Race To The Bottom

Andre Afram Asmar

Mush Records, 2002

http://www.facebook.com/andre.a.asmar

REVIEW BY: Jason Thornberry

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 04/03/2003

Post 9/11 Western xenophobia could make acceptance of this album unlikely without first taking the masses of asses back to first grade like we did with MLK in the 1960's. If tracks like "Scientism" didn't alienate you in the nineties they certainly can today as you visualize United Airlines Flight 175 meeting you at your front window while this spins.

Social and political hypotheses aside, Race To The Bottom is called a "soundtrack to life" by the artist, so if you put down your grievances (which Asmar has naught to do with anyway), and your palette becomes unbiased again, you'll hear the levels of sound he spent more than a year assembling from scores of different musicians, emcees, tapes, breakbeats, and sources I'm not yet privy to. Play this for a friend and note their confused glance first at you, then the speakers themselves. Cavernous dub reggae and DJ Premier hip-hop production mixes with Brazilian rhythms and Middle Eastern vocals peacefully and casually.

The thirteen tracks all congeal naturally enough to make you wonder why it's not been attempted before. Yes, the Middle Eastern voices do stand out significantly, and could be where some listener security ends -- at first. After you've moved away from the recent past, though, Race To The Bottom will reward you with new shades of melody you initially mistook for dissonance. Are these "versions" of songs from another dimension, or the future staring you in the face? And if this is indeed a "follow-up" release, why don't you own its predecessor?my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

Rating: A

User Rating: Not Yet Rated


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© 2003 Jason Thornberry and The Daily Vault. All rights reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of Mush Records, and is used for informational purposes only.