Review: The Dazz Band - Here We Go Again

This is second of the three comeback albums released by The Dazz Band, released between the mid 90s and the early 2000s. This album, "Here We Go Again" was released back in 1998, and without a doubt, this album has to be one of the top five finest 90s funk albums; you might not think that's much of an accolade, given the general lack of funk in the 90s, but trust me, this album is SUPERB.

The Dazz Band first started out as "Kinsman Dazz" throughout the late 70s, then became The Dazz Band from the start of the 80s and onwards. The Dazz Band will always be noted for their wacky, uptempo energetic 80s funk sounds with lots of fuzzy guitar work by the brilliant Marlon McClain, so the fact that this album follows the trends of the late 90s slow/midtempo may not appear to be in line with their usual work and styles, but this album is so good that it doesn't matter. Many funk bands made the transition from the uptempo 80s songs to the slower mid/late 90s R&B sound, and for many of them, it didn't work out, but The Dazz Band brilliantly worked this one and made this great album as a result.

One of the things that ought to be noted carefully about this album is that one of the participants of this project was none other than the mothership connection legend himself, George Clinton!! P-Funk and many of its spinoff projects went a bit silent from 1996 to the turn of the millennium, so having George on the scene for this album was a huge bonus!

Okay, let's start with the tracks. I'll only go through the ones that absolutely grab me, but bear in mind,  I'm likely to warm to even more as I continue listening to this album.

The first track on this album is one that would get totally ignored and shunned by the average funk fan, but would be really lapped up by the Funkology experts and the heads. The first track is called "Bop Gun", and as the Funkologists will already know, the "Bop Gun" is a part of P-Funk mythology - the secret weapon which fills up the people it shoots with funk. The Dazz Band hilariously, and very cleverly brought the "Bop Gun" fresh into the 90s with this song, by turning the subject matter into what can only be described as a light hearted parody of the violent gangster rap of the time, the chorus of which goes: "What ya gonna do if they refuse to move?! Gonna shoot them in the ass with my bop gun!". The tone of this song is so convincing that a listener not in the know would almost believe that this was some type of gangsta rap tune. The drumbeats on this song are really nice, as provided to us by Raymond Calhoun of Sunfire, whom also threw his weight into this album. It's nice to hear in this song that The Dazz Band still kept their light-hearted goofiness from their heyday. The song features a female rapper doing a rap, which is the only aspect of the song that I could have gone without; it's understandable in the era of rap-overkill that the Dazz Band would add a rapper on, but I think the song was contemporary sounding enough without the rap. The rap wasn't a bad one particularly, and it featured no offensive lyrics, but I think it just slightly detracted from the tone of the song, which wasn't meant to be serious in any way. Other than that, a great song.

The next song, "Sho Ya' Right" is a really unusual one, and shows that The Dazz Band are able to get with the times without being clones or copycats. Marlon McClain gives a sequenced riff on this song that absolutely sets this groove alight, accompanied with an organ-like keyboard sound given by funk legend Kevin Kendricks and Michael Norfleet. Raymond Calhoun again gives us a really nice late 90s bass heavy drum beat and Nathaniel Phillips gets down with a nice funky bass. Some really nice vocals on this track as well, which totally fit in line with the late 90s.

The third track on the album is a really nice and unusual late 90s midtempo soul hit called "Girl Got Body", with some really great harmonies in the lyrics. Again, totally contemporary, but The Dazz Band are always able to take it that bit higher. One thing I also like about this song is the occasional spacey synth introduced in the background of this song.

Now, the fourth song on this album has GOT to be my favourite. "Do Popppa Do" is a really, REALLY slick fusion of late 90s bass heavy swingbeat, funk, R&B and soul. The vocal hook on the chorus is absolutely stunning - one of their best harmonies, and vocal harmonies were always one of The Dazz Band's strongest points. This song is just the perfect song to ride to on a quiet Summer evening with a full sunset, and it just totally captures the better aspects of the late 90s. I also love the way the talk-box is utilised throughout this song; not overused at all, and doesn't detract from the harmony whatsoever. And as always, Marlon McClain's subtle guitar work on this song is excellent.

One of the bloody coolest 90s funk songs of all time, and on this album is the song "Ride". The beat on this song is so hard-hitting and fly that it absolutely surpasses and puts many of the hip-hop producers of the day to shame. The guitar and bass on this are just PERFECT! And on this song, the legendary George Clinton's vocals can be clearly heard on this playing over The Dazz Band's harmonies, like it's a separate entity altogether.

Another really cool late 90s style song is "The Things I Do". The mood of this song is very down in the ghetto with some very provocative and suggestive lyrics; a bit like something Cameo would have done, had they recorded in the late 90s.

In conclusion, this album is a MUST HAVE. Once people finally start to dig 90s funk (which they will, let me assure you) this song will be at the top of the respected 90s funk albums.