MADLIB
Beat Konducta, Vol. 1-2
Stones Throw
· Don’t be misled by the track listing – it’s more than the sum of its samples.
There’s no denying the man’s genius. Using only analog equipment to crank out beats like a one-man funk factory, he has revisited, revisioned and revamped the roots, trunk and branches of hip hop in so many ways that it makes reviewing Beat Konducta a difficult task. Compiled of 35 tracks, all around the two-minute mark or less, it’s hard to judge it on its own merits.
Is it an imaginary soundtrack, weaving a narrative tapestry through its twists and turns in styles? Muzak for a new millennium – blissful background beats for bourgeois urbanites? An auditory essay on musical deconstructivism? A DJ tool designed for the crates of the whole hip hop nation? In fact, on repeated spins it seems to be all these things and more – a musical Rorschach blot revealing itself in a different manner with each listen.
Whatever his intention, this record simply drips inspiration and is suffused with music’s very soul from start to finish. Its biggest shortcoming is that you’re smitten by so many of the tracks that their brevity becomes frustrating. However, over time, you begin hearing what could only be called "the rest of" the songs in your head while walking down the street, riding the bus or standing in line to pay for your groceries. It’s as if Madlib had taken the "sounds between the sounds" philosophy of dub and brought it to the next level to create "songs between songs." Maybe his intention was purely to give the gift of music. If so, it’s better not to look it in the mouth and just give thanks for what you’ve received.
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