Music Addikts

I was so excited to get the advance on this album in preparation for a listening party.  The 8-song advance was a heck ofa teaser and left many unanswered questions like, “Who is going to collab on the project?”  “What is going to be the story within?” and “What is Dwele going to hit us with now?”  Dwele is a great storyteller through his albums. It seems the general consensus about the preceding album Sketches Of A Man was a bit of a disappointment across the board.  Sorry Dwele, your fans have strong opinions.  HOWEVER, W.ant, W.orld, W.omen sets Dwele ablaze from the first track!  Needless to say I was UBERGEEKED to get this gift in my inbox!!

So how about I launch into my experience…

I first checked out the tracklist and was immediately surprised to see cameos by DJ Quik, David Banner, Monica Blaire and Lloyd Dwayne.  I admit I am a bit of a snob, so I was asking myself, “Self, David Banner? Is Dwele going mainstream?”  I listened to this track first, messing up the whole order of the private presentation.  Understand that this song, “Dodgin’ Your Phone” featuring David Banner is humorous, super sexy and very relatable.  I was immediately teleported back to a Picasso-esque montage of nights where I am dialing a shorty on the way home from a gig or hanging at the club with one thought… “Oooh, girl why you ain’t answering your phone? I got a serious love angst for you!”

The signature trumpet licks are peppering a handful of songs in a manner reminiscent of Dwelogy.  Dwele shows off with a slick little interlude where he raps, but the vocal layering was bahnoodles and segued into “Dim the Lights,” an image-filled collab with Raheem DeVaughn.  The collab with Monica Blaire and Lloyd Dwayne on “Detroit Sunrise” is an ode to ‘Motor City.’ As the only female voice on the project, Monica lends a great contrast to Dwele’s airy voice.

Dwele is a master of imagery in his music and the vivid manner in which he pans and fades in and out of scenes, is a sensory journey; case and point, “Hangover.”  Ladies you can expect a serious conversation or three with “Dwe” and might find yourself answering and identifying throughout the “W.omen” segment of the album. Fellas, listen to this segment and take notes, it may save you from losing your “Subject” or your “A.N.G.E.L.”

The “W.orld” segment, in my opinion, showed a side of Dwele rarely heard.  The content is quite political in theme and consciousness.  Such a GENIUS inclusion, and the balance of content deserves mad kudos.

In closing, I have to give a couple more picks from this masterful 17-track album.  “Grown,” “Give Me A Chance” and “I Wanna” are great two-step, pull a shorty on the dance floor for a medium tempo, non-verbal convo type of vibe.  W.ant, W.orld W.omen is a feng shui of musicology, vibes, imagery and content.  Expect to be playing this album over and over again. Each time will take you higher as you learn the lyrics and hear the phenomenon that is Dwele.

***This is the first of a monthly installment from DJ Phaze.  He will give us a monthly review of his ‘Album Pick of the Month’

What’s in a name? Hopefully everything. What to expect lies in what you end up hearing through your earphones, laptops or the woofers in your vehicle. That’s why the D.C. based collective Subwoofer Science had my interest based on their name.

Going through various efforts on their Bandcamp page I explored their latest project “On Love” as the first track “You Know What Love is…” begins as a electro-soulful offering that is reminiscent of some of Fat Jon and then eventually goes into a boom-bap feel. The music is sprinkled with moments of Dilla, Native Tongues and 4hero and still have an identity of their own.

Followed by the aptly titled track “You KNow What Love Ain’t…(In 3 Parts)” is more aggressive, something that the opposite of love would conjure up.

Then I went over to the “Subwoofer Science EP” and explored the first song “Afro’s N Twists.” The song features strong distorted guitar riffs and lyrics that embody afrocentric themes and a chorus “raise black fists with black twists.” Unfortunately sentiments we wouldn’t hear on the top radiowaves but thankfully they don’t care.

There’s somethings that overtime will help make the songs more cohesive, but from what I’ve heard it’s a step in the right direction. Songs about liberation, love and music? What else do we need? Keep your ears open. You can check out the 10 track EP available at http://subwooferscience.bandcamp.com

Subwoofer Science – “I Luv U”
 

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

PJ

**Preach Jacobs (PJ) is a contributing guest writer based out of Columbia, Southcarolina**

Her third album in the game and with a poofy hairstyle, that most natural girls covet, Ms. James has returned with My Soul.  Her voice is different, hard almost and definitely recognizable from the time she sings the first note.  Being the ADDIKT I am, I had the opportunity to see her live years ago.  She sounds exactly the same in person.  Leela James is an old soul, in a young body.  Her voice oozes pain and struggle, but also the honesty of love. ”I Ain’t New To This” describes what I mean by personifying anger and pain musically, while putting her stamp on the industry. Now a part of Stax Records, she gives her former label the musical finger with this track.

“Mr. Incredible-Ms. Unforgettable” is a nice duet with Raheem Devaughn.  And what would an album be without a classic ‘break-up’ song.  “It’s Over” is simple, but when Leela says it…it really is over! ”If It’s Wrong” describes throwing caution to the wind and involving yourself in love  lust at whatever cost.  My favorite joint on the album (right now-it changes) would be “Supa Luva”.  You gotta listen to see why!

This has officially been approved by an ADDIKT!

Check out Leela James on MySpace, Twitter and her website! Get the album today!

keep your soulHIGH!

As ADDIKTS, we have a vast range of music we love.  We don’t like to box ourselves in. If it moves our soul-we support it! So let us introduce you to Soulganic, a quartet based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Heavy percussion and latin grooves would be the best way to describe Soulganic. Icognito meets Carlos Santana.  Imagine that! So you can tell by that description that this is an album worthy of adding to your collection. My attention was really grabbed by a song called “Remidios the Beauty”, this is a fully instrumental melody, but the sounds melt so well together.  This is the kind of song you listen to when you’re spending a lazy day at home.  It is pure.  Growing up with a father who studied Jazz musicians, I can fully appreciate the breadth of this track.  “I don’t need no words because I understand”, as one of my favorite songs explains.

This album fully displays true musicianship.  Since I’m a huge electric guitar fan, I like the ‘funkiness’ of the song “Lady Lovely”.  My favorite tracks on the album are “Carry On”(which reminds me of a Leela James vibe), “Run”, and “Temporary Thrill”.  Each song exhibits it’s own level of ‘funktastic’.

To learn more about Soulganic, be sure to visit their website.  Also, get the album today!

keep your soulHIGH!