Funkadelic
One Nation Under A Groove

THE REVIEW

Before listening to this record, boasting a cultural bravado that normally isn't mine, I was certain of having a more than good knowledge of the funk genre.

The misunderstanding arose from the fact that this label was often associated with the music of one of the bands I loved the most during my adolescence, the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I convinced myself that this habit, far from being the result of the usual procedure of boxing bands into a musical-label genre, actually reflected and with good approximation a certain congruence between the Red Hot's style and the proper dictates of "funk", this mysterious creature.

Needless to say I was wrong. And how. Sure, it’s undeniable that the early works of the "Peppers" (particularly "Freaky Stiley" but also the following ones, albeit to a much lesser extent) sound very funk. But funk properly said is a different thing. Very different.
Here, this "One Nation Under A Groove" of '76 is the best possible answer to the question "what is funk". This means everything, even if it actually says nothing. And one thing needs to be clarified immediately: this absolutely isn't the album to listen to if you’re approaching the genre for the first time. In that case, to avoid being irreparably traumatized, it would be better to start with more mainstream artists, James Brown for example, certainly less extreme and more attentive to catchiness and immediacy of the melodies.

The average length of the songs, around six minutes, offers a first powerful argument to my thesis. On the other hand, more than the minutes, it is the intrinsic complexity of the pieces that makes listening to the album really tough for an inexperienced ear. Skewed rhythm to the point of being unbelievable, formidable bass lines (think of the splendid "Groovallegiance"), guitars that screech everywhere with shrill solos on the edge of bearability (always for a virgin ear, that is..), bizarre vocal performances, sometimes choral, other times spoken, other times reduced practically to mere buzzing, as in the case of the unpronounceable "Promentalshitbackwashpsychosis Enema Squad (The DooDoo Chasers)", which, as the length of the name seems to suggest, spreads over more than 10 minutes of pure funky delirium.
In these pieces it is quite evident how catchiness is sacrificed in favor of complexity and often excessive experimentation. Think again of the rockish "Lunchmeataphobia (Think, It Ain't Illegal Yet!)", supported by an almost hard-rock riff (!!!). Certainly, in this "wild forest" there are also more "orthodox" tracks, capable of hitting at first listen; the bouncy "Into You" with its syncopated rhythm, or the very amusing "Who Says A Funk Band Can't Play Rock!", quite famous by the way, are examples. But evidently, they represent an exception, not the rule.

A separate note deserves the two instrumental pieces that close the album, "P.E. Squad, Doo Doo Chasers ('Going All-The-Way Off' Instrumental Version)" and "Maggot Brain", the latter a reinterpretation of the piece of the same name that already appeared on the "Maggot Brain" album of '71. Both create truly unique atmospheres, in their own way evocative, that go beyond the "simple" high-spiritedness of the previous pieces. Technically speaking, the guitar solo in "Maggot Brain", although not particularly different from the one already heard in the other "version", is memorable and ranks among the 100 most beautiful guitar solos in history.

In conclusion, from personal experience, I recommend consuming this record in small doses, the smaller the less experienced the ear is. If, however, you are already a fan of the genre, then you will find it immediately irresistible.