[foreverasskiss]

so hows that new Freddie Gibbs? cold day in hell is the only one i've heard.

[an evening with viewtiful]

^It's pretty damn solid. Instrumentally, its best moments recall Only Built 4 Cuban Linx and Liquid Swords and Gibbs is alarmingly consistent the whole way through.

It has all the makings of a classic, but its sort of a casual classic if you know what I mean. It doesn't carry itself with the sort of weight that you might hope, nor does it feel nearly as cohesive as Madvillainy.

A solid 4/5

[louder]

Originally Posted by foreverasskiss

so hows that new Freddie Gibbs? cold day in hell is the only one i've heard.

incredible. much better than Cold Day in Hell. i love every single track, i listen to it every day.

[noisereductions]

guess I need to hear Pinata then eh?

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

when what he really needs is an editor. Someone to say "just use these songs, ditch THESE songs"

That is what producers were for before they merely became fashion accessories and corporate brands. This is the tragedy of "mix-tapes" in that rap has become so under-produced that producers are becoming unnecessary, yet, in rap music I think producers are more necessary than in any other genre of music!

[louder]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

guess I need to hear Pinata then eh?

definitely.

1. Pinata
2. Clivia

that's how i feel about 2014 so far.

[louder]

Originally Posted by an evening with viewtiful

As for Gunz... I think he just lacked any interesting artistic vision. Being on YM probably didn't help (they like to jam up a lot of their artists), but I really don't think he had enough interesting things to say to compete in the hip hop landscape that was forming around then.

this is true, which only makes me appreciate Drake even more. dude is obviously talented, but you can also see he's been working his ass off since a young age to get to where he is now.

[Severian]

New Smoke DZA out soon. No leaks yet (or so it would seem) but I'm buying the fucker anyway.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

guess I need to hear Pinata then eh?

Um, well... yeah, bro. Of fucking course you do.

Honestly, though, it sounds great, but it has yet to really grow on me. Something about madlib's production sounds a bit flat compared to other records. I feel like Gibbs is really the focal point of the project.

Which is fine, but I'm a big fan of Madlib; more so than just about anyone else in hip hop. He's definitely the selling point of any project he's involved in for me, so I like him to be more front and center. Still, it's a must have album. I can't believe you haven't heard it yet!

[noisereductions]

there you are. Was logging in to say "where's my dood sev been?"

Also, I can't believe viewtiful said "4/5" and I let it slide. Good to have you back view.

So lately I realized something - y'all know how much I loved Long.Live.A$AP right? But lately I think that Live.Love is just as could... and maybe even better. They're both just these perfect perfect records to me. Unreal. And both have their own feeling. Live.Love is my go-to 'friday night, dranking and gaming' record.

Also, if Good Kid MAAD City is a 10 then Section80 is a 9. It's so close to being classic.

[louder]

Madlib's production on Pinata is great though. most of the beats are still Madlib's signature sound - kinda dusty, yet so soulful and mellow. the "Robes" and "Lakers" beats are so beautiful, left me speechless. even the songs with the "harder" sounding beats usually end up with a little outro that sounds really chill and mellow, which is brilliant in my opinion.

Gibbs actually is the highlight, but that's simply cuz he's that great of a rapper. from his little singing on "Robes", to the storytelling and emotion on "Deeper", to the Young Jeezy diss AKA "Real", to the way he was spazzing with the flow on "Shitsville". dude is a beast.

the closing track kinda falls short due to all the weedcarrier guest features, but other than that, the album is pretty much flawless to me. i even dare to call it the best traditional rap album of the decade so far, even better than Life Is Good. i think it'll go down as a classic.

[noisereductions]

Originally Posted by Severian

I can't believe you haven't heard it yet!

TBH, I really haven't looked into Gibbs all that much. Shrug.

Of course I'm a Madlib fan, but as odd as this might sound, I lean towards his jazz stuff way more. Like, YNQ and offshoots I cop immediately. Soul Directions is my favorite by a longshot. And then like the Shades of Blue (and Untinted) comps or the jazztapes he made as part of the Medicine Show series, or the Mind Fusion albums... ah. To me, that's the best Madlib stuff.

