Hi, everyone. Dethony Latano here, the internet's busiest music nerd. It's time for a review of this new De La Soul album, Cabin in the Sky.

Here we have the ninth full-length studio album of legendary Long Island hip-hop pioneers De La Soul, one of my favorite rap acts of all time. They are still showing a lot of ambition and creativity on this massive album that absolutely should not be glossed over. Because this is very much not your average rap, veterans, third act type album, though a lot of its themes are devoted to celebrating De La Soul's context, history, and perseverance over the years.

Because we're talking about a group whose impact continued despite the fact that the hammer really came down on them from the music industry during a time when labels were really starting to put the kabash on un-cleared samples. We're talking about a group that stayed true to their positive attitudes attitudes, and sense of humor, as gangsta rap and hardcore hip-hop came into fashion in the '90s. We're talking about a group that continued to adapt creatively, putting out great albums over 10 years past their inception, as well as making massive cuts with the likes of Gorillaz. We are talking about a group that is still plugging away after the tragic loss of one of their founding members, Trugoy the Dove, aka Dave, who passed in 2023.

One would presume, considering how central Dave was to the group's songwriting and overall sound, that him being gone would mean that things for De La Soul are pretty much over. But the music industry these days loves a posthumous album. And with two remaining members, as well as a ton of super talented collaborators, there's still a lot that De La Soul can do in Dave's memory, which Cabin in the Sky is determined to serve.

And after all, look at what, for example, Havok and The Alchemist were able to do together with respect to the late Prodigy on the latest Mobb Deep record, which also came out via Nas's Mass Appeal label, by the way, which has actually been going the extra mile to celebrate New York's finest over the past year, dropping veteran posthumous projects that haven't always been amazing, but at the very least have been notable.

I think Cabin in the Sky might be the best of this recent string of Mass Appeal albums, as it shows De La Soul still very much being their funny, thoughtful selves as they wax poetic on life, death, love, and more. Even the title itself says a lot about the picture this album is trying to paint, because I believe it's in reference to a 1940s musical about a compulsive gambler who suddenly passes away, but then gets the opportunity to come back to Earth and essentially write his wrongs a bit, start living on a better path.

And while this record doesn't exactly follow that narrative per se, in a way, it's still a depiction of Dave's artistry and impact living on past his physical existence, as numerous songs from this project feature not only Dave's bars, but his production, too. So for sure, at least some of that classic De La Soul energy and chemistry is still intact depending on the song, but even when it isn't, there is a star-studded feature list that does a lot to close any possible gaps, whether you're talking about Killer Mike, Black Thought, Q-Tip, Nas, Common, Slick Rick, too.

In fact, pretty much every major collaborator on this project, vocally and musically, is listed in this theatrical intro where pretty much everyone involved is called on as if we're taking attendance before this event starts. The whole thing is led by actor extraordinaire Giancarlo Esposito, who pops in here and there throughout the record to remind us that we're having at least a little bit of a theater-of-the-mind-type experience, not just simply an assembly of songs. And creating some extra strings and threads to really pull this whole record together, even if it does blow the whole thing out a bit, is maybe a bit necessary given its massive 70-minute run-time.

It really is an engaging and super varied tracklist.

Whether you're talking about "Yuhdontstop", which is a great tone-setter. It's part origin story, part statement of intent, in terms of why De La Soul is continuing on. It's also packed with heavenly storybook harps and strings, as well as a tearjerker outro.

There's also "Good Health", which is a song that has Trugoy the Dove in the mix right off the bat, and he is just eating up this bassy, just thick, dense, boom-bap instrumental. It's a masterclass in rhyme scheme and wordplay, a really hard-hitting gym-type cut. Then Will B brings almost Saturday morning kid show-type vibes in terms of the vocals and instrumentation. It makes me feel almost as if De La Soul is trying to bring the hip-hop equivalent of a Charlie Brown special here. There's almost some Jackson 5-type vibes to the instrumental.

And once again, this track and a few others serve as a reminder that we're listening to an experience, not merely just a bunch of songs, which is also reinforced by the intro of the package, which features all of these hollered stage directions. We're almost listening to Mr. Rogers rap, I would say, with some touches of gospel on the instrumental, too, as Posdnuos and Dave team up on a few more verses.

"A Quick 16 for Mama", in terms of its concept, is pretty self-explanatory, features Killer Mike as well. It's handily one of the most moving and touching, endearing songs on the record. It's cute, it's endearing, it's sweet, and it just serves as a reminder that De La Soul is one of the few groups that could pull off a song like this and have it really hit emotionally and be sincere about it. Not just yesterday, but today, too.

