sslabs's Full Review: Dark Days, Bright Nights [PA] by Bubba Sparxxx
I like to make bets, no I love to make bets. Even when I know the odds are against me, I bet heavy with my heart and go light on the logistics. I’m constantly betting on someone or something to crack the stronghold that gangsta rap has on the airwaves. Today rock might be dead for the most part, but at least rock had decades to grow and evolve. Rap on the other hand, had a very short lived “golden age”.
I’m sure many will debate the exact date on the death certificate but my gauge is very clear on when everything happened. From the beginning, rap was original and the styles varied incredibly. The start date would be the day sometime in 1986 when Run DMC joined forces with the on the rebound rockers Aerosmith, and hit number one on Billboard with Walk this way. Yes the classic rockers hated it, but it brought Steven and company back from the grave and hoisted rap to the mainstream. From that day, until the second full length release by NWA N****’s4life from Gansta rappers NWA in 1991, the rap world was a buffet table of styles.
And then it was all over, it happened so fast, rap had sold out to the lowest common denominator. . . violence. The grip of bravado, boasting, and threats has held steadfast to this day. A decade of music that is growing more and more tiresome with each release. The trend thrives because as fans evolve and look elsewhere, there seems to be an endless supply of youngsters that find it all fresh and invigorating. Inner city kids in poverty and bored youngsters in the burbs have rappers telling them they will all live the life of a Mafioso or a playboy. It’s a cash cow that doesn’t seem to have an end in sight, successful acts like Will Smith, The Beastie Boys and conscious rappers like KRS-ONE with a niche following could never crack the gangsta grip even though they preceded it.
Enter Bubba Sparxxx (born Warren Anderson Mathis) and his debut album Dark Days, Bright Nights. The chances of Sparxxx killing gangsta rap all alone are slim to none, however he might crack open the door to rap acts like Jurassic 5, KRS-ONE and Common, I'd even like to see songs like Shaniqua a late 80s style rap tune get its due. Sparxxx is not only a white rapper in a genre dominated by black males, but ironically his style is at its core anti-gangsta. Sparxxx is a heavy set, corn fed looking guy that would look more appropriate in a mustard stained “wife beater” tank top than the denim and Timberland boots that his fellow rappers favor.
Hailing from Athens GA, Sparxxx has a rap style that sounds like guy talk on a southern porch on a hot and humid summer night. With a thick southern swagger in his delivery, Sparxxx in no way supports the false gangsta preaching. When he brags, it’s usually conservative, and when he boasts of his rap skills and originality he is anything but. Rap has dominated the east and west coast, and the middle has been for the most part neglected. With the release of his first video and single Ugly, Sparxxx waves the flag for the Midwest and southern population, he represents the Wal-Mart and K-Mart shoppers of middle America. With guitar string plucks, BG singers gently singing “Ugly” and Sparxxx telling everyone "Let’s be honest, none of us will ever date a model" he speaks volumes of what Dark Days Bright Nights will ultimately be about.
I find myself constantly discovering chucks music that are above average and a lot that could have been so much better had Sparxxx delivered the lyrics. The opening track Take off is a perfect example of the production outshining Sparxxx’s writing and delivery. With a beautiful arrangement and “Carmina Burana” style singing, one would get the impression that Sparxxx would drop an equally menacing slice of rhyming. But this sets the tone for much of the album. There are many times when Timbaland delivers behind the console with Sparxxx simply trying to catch up. I’m sure that Sparxxx will be compared to Eminem only because of the color of their skin, but they couldn’t be more different. Eminem is a skilled surgeon, his scalpel is sharp and he makes quick work of any beat or sample coming his way. Sparxxx seems more like a dump truck, he kind of rolls over the production, it’s akin to seeing someone make an ugly touchdown. Yes Sparxxx scores but he usually does it in a brute force, nose tackle recovering a fumble kind of way.
There are some instances where things are more fun and ugly, Bubba talk is one such instance. With an accent thicker than a southern swamp, Sparxxx proclaims "I say the same thing, just slower than ya’ll". With farm animal sounds of horses and cows in the distance, Bubba Talk conjures images of tractor pulls, stock car racing and moonshine. This track is entertaining and a nice break from the usual macho rap fare.
Tracks like Open Wide and Infected find Sparxxx getting to caught up in his skill and supposed different sound. Sparxxx spends far too much time telling everyone how fresh and original he is, but never has anything deep to say. There is a lot of rap about what greatness he is about to deliver but the pizza never really comes to the door. While Sparxxx goes easy on the mindless gangsta brag, he sometimes gets bogged down in the locker room chatter. His stories are never as meandering as brag rap, but the focus seems to blur slightly with heavy talk of female conquests. Ugly could have been a great launch pad for some incredibly original rap.
But Sparxxx failed to capitalize on the opportunity given to him by the non-camera shy producer Timbaland. With the topsy-turvy world we live in, Sparxxx could have touched on subjects like the KKK, terrorism, failing education, politics and a myriad of other subjects. It’s topics like this that are the foundation of great rap records like It takes a nation of millions to hold us back by Public Enemy and By All means Necessary by KRS-ONE. Bubba even tries to cover the drinking and party scene found on the Beastie Boys License To Ill record and never even comes close to the spirit of that rap classic. The production for the most part keeps things interesting and covers a lot of what Outkast have done and even picks up where they left off.
In the end what Sparxxx gave birth to is hybrid of southern brag/representation and “I’m coming up” announcements. At times the social commentary runs too light and the shots he takes at gangsta rappers and their “booty chatter” seems to lose some merit. Another could have been, and I came so close to handing Dark Days, Bright Nights four stars.
But Sparxxx squeaks by with my official rating of three and a half stars. After hearing the catchy and unique debut single Ugly, Sparxxx and Timbaland deliver one of the biggest disappointments in the category of rap. While there are a few Bright nights, the Dark days seem to outweigh them.
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