Get To Know H.E.R.

The newest effort from the GZA comes three years after his DJ Muggs collabo, Grandmasters, and worries me to death. Why you ask? Well, even though the GZA released a motherfucking undeniable classic with his sophomore album Liquid Swords (yes, sophomore…don’t forget that gawd awful Words From The Genius album), his subsequent efforts have been just meh. Well, Grandmasters was pretty good actually, but it was an entire album with no Wu production on it whatsoever. And as if the GZA’s track record isn’t enough to have me worried, there’s the issue of that 50 Cent diss track he released a month ago that’s on this album. The track itself was alright, even if it could’ve been better, but the real problem is that now he has to back that track up some actual quality shit. Or else he’ll look washed up and old and be the next target of stupid ass Soulja Boy youtube clips. I don’t want to see that shit happen in my lifetime.

Before I start the actual review though, I have to say. That front artwork is gangsta as fuck! Alright that’s all.

The Good:

1. Intromental - As it’s name says it’s just an intro in the form of an instrumental, but I like it. Maybe it’s because there’s no actual words on it besides the occasional “GZA,” but it stays true to what it is and manages to seam to the next track.

2. Pencil (ft Masta Killa and RZA) - This is a pretty great track. All three emcees do their shit right on it and oddly, the beat sounds pretty nice when rhymes are being spit over it, even though it sounds close to ass when it’s playing just by itself. I guess that’s just a compliment to the rapping done on this. On a side note, Masta Killa is all over the Wu lately, I’m really growing to like this guy.

4. Groundbreaking (ft Justice) - The track’s alright, even though I think the second verse is pretty damn annoying. There’s an attempted Madlib/Quasimoto style rhyming going on and it just didn’t do it for me.

5. 7 Pounds - The first couple of seconds of the song made me think that they sampled the same song Lupe did for Daydreams and I started to get worried (not a huge fan of beatjacking in any form). But then the actual Black Milk production hits and it sounds nice.

6. 0% Finance - The menacing guitar driven beat fits GZA’s flow perfectly on this. Even if the beat gets repetetive as hell after a while, it’s a great track.

7. Short Race

10. Columbian Ties - I’m not sure it was the greatest idea to sequence the words “what goes around comes around” right after a diss track, but whatever. The track itself is pretty dope so all is forgiven.

12. Path Of Destruction

13. Cinema (ft Justice) - Everything about this track from the ominous beat, to the GZA’s subdued flow, to the whispered hook is downright creepy (which is what they were going for I’m sure). This track is gonna be the shit that plays in my nightmares.

15. Life Is A Movie (ft RZA, and Khan-Acito) - The second RZA produced track on this album is clearly the better of the two. It makes for a nice strong ending.

The Solid:

3. Alphabets

8. Interlude

9. Paper Plate - I can honestly say that while this track does its job, it’s pretty disappointing. The beat is a sick, creepy beat, but it’s ill suited for a diss track in my humble opinion, and the GZA’s flow sounds weak as hell on it even though his lyrics are for the most part on point. Could’ve been a LOT better.

11. Firehouse (ft Ka) - This Ka guy sucks. It took me a good 20 seconds into his verse before I realized he was actually rapping and not just talking out an intro of some sort. GZA manages to save this track from being horrible though.

14. Intermission

The Bad:

Well, all in all, I must say, I am surprised in the best way possible. It’s been a while since I’ve thought to myself, “damn that new GZA joint is sick,” and it’s a damn welcome feeling. Even though I am disappointed at the lack of Mos Def on this album (he was rumored to be on this), I can’t lie, I like this a lot. It’s a great album and I hope ya’ll don’t sleep on the GZA.

On a side note, I’m gonna be on a week long trip, so during that time, there will be no updates. See you guys when I get back to finish the Tribe discog and to review Vordul Mega and Ice Cube’s new albums.

Ras Kass is a name that many of those that dabble in so called real hip hop will recognize. Mostly due to the fact that many of them have tried to buy a Ras Kass album only to realize that almost all of them are now out of print or were never even released to the fucking public in the first place. Those that have actually heard an actual Ras Kass album, know that he is without a doubt one of the finest lyricists to ever come out of the West Coast. They may also know that one of the reasons he never made it big was that his beat selection was for the most part shit covered with more shit. However, as a testament to his lyrical greatness, I thoroughly enjoy Soul On Ice, second rate production or not, solely based on Ras’ rhymes. So you’ll understand if I’m a little harsh on the dude from time to time during this review. Now that we got that overwith let’s start the show.

