[.ca] Trinity

From Amazon.com:
Slum Village's sophomore album has as many bright moments as it does miscues. Designed to illustrate the group's rise from the Detroit underground, the album's spotty production takes too long to get you throbbing while the villagers manifest. Emcees T3 and Baatin's stepped-up flow is noteworthy, and newcomer Elzhi adds a rougher, battle-ready element to the mix, but at times his gangsta clichés don't mesh with his cohorts' green-tea-and-a-backrub Casanova personas. Though the overall production is uneven, young-Turk beatmakers Karieem Riggins and Waajeed O'Bryant shine on tracks like "La La" and "Tainted," which build on the momentum created by the group's debut, Fantastic, Vol. 2. Unfortunately, Trinity all but excludes founding member-producer Jay Dee, and in the end, Jay Dee's three contributions eclipse all others. We're left wondering what Trinity would have sounded like if all three original members were still in cahoots. As it stands, Trinity's overall vibe comes off like an often misguided attempt to inherit the kingdom A Tribe Called Quest helped build and De La sold. --Arno Kazarian

Chronique amazon.fr:
Suite de l'excellent Fantastic Volume 2, ce second opus du trio du Michigan est marqué par des bouleversements au sein de la formation. En effet, Jay Dee, l'architecte en chef de l'ensemble, prend ici de la distance, déléguant au maximum aux brillants producteurs que sont Hi-Tek, Karriem Riggins, Scott Storch, mais aussi Waajid, Black Milk, Young RJ et Ne'Astra. Par ailleurs, Trinity: Past, Present And Future est également marqué par l'arrivée d'un très bon nouveau rappeur : Elzhi. L'ensemble, aussi passionnant que leurs productions en compagnie de D'Angelo ou A Tribe Called Quest, demeure fidèle aux préoccupations de Slum Village : c'est-à-dire funky, voire un brin techno par endroits, avec ce côté minimal qui n'appartient qu'à eux. Vivement recommandé. --Hervé Comte

solid, but not vol. II:
don't you hate it when you wait over a year for an album that had you receiving goosebumps...and then when you hear it, it doesn't disappoint, but you feel as if something was just not right? "trinity" is a good example. if you know about slum, how they came up, the songs/albums they dropped before this one, you'll know that distinct jay dee monotonous funk/jazz/soul blended into beats...and you'll, like me, want to hear more of it. where as "vol. II/fantastic" was gritty, seemingly unrehearsed, and vibrant, "trinity" to me is eclectically puzzling. the album starts off well until it hits a sour note with the hi-tek produced "slumber", and begins to tail off around the t-3 produced "unisex." however, baatin's west african hebrew on "get live" is probably the prize jewel of the whole album. if you like slum...get the album...if you're curious about slum...get the album...but if you want to know true slum...listen to vol. II first.

slummy villagers get ill on sissy uptown emcee's:
ok ok...you like that funk? this cd is for you. sv is coming through with that crazy multi-styled soul on this cd. fa sho... with tracks like "tainted" and "love U hate" this cd has that new "were rap but not affraid to think outside the box" mentallity thats really pushing music back into the right direction - real artistry. I even find myself listening to the "80's skit" over and over....just a simple little skit with some casio beats thats one of the hottest get up and dance songs on that cd. moral of the story...SV is "good"get the cd...support the real artist..not what some fat rich a & r thinks will sell. holla back. ATL!

not much to say here:
I bought this thinking these guys were innovative yet nothing on this cd stands out to me. tainted feat dwele is the best song on the cd , maybe that's why it was the first single. one thing I dislike about this is the skits, interludes , and for crying out loud 2 intros!!! why do you need two intros? there are about 4 good tracks out of 22 the rest are a bit bland if your looking for something new or different don't look here , I'm sure they'll do better next time or atleast I hope they will. not the second coming of tribe sorry.

