The Further Adventures of Lord Quas

Five years after The Unseen, Madlib resurrected his impish alter-ego Quasimoto for a second full-length. The Further Adventures of Lord Quas continues on the path The Unseen started, but this journey is far deeper, far stranger, and far more unruly than anything from Quasimoto’s first album. Rhythm-centric with far more texture than melody, the album replaces the gurgling keyboards and jazz loops of The Unseen with stuttering electro (“Greenery,” “Shroom Music”), pummeling bass tones (“Civilization Day”), and chattering percussion (“1994,” “Raw Deal”). As with The Unseen, the songs shimmer with sub-aquatic mystery, and the Blaxploitation spoken-word raconteur Melvin Van Peebles lends periodic support, shouting encouragement to Quasimoto like some deranged favorite uncle. You have to admire Madlib for retreating even deeper into his own artistic consciousness here. Don’t be afraid to forage; there are gems here (“Rappcats Pt. 3,” “Strange Piano,” and “Privacy” among them), and the more time you spend in this dense, wild forest of music and mischief, the more treasure you’ll turn up.