Afro Samurai Soundtrack
Pairing Wu-Tang Clan founder and lead beat progenitor RZA with the bristling new blaxploitation inspired martial arts anime is basically a match made in heaven. Given RZA's predilection for vintage kung fu films and samurai epics and the revenge drenched nature of the show's storyline, the intersection couldn't have been better matched.If you've managed to watch the show then you've no doubt heard RZA's elevated beat manipulation where he's taken standard rap theatrics and melded them with spaghetti western, O.G. Funk, and sweeping classical flourishes to create an entirely new sonic palette. That said, those looking for the largely instrumental score should look elsewhere. As the title suggests, this is a soundtrack. Sure, RZA concocted the beats, but for the most part what you'll indulge in are streamlined rap and soul attacks from the likes of Q-Tip, Free Murder, Stone Mecca, Talib Kweli, Lil Free, Suga Bang, GZA, Big Daddy Kane, Beretta 9, 60 Seconds, True Master, Thea, Maurice, and some bonus material from RZA's alter-ego Bobby Digital. Not that this is a bad thing, but let's hope the soundtrack sells well enough to warrant the entire score being released, since that showcases RZA taking rap production to the next level.
RZA kicks things off with the 'Afro Theme,' delivering a short, sharp 29-second blast of clashing swords and lumbering synth that outlines the quest of a lonely soul themology that saturates the show. This bleeds right into 'Afro Intro,' a down tempo spoken word covered wisp of eerie electronic ambiance that doesn't sound like anything RZA has laid to tape before. The first bona fide rap joint to appear is 'Certified Samurai,' which roils and boils over a static encrusted soul vibe as Talib, Lil Free, and Suga kick the verbal ballistics with steady nerves. Then there's the return of the Abstract One his own self, Q-Tip, on 'Just A Lil Dude (Who Dat Ovah There)'. Hearing Tip drop languid over RZA's militaristically strife beat is a flip mode that will no doubt have heads flipping. Tip has never been known as a hardcore rhymer, but here he comes close. Free Murder joins in the fray and keeps the track on tilt.
Stone Mecca kicks serious soulful diatribe on 'Oh,' which is all awash with wavering synth plinks, shuffling guitar, and bubbling bass. It sounds like it was dug up from a 1967 time capsule, dusted off and run through a re-processor to give it a flashback futuro feel. SM continues to kick the way back vibes on 'The Walk,' which is like a Barry White tune turned on its head, right on down to the femme fatale whispers and falsetto croon. Okay, maybe it's a little more Curtis Mayfield than White, but you get the gist. 'Who Is The Man' comes off like a James Bond theme song if filtered through rap molasses. The Reverend William Burke flows steady over a looped acoustic guitar ripple that is hypnotically intense.
Legend in the field Big Daddy Kane returns and proves that while he may have been MIA, he hasn't lost his razor sharp edge with the verbals he displays on 'Cameo Afro.' His cadence is a little slower, but his vocal timbre is still commanding and assertive. GZA and Suga Bang step up to the plate and connect on the track, as well. RZA jumps back in front of the mic for a second time on 'Take Sword Pt.
1,' a dark, lumbering number that is as turgid as it is menacing. Berretta 9 jumps on at the tail end, keeping the ominous nature intact. The soulful vibes of yesteryear return on the downright Churban styled 'Baby,' featuring Maurice, who croons with silky falsetto goodness. If that's your thing, that is. If any track stands out as a leftfield inclusion, this would be the one.
If nothing else it showcases RZA's versatility. Meanwhile 'Take Sword Pt. 2' brings a darker, more mystical slant to the table thanks to otherworldly ghostlike ambience and 60 Seconds and True Master's emphatic vocals. 'Fury In My Eyes/Revenge' is another RZA fronted joint and may be the strongest effort the Wu master has put forth on the album, verbally speaking. The Eartha Kitt-meets-Billie Holiday vocalistics of Thea lend the track a strangely detached retro vibe.
In terms of instrumental vibrations, RZA drops the needle on the funky blaxploitation chicka-chicka wah-wah guitar laced 'Afro's Father Fight.' Then 'Bazooka Fight Inst.
I' brings some kettledrum and battle march intensity to a clash of faux strings. The only bummer is that it's basically a very short cue rather than an actual full piece. 'Ninjaman' is one of the more full-fledged instrumental slices, clocking in at 2-minutes and 8-seconds and taking snippets of the Samuel Jackson voiced character and mixing them in with gurgling organ fills that flit from the left to right channel creating a sense of sonic vertigo steeped in deep funk therapy. With 'Tears Of A Samurai,' RZA evokes genuine melancholy through the use of detached flute and flutteringly plaintive piano. 'The Empty 7 Theme' is an Eastern tinged blast of retro funk, rife with organ fills, chimes, and plinking electro effervescence.
