REVIEW: The Roots, Things Fall Apart (MCA)
- Lang Whitaker
The latest CD from The Roots, Things Fall Apart, comes at a time when things seemed to be coming together for the Philadelphia-based, organic hip-hop combo. After disassociating themselves from Geffen Records and inking a new deal with MCA, The Roots were said to be a much happier group of late (The Roots reportedly were less than thrilled with Geffen's hip-hop marketing schemes).
But on Things Fall Apart, the total sound of The Roots appears to have had a colonic. No longer stuffed full of jazzy instrumental spills and throbbing bass, The Roots have toned everything but the vocals down, creating a sleeker, more streamlined sound. This works particularly well on tracks like "Dynamite!" and "Act Too (Love of My Life)."
With their air time increased, The Roots' rappers -- Black Thought (born Tariq Trotter) and Malik B. -- are forced to get on the mike and deliver more than ever before. Black Thought's voice is steeped in sizzle, boasting and bragging his way throughout the record. But for the most part, his lyrics lack luster, as he continues proclaiming his and Philadelphia's supremacy. Though Malik remains a supporting character -- the Ed McMahon to Black Thought's Johnny Carson -- on Things Fall Apart Malik turns in his best performance yet, flipping phrases and words with an insouciant, Redman-like tone, showing audible artistic growth from his efforts a few years back.
Most of The Roots' recent acclaim is spurred by the sumptuously laconic love movement "You Got Me," a ghetto fable of star-crossed lovers whose lives have them unknowingly crossing paths, before they ultimately come together only to, natch, fall apart. Easily the best song on Fall Apart (and probably the best hip-hop song of '99 thus far), "You Got Me" allows earthy soul diva Erykah Badu to keep her turban in the public eye, as she croons the undecipherable yet unrelenting hook. The songs climaxes on the final chorus, when Roots drummer ?uestlove drops the beat in favor of a funked out series of jungle speed bumps. In this final 40 seconds, The Roots show what sets them apart from the rest of hip-hop's Phat Farm-wearin' crowd: their musical ability.
Though most rap groups are content to let their producers shape their sound (which means all live performances are basically professional Karaoke), The Roots have always included a full band along with their rhymes. Drummer ?uestlove is as metronomic as usual, but the rest of the crew (including Leonard Hubbard on bass and the multifarious Kamal on keyboards & guitars) steps into the role of human samplers, basically playing simple little instrumental parts over and over again. They don't sample the sounds, but they might as well.
The live forum has traditionally been where The Roots find their stride, as their instruments are allowed to roam free. If their gorgeous performance of "You Got Me" on David Letterman's "The Late Show" last week was even a hint of what's to come when The Roots hit the road with this new material under their belts, we should all sprint to Ticketmaster. But as The Roots prove on this new release, what happens if you leave a great live band in the studio for too long? Things fall apart.
