Love Is No Excuse For Bad Art

The Roots featuring Dice Raw, Peedi Crack, and DJ Jazzy Jeff “Get Busy” – I don’t know why, but I totally take the Roots for granted, and I suspect that I’m not alone. Much of this comes down to Black Thought — he’s a terrific, highly competent rapper who, for some reason, seems entirely incapable of sparking enthusiasm, even when he’s doing a party song. That said, he’s less the star of the Roots than its anchor — ?uestlove’s drumming and his band’s arrangements are the real draw, and the group leans on guest rappers for contrast and charisma. Dice Raw and Peedi Crakk are frequent Roots collaborators, and both do a good job of working with ?uestlove’s monstrous beat on this track. In particular, Peedi Crakk’s high pitched voice and playful tone serves as a fine complement to Thought’s somewhat dour persona, and the gruff style of Dice Raw. (Click here to buy it from Amazon.)

Esser “I Love You” – It’s pretty clear that the singer isn’t actually afraid of expressing how he feels to another person, but rather deeply embarrassed by his options to do so. He’s got a deep fear of artistic and rhetorical cliché, but in the end, despite all the angst and qualifications, he settled on something tried and true: A swirly, boppy pop song that repeats the phrase “I love you” in its chorus. When it’s done, you just want to pat him on the shoulder and say “See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?” (Click here to buy it via Esser’s MySpace page.)