Robo-Robb "SOULBOT 2"

Normally I can tell right away if I am going to enjoy an album or not; that was not the case with Robo-Robb's "SOULBOT 2." I instantly enjoyed the beats and overall sound (old cassette tape and scratches) but I wasn't sure about Robo-Robb's vocals. The first time I heard his voice I was reminded of Tony M. from The New Power Generation. I cannot deny that at first I was a little turned off thinking about the lack of talent of Tony M. but then I opened my ears (as I should have done from the begining and I apologize for making such an assumption), yes Robo-robb's voice does SOUND like Tony M.'s but that is all. Robo-robb has meaningful lyrics that actually work together, so let me end any and all Tony M. comparison now. I listened to the album again and was impressed by the content and lyrical ability of Robo-Robb. I then began to really enjoy this album and I shall tell you why as I usually do, track by track, so here it goes.

The album begins with the Orwellian inspired "1984" where a haunting beat and beautiful vocals by Lauren Deming,lead into the a short verse by Robo-robb. He introduces the state of the world, incredibly digitalized (I made a new word) and emotionless, and ends with his uplifting final line "you say I can't save the world, well see me try." This leads into the sounds of far off sirens, helicopters, and ensuing chaos.

The chaos is heard in the beginning and continues throughout "Construction," where Robo-Robb addresses the flooded world of internet rap. He addresses everything from "the 5 Million rapper," "500 beat makers invading my social media," "publicists are bodyguards, protecting fragile egos," "journalist are pawns" all of which many fans of the music have encountered and feel the same way as Robo-Robb does. In short, he speaks from the voice of someone who is a fan of this music as well as a participant but does so skillfully compared to so many other "internet rappers" who say they are fans of hip hop but haven't heard of Rakim or BDP.

"Une Vie" (loosely translated as "One Life") is a dedication to Robo-Robb's grandfather (I assume) where Robo-Robb recalls the time spent together and the difficulty of dealing with his death. In a great move,Lauren Deming returns and adds her voice for the chorus which increases the almost dreamlike feeling of recollection of a life and the lesson's learned.

The words of Irving Berlin's classic "Blue Skies" begin the track of the same name, before Matt Schwartz lends a new voice to the album. Right away we realize this is not the same sort of happy song as Berlin's classic, instead it provides commentary on the current depression. Schwartz tells the story of a family going through these difficult times and how life has changed for "a family six feet deep, while the dad's in the dirt." While Robo-Robb acts as the voice of the infuriated masses detailing the huge gap between the wealthy and the every man, "people taking pay cuts to keep a paycheck, the top 1 percent taking home 40 percent."

Robert Weber, lead singer of Squid the Whale and Mister, appears on "Moment" but it is Robo-Robb's beginning verse that shines. It gives us one of my favorite lines of the album "too much to convey I can't take a vacation," not mention a great verse as a whole. The track ends with multiple conversations that become disorientating to illustrate "in order to use your head you have to go out of your mind." The upbeat and even cheerful track "untitled" tells the story of Robo-Robb finding that person who he can truly open his mind to and whose "brain is so sexy, I just want to explore it." This very well might be my favorite track on the album (betwen this and "Une Vie") as Robo-Robb seems to really relax and just let his rhymes go, almost a stream of conscious rap.

The funkiest beat on "SOULBOT 2" belongs to "289" hands down and Robo-Robb adds to the funk with great old school party vocals (while still shouting out FourSquare). The beat then switches to a spaced out rap funk dance beat and the transition is seamless. Any nerds (and as you know that is not a bad thing) want a track to move to "289" should be at the top of the list.

The spaced out feeling continues with "GMS" as Robo-Robb takes a trip with his girl (who says he "drives like Buzz Aldrin") to the moon. I am very curious to see how many people get confused on the lyrics of this track, but for anyone at all interested in outer space, the lyrics (and beat) are spot on and impressive.

While at first I wasn't too sure about this album, I once again learned the important lesson of listening to any and all music (and everything really) with open ears, heart and mind. Once that happened I was able to see what Robo-Robb was doing, creating an album with thought provoking lyrics, with an old school hip hop feel, while it evolves into a spaced out almost nerdy demonstration. In other words, in contains just about everything a enjoy about music. So hats off to Robo-Robb and I recommend you check out "SOULBOT 2."

You can stream and download the album here.