothing ever gets repetitive, plenty of interesting sounds are thrown in and the production feels fresh all throughout Us’ sixteen tracks. The beats reflect the eclecticism often found in this type of underground effort, but the heavy jazz and blues influence to Ant’s production, along with Ali’s fantastic storytelling, gives Us a great golden age feel.

Not only is Brother Ali an MC, but an accomplished shadow puppet performer as well.

Things start with a somber choir, but quickly explode with the highly energetic, horn driven The Preacher, a fitting introduction with the potentially unsettling opening lines “If you know me, you know I, love my family, love my god.” However, the music is too rousing and his charisma too undeniable for that “whoa, back up there buddy” moment you get with similar lines like “I’d like to talk to you about Jesus,” and while the spirituality is a significant theme on the album, it seldom takes more of a role than a setting (especially considering that a few bars later he asks, “what the fuck can stop Ali?”).

As mentioned before, the production’s diverse feel is a strong positive for the already impressive beats; the eastern twang of Breakin’ Dawn has a great, convincingly head-bobbing rhythm, and almost blends with the following The Traveler’s Carribean allure so well as to render the gap in between hardly noticeable. Crown Jewel follows the raucous opening with a thick, jazzy atmosphere, and the smooth blues on tracks like the almost harrowing House Keys and Round Here fill out the musical makeup strikingly.

Also very deserving of mention are the stories Ali is able to tell. Babygirl is a particular standout in this department, telling the story of a rape victim with such unapologetic empathy that you can’t help but feel a little bit of what the girl he’s rapping about is feeling as well. In this day and age, it’s great to hear a hip hop artist rapping about anything that isn’t, to quote the Eminem skit Steve Berman, “big screen TV’s, blunts, forties, and bitches.”

Alright, check out the lighting. Do I look like Jeff from Behind the Hype yet?

Too much of the genre borders on self parody with the repetition of the same old boasts, so deviations are naturally going to be most welcome – but there are times when musing over serious political and philosophical matters can cross the line over to preaching. On the closing title track, he proclaims that in spite of “your religion or your past and your race, the same color blood just pass through our veins.” To anybody living in post-civil rights movement America (particularly one of Brother Ali’s fans), this is hardly a revelation, and it comes after quite a few other well worn sentiments addressed here.

Preachy while it may be, in the face of the fantastic production and otherwise excellent lyrics, it’s hard to dwell too much on this somewhat minor gripe. Brother Ali has put out better work in the past, but Us isn’t much far behind, and the album still serves as proof that hip hop has far more to offer than what the mainstream would have everyone believe.

I’ve been listening to this album repeatedly for the last ten hours or so, trying to figure out where to start with this review. Finding a direction to where the richest and (disputably) best rapper alive’s album is going was taxing. But after much deliberation, I think it’s safe to say that not only is he at the top of his game, but also has been meditation on his evolution.

People have been saying that this is Jay-Z’s last album, but of course I’m going to throw that notion potion out the window. So let’s get to the nitty gritty, and BaRF on this album; something I haven’t done in quite some time now. What better album than this?

Beats 8/10

I honestly think the rumor of Timbaland producing the entire album would have been great…if it were true. While most the beats had me bobbing my head for invisible apples on my desk, they weren’t the best I had heard all year.

A Star Is Born, is track nine, and had that gritty/harmonic juxtaposition that has a flowing head nod feel to it. Sampled from the Mother Freedom Band’s Touch Me, it was a perfect flow for Hov to rap over.

D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune) was a tight beat, albeit heavily sampled from the song In the Space by Janko Nilovic and Dave Sucky. I guess I liked it not because of the creativity of the beat, but rather the excellent song sample choice.

Swizz Beatz produced the seventh track, On To The Next One, which apparently sampled D.A.N.C.E. by Justice, but I don’t know from where exactly. It reminded me of the beat from A Milli by Lil Wayne, with the same thing droning in the background, and the beat dropping out save for the drums for certain parts.

My two favorite beats go to Timbaland though. First, the eighth track, Off That, which gives me that futuristic urban feel; with Venus Vs. Mars being that downlow jungle beat that gets the ladies in the mood.

Rhymes 6.5/10

Jay Z isn’t exactly the most socially conscious rapper out there (unless it has to do with him directly), But I do appreciate the message and direction of the album. He does just like President Obama did, and clarified the bullshit for everyone before saying thank you and moving on. Lets Discuss.

