Lil' Brian and the Zydeco Travelers

John Nova Lomax September 5, 2007 4:00AM

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"We don't wanna be traditional, we just wanna jam." So runs the refrain of Lil' Brian's "Jam Y'all," and it could serve as this album's title. Much as his mentor Buckwheat Zydeco once did, Barrett Station's Lil' Brian cuts his Creole sounds with contemporary styles, most notably hip-hop. Rap's conventions abound on Worldwide. Kurupt of the Dogg Pound guest-raps on zyde-gangsta tune "Funky Zydeco"; N-bombs are dropped and there's mention of "good herb" and caps getting peeled, all over accordion, washboard and a paranoid, sinister bass riff that does Cypress Hill proud. A DJ scratches amid the infectious syncopation of the post-hip-hop boogaloo "Bounce," and Brian takes on the haters on "You Talk About Me." Even the waltz "We Need Luv" brims with rap slang like "wanksta" and such. Brian's not afraid to get nasty, either. Risqué double-entendres abound on the jaunty duet with Dora of the Zydeco Bad Boyz on "Pussia," which does not rhyme with "Russia." ("So won't you eat," she coos, "my pussy-ay?") All this plus an excellent cover of "I Shot the Sheriff" and P-Funk-infused jam called "Funky Feel'in." If you like your zydeco up-to-date and street, look no further.