Are you ready to get Lifted?
A review of Turn Me Loose.
A review of Turn Me Loose.
By: Black Canseco
Divas. There’s too many divas in music today. Too many singers that sing as if they’re doing the song and the listener a favor just by showing up. Too many attitude + ego over aptitude blowers. Well, Ledisi is not one of them; which is what makes her new album, Turn Me Loose such an enjoyable listen. That and the fact that she doesn’t over-sing.)
From the funky dusty hiphop flavor of “Running,” TM’s intro (produced by hiphop legend Chief Xcel) all the way through to the Des’ree-flavored Moving On Ledisi sings with a genuine joy and appreciation that few other artists do. She sounds like a woman you want to root for—one that’s been through some dirt but finds a way to smile and keep fighting and keep singing thru the darkness.
Turn Me Loose proves to be a joyous metaphor for Ledisi’s artistic and personal growth. Where her Feeling
Orange But Sometimes Blue (2002) showcased a deeply rooted jazz ingénue with an R+B powerhouse’s range, and her 2008 Grammy-nominated Lost and Found was pure grownfolk soul (and one of the decade’s best R+B albums), Turn Me Loose and is a continual vibe of evolving possibilities. For 16 tracks TML blends gospel, soul, rollicking bluesy rock, jazz, and mature R+B courtesy of some of the top producers in the game (think: Jimmy Jam + Terry Lewis, Chief Xcel, Raphael Saadiq, Carl + Ivan).
It’s hard to pick a single standout joint on Turn Me loose—there’s so many. But my faves include: Knockin’— a bluesy guitar rock soul-clap-filled anthem that shouts at the devil to stay up offa you. (You’ll wanna play this one on the way to work every morning.) "Love Never Changes" is an old school Al Green-ish toe-tapper about regrets and hard times in which love was the life raft in the storms. Goin’ Thru Changes is a searingly sophisticated tome about a woman fighting the temptation to sleep with a married man who happens to be her best friend. Them Changes sounds like a duet Tina Turner and Aerosmith might do, only funkier. Please Stay is a fun call to a lover that, thanks to Ledisi’s self-assuredness, sounds sexy but never desperate or slutty.
Turn Me Loose isn’t Ledisi at her peak—she’s too good to be maxed out yet-—especially if she pushes further into the rock vibe she touched on; but TML proves once again that Ledisi’s still miles higher than the rest and it’s clear sailing from here on out.
From the funky dusty hiphop flavor of “Running,” TM’s intro (produced by hiphop legend Chief Xcel) all the way through to the Des’ree-flavored Moving On Ledisi sings with a genuine joy and appreciation that few other artists do. She sounds like a woman you want to root for—one that’s been through some dirt but finds a way to smile and keep fighting and keep singing thru the darkness.
Turn Me Loose proves to be a joyous metaphor for Ledisi’s artistic and personal growth. Where her Feeling
It’s hard to pick a single standout joint on Turn Me loose—there’s so many. But my faves include: Knockin’— a bluesy guitar rock soul-clap-filled anthem that shouts at the devil to stay up offa you. (You’ll wanna play this one on the way to work every morning.) "Love Never Changes" is an old school Al Green-ish toe-tapper about regrets and hard times in which love was the life raft in the storms. Goin’ Thru Changes is a searingly sophisticated tome about a woman fighting the temptation to sleep with a married man who happens to be her best friend. Them Changes sounds like a duet Tina Turner and Aerosmith might do, only funkier. Please Stay is a fun call to a lover that, thanks to Ledisi’s self-assuredness, sounds sexy but never desperate or slutty.
Turn Me Loose isn’t Ledisi at her peak—she’s too good to be maxed out yet-—especially if she pushes further into the rock vibe she touched on; but TML proves once again that Ledisi’s still miles higher than the rest and it’s clear sailing from here on out.
Here's a couple songs to hear:
Ledisi, Knockin’Higher Than This - Ledisi