The year of 2018 presented a treat to all Black Thought fans. Not only did the elite rapper provide one release but also injected one more of his ‘Streams Of Thought…’ series into the year. On the first volume, Black Thought connected with 9th Wonder and gave a quick but hefty 5 song project. On volume two the Philadelphia M.C. links with Salaam Remi for ten tracks and more “Roots” adjacent music.
Salaam Remi understands the assignment on ‘Streams Of Thought Vol.2,’ and from the opening track ‘Fentanyl,’ let’s the listener know that these surprise releases are not just throwaway songs but that care was created behind them. ‘Vol.2’ uses more live band instrumentation for Black Thought to rhyme on. This puts the M.C. in a familiar pocket that almost feels like a wake up call for The Roots to come back outside for an album.
Black Thought once again uses this release to get out thoughts and keep his skills sharp. While reminding, or exposing to the general public he is not just a performer on a late night talk show or lead vocalist in a house band. ‘Long Liveth’ is a hard hitting song that puts Black Thought in his rapping bag with no hooks but tough bars. ‘Conception’ on the other hand is Black Thought showing off his crooning skills as him and Salaam Remi create a melo cut that is perfect for coffee shops and black pearls.
The issue I have with this release is that it’s a series. Between 9th Wonder’s music on volume one and Salaam Remi’s vibes on this release, a full album would have served a better purpose. As a series the value of the music seems to diminish and does not create the impact that it deserves. For many this won’t matter, and in world of short attention spans the “sugar rush” feeling of getting new Black Thought music is all most care about. Will the success of these releases create more? Find out next week. What did you think of the album?
Singles include:
‘Conception’
Listen to QUANTUM LEAP RADIO every Saturday from 4-6p.m. CST & Thursday from 1-3a.m. CST on 90.1 FM KPFT Houston in HD2
Worldwide @kpft.org/listen (under “kpft in HD2”) or get the KPFT APP in your playstore!!!
Catch past episodes by searching and following @https://linktr.ee/QLEAPRADIO
