The Roots - "How I Got Over"

[claaa7]

01. "A Peace Of Light"
02. "Walk Alone" (Ft. Truck North, PORN & Dice Raw)
03. "Dear God 2.0" (Ft. Monsters Of Folk)
04. "Radio Daze" (Ft. Blu, PORN & Dice Raw)
05. "Now Or Never" (Ft. Phonte & Dice Raw)
06. "How I Got Over" (Ft. Dice Raw)
07. "DillaTUDE: Flight Of The Titus"

08. "The Day" (Ft. Blu, Phonte & Patty Crash)
09. "Right On" (Ft. STS & Joanna Newman)
10. "Doin' It Again"
11. "The Fire" (Ft. John Legend)
12. "Tunnel Vision"
13. "Web 20/20" (Ft. Truck North & Peedi Peedi)
14. "Hustla" (Ft. STS)

[claaa7]

Celebrated legendary The Roots crew is back! My most anticipated album of 2010 also turns out to be my personal favorite so far. All the elements of the traditional The Roots sound are present when ?ùestlove, Black Thought, Dice Raw and the gang bangs out 11 fresh songs where self-revelation in rhyme form, fierce backstreet rhyming meets sparse soundscapes, crispy smacking drums that puts most samplers to shame and catchy hooks with meaning behind them. The crew takes a step back from the blistering, digital synth-headed monster that was 2008s “Rising Down” in favor for a warmer atmosphere reminiscent of structured jam sessions, mellow live instrumentation and a clear nod to ‘70s soul.

The 11 songs found on “How I Got Over” sound more polished and clean than previous offerings; all tracks on the album are built with a strong foundation – structure is the keyword. Short instrumental opening and closening, 16 bars from Black Thought, guest vocalist for chorus, 16 bars by guest MC, take ‘em back to the chorus! It’s a slamming hip-hop album, but one that is built as traditional pop records, the choruses (delivered by a wide array of guest stars from John Legend to Iceland singer Patty Crashand long-time affiliate Dice Raw) have, unlike most of the material played on the radio today, meaning behind them but are delivered in such a way that, just like the material played on the radio today, they might very well get stuck in your head after hearing them. With the right promotion behind the album, “How I Got Over”, could probably do well on the charts therefore and considering they are backed up by Def Jam it’s a god damn shame most people probably don’t even know that this is being released.

Hip-hop heads and Roots fans don’t have to be alarmed about the more broadened sound and pop references in this review (think of “pop music” in terms of, say, Gnarls Barkley or Broken Bells rather than Britney Spears or parts of Eminem’s latest album), because this is still in many ways an MC’s show. Between “Do You Want More?!” and “Illadelph Halflife”, the crews main MC Black Thought had developed into one of the most technically skilled rappers the rap game had seen. It has taken him a hard time getting the proper recognition he deserves though, some might say he was lacking in charisma and persona back then but with each and every album his skills and character takes a step even further forwards. On “How I Got Over”, Black Thought touches on a lot of interesting and personal subjects and views, inviting the listener into his thoughts and his world. The single “Dear God 2.0”, for example, is a heartfelt prayer to the most high asking the ever so current question of what’s wrong with this world. Over somber melancholic piano notes Tariq raps “Technology turning the planet into zombies, Everybody all in everybody's dirty laundry/ Acid rain, earthquakes, hurricane, tsunamis, terrorist, crime sprees, assaults, and robberies/ Cops yellin' stop, freeze, Shoot him before he try to leave/ Air quality so foul, I gotta try to breath/ Endangered species, and we runnin' out of trees”. When coupled with a deep chorus sung by The Monsters of Folk, who is allowed to take up about as much space as Black Thought himself on the song, all the pieces fall into place and catapult the song into a brilliant balance act between old school hip-hop morals and obscure alternative pop music.

Clocking in at right under the 43 minutes mark, the album is a quick run but in turn is a well-worth listen from beginning to end. Every song carries on perfectly from the previous to next, making sure both the themes of the songs and the instrumental backscapes follows a straight line. Both the sequencing and mixing is top-notch all the way through, and every joint manages to grab me while listening. Tracks like the opening “Walk Alone” and “Now Or Never” will have you following every line that Black Thought and the guest MC’s (which includes Blu and Phonté) deliver while “Right On”, “The Fire” and “Hustla” are heavy headbangers with pounding drums and raw lyrics that’ll put a smile on every hip-hop purists face. More or less my only complaint is how Black Thought doesn’t get enough space in my opinion. The Roots has always felt like a family who sounds best with many guests on projects, with Black taking the lead and this has become even more evident with every release since “Game Theory”. I would have liked at least one, straight rhyming, hardcore joint with Tariq just flowing straight through – a tradition that have runned ever since Malik B departed from the crew. “Rising Down” had a lot of guests all over, but it had that one RAW BT joint where he just shredded the mic on “75 Bars”. At such a short length I believe that could have given the album an extra point, but either way it’s hard to not love this album when ?uestlove samples a crying baby in autotune for the bonus track “The Hustle” to success.

As ?uestlove explained in a recent interview promoting the album that the album doesn’t have, unlike most other releases from the group, that need to grow on you. It is probably their safest album concept-wise but with 15 years honing their skill and professionalism in the game they have found a perfect formula that can be liked by a broad number of people without making their long-time followers disappointed.

It’s amazing how the group constantly manages to write, perform and record such dope music, year after year, and they more or less always filter away the bullshit before releasing the album to the public. In this day and age some might complain about the short length of the album after 2 years of waiting, but clocking in at only 42 minutes with 11 songs (weaved together by 3 instrumental intermissions) the group has made sure they’re only giving us the absolute best they got the offer with this release. It’s hard to complain at all though since all the songs are noteworthy entries into The Roots brilliant discography, definitely a contender for best album of the year.

4.6/5

[RynMur]

The Roots never dissapoint. I have this as my second favorite album of the year (behind Distant Relatives).

Top 5: Dear God 2.0, Radio Daze, The Day, Right One, Hustle
Grade: (4.5/5) A

[THE MASON]

very inuitive review and in depth look at tracks.

i bought this album but have yet to jump into it. from this review i gather it is nothing but gold on account of The Roots Crew, i own there entire discog minus Organix and Legendary EP (which i need!). i just got that comp you put together and will be giving that some spins.

after reading this review, imma spin this album and go from there, but i have no doubts that the 5th Dynasty dropped another masterpiece of an album

[claaa7]

this is still getting daily spins, such a good and cosistent album. everything is right on point, from the themes, to the beats, to Tariq's lyrical performance and the guest singers and MC's. i'm not 100% sure yet since their discography is so fucking ill but this might just very well be The Root's best album since "Things Fall Apart".

[djskillz]

^I dunno. Game Theory is a strong contender for me.

[Durag]

Fuckin amazing album. Been listening to it non stop the last few days. This along with Nas & Damien Marley are albums of the year so far for me.

Production, rhymes, hooks everything are amazing. The sound on this album is technically superb, not over produced and allows the rapping and singing space to shine. A real mature album that is almost flawless.

The Roots have easily one of the most consistant and greatest back catalogues in the history of hip-hop and this just adds to their legacy. Amazing stuff.

[roodyp4364]

This album keeps getting better with each spin. Listened to it a ton when it came out then got up to date on all the Madlib Medicine Shows. When I needed some rhymes I went back to HIGO and haven't stopped listening since. Even my friends who aren't huge hip hop fans are bumping this on the reg. Always thought Rising Down would be my favorite Roots album (more so b/c the lyrical content) but this might be even better. Only time will tell. 4.5/5