It’s only fitting that at this point in time musically, The Roots would have a single on all your major radio stations on high rotation, I’m talking about The Fire, featuring John Legend which is the second single from the The Roots 2010 album titled How I got over.
The last time The Roots released was in 2008 with Rising Down and this is the 9th studio album from the Philli crew, the last time I was into a Roots album this bad was when they dropped The Tipping Point (2004). The one thing you’ve got to respect about The Roots, is the fact that they don’t change their sound to fit the times but rather they stick to what they know and the times will follow their sound.
The title of the album How I Got Over reflects the relief the band felt at the end of the Bush administration and the beginning of the Obama presidency. The entire album was recorded live, a feat I don’t think many artists can manage in this day and age. The album features the likes of: Beanie Sigel; Young Chris; Chrisette Michelle; L.A. rapper Blu; Phonte of Little Brother; Pharoahe Monch; Cody ChestnuTT; Jim James.
So without further a due lets get to rating the album and the thought process behind it...I’d be lying if I said that I don’t like a single track on this album cause, I like them all but I do have a couple of gems which stand out for me, we’ll get to those a bit later. The album art is typical Roots fare,minimalist, but thats never been a judging factor when it comes to The Roots, what counts is when you pop this album into your CD player and get taken on a journey, and when I say journey, I mean that you won’t want to skip any track once it starts.
Unlike other artists who stretch out songs because they can, this album keeps it simple and straight to the point as there aren’t more than two song (Radio Daze & Now or never) that pass the 4 minute mark which makes for easy listening and a punchy album which gets its message across without you getting aural fatigue. BTW, when the album ends you’re more likely to start it from the beginning again because it’s that fucking good!
As promised here are my Top 3:
1. Doing it again (John Legend sample)
2. Radio Daze (ft P.O.R.N, Blu & Dice Raw)
3. Hustla (Bonus) ft STS
Since this is a top 3 I had to leave out The Fire ft John Legend but trust me it is indeed a firm favourite of mine.
Out of 5 How I got over gets a perfect score, this album is a must have, for any hip hop fan and you’d be a douche not to get this album, from production to the overall feel and mood of the album it is immaculate and trust me I’m not dick riding The Roots, for no good reason. How I got over has made Spin Mag’s Top 20 albums of 2010.
Given the gravity of the current music situation its extremely refreshing to hear some phenomenal music, if you’re a fan of artists such as Lady Gaga and the likes of her you might wanna go and play in the traffic or, feed your ear some soul food and bump this shit!
More info on the Roots:theroots;
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