The Last Stand

2LP on black vinyl. Dudley Perkins aka Declaime's The Last Stand is a reflection of a lifelong quest for self-acceptance and enlightenment, and an expression of hope for a brighter future. For much of the album, his lyrics sound freestyled, and there's a similar off-the-cuff quality to the productions, which include warm, friendly boom-bap tracks as well as left-field jazzy excursions. On "Bugg Juice," Perkins and life partner Georgia Anne Muldrow call out politicians and warn the listeners not to fall for their lies, and urge listeners to be true to themselves. Saxophonist Braxton Cook appears throughout, adding some wispy threads of tonal color to the sonic landscape, but he stays in his place and never steals the show. Still, his presence makes an impact, and he aids the flow of tracks like "Chewin," a ten-minute jam with an almost comically long fade-out. Smooth but upbeat soul samples guide the rhythms of more straightforward tracks like "Bully Tactics" and "Lying in the Desert," while others are much more abstract and exploratory. Casual from Hieroglyphics begins "Past Due" with a short, head-spinning guest verse, then the beat switches up to a stuttering drum pattern and a lovely harpsichord sample, as Perkins delivers a typically motivated yet unforced set of rhymes. "Fonkinhabitform" is one of the record's most spaced-out, dreamlike selections, slowly unfolding over a sparse, ticking drum machine, with Perkins, Muldrow, and special guest Jamila Woods sharing a little love with the world. The more concise "In the Image of Dr. Stokley" is a proud father's heartfelt letter of appreciation to his son. After "Eyes Wide Shut," a lyrically heavy tune about breaking free from the oppression in the world by seeking God to find the truth, the album ends with the much more joyous "Sundown," a jazzy, Afrobeat-inspired ode to dancing the whole night