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There is very little that doesn't work, with both Marley (obviously) and Nas (surprisingly) meshing flawlessly into practically everything.
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The result is an exceptionally melodic reggae album that's intensified by rapping devoid of dancehall patois and a hard edge unknown to roots revivalism. The result is also an exceptionally political hip-hop album that's most convincing when it doesn't multiply Afrocentric distortion by Rastafarian reasoning.
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It feels almost vain to describe individual tracks, because every last note on Distant Relatives blends to form a seamless, cohesive whole.
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Few best-of-both-worlds collaborations work as well as Distant Relatives, which pairs Nas' incendiary rhymes with the keening hooks and global rhythms that Bob Marley's youngest son favors.
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Mojo[This album] finds a glorious similitude between the two disciplines. [Jul 2010, p.92]
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it's disappointing that collaborative projects featuring prominent artists from these fields haven't yet delivered a worthwhile album. Marley's 2005 release Welcome to Jamrock was a step forwards, but Distant Relatives represents an accomplished attempt to go further, fusing traits with few discernable flaws.
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It's thoughtful, sincere, weighty stuff, tackling subjects from African poverty to the diamond trade without sounding preachy or schmaltzy.
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Nas and Damian Marley are a formidable pairing, seemingly on the same level throughout most of the album in thought and overall presence.
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Distant Relatives is this African contradiction explored further with hip-hop, dancehall, and by way of samples, jazz, and African music showing the way. It's a royal and a striking reminder of why these two artists have reached legendary status.
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They've made an album that is bold and commendable, and nothing like as preachy as it might have been.
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This is a solid, serious collection of songs--the product of two thoughtful and ambitious musicians--and an album that doesn't need a panel discussion to establish its importance.
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Nas and Marley's less-than-transcendent but solid collaboration doesn't exactly offer the best of both worlds, but heaven knows it towers above Jay-Z and R. Kelly's similarly conceived, infinitely less ambitious and conscious The Best Of Both Worlds.
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Children's gospel choirs and Joss Stone make somewhat unnecessary appearances, but musically the project impressively meets its goal of cultural connection.
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Distant Relatives will be ubiquitous in many people's summer soundtrack, nagging imperfections and all, and might even enlighten some folks in the process. Music geeks will find plenty to pick apart, but the general population has no reason to ignore this release.
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Nas and Marley have created an intermittently novel and vexing record, one that proves that the two genres need not be so distant, provided they can avoid didacticism.
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Too often on Distant Relatives, Nas and Marley fall into a sort of middlebrow funk, kicking overripe platitudes over sunny session-musician lopes and letting their self-importance suffocate their personalities.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 89 out of 98
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Mixed: 2 out of 98
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Negative: 7 out of 98
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Oct 3, 2012
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Dec 17, 2010
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Nov 27, 2010