As Parliament progressed via the 70s, its capability for constructing immersive worlds inside its personal funk-centric musical universe grew more and more subtle. There could also be no higher instance of this potential to go deep, because it had been, than the aquatic-themed Motor Booty Affair. The place Parliament’s earlier concept-driven efforts, Chocolate Metropolis, Mothership Connection, The Clones of Dr. Funkenstein, and Funkentelechy vs. the Placebo Syndrome, respectively explored self-governance, area, science, and self-actualization as paths to utopian echelons, Motor Booty Affair appears to be like to the ocean, particularly the legend of the submerged misplaced historical civilization of Atlantis.
The storyline roughly follows that of Funkentelechy, with recurring protagonist Starchild once more dealing with off towards his nemesis Sir Nostril D’Voidoffunk. However the place Starchild’s erstwhile objective was to make Sir Nostril succumb to the funk by dancing, right here he makes an attempt to lure him into an underwater manifestation of rhythm, expression, and liberation: swimming. Alongside the best way, new sea-life characters are launched (e.g. the narrator Mr. Wiggles, Sir Nostril’s uptight minion Rumpofsteelskin, a play-by-play announcer Howard Codsell). An important new forged member, nonetheless, is behind-the-scenes: the good former Ohio Gamers singer and multi-instrumentalist Walter “Junie” Morrison (right here beneath the pseudonym J.S. Theracon, and on the time doing double obligation as an indispensable contributor to Funkadelic’s concurrently launched One Nation Beneath a Groove).
Take heed to Parliament’s Motor Booty Affair on Apple Music or Spotify.
Junie’s presence provides humor and eclecticism to a gaggle already possessing them in abundance, and the expanded ensemble vibe constantly yields impressively layered preparations. A large number of processed voices splash via the introductory disk jock patter of “Mr. Wiggles,” whereas stacks of vocal hooks, synths, and horns compete for consideration all through “Rumpofsteelskin” and the self-descriptive “One Of These Funky Thangs.” True to its audacious title, the dance smash “Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop)” revels in its maximalism (chook calls, wandering piano, shrill synths), teetering on the point of chaos earlier than in the end succeeding in changing Sir Nostril to like the waterways. Junie’s major showcases playfully lengthen the oceanic metaphor with the fish pun-filled title monitor, and a romantic waltz, “(You’re a Fish and I’m a) Water Signal,” that’s simply one among P-Funk’s most attractive ballads.
Nevertheless it’s the finale, “Deep,” that almost all displays Motor Booty Affair’s tag line, “A Soundtrack to a Movement Image Underwater.” Shifting between cacophonous dialogue between characters, it explicitly challenges the antiquated methods of the dry world, lampooning its demagoguery, intolerance, and feigned profundity as contrasted with life within the idealized Atlantis (“We’ve bought to boost Atlantis from the underside of the ocean/Dancing ’til we deliver it to the highest/We’ve bought to maintain on looking ’til we’re completely free/However within the meantime let’s say that we’re deep”). It’s a becoming climax to an announcement that’s confirmed its endurance. Motor Booty Affair’s affect wouldn’t solely be felt on future generations of hip-hop pattern innovators (The Bomb Squad, Ice Dice, Cypress Hill, EPMD), however the intertwined artistry and Black undersea mythology of Detroit techno cult heroes Drexciya. And, for that alone, Parliament’s final true 70s basic stays a world price diving into.
Take heed to Parliament’s Motor Booty Affair on Apple Music or Spotify.
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