Def, Kweli bring back Black Star magic

When Mos Def and Talib Kweli started Black Star in the 1990s, they didn't create hip-hop based on bling, boastfulness, or violence. With the killings of Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. before them, the righteous, literate rappers Def and Kweli formed their union based on the ideals of Marcus Garvey, founder of the United Negro Improvement Association, and his Black Star shipping line. Garvey's concerns about the African American community - pride, respect, consciousness - were shared by Def and Kweli, and acted as a gentle but formidable tonic to the chaos surrounding them.

The pair made one perfect album, 1998's Black Star, that didn't sell well. But like the Velvet Underground, the duo inspired legions of followers - in their case, socio-conscious rappers and lyricists who, like Def and Kweli, painted elegant portraits of life, love, and struggle.

There was no animus between the friends when they split for solo careers. They said what they had to say as Black Star and have since appeared on much of each other's work.

Yet fans have long clamored for a reunion. And judging from Black Star's sold-out show at TLA on Sunday (sponsored by Nestea?!), there are reasons to go forward, and not just to reminisce, either. "Black Star 2012," shouted Def, confirming Internet rumors that a second album was in the works.

They tackled that first one awfully well.

Dressed dapperly, Kweli and Def shook hands at the start and came out smiling. Much of the music (provided by Beat Junkies' DJ Jay Rock) was soulfully slow-to-mid-tempo, with jazzy and fluid rhythms. Though each man's voice differed radically from the other's - Def's low and gruff, Kweli's higher and fluttering - their improvisational largesse and speedy back-and-forth chatter made it happily impossible to tell who was rapping what.

The pair put love and family over consumerism on "Astronomy (8th Light)," with references to Nina Simone ("black is the color of my true love's hair"), Coltrane, Black Panthers, and black magic. They praised women for their sensuality and intelligence during "Brown Skin Lady" and traded verses that came from highlights of their solo catalogs, like Def's "Auditorium." And they paid tribute to the late Gil Scott-Heron and the still-living Slick Rick.

Mostly, the pair riffed firmly on Black Star's finest, such as the Bop-based tale of woe and wanting more "K.O.S. (Determination)," and came together to forge a union that bodes well for the future.