Album Review: Human The Death Dance by Sage Francis

It's unfortunate that the hype machine behind Sage Francis' second effort for the Epitaph label totally missed the breakthrough factor and decided to sell it as "his most personal record to date. " Pound for pound, Human the Death Dance may be his most personal effort, but it's also an incredibly well-built full-length -- even when it borrows from a handful of genres -- and it's arguably his best lyrical effort, undoubtedly his best production-wise. While it's good news that the Sage Francis faithful are getting to peer into the man's head with this "personal" effort, Death Dance begins with a helpful crib sheet ("Underground for Dummies") that suggests newcomers are welcome here, too, and maybe even desired.

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Review Summary: Human the Death Dance may not be perfect and perhaps not even an improvement for fans, but regardless, it's full of wonderful moments that should satisfy fans and serve as a great introduction for newcomers.If this is the first time you've heard of him, you can be forgiven for thinking that Sage Francis is the kind of artist who, on paper, might sound a little ridiculous. After all, he is a bald, herbivoric white rapper who happened to be the first hip-hop artist ever signed by punk record label Epitaph. But then again, hip-hop has seen has seen all sorts of unique characters from the beginning.

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