J-Dilla

It’s fitting that this long-awaited solo release is through Stones Throw as it sounds like Dilla has been spending a lot of time in Madlib’s Bomb Shelter. Not to say that the ex-Slum Village producer is starting to sound entirely like the Beat Konducta, but the influences are definitely apparent as Donuts is sewn together with cinematic soul samples, piles of random dialogue, but of course, and most importantly, amazing break beats. Donuts is an entirely instrumental excursion and allows Dilla to explore his creativeness further than just verses and choruses, which usually means no two moments are alike and each track tends to end within two minutes. The second part of Donuts contains a lot of romantic moments as old soul love songs are on the menu to carry beautiful moments such as "Two Can Win” and "Don’t Cry.” The psychedelic rock-fused joints such as "Geek Down” though bring the thump back to Dilla’s beat-making. This is definitely an abstract travel for a producer who used to co-produce beats with A Tribe Called Quest, but it’s also one that should not be hard to decipher for fans of the Stones Throw happenings and those who seek a challenge in their hip-hop. Most of the tracks seem like minute-long song ideas, but Donuts has many sprinkles and Dilla manages to pull them all together to make a delicious treat for the blunted.