Erykah Badu ft. The Alchemist and Kamasi Washington’s Black Box: A Wonderful Trip

Ever since Erykah Badu and The Alchemist put out Next to You last year people could not wait for the record. Well, we’re here. Before the World Blows is out and it is amazing. Let’s dive deeper into the acid jazz trip, which is Black Box.

The Alchemist and Kamasi Washington team up to produce such a lush 50s / 60s beat-nick underground café vibe. Kamasi’s sax dips and soars above thick base lines and snapping cymbals. This is a mix between hip hop and Bitches Brew style acid jazz. Kamasi jumps in regardless of the beat to put in sax flourishes and exclamation points. This asynchronis jazz sax gives the track great texture and that real jazz club vibe. Moreover, the arrangement really captures Badu’s early Mama’s Gun vibe. You just get into the groove and let the song take you away.

Ok. With all of that said…what makes the song for me is Badu going for it. It’s like they just let her go and finished the song when she told them she was done. It is Badu going back to her spoken word / hip hop days and I love it. Think of he work on The Healer. She lets the music run through her and she vibes with it and just spits bars. The track has a real Allen Ginsberg feel as she has this stream of consciousness beat poetry performance that really hits.

It’s great to get new music from Badu and she can still bring it. In the last few years we have only gotten glimpses of of Badu as she featured on tracks here and there. Now we have a full fledged album with The Alchemist where she is allowed to experiment and express her art without any boundaries. This album is worth the wait and Black Box is a true artistic achievement.

Listen to Black Box