Idle Warship: Habits of the Heart

You have now entered the renaissance world of love. And your one instruction is to, “Dance, dance, dance.” Fact is, we all go through heartbreaks and ups and downs in relationships so why not add some electro-funk, a pinch of the 60’s, and a cosmic touch to the soundtrack of your loves demise? With Idle Warship, Talib Kweli and Res accompany you down your yellow brick road of falling in and out of love, hate, and angst on their album, Habitats of the Heart.

The album begins with “Enemy,” displaying Talib as quite the tyrant with his masochist choice of lyricism with Res as his submissive concubine. “You are not who you pretend to be/ That’s why you got suicidal tendencies/You need some therapy/You need to learn to do whatever your man say/ Bitch you better obey or I’ll beat that ass like Anne Mae.” The production has a new age Dracula sound and needless to say, this track reeks of Dysfunction 101 with a mixture of S&M.

As we continue to songs like “God Bless My Soul,” you encounter horns and drums that give off a sexy sophisticated vacation vibe making you want to grab that fly person you’ve been eyeing and dance a little bit too close. And Res expresses her knowledge of knowing she’s picking the wrong lover…may God help her. Next comes, “Are You In” where Res entices us with velvet voiced lover threats with her words “Everything is wandering in space/It could all, all go up in flames/ And I’d burn right down here with it/ here with you/ Everything is better than it seems.” The production is a twist of sophisticated funk with a blend of Rock n’ Roll. So dare you love and be the fool or not? How could you resist Res and Kay Cola?

Five tracks in and you become a “System Addict” as Jean Grae kick starts the track with some witty and extremely catchy wordplay. DJ Khalil once again produces a multi-layered melodic sensation of electro decadence that transitions between a dance and slow love song, leaving you in a subdued and slightly perplexed trance. “Laser Beams,” another electrifying yet pleasing melody, allows you to sonically explore a world somewhere between the 1960’s with a twist of 2022; a world filled with vivid imagery of, “ Black veils and pageant dreams/ mirrors and T.V. Screens/ your eyes are laser beams/ your moves like a trampoline/ and you don’t know where you disappeared.” As you do “the twist” on the skyline of sanity you can’t help but recall the reflection of a love gone sweetly-insane.

“Covered in Fantasy” features Chester French and John Forte that has multi-layered production giving you a badass phantom of the night feel that is smooth enough to drive and vent to. The lyrics are rather hard hitting with statements like, “And I know I’m not perfect/ but I know that I’m worth it/ Just scratch beneath the surface/I am me”. As we speed along to “Beautifully Bad,” you realize you have landed somewhere beyond this galaxy in the realm of a sunshine and amber energy. Then you cascade down back to earth and realize you enjoyed the experience of a love that will never be yours. You can thank the soft melody of keys and drums that engulf your pain. The lyrics are revelation based as Talib soulfully and reflectively rhymes “The music is moving me/ It’s like my heart need a eulogy/ Things are not what they used to be/ Cuz you don’t love me girl/ You used to me/ When I met you it was magic/We polar opposites/But attracted like we was magnets/ This was way before I had shit/ Way before attraction deteriorated to madness/

“Rat Race” encourages all of us living in wonderland to escape our everyday reality of “Running in the rat race” by dancing through colorful notes of guitar strings and cheers of encouragement. The last song to really break ground is “Driving Me Insane” where the electrifying vibes from the guitar give you chills, and enough to drive you insane in a good way.

Overall, the album is pretty stellar as Res and Kweli compliment one another nicely. The production is a layered starship, requiring numerous listens in order to grasp everything that is taking place. Lyrically, each song has double entendres, which were entertaining and at times disturbing. Certain songs take some time to grow on you, but the album embodies an electrifying persona leaving you in trance, whether you agree to be in one or not.

7.5/10

God Bless My Soul

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Laser Beams

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Driving Me Insane

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