Pitchfork

For decades, space was the place. As humanity's knowledge of the cosmos expanded, so did what we could imagine about it. The 19th century's breathless speculation about non-existent Martian canals and the early 20th century's panic-inducing The War of the Worlds radio broadcast eventually gave way to Isaac Asimov, the late Arthur C. Clarke, Star Trek, and, of course, the U.S. space program. For now, however, despite President Bush's quickly forgotten attempt to revive it, manned space exploration has become a dead end. Within a year after the Viking probes found no evidence of life on Mars in 1975, both Apple Computers and Microsoft were founded. Since then, some of the biggest technological leaps have had to do with better connecting the people right here on Earth. I know, crazy!

After conquering a hip-hop scene divided between East Coast and West Coast by taking things down South on Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, Outkast followed Andre 3000's weird muse (and the likes of Parliament-Funkadelic) to outer space and beyond on their subsequent run of classic albums. Maybe I'm making too much of this-- after all, Andre 3000 already brought us to "the center of the Earth" on Stankonia-- but "Royal Flush", a track thought to be the first single from Big Boi's upcoming Sir Luscious Left Foot solo album, splashes down with a sample from the Isley Brothers' "Voyage to Atlantis" and witty social commentary that topples contemporary rap's too-common divide between gangster clichés and "conscious" ones. Of course, these two have been doing that for years, but after the Cab Calloway-invoking mixed bag of Idlewild, the sophisticated funk and soulful sampled vocals of "Royal Flush" are a thrilling return to the here and now.

And that's a space Big Boi, Raekwon, and Andre explore brilliantly on three quick verses punctuated by the Isleys. Over a slightly jazzy bass line and rattling mid-1990s-style beats, Big Boi leads off first by speaking truth to power with an intelligence rare in politically-minded pop. Raekwon brings the conflict to the streets, battling with the "po-po" in a voice he knows damn well is "raspy." Andre, continuing a recent streak of sublime guest appearances that includes last year's "Int'l Player's Anthem", demolishes them all in a verse that turns its sights on rap itself, specifically the notion that a career dealing drugs is the #1 qualification for an MC. "Crack and I have a lot in common/ We both came up in the 80s and we keep the bass pumping," he explains. Just consider this online poker-- we've come a long way, baby.

[apparently from the forthcoming Sir Luscious Left Foot]