Albums Review: Sounds of Yesterday, Society of Tomorrow
Social Injustice and Racial Discrimination — There’s a Riot Goin’ On vs. To Pimp a Butterfly
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The conduct of thought throughout all the articles of this heading (which will be released every two weeks), will focus on four essential pillars, and these are: a brief biography of the two albums that I will analyze, the production, both in terms of instrumentation and lyrical content, the association of these to the social topic proposed in each article and a brief personal opinion, in relation to the historical times surrounding the release of each album (Clash of Times).
So, join me, music lovers and enthusiasts (interested in other areas are also welcomed !!!!).
Sly and the Family Stone — There’s a Riot Goin’ On
Genre(s): Psychedelic Funk, Soul e Avant-Pop
Tracklist: Here.
The first album under review is entitled There’s a Riot Goin’ On, from the African American group Sly and The Family Stone, released in 1971 by Epic Records.
Originally, the title was to have been called Thanks To You Africa. However, Stone changed it to a response format to the title of Marvin Gaye’s iconic album What’s Going On (released six months earlier), in order to accentuate his reflection on America’s social uprising state.
Driven by the anguish of events, occurred throughout the 1960’s, Stone joined the Black Panthers, one of the most notorious African-American revolutionary groups, in order to obtain protection and soul-searching, while fighting a long battle against his drug addiction, of PCP and cocaine.
Moved by it, he decided to record all the vocal cues of the album, in his home studio, set up in his room, by literally lying in bed, while “tripping” all the way through (preponderant to the creative outcome), so as to be comfortable and alienated from the outside world.
This influence is noted on several tracks, and, it is not necessary to go any further, than the opening song “Luv N’ Haight”, with the phrase “Feel so good inside myself, don’t want to move”, expressing his state of mind in the course of the creative process (like on “Spaced Cowboy”, in which he “yodels”, half of the time).
In terms of production (all by Sly Stone), the dense mixing and daring sound processing, the successive syncopated elements between the wind instruments (trumpets and saxophone), electric guitar and drums (by the use of the drum machine, being highly influential in hip hop), elaborate rhythmic and tempo alterations, recurring overdubbing (audio track placed on replay, in order to record another simultaneously with the original, offering richness and time correction to the track) and aggressive melodic-harmonic impulses, providing a sense of freedom, never seen in these musical genres.
The title itself presents, lyrically, a connotation of awareness by the word “Riot”.
It immediately introduces us to the message of social injustice and revolt, concerning the incidents of the Vietnam War, evidenced in the organization, in almost two sections, throughout the musical work.
The “drug-based”, with vast and rhythmic instrumentation, which eludes us, as listeners of the lyrics (in songs, such as “Luv N’ Haight” and “Spaced Cowboy”), and the obscure, initiated by the homonymous track (which contains 4 seconds, because the “Riot”, both figurative and real, has already begun; therefore, music isn’t needed to express it, and for the author, it shouldn’t exist also) full of narratives, used to characterize the role of men and women, in a hierarchical and discriminatory society in racial, educational and socioeconomic class terms (on tracks, such as “ Family Affair”, “Africa Talks to You”, “Brave and Strong”, “Time” and “Runnin’ Away”).
These subjects are very present, like the family conflict surrounding a mother, who decides to let her children leave against her will, following their path, despite of the difficulties they will feel abroad, due to their race, described on “Family Affair”; to the sociopolitical approach, in order to alert, to the obstacles that the citizen has to face in the day-to-day, against power and corruption, as mentioned on “Brave and Strong”, which empowers the lyricist elements of Stone’s work, on these issues.
In conclusion, Stone is one of the great geniuses of his generation, for his versatility and vision, in my opinion.
This album is a magnum opus of social intervention, and, therefore, I recommend it to everyone that is interested not only in music, but also in American politics and sociology (Link here).
Kendrick Lamar — To Pimp a Butterfly
Genre(s): Conscious Hip Hop, Jazz & Experimental Rap, G-funk e neo soul
Tracklist: Here.
The second album, under review, is titled To Pimp a Butterfly by African-American artist Kendrick Lamar, released in 2015 by the independent American record label Top Dawg Entertainment, and distributed by Interscope Records and Aftermath Entertainment.
Personally speaking, it is one of the great masterpieces that any musical artist has ever made, period.
It was originally called To Pimp a Caterpillar (which abbreviated is spelled TPaC, in honor of the rapper Tupac Shakur, Lamar’s greatest influence and inspiration), in order to express his criticism around the way that the music industry “prostitutes” artists, distancing them from their principles and personal values, leading to ostentation, fame and need for approval.
Desiring to demonstrate a perspective of growth, not only personally, but also within the industry, he changed it to what we know and this became the motto of the whole concept of the album: the butterfly represents the artist, who intends to “fly” and emerge within the industry, by achieving its goals while being controlled (pimped) by it, as he tries not to become a caterpillar, trapped in the cocoon, at the mercy of itself.
The conceptual process became evident when Lamar went to South Africa in 2014, where he visited the country’s historic sites, such as Nelson Mandela’s cell while imprisoned during Apartheid.
