There is a very distinct underground groove that Madlib and the late J Dilla are known for. It’s a skewed and twisted postmodern interpretation of old school R&B and soul. This sounds like a criticism by a snooty genre purist, but it isn’t. Producers nowadays love to jack the music that their parents raised them on. Sample a loop, lay it over a beat, and all of a sudden you’re being hailed as a genius. This is what has killed the art of sampling: an art that lies in the producer’s ability to create something raw, gritty, and relevant to the present out of something old and dated. In other words, a good sampler has to have good chop game, and Madlib’s chop game is something to behold.
While the earlier editions to the Beat Konducta series featured a much more diversified musical palette, this edition sounds like Dilla – and it should since it’s a tribute album. The booming bass and gritty kick and snare of the album’s blunted-out beats make that apparent. What makes it great is that it doesn’t sound like a forgery: it’s an interpretation. Madlib’s take on the irreproducible style of his late friend and collaborator is like him saying, “I could never do what you did, but let me show you how much I was influenced by it.” There is not much fluidity to the 42 track effort, but this is what gives the project its grimy ‘beat tape’ feel. Listening to it gives the impression that you’re somehow getting an exclusive glimpse into a secret vault of unreleased work. If there is anyone fit to fill the void that Dilla left behind, it’s the Beat Konducta.
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