While he's widely considered one of the best rappers of all time, this distinction often overshadows
Andre 3000
's tendencies for the absurd. In
OutKast
, his partner
Big Boi
's strong and steady presence often grounded the group when
Andre
's wordplay veered toward the psychedelic or his musical ideas wandered. When they ventured down individual paths on 2003's groundbreaking
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
,
stuck mostly to party funk and rap bangers, while
went off the rails completely, bending pop, swing, jazz, electro, and anything else that suited him around songs whose flagrant ridiculousness was an integral part of what made them so incredible.
New Blue Sun
is
's first official solo album, and though it's made by one of the world's most gifted rappers, it contains no rapping, no singing, no beats (though some percussion happens), not even the genre-hopping he's previously indulged in. Instead of the rap masterpiece he's no doubt capable of,
3000
instead turns in an entirely instrumental album of meditative soundscapes centered around woodwinds. When you take into account his proclivity for the surreal and the ridiculous, releasing a nearly 90-minute-long collection of ambient flute jams is one of the most
things
could do.
If you can get past the premise (and overlook the goofy song titles, most of which are too long and silly to dignify here) and tune in to
as an album of contemplative healing sounds, it's pleasant and sometimes even sublime.
Carlos Nino
co-produces, bringing the same soft warmth he's cultivated on his own transcendental pop albums for the
International Anthem
label. The songs wash by in waves of airy synth pads, gentle wind chimes, electric piano, or absent-minded guitar lines.
is joined by a host of players including
Nate Mercereau
Diego Gaeta
Surya Botofasina
Mia Doi Todd
, and others, all of whom fold new textures effortlessly into the stream of sounds. Opening track "I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a 'Rap' Album But This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time" is among the most structured pieces, moving in patient ripples similar to
Pharoah Sanders
and
Floating Points
' majestic
Promises
. Most of the eight tracks meander past ten-minute run times, wobbling in and out of focus as
burbles along on various woodwinds. "Dreams Once Buried Beneath the Dungeon Floor Slowly Sprout into Undying Gardens" is one of the album's blurriest excursions, but also one of its best.
Nino
's metered gong swells and swishes of arrhythmic percussion dance with synths, flutes, and other opaque ambiance for just over 17 minutes. It's hovering and aimless like
Emerald Web
's or
Alice Coltrane
's most new age material, vibrating constantly but never bubbling over.
is probably not the
solo debut most
fans had expected or hoped for, but it does continue the integrity and spirit of his creative journey, in a way that's fittingly bizarre and beautiful. ~ Fred Thomas