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Forum nameThe Lesson
Topic subjectKeys! Keys everywhere!
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=5&topic_id=2872619&mesg_id=2873637
2873637, Keys! Keys everywhere!
Posted by Hitokiri, Tue Mar-04-14 08:47 PM
While the story of the last two albums has been the improving of Black Though (and Malik to a lesser extent) the story of this album is really the much increased musicality. It really gives TFA a depth musically that we hadn't really seen before. A lot of that seems attributed to Storch, but the wiki says he was a part of the band from 93-95. But I know he's got writing credits on TFA so maybe that's not accurate.
The album is still too long, though. Again. But that's a sign of the time it was released. I remember going to Best Buy and Circuit City in the late 90s/early 00s and holding 2-3 cds in my hand and using how many songs as a one of my criteria for picking which one to buy. I could definitely do without The Spark on this one. The verse are actually pretty dope, but I don't like the hook at all. I think the strongest songs are "The Next Movement," "Ain't Sayin' Nothin New," "100% Dundee," "Adrenalin!", and "You Got Me." Those songs epitomize what the Roots were all about at this time to me. The Dundee through Don't See Us stretch is probably the strongest on the album. Which is the same way I felt when the album first came out. I definitely appreciate those other tracks way, way more than I did as a 14 year old.
The Ursula piece on this album is probably my "favorite" of all her Roots poems, but again, it could definitely be left off as I don't think it adds anything to the album other than showing that The Roots are "deep" or "conscious" or whatever.

4.25/5