eMusic Review 0
Aloe Blacc's first album, 2007's Shine Through was a schizophrenic splash of soul— it dabbled, ably, in Soca and balladry, sleek rap and post-modern pop. He covered John Legend's "Ordinary People" in Spanish. He spun gold from hip-hop producers Oh No and Madlib. He even made a busking song, recorded at a bus station (called "Busking," natch) that sounded eloquent and elegant and vital. It remains a truly fascinating and unique record.
So his follow-up, Good Things, might initially seem a disappointment because it is so standard. It is loyal to the strand of throwback soul (emulating luminaries like Muscle Shoals' recordings by the Staples Singers, Harlem's Bobby Womack, Philly's Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and others) that has infected so many independent purveyors of R&B these days — for that sound, a market exists, and he appears to have seized the moment. But that would discount one undeniable factor: Aloe Blacc's voice. It's a dipping falsetto that can wind into a hefty burr; it's such a magisterial instrument, he can shift from power to vulnerability in an instant. There it is on the funk workout, "Hey Brother," snarling just a bit. And… read more »
