Music Mondays: Some Bands Are Just Ahead of the Times

Some music sounds like a throwback to the past. Other jams sound eerily apt for the moment. Then, there is the stuff that sounds straight-up from the future in some fashion. Bands that are ahead of their time, experimenting sonically in some wild fashion. Perhaps it is a new technique with technology that nobody else has attempted--think of the KLF and how they were doing sample-heavy mash-ups before, "Mash-Ups," were even a trend. The Pet Shop Boys feel like they were beamed straight from the future to our eardrums with the epic and space-age sound. OutKast took Hip-Hop places few could have expected with their blending of genres from space funk ("ATLiens,") to sounding a bit like a live rock band ("Aquemini,") to essentially transcending rap as a form and just doing damn good music that refused to fit into an exact genre ("Speakerboxx/The Love Below"). Hell, some people argue that Blondie and their New Wave tunes invented techno as we know it today--which, okay, but give Kraftwerk some credit!

Sometimes a group that is ahead of its time isn't recognized properly until later on (The Velvet Underground) or dismissed at first as a gimmick, even though, if you dig a little, you'll find a surprising amount of substance (Devo). It is wild to think you can sometimes play someone's music from decades ago, and you recognize that other groups have finally caught up with what the OGs were doing all those years earlier. Some bands are just ahead of the times, and I thank them all for being forward-thinking and supplying us with a glimpse of just where music could possibly be going before it even knows it wants to metaphorically get there.

Andre 3000 is Releasing a Solo Album but it is Not What You Might Assume

I've discussed here on my blog repeatedly how OutKast is my favorite musical group of all time. I did a series of posts looking at all their records, after all. I have greatly enjoyed Big Boi's solo albums, but Andre 3000 has never released one. There was, "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below," which was a little like two individual albums, but no true solo LP from Andre 3000. I was okay with that because, as I've said before, he owes us nothing. Andre 3000 has announced today, however, that he is coming out with a new album! Titled, "New Blue Sun," it isn't what you think if you're expecting rap. 

"New Blue Sun," will feature him playing the flute and other instruments with fellow musicians and Mr. Benjamin even realizes folks might be surprised by the humorous song titles featuring the first track stating, "I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a “Rap” Album but This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time." In a fascinating interview with NPR, Andre 3000 touches on a lot of subjects and seems to genuinely be happy with life after having gone through a lot. I'm pleased for him and look forward to checking out, "New Blue Sun," when it releases very soon--this Friday November 17th!

Time for the Best Valentine's Day Song in the Year it Turns 20!

OutKast's Instagram had some fun little Valentines today.

It is Valentine's Day, therefore it is now time for the best song about the holiday. "Happy Valentine's Day," was on OutKast's superb double LP, "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below). Both a pro-love and anti-love song, it works whether you've got a sweetheart or are single. It's just a great tune and is 20 years old in 2023. Here ya go:

Happy Valentine's Day and/or Fuck That Valentine's Day indeed.

Flashback Friday: OutKast Edition Volume 6: Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

Intro

Andre was mostly tired of rapping. Big Boi wasn't. They were working together on some songs but both had a bunch of stuff they had done by themselves. Instead of making two solo albums, however, it was decided to release a double album. That resulted in OutKast's biggest album ever and the best OutKast album that kind of isn't an OutKast album at the same time.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

September 23rd, 2003 marked the release of this beast of an album. 39 tracks if you count the interludes/skits. It was an astounding enterprise that almost everyone loved. It is one of the very small numbers of rap albums to win, "Album of the Year," from the Grammys, not that the Grammys really matter as we've all discussed. Big Boi's, "Side," of the LP, "Speakerboxx," is more southern hip-hop goodness we are accustomed to with a great blend of party-rap and conscious-rap. Andre 3000 gives us something quite different with, "The Love Below," though. A surreal blend of poppy rock, jazz, funk, a dollop of rapping, and tons of sonic experimentation, "The Love Below," is jam-packed with amazing tracks as well as ones that aren't always astounding, but always interesting.

On, "Speakerboxxx," the album starts (after a little intro) with the wildly fast, "Ghetto Music," and only rarely slows down on that track to let you catch your breath. After that is my favorite song on the whole album, "Unhappy." It reflects on the difficulties of life Big Boi faced growing up but how his family always persevered through it. "Bowtie," happens and is snazzy, then Big Boi's first big single from the LP, "The Way You Move," is just a pure delight with Sleepy Brown's crooning contribution sealing the deal. Next, we get a solid mix of songs I won't detail as they are enjoyable but don't stand out in my mind a ton. That is, until, "Flip Flop Rock," with Jay-Z and Killer Mike just bringing the house down with Big Boi as they are accompanied by some fantastic piano riffs, beats, and guitar strumming. The late-album song, "Reset," is a delight too, and then after a few more tracks, the album wraps. Well, Big Boi's half concludes, in some ways we are just getting started as now it is time for, "The Love Below."

"The Love Below," opens with a lush orchestral score and Andre singing softly and beautifully. It lets you know you're in for something quite different than other OutKast albums. We segue into, "Love Hater," which is just a jazzy and energetic treat and after the, "God," interlude we have one of the small numbers of tracks Andre does rap on, "Happy Valentine's Day," a song about a modern-day cupid who is a little disaffected by love. It is a stellar track.  After the raunchy, "Spread," and another little skit we get to an absolutely stacked lineup mid-album. The endearing, "Prototype," about falling in love, "She Lives in My Lap," which discusses falling out of love, "Hey Ya!" and its discussion of messy relationships and, "Roses," with its angry thoughts on a just-ended relationship. 

All of those songs are absolute bangers and, "Hey Ya!" dominated the radio for quite some time. After that mid-album assortment of masterpieces, the rest of the LP is solid. It takes till the end of the album for more amazing stuff to appear, however. We have a short little song, "Take Off Your Cool," sung with a just-starting-to-get-hugely-popular Norah Jones, the surreal and experimental, "Vibrate." The album closes with a long monologue-rap on, "A Life in the Day of Benjamin André (Incomplete)," where Andre 3000 starts to tell the story of how OutKast started. It is immensely listenable and gets up to around the release of the 2nd album, "ATLiens," or so. I still hope we get more of this story in the future as Andre even labels it, "Incomplete," in the tracklist.

Conclusion

"Speakerboxx/The Love Below," is an amazing double LP. Is it, "Truly," an OutKast album? I would say yes but feel free to have your own opinion. It sold tons of copies, won a bunch of awards, and could've been the perfect final album from OutKast. It wasn't though. We got one more release in the form of, "Idlewild," a flawed but beautiful work. I'll discuss, "Idlewild," in my final post of this segment next week.