Sage Francis - Human the Death Dance

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RIYL

Aesop Rock
El-P
Blackstar
Dilated Peoples

Tracklist

1. Growing Pains
2. Underground For Dummies
3. Civil Obedience
4. Got Up This Morning
5. Good Fashion
6. Clickety Clack
7. Midgets and Giants
8. Broccoli Break
9. High Step
10. Keep Moving
11. Water Line
12. Black Out On White Night
13. Hell Of A Year
14. Call Me Francois
15. Hoofprints In The Sand
16. Going Back To Rehab

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Recent Ratings

While the ‘gifted white rapper’ isn’t quite as rare a beast as it used to be, it is still a singular animal that could win battle rap contests while sporting a Metallica t-shirt, that could float effortlessly between the worlds of poetry slams and underground hip-hop shows, that could maintain any measure of credibility while spitting lines referencing “Choose Your Own Adventure” books. But then again, there truly is no other artist in music today quite like Sage Francis, who dropped his latest album Human the Death Dance on May 8th via Epitaph Records.

Fans of Francis know that, even at his worst, he brings the cleverest of clever wordplay and Human the Death Dance is no exception. His lyrics are conversational, approachable, intellectual, and relatable. They add an almost unseen layer to his albums; every time you listen to it, you catch a different witty metaphor or personal anecdote. For the instrumental half of the equation, his beats are - again, as always - electric, energetic and eclectic. “Got Up This Morning” is country-fied, “Black Out on White Night” sports a plaintive string section while “Call me Francois” even brings a 70’s b-movie sci-fi sound. The beats inform the mood as much as the lyrics, moods that run the gamut from playful to somber. Throughout whatever stylistic detour the album takes, Francis keeps it all together with his emotionally honest and singular style of lyricism.

Going for a more personal vibe than his last release (2005’s politically charged A Healthy Distrust), a large chunk of Human the Death Dance focuses on a past romance. The opener “Underground for Dummies” finds Francis pontificating on his career trajectory, and there’s even a track written as a direct response to the MC’s 2006 robbery in Amsterdam (“Clickety Clack”). Francis sidesteps falling into the trap of egomaniacal self-importance and braggadocio that weighs down other qualified rappers (Jay-Z, I’m looking at you) by keeping it “warts and all” real as opposed to simply biggin’ up himself for 16 tracks. Sage Francis doesn’t make hip-hop only meant for people who love hip-hop; it’s for people who love music.

--Jeff Lata

Last updated: 09/29/2009 08:59PM

Comments

awake_and_avenge
05/29/2007
09:19AM
Age: 29
Location
Tucson, AZ
As much as I love Sage, I really don't see this as a 4.5 album. It has some good songs, but also a lot of moments that made me cringe ("stop calling it emo," "shut yo mouth," Good Fashion's unrealized potential, rhyming with an onomatopoeia, etc). Those points just feel like he's trying too hard. Not a bad album, just disappointing for me since he last two were so great.
Aaron Yarborough
05/29/2007
09:26AM
Age: 30
Location
Atascadero, CA
it's good, prolly a 4 star album

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awake_and_avenge
05/29/2007
09:54AM
Age: 29
Location
Tucson, AZ
I'll admit that it picks up at Water Line and is really good from there, but the first half is lacking in my opinion.
sovietnoodle
05/29/2007
11:18AM
Location
Colorado
pretty good cd especially after a couple listens...and clickety clack is now my ringtone

GrindTylerCore
05/29/2007
11:57AM
Location
Olathe, Kansas
i listened to about a minute of each song when it was streaming on myspace and thought this album was utter shit. and this is coming from someone who LOVES Personal Journals. A Healthy Distrust was a step in the wrong direction and this is another, much bigger step in that same direction.
Zach Roth
05/29/2007
02:54PM
Age: 24
Location
Fishers, Indiana
I loved A Healthy Distrust, and this album is returning to a sound like Personal Journals.

A lot of the songs really lack character. His lyricism is spot-on all the time, but I just couldn't get into a lot of the songs.

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cloudscollide
05/29/2007
08:48PM
Age: 23
Location
PA
I usually don't listen to this type of music but Skylinedfire asked me to. The lyrics were pretty cool but this cd flew right by without anything really impressing me. Maybe i'm just a douche bag? (Don't respond to that)

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Amazingthemike
05/30/2007
02:28PM
Location
Cleveland, OH
The last CD was great, I've yet to get this one. It's too pricey everywhere I go.

Scene Point Blank / Escapist Records

tim
05/31/2007
01:35PM
Age: 28
Location
Green Brook, NJ
sage francis is a much better battle rapper than an album rapper. a lot of his songs seem to miss the mark; there were only a couple really good songs on a healthy distrust and the same is true for this one.
monkeybars
06/02/2007
06:28PM
Age: 25
Location
Markham, ON
I love this album. I just picked it up yesterday and think it's killer.

P.S. This is what the alphabet would look like if you removed Q and R.

HEARTandSYNAPSE
06/03/2007
07:25AM
Location
Manchester, England
personal journals is an incredible record.