De La Soul will never make another 3 Feet High and Rising
another Is Dead nor another Buhloone Mind State. Those days are long gone -lost in a daisy age. Yet it is only natural to expect a group that released such classic material to somehow find that formula once again.
This is not the classic De La that ego-trippin' native tongue fans long for; this is a much more grown-up Plug One, Two and Three. The skits are gone, Prince Paul is absent, but their new album, The Grind Date fits well into De La's new approach to music.
Everyone misses Prince Paul's golden touch that made the first three albums so timeless, but with this release, De La proves they still have an ear for beats without Mr. Paulie.
While the sound on The Grind Date follows the overabundance of soul sampling in hip hop as of late, these manage to be pleasantly refreshing and uplifting on songs like Church He Comes
and Much More. All three are instant head-nodders.
Posdnous (Plug One) and Dave (Plug Two) prove their stomachs are still growling when they step to the mic. Their creative flows and style-flipping for which they were once notorious shines on Shopping Bags and Verbal Clap
proving the old-timers still got it.
They close out the album with Rock Co. Kane Flow
a song that will take you back to the De La of old. Alongside the metal-faced villain, MF Doom, the emcees take a rollercoaster ride on a thumping piano. This track is an instant standout once the piano starts to chop and speed up, giving the MCs only one option of bouncing right along with its panic.
This is De La Soul's seventh full-length release; to put it simply, these guys know what they are doing. If the public sleeps on this release, it would not surprise the Plugs -it has happened since Me
Myself
and I -but if you have been sleeping, it is time to wake up and find some soul.
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