De La Soul

After nearly 15 years of critical and popular ups and downs, De La Soul has settled into the role of spokesmen for the recovery of hip-hop’s golden age. What marks hip-hop’s golden age is up for debate, but many point toward the period in the mid- to late-‘80s as hip-hop’s prime creative era. This is a time that just predated De La’s debut (and, curiously, the group’s apex in the minds of many critics) Three Feet High and Rising, an album that drastically broke tradition with, and humorously mocked, the state of hip-hop at the time.

Since then, De La Soul has attempted to distance itself from the "Daisy Age" heralded on that first album, so it's not surprising that the group's latest disc attempts to return to the roots of classic rap, which was able to comfortably blend politics, social consciousness and a feel-good party atmosphere. Not a lot of new creative ground is broken here, but maybe staying relevant and fighting the good fight is the best two MCs and a DJ, all well into their mid-30s, can hope for in the current state of hip-hop, which is still very much a young man’s game.

That being said, The Grind Date offers a full plate of dance-floor friendly tunes that immediately remind the listener that insightful, intelligent lyricism need not necessarily be divorced from having a good time. The social consciousness at play on this record is seemingly at odds with the feel-good vibe of it all, but De La Soul has always mastered the art of speaking to both the mind and the ass. This isn’t exactly earth shattering, but it carries on in the fine return to form suggested by the group’s previous album, AOI: Bionix. - Cory O'Malley

De La Soul were interrupted just before they could deliver the third volume in their AOI series -- projected to be a DJ album -- to Tommy Boy. (The label perhaps bailed out from a 15-year relationship precisely because the group was going to release such a commercially bankrupt title, one that was planned instead to appear on an independent label run by Maseo.) De La Soul quickly realized they couldn't go ahead with the plan after signing their AOI label to Sanctuary, so they wrote a new record, The Grind Date. Although it may see them settling into a holding pattern, at least the pattern of 2001's AOI: Bionix is one that any hip-hop fan won't mind hearing repeated. Better yet, it boasts productions from an excellent cast of figures -- partner in crime Supa Dave West, author of the best tracks on their AOI series, J-Dilla, who's stretching out his patented (read: overdone) sound to embrace classic hip-hop, an only slightly commercialized Madlib, and young phenom 9th Wonder. Madlib gets what must be the first lead single of his career, a bright, antimaterialist tale called "Shopping Bags (She Got From You)" that thumps like a club tune, but lurches as only the Beat Conductor could do it. "Verbal Clap" finds J-Dilla allowing some grit into his productions, and Supa Dave only continues floating the most fluidly catchy productions of any rap producer in action. Meanwhile, De La Soul voices Posdnuos and Dave balance their time breezing easy on bumping message tracks with a few old-school shots that show them a bit defensive about the passing of time. (Check out "Come On Down," a Madlib-produced shot with Flava Flav, or "Days of Our Lives" featuring Common.) Without a concept to tout, The Grind Date doesn't gel like AOI: Bionix, but it does show De La Soul keeping everything together more than 15 years after their debut. After all, you certainly wouldn't see MF Doom guesting on a Tone-Loc record. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide