Run the Jewels followed their fourth (and arguably best) album by reworking its entire contents with the help of an impressive cast of Latin American musicians. While the duo's previous remix release,
Meow the Jewels, was a brilliant idea on paper that made no effort to transcend its intended status as a novelty record,
RTJ CU4TRO is a much more considered effort that stands up to repeated listens. Co-executive produced by
Nick Hook, the remixers include
Toy Selectah,
Mexican Institute of Sound, and
Bomba Estereo, who retool the tracks by adding cumbia and reggaeton rhythms, horns, and guest vocals, sometimes replacing hooks or verses from the originals with Spanish lyrics. For the most part, the results work surprisingly well. The hazy rhythms somehow mesh with the aggressive rhymes, and in a few cases they produce some intriguing hybrids, like the industrial cumbia of "fuera de vista (TROOKO's Version)." Midway through "santa calamifuck," the rhythm switches from accordion-laced dembow to a slow, echo-heavy beat, maintaning swagger but altering the mood completely. Drill beats and Spanish raps mix with breakbeats and scratching on "goonies contra E.T.," and
Bomba Estereo's "nunca mirar hacia atras" has lush, airy synths and a sort of melancholy house rhythm.
Toy Selectah's salsa-trap version of "JU$T" and
Son Rompe Pera's "el suelo debajo" are two of the more celebratory, festive tracks, perhaps at odds with the song's lyrics. Much more serious-sounding is "tirando el detonador," a dubby, textural track with an impassioned chorus sung by Colombian Canadian vocalist
Lido Pimienta, in place of
Mavis Staples on the original "Pulling the Pin." The cinematic closer "unas palabras para el peloton de fusilamiento (radiacion)" appropriately features a cameo from
Lin-Manuel Miranda. While not quite as consistent as the original album,
RTJ CU4TRO is largely successful, and a welcome spin on the
Run the Jewels sound. ~ Paul Simpson
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