On November 11, Ursula Rucker drops her fourth album, Ruckus Soundsysdom, via King Britt’s Five Six Media label. For hip-hop fans who haven’t paid attention to her since the Roots’ Things Fall Apart, the Philadelphia poetess has carved out an interesting solo career full of stylistic shifts. Her debut Silver or Lead drew common ground with broken beat gurus like Jazzanova; this new album is much tougher, with hard keyboard soul and foreboding, minimal tracks. Much of the content focuses on failed relationships and stark geo-political questions. For Obama nuts, one of the numbers (actually, just one of the interludes) notes how his candidacy has forced America to revisit its queasiness over interracial relationships, or “miscegenation.” Another cut, “Read Between the Lines,” deftly nods at rumors concerning Rucker’s sexuality.
Production on Ruckus Soundsysdom comes courtesy of King Britt, Dego from 4 Hero, Rich Medina and others. The track listing is below.
- 1. “Ever Heard Of It”
- 2. “Dirty Chi P.A.”
- 3. “Read Between The Lines”
- 4. “Catholic”
- 5. “I Am”
- 6. “Interlude #2”
- 7. “Electric Santeria”
- 8. “Anduknowhat?”
- 9. “Winter”
- 10. “Thinkin’ Bout U”
- 11. “Cypha”
- 12. “Interlude #1”
- 13. “Call To Axiom”
- 14. “End Of An Era”
- 15. “Tron”
- 16. “She”
- 17. “Static”
- 18. “Interlude #3”
