Following the success of his first hit album, BLK ODYSSY released the project DIAMONDS & FREAKS, which I hope is here to stay for a long time.

The reasons for releasing this instrumental album could vary. One common reason would be to celebrate an anniversary, like Daft Punk's latest release of a drum-less Random Access Memories. It can be an interesting new way to hear an album after it has slipped out of people's focus and sight for a while. But it can also be seen as sort of a money grab. However, in this case for BLK ODYSSY, he just released his original version of DIAMONDS & FREAKS. So the album has no vintage or nostalgic value.

Some reasons I could see as very likely for this release is that BLK ODYSSY wants people to learn from sampling or singing/rapping over his songs. He could also want to be shining more of a spotlight on the fantastic producers. More than other artists, BLK ODYSSY seems to have a trend of releasing offshoot albums. He just also released a live album of his latest DIAMONDS & FREAKS album very soon after its original release. It could also be that he simply appreciates it himself when artists release alternate versions of albums and that he thinks this is the way music should be consumed. Either way, I will let it slide; in fact, I am onboard because the songs are great.

The original DIAMONDS & FREAKS album is a masterpiece. The vocals on there are just fantastic, both lead song and the background vocals. The contents of the lyrics on the original album are relatable and very simple, often covering common themes like love and all that it entails. When I hear the rap and song-less version, I really appreciate more how well-phrased BLK ODYSSY is. His unique mix of smoothness and unexpected pauses keeps me completely hooked for a whole album. When you listen to this instrumental album and the original album, it really is not obvious that you would have thought to phrase things like how BLK ODYSSY does in his rap. BLK ODYSSY sounds like a bit of a lot of different things. We hear elements of jazz, soul, RnB. I will say, a lot of RnB that gets released these days feels very standardized if you listen to enough. Even though I love the standard, it is sometimes refreshing to hear something that breaks the vibe and still works so well, like DIAMONDS & FREAKS.

The Soulquarians was a group of musicians active in the 1990s and late 2000s. If you haven’t heard of them, here are some iconic albums made during their time:

• Voodoo - D’Angelo
• The Roots - Things Fall Apart
• Slum Village, Fantastic, Vol. 2
• Erykah Badu - Mama’s Gun

Now why am I talking about this? Well, those four albums and other albums from the same artist might be a musical roadmap to follow if you want to open up a spot in your heart for BLK ODYSSY and this album. I personally hear a lot of their influences in his music. BLK ODYSSY talked in an interview about how his father would take him on rides in the car and play records with artists like OutKast and Erykah Badu. BLK ODYSSY says his father was an album listener, always getting upset if you would skip a song before it was over. So if you are a rapid consumer of music, listening to singles or only parts of songs, there is nothing wrong with that. But I would feel as if I didn’t do my due diligence if I did not try to encourage you to listen to this whole album in order, from start to finish.

Author: Peter Källman

Peter Källman is a writer from Sweden who loves playing in bands, writing reviews and going to live shows!