As Ben Drew awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a soul singer.
At least, that's how the review would start if it was written by Franz Kafka. Ben, also known as Plan B burst onto the British rap scene in 2005. He was young, angry, and most importantly eloquent. The final verse of his early single Sick 2 Def is some of the best written rap I've ever heard. So it was with some surprise that I greeted the news that the follow up to his acclaimed 2006 debut (Who Needs Actions When You Got Words?) was a concept album about a soul singer.
Concept albums are very murky water indeed. Often they're bloated, nonsensical rubbish. Most of them don't make any sense until you have the concept explained to you. Sometimes the bands themselves seem to abandon the concept halfway, realising that it's just too much effort.
What this means for me is that there are two things to review. The story and the music. Sure, they should work together to support each other and one should be inseparable from the other, but do you really need to sit through all 72 minutes of Tommy to know that the 3:02 of Pinball Wizard is sheer brilliance? I don't think you do.
So the story. I have to admit, I looked this up. Once I knew it all fell nicely into place, but I'm not sure I would have managed all the intricacies without being pointed in the right direction. We start with titular soul singer Strickland Banks, and the first two tracks (Love Goes Down, Writing's On The Wall) are supposedly fine examples of his smooth northern soul oeuvre. Then Strickland goes out, gets drunk, and cheats on his girlfriend with an obsessive fan (Stay Too Long, She Said). When he jilts the fan in the morning she cries rape (She Said), and Strickland gets sent to jail (Welcome To Hell, Hard Times). In jail he tries to lay low (The Recluse), but ends up losing his innocence (Traded In My Cigareetes, Prayin'), his faith (Darkest Place), his girlfriend (I Know A Song), and eventually his hope (What You Gonna Do). The story ends on an ambiguous open note. Strickland is retried due to new evidence coming to light, and we don't find out if he is released or re incarcerated. As stories go it's not exactly new, but for a concept album it's a pretty clean through line, and I must admit I was somewhat relieved to not find a bizarre twist at the end of the tale.
Musically the album sits well in the revival that soul music is currently enjoying. Drew tries to channel Marvin Gaye with his vocals, and while he doesn't quite reach the lofty heights he strives for, the slight edge in his voice lends weight and authenticity to the dark subject matter on offer. Occasionally he can't help himself and he'll break into a rap, but it works as Strickland's darkest inner monologue. The band bring to mind Motown's glorious Funk Brothers, with a tight rhythm section, bright horns, and just enough groove to keep the song moving forward.
I was only really peripherally aware of Plan B before I listened to this album. He certainly has my attention now. I wonder what metamorphosis he'll attempt next.
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