Detroit producer, MC and songwriter Black Milk returns to work on his ninth record after leaving Mass Appeal Records. Best known as part of the BR Gunna production trio, he eventually went solo 20 years ago with Sound of the City, and launched 313 Day and Popular Demand in 2007. The following year, he branched out into electronic music with Tronic, and began incorporating live instrumentation into his 2010 Album of the Year. His next album, No Poison No Paradise, ended up being Black Milk’s darkest work to date, and was followed the following year by a solid follow-up, If There’s a Hell Below. “FEVER” became one of his most political works, and he hopes to follow up “Everyone Is Good”? And hold a grand return ceremony.
After the “Fazes” intro, first track “Feel Sum’n Heal Sum’n” starts talking about paying standard price or double the price without haggling for a homemade instrument, while “In the Sky” brings a funkier vibe, describing the feeling of a stove going from hot to freezing. “Crash Test Dummy” has a summery rush so he can talk about slowing down before he starts running, and then “Dreams Are Not Made Only at Night” strips things down into a story that ends with people getting arrested.
After the compositional “Lift Off” interlude, “Act Like” spends a few minutes confronting a woman who has taken an interest in him; after “Never Never” talks about existing in the moment and living a good life as the only thing he wants, “Ceremony” continues the second half of the full length with this 3-minute instrumental jam that wraps up the song with a heartwarming second half.
Saba appears on the second and final single, “Ok…Nah,” sending a direct message to those who think they’re safe or trying to run away from any artist, before adding some rap-rock tones so he can talk about waiting for the “right time” to arrive, explaining that from his perspective, it’s more than just an achievement. “YOUIT (Truth Be Told)” closes the album, a silent talk about going from sitting on a porch to sitting in a Porsche.
In preparation for full-scale production of Fat Ray’s forthcoming sixth album, Food From the Gods II, due out in the next seven months, Black Milk rocked the mic for the first time in three years, ritually reflecting on the progress he’s made as an artist since Sound of the City. Not only does his work reflect this by showing his creative evolution, but this time his subject matter is more introspective than political.
Score: 8/10
