Back for a fourth round of island-blasted fun,
Diplo,
Walshy Fire, and new member
Ape Drums deliver the tightest and most accessible offering from the
Major Lazer project with the excellent
Music Is the Weapon. Unsurprisingly, this set is designed to get bodies moving and it never lags in that regard. As with past
Lazer efforts,
Music is a star-studded affair that crosses borders and genres with an inspired cast of contributors from the worlds of pop, rap, R&B, dancehall, reggaeton, Bollywood, and Afro-beat. Traversing the globe,
Major Lazer recruits North American singers
Alessia Cara and
Khalid, who soften their respective tracks with smooth vocals, providing comforting breaks from all the hip-shaking, which makes up the bulk of the album. Meanwhile, British folkster
Marcus Mumford of
Mumford & Sons makes a surprisingly appropriate appearance on the uplifting anthem "Lay Your Head on Me," which became the breakout radio crossover hit of the album. Indian singer/songwriter Rashmeet Kaur injects South Asian flair to the addictive "Jadi Buti," which hits just as hard as
DJ Snake's own Bollywood-bass fusion anthem "Magenta Riddim." Later, rappers
French Montana and
Nicki Minaj drop verses on two standout tracks: first,
Montana joins BEAM on the
DJ Snake-esque thumper "Bam Bam," then
Minaj pops up on all-star melee "Oh My Gawd," which shakes the floor with Nigerian artists
Mr Eazi and
K4mo.
Busy Signal,
Skip Marley, and
J Balvin also service pulse-pounding moments that put the body in a trance, building the set to a dizzying frenzy on the Grammy-nominated "Rave de Favela" with
MC Lan, BEAM, and Brazilian pop diva
Anitta. At a compact 12 tracks,
Music Is the Weapon provides just enough inspiration to get the party started, but it is so good that -- if left on repeat -- it would be enough to fuel an entire night of hedonism. ~ Neil Z. Yeung