Artist: The Roots
Album: Game Theory (2006)
Label: Def Jam
iH Rating: 8.7 out of 10
RIYL: Philly hip hop soul music, Common, Jay Dee

Game theory, it is a branch of mathematics that studies the possible outcomes of strategic action in order to maximize returns. Simply put, it is an analytical approach to game situations. It is applied to a wide variety of strategical planning from war to economic policies to tic-tac-toe. It was the thematic subject of the Matthew Broderick classic War Games, and it is the title of the new album by The Roots.

The overt reference is to the current international situation, more specifically the United States' role in world politics. The album takes a critical look at the Bush administration and its policies abroad and at home. The Roots have never been shy of socio-political argument, it was the backbone of their masterpiece Things Fall Apart and they have often taken up one cause or another outside of their music. Honestly it comes as no surprise to me that they would go in this direction. What surprises me is how well the “game theory” device works in relation to other issues hanging over the album.

One corrolary to game theory is that self-serving actually generally makes things worse for everyone, that maximal returns are often the result of a collaborative effort. This certainly rings true for Malik B, who makes his return to Roots recordings on this album after a five year separation from the band. He was apparently booted from the lineup after Things Fall Apart because of a self-destructive drug habit. Black Thought later tried to mend the relationship and convince Malik to get clean with “Water” on Phrenology. The song was a tearjerker and it apparently worked because Malik is back, albeit not as an official member of the group, appearing as a guest on three tracks on Game Theory. The first of these is the title track, a throwback track to simpler, straight-up hip hop production. Malik doesn't seem to have missed a beat in his time off, he compliments Black Thought's as well as he did on Do You Want More!?!! with a single verse on the end of the song. Its placed in such a way that it might slip by if you aren't paying attention, there isn't any great fanfare paid to Malik in light of his return. But that's almost a tribute in itself, as his voice sounds at home on all three tracks. He spits his best verses on “In the Music,” a darkly moody song with a Night Rider-type frenetic beat akin to “Don't Say Nuthin” from 2004's The Tipping Point. (Dice Raw, another favorite Roots collaborator, also adds his voice, giving what is probably the album's best performance on “Here I Come.”)

The Roots have a band mentality. They are not the usual hip hop group. They play instruments and put as much, if not more, emphasis on the music than on the rapping. They don't use a traditional DJ either. The closest they've come to two turntables is the vocal DJ, Scratch, who beatboxed in a style that reproduced the effects of a turntable. There was also Rahzel (who could forget?), aka the Godfather of Noyze. But the idea is that they are a hip hop band, one that plays collaboratively and not one on top of the other. When a member of the group partakes in self-destructive behavior, such as Malik's drug problem, it hurts the whole group. It goes back to game theory here. Self-serving actions are bad for everyone; the interest of whole is best served by collaborative effort. It very elegantly sums up their plight.

I used to want to compare Roots albums. But now, eight albums deep, I realize just how much each one is marked with a unique aesthetic that can't be translated from one to the other. Like most artists who record albums numbering nearly double digits (they are already in the studio at work on the ninth album), the Roots have had the time and space to branch out and try new things. They've been able to experiment with their music, in the studio and live in concert, and one misstep every now and then should be forgiven for the sake of the successes. In the past, the Roots have been preachy at times and pretentious at others. They've learned to minimize that. They've learned to focus their sound for the purposes of each unique album and the corresponding concept. Game Theory makes evident this evolutionary process with its precise sound and consistent style, along with the subtle points at which the Roots are drawing on some of their older ideas and adapting them to the new context. It is an illustration of mastery and skillful manipulation.

Fittingly, Game Theory's final track is dedicated to a man that not only had mastered his field and could manipulate hip hop music to his whim, but also had become one of the most selfless individuals hip hop has ever known. J. Dilla produced the beat for “Can't Stop This” for his own album Donuts shortly before his death in February. Even though Dilla was head and shoulders above the rest of the hip hop world in terms of production technique and abilities, and could have gone Kanye's way as a double threat DJ-MC, he preferred to be able to work with his friends and favorite artists on collaborations. The result of these labours of love is a huge catalogue of work that is second to none in terms of quality and range. And so, it once again comes back to game theory and the idea of collaborative effort for maximal return. In the case of Game Theory, collaborative effort did indeed lead to maximal return, so many voices are lent to this production and the end result is another bullet on The Roots discography. A very good bullet.