Quality. It's that kind of music that just won't leave you feeling the same way as before you listened to it. It's the music that changes you. It gives you a change of mind, a change of perspective, or a change of mood. It's the artist showing you something, and it's only the best ones that knows how to show you something about yourself.
While 2011 gave us a number of new talents and loved returns, it also took some of the truly best away from us. Posthumous albums have and will follow, but for now, let's just remember two artists that stayed commited to Quality.
Gil Scott-Heron (1949 - 2011)
Gil's rough and gritty voice did not always hit the right notes. Sometimes it cracked a little. Sometimes he didn't even sing, just talked his way through the tracks. It wasn't the smooth and flowing kind of voice that Marvin Gaye or Smokey Robinson made a living off. But it was, without a doubt, one of music's most expressive voices. His voice excuded the kind of pain and anger that you would hear from the records of Nina Simone. You knew that what you were listening to was genuinely Gil, his own feelings, and his own life lessons. Gil was more of a teacher and a poet than a singer, but what he made was music at it's core.
Gil circled themes like racism, alcoholism and drug use with the kind of commitment that only a first hand spectator could have. He had something to tell us. His work told stories of oppression, revolution, and pride. Inspired by Malcolm X and Huey Newton intellectually, and John Coltrane and Billie Holiday musically, Gil mixed art and knowledge in a way that's hard to forget. And mote of us never will forget the poet, the civil rights activist, and the very passionate and human man that was Gil Scott-Heron.
Notable tracks:
Gil Scott-Heron - Home Is Where The Hatred Is
Gil Scott-Heron - The Train From Washington
Amy Winehouse (1983 - 2011)
Somebody else who was familiar with pain was Amy Winehouse. Almost more famous for her abuse of drugs and alcohol than her talents, Amy gave the gossip sites a whole lot to write about. However, the legacy she left behind is so much more than that. It's not the pictures of her disheveld appearance, or Youtube clips of her being too gone to perform. It's the beautiful woman with the classic voice. When other popular female artists sang sugary sweet songs, Amy managed to give her songs a strong injection of personality. Even though the themes might have been similar, other singers just couldn't portray real problems in the same way. An otherwise simple song about problematic relationships became instantly complex in Amy's hands.
In a world of plain and overproduced pop songs, Amy Winehouse's soulfully raspy voice and style reminiscent of the great jazz singers of the past will be missed deeply.
Not all hip hop this year was about the joys of smoking weed or stealing the names of infamous drug dealers. When it comes to hip hop, one of the best gifts you could get is a real Quality concept album. And this year we were lucky; two of hip hop's most talented groups released concept albums, and good ones at that.
The Roots - Undun
In one of the year's most anticipated albums, The Roots give us the tale of a life told backwards. From death to birth, we get to hear some really beautiful hip hop, and not less than four bitter sweet classical instrumental pieces, showing off a more mature Roots than ever. And it doesn't only show in the way they utilize their music to convey emotions or situations, it's in the words of Black Thought too.
"It's only human to express the way you really feel/but that same humanity is my Achille's heel", he raps. In it's core Undun is a very human album, mixing life's highs and lows as seen by ourselves in the middle of it. Sometimes triumphing, sometimes mourning, the group find themselves bragging about greatness and acknowledging their flaws all in the same song. They have made a very good job of showing off life in it's ever changing form, and still keeping it all assembled into an album. This is what makes Undun what might be their best album up 'til now. Sure, it doesn't have the same amount of singles as How I Got Over, which had more songs able to stand out all by themselves. But Undun is so much more of an album. It thrives when listened to in it's entirety, and it's a great listen.
The Roots are at their absolute best on tracks Sleep and Make My. Make My feels like a confession, freeing both the listener and the rapper through regretful musings about life in the face of death. Sleep feels so authentic it's frightening, a haunting reminder of the relationship between sleep and death. All together, the tracks form into one of the most listenable albums of the year.