It really showcases RZA's new progressive beat stlye. 'Bazooka Fight Inst. II' continues the sonic thematics laid out in part I, adding more pervasive strings, but again being only a short, all-too-brief cue. 'Afro Samurai Theme (First Movement)' is dotted with dialogue snippets from the show before launching in to menacing instrumental shifts that mix orchestral elements with thrusting electronic blitzkrieg. 'Afro Samurai Theme (Second Movement)' continues where the first left off, albeit in a much more introspective manner. In terms of the five Bobby Digital bonus tracks, RZA kicks up some more retro soul funk on 'Insomnia' featuring Jay Love, some sped up BPM click track rhythm action on 'So Fly,' featuring Division. 'We All We Got' has some bugged out froggy styled Yoda chanting worming its way underneath the stuttering groove, becoming one of the coolest RZA rap track beats ever.
The appearance of The Black Knights keeps things further in check. 'Glorious Day,' with Dexter Wiggles, is a hollowed out funk shift that bumps and grinds to stripped down echo chamber piano and minimal drum beatology. The album concluded with 'Series Outro,' an instrumental culled from the closing credits of Afro Samurai. There's a wealth of solid material scrunched onto the playing surface of this disc, almost too much if you look at it track wise (25 tracks). But really what ends up marring the project is that it feels too much like a disjointed compilation rather than a cohesive album. Some of the transitions between tracks are choppy and some tracks feel genuinely out of context ('Baby' being a prime example). Still as a current aural resume for RZA, this is a worthy effort, one that ultimately showcases his growth as both musician and producer.
Rza Afro Samurai Resurrection
In the end, when RZA hits hard, he hits HARD. What this means is that those willing to dig in their heels will be rewarded with some genuinely cutting edge material that mostly killer with a teensy bit of filler. Definitely Download: 1.' Just A Lil Dude (Who Dat Ovah There)' 2.' Who Is The Man' 3.'
Samsung metro duos applications. Ninjaman' 4.' Cameo Afro' 5.'
Afro Samurai Resurrection Tv Show
The Empty 7 Theme' 6.' Take Sword Pt. Fury In My Eyes/Revenge' 8.' We All We Got'.
Having voiced the character for both its anime mini-series and TV movie, Afro Samurai: Resurrection, Samuel L. Jackson is now moving to the producer’s chair (they get chairs, right?) for the property’s live action feature film debut.
Per the press release we received, Jackson has teamed up with The Indomina Group to bring the character to the silver screen. The plan is to have a writer and director attached to the pic this summer with casting to be shored up by the end of the year. The pic will shoot in the Dominican Republic in 2012.For those unfamiliar, Afro Samurai was originally a manga series written/illustrated by Takashi Okazaki. The series centers on Afro Samurai, a hero with a familiar origin: after witnessing his father killed by a gunslinger named Justice as a youngster, adult Afro dedicates himself to avenging his father’s untimely death. In 2009, Afro Samurai: Resurrection won an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation.
If you’d like a little more on the project, hit the jump to check out the official press release.Here’s the press release:Los Angeles, CA – July 21, 2011 – It was announced today that The Indomina Group, the fast-growing U.S. And Dominican Republic based producer and distributor of film, TV and trans-media content, is teaming with Samuel L. Jackson and Gonzo Studios to produce a new live action film based on the popular “Afro Samurai” animated series that has spawned an impressive franchise and a global following. The announcement was made by Indomina Group Vice Chairman and CEO Jasbinder Singh Mann who will serve as producer with Samuel L. Jackson and Gonzo Studios’ Shin Ishikawa. Eli Selden of Anonymous Content is executive producing.Academy Award® nominee Samuel L.
Jackson has been close to the franchise for a number of years having voiced Afro Samurai for the 2007 anime TV mini-series “Afro Samurai” and again for the 2009 Emmy® winning animated TV movie “Afro Samurai: Resurrection.”Said Jackson, “This has been one of my very favorite properties ever since our amazing debut at Comic Con with the original series pilot out of Japan. I can’t wait to produce the epic feature film version with our new partners at The Indomina Group.”“When Indomina was launched, ‘Afro Samurai’ was quickly identified as the perfect property for us to option and exploit through our vertical channels targeted to a fanboy audience,” said Singh Mann. “We never took our eyes off the property and are very pleased to not only have the opportunity now to make an extraordinary film, but to do it with Samuel L. Jackson, who is just as passionate about ‘Afro Samurai’ as we are. This is a perfect collaboration in the eyes of Indomina. We look forward to going to work with Sam and Gonzo on this and making something discernibly unique.”Producers plan to attach a writer and director this summer and complete casting by the end of the year.
The film will be shot at Pinewood Indomina Studios in the Dominican Republic in 2012.Indomina optioned the rights to “Afro Samurai” from Japanese rights holder Gonzo and will make “Afro Samurai” the first feature film production from The Indomina Group, which over the last six months has debuted its North American distribution arm (Indomina Releasing), international sales division (Indomina International) and Studio operations and facilities (Pinewood Indomina Studios).Stacey Smart Stanley is overseeing the project’s development for Indomina while Chris Carlisle will be point person for Gonzo.