[louder]

Originally Posted by h8kurdt

Yeah it's cos I've not heard it. I've done Blueprint, The Black album and Magna Carta and each time I've never really been blown away, and I suspect after three albums that if he hasn't grabbed by then he never will. However, I'll give 'Reasonable' a listen.

RE. new albums coming out this year. I'm struggling to keep up with the stuff coming out at the moment and that's just with the rap stuff, nevermind all the other stuff out there. I still need to give Heems' new album a listen, supposedly Ludacris' album is meant to be pretty good, then there's also Action Bronson (I started listening to it, but got distracted) and so on, and so on.

Reasonable Doubt is much different than his next albums. the production is jazzy and it has Jay's best rapping and deepest lyrics. i can't imagine a hip hop fan not getting into it.

[Severian]

Honestly, it's hard for me to imagine hip-hop fans who aren't into most of Jay's work.

Like "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" for instance... Huge mainstream hit, right? Probably one of the most famous uses of a high profile sample in history. Definitely one of those hip hop songs that you just couldn't escape.

Not even his biggest hit, but a song that surely everyone here knows well. It's also a brilliant song, with excellent production and mythos-building lyrics.
How does that track not appeal to ... like... everyone?

[noisereductions]

I agree w/ you on "Hard Knock Life." I love Jay. Reasonable Doubt, Black Album, Blueprint, and American Gangster are all incredible. Yet, I think most of Vol 1-3 are pretty meh. 1 is alright. 2 is terrible. 3 is alright. So I mean, he had a brilliant debut, then a trio of mediocrity. Plus Streets Is Watching and Dynasty La Roc were in there, neither of which were excellent... And then... a really good career followed.

Here's some recent write-ups:

 

Outkast
Idlewild
2006, LaFace
The sixth (and perhaps final) Outkast album proves that there may well be some merit to burning out rather than fading away. There is something that feels horribly unnatural about writing anything negative about an Outkast album, yet here we are. Not that Idlewild is terrible. There are actually some decent songs throughout. Yet it is mystifyingly mediocre when seen as a follow-up to the brilliant string of records the group had already released. It also feels less like an album than a collection of outtakes, solo tracks and half-written song ideas. Which may well be what it is. Though billed as a companion album to the film of the same name, only seven of the album's 25 tracks are from the movie. That's right, I said 25 tracks. 79 minutes if you're wondering. This is way, way too much. If this was Big Boi and Dre and the height of their game, such an abundance of music would be a good thing. You'd press play with the intention of settling in for a long listening session. Instead, you'll find yourself reaching for the track-skip button constantly by the time the album hits its mid-point. The opener "Mighty 'O'" is actually kind of awesome. It's got a pretty excellent synth beat and finds both rappers going hard and coming off effortlessly. And there are some moments of brilliance throughout - Andre's "Idlewild Blue" is actually a pretty cool 12-bar blues composition, and Big Boi's "N2U" shows him pulling off some straight pop impressively. There's also some nice guest appearances here - Snoop and Weezy on "Hollywood Divorce," Killer Mike on "In Your Dreams," and Janelle Monae on "Call The Law" are all standouts. But there is so much going against this album. There's just no restraint. Why all
the horrible skits about going to see the movie or bootlegging the DVD? Then there's "Makes No Sense At All" and closer, "A Bad Note," two of the most ironic choices of clever song titles. Previous Outkast albums have been praised for being challenging listens. But the difference is those challenges gave way to reward. The only challenge here is making it to the end of the album in one sitting without feeling totally upset that this is likely how Outkast ended their legacy as a duo.

 

