MADLIB - Beat Konducta Vol 3-4: India

MADLIB - Beat Konducta Vol 3-4: India (Stones Throw) Comentários: Otis Jackson Jnr. must have a good stash of amphetamines to manage this many releases, I mean he's almost reaching Merzbow levels of productivity (and something tells me we only see a mere fraction of his output) - this week alone we've got two full length joints from the feller, but when it's this good who's complaining? This two-part collection of the latest in the Beat Konducta series finds our man travelling across to India for influence, and far from the trite misadventure into cultural misrepresentation this could have been it's actually a rip-roaring journey through sitar drenched funk and tabla-hop. Okay I may have invented that last one, but if you ever wondered what Madlib would sound like using only 60s-70s Bollywood samples then here's what you've been waiting for. The Jackson Jnr. fingerprints are still audible from the off, those tight singing basslines and clipped snares, but in place of the soul, jazz, kraut and easy listening samples are swooping strings and Hindi vocals. What makes me so interested is that with one record Madlib has shown that 'Eastern' samples can be used without sounding trite, lumpen or cynical - a far cry from so much dubstep out there for instance. I guess that's what makes the man such a good producer. At 34 tracks I'd like to say there's something here for everything, there isn't of course, but for Madlib fans it's a veritable treasure trove of pure, unadulterated HEAT. Like his brother's collection of Middle Eastern breaks last week, Madlib has done something astonishing and subtle with the source material and this is going to be near my cd player for some time to come. Heavy from start to finish, with more than a fair sprinkling of Garam Massala. Recommended! in boomkat [Para Ouvir]