What We Talkin’ About was a great way to kick the album off, calling out Jay-Z’s defectors and competitors. He even takes time out to make a shout out to the President (the first time of many on the album) and the White House. Here’s a clip of the lyrics:

Blueprint 3
And now that that’s that Lets talk about the future
We have just seen the dream as predicted by Martin Luther
Now you could choose ta Sit in front of your computa
Posin’ with guns Shootin YouTube up
Or you could come with me to the White House get your suit up

Off That was another favorite of mine, for its rant about what Jay-Z used to be into, but now what he’s off. Drake sings the hook, with a song about calling out haters and their old ways. Here’s the hook:

Drizzy Drake:
Whatever you about to discover We off that
You about to tell her you love it, we off that
Always want to fight in the club and we off that
But you can’t bring the future back
Ya’ll steady chasing the fame, we off that
Oversize clothes and the chains, we off that
Niggas still makin’ it rain and we off that
But you can’t bring the future back

Tell them hatas get off me
Cris we off that
Timbs we off that
Rims we off that

Jay-Z:
Yeah we off that
Is you still on that
And we still making money
cuz we still on that

Featurettes 8/10

I give the album this score because of the level of album sales the people featured on it will bring, in addition to their relative badassness.

Rihanna was an obvious choice for this album, with Jay-Z playing the big brother role for quite some time now. She sings the hook to Run This Town; quite well I might add.

Alicia Keys sings the hook (and I assume played the piano ) on Empire State of Mind. I’ve always been a fan of her work, and being a resident New Yorker, it was only right to have her jump on a track with Hov.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Drake on the roster for this album, for his hook on Off That. Drake is one of the most hyped guys in the business right now, so I tip my hat to him gaining a pass to record on this album, albeit only the hook.

Kanye West actually cracked me up on the first verse of Hate. A song which he also produced, his verse was cocky to the level we have known and learned to love.

Also making me laugh was Pharrell in his Neptunes produced song, So Ambitious. He sings the hook with Z, amid another playful circus sounding beat.” I’m so ambitious…I might hit two sisters”. Classic.

In Conclusion

I would have loved to see a collaboration between fellow Bedford-Stuyvesant MC Mos Def, but maybe that’s just me (or theres some beef there that I don’t know about). But overall, this was another great album by Jay-Z, even if I don’t think it would be the best album to walk away from the game with.

I think this is the intro album to another chapter in the Hov universe, with several oppoutunities to make more albums during the current presidency. What would be really crazy though, is if Beyonce and President Obama jumped on a track with Jay-Z… C’mon, you know that shit would be insane.

Until next time my friends,

~Flak

WORDSPIT:I was In Back of my 3rd or 4th grade class freestyling with some friends and my teacher asked me, “Did you have something to share?” I was like, “yea,” and she made me come to the front of the class, so I started spitting and my classmates cheered. Since then, I knew hiphop was something I wanted to do.

Ge Oh: Who influenced you?

WORDSPIT: My influences are Canibus, Rakim, Kanye, Pharrel and N.e.r.d, Nas, Cold Play, Lupe Fiasco, Massinesa, Wu-tang, Linkin Park, Nirvana, for real it is too many to name.

WORDSPIT: I draw inspiration from everywhere. Before, I would listen to Canibus and want to be the ILLest Mc in the universe but over time I realized I wanted more. I wanted to become a dope Mc and make great music at the same time. I started studying other artist inside and outside of hiphop. I also draw inspiration from my TV, current events, video games. Life gives me inspiration to suffice my creativity.

WORDSPIT: Yea, www.wordspitwashere.com is dope and Im very active on twitter. Not only Twitter, but all of these new social networks have helped me in so many ways. It helps me directly connect with people and that is what’s really important to me. I love being able to chat with people from different parts of the world who like my music. These new social networks play a big part in spreading in getting your name out in the market.

WORDSPIT:Yes, Joystick Madness just dropped in August. The inspiration for the video came from countless hours of video game addiction. I use to go to the laundromat ,pizza shop, arcade and spend hours. We wanted to give People the same feeling as when Xbox online wasn’t available and you had to be in the same room as your opponent. A story… lol…. while trying to spoof the Christian Bale  ”line”  situation, one of the director’s interns walked in and thought I was serious. She was scared! You could see it in her face. That was super funny.