Following this, "Just How It Is" is a funny observation on breaking up in the modern age with a lot of what I would call digital coping: angry texts, posting memes, deleting photos, drama spreading out to the wider friend group because of how quickly news goes now. It's very tongue-in-cheek and serves as an easy-going intro to this album's greater themes around love that we hit deeper into the record.

"Day in the Sun" is a feel-good summary jam featuring Q-Tip. I love Yummy Bingham's bright, almost girly and cartoon-ish vocals on this track. They really enhance this album's feeling of being a show of some sort.

"Run It Back" with Nas is another highlight. It shows the group sounding really determined and locked in. This is some truly hungry New York jazz rap with a lot of flavor.

Then as we go into the second half of the album, things get a bit more sentimental with "Different World", which is a wonderful, moving, and more overt tribute to Dave and explores the idea of him being an influence on the group and their personal lives as they continue without him.

Following this, the group starts diving into a little food for thought on "Patty Cake", where they go into some cultural observations, generational divides set to some rhyme schemes, and lyrical influences that are obviously like some schoolyard, nursery rhyme type stuff, set to some very fun clap pattern samples. All of which further serves what has always been a sense of playfulness and childlike wonder in what DeLa Soul does, even since the beginning.

I do think things get a bit rocky on "The Silent Life of a Truth", as a lot of Posdnuos's flows and his delivery here get a bit stiff and kind of tedious. And while obviously it is intentional, like there is a performative awkwardness to his rapping on this track, just the pacing and progression of it all just makes it a very tense listen. Even if I do like a lot of what he has to say about the state of things currently in terms of just how pervasive lies are in every facet of life.

And then from here, we move into a pretty strong final leg. You get "Believe (In Him)", which is a huge gospel-tinged cut. "Yours", featuring Common in Slick Rick, which is honestly a very thoughtful and sincere olive branch being extended to younger generations, which I think makes sense for De La Soul at this point in their career as the group's verses have always been about relaying philosophy and information. And, obviously, they're trying to do the same here in more of a sagely way. Talking to younger generations, younger music fans. But I like that there are approach doesn't come across as dismissive, or insulting, or infantilizing to anybody who might listen to this having not grown up on De La Soul.

Past the point on this record, Posdnuos does a lot of the lyrical heavy lifting, not just in terms of really dominating these tracks, but also just the emotions of these cuts, too. On both the title track and on "Palm of His Hands", he really starts diving into his own mortality and starts thinking about his own mistakes in life. Clearly, Dave's passing has caused him to do a lot of contemplating on his own final years on this Earth, and the legacy, and the impressions that he's going to leave when he's gone. Frankly, it's very emotionally intense and compelling to hear him go through all of this in such a personal and revealing, transparent way. It's all really just a testament to how talented of a lyricist that he is. That he can convey everything he does on this track and have it really hit.

But then the final song, "Don't Push Me", is this cute, fun little outro where Giancarlo gives us this meanwhile-type transition where we're essentially going up to the "Cabin in the Sky," and Trugoy's there, rapping on this heavenly instrumental, having fun, having a great time, dropping in these really huge nods and interpolations from Grandmaster Flash, because obviously the whole "don't push me" thing comes from "Concrete Jungle".

And, honestly, that's the best way I think this album could have left off, as obviously the entire thing is supposed to be this reminder that Dave, in a way, in his own way, musically, is still with us. And, honestly, I'm just really happy with how tasteful and thoughtful this album came out.

And yeah, while 70 minutes is a pretty big ask, and there are definitely some tracks that drag a little bit, some of the theatrical bits and transitions drag on a bit. The cut featuring Yukimi does have this cool disco flavor when it starts off, but the transition, the beat switch that happens around the midpoint, is a bit awkward. Plus, I would also say, like some other Mass Appeal projects that have dropped as of late, the mixing and mastering isn't always as good, and as smooth, as it could be. Which I don't know why that has been a consistent characteristic across a lot of these recent projects, where the way all these tracks are mixed and EQed and assembled sounds almost entirely different from song to song to song.

But still, with that being like I said, the creativity, the collective effort, going on here, the lyricism, the songwriting, the production does a lot to overcome all of that, which is why I'm feeling a decent to strong 8 on this album.

Anthony Fantano, De La Soul, forever.