Album Notes

Eryk Moore Takes Listeners "Beyond the Stage"
by Ayanna G.
 
(A Hip-Hop Infused Spoken Word Diary...)
Lots of spoken word artists here in Atlanta catch a bad rap for being too "earthy" or "militant." But there are few artists whose work fans can say actually evolve over time. Eryk Moore, a New York transplant to the Atlanta entertainment scene, does
more than wax poetic on his latest CD, Beyond the Stage. I have heard my fair share of poets and spoken word artists over the years, and wasn't quite sure what the album would offer my ears. But upon pressing PLAY, I was immediately transported into Moore's lyrical world...

Beyond the Stage...

It's hard not to become drawn into the first track, aptly named, "Beyond the Stage." Moore appears to read a bit of his mental diary over the soulful horns from James Brown sample "King Heroin." But as soon as "Church" begins (the 2nd track), it is quite evident that his dedication to authentic hip-hop is quite solid. Amongst looped choir vocals and Bahamadia samples, Eryk Moore's lyrics tumble out of his mouth like verses from a hip-hop Bible. But just as I got comfortable nodding my head, the music ceased—and his words were punctuated by the silence that one would expect when visiting an incense-filled coffeehouse ("Goodbye Lie Lullabye".) On any other CD, these silent breaks between songs might seem trite. But on Beyond the Stage I realized that the silence is necessary to really appreciate Moore's storytelling ability.

But getting back to the music...

Long story short: "Msundastood" made me want to dance from the first 16 bars. Moore states in this track that "16 bars don't make a hot song." And he's right. But in this case the remaining bars are just as enticing as the first.

He draws upon theatrical pop culture by cleverly inserting one of the most famous quotes from epic film, 300 into his piece titled "Who." The machismo offered by many male spoken word artists seems eclipsed by the aggressive, yet competent lyrics of this track. Is Eryk Moore the greatest lyricist of all time? Maybe, maybe not; but this song just might convince you otherwise.

"Jeckyl's Hyde" invokes the artist's sensitive side (with help from producer Danielle Reed and a Lenny Kravitz sample from the Are You Gonna Go My Way album.) But on this song, Moore intelligently eschews sappiness in favor of frank dialogue.

Other Mentionables...

Many spoken word artists are known for delving into sexual territory in their pieces. Moore is no different in that regard. But instead of heaping on a pile of explicit descriptions, he incorporates a conversational tone that makes a lady think he's talking directly to her and only her ("Easy.")

Listen to this CD and you'll appreciate the sprinkling of feminine energy on tracks like "Make it to Heaven" just as much as you'll enjoy the rock-tinged "Slam", a song that showcases the wordplay that Eryk Moore is known for.

In perusing this album, I felt that I was privy to the private thoughts that many famous hip-hop artists are afraid to reveal on their CDs. Spoken word artists come a dime a dozen. Many of them are good. Some are really good. But there are very few who offer projects that are as musically solid and lyrically diverse as Beyond the Stage. Moore's "ménage a' trios with rhythm and blues" is quite evident on this album. It takes more than just a few well-placed rhymes to create a good spoken word project; of that, this album is proof.