So I end up picking & choosing his collabs, and mostly it becomes based on "who's rapping?" And since I haven't gotten into Gibbs taht much, I wasn't in a rush w/ this one. But def the feedback has been nothing but great, so I feel like I should get on it.

[louder]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

there you are. Was logging in to say "where's my dood sev been?"

Also, I can't believe viewtiful said "4/5" and I let it slide. Good to have you back view.

So lately I realized something - y'all know how much I loved Long.Live.A$AP right? But lately I think that Live.Love is just as could... and maybe even better. They're both just these perfect perfect records to me. Unreal. And both have their own feeling. Live.Love is my go-to 'friday night, dranking and gaming' record.

Also, if Good Kid MAAD City is a 10 then Section80 is a 9. It's so close to being classic.

Live.Love is great, but i still prefer Long.Live cuz i feel like Rocky has developed his personality, as well as lyricism. plus he's become more versatile and daring to experiment with new sounds and rapping techniques. it's also one of those albums where almost every song sounds like it could be a single, e.g. Carter 3, Graduation, Get Rich or Die Tryin', etc.

Good Kid m.A.A.d City is in my top 3 rap albums of the decade, along with the last two Kanye albums. after those, it's pretty much a tie between Long.Live, Old and Pinata.

i'm still waiting for Drake's classic. call me crazy but i think he has a Blueprint-level album in him.

[noisereductions]

every track on Long.Live COULD be a single. It's insane.

[noisereductions]

new De La mixtape dropped today. Smell The DAISY. It's a De La/J Dilla mashup tape.

[louder]

Wu-Tang Clan Will Selll Only One Copy of Secret New Album for 1M
http://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomal...-secret-album/

[noisereductions]

Originally Posted by louder

Wu-Tang Clan Will Selll Only One Copy of Secret New Album for 1M
http://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomal...-secret-album/

I hate it. That actually makes me furious. SO there will be this double album that none of us can have?

[louder]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

I hate it. That actually makes me furious. SO there will be this double album that none of us can have?

"There’s also the possibility that a wealthy private citizen could buy it and either keep the album or release it to the public for free in the name of democratizing a cultural artifact. That’s essentially what clothing mogul Mark Ecko did by purchasing Barry Bonds’ 756th home run ball for $752,467 and conducting a plebiscite to determine if he should blast it into outer space, send it to the Hall of Fame unblemished, or brand it with an asterisk (he eventually did the latter and sent it to Cooperstown)."

one can only hope.

[louder]

you guys should read the rest of the article though.

“We’re about to sell an album like nobody else sold it before,” says Robert “RZA” Diggs, the first Wu-Tang member to speak on record about Once Upon A Time In Shaolin, in an exclusive interview with FORBES. “We’re about to put out a piece of art like nobody else has done in the history of [modern] music. We’re making a single-sale collector’s item. This is like somebody having the scepter of an Egyptian king.”

Wu-Tang’s aim is to use the album as a springboard for the reconsideration of music as art, hoping the approach will help restore it to a place alongside great visual works–and create a shift in the music business, not to mention earn some cash, in the process. The one-of-a-kind launch will be a separate endeavor from the group’s 20th anniversary album, A Better Tomorrow, which is set for a standard commercial release this summer.

According to RZA and the album’s main producer Tarik “Cilvaringz” Azzougarh, a Morocco-based part of Wu-Tang’s extended family, the plan is to first take Once Upon A Time In Shaolin on a “tour” through museums, galleries, festivals and the like. Just like a high-profile exhibit at a major institution, there will be a cost to attend, likely in the $30-$50 range.

Visitors will go through heavy security to ensure that recording devices aren’t smuggled in; as an extra precaution, they’ll likely have to listen to the 128-minute album’s 31 songs on headphones provided by the venue. As Cilvaringz puts it: “One leak of this thing nullifies the entire concept.”

Though no exhibition dates have been finalized, Cilvaringz says Wu-Tang has been in discussions with a bevy of possible locations, including the Tate Modern (a representative from the institution did not respond to a request for comment). Other venues, including art galleries and listening tents at music festivals, could eventually round out the tour.

[louder]

oh and Sev, their new single isn't that bad, by the way. i was overreacting, but i still wish they would get some big producers like The Alchemist, Kanye, etc.