Sa-Ra Creative Partners

Sa-Ra members Om'Mas Keith, Taz Arnold and Shafiq Husayn emphasize shuffling rhythms and fluttering synth embellishments, which makes for tunes that sounds like soul music created by space aliens. This album, their first proper full-length, is strongest when it leans on the talents of its guests. Talib Kweli contributes a verse to the pins-and-needles electro of "Feel the Bass," while Erykah Badu teams up with Stones Throw songstress Georgia Anne Muldrow for the oddly seductive "Fly Away." Though they hail from LA, Sa-Ra owes a debt of gratitude to the post-J Dilla Detroit soul/hip-hop scene.