16 illinoisentertainer . com october 2024
LL COOL J The FORCE
( Def Jam )
When LL Cool J first hit the scene in 1985 with “ I Can ’ t Live Without My Radio ,” decked out in his trademark Kangol hat and gold chains , it was a shocking clarion call for the music industry . Over Rick Rubin ’ s minimalist drum machine patterns , LL rapped an ode to the power of terrestrial radio as a cultural megaphone . A full decade before the advent of the internet , radio was the current conduit of trends , styles , and a new style of music for the streets : hip hop . A fixture on the scene since the genre ' s birth , LL would remain a powerful voice throughout the next few decades . While the genre would become more controversial in the turbulent 1990s , LL would distance himself somewhat from the more violent and salacious world of gangsta rap and focus on club jams that could get the party started . The rapper your mother could love , LL would also become a congenial presence on TV , having a long-running lead role on NCIS : Los Angeles and becoming an indemand award show host . Breaking a tenyear hiatus from music , The FORCE ( an acronym for Frequencies Of Real Creative Energy ) finds the iconic rapper pairing up with Q-Tip ( A Tribe Called Quest ) as the producer for the entire LP to renew his vows to his craft . This new pairing pays off huge dividends , with Q-Tip ’ s wildly inventive production style being a fresh and unique backdrop for LL ’ s sturdy lyricism . Q-Tip fully immersed himself in the project , making beats , providing vocals , and playing guitar , bass , keyboards , and drums . Never a flashy lyricist like Nas or Eminem ( who makes an awesome guest appearance on the wacky fever dream “ Murdergram Deux ”), LL ’ s biggest talent is his way with a hook , which is why he has some of the most successful singles in rap history . “ Mama Said Knock You Out ,” “ Rock The Bells ,” “ I Need Love ,” “ Doin It ,” “ Hey Lover ,” and “ Phenomenon ” were all massively huge singles , where his album output didn ’ t garner the same
respect as others . The FORCE feels different like this is an attempt at a full album statement with a clear purpose : returning LL to the discussion of Greatest Of All Time ( a term he , for all intents and purposes , coined on his 2000 album The G . O . A . T .) “ Saturday Night Special ” finds him trading bars with Rick Ross and Fat Joe over a beat that sounds beamed in from the mid- 90s . The best yet is “ Basquiat Energy ,” where LL ’ s complex flow perfectly suits Q- Tips ' ultra-funky backdrop , which is as bold and colorful as one of Jean-Michel Basquiat ’ s paintings . While this whole record couldn ’ t be more out of step with the current rap music landscape of vapid auto-tuned vocals and cold , clinical trap beats , The album should be an absolute gift for fans who came of age in the 80s and 90s . Overall , The FORCE is a testament to the fact that an artist can reinvent themselves decades into their career after a substantial hiatus : Just don ’ t call it a comeback .
– Andy Derer
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FRANK ZAPPA Apostrophe (‘) 50th Anniversary LP FRANK ZAPPA & THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION Whisky a Go Go , 1968 ( Zappa / UMe )
Delivering upon the promise of 1973 ’ s “ gateway album ” Over-Nite Sensation , Frank Zappa cracked the mainstream with 1974 ’ s Apostrophe (‘). It was the multihy-
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