CD Review: The Roots, Rising Down
Jun 2, 2008 10:35 PM Dominic Umile (Writer)
After reaching an
inconceivably devastating high in 2006, the number of homicides in Philadelphia
neared 400 one year later. One can't help but consider what this damning
statistic has contributed to the output from The Roots, the city's most revered
hip-hop outfit, or to any artist who has painted his or her surroundings in the
detail that these guys have. The gloom lingers like an opaque fog on Rising Down, as the veterans lace
chilling keyboard buzzes with social critique and gritty narratives.
Lead MC Tariq "Black
Thought" Trotter fires with a vengeance on The Roots' 10th LP, and
although it isn't always gray skies, each verse from him rings with eloquence
and political ferocity. Between guest DJ Jazzy Jeff's cuts, Trotter addresses
bureaucratic ills on "Get Busy" ("Sicko show like Mike
Moore's/My city ain't nothing like yours"), and alongside Malik B. and
Talib Kweli on "Lost Desire," he illuminates violence among Philly's
youth to a greater extent, while challenging the notion that things will
improve. Thick, grimy synth lines; crunchy snares; and sullen tuba, Rising Down is the sound of a city
dodging, swaying and punching back.
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