Guru’s Jazzmatazz "Streetsoul"
Virgin
Guru’s Jazzmatazz “Streetsoul”
Virgin
If you’ve got questions about cool music, take them to the
Guru. The jazz aficionado MC’s third disc,
“Streetsoul,” proves that his name is more than apt;
he’s got all the answers. The 16 tracks aren’t strict
jazz, they’re more in the vein of “˜70s soul. No need to
split hairs, though, because whatever you call it,
“Streetsoul” is an impressive album. With killer
samples laid together by a variety of disc jockeys and producers,
the tracks both stand alone and make a solid compilation. The song
listing reads like a veritable laundry list of today’s
neo-soul all-stars. Macy Gray, Erykah Badu, the Roots and Kelis all
drop in, each complimenting Guru’s steady-flowing raps
nicely.With their help, he navigates through a comfortably cool
soundscape. Gray and company are pretty new in the soul game,
though. With this in mind, Guru throws in some of the titans. Isaac
Hayes contributes “Night Vision,” a slick update of his
Shaft-era “Walk from Regios,” and Herbie Hancock rocks
on a potent groove with “Timeless.” Though
“Streetsoul” isn’t terribly broad, staying within
the same nifty confines from start to finish, the mix works well.
He describes his concept in the liner notes as such: “I
wanted the thugged out cats to be like “˜Damn! That’s
some pimp shit I can listen to with my girl.'” While
that may be true, you don’t have to be “thugged
out” to recognize the quality that Guru is dishing out.
He’s got enough soul for the street, the bedroom and far
beyond.
Brent Hopkins Rating: 8
Deltron 3030 “Deltron 3030″ 75
Ark
Many recent hip-hop albums can be characterized as above-average
or even good, but few can be described as excellent or gain the
heralded hip-hop classic status. “Deltron 3030,” the
self-titled album from the crew of rapper Del tha Funkee
Homosapien, producer Dan “the Automator” Nakamura and
DJ Kid Koala, is one of the former. The album has immense
potential, but in the end it leaves the listener feeling that
something is lacking. The Automator is at full strength on this
album, with some of his best beats since 1996’s “Dr
Octagonecologyst” album, on which the Automator teamed up
similarly with rapper Kool Keith and DJ Q-Bert. “3030”
is a beautifully layered track that almost overloads the
listener’s senses. “Things You Can Do” is another
standout song, one so psychedelic you forget for a second that you
are listening to a hip hop album. Del tha Funkee Homosapien, of
Hieroglyphics fame, doesn’t quite mix well enough with some
of the Automator’s tracks. His style is worlds apart from the
comedic freestyles he displayed in the 1994 solo release “No
Need For Alarm,” and his futuristic ramblings can be seen as
trying to copy those of Kool Keith on the Dr. Octogon release, with
questionable results. Whereas Kool Keith is whimsical and quotable,
Del sometimes seems to babble on this album. This is not to say
that “Deltron 3030″ is a bad album. The Automator
proves he is one of the best producers in hip hop. Del is an ideal
choice to replace Kool Keith after Dr. Octagon’s breakup
(there is rumor of bad blood between the Automator and Kool Keith),
and his somewhat monotone voice does lend a sort of futuristic,
computer-like feel. Del and the Automator work well enough to
produce a few great tracks. The problem is that comparisons to the
“Dr Octagonecologyst” album are inevitable. Both were
futuristic concept albums with the Automator, emcee and DJ. While
“Dr Octagonecologyst” contained immensely funny skits
and excellent DJ work by Q-Bert, many of the skits on
“Deltron 3030″ are lacking (some are downright terrible
and really hurt the album), and Kid Koala’s DJ work
isn’t as pervasive as it could be. “Deltron 3030″
is still a very good album with a few fantastic tracks, but on the
whole it leaves the listener feeling as if the artists’
talents haven’t been used to their full potential.
Anthony Quinonez Rating: 7
Godspeed You Black Emperor! “Lift Your Skinny
Fists Like Antennas To Heaven” Kranky
Lead vocals, memorable melodies and a catchy name are the
qualities of a successful band. They are also the qualities that
Godspeed You Black Emperor! tastefully neglect. Based on slowly
building symphonic crescendos and small snippets of spoken word,
“Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven” is a
two-disc album with only four tracks, each of which is unnamed.
Although the musicians of Godspeed You Black Emperor! are always
changing, the band usually has at least 9 members and includes
instruments such as violin, cello and at least two percussionists.
Due to the diversity of instruments the band touts, Godspeed You
Black Emperor! is renowned for its regal, sweeping soundscapes. The
first track of “Lift “ is an ideal example of how
Godspeed You Black Emperor! creates a majestic opus in place of a
recognizable song. Beginning quietly as an innocent waltz, the
unnamed piece slowly builds into a musical tantrum and is followed
with a brief commercial-like female voice welcoming patrons to a
convenience store. The music is slow and deliberate, and comes off
with a surprising amount of emotional force. Like the rest of the
album, the 21 minutes that make up the first track do not have any
singing. The track also does not have any melodies that will be
remembered. Godspeed You Black Emperor! has created a paradox in
“Lift,” both a musical gem and a pretentious
abstraction of words and dissonance. Godspeed You Black Emperor!
most resembles a mix between drawn-out Pink Floyd songs such as
“Shine On You Crazy Diamond,” a chamber orchestra and
an open mic night at a local coffee shop. The sound of
“Lift” stirs up nostalgia of the past, disappointment
at the present, and a fear of the future. After paying active
attention to the musical layers of “Lift,” listeners
will feel a sense of exhaustion and confusion. The somber tone that
resonates throughout the album only adds to this feeling of
indelible wonder. In a scary way, “Lift” is the
progression of today’s alternative music. Like Radiohead’s
new album, “Kid A,” “Lift” breaks away from
the washed-up, angst-driven racket of distortion and screaming that
has become the standard of today’s music scene.
