Saul Williams

Saul Williams

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 21, 2004)
• Original Release Date: September 21, 2004
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fader Label
• ASIN: B0002XEDZI
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #47,070 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  Music > Miscellaneous > Poetry, Spoken Word & Interviews > Poetry

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Arriving six years after he made a splash with the film Slam and three years after his debut disc Amethyst Rock Star, the second album from spoken-word standout Saul Williams is a knot of contradictions. It challenges hip-hop orthodoxy through the liberal use of heavy rock samples and beats (see especially "Grippo")--not to mention incendiary cameos from rockers Serj Tankian (System of a Down) and Zack De La Rocha (Rage Against the Machine)--but it also gets bogged down at times by repetitive riffs ("List of Demands"). At his best, as on the opener "Talk to Strangers," Williams's measured delivery packs an entrancing power. Elsewhere, however, he sounds like he's just reading, not flowing, and his words fall flat. It doesn't help that Williams occasionally lapses into lecture mode, broadly dissing commercial hip-hop in the spoken-word piece "Telegram." He fares far better when he turns his lyrical lasers on legitimate foes, like the oil-thirsty warmongers in "Act III Scene 2." --Anders Smith Lindall

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great discovery..., December 10, 2005

By	B. Woolley "the greatest float builder" (Mobile, AL United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I saw Saul in concert with NIN recently at Voodoo Musicfest in NOLA. He was awesome. Of course, he had NIN backing him so his show was great. He performed "List of Demands" and "African Student Movement". I was so impressed that I bought the album. I like both of the songs that I heard performed live as well as "Act III Scene 2(Shakespeare)" with Zach from Rage Against the Machine as a guest. "Telegram" is also a great song.
It's an album that has lots of great beats varying from slow to fast. Saul changes his vocal style on different tracks, it's particularly funny when he does a song in a 50 cent voice. It also has some political messages put forth in a refreshing tone. It never sounds like Saul is trying to hammer you over the head with his ideas.
It's been in my rotation non-stop since I bought it.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars quick review, March 1, 2005

By	Charles A. Boyd - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Hey folks just a quick review. For starters, I'm not really a hip hop fan, I primarily listen to alt rock, metal, industrial. I do like a few hip hop and rap artists. I was flipping through the channels the other day and came across Saul Williams performing 2 songs live on MTV2. I was very very impressed. I listened to the samples of his album on his website, was again very impressed. I picked up the album on iTunes a few days ago, its great....any music lover with a bit of an open mind that is open to many different styles of music should definately give this a listen, its a nice mix of several different sounds. Anyone who wants to hear something new and fresh sounding, with a good message, pick this one up, I highly recommend it.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Expand your musical tastes (and mind)!, November 15, 2004

By	DukeOfEarl "I Hiphops for life" (Phoenix, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

If you REALLY love and know Hiphop, I suggest that you challenge yourself to accept and discover the beauty that this album contains. Because there really are some gems offered here that are enlightening and that raise consciousness if you pay attention. Saul is an afrocentric poet and actor and this is his second full-length musical cd. I took a chance on this cd, and needless to say, I'm glad I did. Whatever expectations you have going in to this album, I guarantee Saul will come at you with something totally different. Saul started out as an MC, but now he prides himself as a poet before all else. I actually found this cd in the Rock/Pop section at the store...
The first track is a spoken-word poem over a sharp piano beat and starts the album off with a bang. This is the best spoken word to be found on the cd. From here he moves into rock and more rock for the majority of the album. That's right, Saul has a taste for rock! Apparently his influence comes mainly from Jimi Hendrix and most recently Rage Against The Machine(whose front man Zach De La Rocha appears on track 4). Whether Saul has a live band behind him or not, most of the music sounds pretty good to one who doesn't listen to a whole lot of rock. Saul not only does spoken-word, but also sings, chants, pseudo-raps, moans, screams, does rock singing and anything in between. He comes up with many effective(and some lackluster) ways of presenting his words.
I can't complain about any of the first 8 tracks. Other than the first one, "Grippo" kicks the rock off nicely, and "Telegram" is closer to spoken word over a hard rock beat and addresses the state of Hiphop and MC's. "Act III Scene 2" definitely stands out(with some energy added by Zach) and is one of the best-written tracks here, but almost drags on a little long to be considered classic. "List of Demands" is a standout and maybe my favorite, simply because the music works well for him on this joint. The other favorite is "Black Stacey" which is a deeply personal song with a powerful chorus and a third verse that takes some stabs at modern rappers. "PG" he harmonizes in a very low tone, but is way too short. The last four tracks are no slackers, but not nearly as remarkable as the others, and only "Seaweed" stands out. In fact, the momentum slightly decreases somewhere in the final 1/3rd of this album. The best songs: "Black Stacey" and "List Of Demands," then "Talk to Strangers," "Act III Scene 2," "Telegram," and "Seaweed."
There is even an enthralling poem written on the face of the cd and it will blow your mind if you take the time to read it! I've never seen any artist that has used that space more constructively than what Saul did here. The insert thankfully has lyrics so you can follow along with his words.
Well, Saul is hard to completely describe. He is a Black poet who is undoubtedly from the Hiphop Kulture, yet expresses his work over mainly rock beats while discussing the politics of Hiphop, government, humanity, and well as personal politics. As far as the rock side of him, it reminds me of Mos Def's recent endeavors, but Saul is clearly stronger in this aspect in that he has more to offer lyrically over his rock beats. Not as much spoken-word will be found here as you would expect in an album from Saul. He seems angry over many of these tracks, but it's obvious how much love he has for the mind and others, and he is really offering his best in constructive criticism. Saul particularly speaks somewhat angrily towards Hiphop and his black brethren out there, yet it's done out of a love for the two entities. It's also clear that he has a strong faith, and references God & Jesus aptly throuhgout these tracks. Not a perfect album, but it definitely calls for you to concede your musical biases in order to accept important messages and insight. I think those who have a variety of musical tastes yet love Hiphop first will appreciate Saul's latest effort! Even though it has A LOT of rock, I doubt many rock fans will open their minds and accept what Saul is doing here. Oh well, their loss!!!