Brooklyn Funk Essentials will end a roughly four-year wait for new music from the group Friday when it releases its latest album, Intuition through Dorado Records. The band’s seventh album, it follows the group’s release of Stay Good in 2019 and spans only eight song. Those songs run a total of 35 minutes. Even being such a somewhat short record, the group’s new record still offers audiences plenty to appreciate, not the least of which is its musical content. This element will be discussed shortly. The lyrical themes that accompany the album’s musical content are also of interest and will be discussed a little later. The sequencing of that collective content rounds out the most important of the album’s elements and will also be discussed later. Each item noted is important in its own way to the whole of Intuition and all together they make the record a welcome new addition to Brooklyn Funk Essentials’ catalog.
Intuition, the latest album from Brooklyn Funk Essentials, is a record that the group’s established audiences will appreciate just as much as fans of funk and R&B. Its appeal comes in no small part through its featured musical arrangements. For the most part, the arrangements presented in this record take listeners back to the glory days of funk and R&B. From the funky bass line that drives the album’s opener,’ Scream!’ and ‘Rollin’ (Love Will Be There)’ to the equally infectious grouping of the bass, keyboards and guitar in ‘How Happy’ to the infectious groove of ‘Sho’Nuff’ and so much more, the group’s familiar vintage musical leanings are just as much on display throughout this record as much as they are throughout the group’s existing catalog. There are some slight variances thrown in for good measure, too, such as the hip-hop beats that line up alongside those vintage funk leanings in the album’s single, ‘AA Side Single’ and the blending of the reggae and vintage R&B influence in ‘Mama.’ That song’s arrangement in particular stands out perhaps more than any other because it is a prime example of how reggae can actually be effectively handled without just repeating the same reggae guitar riff over and over again in every song of said genre. The addition of the trombone and the drums to the mix (and even the vibraphone and Afro-Latin percussion) actually gives the arrangement a little bit of a jazz leaning, too. Clearly, there is a lot going on here with so many influences, but it all works so well thanks to the attention paid by all to balancing each item. All things considered the whole proves itself such a surprisingly engaging composition that is certain to please listeners. When it and all of the other songs noted here and considered alongside the rest of the album’s entries, the whole makes fully clear just how important Intuition’s musical content is to its overall presentation.
As much as Intuition’s musical arrangements do to make the album enjoyable, they are just part of what makes the album worth hearing. The lyrical themes that accompany the album’s musical arrangements are of their own interest. Starting where the previous discussion left off, ‘Mama’ is a prime example of that importance. The song centers on a young man’s love and respect for his mother. He delivers the message (in a semi-spoken word approach) his respect for her even as she came home from work, so tired, but still even went to PTA meetings, and how much she did apparently as a single parent. This is inferred as the vocalist here makes mention of the home being sans a male to lead the way. The overall tribute to the vocalist’s mother is so moving in its subdued approach. That less is more lyrical presentation works with the song’s equally reserved musical arrangement to make the whole all the more an addition to the album.
‘Scream!’ is another example of the importance of the album’s lyrical content. In the case of this song, it delivers a message of self-empowerment. This as it tells listeners to “Scream/Don’t let anybody tell you/How you oughtta behave/Scream/Do what you wanna do/Say what you wanna say/Scream/Don’t let nobody tell you who you oughtta be.” This is anything but a new message. It has been delivered by so many acts across the musical universe but is delivered in a fashion that will resonate with listeners just as much here as in any previous case. Regardless of age, this is a message that is certain to resonate with any listener. That ability to connect with so many listeners shows just as much as ‘Mama’ why the album’s lyrical content is important to its presentation.
Changing things up again, ‘Rollin’ (Love Will Be There)’ is yet another example of the importance of the album’s lyrical content. The group encourages listeners to let the music flow them themselves and make it make them feel so good. Listeners could actually argue that in listening to the song in whole its message is one of unity, letting music make one feel good not only together, but with others, which would explain, possibly, the statement that “love will be here”. Hopefully that interpretation is somewhere in the proverbial ballpark. Either way, the message is clearly positive. When that positive message is considered along with the other messages delivered in the other songs examined here and with the rest of the album’s entries, the whole makes the album’s lyrical content that much more clear in its importance.
It goes without saying that the overall musical and lyrical content featured in Intuition goes a long way toward making the album worth hearing. Even as much as it does to make the album worth hearing, it is only part of what makes the record worth hearing. The sequencing of that content puts the finishing touch to the whole and completes the presentation. From the record’s opening to its end, the sequencing ensures that the arrangements change just enough in their sounds and styles while also keeping the record’s energy flowing fluidly. It also ensures the lyrical themes change just enough from one to the next, ensuring even more, the record’s enjoyment. The result of that sequencing is a positive general effect that when considered with the content itself gives listeners all the more reason to hear the record. All things considered they make Intuition a welcome new addition to Brooklyn Funk Essentials catalog that is well worth hearing.
Intuition, the latest album from Brooklyn Funk Essential, is a welcome addition to the group’s already extensive catalog that audiences are sure to enjoy. The record’s enjoyment comes in part through its featured musical arrangements. From song to song, the arrangements all offer audiences more of what they have come to expect from the group, in the way of their blend of funk and R&B leanings. There are so interesting variations in some of the arrangements that make them interesting, too. The lyrical themes that accompany the album’s musical arrangements offer their own interest through their variety and depth in each message. They give audiences just as much to appreciate as the record’s musical arrangements. The sequencing of that collective content puts the finishing touch to the album’s presentation, ensuring it collectively creates a positive general effect. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the whole of Intuition. All things considered they make the album an enjoyable offering for the band’s established audiences just as much as funk and R&B fans in general.
Intuition is scheduled for release Friday through Dorado Records. More information on the album is available along with all of Brooklyn Funk Essentials’ latest news at:
Website: http://www.brooklynfunkessentials.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BrooklynFunkEssentialsMusic
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BklynFunkEsntls
