Donuts — J Dilla (Jay Dee)
Stones Throw
2006
Rating:


James Yancey — a.k.a. J Dilla, a.k.a. Jay Dee — was never truly appreciated until his tragic death at the age of 32 shortly before his second solo album landed in stores in early February. Despite having worked with A Tribe Called Quest, Busta Rhymes, Common and Madlib, J Dilla was criminally unknown to most of the hip-hop community. "Donuts" presents the best reason why J Dilla should be remembered and mourned.

With 31 instrumental samples that only once cross the two-minute mark, "Donuts" unfolds like an ADD-addled collaboration between DJ Shadow, Madlib and Edan (who beat J Dilla to the punch with the samples used on "The Diff'rence," "Geek Down" and "Glazed"). The idea of a hip-hop instrumental album may not sit well with some, and some may not even consider it hip-hop, but that puts serious limitations on the genre.

Like Shadow, Madlib and Edan, J Dilla's record collection must be awe-inspiring, while his wide range of musical tastes is inspirational. This is an album where a Motown version of The Doors' "Light My Fire" gives way to The Beastie Boys proclaiming, "It's the new" over horns, which in turn becomes the soul of "Stop!" "Workinonit," with its Them sample, is the song Rick Rubin wishes he had put on "The Black Album." "Thunder" is an even darker, siren-whaling stomper that ends too soon, its sirens bleeding into the brass of "Gobstopper." "Don't Cry" is J Dilla calling back from Heaven, launching into sad soul before hiccupping the beat to prevent the consolation from turning maudlin.

The frenzied leaps from rock to soul to world music and everything in between, its refusal to settle down and its decision to keep lyrics from ruining the flow are genre-defying. "Donuts" can be called Dadaist, it can be called post-modern, it can be called minimalistic. Just make sure to call it hip-hop, too.

Posted Thursday, March 2, 2006

Link to this review:
http://filmzeus.pressbin.com/music/j.dilla/donuts