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ONE OF THE YEAR'S BEST HIP-HOP ALBUMS

It was time for Dante "Beze" Terrell Smith--aka, Mos Def--to make a comeback. Since his groundbreaking debut in 1999 with "Black On Both Sides", he has yet to release a worthy follow up. Sure, "The New Danger" (2004) and "True Magic" (2007) had their moments. They were certainly ambitious, but they were both less than impressive overall. And in recent years he seems to have spent more time on film sets ("Cadillac Records", "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", "The Woodsman") than behind the boards.

"The Ecstatic", Smith’s newly released fourth album, begins with a weighty 1964 speech by Malcolm X--a way, perhaps, of acknowledging the importance of this album, the gravity of the task ahead. Sampling Malcolm X isn't particularly innovative--it was practically de rigeur at one point in hip-hop history--but here it is swiftly followed by “Supermagic", a vigorous opening track that's all lyrical acrobatics and guitar-shredding backdrop. Mos Def clearly does not plan to take prisoners.

The energy unleashed on “Supermagic” propels the album from peak to peak. There’s the parping trombones, coiled twangs and clonking glockenspiels of “Twilite Speedball” (produced by Chad Hugo of The Neptunes). Also the exotic, Indian-inspired “Auditorium” (produced by Madlib), which features a duet between Mos Def and Slick Rick, a rap legend who drops some of his best rhymes here since his "Art Of Storytelling" in 1999. And then there's the sawing, spiralling Oriental strings of “Wahid,” which segues slickly (and somewhat surprisingly) into the rolling piano of “Priority.” At just over a minute long, this latter song is more engaging than most full-length efforts by his contemporaries.

Already it's obvious that "The Ecstatic" is an exhilarating return to form. But there's more. The variety of sounds and styles that unfurls is dazzling, ranging confidently from the intense drums-and-voice of “Quiet Dog” and the glossy, hyper-real “Life In Marvelous Times” (created by Ed Banger producer Mr Flash) to the soulful J Dilla-produced “History”, which features Talib Kweli, Mos Def’s old Black Star sparring partner.

Even more radical are songs like “Roses”, an expansive vocal duet with Georgia Anne Muldrow, a cosmic crooner; “Case Bey”, which samples Banda Black Rio's "Casa Forte"; and the wonderfully mellow “No Hay Nada Mas”, on which Mos Def not only sings, but does so in Spanish.

Naturally, not everything makes the grade. The shuffling “The Embassy” and conceptual sharp-shooter “Pistola” are definitely fillers. Mos Def's vocal limitations are made plain on the meandering and decidedly mediocre “Workers Camp”. Misfires aside, "The Ecstatic" remains one of the best independent hip-hop albums this year. While he might never recapture the potency of his debut, Mos Def has finally created a worthwhile successor.

"The Ecstatic" is available from Downtown Records

~ PAUL SULLIVAN
 

Picture credit: lizdinovella (via Flickr), "The Ecstatic" cover