To begin, Sa-Ra didn't get dropped from Kanye's GOOD imprint. GOOD lost their Sony deal, so Sa-Ra was free to leave and release this album on Babygrande. Rumors had been swirling that Sa-Ra's album was shelved because it was too weird for a major label release; and the rumors are partially right. You will definitely not see Sa-Ra on TRL anytime soon, which to Lab heads, is a positive sign. Moreover, to finally hear the full album is pretty rewarding for all those Sa-Ra fans out there. There has been no softening of the trademark Hollywood meets P-Funk sound, they bring it as raw and demo-y as when I first saw them at our WMC party two years ago. At 19 tracks deep, this is a substantial amount of material. It includes singles: "Glorious(1), Rosebuds(2), Feel The Bass(3)" featuring Talib, and "Not On Our Level(4)" featuring CNN. But let me tell you that the album tracks are really where it's at. Check the ideal guest combos on "Sweet Sour You(5)" featuring Bilal, "Fly Away(6)" featuring Erykah Badu and George Anne Muldrow, "Fish Fillet(7)" featuring Pharoahe Monch, "Tracy(8)" featuring new female emcee Rozzi Daime, "Thrilla(9)" featuring Dilla, and the Redux(10) of the promo single "Hollywood." It will take you a while to really digest this one.

reviewed by the mgmnt