Noir

by Blue Sky Black Death

This latest album by the production duo of Blue Sky Black Death has to be one of the prettiest things I've listened to all year.  I've always been approached by the cinematic, lush sound of BSBD, on projects such as Slow Burning Lights, Late Night Cinema, and Third Party, but this disc sets itself apart.

To begin with, I don't understand why this album is called Noir, when it doesn't really have that flavour to it.  When I think of 'noir', I expect to hear something sinister and foreboding; instead, this album is beautiful and warm throughout.

In addition to Young God and Kingston, there are appearances on this disc by Raised By Wolves, and by their Third Party collaborator Alexander Chen, who both sings and plays the viola.  Other vocals are by Rob Harris and Shaprece Renee.  This is a fantastic album.

Crate Digging: Late Night Cinema

by Blue Sky Black Death

This is a very nice cd. I'd forgotten how nice it was. Blue Sky Black Death eschew their hip-hop roots on this album, instead creating an instrumental techno/ambient album that floats nicely through the room.

Part of the concept here is that this could be soundtrack music, although to what film I'm not sure. I visualize scenes of people walking away from a break-up through the rain, most likely in Paris. Really, it's best not to dwell on such things, and better to just enjoy the music.

Crate Diggging: Razah's Ladder

by Blue Sky Black Death and Hell Razah

Among the artists who populate the hip-hop sub-genre of "pseudo-Biblical, street prophet, slightly pretentious, Wu-affiliated rap", none compare to Hell Razah. He exemplifies this genre, and shows more lyrical versatility than many of his compatriots, except perhaps for Killah Priest.

On this album, a collaboration with the production duo Blue Sky Black Death, Razah gives more of what he's best at. A quick glance at the list of song titles on the album ('Halos', 'Project Prophecy', 'Stairway to Heaven', 'Poor Righteous Dreams', and others) give a clear indication of what the listener is in for - Razah's reaching for a higher level of discourse on this album, but still spitting at street level.

BSBD provide some very nice beats on this album. They are able to channel that Wu sound, but add their own stamp to it. This is a solid album, with guest appearances from some of the usual suspects: Shabazz the Disciple, Prodigal Sunn, and a couple of the Non-Phixion boys.

Crate Digging: The Holocaust

by Blue Sky Black Death and The Holocaust

It had been a few years since I heard this, and I find that listening to this album today matches my memories of it perfectly.

It is clear from the beginning that this is Blue Sky Black Death's album, and that they did their best to accommodate the monotonous flow of their emcee. The production on this album is dark, yet lush and beautiful. They create brooding beats, deserving of a more versatile lyricist.

Holocaust seems to have only one style of delivery: monotone. His lyrics are repetitive, and are further marred by the slight sense of urgency in his voice, as if at any moment, he was afraid that the producers would fire him. He hits all the requisite nerdcore tropes, rapping about aliens, comic books, and how a hippopotamus can bite an alligator in half (I'm not making this up).

The weak and annoying lyrics do keep this album from shining. I see that it's possible to purchase this as an instrumental album; if only I'd known that at the time. In terms of production, this is a strong showing though, even if it doesn't anticipate the glory of Slow Burning Lights.

Slow Burning Lights

by Blue Sky Black Death

This is a hauntingly beautiful album from the production team Blue Sky Black Death. On this album, they are joined by vocalist Yes Alexander, who's quiet, spaced out voice matches their minimal production perfectly.

This album is highly reminiscent of Portishead, but without the sense of dissonance or despair that is often present in their music.

This is an unexpected turn from producers who are best known for their work in hip-hop, with Wu-Tang affiliates, no less, but it's a welcome change of pace. They've released a number of albums in the last two years, and I hope that their output keeps up both in terms of quality and quantity.

Jean Grae: The Evil Jeanius

by Blue Sky Black Death

Reviewing this album raises some interesting questions about the state of the music industry; the way artists get treated by their labels, and ultimately, how you credit hip-hop albums.

This is an album of ten songs by the production duo Blue Sky Black Death, who have had a tremendously productive year, releasing three albums, and a variety of tracks. I've liked BSBD since I got their album with Holocaust a couple of years ago. These guys are definitely very talented, and are charting out new territory for themselves (Slow Burning Lights is utterly beautiful). What I don't get is, when Jean Grae is the MC on all ten tracks, why does her name come second? This album is getting filed under 'B' on most websites. More than that, Jean has said on her Myspace blog that she isn't seeing a single penny from sales of this disk. That doesn't seem right to me.

As for the music itself, it's fantastic. BSBD layer their tracks with dark, soulful samples, and build a sense of atmosphere that is a nice counterpoint to Jean's work with 9th Wonder. Jean's always had more than a little 'evil' in her, and it's nice to see when it comes out. She also is a little more introspective on some of the tracks.

Stand-outs include 'Threats', which is a re-make of the Jay-Z song; 'It's Still a Love Song', 'Take it Back' and 'Lights Out'. 'Nobody'll Do It For You' is like a 'This is Your Life' walk through Jean's older songs.

This is a really good album. I don't like that it makes me feel guilty. I like Jean and BSBD equally, and they are artists that I like to support. Jean - if you're reading this, I feel like I owe you a few drinks the next time you come through Toronto.