CD REVIEW: Erykah Badu offers a lighter, more personal affair with new album

New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh, the latest album from soulful songstress Erykah Badu, finds her combining the abstract sounds of her last record with the more laid back, funky sound of her first records.

The result is a pitch-perfect album of spacey neo-soul that grooves and soothes with Badu’s distinct soulfulness.

In the past few weeks, Badu has been the source of great controversy. The music video for Return of the Ankh lead single, “Window Seat,” features Badu stripping down at the same spot John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dealey Plaza in Dallas — Badu’s hometown.

Her 2008 release, New Amerykah Part One: 4th World War, found Badu experimenting with some extremely out-there textures, rhythms and melodies.

Much of the “weirdness” of 4th World War is still intact here, though it seems to be toned down — just a little.

The greatest difference between the two records is the lyrical content.

4th World War dealt with some extremely weighty topics, such as social and political injustices, drug abuse and addiction, greed and war.

Return of the Ankh is a far lighter, more personal affair. Many of its songs deal with different aspects of love and relationships.

One of the record’s strongest tracks comes in the form of “Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long,” which has one of those hooks, the kind that gets stuck in your head for hours after only hearing it once.

The song is a funky head-bobber with a hip-hop beat, ethereal background vocals and restless ’70s-porno guitar that just won’t quit.

Return of the Ankh is an incredibly sexy, groovy and beautiful record that works just as well blasting out of bass-heavy headphones as it does bumpin’ in the bedroom at the end of the day.

Badu’s recent rebirth is likely to earn her a legion of new fans (this writer included) and has made her, once again, one of the most interesting and relevant figures in popular music.

Five stars out of five