Full of swirling background vocals and dark, brooding funk that goes down smooth and slow, D'Angelo's Voodoo is a masterpiece. I remember receiving this CD from my uncle in junior high, him telling me it would change my life one day. It took me quite awhile to appreciate all that is going on on this record, but once it clicked, man, what brilliance. You are probably most familiar with D'Angelo from his video for"(Untitled) How Does It Feel?" , where D'Angelo is shown naked from the waist up with a simple background for the entire video.
SO , to the album itself. Voodoo starts with 8 minute swirl of funk and never lets go. Incorporating heavy beats, gospel tinges, and latin fusion, D'Angelo never allows the music to become stale. It sounds as if Prince were just introduced to the drum machine for the first time and told to go crazy. The COOLEST part of it all is that all the drum tracks are created live. Yes, they may sound like machine, but that is just the genius of the drummer on this album, Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson, member of the rap supergroup The Roots.
To me, this album should have been a duo album of ?uest and D'Angelo, because ?uest's input on this record is heard all over the place. A little background of ?uest: the man is a huge afro-sporting, beard-wearing bear of a man. You may recognize him from the Chappelle show, in which he jams with John Mayer in a barbershop(More on the Mayer-D'Angelo connection in a bit). ?uest, aside from being an integral part of the Roots, has been musical director for so many artists such as Kanye West and Jay-Z(In Hova's Unplugged on MTV, ?uest is killin it all night long!). Anyway, ?uest has the remarkable ability to play drums like it's a drum machine. If you listen to the record, at parts, you will never believe that there is an actual person playing the beats, because it sounds so programmed. Yet, even though it sounds programmed, the beats have a slight swing to them, giving them an INCREDIBLE funky feel. ?uest was heavily influenced by the beat-master J Dilla(RIP), and to create this album, Dilla would make programmed beats, and then ?uest would create his own interpretations, creating such a unique effect. ?uest also brings his signature loooooooowww toned bass and super tight snare-with rim click effect to most songs. I can listen to a song, and from about 10 sec. in know that ?uest is playing. To me, that is a sign of an incredible musician.
Anyway, this album has influenced many already. Case in point: John Mayer. Mayer became heavily entrapped in the web of funk that is Voodoo and decided to attempt his own brand of funk. On Mayer's second album Heavier Thing's, the first track, "Clarity" features basically the entire band from Voodoo, Pino Palladino on bass, ?uest on drums, and Roy Hargrove on horn. Bet ya didn't know that. Also, if you recognize the name Pino Palladino, it's because Pino is now a member of the John Mayer Trio and played on every song on Mayer's new album. I don't know if we would have the Mayer Trio without D'Angelo. Respek.
D'Angelo himself is quite an enigma. Aside from 95's Brown Sugar, 2000's Voodoo was his last album to date. Rumors of his upcoming album James River have been swirling for almost three years, and aside from a few sneak peeks, no release date or info has been leaked. I have heard that after recording Voodoo, D became heavily obsessed with the music of Jimi Hendrix and was planning on spending the next 5 years mastering the guitar so he could make a Jimi-inspired record. However, the tracks I have heard sound pretty much nothing like Jimi, so who knows if that rumor is true. One thing people may not know is that D'Angelo share a child with soul singer Angie Stone. Watch out in 20 years, that kid will make some funky music.
Recorded at Electric Ladyland in New York(Jimi Hendrix's studio, ironically), Voodoo has a very unique feel. All the tracks are great in my opinion, but the standout to me is Spanish Joint. It's latin feel, mixed with D'Angelo's signature swirling falsetto create one of the best fusing of styles I have ever heard. Give it a listen, and prepare to be blown away.
D'Angelo, please come back. We need some true funk.
BD
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