by: Sun-J
Perhaps the album title had been misprinted. Maybe the laboratorial sampling genius made a miscalculation when naming his comeback LP. " Dead Ringer"? To me, it seems "Head Ringer" would have been the most appropriate title, because RJD2 comes correct with noggin bopping track after noggin bopping track. In fact, I found myself to be a mirror image of my bobblehead at times. The opening track, "The Horror," seems like an introduction into some outdated alien-mystery television show, or more
simply theme music to X-Files on weed. Tracks like "Smoke and Mirrors," are extremely nostalgic in the fact that they bring back memories of the
old DJ Shadow, the cut and paste perfectionist. And since Shadow has decided to move on the other sounds and styles, it's reassuring to have someone carry on his legacy. RJD2 makes hip hop almost operatic with perfectly auditioned sounds, and carefully patterned drum loops overlapping funky-jazz infused soul samples. And despite the fact that the sequel to "Let the Good Times Roll" does no justice to its predecessor, RJD2 more than makes up for it with the following track "Final Frontier," which features the lyrically creative Blueprint. Lines like "RJ strokes the canvas, I find the color that matches," only enhance the palette of creative ingenuity RJD2 uses throughout the LP. "F**** Hip Hop," featuring Jakki Da Motamouth seems to be an underlying heart felt attack on hip hop
by RJD2 who pushes the creative envelope of the genre. "Ghostwrite" with its cool guitar-strumming loops interlocked with lofi drums, a sprinkle of bells, and a sampled sultry female voice makes the mouth water with its spicy hot flavor. Speaking of weather that makes you thirsty, "June" featuring RJD2's soul mate emcee Copywrite, a single he released late last year is also on the LP. Though RJD2 is mainly known as a hip hop artist, he is definitely for those into trip hop, and DJ Shadowesque sample filled
grooves. Most 'heads will be disappointed to hear that there are only three tracks with emcees on them, but rest assure, this album does continue to "Let The Good Times Roll."
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