Ge Oh: Joystick Madness is from your new CD, which comes out on Monday. What’s it called, and what is the central theme?

WORDSPIT: Joystick Madness is one of the songs off THE COOLEST BBOI STANCE, That drops Monday. THE COOLEST BBOI STANCE is my tribute to hiphop. At the same time it follows the journey of an artist as he tries to become a great MC. I want people to feel connected to this character. I want people to feel engaged by his story and be able to relate it to what they are going through. Im excited about this project.

WORDSPIT: I laid the ground work Myself. Then I linked with a lot of people who helped me, like my manager David J. Hamilton, Kartay of 3Afilms who shot my first video Not A Joke This Year. What does it take to be succesful?  The drive to reach for your goal even when people tell you no. Networking is a vital key as well, some times it’s about who you know. On top of all that just make good music.

WORDSPIT: Right now I would have to say Nas. He is an icon and I respect his work.

WORDSPIT: Don’t be afraid to get shut down. If one door closes another door will always open with a new opportunity. We The ILLEst.

Follow WORSDPIT at the following websites:

Twitter:  www.twitter.com/wordspit

Myspace: www.myspace.com/wordspit

THE COOLEST BBOI STANCE is available now on www.wordspitwashere.com

I have a feeling that the members of The Soulquarians are going to make a hell of a comeback, and very soon. Just like you’ll read in the upcoming release of mathematic-jazz artist Robert Glasper’s new album, the trifecta that is Sa-Ra (or Sa-Ra Creative Partners) is back at it again.

These guys know how to define Neo Soul with the content that they put out every once in a while. This month, the boys had perfect timing in releasing their long-awaited second full length album, Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love. The band says that their type of sound isn’t likely to get MTV play, but it’s unlikely that the members of the Soulquarians get a MTV run anyhow, and I’m sure they don’t really mind (there I go saying they are in the Soulquarians again…).

Comprised of members Om’Mas Keith, Taz Arnold, and Shafiq Husayn, the boys are responsible for some of my favorite neo soul tracks Star Warz, Hey Love, So Special, White!,  and Bitch from both their early EP SetUps and Justifications and full length album The Hollywood Recordings. This album renews my faith that Sa-Ra is on point forevermore.

The two disc album starts out with a windy background with a voice copying the stylings of the Warriors classic line “Warriors, come out and play” to “Sa Ra, come out to space”. It might not be as funny as Dave Chappelle using it to say “breast milk, you make my day” whilst clanking empty glass bottles, but its badass all the same. After breaking into a funky 70’s sounding beat, we are treated to a song verse in Spanish (which I still haven’t deciphered) before trailing off into the rest of the album.

23 tracks is a lot of ground to cover, but I did pick out my favorites among the bunch, starting with the third track, I Swear, which talks about realizing that the love of Sa-Ra is so good that she (Noni Limar) has never felt that way before, she swears. The beat is dirty as hell, with a funky and catchy bass line; my weakness of course.

Gemini’s Rising, the tenth track, features the lovely Rozzi Daime, a vocalist who is not a newcomer to Sa-Ra’s work. The beat has what I THINK is a high pitched guitar, with an overall heavenly feeling to it. Rozzi Daime is perfect for Sa-Ra’s talent, with echoing voice making the perfect addition to the boys chiming in every once in a while on the track. My assumption is that Daime gets more than just Gemini to rise on often occasions.

Track twelve, White Cloud, is amazing, because it reminded me of Michael Jackson’s Captain EO, the badass 3-D experience that used to be at Disneyland (and has since been replaced with the lackluster Honey, I Shrunk the Audience). Rozzi Daime is back on this track to lend her talents with Lil’ Kenny to make me feel like we are out to save the world again.

The third track on the second disc has the raw beat entitled, Double Dutch, which has the first appearance of auto-tune this year that didn’t piss me off right away. I promise I wanted to grab a giant jump rope to do the dutch to this song in a funky manner, while out front with the neighbors.

But by far, the best track on the album is back on the first disc, and is entitled Love Czars. The tempo has the gritty pace that lets you really fill in the gaps with an amazing bass line and funky drums to team up on yo’ ass. “The L’s commin’” looms in the background while the boys get the live instruments and jam out on this nearly 8 minute track. Obviously the bass line is the best part for me; this time because I never knew where it and the guitar were going to go next. This is what neo soul, funk, and hip hop used to be about, and I feel like some artists have lost. Listen for the blissful chorus of “I’m takin’ you way out” while you’re at it.

