Addicted to Outkast? Then you'll get hooked on Cee-Lo
By Simon Umlauf
CNN Headline News
(CNN) -- If you can't get enough of Outkast then you should try some Cee-Lo Green and his latest album "Cee-Lo Green is the Soul Machine."
The similarities shouldn't be a surprise since the 28-year-old rapper/soul singer grew up with the Grammy glittered duo and almost became the third member of Outkast when they first hit the scene.
You could even say the three are related. They're all members of the Dungeon Family -- a collective of Atlanta-based musicians who sharpened their skills in a dirty basement studio in East Atlanta.
Cee-Lo was a founding member of Goodie Mob, a Dungeon Family offspring, known for its socially smart message and its bluesy, organic sound. But the "Mob" was busted by creative differences and Cee-Lo went looking for a new crew to break the boundaries of hip-hop.
Producers Timbaland, the Neptunes and Jazze Pha join Cee-Lo on "Soul Machine," along with Atlanta rhyme crushers Ludacris and TI. Cee-Lo didn't want the album limited to just one distinct sound.
"I picked as many people as I could, that I was a fan of," Cee-Lo says. "I'm a fan of music as well, and Timbaland has been quite a contributor and I really appreciate his music."
On "I'll Be Around," Timbaland lays down a fat drum and bell track that would make rap mogul P. Diddy change his name. Cee-Lo hooks you with a sonic sermon, "I bust a rap to make a blind man believe in the boogie," and "Timbo" intros himself with some country hop that's so funky it's fresh.
"Here comes Timbaland, I'm also from the South/ I like the girls with big butts and golds in they mouth/ I come from the back roads and the dirty house/ If you leave the door open, mama cuss you out."
 "Cee-Lo Green is the Soul Machine" |  |
With Cee-Lo's lethal mix of talent, "Soul Machine" leaves commercial hip-hop rolling on 12-inch rims. "Cee-Lo sets off with TI and Jazze Pha cranking out what could be the party anthem of the summer. The track hooks you with a seductive Middle Eastern flute melody with Cee-Lo and crew in tow: "You're the one girl /You're the one girl/You're the one girl, You're the one.../Put your finger in the air, if you're the one girl/ Put your finger in the air if, you're the one."
If the track "The One" doesn't have every girl within dancing distance of a speaker waving her finger in the air, it's time for this music critic to start writing about the weather.
Each track on "Soul Machine" offers its own tonal texture and originality, from "I Am Selling Soul" with its trance-like beat to the gospel-tinged "Die Trying." You can hear similarities between Outkast's "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below" and "Soul Machine," but they have nothing to do with lyrics or beats. "Our intentions are similar," Cee-Lo says. "We insist on cutting outside the lines of limitation and broadening the horizons of music."