Notable tracks:
The Roots ft. Big K.R.I.T. - Make My
The Roots ft Aaron Livingston - Sleep
And while we're on the subject of sleep, let's present another one of the best hip hop albums of 2011:
Cunninlynguists - Oneirology
Cunninlynguists have returned to what they do best, concept albums, and it's as good as ever. Last time the group played around with a consistent theme, one of my all time favorite albums saw the light of day (can anybody say A Piece of Strange?).This time around the theme is told by the name of the album, Oneirology (the scientific study of dreams). The album is a dark journey through the innermost parts of our minds, with dreamlike, fragile melodies and poetic raps.
Of course Cunninlynguists couldn't keep themselves from throwing in some critical material against society. And they're doing it in very interesting ways. Hard As They Come sounds like typical hip hop braggadocio at first listen, but a closer look at the lyrics unveils Deacon The Villain, Natti, and Freddie Gibbs portraying the three really most dangerous and harmful characters of society: alcohol, cocaine, and AIDS. There's also the smart Murder, contemplating what would make people accept and approve of killing. This through taking the voices of nationalism, murdering in the way of war, and of course religion, and 'holier' ways of killing.
Although the lyrics are on point, Kno is the one stealing the show with the detailed production. Through his beats he is perfectly embodying the complex dreamstates, especially on tracks such as Embers. And with this, they brought some well needed Quality to thirsting hip hop fans.
Sure, right now it might feel really tempting to trade in that underground backpacker role for the fame and wealth of top 40. But even though it sometimes feels as if more artists than ever succumbed to dancefloor beats and dumbed down lyrics this year (I'm not going to name any names but uh, Common), there have been hopeful spots of light on the dark skies of Quality Music. Some of these lights are pretty new to our ears, but they have proved to bring Quality like real veterans, and so they have all earned a place in our mini series of The Quality That Shaped 2011. Enjoy, and fill those empty playlists.
Gary Clark Jr. - The Bright Lights EP
Sometimes I wonder how a four-track EP can have more substance than most full length albums released the same year. This is definitely the case with Gary's new effort. Only 21 minutes long in full, it's the 21 best minutes you will spend in a while. Gary is Hendrix at his bluesier moments, adding a bitter streak of longing and doubt to some skilled guitarplaying.
The pros of making a short album like this is that there is absolutely no filler tracks, each and every one of the four songs on The Bright Lights EP is worthy it's place. 'You gonna know my name at the end of the night' Gary chants on the rougher Bright Lights, an anthem of rebellion and city life, and he sure is right. But where he truly shines is right in the two thoughtful last tracks. Gary displays a very honest side of soulful blues, and on When My Train Pulls In he is at his height, both when it comes to music and soulsearching.
Notable song:
Gary Clark Jr. - When My Train Pulls In (Live)
Ntjam Rosie - Elle
Now, Rosie has made music before too, but this time she takes her time to show off her vocal talents. The album is comprised of a handful calm and atmospheric songs in English and French. These slower tracks fits Rosie's voice perfectly. She has that kind of voice made to be savoured slowly, preferably in combination with a distinct bassline like on Space of You. Rosie lets her voice twist and turn to the beautifully crafted melodies, often with a touch of classical music meshed with contemporary R&B and jazz. Tracks like In Need are destined to fill relaxing playlists to set the mood during the colder and darker periods of the year.
Notable track:
Ntjam Rosie - Space of You
Michael Kiwanuka - I'm Getting Ready EP
Kiwanuka always sounds as if played on an old, raspy recordplayer, no matter if you're listening on your laptop or your iphone. That kind of voice just can't exist outside of the Motown era of music. Even shorter than the Gary Clark Jr. EP, but Kiwanuka doesn't sound too troubled about that. Over three soulish folk tracks he manages to turn the somewhat melancholic songs into hopeful melodies with his mellow voice. However we get a feeling, especially in the beginning of final track Any Day Will Do Fine, that he might do really good with heavier, more bluestinged surroundings. Seeing this guy evolve musically will be really interesting, but keeping him in his current state doesn't hurt either. With this EP he has been one of the few that truly brought Quality to 2011.
