The Roots
Things Fall Apart
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The Roots
Things Fall Apart
MCA, 1999
RiYL: Blackstar, Wu-Tang, elevating your own damn consciousness |
The album opens with the band (yes, they are a band as well as a crew of rappers) playing over the audio of a scene from Spike Lee's "Mo Better Blues." The dialogue, which concerns waning black populations at jazz shows, puts the album to follow in prime context. Though the music forms are different, the "Too many blacks are unaware of this incredible musical heritage" vs. "If you give them what they want, they'll come to the shows" argument is even more poignant when applied to black music of today, especially the greater part of mainstream rap.
While Puffy and his cronies score big commercially by lightly dusting '80s pop samples with beats and ear-candy lyrics, The Roots fall into a more respectable realm, learning from and paying homage to their influences but not stopping short of creating innovative and powerful art. Of course samples abound, but they're used as instruments, accentuating the songs rather than serving as their entire foundation.
The Roots have been lumped with "alternative rap" on occasion, but this meaningless label probably speaks to the media's reluctance to admit (post-Public Enemy) that intelligence exists in rap. The lyrics of Things Fall Apart are intelligent, deeply so, and their music is about as rootsy as rap gets.
The song-by-song liner notes explain the album's genesis, but the most insight can be gained by listening to the actual tracks and being educated and entertained by the lyrics' level of consciousness. This album will make you think, and it will make your body move. Whichever you want, the Roots' third joint comes highly recommended.
TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.