Ancient Astronauts – We Are to Answer (a J!-ENT World Groove Album Review)

July 1, 2009 by Dennis Amith 

“The German Hip Hop duo Ancient Astronauts takes us out for a trip from the Earth to beyond with their album ‘We Are to Answer’ showcasing collaborations with The Pharcyde, Ulf Stricker, Phat Old Mamas, Azeem, Raashan Ahmad, Tippa Irie, Bajka, Entropik and more!  Overall, a solid album featuring a wide range of ear pleasing, addictie and mesmerizing music.  Highly recommended!”

GROUP: Ancient Astronauts

ALBUM: We Are to Answer (Digital Version)

LABEL: ESL Music

DURATION: 47:27

RELEASE DATE: June 29, 2009

1. From The Sky
2. I Came Running
3. Classic (feat. The Pharcyde)
4. Dark Green Rod
5. A Hole To Swallow Us (feat. Phat Old Mamas)
6. Risin High (feat. Raashan Ahmad)
7. Lost in Marrakesh (feat. Entropik)
8. All of the Things You Do (feat. Tippa Irie)
9. Everybody
10. Seventh Planet
11. Oblivion (feat. DJ Zeph & Azeem)
12. Surfing The Silvatide (feat. Bajka)
13. Crescent Moon

BUY THIS ALBUM:

The German hip hop duo of Kabanjak and Dogu from Cologne known as Ancient Astronauts have unleashed their album “We Are to Answer” to the masses.  The group has called their album “a musical trip through the cosmos returning back to Earth with spacey flutes, intergalactic lyrics and earthy drum beats”.

Featuring break beats, funked out vibes and galactic grooves, the new album features collaborations with The Pharcyde, Phat Old Mamas, Raashan Ahmad, Entropik, Tippa Irie, DJ Zeph & Azeem and Bajka.

The album kicks of with “From the Sky”, establishing a vision of lifting off into the space as the deep grooves flows evenly throughout the track and DJ scratching coincides with the beats and giving us an atmospheric soundscape.

The track then leads into the second track titled “I Came Running” which features an upbeat, melancholic groove.

Track three titled “Classic” is a classic collaboration with Bootie Brown and Imani from the South Central LA alternative hip hop group The Pharcyde and Germany’s Ancient Astronauts which brings back that old school hip hop flavor with flutes, bass and upbeat percussion.

The fourth track “Dark Green Rod” features a collaboration with Germany’s popular percussionist Ulf Stricker known for his acousting and electronic use of percussion, the collaboration brings that galactic vibe in perfect harmony with Stricker’s frantic drums.  Another solid track on the album!

The fifth track “A Hole To Swallow Us” features a collaboration with Phat Old Mamas as we hear a jazzy beats with the beautiful vocals of Linn Sofie Andersen Hom and Nana Norgaard-Clausen who bring their heavenly vocals to the track.

Track six brings us another well-done hip hop collaboration with New Jersey’s Raashan Ahmad.  Addictive flutes interchanging with deep bass grooves.  A wonderful track!

Entropik known for their melodic and soothing music teams up with Ancient Astronauts for track seven’s “Lost in Marrakesh” and giving us that Moroccan feel with a repeating groove.  Mesmerizing and addictive!

With the various tracks on this album, it doesn’t surprise me that the group would collaborate with British reggae artist Tippa Ire for track eight’s “All of the Things You Do”.  Featuring an all reggae track but subtle galactic sounds roam throughout the track.

For track nine titled “Everybody”, the music goes towards 80′s funky and giving the listener’s another style of music to enjoy the album.

Track ten is titled “Seventh Planet Skit” is a short instrumental track that features a good use of sound sampling with brass horns and percussion.

Track eleven is titled “Oblivion” featuring a collaboration with Oakland hip hop artist Azeem and DJ Zeph.  A deeper hip hop track showcasing Azeem’s smooth delivery of his rhymes and Ancient Astronauts with DJ Zeph showcasing his cool beats and scratching throughout the track.

Track twelve titled “Surfing the Silvatide” featuring poet and singer Bajka which has a reggae groove but given added depth through Bajka’s poetic delivery of her lyrics.  A solid track!

The album ends with “Crescent Moon” as the ride to outerspace is filled with an addictive groove as a wide variety of sounds peacefully enter the soundscape of your mind.  Overall, a smooth and relaxing track.

I’ve listened to this album countless times for the last week.  Ancient Astronauts was incredibly pleasing as the duo manages to stay close to their atmospheric vibe and intergalactic sounds but yet collaborating with a variety of artists with music that goes into the various territories of Hip Hop, Funk, Reggae, Electronic and more.  Overall, “We Are to Answer” is a solid album featuring a wide range of ear pleasing, addictive and mesmerizing music.

And “We Are to Answer” brings that stylishly, cool vibe of dreamy, whimsical soundscape to the listener and artistically through music, able to paint that image of an intergalactic ride through their music but also taking a variety of other artists for the ride and just showcasing creativity as a whole.

Ancient Astronaut’s “We Are to Answer” is highly recommended!