Review of "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust"

Reznor acts as an intelligent, relevant Timbaland for Williams' meaningful, emotional lyrics.
Driving, pounding beats scattered across the characteristically haunting Nine Inch Nails ambience.
Add in the hip hop fingerprints of Thavius Beck and CD KIDTRONIC and you have something unique: dark, intelligent, entrancing, danceable poetry/hip hop.
This album is one of the best examples of a perfect collaboration.
There's more of a theme in the sound of "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust" than there is in Williams' other two albums.
Obviously that fact is due to Reznor's grinding, buzzing, scratchy synths, bass and drums all over this project.
It gives the album a unified feel missing from both "Amethyst Rock Star" and William's self titled release and that adds a shade of maturity.

The explosive intro track, "Black History Month" grabs the listener's attention and commands them to heed every word of warning. "The banana peels are carefully placed/so keep your shell toes carefully laced".
The old school/new school fusion of "Tr(n)igger" looks at both sides of the word 'nigger' and points a finger at black and white alike asking "You want to blame it on the government on why you got no money for your rent?" and "Would Jesus Christ come back American? What if he's Iraqi and here again?"
Williams' cover of U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday" breathes a desperate new energy into the old anti-war standard and Reznor's aggressive, static filled arrangement edges Williams' pleads with broken glass and razor blades.
The resulting track is an amazing reinvention of a worn out, overplayed masterpiece.
The track "Niggy Tardust" has a creeping synth line and a severe drum machine and synth loop that make the listener uncomfortable. Williams' includes a biting take on the typical 'call and response' aspect of performance.
"Scared Money" (with its straight up reggae feel) and "Raw" (with its stark simplicity) serve as disparate islands of respite in the roiling sonic ocean.
The chilling and beautiful "Banged and Blown Through" conveys a powerful sense of fatigue and hope with the pairing of harsh drums and a cold synth riff and gorgeous, ethereal strings (a device Williams' has used before to his advantage). "Conductor! Conductor! I feel electricity. Conductor! Conductor! Can you bring out the song in me?"
The album's closer, "The Ritual", is just that.
It's a ceremony, a challenge and a purgation all in one and it's a solid destination for the journey that is "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust".

In the end, the album has less of a storyline than the title (and the album to which the title is referring) would lead you to believe and in that way it resembles Williams' first two albums.
Also like his first two albums, this is a collection of well thought out, elegantly worded vitriol aimed at every color in society.
Are the ideas brought up here brand new?
Will it bring about social upheaval?
Probably not, but at least there's an artist out there who actually seems to give a shit about something bigger than his car, his bling and his paycheck.

You can get the entire album for free (or in a higher quality format for a $5 donation), no strings attached, at www.niggytardust.com
Check it out.
It's fucking free.
You lazy assholes.