On his artist page for Los Angeles record label Stones Throw Records, there’s a picture of Madlib standing in a cluttered room of vinyl and production equipment. The albums are all over the floor and stacked on top of each other. The composer is in the middle, his brow furrowed as he surveys the scattered mess. For most, it’s the most symbolic representation of Madlib they’ve ever seen.
You have to be very patient, or have A.D.D., to fully appreciate Madlib’s fidgety blend of psychedelic music. For years, the California producer has made patchwork recordings that play like voluminous blunt sessions, filled with all the messy drums and random vocal samples he can muster. It’s why Madvilliany—Madlib’s collaborative album with MF DOOM—was so incredible, and why Yasiin Bey—then known as Mos Def—swiped a bunch of Madlib’s beats for his 2009 album, The Ecstatic. Born Otis Jackson Jr., the composer draws sonic influences from Africa, India and the catalog of iconic Jazz label Blue Note Records. Most recently, Madlib’s production work on Piñata offered a menacing canvas for Freddie Gibbs’ razor-sharp verses. Madlib and Gibbs was an unlikely pair, though much like the producer’s solo work, Piñata proved that Madlib doesn’t follow formulas. He sounds best when the soundscape is completely out of whack.
That was the case for Madlib’s Rock Konducta Pt. 1 released in December, 2013. There was no track list and no major singles. On the cover art, a plain two-toned design and a simple word: “Beats.” That’s the best way to consume Madlib’s work after all. His songs barely breeze past one minute and each track flows directly into the next. That certainly makes for a jaunty listen, even if you can’t always comprehend his vision as the album plays. Madlib’s aesthetic is noise, which makes his Rock Konducta series a perfect fit for his own self-indulgence. Rock music is an anything-goes genre and Madlib is an anything-goes musician. Some of his beats are distorted loops of the original sample; others are chopped and mangled into Madlib’s distinctive West Coast Funk. Perhaps on purpose, there weren’t many standouts on Rock Konducta Pt. 1, which made it feel like one continuous beat tape. Sure, Pt. 1 scans as “Rock,” but it’s largely a rap recording with Rock-N-Roll sprinkled throughout.
On Rock Konducta Pt. 2—which pulls from German Krautrock and Spanish Progressive Rock, among other subgenres—Madlib gets further away from the Rock motif, which doesn’t make sense given the series theme, but it’s still an enjoyable compilation of edgy instrumentals and dusty drum breaks. And while Pt. 1 jumped head-on into the proceedings, Pt. 2 is aerial, meticulous and takes a little longer to rev up. The rhythms don’t hit as hard as those on Pt. 1, which makes the new work more accessible than its predecessor. It doesn’t grab you until midway through—which, for a Madlib recording, won’t take long to reach given the long track list.
For the most part, Rock Konducta Pt. 2 leans toward brassy soul and feels like the soundtrack of a modern Blaxploitation flick. “Black Dreams (Sludge Fight)” is perhaps the best example, with its stampeding drums and looping guitar riff. But of course, as soon as you get into it, Madlib cuts the instrumental and moves onto something else. No surprise there. “Track 19” (he wants you to make up your own song titles) is another standout, as a layered fusion of synthesized Afro-beat. In the end, Rock Konducta Pt. 2 doesn’t have the immediate impact of Pt. 1, but it’s still rewarding. Much like his other output, Pt. 2 shows that Madlib has never lost his love of crate digging, even after the countless projects he’s released over the years. He’s still ambitious, just as restless and refuses to clean up his sound. Or his room for that matter.
i’m not even a Madlib expert like a lot of heads are, but this review is disrespectful…
Man you guys need to go back to your drake albums and bullcrap boom bap beats….I have over 10000 vinyl records and after Jay Dee I have not heard another producer come even close to Madlib, not even RZA. Simple minded doctor seusse mother goose nursery rhyme beat heads….gtfooh!!!!! This dudes drums are on par with Pete Rock and he finds albums and loops that will take most of yall 10 lifetimes to even comprehend!!
Fuck yes good to see sone legit heads still on this site..
Madlib shits all over your favourite producer kiddies.. Maybe your ears will mature someday if not enjoy the latest BS you are hyped about for 10 minutes…
Peace
He still doesn’t know how to use drums properly.
yeah like statik and alc only good samples everything else is done wrong
you guys cant be serious. Have you ever heard anything by Madlib? the drums are incredible. Hating on alchemist and statik too wtf.
i heard the freddie gibbs album wasn’t too impressed shitsville had the only decent beat of course gibbs spits hard as fuck gibbs deserves quality beats and as long as madlib cant provide those he shouldnt be producing for his albums
ru forreal bruh he plays the fuckin drums and has some of the best drums in all of hip hop–not everything is directly boom bap. And if u thought shitsville was the best song on piata kill urself that was by far the worst
What the fuck? Some people just don’t have the same taste in music as you do, and that’s why they should kill themselves? That’s fucked up.
^Yeah, people be fucked up these days. ^^And Shitsville was most definitely one of the standouts on the album. What you smoking?
5/5 just because its madlib and i want to support her no other reason for the high rating tho………………
Her?…
& you give this a perfect score without listening to it?
That’s so ignorant.
im a long-time fan of her she makes perfect beats no need to be a critic because his a legend her music is always good gtfo everything she ever releases is perfect and flawless didnt you know its madlib……………………………. yeah havent listened to it yet and i wont because my copy will be scratched if listened so ill buy a digital copy too so my hard copy will remain flawless we true fans appreciate her work so ill give him her perfect rating even before listening to it i know what to expect from her………………..
^
Delusional fan, seems like.
“While Madlib’s “Rock Konducta Pt. 2″ breaks for in some aspects…”
WTF does that even mean?
Shit review, stellar album
Agree with review/rating.
Yep that’s exactly right….they should. Judging by the state of whats popular these days you would all be doing us a favour. Oh and by the way….Feddie Gibbs majorly sucks.
Yeah, Cocaine Pinata sucked majorly. That’s true.
I wouldn’t trust your opinion on hip hop for shit, if you thought Pinata sucked. One of the best this year, and I’m sure it’ll remain to be one of the best.
9/10 album.
this has been on the headphones for a couple of days now…
YES, it’s dope.
beats are gritty. one of the only artists that does not need lyrics, although sometimes they fit with the music.
I find these madlib instrumentals very weak compared to the standards other producers are setting, so def not for me.
You must be a fan of hit boy or DJ mustard…… gtfoh
http://www.soundcloud.com/151becardi
madlib is #2 to j dilla….always good shit
You went full retard just now. You probably listen to rich homie quan….. lmfao. Gtfoh
not feelin’ this record i must say, had high hopes n shit
madlib tha greatest
Insanely nice beats
I’ll listen to anything Madlib. Thanks.
This album was a total letdown. Just samples. Bad ones.
Nobody anywhere seems to have noticed that the vinyl version of this album is arguably the most jacked up mastering job I’ve ever heard come out of Stones Throw. The sides are simply too damn long. Buy the cd if you want to hear the sweets, and as a vinyl head it absolutely kills me to say that. This is a botched mastering job on par with 36 Chambers. SO quiet.