'CREAM' by Kassa Overall

Serving as his fourth full-length album, 'CREAM' finds Kassa Overall in celebratory form as he lovingly whittles through a selection of eight golden era hip-hop classics to reimagine them within his own inimitable style.

Since his independently-released debut full-length came in the form of the brilliantly titled 'Go Get Ice Cream & Listen to Jazz' in 2019, the Seattle native has become something of a tour de force.  Backed by some incredible guests, including trumpeters Theo Croker and Roy Hargrove, the drummer, rapper, DJ and producer delivered a genuinely stunning effort unveiling his unique concoction of hip-hop inspired jazz which was able to serve as an inspired showcase for the multi-faceted approach to his music.  

Since then, whether he's providing rap verses for Emma-Jean Thackray, drumming on albums for Gary Bartz and Theo Croker, rocking the turntables for Terri Lyne Carrington's Social Science or remixing for Cecile McLorin Salvant and Sly5thAve, there's an enticing unpredictability to Kassa Overall that consistently positions him ahead of what anyone may expect of him.  With wonderfully off-kilter production that ushers in his sublime and dusty drum patterns, rich piano keys, lush horns... all aspects of his music paint this picture that you can't help but become immersed within. 

'CREAM' may very well subvert listeners' expectations of Kassa Overall's music once again as he tips his hat to a massive part of his own musical make-up and inspirations through his revisiting of timeless hip-hop classics.  While many of the songs covered will be instantly recognisable to even the most casual of 90s rap fans - including Notorious BIG's 'Big Poppa' and Wu-Tang Clan's 'C.R.E.A.M.' - it's the approach Overall employs which proves to be the most compelling aspect of the album... 

There's a very distinctive melancholy to Overall's music which has proved evident in both the production and subject matter of past releases.  While he has used his songs to tackle broader societal issues from the prison system, government distrust and more personal matters of self-doubt and loss, even an album that is undeniably joyous in its make-up like 'CREAM' finds Overall peeling through layers to unravel more depth and narrative.  The Dr Dre & Snoop Doggy Dogg West Coast classic 'Nuthin But A "G" Thang' is recontextualised through a decidedly more introspective lens, for example, while the Juvenile hit 'Back That Azz Up' - perhaps the most surprising inclusion amongst the line-up - is again treated to a considerably more thoughtful reimagining.

Conversely, OutKast's 'Spottieottiedopaliscious' side-steps the original's laid-back and chilled approach in this case opting for a remarkable and more feverous jazz workout. 

Hip-hop and jazz's intrinsic - and cyclical - relationship has generated captivating projects for nearly five decades now.  From the jazz records that helped birth golden era classics for A Tribe Called Quest and Gang Starr - projects that would ultimately inspire a new generation of hip-hop artistry that would become as influenced by hip-hop as much as the sampled jazz artists like Roy Ayers and Donald Byrd that had formed the backbone of the productions - all the way to albums like Kassa Overall's 'CREAM' that serve as dutiful full circle moments.

If you're reading this and have never purchased a project by Kassa Overall then you are doing yourself a disservice.  Few artists display the unbridled imagination that Overall is able to showcase through each and every-thing he turns his hand to so if you haven't jumped on the Kassa train yet, then this ode to hip-hop classics is as good a place to start as anything.  The ice-cream is optional.