What the record is and where it came from
Black Messiah was released in 2014 under the credit D’Angelo and the Vanguard, following the long interval after Voodoo. Collaborators include Questlove, Pino Palladino, Isaiah Sharkey, Roy Hargrove and Kendra Foster. The ensemble credit matters to a record built from many interdependent contributions.
How it sounds, and how it was made
An analog production approach supports a deliberately murky funk sound. Bass, drums, guitars, horns and layered voices occupy a dense shared space. Clarity of each isolated element is less important than the accumulated character of the arrangement.
What lands
“Really Love” offers an accessible point of entry into that density. Across the album, the pleasure lies partly in noticing another instrumental or vocal contribution on a later pass. The musicians’ individual identities remain active even when the mix does not present them in clean, separate compartments.
What does not
The murk can obstruct as well as enrich. A listener wanting the lead vocal and lyric to remain immediately clear may find the production withholding. The prolonged anticipation around the release is also a poor reason to assume that every crowded passage rewards equal attention.
The ideas inside it
Collective identity can be expressed through overlap. The album does not always tell the ear where to stand; it lets musical roles share territory. That makes attentive listening a process of changing focus rather than simply following a fixed lead.
Who should hear it, and who should not
Hear it if dense production invites you to return. It is less suitable when music needs to communicate its principal features instantly and from a distance.
Is it worth your time
Yes. Give it several focused listens before deciding whether its opacity is productive for you. The ensemble work is the strongest reason to stay.
