Whether New Amerykah marks a turning point for hip hop remains to be seen. At the very least, it's a glorious anomaly in a sea of dross.
Immediately moving and yet rather bewildering, New Amerykah, Pt. 1 is an album that sounds special from the first play, yet it will probably take years before it is known just how special it is.
Throughout, Badu herself is serene and strong, picking a steady path through the turbulence as if guiding her people. Each listen to New Amerykah brings fresh rewards: it demands to be explored.
['Honey's'] squiggly bass line and cute but inane sentiments (''Honey, you so sweet/Sugar got a long way to catch you'') are perhaps the safest, least interesting efforts on the album. Thankfully, Badu spent 10 other tracks showing us exactly what she can do.
Erkyah Badu's New AmErykah: Part One is some cracked, urgent, just plain weird boho avant shit.
New Amerykah reveals its considerable depths and strengths, and invites the listener to invest the time needed to explore them.
What is most impressive about New Amerykah is that Erykah simply breathes life into these tracks.
NuAmerykah is her boldest and best yet, brilliantly eccentric but repaying every indulgence.
It's a challenging, even frustrating listen, but Amerykah stakes out Badu's place between vinyl crackle and tape hiss among things to be fond of, no matter how outmoded they become.
Some of the music is gripping — the modal-sounding chorus and blippy groove of “My People” suggests an R&B version of Radiohead — but other tunes feel like absent-minded doodles, and Badu’s social consciousness nets middling returns.
Working with a forward-looking crew of producers, musicians and writers, including Madlib, the Roots, Sa-Ra Creative Partners and Karriem Riggins, was a wise move; they do a decent job on the funky New Amerykah, a throwback to the black power sound and consciousness-raising themes of the 70s.
A small step up from Worldwide Underground, but still lacking a bit on the lesser tracks compared to the bombshell hits like The Healer and Soldier.
Summer Listening Series: #2
Erykah can pretty much do no wrong to me, her albums showcase her creativity and talent. Compared to previous albums, there aren’t any prominent tracks on here the really stuck with u but it’s one of them album that is better to listen to all together. While I enjoyed listening to it, I appreciate some people don’t like sitting through an hour long album of similar energy levels the whole way through. That being the only issue I have with this ... read more
Aw man, I want to get into Erykah Badu's music so bad, but I just can't enjoy it as much as I want to. Lyrically I love what she does but musically I'm always left so unimpressed and even tired after listening. I'll give more of her stuff a listen and I hope it makes more sense then because I feel like there is something here that just isn't clicking for me.
Aw man, I want to get into Erykah Badu's music so bad, but I just can't enjoy it as much as I want to. Lyrically I love what she does but musically I'm always left so unimpressed and even tired after listening. I'll give more of her stuff a listen and I hope it makes more sense then because I feel like there is something here that just isn't clicking for me.
Ηer profound contact with technology brought a new breath to her music and, together with her recent, creative restart, she gives an explanation of the word contemporary in art that grooves beyond time.
1 | Amerykahn Promise 3:40 | 79 |
2 | The Healer 3:59 | 85 |
3 | Me 4:24 | 88 |
4 | My People 3:25 | 78 |
5 | Soldier 3:55 | 88 |
6 | The Cell 3:36 | 84 |
7 | Twinkle 4:02 | 84 |
8 | Master Teacher 3:37 | 85 |
9 | That Hump 5:19 | 86 |
10 | Telephone 6:53 | 90 |
11 | Honey 5:21 | 91 |
#1 | / | Cokemachineglow |
#4 | / | PopMatters |
#8 | / | A.V. Club |
#8 | / | Slant |
#12 | / | Spin |
#13 | / | Pitchfork |
#16 | / | MOJO |
#19 | / | Rolling Stone |
#88 | / | Consequence of Sound |