Past meh!, Present meh!, The Future Doesn't Look Bright:
Slum Village ~ Trinity (Past, Present, Future) Detroit underground group Slum Village was producer Jay Dee's side project to his production and other efforts. On their second CD, Dilla has now left the group and it was just MC's Baatin & T3. One might think a group founded by a beatmaker who has worked with the likes of Common, ATCQ, and The Pharcyde would be as entertaining and ill on the mic as those kats. Sadly they aren't. Baatin & T3 both have skills ranging from bellow to average at times. Their topics are generally skirt chasing and other BS that wouldn't be so bad if the lyrics were strong. Without Jay Dee's production and no notable guest appearances I was even more sceptical of this release than I was their first. Luckily they did do one key thing to improve the group, they brought in the young hungry rapper, Elzhi. He has that distinct Detroit delivery at times and strong battle rap lyrics that the group desperately needed. So my emcee fears are actually put down a little, but still what about the beats? The production for the most part is handled by a group of relatively unknown producers (Curtis Cross, Karriem Riggins, Waajeed O'Bryant, and T3 himself) but Jay Dilla hasn't totally left them high and dry (he does 3 tracks) and DJ Hi-Tek and Scott Storch lend their hands (1 song each). All in all the production is polished, smooth and soulful but it feels underdeveloped. Although the guests aren't as star studded as Fantastic, DJ Dez's cuts are complimentary to the production where featured and Dwele's vocals are a nice touch as well. The album also has the makings of an interesting concept labelling the songs: past, present and future. Although it's an interesting idea it isn't fully realized because there doesn't seem to be a pattern in the labeling. Now I'll discuss the meat and potatoes or lack there of... Insane ~ After two intros "Insane" gets things started with Baatin & Elzhi sharing the mic. I was expecting a really energized track with the title being insane and it being the opening track. Unfortunately the beat done by Waajeed O'Bryant is a fairly repetitive muted horn sounding synth that doesn't veer too much from the same path. It does build a head nodding vibe but not much else. Baatin kinda puts me to sleep on this track with his slow flow and whiny delivery. Elzhi comes and steals the show with his second rapid verse. Tainted ft/ Dwele ~ All three MC's drop verses on this one. To me Elzhi doesn't actually steal the show totally here. Him & T3 drop relationship type verses, which are both decent. T3 talks about how he is better than most dudes in the love department who's love isn't real. Elzhi in a real short spit talks about his views on relationships. Baatin is the glue in this joint. His middle verse between them converses about the fake love in the industry. Dwele's sultry voice lays down the chorus which is really captivating combined with the beat. For the beat itself Karriem Riggins really comes through. He uses hollow sounding percussion, flowing soft organ, and deep loving bass. The vocals and production work together to create a kool, smooth and classic feel. Disco ~ 'Disco" was a good choice for a single, but the remix with Timbaland doesn't really work. This LP version is produced by T3 and has a mindless appeal to it. Utilizing funky keys and bass but it ultimately comes off kinda weak. It's a club oriented track that doesn't just want you dancing in the club but in the barber shops too. It's fun, but really a cheap thrill. Unfortunately it lacks any substance and falls flat. One ~ A lot of songs other than the singles "Tainted" and "Disco" have a heavy filler vibe to them. They often sound appealing, they just don't have that extra element that separates average from good. "One" is a song that doesn't seem to be geared as a single but it doesn't seem to be filler either. It is purposefully crafted as solid piece of work. Jay Dee shows up for the production on this joint. The problem is it really stands out and makes the other music look pedestrian. He lends almost a dark effect, with paranoid jazz keys, booming strings like a cello, choppy drums and rolling bass. There is also some good wordplay on behalf of SV using the theme of "one" consistently throughout the song. Trinity (Interlude) ~ Right in here you get the bulk of quality on the album ending here. This cut has the three kats basically telling everyone where they have come from to the place they are at. Curtis Cross does his thing on the boards to make a hard bass driven beat with nice synthesizers and nice turntable work from DJ Dez (nothing outstanding mind you). This is a pretty bad album there just isn't enough here to justify 23 tacks. They could do some things to make a better release as a whole in my opinion. Firstly let Elzhi do most of the rapping, T3 is pretty average and undistinguishable, Baatin has ok flow and his own delivery. Baatin has left the group now so I don't think we'll be hearing much from him. They should add a full producer to the group, T3 does an alright job on his songs so he should possibly handle a couple of joints on the next one. The producers they used were alright but Karriem Riggins is really the only one that sticks out. I liked the rest of his work with SV & Common as well. Get better Dj's on your ish, Dez is ok but nothing to write home about in my humble opinion. Get more guests on your albums for variety. I think if they don't make serious moves they will fade away. 2 stars, buy it if you like it after a listen. Peace, love & soul...

It takes a village:
I first heard "SV" on Common's CD "Like Water for Chocolate". They ripped up this song called "Thelonious"(dowload that song if you don't have it from you download site of choice). Their flow was so infectious that I instantly became a fan."Trinity" is their sophomore CD. The first, "Volume 2" got rave reviews. I heard that CD. It was hot but I was playing dominos at the time so I really couldn't concentrate on it. These brother's rep Detroit. The thing about SV is that they are an acquired taste. I mean musically they rock it. I mean it's all smooth, jazz like tracks. Lyrically when you first hear them though they seem rushed. But just be patient, get somewhere where you can concentrate, and run it back. MAN!! Man they spit so much knowledge about the music biz it ain't even funny. Lyrically they run off metaphors like Outcast. They leave you sitting there like "What did he just say??". This CD, Trinity, offers an alternative to the other hip hop out there. The first single, "Tainted", is hottttttt. Everybody is showing that single love. they have several cuts on the CD that go as hard as that song."Lala" is a track talkin abt rappers stealing their style, "All Ta Ment" has a tight flow with a Latin kinda sultry groove. They have a cut called "Disco", a skating ring kinda jam that sounds like it came right off a Casio Keyboard!! All the while their flow never misses a beat! One of my favorite cuts on the CD is "One". Smooth Ice T "Killing Fields" kinda track and the lyrics are fierce! Man they even have a cut , "Get Live", where one of the cats raps the beginning of his verse in HEBREW!! It's tight man! .It's a 20+ track production, but the songs all come in around 3 mins. A few interludes here and their. My favorite cuts are 4,5,6,7.8.....well hell damn there almost everyone. Overall this CD is bangin, just be prepared to run it back and concentrate. No Cash Money content here!

	Custom Search