Masta Ace Incorporated
Sittin' On Chrome
1995, Delicious Vinyl
Masta Ace's third album (second with The INC) is a masterpiece. It is a concept album that tells the story of a Summer in which Ace's (fictitious) cousin from Los Angeles visits him in New York. The album chronicles how the Ace and his cousin influenced each other over the time spent together that Summer. This concept is brilliant, as it serves as a means by which Ace is able to take his Brooklyn aesthetic and merge it with the sounds of West Coast gangsta rap. In many ways Sittin' On Chrome feels like an East Coast version of The Chronic, and surely that was intentional. Proper opener "The I.N.C. Ride" feels like an homage to "Nuthin' But A 'G' Thang" for instance. But it feels genuine - not forced nor like stealing. Ace seems to have been honestly interested in these sounds, and needed a vehicle to embrace them while remaining true to his East Coast roots. Sittin' On Chrome almost broke through to mainstream success. In fact its title track and "Born To Roll" are easily two of his most widely known to non-aficionados. Amazingly the album balances its bi-coastal influences perfectly. Beats bounce back and forth from G-Funk inspired samples ("The I.N.C. Ride") to NYC jazz-breaks ("Eastbound"); lyrics zig-zag from cruisin', sexin' and partyin' ("Born To Roll") to depressing social commentaries ("People In My Hood") on the fly. Though this is an INC album, Ace is certainly the star, but his supporting cast supports him well when they're needed. Lord Digga plays the gruff, aggressive yin to Ace's Yang, and Leschea absolutely shines on her solo R&B jam "Turn It Up." The Cella Dwellas show up late in the album as the only outside guests, and their collaboration "4 Da Mind" is excellent. I could go on and on about the 16 tracks here, but I'm not sure I could stress just how excellent and unfairly over-looked Sittin' On Chrome really is. Highly, highly recommended.

 

De La Soul
3 Feet High And Rising
1989, Tommy Boy
Thinking about what was actually popular in hip hop in 1989, it's clear that there was nothing else on the store shelves like De La Soul. Imagine seeing the gaudy fluorescent album cover rubbing up against BDP's Ghetto Music, The D.O.C.'s No One Can Do It Better or Ice T's The Iceberg/Freedom Of Speech. But that was the point of course. De La Soul were outsiders and they knew it. They were an alternative, before 'alternative' was a buzz word. They were nerds before it was cool to be a nerd. And to be honest the whole DAISY Age thing can be a turn-off to some. This was definitely meant to be fun music to contrast the more serious and aggressive nature of the genre at the time. Fun is an area where the record still holds up well. This is definitely a feel-good album. It is produced entirely by Prince Paul, and is generally remembered as the hip hop album that introduced skits to the world at large. I don't necessarily buy that, nor do I think that ushering in skits is something to be super proud of. On the one hand Prince Paul was visionary behind the boards, and treats the record with an ear for the big picture. He knew they were making an album rather than a collection of songs. On the other hand, I personally don't care for the majority of the skits, and actually prefer hearing these songs out of context from the album as a whole. While I can be impressed at the execution historically, the album's flow does little for my own ears. But like I said, many of the songs are excellent. I'd cherry-pick plenty from here if I were making my own De La mix. And much of that has to do with the adventurous sampling that Prince Paul hit the group with. The album kicks off with "The Magic Number," which samples heavily from School House Rock. I mean, try to imagine what fans of Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions or N.W.A. were thinking when they first heard this. Later you've got "Eye Know" which looks to Steely Dan's "Peg" as its foundation - and it kills! Along with the Beastie Boys' Paul's Boutique released the same year, 3 Feet High And Rising serves as prime examples of how entire records can be built from little pieces of others. This is an unfortunately expensive endeavor nowadays, so albums with such a long list of sample clearances are far less common. Though many cite 3 Feet High as a classic, I just don't. But I do consider it a great introduction to an even greater group. And classic or not, it's something that all hip hop fans should hear to at least form their own opinion.

 

2Pac
Better Dayz
2002, Amaru
Certainly there's a lot of material released since 2Pac's death. And given that several of them were even double albums, it starts to get daunting to keep track of what's worth hearing. In fact you may even start to feel weary about approaching some of it. But Better Dayz is one of the best of these albums. It culls together material recorded primarily during Pac's furious recording cram sessions for his Makavelli period at Death Row, but also throws in some tracks from slightly earlier - presumably from the Me Against The World sessions. For the most part everything here is new. "My Block" is recycled from The Show soundtrack, though in remixed form here. There's also "Military Minds" from the unfinished One Nation collaboration album with Boot Camp Click. It's impressive that even after releasing so much on the compilations before this one we were able to get such a solid and focused release. There's some venomous stuff here like "When We Ride On Our Enemies" which attacks the Fugees and Mobb Deep amongst others and also some very reflective stuff like "Never Call U B**** Again," where Pac considers his own misogynistic behavior. The extremes give this project the same sort of balance as his best studio albums, and for the most part is held together especially well thanks to cohesive production from longtime collaborator Johnny J. It also helps that the two discs were sequenced with care. The first disc groups a lot of the harder tracks while the second eases up a bit. And thankfully neither disc is overly long. Really any missteps here are the result of attempting to modernize the material. The songs that sound like they actually could have been completed in 1996, sound great. The ones that sound like they were remixed in 2002 come off sounding somehow more dated now. For instance while the Nas duet "Thugz Mansion" remix sounds exciting on paper, the dull acoustic backing track makes the song feel aimless compared to the (unfortunately Nas-less) original. That said, fans of Me Against The World, All Eyez On Me and The 7 Day Theory should really check this one as well.

