Boy, does he succeed with A Healthy Distrust. The writing on this album is very impressive and becomes more and more compelling with each listen. When you first hear the album, the music and lyrics feel like an all out assault, but an invigorating one. You may pick out a line here and there, but you don't truly get into and hear the lyrics - you don't really come to comprehend and understand them - until you've listened to the album multiple times. For this reason alone, it grows better and better with each successive experience.

Sage doesn't mess around here. His politics are made clear throughout and he's pissed off about hate and discrimination, about the political state of the country since 9/11, about the media and fear and paranoia and he's angry at both of America's political parties.

I suppose you could say that he is liberal, but I'd be cautious to paint him with any broad term. More specifically, he seems pissed off and disappointed and not afraid to say so. In "Slow Down Gandhi," (free mp3) for instance, Sage clearly rails against the economic realities of today, singing: They demonized welfare. Middle class eliminated. / The rich get richer til the poor get educated." He takes swipes at the Iraq war, as well: "You need to cut the noose, but you don't believe in scissors. / You support the troops by wearing yellow ribbons? / Just bring home my motherfucking brothers and sisters."

And yet, the song is not just a polemic against those who are in power. It's clear that Sage is taking just as many shots at liberals who talk a big game, but are reluctant to go out and fight. He sings, "Because when push turns to shove you jump into your forefather's arms. / He's a banker. You're part of the system. / Off go the dreadlocks, in comes the income." Later in the song, he adds, "Who's the one to blame for the strain of the vocal cords? / Who can pen hateful threats but can't hold a sword? / It's the same ones who complain about the global war / But can't overthrow the local joker that they voted for." Sage may not like the political direction of the country, but he seems just as angry about those who complain about it, then do nothing to actually change our social and political situation.

The album isn't all politics, though. There's plenty of social and personal commentary, as well. In "Gunz Yo," Sage takes to task the male notion that guns equal power and sexual prowess. He mocks the obsession with firearms in rap and hip hop. "This dick is a detachable penis. / An extension of my manhood, positioned like a fetus. / An intravenous hook up feeds bullets to my magazine. / Nevermind the Bullocks, my pistol is a sex machine!" Best of all, the track sounds much like a typical rap song filled with serious gun-worshipping and if you're not paying attention, you could start to believe it is exactly that. Listen to the lyrics, though, and you'll realize that this is Sage ruthlessly ridiculing the very thought that guns can make a man.