The Roots - Do You Want More?!!!??! (1995)
Oh wow oh wow oh wow. I was pretty convinced that jazz-rap wasn't for me after I wasn't really moved at all by "Organix". Sure, I grew up with some A Tribe Called Quest, but it's hard to dislike them, and sure, I liked Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp a Butterfly" a bit, but (coming through with a controversial opinion in 3.. 2.. 1..) a lot of the jazz elements on that album sound so overproduced and with a complete lack of soul, but you know what "Do You Want More?!!!??!" has? SOUL. HOLY FUCK DOES IT HAVE SOUL, and I don't mean that shitty "soul" you saw from episodes of "American Idol" growing up, I mean MOTHERFUCKING SOUL AND FEELING. If you don't believe me, just listen to "Datskat" and realize that these guys know how to make you wanna move! This album is.. Wow! I didn't really like the last album much, but this is fucking great. Black Thought is a great MC, the instrumentalists know how to relax you AND get your head bobbing to some smooth as fuck tunes, and even in the parts that repeat vocally, I find myself sinking into the music very comfortably, thinking "ah damn this is SWEET AS FUCK", and find myself repeating a lot of the choruses under my breath while doing other shit. I don't have a terrible lot to say about this album, because I'm a terrible writer, but this album really does take you to a much more peaceful state of mind. I could listen to these guys jam for hours. Seriously, when you hear their mixture of upright bass, crisp drums, and keyboards, it'll be hard for you not to want to scream along with the choruses.
8/10
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Feel free to check out the song previews/buy this album using my Amazon Associate link!
