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The typical track on this album combines snippets of scratchy 70s soulvocals and instrumental samples like upright basslines to create asatisfyingly melodic whole. The album is somewhat of an antidote to theprogrammed, mechanical beats that have been dominating recent hip-hopDJ work. In other words, it's very un-Neptunes. Three of his trackshave MCs rhyming over them and each does a good job complimenting theDJ skills without overwhelming the complex instrumentals underneath.They also big up the DJs approach with lines like "RJ's thearchaeologist, diggin 'em up" . One of my favorite songs on the albumis "Ghostwriter," a perfect blending of layers of loops and vocals intoa head-nodding instrumental classic that never gets too repetitive. Ithink it was a great decision by Def Jux to pick up an artist likeRJD2, a talented DJ and master of the sampler who can produce musicthat offsets the label's darker tendencies...I guess he's not thatShadowy after all.
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