This allowed him to create allegorical comparisons, between Africa and Compton (his hometown in California), so that his audience and community would relate more effectively.
In terms of production (held in several studios, including Downtown Studios and Chalice Recording Studios), the highlights are the features with artists and producers, such as Dr. Dre, George Clinton and Snoop Dogg, multiplicity of musical genres explored, ranging from jazz, jazz fusion, 70’s inspired funk, electronic, R&B and experimental to the exploration of several samples, such as “Every Nigger Is a Star” by Boris Gardiner (“Wesley’s Theory”), “Loving You Ain’t Complicated” by WhoAreI (“u”), among others, and the density of the mix, in terms of drum compression, in correlation with the bass.
Another aspect is the recurring use of string instruments (like the violin on 3 tracks, such as “You Ain’t Gotta Lie (Momma Said)”)) and brass instruments (like the trumpet on 7 tracks, such as “These Walls”) that complements Lamar’s voice, which applies various vocal personalities to his performance.
Now, it is necessary to emphasize, in my opinion, the most complex and intriguing component of the album: the lyrical content.
Track by track, Lamar transports us to an autobiographical journey by discussing various sociopolitical themes, such as social injustice, institutional racism, religion and African American culture; he expresses them through their own personal experiences and turbulences, in relation to psychological issues such as depression, lack of self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, constant pressure for their fame/success and addiction (mostly alcoholism).
Through each of these subjects, there is a follow-up line as you scroll through the entire tracklist, starting with the motto for the album “Wesley’s Theory” (inspiration derived from the incarceration of Snipes, between 2010 and 2013, due to tax evasion regarding the values of rappers in dealing with lust and fame, caused by success in the music business).
This order of innumerous thoughts passes through Lamar’s mind, from the criticism regarding an upper-class America who tries to weaken the self-esteem and integrity of the African American people [portrayed in the songs, such as “For Free? (Interlude)” and “How Much A Dollar Cost”], and religious duality, between God/Lucifer, and positivism/negativity on his life views (on tracks, such as “u” and “i”).
In conclusion to this lyrical analysis, I have to highlight, with greater focus, the songs that address the subject of this article and these are “Alright”, “The Blacker The Berry” and “Mortal Man”.
While “Alright” is a demonstrative appeal of positivism to African-American society, in order to believe in change in spite of constant reflection on the effects caused by police brutality and America’s credibility, in relation to racial equality (used in various riots of the Black Lives Matter movement), “The Blacker The Berry” (title inspired by the phrase used by Tupac, from his track, “Keep Ya Head Up”) expresses the revolt and anguish of this mistreatment since the age of slavery and, to obtain what he intends, he’ll have to kneel (“Everything black, I don’t want black (They want us to bow)”) and worship Uncle Sam (term used to represent the corrupt and powerful side of America), revealing the dark aspect of American society.
However, none of these songs have more depth on these themes (or any), than “Mortal Man”, my favorite and last track of the album.
In “Mortal Man”, the artist evokes names of sociopolitical leaders, such as Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X to achieve and continue what they pursued, aiming for a more cohesive, fair and united social/racial world.
From this approach, he produces a fake interview with Tupac Shakur (the answers were taken, from an interview with the Swedish P3 Radio Soul, in 1994).
After several questions, Tupac answers the penultimate question, regarding the future of Lamar’s life and generation, by saying the phrases, “Because it’s spirits, we ain’t even really rappin’”/”We just letting our dead homies tell stories for us”.
Then, the spiritual pinnacle of the song is reached.
From this point on, Lamar shares with him the poem about the caterpillar and the cocoon, resuming the way he started the album.
By the poem’s ending, we realize that the receiver’s not only Tupac but also the listener, questioning ourselves about our position in society, that is: whether we’re trapped inside of a cocoon destroying everything around us, like the caterpillar, or whether we are free and pure like the butterfly; therefore, given this allegory it’s up to us to get that answer and pursue it if we succeed, to achieve a more harmonious society for us to live in.
To me, Kendrick Lamar’s the most talented and socially conscious rapper of my generation, and I believe that will be the same opinion of many hip hop fans.
Therefore, I recommend the best album of the 2010’s (to me) and perhaps in hip hop history to any fan of hip hop, conscious hip hop, psychedelic funk, jazz (because you can be surprised, given the instrumentation in this work of art) and concept albums (Link here).
Clash of Times (There’s a Riot Goin’ On vs. To Pimp a Butterfly)
If we compare the 1970’s and 2010’s, many of the socio-economic problems portrayed remain, both in relation to social injustice and racial discrimination.
Given the recent tragedy towards George Floyd’s death, there has been a resurgence with greater emphasis of the Black Lives Matter movement, raising enhanced awareness around the world, in order to obtain a healthier functioning of society by social equity and racial equality.
In today’s American presidential elections of 2020 that can be more reachable, and I am hoping for that change as a portuguese and as a world citizen.
“Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future, and renders the present inaccessible” — Maya Angelou
Thank you to everyone who read the article, be free to share it with everyone and leave a comment below, of what did you think about it, if that’s your wish 😊.
