Album review: D’Angelo and the Vanguard Black Messiah
Musical morality tales don’t come more wrenching or melodramatic than the rise, fall and near death of r’n’b star, D’Angelo. Through the second half of the 1990s, his drowsily seductive voice, combined with almost supernatural abilities as a marshaller of beats, appeared to herald a new force in r’n’b. But the artist, born Michael Eugene Archer, vanished from view in 2000, and, amid rumours of alcohol and drug issues, and a car crash, looked destined to fade into legend.
Several days ago, with little aplomb, the tragic story acquired an uplifting coda as D’Angelo, now 40, put out his first new music in 14 years. The trigger, it was suggested, was an upsurge of protests against alleged police strong-handedness of young black men in the US. Black Messiah had been pencilled-in for a more conventional release in 2015, but, seeking to tap into the anger sweeping African-American communities, D’Angelo reportedly pulled all-nighters so the record could come out now.
