Trombipulation

by Jason Birchmeier After Gloryhallastoopid, most had concluded that George Clinton's P-Funk empire had come to a close. For the most part, they were correct. Clinton's tightly knit unit featuring Bernie Worrell, Bootsy Collins, Fred Wesley, and Maceo Parker as arrangers as well as musicians had splintered. And not coincidentally, Clinton seemed less and less enthused about music, struggling instead with personal issues. Not surprisingly then, Trombipulation sounds like a scattered collection of songs composed by an ensemble cast of session musicians -- the credits seemingly extend to infinity, as if a new band played every song. Furthermore, Worrell stepped forward to take the helm of Parliament, which explains this album's emphasis on keyboard-driven songs. Bootsy played a minor role as well, but his contributions seem overly self-interested, as if he's writing solo material. In sum, the musicians lack cohesion, and piecing together a rousing funk rhythm demands a tight band, something that just wasn't an option here. "Agony of Defeet" was supposed to be the album's big single, another "Flashlight" or "Aqua Boogie" -- but it wasn't even close. In fact, this particular song parodied past Parliament anthems, its funk ineffective, its vocals far from catchy, and its humor undeniably distasteful. If there is one song here worth laboring over, it's "Let's Play House," an obvious Bootsy song. The other songs are all keyboard-driven funk substituting glossy studio polish for the gritty thump of early P-Funk. Arguably a bit more inspired than Gloryhallastoopid, though thanks more to Worrell than Clinton, Trombipulation concludes the Parliament cycle of albums in a disappointing manner. If you're really curious about latter day P-Funk, look instead to Funkadelic's Electric Spanking of War Babies, a 1981 album that Clinton actually put some heart into.