Turntables alive

Thirty years ago, you might have made some food, might have put it in some airtight Tupperware, might have shoved it in the back of your refrigerator, forgotten about it, let it sit as the decades rolled by. Over the years, things change, but so long as that food is preserved in a plastic bubble it will never age. It will remain forever the same, immortal but stagnant. Music is like this too. It can protect itself with tradition, with time-tested arrangements and styles, though this too grows old, becomes stagnant. But say, in your refrigerator, something happens: The Tupperware pops open, fresh air seeps in. The food will change, of course. It will bubble or rot or deflate or explode. However, it still changes, it still becomes something new. This is what DJ Logic does. He takes something old and makes it new. He lets the air seep in.

DJ Logic has been called the busiest man in music. He has played with artists as diverse as Medeski, Martin and Wood, the Flecktones, Ice-T and Carl Denson. His new release, The Anomaly, reflects his mottled history, combining elements of jazz, hip hop, funk, jam-rock, Afrobeat, drum and bass, dub and reggae. If Logic had stuck to any one of these genres, he would have been safe. He cannot help but be prolific, however. He needs to change things, to blend them all together, to let the air seep in.

The title reflects the content. Each song is a musical anomaly that transcends musical boundaries; melodious Jesse Jacksons bringing contraries together, making opposites attract. Logic does not rely solely on his turntables in this release. That would only be impressive; Logic aims to be orgasmic. He surrounds himself with throngs of guests and a dozen different instruments. John Hammond Jr. intensifies the hysteria on the DJ Kool-influenced, “French Quarter,” the volatile opening track. “Opera” includes some exquisite female vocals that make the song as lush as a rain forest. The welcomed addition of a flute on “Michelle” makes the track positively intoxicating. “Tih Gnob” is a musical bong-hit, a gurgling song that simmers, expands, then explodes. Each tune invites your mind to slip into a trance and your ass to shake like it’s strapped to a jet engine. Each accomplishes this in a different and imaginative way. But don’t take my word for it. Go check out Logic to see for yourself how stimulating a single man’s mind can be.

DJ Logic performs with Project Logic June 18 at the Magic Bag.

E-mail Joshua Gross at letters@metrotimes.com.