Chris Daly would be the highest person at the 7 Days of Funk Release Party tonight if he lived in LA.
In a year largely dominated by the likes of Kanye, the Arcade Fire, and BIG DEAL, SELF-IMPORTANT ALBUMS, it’s nice to come across a little project that’s simply a good time waiting to be heard. Enter 7 Days of Funk, the album and project name of Dam-Funk (aka Damon G. Riddick) and Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. aka Snoop Dogg aka Snoop Lion aka Snoopzilla aka Snoopy Collins aka, well, you get the idea.
With two such obvious purveyors of P-Funk, the mood is set with opening “Hit Da Pavement.” Taking time off from his busy schedule of pimping for Hot Pockets and hanging out with Eddie Murphy, Snoop sounds more at ease here than he has in more than a minute. Clearly seeking a return to his roots, the G-Funk All-Star locks in early and eagerly to the synth-drenched grooves of DF. These are backyard BBQ jams, rubbery and playful. Gone is the talk of gang banging and questionable comrades-in-arms, replaced by flirtatious love songs and underground party anthems. Snoop floats between slow flow deliveries and auto-tuned vocals, all the while having an obvious good time.
While Snoop by and large acquits himself nicely here, the real winner is Dam-Funk. A funkateer with this much talent deserves a much larger fan base, and a co-sign by someone of the D-O-double-G’s caliber should go a long way towards making that happen. With the possible exception of Prince at an after-hours gig, I defy you to name an artist today that is making funkier music than Brother Riddick. Sure, his sound is heavily indebted to His Royal Badness, but I fail to see the problem there. His is 80s, AM dial funk, and that, boys and girls, is as good as it needs to get.
In addition to the aforementioned opener, the standout tracks are exercises in smoothness between the two titular stars. “Let It Go,” “Do My Thang,” and the first single, “Faden Away,” are head nodders that you’ll find yourself hitting replay on more often than not. The cameos by Steve Arrington and Kurupt are somewhat superfluous, but don’t bring the album down any, so it’s hard to complain. The return of the Dogg Pound on the bonus track is a nice touch, but again, the album is best when it’s just Dam and Snoop, taking it back to the neighborhood. If you missed out on your chance to catch a ride aboard the Mothership the last time around, now’s the time to get back in line.
