Terrence Parker - Life On The Back 9

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  • Not many people would draw a connection between the inner city pressure that's birthed most of Detroit's music and golf. Unsurprisingly, the title of Terrence Parker's new album isn't a reference to leisurely days on the green so much as a metaphor for overcoming obstacles somewhat trickier than a bunker, the idea being that you can always pull things back on the last nine holes after a difficult first half. So in that sense, Parker is linking his music to the spirit of struggle and liberation that drives gospel and disco, styles the Motor City artist has long incorporated into his sound. Life On The Back 9 bursts with the same sense of positivity and release as the gospel churches it turns to for inspiration, yet Parker seems more interested in banging the club than the Bible. Tracks like "GOD HE Is" and "Open Up Your Spirit" may have praise-the-lord diva vocals, but preaching is kept to a minimum. "Pentecost" begins with a sample of a Bible reading, but it soon turns into a rousing deep house track that could even get Richard Dawkins raving. The pounding pianos and euphoric breakdowns of "Night Light" or the title track are as much about the sensual as the spiritual, as are the tight and downright sexy basslines that wriggle throughout nearly every track. Now seems a particularly good time for Parker to be plying this string and diva-drenched sound again. That peers like Moodymann are now an almost ubiquitous presence in European clubs—as opposed to the elusive figure he was when Seven Strong Songs came out—shows that Detroit's house underground is more in the limelight than ever. If you're looking for soulful house done right, Life On The Back 9 offers you a fairway to heaven.
  • Tracklist
      01. Finally (Baby Be Mine) 02. Night Light 03. Saved Forever 04. God He Is 05. Spiritual Warfare 06. The Friend I Lost 07. Hiding In Your Love 08. Selah Interlude 09. My Virtuous Woman 10. Open Up Your Spirit 11. Pentecost 12. The Back 9
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