Posts by Walter Biggins

‘Black Messiah’ broadens the range of black pop, sometimes by rendering it unrecognizable, sometimes by stretching its limits, and sometimes simply by reintroducing elements to it that we had forgotten. It’s a mission statement on black pop’s past, present, and possible futures.

[rating=9.00] Swooning strings introduce D’Angelo’s new single, “Really Love.” They never let up, and neither does anything else. Not Pino Palladino’s loping, melodic bassline, which seems to respond to the singer’s nonstop vocal coaxings and maneuvers. Not the flamenco-inflected guitar, which moves as naturally and idiosyncratically as Big D’s speak-singing. Not the whispered conversation in […]

If you want to understand what hip-hop learned from the 1990s, and what the 1990s meant musically from that point onward, hip-hop or not, ‘Ill Communication’ is a good place to start — and to return.