It isn’t often that an album like Blakroc works. When rockstars try their hand at being hip hop or when rappers try to be rock [Weezy, I love you man, but c’mon now] it usually induces cringing and head-shaking, but when The Black Keys teamed up with Damon Dash and brought in luminaries such as Mos Def, Billy Danze, RZA and Ludacris, the signs weren’t as bad as first thought.
In fact, it’s much more than just a non-catastrophe, it’s a quality album that draws the best out of the Keys’ bluesy excellence and combines it with some excellent verses that make it seem impossible to think that this wouldn’t work. The album kicks off with a track that brings Luda and the ever-enjoyable O.D.B. together telling stories of women that have got them wrapped around their little finger and the record never looks back.
A softer side of the collabs arrives in the form of Nicole Wray who does a sterling job of sounding sultry over the more understated guitars, but for the most part it is the filthy fuzzy numbers which stand out on the record, Dollaz & Sense featuring Pharoahe Monch and RZA, Stay Off The Fuckin’ Flowers with Raekwon and What You Do To Me with it’s excellent hammond organ backdrop.
The track you can hear by clicking the player above is Ain’t Nothing Like You [Hoochie Coo] featuring Mos Def and Dipset’s Jim Jones on the best cut from the album. Mos Def’s hook is a guaranteed singalong just waiting to get into your brain.
Abjekt.