[noisereductions]

and here's my thoughts on some things in 2015...


Pt. I - Recent albums that I've enjoyed:

Action Bronson - Mr. Wonderful
This album really surprised me. I mean I've always enjoyed Bronson's flow (insert obvious Ghostface comparison here), but the album is really weird and awesome. Dude's taking some interesting choices and def is comfortable being his own weirdo.

Ghostface Killah - Sour Soul
The BadBadNotGood collabo, and 3rd in his trilogy of "albums w/ live bands." I like this one more than 36 Seasons. And it's on par with Twelve Reasons To Die, which I probably prefer only because of the sort of Italian horror score vibe going on there. But still, this has awesome piano tracks and Danny Brown.

Cannibal Ox - Blade Of The Ronin
Seriously, CanOx actually made a new album. I'm not sure why this isn't a bigger deal than it is.

Drake - If You're Reading This It's Too Late
This one goes even further "out there" than his last album. Which is good. A lot of it doesn't even sound like "rap music" anymore. It's sort of half sung, half rapped in a sort of spacey delivery over pretty spacey beats. Like Drake's own Weeknd collabs meshed w/ cloud rap.

Earl Sweatshirt - I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside
Kid's a beast. We all know this.

G-Unit - The Beast Is G-Unit
They're 2nd reunion EP. Not quite as great as the first from last year, but still very solid. I feel like they're next proper album will be insane.

Joey Bada$$ - B4.DA.$$
Seriously one of the best records of the year. Joey keeps taking it back to the mid-90's NY sound. Beats here are fantastic and Joey's in top form.

Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly
Now that I've had time to soak it in, I don't think it's as good as Good Kid MAAD City, or Section 80. But it's still really great. My problem is I think it's actually too much. I think he had too many ideas he needed to get out there, and this album can feel like overload. BUT, there's so many great songs here - so I'm not complaining.

Lil Wayne - Sorry 4 The Wait 2
Hands down his best mixtape since No Ceilings. It's obvious why: he's got something to talk about. Much of this tape is anger directed at Birdman/Cash Money Records. When Wayne actually has something to say, he's focused and on point.


Pt. II - Upcoming albums I'm looking forward to:


A$AP Rocky - At.Long.Last.A$AP
My A$AP Mob obsession in 2015 is not unlike my Wu-Tang obsession in 1995. I am so excited that this finally has a release date and fingers crossed that we'll get a deluxe edition compiling the singles that were released from the A$AP Mob LORD album that never came out...

Game - The Documentary 2
This has been talked about for a while. I don't know if I believe it'll be out this year. Game albums always get crazy delays. But this could be very promising.

Lil Wayne - Free Weezy Album & Tha Carter V
This saga's crazy. He's throwing out a free album and still fighting to get C5 released. At this point I feel like C5 will be anti-climactic upon release, but no doubt I'm interested to hear the album that's caused all the drama.

Snoop Dogg - Bush
What a dumb title. But... BUT... the whole thing is produced by Pharrell. Pharrell + Snoop has always = great.

Tyler The Creator - Cherry Bomb
Just announced, this is coming out next week. Crazy.

Kanye West -
I don't remember if there's a confirmed title yet. I've liked all the singles a lot. "All Day" was crazy. Interested to see the overall shape it will take. My guess is it will be a polar opposite to Yeezus.

Young Thug - Carter VI
That album title, the balls...

v/a - Welcome To Los Santos
Hip hop compilation of all the new music exclusive to the PC version of GTA V. 8)

[Severian]

Originally by noisereductions:
Kanye West -
I don't remember if there's a confirmed title yet. I've liked all the singles a lot. "All Day" was crazy. Interested to see the overall shape it will take. My guess is it will be a polar opposite to Yeezus.

Yeah bro. It's called "So Help Me God."

I'm not sure how I feel about the title, but I'll tell you this: I had a feeling the word "God" would be in it somewhere. I know, there's no reason to assume this would be the case. There's been no indication that the album is a sequel or a return to the sequential concept-work of his first three albums....

But for some reason I knew it. Where else do you go from "Jesus" references? I don't think Ye's going to need help from God or anyone else to make the year's best album. That's just what Kanye seems to do.

[Severian]

Man, Idlewild was such a goddamn waste. Seriously. I can't believe they haven't tossed something else out, just to keep their career from ending on an all time low note.

And I think 3 Feet High & Rising is starting to be overshadowed by other De La albums. I don't think it's their best, and I think a lot of people have been discovering the brilliance of De La Soul is Dead and Stakes is High (my personal favorite.) Both albums have simply aged better, even if they initially packed less cultural impact.

[noisereductions]

And Buhloone Mindstate!

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Wait, new Snoop?

Also Kanye won't need help even from God now? Kyrie Eleison get over your selves

[Severian]

Originally Posted by SuchFriendsAreDangerous

Wait, new Snoop?

Also Kanye won't need help even from God now? Kyrie Eleison get over your selves

Now? Now meaning, what exactly? That he used to need "God's" help, and by saying he doesn't I'm just taking things too far?

I said that in jest. I don't even think I believe in God, but if I did believe, it certainly wouldn't be in the kind of "God" who helps rappers make good records.

Though admittedly there's a far better history of good rap albums than there is of miracles.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by SuchFriendsAreDangerous

Wait, new Snoop?

Also Kanye won't need help even from God now? Kyrie Eleison get over your selves

And yes, new Snoop. No more Lion, hopefully. Didn't you hear about this? It's supposed to be damn good. I read an early article saying Pharrell was "saving Snoop's career"

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

And Buhloone Mindstate!

Yeah, totally. I far prefer that record to 3 Ft. High at this point in my life. Honestly, it's almost disrespectful to act like 3 Ft. Was the definitive De La Soul album. They were the first ones to want to erase it from hip-hop history. It's like judging the Beastie Boys based on Licensed To Ill... Only... Well, 3 Ft. is just nowhere near that bad.

[louder]

Wayne said that the Free Weezy Album is gonna be his best project ever and also threw a shade at Young Thug. while i doubt that, i think both projects will be good. i'm happy to see Wayne motivated again.

[louder]

i wish Mr. Fantastik ever dropped a full collab album with DOOM or even a solo album. his features on Rapp Snitch Knishes and Anti-Matter are so good.

[noisereductions]

Originally Posted by louder

i wish Mr. Fantastik ever dropped a full collab album with DOOM or even a solo album. his features on Rapp Snitch Knishes and Anti-Matter are so good.

everybody wishes this. There's so many rumors, but I feel like Doom once said Fantastik isn't even a rapper - he's a dude he knows or fam member who he just convinced to drop a couple verses. But the guy isn't really interested.

There were rumors he was Del or Shock G or all these other guys. I'm sure it was rumored he was Rodan.

Rodan is also mysterious. To this day nobody knows for sure if Rodan was Onyx from KMD or not.

[Severian]

New Curren$y is pretty fucking on point.

[louder]

heard Tyler's album is out guys. let's get it.

[louder]

god this Kanye x Wayne track off the Tyler album is insane. Wayne actually killed it.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by louder

god this Kanye x Wayne track off the Tyler album is insane. Wayne actually killed it.

Wait what? Kanye's on the fucking Tyler the Creator album?

Is it out? What the hell!!!

[Severian]

Hey, has anyone looked into Pilot Talk III yet? It's totally available. Guest spots from Wiz Khalifa (who I think I'm beginning to appreciate in a non-ironic way), at least one jacked Wu-Tang sample, used to pretty stellar effect, and some of the most immediately catchy tunes I've heard from the Curren$y camp since... Well, since I more or less stopped listening to Curren$y. Lol.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by louder

heard Tyler's album is out guys. let's get it.

Ohhhh I see this now.

Yup, I've got it. Didn't take but a minute.

It's loaded on my iPod Classic and ready for a (seriously) long day. I will spill whatever feelings I may or may not have about it when I get back.