Leave It All Behind - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Album Description
Four years after the release of their critically acclaimed debut "Connected," The Foreign Exchange returns with their sophomore set, "Leave It All Behind."

Consisting of singer/songwriter Phonte and producer Nicolay, The Foreign Exchange came together via the online hip-hop community Okayplayer.com in 2002. After trading files through Instant Messenger for over a year, Nicolay (living in his native Holland at the time) and Phonte (a Raleigh, NC resident) completed their debut album before they ever met each other in person. The album, "Connected," was released in 2004 to positive reviews, and was praised by legendary DJ's such as Jazzy Jeff, King Britt, and DJ Spinna for its inventive mix of hip-hop, R&B, and electronica.

"Leave It All Behind" finds The Foreign Exchange much closer in geography (Nicolay has since become a resident of Wilmington, NC), but located much further from their hip-hop origins. The duo's second full-length is a dark, multilayered affair that features Phonte showcasing his abilities as an exceptional lead and harmony vocalist, while Nicolay extends his musical palette to include sprinklings of jazz, downtempo, and house. The lush, Darien Brockington-assisted "Take Off the Blues" picks up where Connected's sleeper hit "Come Around" left off, while the complex polyrhythms and dreamy synthesizers of "Sweeter Than You" are described by Phonte as "swing jazz for the next century." Marc Mac (of legendary UK production team 4hero), also contributes a string arrangement to the duo's glorious cover of Stevie Wonder's oft-forgotten 1991 gem, "If She Breaks Your Heart."

In addition to appearances from longtime FE affiliates Darien Brockington and Yahzarah, the album also features guest shots from producer/keyboardist Zo! and vocalist Muhsinah.

Album Description
Explicit Version. Four years after the release of their critically acclaimed debut album, Connected, The Foreign Exchange are back with the highly anticipated sophomore set IN 2008 with Leave It All Behind. Consisting of singer/songwriter Phonte and producer Nicolay, The Foreign Exchange came together via the online Hip-Hop community Okayplayer.com in 2002. After collaborating and building a rapport online via instant messenger for over a year, Nicolay (living in his native Holland at the time) and Phonte (a Raleigh, NC resident) completed their debut album before actually having met each other face to face.

Customer Reviews: Read 20 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Leave Your Preconceptions Behind October 14, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

Why limit yourself? That's the lesson of The Foreign Exchange.

Yes, Phonte is still the brilliant MC we've come to know and love from Little Brother. He's still half of the very talented retro-duo known as Zo! and Tigallo. And if you've not given ears to his occasional Gordon Gartrell Radio Podcasts, you're missing out on commentary that is at once insightful and hilarious, all set to the found beats of DJ Brainchild. This should be enough for any one man, but Phonte has talent to spare. Which brings us to The Foreign Exchange.

Connected was an initial step in a particular direction. Leave It All Behind is the logical next.

Phonte and Nicolay give themselves over entirely to the concept of Leave It All Behind. It feels like this dynamic duo surveyed the current landscape of R&B and found it wanting. Too much plastic, too much "Love In This Club" nonsense, too many unnecessary guest spots, and not enough of that human-to-human contact that used to be the total objective of old school R&B. Sensing this need for something honest and real, they created Leave It All Behind.

Did they succeed? Mostly. Admittedly, the strongest single is the album opener. "Daykeeper" works on the senses like the work Tricky used to do with Martina Topley-Bird, like something intoxicating and evolving. The rest of LIAB -- with the possible exception of the titular closer -- is best experienced as a whole, from beginning to end. After all, this is a journey. To enjoy it, you need only to come along, leaving your own preconceptions at the doorstep.

3 out of 5 stars

Not Connect; By Far October 9, 2008
3 out of 7 found this review helpful

I got the word that The Foreign Exchange new album dropped & I rushed to download it without even thinking. Since their 1st album connected was so hot & had me so hooked; I knew just that "Leave It All Behind" would be another example of lyrical & rhythmic genius!

Well, I was wrong & my expectations were to high! "Leave It All Behind" is rapless but full of hot melodies produced by Nicolay. The rest is average R&B at best. This is not to slight the abilities of Yazarah aKa Purple St. James & Darien Brockington because they are on their A game in this release, I was just SHOCKED that Phontae was singing.

