Sound Ancestors - Madlib: Review
Madlib
is one of hip hop's all time great producers whose crate digging underground style became hugely influential in the 2000's. In the 2010's he continued to influence with a pair of massively acclaimed collaborative albums with Freddie Gibbs as well as being credited with production on tracks from a number of the daceded biggest rap records. While this is a record unlike any others Madlib has ever released under hit own name it is also a collaboration of sorts as co-production and mixing credits across the album are given to Kieran Hebden AKA microhouse legend Four Tet.
Review By Lav:
I was excited for this record for a couple reasons. Obviously whenever Madlib puts his name to anything there is a quality standard you anticipate given his unmatched pedigree. But I was also excited that there aren't many albums you could consider true solo Madlib records and the prospect of him putting his own artistic vision to this records entirety entice me. Not to mention that I'm a long time Four Tet fan and what Kieran brought to this record excited me across a trio of singles. As it turns out the record is abstract and quite versatile with an array of sounds you certainly won't hear anywhere else, and I enjoyed it.
The record is mostly made up of a bunch of shorter more abstract songs that stylistically bounce around a lot but when a song settles primarily on one sound it usually works out. Road Of The Lonely Ones forecasted this as a lead single with a hypnotizing array of rich drums working in the background and an impressive variety of textures throughout. The song is formatted around the vocal samples that give the track its title and I like it just as much now as I did as a single. The Call has a slick two-step drum beat wrapped around two short but hard-hitting vocal samples with a thick bassline holding everything together. Two For 2 is labelled as being for J Dilla and it brings up some classic Dilla-isms as a result. It brings soulful vocal samples and rough around the edges production with drums that absolutely pop for a fun track feeling straight out of Donuts.
The New Normal comes completely out of nowhere in the records final leg to be one of my favorite songs on the entire project. It's got an ethereal blend of hip hop and rock instrumentation that sounds cool as fuck and I can't get enough of it. Duumbiyay has a sample I know I've heard somewhere before but unfortunately I can't quite place it. It's a cool closing track to the record pairing those raw vocals with an up-tempo jazz instrumental that results in some impossibly smooth moments. The only thematically straight track that didn't so much for me was Latino which gets its name from the latin guitars that make up almost all of its instrumentation. While it is definitely a change of pace from the rest of the record I don't think it really holds water throughout its entire runtime. It definitely doesn't justify being one of the longest songs on the record with how single-minded it is in its focus.
Dirtknock was another single that sounds a lot closer to the instrumental hip hop we've come to expect from Madlib. It is simple but surprisingly catchy with great texture and a beat that holds firm. Hang Out brings a similar energy with a smooth lowkey groove and infectious energy that works well enough. Theme De Crabtree comes right out of the Flying Lotus playbook with rattling percussion and afrocentric vocal sampling. It's fun and catchy despite being a bit one note.
Some of the most interesting and talked about tracks from the record are the ones that make major stylistic switches throughout. Hopprock is the only one of these singles that took a bit of an abstract approach and it didn't really hit me all at once as a single. Even with the complete track in touch it is a mix of cool sounds that only sometimes add up to what sounds like a full song. The title track Sound Ancestors kicks off with nothing but a raw tribal percussion loop which slowly gains in speed and intensity before disappearing out of nowhere. The song then runs through a strange almost sound collage style progression with obtuse drumming and what I think are pan flutes. It's a strange journey for sure. Finally One For Quartabe/Right Now is one of the busiest songs here full of vocal samples and versatile instrumentation built around some groovy keys. The vocal samples are arranged in a bright fun way and it continues into the even more random second half. It has all kinds of different sounds coming our of nowhere for an experience that keeps me on my toes.
Sound Ancestors is a strange otherworldly experience full of surreal samples and versatile sounds. While not everything on the record is perfect it rarely ever settles on one sound for long enough for it to get stale. While it is hard to tell exactly how Madlib and Four Tet contributed to the record individually its clear that what the sounds they assembled lack in strong direction they make up for in refreshing creativity. The record isn't quite a beat tape, it's not quite electronica, its not really plunderphonics either but that lack of definition is actually a strength for the songs. There isn't much here you can get anywhere else and I see myself coming back to the project for months trying to dig up every little sound I can because even just on the surface the record is a treat. 7.5/10
Album Cover Review By Tyler Judson:
