Free from the pressures of commercial success, the wildly lucrative crowd funded album from De La Soul, and the Anonymous Nobody, presented the perfect platform for these media darlings to flex every ounce of creative muscle and create something revolutionary again. Sure, that’s a tall order considering they’ve already delivered three brave, masterful entries which challenged the rap conventions of the day, but that’s the downside about over-achieving so early in your music career.
What Pos, Dave and Mase have delivered is something that at first glance has all the hallmarks of a genre-defying magnum opus, having assembled an all-star cast of rapper dudes, rocker dudes and a Swedish electro pop dudette. On closer inspection, it’s as if they polled Pitchfork writers on who they’d like to hear Plugs One, Two and Three hang out with. All that’s missing is a Pusha-T feature.
‘Created from samples built from hundreds of hours of live session musicians!’ promised the Kickstarter page. Unfortunately, Adrian Younge was involved, which means that the result is as dull and lifeless as the two Ghostface Killah rap operas you dozed off to and the last Souls of Mischief album. Less ‘vintage soul,’ more ‘music to drink your soy frappuccino by.’
A case could be made that the careers of the Amityville trio known as De La Soul has been in steep decline since they branched out and left the guiding hand and warm teat of Prince Paul. They can still rap very well, of course, but without Paul’s encouragement to explore their collective dry sense of humour it feels like they’ve gone too far the other way. Stakes Is High was a clear attempt to position themselves as po-faced guardians of ‘pure hip-hop’ with fellow crank Common Sense, presenting a grumpy unified front against those darn flossy types who dare make dumb party music.
Both the AOI albums (thank small mercies we never saw the final part of the trilogy released) were almost unlistenable as they revelled in utter blandness, while The Grind Date was fairly well received but ultimately forgettable, leading to the conclusion that:
a) perhaps De La Soul used up all their good ideas on the first three LPs and have been creatively bankrupt for years; and
b) Prince Paul was much more than merely their producer on said albums.
I’ll concede that it’s no small task to replicate the impact of the first three albums, but that only makes it all the more disheartening to hear a group that once bravely tackled the disturbing issues of ‘Millie Pulled A Pistol On Santa’ now reduced to the well-worn trope of cautioning young women about the dangers of the ‘fast life.
De La Soul Is Dead was perhaps the first true avant-garde rap album, masterfully balancing daring beat choices, unorthodox subject matter and coded lyrics while still appealing to the hardcore b-boy crowd. It challenged the listener, mocked hip-hop convention and boldly staked out new territory in a way that was never corny.
In comparison, the most interesting thing about and the Anonymous Nobody is the fact that 2Chainz and Roc Marciano perform guest spots, even though that’s simply the 2016 version of the Ghostface and MF Doom cameos on The Grind Date in 2004. It’s on these tracks and the likes of ‘CBGB’s’ that the crew allow themselves to loosen up and enjoy themselves. Elsewhere, the results are pretty grim. What says ‘we’re all out new ideas’ like a 2016 Snoop Dogg guest appearance or Jill Scott performing slam poetry? When a guest appearance from David Byrne can’t even save things, you know you’ve hit rock bottom.
The new album is all over the place. I enjoyed all of their older material, particularly Stakes is High and the Grind Date but as far as witty humour and off the wall content is concerned, they were certainly at their best with Prince Paul.
First AOI album had some joints which were fun tbf
cmon man growup!! I Like the album very and well put together. You can’t expect to stay the same its a such thing as growth.
Mmm..having only ever bought the first De La LP – as the rest seemed pretty poor to my ears, I listened to the samples on Juno with low expectations. Don’t get me wrong De La Soul is Dead had some great tracks that were released as singles & I copped them.
I didn’t realise Adrian Younge was involved in the new record. I love Wax poetics but this guy must be the most over-rated producer of all time. I honestly think me & my Mum could do some more interesting shit than him.
In truth, De La Soul is Dead but so is Hip Hop & the new LP just confirms it. I wish it wasn’t the case but it’s no different to jazz. It’s relevance faded & no amount of fusion LPs could reverse that fact.
The Get Down confirms the same. You think that it could have been created in 2000? Nope, Hip Hop is packaged up & “sold” to the mainstream because it’s no longer a revolutionary force. As Miles Davis said about jazz “I never thought jazz was meant to be a museum piece like other dead things considered artistic”. Well Miles was wrong & it applies to Punk as it does to Jazz, Drum & Bass & Hip Hop. Hip Hop is dead! Long live Hip Hop! Coming to a museum near you!
12 reasons to die was a good album. The AY/GFK follow up and AY/SOM joints? not so much.
And the Anonymous Nobody is yet another rap act using crowdfunding to take it easy and line their/their pals’ pockets. Nothing on ATAN says $600k album. Most of it sounds like a bunch of loops from a Reason/Ableton expansion pack. The collaborations all sound like pop songs with De La Soul guest spots. The levels on guest vocals are all over the place. It all sounds nastily cheap and stupendously expensive at the same time. Since “nosed up” is so clearly a Parliament pastiche, why not get Bootsy or George on board instead of all those poncy rockers?
I was bemused…then disappointed…now I’m angry…. And I haven’t even received my CD/T-shirt yet.
Still, it’s not as bad as Public Enemy’s Sellaband venture for which I paid >£100 for two albums that were subsequently available for <£5 each within a couple weeks of official release. Bad investment.
Haven’t listened to this, and am not interested in listening to it.
De La Soul has been a snoozefest since Stakes Is High. The only interesting thing is the budget of this album. Maybe David Byrne took 500k, and they used the rest to throw pizza parties every night at the expense of the donors.
@skool: It’s not growth, it’s diminishing returns.
You want 3 Feet High & Rising, go listen to it.
@Uncle Ali: Not sure how you got that from the article.
@Bea Smith: Best thing that album did was to allow G-Unit to make ‘Fat Girls.’
@Trevor: Mr. Younge and J. Cole should form a group named Afternoon Naptime Association.
Spot on. Adrian Younge is one yawn of a producer, Apollo Browns remix tape of 12 reasons to die, smashed the original to bits. And De La is more interesting as a concept, than a group nowadays. Half of Stakes is high is alright, after that I don’t know what happened. The track they did on Handsome Boy Modelling School is better than all albums released after Stakes is high, latest album included.
God, what a moody bunch of old men we’ve all become. No one in their right mind would say that ‘anonymous nobody’ was the best De La album, but it’s still got an amazing EP’s worth of tracks tucked away on it, much like the last DITC project. How come tired old misogynists like Grandaddy IU and emcees who basically rap the same verse over and over again in a slightly different order (Havoc and Roc Marciano for example) get a pass, when anyone else doing something different gets a kick in the shin? De La Soul raised a ton with kickstarter, which they spent on the album- what were they sposed to do with it? Say it was too much and give some back? De La have done so many good things and even their weakest projects still have some amazing bars that put other mc’s to shame. Cheer up old b-boys, maybe pop on a bit of Nice and Smooth and then head out to get some sunshine.
You’re spot on about Adrian Younge though. He is tedious.
So no commentary around the quality of music, creative constructs, keeping De LA Roots or any mention of the underlying messages on this album?
There’s no critique around it’s meaning or the subject matter on the album?
Very interesting…
The album isn’t De LA’s best, but they get their message across to some, taking aim at those who have no real idea on what is. Your challenged to face your demons and enjoy life as it’s gone before you know it. These nobody’s so happen to be somebody’s.
The album will grow on you, well worth several plays. No dummy spits here.
@proff: The De La album had a budget and press coverage that dwarfed anything that IU, Havoc and Marcy have managed so far, so there was a certain level of expectation. The album does have it’s moments but it’s also further proof of how overrated the group is and the fact that they continue to bask in the good will of old fans without really earning it.
@Mark7: This wasn’t meant to be a formal review so much as a commentary about the decline of the group.
@robbie Fair points well made. I do admit that I am often so excited about an old artist making new stuff that I give them a lot more leeway than I would if they were brand new. Plus, the songs with the Darkness and Usher were unforgivably painful ears. As ever, cheers for your writing, even when I don’t agree with it, it’s always well written and I’m always glad you’re out there doing it.
That was the 2nd AOI album.
The 1st one had “Oooh”, “U Don’t Wanna B.D.S”, “The Art Of Getting Jumped” and a couple of other joints.
I guess cats ant for creativity no more. De La ant supposed to give the normal BS they have always been ground breaking on every project… # Feet CLASSIC, DE La Soul is Dead CLASSIC, Balloon Mind State CLASSIC, Grind DATE CLASSIC FOH. Any body saying they ant been this sense 3 feet ant been paying attention. Do I want more Boom Bap HELL Yeah but I ant mad at this new Album very much a breath of fresh air. Would love for Paul and them to do one more project but i understand the pressure that comes with that. Salute De La 30 years and still strong. Better then half the BS i see posted on this site.
“De La Soul is Dead had some good singles… Half of Stakes is High was a snooze fest???”
Wow! You guys have some high standards… Do I live on a different planet where those albums are considered hip hop masterpieces??
Listen, we can all agree that this album isn’t on the level of their first four releases. It has too much singing and too many indie rock elements. With that said, there’s 5 – 7 quality tracks on here and there should be something on here that all De La fans like… Perhaps Nobody isn’t as consistent as Grind Date, but it’s more or less comparable to either AOI album.
Honestly though, I would encourage you guys to just embrace this album for what it is. Same thing with that last Masta Ace album that got no love on this site. I don’t think anyone believed we were gonna get another Buhloone Mindstate or Disposable Arts. I for one love to see my favorite artists release new music but then when all of their “fans” shit on it, I understand why they don’t. Why would Slick Rick ever put out something new? So everyone can be mad it’s not Great Adventures… This isn’t like LL Cool J or KRS-On trying to coax a 19th album down my throat, this is De La’s first album in 12 years.
I really enjoyed this last 10 days or so of De La Mania – they seem to be getting a lot of celebration whether it be interviews, articles, whatever – and none of it is unwarranted. And Robbie, I disagree with the notion that De La is “basking in the good will of old fans without earning it.” A) they’ve earned it; and B) they don’t even have to do new music. As long as they tour and play their classics (which they’ve been doing consistently for 25+ years), they’re doing everything a De La fan could hope for…
& what a decline it was…straight after the debut record! 😜
Spot on man! They don’t need to do this, or could try and make a bunch of radio shit just to stay relevant. They tried new things on this album, and not all of it worked, but I admire the effort. There is still PLENTY of quality on the album to get me through and keep me interested in them.
Stakes is high is a classic, Grind Date was solid as hell, and if you took the best songs from AOI 1&2 and combined them it would be very good. They just did too much with those and the ideas were stretched real thin.
De La is indeed still stronger than a lot of stuff he posts on here. That said, the older acts shouldn’t always be given a pass either. If he or anyone else feels it’s not up to par, they should express that. I just don’t agree with how harsh the initial posting was.
@Trevor We’ll just have to agree to disagree. I prefer De La Soul is Dead to 3 Feet. I’ve listened to it almost once a week for twenty years…
I disagree Daniel. We should strip naked, cover ourselves in oil & fight to the death. The survivor gets to proclaim which De La Soul LP is the best. 😀
Re: listened to it once a week for 20 years. Which maximum security prison are you in? 😜
@Trevor Good prison joke.
Perhaps that’s an exaggeration but in the days of CD changers or cassettes in my 86 Jetta, De La Soul is Dead was always within an arm’s reach. I couldn’t imagine my teens and 20s without “Millie Pulled a Pistol” or “Bitties in the BK Lounge”…
You must’ve been one of those bullies who found the De La Soul Is Dead cassette in the trash.
“I’m Hemerhoid, I’m the leader!!”
I love 3 Feet though! I’m with you there…
Re: “You must’ve been one of those bullies who found the De La Soul Is Dead cassette in the trash.” That’s a Freudian slip if I ever heard one! 👍
Robbie is being polite. . .the new album is very bad.
Re: “They don’t need to do this”. I disagree. Their lame continued output implies that they need to keep flogging the dead horse to pay the bills at the expense of their legacy…
Can you predict what the new TCQ album is going to sound like & what it’s going to do to their legacy (if we ignore Beats, Rhymes & Life)?
I would admire De La more if they didn’t make the effort…🙉
Do you mean bad meaning bad or bad meaning good?! ……There it is. 😀
The joint with Snoop should be on the radio. The new album ain’t bad as some of y’all sayin. They still can spit. I did expect more beat wise from the Roc Marc joint tho.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the new album gets some sort of remix project. Also, I’m still hoping that the album they were doing before this one surfaces. I think it was called You’re Welcome. The tracks that were put out around that time were sounding good: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7KHTil1Xv4
1. DE LA ARE SOME OF THE BEST TO EVER DO IT BUT STAKES IS HIGH WAS THE BITCHES BREW OF COMPLAINT-RAP ALBUMS. NEVER WANTED TO LISTEN TO RAPPERS COMPLAINING ABOUT RAP AND WHINING. TO TRADE ALL THE ABSTRACTION FOR SOME GET OFF MY LAWN PROTEST MUSIC WAS A BIG STEP DOWN.
2. THESE GUYS SEEM TO CONSISTENTLY THROW SHADE AT THE GOD PRINCE PAUL BUT IT IS SOMEHOW COINCIDENTAL THAT THEY NEVER MADE A TRULY OUTSTANDING BODY OF WORK WITHOUT HIS INVOLVEMENT, HMMMM…
3. ADRIAN YOUNGE IS THE LATEST IN A LONG LINE OF “CLASSICALLY TRAINED MUSICIANS” WHO NEVER HAD AN INTERESTING MUSICAL THOUGHT IN THEIR LIVES (SHOUT OUT TO NPR’S FAVORITE HACK QUESTLOVE WHO CAN SORT OF MAKE HIS DRUM KIT SOUND LIKE AN MPC 60 IF YOU GIVE HIM SIX MONTHS OF STUDIO TIME).
4. FOR ALL THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO HIP HOP AND ALL THE YEARS THESE DUDES STAYED ON THE ROAD TO MAKE ENDS MEET I HOPE THEY MADE THIS ALBUM FOR $50K AND POCKETED THE REST OF THE MONEY. THEY MORE THAN DESERVE IT.
I agree with everything you wrote.
I read today in Mojo (this is how low it’s got for Hip Hop, that I am reading bloody Mojo for Hip Hop data) that 3ft High & Rising cost $13k to make.
Even if we factor in inflation, it is beyond my comprehension why they would need $600k to cut a record. In creative endeavours less is more. De La prove it.
I so hope they put most of the $600k into their retirement plans as I doubt they will get $6k the next time they ask for a handout. Adrian Young has more chance…
cats are tripping…the album aint that bad…its got solid stuff…plus De La Soul is Dead is one of the best albums ever…i expected more from here…this look like a lil yachty fan site with these comments…smh…
Please can you name solid tracks out of the 17 on the album, I could do with a laugh…You can include skits, as ya gonna need em! 😉
You are sounding a bit like a brainwashed follower…😜
I see it’s gonna take another 12 years for some of y’all to get this record. Just like balloon mind state went over ppls heads when it dropped.
Please give me your mobile number as I want to follow up with you in 12 years.
I never heard Balloon Mind state. Is it any good? I heard Buhloone Mindstate though. It’s got about 4 good tracks on it, far from a classic LP. Although Chris Rock seems to think it is. But maybe he was just joking…😜
I’ll just say that I’m ready for the Prince Paul reunion they coulda paid him with some of that dough…all albums were dope except for the 2nd AOI…De La Is Dead is my favorite and Grind Date was that knock…haven’t heard the new one yet its in the mail…
4. property of spit kicker
6. CBGBS
11. Trainwreck
12. Drawn
13. Whoodeeni
that’s a 4 mic EP right there….
…but the Justin Hawkins track and Damon Albarn track are a fucking waste of taxpayers money!
Stakes is high was dope so was Grind Date never was a de la fan that hard they were ok to me but i did not give them props till stakes is high. AOI never heard it in its entirety,and this one what i heard i did not like but my judgment is biased if it isn’t boombap i really don’t like it.
That’s really great! But isn’t this a double LP?!
But here is a really great track that isn’t on any LP:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GobXXUZDMmc
No way!! 😜
Nobody was a harder DE LA Head then me! I use to see them perform before they even had a full album out just “Pot Holes in my lawn” single.
De La complained about selling out more than any group ever……
And then they sell the fuck out rather pitifully.
This new album is AWFUL!!!!!!!! DE LA SOUL IS DEAD.
Dela cant re create that feel from the first two albums, at least not the way things are now.
That heavy, sample based music is a no go today. Getting in touch with the audience is another thing. People were into what dela was spittin, and the had a strong crew backing them.
Grown man rap should be the new segment dela could lead in. All thise 90s rappers should focus on the 40 years old and over fans, talking grown up sh*t.
The millie pulled a pistol can be remade into, pappa pulled out a belt
Saturdays could be remade into Sundays, and so on.
I just cant take it, 90s rappers cant be talking about drugs and crime no more, it just sounds so dumb and bummy! Like that old bum on the street talking crap, i just wanna stay away…
I’ve actually allowed this album to grow on me a bit. Still some songs I have a low desire of sitting through tho. That is uncommon for me with De La’s albums.
Yesterday I requested (and was granted) a full refund of my pledge to the De La Soul “And the anonymous nobody” kickstarter. I didn’t pledge $75 to be left waiting empty-handed weeks after those who didn’t back the Kickstarter copped the CD/vinyl for £10. I’ve still got some respect for De La Soul so copped the hard copy from amazon. Dear Hip Hop acts. Thinking of crowdfunding your next album? First ensure you are capable of fulfilling your contractual obligations before blagging penny/cent #1 from your fans. De La Soul amassed double their target so could have easily afforded to employ a distributer/logistics firm to deliver the goods. I still don’t have a scooby where $600k was spent re this project.
On concocting another De La Soul masterpiece if some posters here are to be believed…Personally I wish they had finally recorded Jeff “The Mack Daddy on the Left’s” album…
Why are half of you even commenting about some shit that obviously ISN’T for you. The REASON De La was able to release an album after all of this time is because they have core fans that fueled it.
With some of the assessments of their new album, I wonder how Fucking Desiigner ever had a number 1 song…where were you mutherfuckers when it came to writing shitty reviews for that or Drake or any of his clones…
Well that’s where you are wrong you furthermucker!
We are core fans of De La! We are just not blind followers & I have never heard a Drake record or even know who his clones are, so how fucking cool does that make me compared to you?!
@trevor
You said, “Mmm..having only ever bought the first De La LP – as the rest seemed pretty poor to my ears, I listened to the samples on Juno with low expectations.”
You said De La Soul is Dead (which most people in life feel is a masterpiece) was garbage, but you’re one of De La’s core fans? If buying their first album and then never copping anything else from a group constitutes being a “core fan,” then I’m one of The Conscious Daughters core fans!
Well allow me to retort!
I don’t own “Dead” or the utterly forgettable recent shitty LP – correct. & I couldn’t care less if others think they are masterpieces as they are clearly not.
De La Soul is Dead vs Illmatic, Takes a nations, Stress, Stunts Blunts, Street Level, Breaking Atoms, Midnight Marauders, Done by the forces, ….still a classic, huh?
Now let me be nicer & only choose 1991 LPs: “Dead” vs Low end theory, Breaking Atoms, Apocalypse 91, Original Gangster, Step in the arena, Cypress Hill, Death Certificate…
I know we are living in the social media age where everything is “amazing” but let’s get some perspective.
I own a signed copy of “Clear Lake”. Rare as hens teeth – thanks to the Sandbox crew. So I am not a core fan?
I would love for De La to have dropped an “amazing” masterpiece LP following 3ft. But they didn’t. No grudges, they dropped some killer 12″s. But let’s stop the LP masterpiece delusion.
Please do me a favour & stick your copy of “Dead” on & rate right here – honestly – every track out of 10.
Then do the same with any of the “masterpieces” I listed above or any of your choosing. Would love to see the results.
This is the data age, not the “daisy” age. Alas 👍
I’ll answer all of these questions…
Illmatic is my favorite album ever.
Nations is classic. Slightly better than Dead.
I’m a HUGE Diamond D fan but Dead is better than Stunts.
Dead is far better than Stress.
Dead is much better than Original Gangster.
I like Dead more than Breaking Atoms.
I like it more than Jungle Bros.
Dead vs. Midnight? Toss up. I’ll take Dead.
Apocalypse 91 is cool. I prefer Dead.
Step in the Arena? Too close to call.
Cypress Hill? Shout to Muggs – Dead is far superior.
Death Certificate – my favorite Cube album but Dead is better.
Low End – I’ll grant you that.
That’s 3 better albums, one toss up. 9 albums I find inferior.
I also own Clear Lake Auditorium. If you want the track by track breakdown, I’ll grant your wish…
What website am I on?? Am I the only guy defending De La Soul is Dead??
I think you are Daniel me old mucker because it’s clearly not a classic or a masterpiece and is undefendable…
I appreciate your responses about the classic LPs…
Have a great weekend fella…
@Trevor. Why is it so important to you to become king of a thread on somebody else’s website? Why is it so important to you to deny DLSiD’s classic status? I might get it if you were countering the hype surrounding De La’s 3rd and 4th overrated albums but DLSiD was and is dope.
I would rather not have to waste my time posting to highlight the sloppy thinking about DLSiD. Look up the definition of “commitment bias”. You are allowed to reappraise something or challenge your own thinking from 30+ years ago.
The reason my posts sting is because there’s a lot of truth to them.
I am done. Going to stick the Elmatic LP. It’s clearly superior to Illmatic 😜
QED.