Album Review: Sa-Ra Creative Partners- Nuclear Evolution, The Age of Love (2009)

Album Review: Sa-Ra Creative Partners- Nuclear Evolution, The Age of Love (2009)
Rating: 3 out of 5 Potholes

Although they have worked on several other records and even dropped their own record with 2007′s The Hollywood Recordings, Erykah Badu’s New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) is what springs to mind whenever I hear about Sa-Ra Creative Partners. The trio’s work on joints like “Me”, “The Cell”, “Twinkle”, and others really stood out and helped mold new territory for Ms. Badu. And with Sa-Ra’s latest, Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love, I had high hopes the group could continue breaking ground and solidifying itself as a powerhouse. Unfortunately, that only remains true in the sonic regions of the record, which are weighed down by mundane and in-your-face sexuality.

The issue plaguing this record is actually one that rears its head frequently in the realm of modern R&B and soul. Gone are the days of subtlety where, yes, it was implied you were singing to a lady who you would hope to have breakfast with the next morning. But instead of implications, you have straightforward suggestions, such as on the otherwise smooth-as-butter “The Bone Song”. That track in particular, as its title indicates, is the greatest criminal in the case of overt sexuality, which you can hear it dispersed all over the record.

Also, while the vocals primarily complement the erratic production well, they do have a tendency to get lost in the mix as the album plays. At first it doesn’t appear that will be the case. Sa-Ra kick things off with the Latin-infused, dance-party “Spacefruit”, which features Debi Nova assisting with crooning in both Spanish and English. And, similarly, Ms. Badu graces “Dirty Beauty” with her gorgeous throaty vocals for the otherworldly space jam. Tracks of this breed, however, are far and few too between. And when Sa-Ra’s Om’Mas Keith, Taz Arnold, and Shafiq Husayn handle the duties on the mic, you are left craving more Nova, Badu, or, at least, a male vocalist with better range.

Where these three galactic producers shine is in their, well, production. Almost every joint on here, especially those aforementioned tracks, is an experimental hip-hop/R&B head’s wet dream. The trio incorporates the crunchy drums of Flying Lotus on album standout “Traffika”. They get funky and smooth on the break-up track “Melodee N’Mynor”, which features perfectly-mixed, low-laying horns for effect. Another highlight is the longest track on here in “Love Czars”. At nearly eight minutes, one would assume the jazzy drums and tight bass would grow tiresome by the five minute mark. But no, it’s so infectious that when it ends, you will get entranced for another eight minutes.

Obviously – as we all know from their past work – the three members of Sa-Ra are some talented cats. Their instrumentation and production is hands down phenomenal at times. They have an innate ability to take sounds associated with the likes of Prince, Flying Lotus, and J Dilla, smash it all together, and then lay it down for funk-driven ear candy. But their skills behind the boards aren’t enough to accelerate their disappointing lyrics and fitting but average vocals.