BIG BOI phases & stages Sir Lucious Left Foot: ((((( PERFECT ((((GREAT(((GOOD((MEDIOCRE(COASTER The Son of Chico Dusty (Def Jam) In the dynasty of , Big Boi played Scottie Pippen to M.I.A. lukewarm in comparison; Andre 3000’s Michael Jordan, Maya (N.E.E.T./XL “Steppin Up” is a novice an all-star in every regard over- Recordings) club jam and “XXXO” some- shadowed by his partner’s neck- The cluttered cover of thing you’d hear shopping erchief flamboyance. Sir Lucious M.I.A.’s third speaks at Forever 21. Perhaps Left Foot flips that script. BB’s volumes. She’s always M.I.A.’s edging younger now debut solo expands expo- gone for sensory overload that she’s a mother: On nentially on his half of 2003 in terms of aesthetic and “XXXO” she checks both double fantasy Speakerboxxx/ message, but what are we tweeting and iPhones over The Love Below, offering a fan- to make of bad Photoshop? some Beyoncé-level cascad- tastic voyage of 21st century In the fickle Internet age, ing synth. It’s fun, fluffy, Cadillacmuzik that finds Chico it’s impressive the British/ and has tween appeal. Dusty’s son inhabiting the roles Sri Lankan artist has Then there’s “Teqkilla” of the militant “General Patton,” stayed relevant this long, especially since she begging to be played at a strip club, and “Born Southern scholar “Daddy Fat found fame and fortune and currently enjoys a Free,” which, without the controversial video, Sax,” and the titular Sir Lucious charmed life that clashes with her rebellious is just a Suicide song repurposed as messy Left Foot. While the main attraction had a hand in all of the production, he excels in street persona. Now, Maya Arulpragasam’s political allegory. It’s a hot mess of half-baked his collaborations with Lil Jon (lucid R&B for the Jamie Foxx-led “Hustle Blood”), Scott outrage at the “system” carries extra cushion, ideas. The last half, with the exception of Storch (nostalgic ghetto blaster “Shutterbugg”), and Andre 3000 (the ATLiens encoun- providing a stage for either indulgence or tran- clunker “Meds and Feds,” finds moments of ter “You Ain’t No DJ”), who was otherwise barred from the album in one of countless scendence, and there’s more of the former clarity and introspection, like R&B slow jam “It label hurdles. “Fo Yo Sorrows” bridges Too Short’s crassness with George Clinton’s than the latter on Maya. No doubt she’s a hus- Iz What It Iz.” Auto-Tune aside, “Tell Me Why,” dope wisdom and waxes political on ’ unintentional Dirty South, while tler, having created a “personal brand” while one of just two jams, is perhaps the “Follow Us” stakes claim to the throne: “Left foot, right foot steppin’ over biters, it’s railing against the very medium that made her best here, layered with more innovative beats like the game is haunted ’cause there’s so many ghostwriters.” The cameos (T.I., famous. Spectacular debut (2005) and and a fuller sound. Could M.I.A. unseat her Janelle Monáe, Gucci Mane) hit all the right spots, the skits are delightfully juvenile, neon mash-up Kala two years later, with its nemesis Lady Gaga and still be subversive? and Big Boi’s idiosyncratic delivery and tightrope cadences throughout teeter toward singular “” and “Paper Planes,” felt very She’s certainly eyeing global pop domination. Jedi mind tricks. Stank you very much. much of their moment, like a social experiment Therein lies Maya’s conflict. (((( – Austin Powell that could only last so long. Maya’s first half is (( – Audra Schroeder

SUSAN COWSILL catharsis and reconciliation from Katrina to river of love,” she sings with such abandon Lighthouse (Threadhead) the jubilation of a Super Bowl championship you can’t help but join her celebration of life Susan Cowsill took decades to reconcile for the New Orleans Saints. “Dragon Flys,” that also includes brothers Bob, Paul, and childhood fame in with an adult “Sweet Bitter End,” and a cover of Jimmy Cowsill, and husband Russ Broussard, solo career, but that journey was second- Webb’s “Galveston” are tender reminders who keeps the beat of Cowsill’s other life as ary to the fine character of her 2005 debut, of Cowsill’s pure pop youth, while “Avenue steady as her music. And although her music Just Believe It. A longtime resident of New of the Indians” (with guest ) is expansive enough to appeal across the Orleans, Cowsill suffered more than just and “ONOLA” are paeans to the roots she’s boards, Susan Cowsill belongs to the genera- house damage in Hurricane Katrina: Her put down living in the Crescent City. The tions of listeners she imprinted during child- older brother Barry went missing – his body spotlight of Lighthouse is on “River of Love,” hood. That’s a tough one to shake, but it’s finally found months later. Shortly afterward, written by Barry Cowsill and rendered with also the sweetest of bonds. ((( their brother Bill died. Lighthouse feels lump-in-the-throat joy. “Maybe it’s true – Margaret Moser you’ve gone away, but I’ll be waiting by the light-years from Just Believe It, equal parts CONTINUED ON P.58

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54 T H E A U S T I N C H R O N I C L E JULY 30, 2010 a u s t i n c h r o n i c l e . c o m