Review: Dam-Funk – Invite the Light

Dam-Funk
Invite the Light

Stones Throw
Street: 09.04
Dam-Funk = Zapp / Nate Dogg

Invite the Light, Dam-Funk’s second LP, is so diverse in its application of funk and boogie genres, with contributors ranging from Q-Tip to Ariel Pink, that it’s difficult to not view it as Dam’s greatest work to date. Invite’s production is flawless, and provides an interesting dynamic, as Dam balances his angst for funk’s low standing in mainstream music with his beaming positivity for life. Invite is full of juxtaposing content about “the man” trying to end funk’s legacy with lyrics that encourage sobriety and unity. When Dam says, “I don’t need your mollys, I don’t need your leans. All I need is funk, which keeps my third eye ever clean,” you realize the purpose of Invite the Light. Dam-Funk is funk’s modern-day ambassador, reminding people that the genre’s progenitors were visionaries that wanted to make the world a better place, and Invite The Light is his magnum opus. –Justin Gallegos