The Roots from Philadelphia have been an outsider within the hip-hop scene for years. Their idiosyncratic way of doing hip-hop business - using real instruments instead of drum machines and samples - forms the basis of that position. In addition, various band members such as? Uestlove (drums) and Rahzel (beatboxing) also have their own solo projects, with varying success by the way. The previous
… album, Phrenology, contained The Seed (together with Cody ChessnuTT) the second big hit for The Roots, after You Got Me by Things Fall Apart from 1999. Successor The Tipping Point is already the seventh gem and is named after a book by Malcolm Gladwell, which deals with drops that overflow buckets and set in motion developments of magnitude. The record is a bit more modern with songs like Don't Say Nothin and Duck Down. After the end of the ten track record, you can enjoy the two hidden bonus tracks, one of which is a seven-minute instrumental jam. The Roots knows how to fascinate a lot more with the Tipping Point than with the meager Phrenology. (JdD)more