Theme For A Broken Soul:DJ Rels

Theme for a Broken Soul
Label: Stones Throw

Genre: Broken Beat

Rating: 7.9 of 10

While Madlib is probably my favorite and most respected artist of the moment, his tendencies to change his alias for every album is down right shady. In fact I had almost finished reviewing this cd before I realized it was even him. Well for this personality, DJ Rels or D. Relmond as the credits state, Madlib has adapted a fusion of next-level breakbeat and jazz fusion (two genres he knows very well). The result is an upbeat mesh of jazz, hip-hop and what can only be described as acoustic techno. Basically it’s all those sick ass beats you have come to expect from Madlib, but sped up to satisfy the ecstasy-heads instead of the potheads. Lay down some futuristic synth sounds, minute, hazy vocals and a few subtle funk and jazz instrumentation and the result is Theme for a Broken Soul. The real power of this album is the bringing together of like-minded, but distinctly individual genres. Godbless DJ Rells… I mean Madlib… I mean Yesterday’s New Quintet… I mean Quasimoto… I mean the artist who continually reinvents genres (and himself) to help me, the listener, appreciate the music that is the backbone of what we hear today.

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