October 15, 2009 Music » Music Reviews

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Q-Tip 

Kamaal the Abstract (Jive)

by Dave Hayden

Recorded in 2001 but shelved because there were no "hits," Kamaal the Abstract is a great leap for Q-Tip, expanding and delivering on everything to which A Tribe Called Quest aspired. True to its title, the album is predominantly a meditation on free jazz forms, funk and hip-hop, with many long improvised passages. Q-Tip's signature rap style is left to the last three (most Tribe-like) tracks; he sings or interjects intermittently, giving his musicians more room to maneuver. Even though The Roots, Andre 3000 and others have continued to push the boundaries of hip-hop since this album was originally supposed to have been released, Kamaal the Abstract is still a genre-busting work of genius that reconfirms Q-Tip's supremacy as a progressive composer.


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