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The Budos Band II

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The Budos Band

 
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Avg: 4.5 (252 ratings)

What is the sound of 22 hands clapping?

  • We Say...

    Having birthed both the Wu-Tang Clan and the largest landfill in the Northeast, Staten Island is certainly no stranger to overpowering funk. Adding now to that legacy — and falling decidedly closer to the former than the latter — is the Budos Band, an 11-piece r&b outfit that works the slow, simmering grooves of late-'60s funk with a scholar's purism and enthusiasm.

    The group's first album was solid but slight, time-capsule r&b that never really went much beyond well-studied homage. II feels more accomplished because it rounds off its funky 16 corners with dead-on recreations of smoky Ethiopian jazz. At times the horn lines could be direct lifts from Ethiopiques 4: "King Cobra" is all slither and shake, bleary brass billowing up across bubbling bass; "Origin of Man," too, is a slow-burner, the horn section tripping up the scale and stopping at every sharp along the way. The whole record feels like it was recorded under streetlights: the songs are dark and dramatic, and the fact that they're instrumental only adds to their mystique. There are no soulful verses or coy choruses to take the edge off, just insistent slow-rolling grooves.

    The Budos Band are one of many similarly-themed acts on the Brooklyn label Daptone, which is dedicated to preserving the legacy of ragged, Meters-style funk. By beginning to roam outside those borders, Budos Band have created for themselves an identity wholly separate from many of their colleagues. II may not be their career definer, but it's evidence that they have one in them.

  • They Say...

    This Brooklyn-based instrumental collective combines slow-burn Afro-beat rhythms with a '70s soul-jazz aesthetic, the latter sound well-known by those already familiar with the Daptone label's other releases. The retro, almost blaxploitation soundtrack groove pushes the predominantly Afro style into American soul territory. They call it "Afro-soul," which neatly sums up the style but doesn't entirely do it justice; only hearing it does. Horns and horn charts dominate, which, because these sessions were recorded live in the studio, exude a spark and swing that are somewhat ominous yet hypnotically contagious. The band cites both the Sugarman 3 and Antibalas as influences, and the resulting mélange is the flash point between those two acts. Unlike much Afro-beat, the Budos Band's songs are compact, with only two extended past four minutes. Titles such as "King Cobra," "Scorpion," and "Ride or Die" emphasize the underlying danger inherent in the vibe. Most impressive, though, is the collaborative aspect at work here. None of the solos are extended and the concise track times keep the music sharp and taut, creating a mood and getting out. There's a strong R&B undercurrent, especially in the bass on "His Girl," an innovative rewrite of the Temptations' "My Girl." "Origin of Man" practically begs to be the soundtrack to a film noir, and much of this would work as backing music to a typical '70s grindhouse flick, which is a high compliment. Its swirling sound crosses genres and eras with effortless precision, joining world-roots-funk with the thumping urban groove of the Western world.

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