RZA
Bobby Digital
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Decrease Font SizeEditor's Review:
The mastermind behind the Wu-Tang Clan production power, Rza, was once quoted as saying that he saved his best shit for his solo projects. But it remains to be seen if Bobby Digital will be taken as a step in a bold new direction in hip-hop, or another ploy to sell records, gain world domination and achieve "street cred" through a highly diversified media presence.
Whatever the case, digital is what this record is. It seems that Rza has abandoned all analogue equipment in favor of all the coolest sound making toys he could afford, and while the result is kind of interesting at times, it could very well leave fans wondering, "where the hell are the turntables?" If they're in there, they're buried under layers of digitally created and sampled sound, repetitive licks and effects, and vocal samples, usually in foreign language.
Many of the beats on Bobby Digital are slow and rugged, ala Wu-Tang, but it can get repetitive, as is the case with many of the various recent Wu-crew releases, and Rza's Bobby Digital suffers from predicable tracks, beats and themes. There is the pat amount of background soul singing, sensitive tough guy rap and soft "aw yeahs," mixed in with better tracks that could (and probably should) have appeared on the last Wu record.
Bobby Digital's strong point is in the production, which creates a deep and fully encompassing sound, and owes to the benefits of using digital effects and equipment to create music. While there is something about it that lacks the richness of analogue music, the polished tone of much of the material on Bobby Digital will certainly to appeal to those who are into the new school, grand-scale hip-hop.
- Philip Bole
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 Record Label Gee Street Records Released November 1998 |
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