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(26 votes, average: 2.77 out of 5)
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The Roots – Rising Down
Reviewed by Nolan Grey
The newest album from Philadelphia’s very own, Rising Down is the group’s 8th studio album. The work follows the Roots recent trend, exchanging real instrumentation for synthy sound. Although a solid CD, Rising Down ultimately does not hold up when compared to the Roots previous work.
1.The Pow Wow: NR (no ranking for skits)
The album begins with a ‘skit’, this word being used ever more loosely these days. The skit fluctuates between Finnegan’s Wake incomprehensibleness and overplayed ranting. NR (no ranking for skits)
2.Rising Down: 7.0
The title track situates itself at the number two spot, which works well within the flow of the CD as a whole. The beat is reminiscent of an overproduced ‘shook things pt. 2’, and Black Thought’s lyrics work well. The hook is in some ways the track’s downfall, but the strength of the rest of the song is able to hold the track together.
3. Get Busy: 3.0
After a promisingly solid moment the CD takes a turn for the worst with the weakest track on Rising Down. After two tracks the theme of overproduction is already apparent, and this track really exemplifies it. Black Thought is at his weakest here, seemingly unsure of how to ride the beat, which was mediocre to begin with.
4.@15: NR
A solid freestyle that would have been helped with a beat. It seems like these freestyle-esque tracks have become almost obligatory of late, and so within that framework the track does well and acts as a nice break from the previous track.
5.75 Bars: 6.0
The track’s drumbeat is enjoyable enough, with a grimy bass and lots of snare. However, it’s the lyrics that take center stage out on this track, with, emotion aplenty.
6.Becoming Unwritten: NR
Yet another break, bringing the total filler to song ratio up to an unhealthy 3:2.
7. Criminal: 6.0
The most commercial oriented track yet. The beat is nice, and Thought’s rap fits well with it. It’s an enjoyable ride, but lacks real replay value. Think the Root’s previous ‘All in the Music’ 2.0.
8. I Will Not Apologize: 8.0
This track exceeds expectations set up by the previous material. The jazz riff and light drums work well, and Black Thought sounds more comfortable than on previous songs. His rhyme scheme is different than normal, which adds to the enjoyment and replay value. 8/10.
9. I Can’t Help It: 6.5
The best beat yet on the CD, full of sound but not overproduced. Black Thought doesn’t provide anything noteworthy, but is solid enough to see the track through. Replay value is never helped when the beat outshines the lyricist, but there is enough going on to justify repeated listens on this track.
10. Singing Man: 3.0
The hook’s singer is awful in this song, and even Black Thought doesn’t sound interested in what he’s rapping about. The beat itself doesn’t help the song, leaving the entire song with little merit.
11. Unwritten: 4.0
More R&B, this track is a departure from the rest of the CD. The beat provides a nice soundscape, but the track suffers from a combination of overproduction and mediocre lyrics.
12. Lost Desire: 6.5
Featuring Talib Kweli, this track sounds more like something found off one of his CD’s than a roots album. The beat features some unnecessary bird sounds, but is overall solid. The hook, intentionally monotone, is ill-conceived, and Black Thought is overshadowed by Talib on his own CD. That’s twice now that Black Thought comes off looking the weaker. Then again, The Roots have never been focused completely upon lyrical ability, so this can be understood.
13. The Show: 5.0
The beat sounds like something Kanye would make for Jay-Z, but both the musical and lyrical skill sounds like an incomplete imitation. Interesting note, spell check recognizes Jay-Z but lists Kanye as a misspelled word. Poor Kanye, maybe someday he’ll get that respect he keeps talking about.
14.Rising Up: 3.0
The track lacks any sort of cohesion, and sounds a bit like leftovers from every other jam. Overproduction isn’t the issue here, the lack of any ‘point’ or ‘theme’ is. 3/10
15. Birthday Girl: 5.0
The second commercial track, with a Seed 2.0 throwback sound and a pop riffy that isn’t musically offensive, but at the same doesn’t break any new ground. If Sugar Ray and the Roots ever did a collab album I’d expect something like this for every song. Take that for what it is, and give the song a listen. More than likely, that will be enough.
Bonus Track NR:
The album ends with a bonus track, another ‘skit’. Better than the pow-wow, but still think of it as a ‘less music, more rant’ addition.
Album Total: 5.25/10
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