Business…here’s a piece I had run in yesterday’s South Florida Sun-Sentinel about the supposed death of hip hop. Thanks to my man SP for that one.
I’m ridiculously swamped getting ready for NABJ, a meeting with the Page 2 folks, JR’s impending visit, finishing my syllabus for the courses at Elon and planning how to celebrate the girlfriend’s birthday while I’m out of town. But when I get my hands on a new OutKast record, I write about it ASAP.
Even though I know I’ll have to write about it again.
This Idlewild soundtrack…I’m not quite sure what to say about it. It’s been running as my background music for the last hour, and I like it. I can’t say I love it, but I haven’t been able to say that on the first run of an OutKast album since Aquemini. Full appreciation and evaluation of their stuff requires a lot of attention, and there just hasn’t been time for that yet.
This is the observation I can make now, and it’s one I’ll follow up on in a couple of weeks–I’m not sure this record can properly be enjoyed outside the context of the movie.
The sound is very old-timey at parts. Got that ragtime feel to it, or whatever I’m trying to describe this sound as. Better stated–very juke joint-ish. It’s a nice flavor, but it doesn’t really leap out at me right now like other Kast records have. The themes of the songs can be dealt with outside of the movie, but this sounds a lot more like a score than a soundtrack.
Spectacular soundtracks also double as scores. Superfly immediately comes to mind, as does Parade. Purple Rain is a different animal because the movie’s relationship to the music doesn’t always make sense. The movie is about a cat making music that no one likes but himself. But uhhh, that music that only he liked sold several million copies and enthralled theater goers and listeners alike. It’s a weird album, but there’s something strange about that juxtaposition.
Can Idlewild pull off that double? I’m honestly not sure right now. But those that are fearful that, at last, Kast will let us down need to chill. It’s definitely a good record, and I’ll probably say it’s a very good one once I get used to it.
But this is not at the level of quality of their stuff from 1993-2000. It’s clear that the separation between Big Boi and Andre has taken a toll on the group’s sound. And it’s even clearer that this is their last album together. It’s not a bad parting shot, but it kinda feels like Zeppelin’s Coda–if this is the end, it’s probably time.
Long of the short–give it a few listens. Some time around the release date, I’ll revisit this and give it a proper review.