No one anticipated OutKast’s “comeback album” to sound something like this, however ‘New Blue Solar’ demonstrates that André 3000 nonetheless has an enchanting musical thoughts worthy of choosing aside.

Stream: ‘New Blue Solar’ – André 3000

Twenty years in the past, when “Hey Ya!” turned OutKast’s most unstoppable hit so far and topped the Billboard charts for 9 straight weeks, it’s doubtless that no one would have conceived that we we have been basically listening to the duo’s swan track.

But certainly: Apart from Idlewild – a soundtrack that got here and went comparatively quietly, as did the accompanying film musical – nary a brand new launch has emerged from the as soon as omnipresent hip-hop titans since they hit their industrial peak in 2003-04. They initially claimed this hiatus was a product of their mutual needs to concentrate on their particular person careers, however solely Massive Boi and his three solo LPs ever actually made good on that promise. André 3000, in the meantime, has largely light from the limelight he as soon as was rocking away in ecstatically, having hitherto by no means launched a solo album of his personal and never returned with one other Prime 40 hit since “Inexperienced Gentle,” his duet with John Legend, crested at #24 sixteen years in the past.

Finally, André 3000’s path again to the Billboard charts’ higher echelons most likely gained’t be achieved by a completely instrumental album with no vocals in any respect. It’s additionally honest to imagine that many followers would have most popular to have his first batch of latest music in ages to have a minimum of had some rapping on it. However given how lengthy it’s been since 3000’s put out music of any type, it stays satisfying to see the person specific his immense creativity for us in a single type or one other.

Launched November 17, 2023 by way of Epic Data, New Blue Solar is way calmer than most of what the as soon as crazily rambunctious André 3000 delivered in his prime – though it’s true that André Benjamin as soon as described André 3000 as “a personality I play. He’s wild. However me? I’m probably the most nervous man on the planet”. Provided that self-description, maybe it is sensible that Three-Stacks’ go-to instrument all through a lot of the report can be one of many softer and fewer rock concert-ready ones on the market: The flute.

Multi-textured as a lot of OutKast’s catalogue was, it’s onerous to think about many songs of theirs by which woodwinds have been featured prominently. But it seems that one among Benjamin’s facet tasks since ‘Kast’s interminable hiatus started was to hone his flute-playing craft, and he’s currently been noticed “roaming round numerous cities puttering round together with his flute.” As the quilt of New Blue Solar suggests, he now is able to showcase his abilities with this instrument, and a number of types of it at that— contrabass flute, Mayan flutes, bamboo flutes, and a wide range of digital wind devices amongst them.

Along with his personal piping skills, Mr. 3000 has additionally led to quite a lot of visitors to assist him paint this new musical canvas.

Amongst them are guitarist Nate Mercereau, whose background in collaborating with hip-hop artists similar to Jay-Z and Lizzo appears to have ready him for including André 3000 to the checklist; Alice Coltrane, who evidently shares her late husband John’s composition skills; and Carlos Niño, who serves because the report’s co-producer whereas additionally peppering in some percussion snippets. With that type of lineup, New Blue Solar takes form as many jazz albums do: arrange some gifted musicians within the studio, allow them to do their factor on numerous devices, and fuse the outcomes collectively into one coherent recording.

The outcomes listed below are regularly entrancing. The opening observe–  and the one whose title justifies the following report’s complete existence – “I Swear, I Actually Wished to Make A ‘Rap’ Album However This Is Actually The Means The Wind Blew Me…” units the usual for a lot of the following hour-and-a-half. For the primary quarter of the track’s 12-minute runtime, Niño delivers of soothing string of percussion shells whereas Surya Botofasina bangs away on the keyboard. André 3000 lastly reveals up, flute in hand, across the 3-minute mark, and from there on he delicately pipes his means alongside his collaborators, with some extra devices similar to cymbals and chimes stitched in for good measure. As soon as the observe concludes, it’s an indication that this surprising new musical course by which André 3000 has headed is certainly displaying some promise.

A lot of the remainder of the album follows this primary template. Numerous lengthy titles (anyplace between six and twenty-two phrases); lengthy track lengths (a low of 4 minutes, a excessive of seventeen); and plenty of André 3000’s flute-playing being interwoven with the visitor musicians’ diversified contributions. A number of compelling soundscapes emerge consequently.

As may very well be inferred by a number of the names within the track’s title, “Ghandi, Dalai Lama, Your Lord & Savior J.C. / Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, And John Wayne Gacy” evokes the calm and majesty of the Himalayan panorama with its Hinduism-evoking soundbites. The album’s most upbeat observe, “BuyPoloDisorder’s Daughter Wears a 3000® Button Down Embroidered,” earns that distinction by way of some spectacular pedal guitar work on André’s half and a few nifty synthesizers courtesy of Botofasina.

Lastly, closing observe “Desires As soon as Buried Beneath the Dungeon Ground Slowly Sprout into Timeless Gardens” carries issues over the end line by way of a chronic tranquil woodwind sequence punctuated by some cool cymbals, gongs and synths. As soon as a seamless collaborator with different rappers – Killer Mike, Goodie Mob and Raekwon amongst them – André 3000 has confirmed to be a worthy inventive ally to his fellow multi-instrumentalists now that he’s allowed that new inventive mantra to take over.

In the long run, New Blue Solar might evoke much less of the wild character of André 3000 and extra of “probably the most nervous man on the planet” that André Benjamin purports to be. But if it takes a wordless flute-dominated report for that light and delicate facet of Mr. Benjamin to be exhibited most pristinely, than so be it.

Welcome again to the music biz, André.

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