This album is worth the digging I had to do at Amoeba Music in Hollywood to find it. I will be the first one to claim that Neo Soul is about to explode, and if you want to be in the know, then I recommended going out to space with Sa-Ra and take a look around.

Until next time my friends,

~Flak

What better way to get back into my little writers nook than to do a little BaRF action for you guys eh? Let’s begin shall we?

Our boy Dante has been for years an advocate for Brooklyn hip hop, and for good reason. He isn’t your run of the mill artist talking about bullshit. I first really got into him whilst in his powerful duo with MC Talib Kweli, forming Blackstar. Their self titled album debut in 1998, and has remained one of the most important hip hop albums in the industry today. Taking a break from acting, he jumped back in the studio to try and update us on the times.

And while Blackstar hasn’t made their triumphant return just yet, Mos Def recently released his latest work entitled The Ecstatic. Mos takes us on another trip down the deepest parts of all of our cultures, from drugs, to violence, to the war in Iraq. Let’s break it down BaRF style.

Beats 10/10

Just like the lyric in Casa Bey, the entire album has a ‘fantastic rawness’ to it throughout the album. I say this because while keeping the funky Brooklyn vibe alive in later songs, the first half of the album has a Middle Eastern organic feel to it sprinkled about it.

The intro track, Supermagic, was produced by Oh No (the brother of the legendary Madlib) and brings electric guitar to an Islamic culture (very suiting since Def is of Islamic faith) for a very successful beat.

Another favorite of mine is the sixth track, and also the second single off the album, entitled Quiet Dog Bite Hard. It focuses heavily on the drums; many types of drums to be exact. In a live performance on David Letterman (which I wanted to embed, but it was pulled), Mos plays drums along with the band behind him.

Pistola, the tenth track, was also produced by Oh No. Maybe it’s the sampling in the background of Billy Wooten’s In the Rain, or the xylophone playing amongst the track, but it’s beautiful nonetheless.

But Casa Bey, the last track (and also the third single), is by far the best, with a live band jamming out the funky tunes. Produced by Andre Lyon, he made sure he got the east coast feel perfectly right, and I tip my hat to him for it. Some of you may see me bobbing my head to this one around town, even if my speakers are already torn to shreds.

Rhymes  8/10

What can I say really? It’s Mos Def at his finest. I was a fan of his other work, but his writing on this album is for sure his best work yet. While the song Life in Marvelous Times (the 7^th track) isn’t my favorite beat, the message in the lyrics are clever and as usual, picture painting. Here’s a piece of the lyrics:

Ends don’t meet where the arms can’t reach
Mean streets
Even when its free it ain’t cheap.
On going saga, terminal diagnosis,
Basic survival requires super heroics.

No space in the budget for a cake
It’s when you gotta fly by night to save the day

Crash-landings routinely happen
Some survive, others never rise from the ashes.

Watching asphalt and observing the Sabbath.
Creates an ecstatic and there you have it

Featurettes 8/10

While there aren’t that many people jumping on this album, they are very powerful additions. In the studio, you have producer Dre on Casa Bey (although I don’t know what he exactly said), and Georgia Anne Muldrow on Roses.

The two that will attract big flies however; will be Talib Kweli on the J Dilla (whom is resting in peace) produced song History. Talib is always welcome on a Mos Def album to give me a taste of Blackstar. The track may not have been Definition from the Blackstar album, but it’ll do. However, the biggest surprise to me is the addition of the one and only Slick Rick (lahdy dahdy) to the mix, giving his amazing verse about being a soldier in Iraq in the song Audition. While giving that trademark soft humorous tone in his voice, Rick still delivers a powerful message about the state of our war.

But to get to the nitty, the best track all around would have to be Casa Bey, for its overall creativity, from funky bass line intro, to the piano outro to take us home. What’s more, is that the video for the album was extremely creative and original, and with the bonus featurette of The Roots playing live with Mof Def on Jimmy Fallon, it sealed the deal. I’ve delivered (as I always do *wink wink*) the  live video link for you to see what I mean. And here’s the link to the actual music video from YouTube (they didn’t want anyone embedding apparently). MySpace is selling the album for 3.99 so go cop it!

Hopefully this BaRF is just what you needed to eat up before the weekend. More love to come next week!

Until next time my friends,

~Flak