Caged Birdsong

I'm a fan of Madlib and anything he does, so when I was reading about two new records that he released on his label Stones Throw, I got excited. But in the review, one was stated as being better than the other, and when I was at the record store, I couldn't remember which was which. So I bought "Shine Through" from Aloe Blacc.

I think I made the right decision. The review that I had read was a distant memory as to the actual content of the records, so I didn't know what I was getting into.

When you first put on the record, you start thinking that it's a soul thing with underground hip hop style beats. Lots of jazz influence. Then the second track is a cover of Sam Cooke's "Long Time Coming," and the soul thing starts gaining some momentum. But then "Are You Ready" starts reminding me of some dancehall type stuff with Afro-beat music. "Busking" is exactly what the title says: singing on the street, a cappella. Busking is the term used to refer to making money by being a street entertainer. This guy is all over the damned place, because "Bailar" (scene 1) is fucking salsa! And "Nacimento" is bossa nova! But with "Dance For Life," he brings back the soul with some electro beats. Oh, wait, "Patria Mia" is a Mexican pop song...and then the title track "Shine Through" is a gentle ballad. But that's followed by "Caged Birdsong," hip hop in the vein of Soul Position or the Roots. The rest of the album has more ballads, more hip hop, and closes out with a flamenco.

Did I mention he's from LA? Yeah, and he's half of the indie rap cult heroes EMANON with DJ Exile.

Fuckin' a. Check out Aloe Blacc's site here, his MySpace here, and go out and buy this record.