Perhaps the title "Leave It All Behind" suggests that we as fans need to leave behind what we thought we liked & try something new.

I cannot totally say, do not get this album but if you are looking for the dopeness of Connected, you will not find it here.

In other news, the new Little Brother CD "...And Justus for All" is super hot!

1 out of 5 stars

Do not download if you think this is anything like (connected) October 10, 2008
3 out of 12 found this review helpful

I feel like I've been ripped off. This is straight R&B with no hip-hop influence or lyrics at all. If you loved The Foreign Exchange's first album then this is not what your looking for. I stopped listening and haven't even touched the last 2 songs. Up to the point there was one song where only about 2 bars were spit then the song ended. I'm disgusted with this release and wouldn't be surprised if this group doesn't make a return. Good way to destroy a group. Turn an excellent Hip-hop group into a sub-par R&B Gospel group. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY. This album is a joke. I want my money back.

4 out of 5 stars

Great October 11, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

To all those that keep mentioning this is not connected Part 2, they said so from the jump, that they wanted to do something different. With that said:

I can't in good faith, give this higher than a four. Phonte is no D.Brock, Raheem Devaughn, Dwele, or Ne-Yo. He's Phonte aka Percy Miracles. Much of the comedy you have come to expect from Phonte is absent. The production is one of the big things that saves this albums, the production is on point from track to track and it transitions very well.

Phonte is great at singing when it comes to hooks, or maybe a verse or two. A whole album of Phonte getting his Soul Vocals on, he needs a bit of touching up.

Big exceptions being songs like: Daykeeper, Something to behold, Valediction & All or Nothing.

The album is very enjoyable, and if your a fan of Phonte I suggest picking it up. If you were deciding on buying this album, expecting Connected part 2, a "rap" album... you may want to look elsewhere.

NOTE: if your trying to figure out if you would like this album or not, i suggest going to youtube and putting in their single "Daykeeper," it'll give you a better grasp of the type of album this is and the quality of music you can expect from Te & Nicolay"

5 out of 5 stars

Probably the best R&B record of the year...sorry hip-hop heads October 27, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

In three words: buy it now.

This record is vastly different in concept and execution. Unlike some undertakings we could name, this one utilizes the skill set of the band (producer Nicolay and rapper-and-apparently-closet-singer Phonte of Little Brother).

The record is somehow both clearly a maturing marriage between the two talents that gave us the incredible mostly hip-hop affair "Connected" four years ago while being completely different from the first record.

Terence Howard stated in an interview focused on the release of his debut record that he was told that his record works because he went into the studio and no one told him what he shouldn't do. While Howard's record doesn't work under this premise at all, "Leave It All Behind" clearly does. Phonte isn't the best singer anyone could name but he sings and arranges in such a way that makes the songs completely his. It is the same phenomenon that Sade has built a career on, and the singer works his unique tone and solid arrangements to the record's advantage throughout.

With the mix of styles presented admirably by Nicolay there was a risk that the record would come off like an album of Prince Paul skits, but rest assured: both of these cats possess the chops and a clear ear for what works that this album is a genuine and serious contender for best R&B record of the year. Considering the field is littered with over-produced sound-a-likes that can barely manage an un-annoying single with no surprises and this record isn't, I feel very comfortable putting it on such a pedestal. The lyrical range of the record bears noting as well. At first glance it's a record full of love songs, and upon further investigation it still is. Yet, unlike much of the fodder of this genre in recent years, the subject of the music spreads wide on the subject, not content to simply say "I love you". There's the "Don't leave me" song, the "I got the couch" song, the "Baby Boy" song...it runs the gamut of a mature, full-fledged relationship without a nightclub or crass sexual reference in sight. It's an R&B record for grown folk.

If you liked "Connected" you may not like this record. It's not in the same genre as "Connected", so that's understandable. If, however, you like a good R&B record in the vein of Dwele or D'Angelo, and want something that radio isn't brave enough to run into the ground, this is the record for you. It isn't the record I thought it would be, but it is the record I was looking for even though I didn't know it. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

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