******
- Verified Buyer
Wow. First, a bit of history. The Roots had been trying to leave Universal for some time because they wanted more artistic control over their product. The Tipping Point would be the last album that they'd release while under contract with Universal and though that album was solid enough, there was something missing. To me at least, it was almost like Phrenology Part II, where they'd experimented a little bit but left some of the experimentation unfinished.Fast forward to this album about 2 years later and The Roots have aligned themselves with Def Jam, which at the time, was being headed by Jay Z. Jay Z was adamant about The Roots staying true to themselves and their sound, so this was a match made in heaven for them. You can feel these vibes because this album BUSTS out of the gate. The first 5 tracks are sensational. The title track is very much hard hitting and marks the return of long time Black Thought friend, Malik B. In my opinion, Malik B is a bit overrated, but the vibe and the way his verse busts out over the top notch production gave me the chills. Don't Feel Right follows the title track and again, the production is solid. The bass, drum, and synth feature heavily to provide the sonic backdrop for Thought's musings about hard and ever changing times. The next track, In The Music, presents us with a dark sound scape which elicits mental pictures of grimy alleyways and seedy urban scenes as Thought talks about South Philly. Malik B also makes an appearance on this track and, again, he sounds okay. But for me, the coup de grace was Clock With No Hands, which is a somber recollection of life's failed relationships and other types of regret. The synth features heavily again with an unusual timing pattern and rhythm that seem so natural.There's a lot to like and talk about here and I think my review ran a bit too long, so I'm going to end it here. For those that haven't experienced The Roots before, this would be a fine album to start with. Just listen to a few tracks, and you'll be hooked.
