Who could have guessed that a white DJ-producer from Ohio, named after a Star Wars robot, would emerge as one of hip-hop's most exciting solo artists? Then again, RJD2's new album is so wonderfully eclectic, far-ranging, and ambitious that it feels reductive and inaccurate to even call it hip-hop, though that's no slam on the genre. Like Andre 3000's The Love Below, RJD2's Since We Last Spoke bends hip-hop-informed techniques and sensibilities toward an end result that often bears only a passing resemblance to rap. Also like Andre 3000's solo debut, RJD2's latest seems to dabble in just about every other genre: It doesn't contain any deranged polka or death metal, but that may be all it's missing. And, again like Andre 3000, RJD2 boldly tackles audacious new sounds and styles with the assurance of someone who's worked extensively in them his entire career.
