Customer Reviews

Out of the Darkness

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The prolific Kirk Degiorgio once again showcases is seamless blend of Detroit jazz-soul and broken beats with OUT OF THE DARKNESS, his 2nd album for Ubiquity. The album kicks off with "Hope," which switches from broken beats to house so slickly, you'd swear it was butter. His angular melodies catch you off-guard, like on the title track, "The Daisy Picker," or the shifting melodies of "Shapechange." But he's equally adept at smooth melodic lines, as on the sweet and funky "Shed Dem," as with pure R&B (even if the track "I Love You" run on a tad longer than it should). "Sanctified" goes deep, mixing heavy tones with some spoken word, while "Love Theme From the Spook Who Sat by the Door" float by on ringing ambience. Degiorgio never fails to beguile.

I was pleasantly surprised to stumble on this album. It's great stuff. I had never heard of Kirk Degiorgio, but after flipping through a few of his albums I was hooked.
This album stands out from the others in my opinion. While all of As One's compositions have a clean, sophisticated sound (including this one), this album captures a futuristic urban soundscape from multiple angles.
The first song, "Hope" starts with an offbeat rhythm and a soft jazzy swell, gilded with a simple chorus, while the beat reorganizes midstream into a steady house beat, creating an irresistable "I must dance now" vibe. This track sets the tone for the album which is one of anticipation, where the style of each song sets it apart, yet the overall feel and theme of the album remains intact. Tracks like "It Aint Nothin" and "What You Askin For" employ hip hop MC Lacks with clever poetic rhymes backed with cool jazz undertones. The title track is a downtempo number with a TV detective soundtrack feel, the tracks "Shed Dem" and "I'm Down" feature soulful R&B vocals, "Shapechange" is a minimalist dance beat with samba influence, and the tracks "Daisy Picker" and "Love Theme For the Spook" are warm welcome, soft ambient segues... a cool breeze between dance venues.
This album could strike a chord with music lovers of many flavors, which is why I encourage DJs and audiophiles to seriously consider this as a necessary addition to your repertoire.