[READY TO FLOW] Tony Ozier, the de facto
leader of the musical collective known as the Doo Doo Funk All-Stars,
has already proven his multi-instrumental and songwriting mettle in the
group’s regular jam sessions (known as Dookie Jams) and its album Keep the Funk Alive.
To these ears, an all-instrumental mixtape cooked up by Ozier and his
many compadres just seems like the next logical step in a steady
progression toward sanctified glory.
The spirit of this
collection is as loose and spirited as the Doo-Doo Funk All Stars’
“Dookie Jams,” but honed to a fine point. There are no wasted notes here
or discursive solos. These songs are fuss-free bumpers ready to slip
into a DJ mix or find an MC ready to take them on.
Without the frills,
Ozier’s influences are allowed to fully float to the surface of this
set. He evokes the spirit of Bernie Worrell and his peerless work as
keyboardist for Funkadelic on the appropriately titled “The Nastyness”
and on the straightforward, driving “The Funk.” With “Cutty Nashty,”
Ozier dips into a fractured groove—almost dubstep, really—punctuated by
samples of a gun being cocked and fired.
What sustains this
disc is a strong emotional core. Not only as expressed by the loving and
often-goofy spoken-word interludes by some of Ozier’s admirers and
collaborators (the Pharcyde’s SLIMKID3 and frequent Doo Doo Funk
collaborator Yolanda Johnson among them), but through tracks written in
honor of friends and family. Chief of these is “B,” a
tribute to the late Barry Hampton, a guitarist with the All-Stars and
longtime Portland player. Ozier doesn’t wallow in the loss, but elevates
the joyous spirit of his friend through a stinging guitar line and a
shuffling rhythm—the aforementioned heartfelt core is surrounded by a
glitzy, mirrorballed shell meant to be hung from the rafters and
illuminate the writhing bodies below. Beats Galore, indeed.
SEE IT: Tony Ozier’s Doo Doo Funk All-Stars play
Refuge PDX on Friday, Oct. 21, with Blackalicious and Freestyle Fellowship. 9
pm. $20. 21+. BeatsGalore Vol. 1 is out now.
