Decade Recap (2000s)

[RadioBallet]

After listening to Igor last night and writing a mediocre-at-best excuse for a paragraph about it, I decided to update my chart for the 2010s. I was greatly disappointed, though not surprisingly, to see I had only listened to about half the albums I intended to, a small fraction of what I intended to do. Despite the failed project I did learn a couple of things to keep in mind going forward. First, deadlines will destroy the original ambition of any project of this sort I undertake. I felt pretty good until October came along and I saw myself hard-pressed to finish by New Years, causing me to not only listen to less albums, but also limit myself to ones I knew and could think less on when writing. This killed the write-ups and led to half-formed opinions. I also learned that context is more important than I thought when it comes to getting the most out of an album. Just one listen without any foreknowledge on the artist and their previous work is the menial effort and reaps about as much as it sows. Lastly, rating from 0-100 gets messy if you have no concrete formula, and as my opinions tend to fluctuate since I am still exploring at an early stage I prefer to leave room for minor adjustments. With these three things in mind, I've chosen to move on to the 2000s for redundancy's sake without a deadline. I'll also give quality time and research to each album I listen to. I will also rate in a more simplified 1-10 scale (though I will keep a backup 1-100 on a separate Excel, just in case. I won't set any criteria or limit on the amount of albums I listen to from a single year, basing myself on what I find interesting or relevant. I also want to give time to the Random Album Button, I miss that. Here's to mistakes and endless restarts, so thank you internet.

[RadioBallet]

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Voodoo by D'Angelo
January 25, 2000 // Neo-Soul

Understatedly a key player in the birth of neo-soul, D’Angelo and contemporaries like Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu took the modernized branching-offs of 60’s and 70’s soul and injected them with urban rhythm and hip hop instrumentals during the late 90’s. D’Angelo’s 1995 debut album Brown Sugar, which I think is great, made use of this sound while remaining very pop-oriented, led along by D’Angelo’s subtly powerful and sensual delivery. After this release D’Angelo suffered through four years of writer’s block. During this period two important things happened which I see as setting the groundwork for Voodoo. First was the birth of his son in 1998, which was an inspiring enough experience to tear down his writer’s block. Secondly, he noticed that R&B was heading in a direction he didn’t like. He foresaw it forgetting its origins in soul and funk, becoming nothing more than urbanized pop music. After listening extensively to the music which inspired his work, he was ready to get back in the studio.

There are a few things that cause me to consider Voodoo as a superior work not only to Brown Sugar but also to many of the releases within its own sphere of influence. First, I found the album to be very challenging. While his debut album clicked with me over a single listen, it took me nearly ten listens to lock into the funk and soul-inspired groove of Voodoo (but what a groove that is). The magical moment really came when I decided to play along on my bass to the opening track. That did it, which brings me to another point I wanted to make, which is the bass playing, or aptly, Pino Palladino’s bass playing. This album is a bass juggernaut, though in no way flashy or evident at that, rather holding its strength in subtlety and restraint. The last thing that I find is special about this album is the loose, organic sound it sports, which is something Brown Sugar was missing. This quality was attained through a peculiar studio trick in which the instrumentals are thrown very slightly off the beat. It makes for a refreshing and ingenious experience. The album culminates with Untitled (How Does it Feel), perhaps the artist’s masterpiece. Negatives? Perhaps the rap features on Left and Right feel out of place? Though all the tracks are great, I think a few could have been a little more engaging, perhaps they’ll grow on me even more with time. All minor things, really.

This was a tough one to get into, but the outcome upon clicking was far more than worth it. Now I feel ready to take on Black Messiah, which I skipped in the 2010 series for lack of time to spend on juice-squeezing. I’m glad I’m taking the time with the 2000s because this one would have gotten skipped if under the circumstances of the 2010 series.

Rating: 9/10

[RadioBallet]

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The Noise Made By People by Broadcast
March 20, 2000 // Dream Pop, Neo-Psychedelia

Sporting a peculiar blend of 60’s psychedelic pop and modern electronics, UK band Broadcast shows up on their debut with an already well-formed and unique aesthetic. They were so settled on their sound, in fact, that they went through three producers before relying on themselves to find the sound they desired. On my first few listens I was looking at The Noise Made By People from a conventional point of view, but I soon realized its strengths are in the atmosphere and mood it creates rather than the songs themselves. It’s a smooth ride, with relatively few peaks and troughs or changes in theme or mood. It features one bewitching and trance-inducing track after another. The album is littered with beautiful detail, such as the chilly and tragic string/synth sample in Until Then, or the percussion work in the opener. As for highlights, Come On Let’s Go is a perfect example of their retro-futurist pop blend. Tower of Our Tuning reveals the band’s movie soundtrack inspirations. It’s a track that is a little more intense than the others. It’s haunting, disorienting and richly layered. The fact that this along with two other tracks are fully instrumental and yet manage to feel as important as the rest of the album is proof that the band was aiming high. This album has been slowly growing on me during these couple of weeks that I’ve been listening to it and I hope it continues to do so.

Rating: 7/10