Common - Electric Circus
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Artist: CommonBrand: COMMON
Edition: Music CD
Format: Enhanced
Published: 2002
CD Release Date: 2002-12-10
Music Label: Mca
Soundtracks:
- Between Me, You & Liberation (feat. Cee-Lo)
- Aquarius
- Electric Wire Hustler Flower (feat. Sunny of P.O.D.)
- I Got A Right To (feat. Pharrell Williams)
- Jimi Was A Rock Star (feat. Erykah Badu)
- New Wave (feat. Laetitia Sadier)
- Star *69 (Ps With Love) (feat. Bilal)
- Heaven Somewhere (feat. Omar Lyefook, Bilal, Cee-Lo, Jill Scott, Mary J. Blige, Erykah Badu & Lonnie Lynn)
- The Hustle (feat. Dart Chillz)
- Come Close (feat. Mary J. Blige)
- Ferris Wheel (feat. Vinia Mojica & Marie Daulne of Zap Mama)
- I Am Music (feat. Jill Scott)
- Soul Power
Free Music Notes for Electric Circus
Free Music Review: underatted... 5 stars for creativity and b/c it's Common
Hit: 5 Stars
It seems the easy route when many critics and heads have written off alternative-hiphop artists Common's and The Root's efforts in 2002 ("Electric Circus" and "Phrenology" respectively). Both first introduced many rock elements, included guests that they wouldn't normally use, and basically music that we don't expect and most likely not fully accept. I've had both these albums for a while now, and listening them over again, you can't take both these albums lightly in large part because the lyrics are just as strong and even stronger than ever at times. But the review here is for Common's underappreciated album of 2002...
This was actually the first album I bought from Common, and one of the first alterna-rap ones that I obtained. I was pretty impressed with this one at first, and listened to it a lot, which led to many more underground and old-school purchases. Of course, I was expecting to hear Com's more cutting-edge work in his previous three albums ("Resurrection," "One Day...", "Like Water...") which I now have. I consider "Like Water For Chocolate" to be my favorite album of his, but "Electric Circus" is definitely the most focused and consistent one out of all these. He experimented with a lot of rock, neo-soul, and totally different music overall, and he pulls it off with some of his best lyricism.
Common has the capability to pull of completely beautiful and touching songs like no one else ("I Used To Love HER," "Gaining One's Definition," my favorite "A Song For Assata"). While these moments shine on his albums, the rest of the tracks struggle while he mainly disses other rappers and brothers. This has happened on all of those previous three albums. While Common isn't horrible when dissing crab MC's, his soft voice doesn't carry it well and it's hard to see him as a battle rapper. Here, on "EC," he does quite a bit of this, but pulls it off like never before, and the music helps greatly. He experiments with his flow a lot on this cd, such as yelling in a deeper, stronger tone on some, slowing the pace on others, and even some spoken word rhymes on a couple.
The tracks "Soul Power," "Aquarius," "Electric Wire Hustler Flower," and "New Wave," all demonstrate this newfound rock and even some funk influence. These songs all stand out after many listens, and contain different hooks than we're used to hearing. The R&B track "Come Close (w/ Mary J. Blige) is better than most rap love songs. "Between Me, You, and Liberation" is one of his trademark 'deep' songs (a must-hear), while "Heaven Somewhere" is spoken-word rhyme that hits the heartstring but is only superb for the first 3 minutes (and it goes into double-digits with like 8 guests singing). The first track and "Jimi Was A Rock Star" don't have Common in them at all, but don't take away too much from the overall feel of the album. Even songs that should be mainstream ("I Got A Right To," "The Hustle," "Star 69") are saved by Com's non-conforming lyrics. "The Hustle" is kind-of a skipper, but worth a listen, and "Star 69" is a lusty, romantic track, but it doesn't get to the explicit pornographic point. "I Got A Right To" has a commercial beat, with a commercial hook by a commercial producer (Pharrell), but is still good because of Common's conscious and funky rhymes. The best track on the album has to be his collaboration with Jill Scott on "I Am Music," which has an oldies beat (no, not 80's hiphop old, but like 1920's or 30's old) and incredible raps by Mr. Sense. An incredibly fresh breath of creative music.
Oh yeah, Common took many chances and many hits to his credibility (from some) on "Electric Circus." He was being creative and going in new directions, and ends up pulling it off because of it's originality and consistency. The foundation he lays with his superb lyrics make this album a success in musical achievement, and give it the ability to be listened to repeatedly. The only complaint is that he drops quite a few topical references, which will hurt this album in the long run. It probably won't go down as a classic or an essential album ten years from now. But for now, it's great to hear something new and original from one of hiphop's most legendary and gifted MC's.
Electric Circus Poster
No Description Available.Genre: Rap, Hip-Hop
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating: PA
Release Date: 10-DEC-2002
Rock & roll has grabbed Common by the neck and given him a good shake. With its heavy, multilayered sound, Electric Circus is steeped in the Chicago-born and Brooklyn-based rapper?s newfound love for Pink Floyd, Traffic, and, above all, Jimi Hendrix. But, like many new converts to anything, Common goes a little off the deep end. His ambitious quest to expand the boundaries of hip-hop is crammed to the gills with a thousand motifs and is a little too busy to be a complete success. Perhaps not surprisingly, Common?s rhymes (sample lyric: "my mind screams like Al Green to stay together!") take a distant second place to the complex musical landscape he?s fashioned. In addition, a sidereal array of vocalists (including Stereolab?s Laetitia Sadier, Mary J. Blige, Jill Scott, Cee-Lo, Bilal, and Common?s main squeeze, Erykah Badu) and musicians (Prince, Bobbi Humphrey, Nicholas Payton) add to the sonic density. All in all, Electric Circus mightn?t strike the universal chord that Common sought, but it?s a bold, elaborate project that's definitely worth a listen. --Rebecca Levine
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