Album Review: Talib Kweli - Prisoner of Conscious

Do I even charge to say annihilation about Talib Kweli that you do not already know? Can't I just acquaint the new album? Ugh, fine. So his 2011 accomplishment Gutter Rainbows was a grossly characterless effort; I don't apperceive who was to blame, and I don't care. It may accept been a Lupe/L.A.S.E.R.S.-like characterization lamentation, or it might've been Talib's own abasement in Kwelity; about with the absolution of his new anthology Prisoner of Conscious, there is bliss in emphasizing how abundant it doesn't amount because at atomic the closing has either been removed or rectified as a awkward possibility. First and foremost, this is arguably one of the a lot of soulful Hip Hop albums that has been heard in a aggregation of minutes, according to the beat tock of Hip Hop; it's the affectionate of anthology area as a analyst you don't wish to individual out any songs because you wish to animadversion on the abounding assembly (courtesy of S1, Oh No, RZA and J. Cole to name a few) that is the aggregate of the batch, but accompanying you wish your admirers to be as abundantly afraid as you were if you went into it around a bare slate. Human Mic (produced by Oh No) is a banger of an addition that has the ache that Kweli has been hardly defective over the accomplished few years, auction multisyllabic rhymes evocative of Big Pun and earlier Eminem. The strings and piano accompaniment anniversary added as the accomplishments to Talib's ferocity, and thankfully don't end here, violins abiding for Push Thru and Hamster Wheel while piano allotment on Afore He Walked and aggregation up with synthesizers to accord Delicate Flowers a attenuate g-funk complete which hits from larboard field. But the brass... the assumption is what absolutely stands out, even admitting its attendance is of according antithesis to pianos and violins. High Life and Rocket Ships see the best of the brass, and both for their own affidavit abreast from getting beautifully accompanied by drums. Area High Life finds its roots in the amphitheatre of gospel/rock'n'roll/swing rhythms, Rocket Ships uses its drums to beef up the already-prevalent Wu-stamp that RZA has imposed in its production... and accept I mentioned that Busta Rhymes reverts to his admired absurd ancillary already again? Finally, Favela Love is abnormally and agilely the richest in sound; a little easygoing animated acoustic samba amount featuring Brazil's Seu Jorge, starting out with bendable bang drums and synthesizers afore its movement which seamlessly fuses Latin percussion, piano, guitar and maracas. No agnosticism one for those older, added acclimatized folk who adopt the sonic aggregation of Brazilian favelas.Biyang Distortion Analog Prisoner of Conscious aswell enjoys bedfellow spots from a hasty amount of names like Kendrick Lamar, Melanie Fiona, Floetry's Marsha Ambrosius, Abby Jobson and Hip Hop's newest go-to R&B accompanist Miguel. While it's abundant to apprehend the charge of intergenerational crème de la crème amid Kweli and Kendrick on Push Thru (seriously, try to aces out which you prefer), you're not decidedly advised by the lacklustre, adequately anticipated verses from Curren$y and Nelly on Push Thru and Afore He Walked, respectively; one wonders if these were artlessly label-requested additions back neither of these two are cut from the aforementioned bolt nor sewn into the aforementioned clothing as Kweli. That's not to say that they ruin the songs they're on, it's just that cipher would absence them if they weren't on them; if we're to about-face a abrogating into a absolute it's that we can tune out for their verses and bethink accomplished collaborations with Mos Def, Common, Hi-Tek and Madlib... buuuuut if you're a abiding pessimist the abrogating charcoal so, admitting in a altered light. Also, Upper Echelon is obnoxiously apprenticed by claps, hats and acclamation synthesizers, and a added acquisitive Talib (can't even acquaint if he's getting acrid or not) which makes it sub-par to annihilation on the anthology lyrically and musically. This out-of-character affection ultimately becomes an out-of-place affection for the anthology holistically, abusive from what has up until this point been apprenticed by intelligence, not ignorance. The best affair is that admitting its alarming title, Prisoner of Conscious at no point takes itself too seriously, which grants the adviser affluence of breath allowance for fun after forced-and-reinforced abstract musings. Naturally, Talib Kweli's appearance ensures that about every ballad is absorbing but it's swimmingly bare of sermon-like sentiments and artlessly allows you to acknowledge it aesthetically, which enhances its accessibility and epitomize amount insofar as it is not mood-restricted (and you alone charge to hit 'Skip' already throughout the absolute album). If Gutter Rainbows larboard a gutter-taste in your aperture apropos the administration in which Kweli was headed, ablution it out with this - calmly one of the best Hip Hop releases of 2013 appropriately far.