Saul Williams Album: “Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust [Bonus Tracks]”

Saul Williams is making a righteous statement with this album, and it seems that many people have missed the point. The rap industry has dumbed down its most prominent figures into n-words, the very thing many of its artists have been fighting against in their poetry. Subtly stated in the chorus of the satirical opening track, "The banana peels are carefully placed", Saul is pointing out that the state of mainstream rap is just waiting for the artist to slip and fall back into the unevolved, simian craving for "money cash hoes". I have always believed there is a difference between rap and hip-hop. Hip-hop to me has a more positive connotation, with progressive lyricists such as Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and Common cutting paths underground to shed a positive, open-minded message. Saul is among these leaders in the hip-hop genre.

Let's not forget that Saul was the first semi-well known artist to release his album online exclusively. Yes, months before radiohead, and about a year before his co-conspirator Trent Reznor, this was the initial slap in the face to the music industry.

The dark pulse of Trent Reznor driven beats is the perfect backdrop for the dark message Saul is trying to convey. Unless he completely sells out, he will never "team with a big name producer"; he represents the anti-mainstream. Key tracks such as "Black History Month", "Tr(n)igger", "Niggy Tardust", "Raised to Be Lowered", and "The Ritual" demonstrate the theme of his concept album perfectly. Quoted from the song "Niggy Tardust" - "When I say Niggy, you say nothing. Niggy - NOTHING! Shut up." There's another person who missed the point.

As a twenty-something white male, I feel that Saul's political poetry stands alongside Barack Obama in pushing racism back into the 20th century. Ignore the naysayers, and do not ignore this album.

Saul Williams isn't your typical hip hop/rap superstar in that there's no flash car, big mtv cribs mansion no 22 women hovering in the background and an endless supply of bodyguards, or if there is hes not flash about it. Another thing that sets him apart is that his songs are not about how many notches he has on his bedpost or how many people he has shot or how many millions of albums he has sold and that hes the greatest hip hop star in the world (I'm looking at you Kanye West). No Saul Williams is for real and anybody who has listened to his previous albums or seen him live will confirm that.

Niggy Tardust came about as a result of supporting Nine Inch Nails on their With Teeth world tour in 2005. Trent Reznor personally picked Saul Williams to tour with him and despite the differences in style, Saul was well received by nin fans and gained new followers as a result. So when it came time to go into the studio to record the follow up to 2004s brilliant self titled album there was only one person he could call to help produce and write the album. Trent Reznor.

The results are great as you get an album full of big beats and daring samples. One of those is a reworking of U2's Sunday Bloody Sunday which contains a sample of the drumbeat from that song. Tr(n)igger contains a sample of Public Enemy's Welcome to the Terrordome and it works perfectly. Trent Reznor appears on 14 of the 15 tracks in some form or another whether it be programming, arranging or the music, he also provides vocals on 2 tracks, Break and WTF. The music from Skin of a Drum wouldn't have sound out of place on Nine inch nails album Ghosts i-iv. Saul's lyrics are brilliant as always. With this physical release you get 5 bonus tracks including 3 unreleased songs as well as List of Demands (reparation) and the remix he did of nine inch nails track Hyperpower which is called Gunshots by Computer.

The inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust wont sell ten million albums and wont get the recognition it deserves from the mainstream music world but I'm sure he wont mind. Do yourself a favour and forget the cartoon rap of 50 cent and get Niggy Tardust. You wont be disappointed

(I'm French, please excuse the limitedness of my skills...)

I'd never heard of Saul Williams before this record. I wasn't really much into hip-hop, anyway. Well, on the other hand, I'm a NIN fan, so...

Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Reznor, I heard of the digital release of 'The Rise & Liberation of Niggy Tardust!'. I was quite thrilled at first at what could be seen as an Internet-scale experiment, with the 'pay and support an artist/don't pay but please spread the word' choice, etc.

So I was in.

And I didn't regret it. It even became of one those 'soundtrack of your life' albums you never stop listening to for months.

The NIN sound trademark is quite obvious throughout the album, especially with compositions such as 'WTF!' (where Trent Reznor makes a short guest appearance on vocals) and almost all of the five or six last tracks, replete with tortured sounds of strings, overdriven harmonies and bizarre beats. Despite this, the range of Reznor's talent and tastes allows much more than a NIN album with Saul Williams on vocals. Again, the sound production on this album shows the versatility of Reznor's work.

A blend of heavy hip-hop, old-school jazzy hip-hop, massive industrial beats, light, aerial melodies, grinding noises, and a more experimental aspect of fusion between poetry and rhythm; all of this sewn together by the poet himself, Saul Williams, equally at ease when rapping and singing his meaningful lyrics.

I cannot really compare this work to Saul Williams' previous ones, as I never listened to them... But I've got a more important criterion. This isn't an easy-to-listen album. You listen to it once, you put it aside for a week. Then you gradually come back to it, learning how to listen to it, realizing its qualities, enjoying while analyzing... That type of revelation doesn't happen all the time.

The alliance of the two musicians, the two universes, the two styles, produced a very interesting result, quite unique a mixture. It was a great discovery, to say the least.

Hat tip to the artists.

This record is something new, but it is also heavily influenced by the old. Most kids today wouldnt understand that, hip hop. Great for anyone interested in something raw, determined, passionate, unforgiving, will make you dance too. Has the potential for pleasing anyone with ears, but too many haters and skeptics out there. Its funny that recording artists are called"artists" when in reality only a select handful deserve that label, and Saul Williams is one that deserves, buy now!

I have to thank Nike. Not for a pair of shoes but because I may never have heard of Saul Williams without Nike's use of "List of Demands" in their "My Better" advertising campaign. That song, included here and on his self-titled album, instantly captivated me and revealed I was missing something special.

Saul Williams has a remarkable talent for wordplay that can suck you in and not let go. Thankfully, he is intelligent and socially aware enough to use that talent to deliver a message. Add to that a knack for laying down infectious rhythms (thanks also go to Trent Reznor and CX KiDTRONiK for this latest release), and you have two remarkable records (I have not yet heard and therefore cannot comment on "Amethyst Rock Star").

Saul's latest release is a great mix of industrial rock and hip-hop. He sings, he raps, he speaks. Ambitiously, he creates a new persona in Niggy Tardust. The obvious reference is to David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust. But because that was before my time, I relate it to Bono of U2 and the different characters he has portrayed on tour. I think the idea is genius and the potential is limitless.

Some random thoughts about the music... Adding another reason to think of U2's Bono is the cover of "Sunday Bloody Sunday". Saul stays more true to the original than I imagined he would, but he still makes it his own. It is a remarkable cover. Sampling Public Enemy in "Tr(n)igger" was done to great effect - it was great hearing Flav (before he became a caricature of himself) and Chuck D. I was reminded of Jonathan Davis of Korn on "Break" ("let it out, blow it out, spit it out, get it out"). "DNA" features Saul's voice synthesized to wicked effect. Top to bottom, the album has infectious rhythms and powerful lyrics.

I wrestled somewhat with a four or five-star rating. Certainly a couple songs are not on par with the rest in my opinion. But at more than 70 minutes in length featuring 20 songs, he has given us a lot of material to enjoy. Finally, while listening to the album and considering it, I heard the following line, "F*** the bull**** whether from the Hill or from the pulpit". As long as Saul Williams is intent on verbally assaulting us out of our slumber, I'll strike what I might characterize as lesser songs up to taste.