Offerings Sure to Please the Gods

O.B.’s Celestial Offerings is similar to a virgin that pagans would sacrifice to their gods: it’s pure, unsullied and raw. Too many artists in the music industry today hide behind gimmicks, offstage antics or controversy rather than building a career based on pure talent and skill. It’s a shame that a quick Google search on O.B. hardly pulls up any information, because this is an artist that definitely deserves more recognition. If hiding in the shadows is what it takes to hone one’s craft though, O.B.’s Celestial Offering is a testament to that philosophy.

Celestial Offerings leads off with “Determinism,” which starts with O.B. stating the things that are being offered up– “we offer our talents, innovations, our lives.”  “Autumn in the City” is a solemn retrospective track on lost love and past mistakes accompanied by a melancholy fueled jazz backdrop, while “Suddenly” has a beat similar to pop ’80s gems by the likes of Chaka Khan. These two songs alone show the versatility of this artist. Track after track, O.B. surprises the listener by keeping it fresh.

“Deliverance” is one of the best tracks on the album– heavy and bass-infused with even heavier lyrics and thoughts about salvation and the afterlife constructed while under the influence. The broodiness of lyrics almost suffocates the sparseness of the instrumental, but O.B. manages to pull it off quite nicely.

Sixteen tracks and not a single wasted breath, O.B.’s Celestial Offerings showcases an amazing talent. O.B. is another example of what one can do with hip hop as an art form that few other artists do. This is hip hop without the clichés; few guest spots and few boastful verses. It’s just O.B. being O.B. History may prove this album to be a stepping stone in O.B.’s career to stardom and fame, but even if O.B. stays off the grid he can still relish in the fact that this was a wonderfully made album.