Credit: Ben Breier

Local rap guru Blitz brings out one last album to arouse the consciousness of his college colleagues before he moves on to promote his music worldwide.

Already known for his socially conscious lyrics, Blitz’s fans won’t be disappointed. Blitz is still one of the lucky few to escape the poverty and death of Africa, as well as the poverty and death of New York City. Plus, an increased sense of his past allows Blitz to document every injustice he sees with sage eyes and savvy lyrics.

Yet the real advancement on this album is its musical production. Blitz, a fan of soul, jazz and R&B, fuses his tracks with all of these genres and more. He never hesitates to add an African drumbeat where it is needed most and the horn section on the first bonus track is moving.

Most importantly, all of this music is recorded live in the studio, so it can be tweaked to work well with the song. Compare that to the looping of music heard on most rap albums and Double Consciousness is 10 steps beyond the rest.

The first full track on the album grabs the listener by the throat and pulls them along a track laced with harrowing opera music and a refrain of “This means war.” Add to that Blitz rapping at speeds that would make Twista turn green, and the track soars above and beyond anything made to date by Blitz. The ride never slows down from there.

There are few independently released albums as good as this one. For that matter, there are few albums released by major labels as good as this one. Buy Double Consciousness and see things from a new point of view.

The album will be out Oct. 11.

– Jeff Schooley