Antero Garcia Rating: 7
U2 “All That You Can’t Leave Behind”
Interscope Records
U2’s latest album “All That You Can’t Leave
Behind” has been anticipated by music fans everywhere for a
long time. With their return to working with some of their
producers from back in the day, the band promised to leave the
sound of their disappointing last album, “Pop,” and go
back to the rock roots of albums like their 1986 classic,
“The Joshua Tree.” U2’s appeal over the years has
come from the absolutely unbridled passion, which always emanated
from their music. With poignant lyrics and endless energy, the band
has been pleasing fans for over 20 years. Sadly, the newest album
lacks this distinctive quality. There are a few great tracks, but
the record has two glaring flaws. The first one is the fact that
the album as a whole has a really strange flow. You know that there
must be lyrics to all of these songs, but unless you pay very close
attention, you have no clue what the heck they are. Upon casual
listening, the album drags through and seems to melt into an
endless mesh of Bono moaning in different keys over the sound of
redundant melodies. The second major problem with this album is the
blatant lack of originality. All of the songs sound like something
you’ve heard elsewhere, if not by this band, then definitely
by another. Most of the lyrics reflect the same banality as well,
leaving you to wonder if U2’s attempt at simplicity left them
instead with monotony. The song entitled “New York,”
which is presumably meant to be an homage to the city, sounds like
a lot of nothing with Bono interrupting every once in a while to
wail, “in New York.” “Peace on Earth” is a
borderline desperate attempt by the band to make some kind of a
point (which, of course, used to be their specialty), but sounds
more like a fourth grade English project. This particular song is
so cheesy that it elevates Michael Jackson’s “Heal the
World” to the status of an intricate political satire. There
are three songs on this album that are above average. The first
one, “Beautiful Day” is the first single off the record
and is receiving a lot of radio play. It is upbeat and
entertaining, and has a great melody. “In a Little
While” and “Wild Honey” appear back to back on
the album, and are the only other points of light worth mentioning.
“In a Little While” is the best song on the album. A
soulful ballad, it sticks to a simple guitar melody but amplifies
it with gorgeous lyrics and a sincere vocal performance.
“Wild Honey” is a similar love song, but it leans more
towards folk rock, something that the band pulls off surprisingly
well. Nowadays, it is a rare thing to find a talented rock
“˜n’ roll band who is still coming up with solid new
albums. U2 had raised a lot of hopes in those people who have been
waiting for such a phenomenon, but “All That You Can’t
Leave Behind” just doesn’t fit the bill. The album is
not all bad. If curiosity or devotion to the band make you want to
buy it, it is probably one of the better new albums out there. But
the smartest move would probably be to find a couple of the better
songs elsewhere. As far as the rest of the album is concerned, you
can leave just about all of it behind.
Leila Mobayen Rating: 5
Russell Simins “Public Places” Grand
Royal
Not so long ago, in a normal, civilized society, people used to
try and fix themselves up to go out in public. Well, Russell Simins
may sing about those public places, but he sure doesn’t try
and polish himself up before stepping out into them. He’s
just kind of wandering around in sweats and an undershirt, like he
just woke up and forgot to take a shower. Though Simins earned
accolades for his work with Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, he
deserves little credit for his solo debut. He’s still an
awesome drummer, just like he was with JSBX, but he needs a lot of
work before he will make it as a frontman. “Public
Places” aims for the sonic collage feeling of Beck’s
“Midnight Vultures,” but instead only climbs to the
lame level of Everlast’s washed-out acoustic/electronic
hybrid. That’s not a huge surprise, given that
Everlast’s engineer Jamey Staub co-wrote 10 of the 13 tracks
that bog down the album. Whether Staub or Simins himself deserves
the blame is unclear, but there’s no denying that whoever was
behind this made a lame album. The main problem results from Simins
trying to stretch himself too far. One minute he’s singing
acoustic ballads as he does with little success on
“Comfortable Place,” the next he’s rocking out on
“I’m Not a Model” and “No 90210.”
While he’s likely trying to show off the wide scope of his
musical understanding, it instead sounds like he’s just
grabbing at straws. There are a few rays of light in an otherwise
muddled scene. Simins and his collaborators whip up nice grooves on
“Don’t You Believe” and “Scope,”
achieving minor catchiness, at least. He also finds unlikely help
from popsters Chyna and Bijou Phillips on “No Straight
Line,” a decently-crafted jam. Overall, “Public
Places” rarely rises above the decent level. If Simins stuck
with the drumming instead of trying to overextend his musical
talents, he’d be fine. Too bad he doesn’t do that
here.
Brent Hopkins Rating: 3