Yohimbe Brothers - Front End Lifter

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Free Music Notes for Front End Lifter

Free Music Review: Two Funky Minds Thinking Alike
Hit: 5 Stars

But now DJ Logic finds himself among an entirely different crowd. After being "discovered" by Medeski, Martin and Wood on their Combustication album, DJ Logic and his group, Project Logic, were quickly taken up by the jam band community. The only problem is, these bands want to turn Logic into a DMC-style turntablist: wow the crowd with some impressive scratching and be done with it. But, as Reid knows, that isn't his proper role. He is a musical handyman, filling in spaces and touching up grooves with conservative scratches, obscure vocal samples and any other sound he sees fit. There is no machismo here, no concern over dropping listeners' jaws. It's a chance to see two artists realize their full potential after waiting for so long.

When you hear the album, it becomes apparent why they chose to name themselves after Africa's answer to Viagra. The Yohimbe Brothers start things off with Reid, maybe under the influence of the aphrodisiac, putting down a sexually charged guitar riff. Not to be outdone, DJ Logic provides an array of percussionist scratches and effects that matches Reid's intensity. The sexual energy builds even further, as producer Prince Paul (reprising his Handsome Boy Modeling School persona of Chester Rockwell) sends us on a tour with "6996 (Club Yohimbe)". This is probably the closest the album comes to living up to the '70s AFROdisiac feel of the cover art.

As the midpoint approaches, things begin to cool off. The initial excitement has been expelled, and the artists take time to focus on a much gentler, sweeter sound. The slower pace also allows DJ Logic more time to manipulate the music. The echoed vocals and muted horn work of "$moke and Du$t Dub (version)" make it seem as if the song is being carried on the crisp night, instead of your home speakers.

With "Bamalamb" we get a glimpse of what a Black Rock Coalition (the loose confederation led by Vernon and his old band, Living Colour) ho-down would sound like: violin, harmonica and a kick-ass guitar. But it seems that the sexual energy of the yohimbe root is not enough to carry the album all the way through. The tracks grow colder as the Brothers create a vast soundscape of crunching drums, modified guitars and an unending supply of electronic bleeps and blips. But with the mechanized sound comes more improvisation, a nice contrast to the more groove-oriented opening tracks.

This album is the final piece in a vision that was started by Vernon Reid with his Mistaken Identity record. But now Vernon seems to realize that you can't keep an album interesting with simple guitar licks.

Joe Schaefer
September 17, 2002

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