Blue Sky Black Death

Late Night Cinema

(Babygrande)

US release date: 29 April 2008

UK release date: 9 June 2008

By Alan Ranta

cover art
 Amazon
 Lala

The Bay Area’s Kingston and Young God dare you to pigeonhole them with the release their second solo record. Their double LP debut got the fire started in 2006 with one disk of hip-hop instrumentals and another with various vocal collaborations. The second disk would lead them to produce an entire album for Wu Tang affiliate The Holocaust, released some three months later. A year after that, they released another Wu Tang connected album, this time giving Hell Razah (also of Sunz of Man) more old soul and R&B flavored beats.

Late Night Cinema is their fourth album in less than two years, and changes the game yet again. The duo brought in a slew of vocalists, violinists, and even a synth/organ man to collaborate with them in the studio. With that, they backed off the punchy moodiness of their earlier work in lieu of strings and uplifting electronics. The average track length has swelled to over 5 minutes (rare for instrumental hip-hop). The opening “The Era We Sang” manages to marry club breakbeat and downtempo in its six minute, with a little post-rock and Coon’s violin virtuosity thrown in for flavor. “Ghosts Among Men” sounds like an Isaac Hayes or stock Motown instrumental with a piano plinking something like the Halloween theme. Late Night Cinema is a thorough triumph from two of hip-hop’s most exciting prospects.

— 3 June 2008
Blue Sky Black Death Interview
 
Bookmark and Share

Related Articles

Blue Sky Black Death: Jean Grae: The Evil Jeanius

By Michael Kabran

17.Nov.08

Are the songs as hot as the controversy surrounding the first Jean Grae collaboration with Blue Sky Black Death? Yes. And no.

Blue Sky Black Death: Slow Burning Lights

By Andrew Martin

10.Nov.08

If nothing else, Slow Burning Lights will officially put Blue Sky Black Death above their contemporaries.

Blue Sky Black Death: A Heap of Broken Images

By Neal Hayes

27.Sep.06

Two producers introduce themselves with a two-disc debut, which, like many double albums, is creative, ambitious, and a few tracks too long.