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N.A.S.A. - The Spirit Of Apollo
| Urb |
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N.A.S.A. began work on The Spirit of Apollo with a mission: make funky beats with crazy knock and throw anyone they felt was right onto every track, no matter how strange the pairings seemed. The result is an innovative, head-nodding piece of work from two producers who were brought together at an industry party 7 years ago. Sam Spiegel (aka Squeak E. Clean) and Ze Gonzalez (aka DJ Zegon) were united by their shared fascination with vintage Brazilian soul and funk. This is the backbone of the N.A.S.A. sound – an international jungle funk dressed up for the club. You can hear it in the stand-up bass themed “Money,” featuring some fiery bars by the great Chuck D, and in the percussion of tracks like “The People Tree.” But the real talking point to N.A.S.A.’s signature sound is those bizarre collaborative pairings. Karen O makes an appearance with the late ODB on his last recorded song. The RZA and Barbie Hatch prove to be an eerily pleasing combo over the dark drums and drugged out electric guitar loop on “Way Down.” “Spacious Thoughts” features possibly the strangest of the album’s collabs as Tom Waits growls savagely between Kool Keith’s abstract verses. N.A.S.A. even takes a bold stab into the electronic medium with the upbeat sing-along club banger “Whachadoin?,” featuring MIA and Santogold (the former arrived unannounced with the latter and jumped into the both)....full text |
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| Musicomh |
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There is hip hop, and then there is hip hop. N.A.S.A., the brainchild of New Yorker Squeak E Clean (Sam Spiegel) and Brazilian DJ Zegon (Ze Gonzales), falls into the latter category - rap music that adheres to the founding principles of the genre. Soul searching, musically adventurous and no trace of bling and bitches in sight. N.A.S.A. may crib its name from the famous organization of the same name, but here it stands for North America/South America. This is a true cross-cultural fusion of influences in the spirit of the age. Where to begin? After a brief intro that gives a flavour of the Latin influence on this wonderful album we launch into The People Tree. Two tracks in and already we are hearing the massed talents of David Byrne, Chali 2na, Gift Of Gab and Z-Trip. Not a cover of patchouli acid-jazzers Mother Earth fortunately, this People Tree locks into a funky groove over which Byrne and the MCs spin their morality tale....full text |
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| Latimesblogs |
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N.A.S.A. stands for North America, South America, according to the liner notes of the debut album from DJ Squeak E. Clean and DJ Zegon. It's also described as "a cooperative effort with our counterparts all over the world... breaking boundaries and borders set for us by society." A noble quest to be sure, but the "The Spirit of Apollo" is flawed on a few counts. They've gathered a dazzling roster of guest stars, including David Byrne, Chuck D, RZA, Karen O, Tom Waits, M.I.A., Kanye West and Lykke Li, but the way they've used them isn't inventive enough. And the representation in this sort of "We Are the World" for hipsters includes only a few from South America. They use plenty of Brazilian funk samples but without the impact of the all-star cast....full text |
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