The Good:

2. Eyes Don’t Lie - The beat uses its sped up sample just enough to be effective without being completely annoying, and makes for a decent beat for Ras to rhyme over.

3. I’m All That - On the merit of the bass line alone I’m gonna give this a good rating. Ok, the rest of the track is actually pretty good as well, but damn I love that bass.

5. Behind The Musick - If anyone has a right to complain about the music industry, it’s Ras, and that’s exactly what he does on this track. 5 minutes of bitching over a dark beat makes for a surprisingly great song.

7. Ironman Thug - The rock fan in me appreciates the production on this thing and Ras does his job in ripping it up.

10. B.I.B.L.E. - Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth it is not. But it’s great in its own right and when all is said and done I guess it’s unfair to compare the two tracks.

11. Ups and Downs (ft Proof) - The production on this track is pretty damn nice for a Ras Kass album.

12. Elevate (ft Crooked I and Odious)

13. Try Me

14. What It Might Be - It may be just me, but for some reason this track reminds me a lot of 50 Cent… still a good song.

16. M.V.P. -  Tracks 15 and 16 are actually by another cat named Namebrand instead of Ras Kass. This one is probably the better of the two songs.

The Solid:

1. Victory (We Shall Overcome) - It’s good in that it’s actually a song instead of a useless intro. Still, I won’t be fiending for it again anytime soon.

4. Capital - Skit…

8. The Call - Yet another damn skit. I’m thinking of reviewing a Handsome Boy Modeling School album or for that matter anything Prince Paul related soon to show ya’ll how a real skit is done.

9. John Is Real

15. I Just - This one’s the worse of the two Namebrand solos in my opinion.

The Bad:

6. We Go In - Ouch. What the hell were you thinking Ras? Everything from the beat to the hook to the lyrics makes me sick.

Final Score: 8.5

That score may be a bit overrated due to some Ras bias, but fuck it (non fans should just read the score as an 8.5/8.0). All in all, I’m pretty pleased with the whole thing, maybe because my expectations for this weren’t too high after his last couple of recent releases (although Revenge Of The Spit was pretty hot). The beats are better than your average Ras album, and fans of the man will not be disappointed.

Today’s new album is brought to you by Tame One, one half of the now defunct hip hop duo from Jersey, the Artifacts. The few of you who may have taken the time to listen to any one of their two LPs, know that while the group wasn’t the greatest of all time by any means, its music still fucking rocked. The same few people also know that the group split up sometime in 1997, and a lot of fans soon moved on to the next thing. However, El Da Sensei and Tame One never stopped releasing music as each rapper pursued relatively successful (mostly critical) solo careers. Tame One’s latest, Da Ol Jersey Bastard, clearly an homage to the late Big Baby Jesus, comes 2 years after Spazmatic. I actually picked up Spazmatic by accident through a mass ebay cd auction, and was pleasantly surprised by it. Can this album do the same? I sure as hell hope so.

The Good:

3. Against The Grain - The beat gets boring as hell after the first minute but Tame One’s rhymes manage to keep me interested regardless. Anyone that can make a eh produced song sound better by simply rapping over it is a pretty damn gifted emcee.

7. Milk Of Magnesia

8. Supanatural - Tame One sounds like he was high as hell when he performed this, and in spite of this (or perhaps because) the track comes out alright.

9. Catch Me (ft Del Tha Funkee Homosapien) - I leaked this track to you guys about a month and a half ago and said that it was one of the reasons I was looking forward to this release. Listening to it now, I feel much the same. Del does an especially good job here and spits a better verse than most of what he did on his own damn album, The Eleventh Hour.

11. The Night Cap (After The Jam) - This track probably has my favorite beat on this album. It has a real laid back chilling on a Saturday night type vibe to it. The last couple of seconds may take anyone you’re listening to the album with by surprise though.

12. Now

The Solid:

1. The Ol Jersey Bastard Live and Uncut - Despite the name, it plays out like an intro. It doesn’t do much to impress me but it doesn’t turn me off either.

2. Action Word 

4. Move (ft Mr Turner) - The song itself is pretty good, crappy dance references notwithstanding. However, the skit that follows is kinda long and doesn’t really succeed in keeping my attention.

5. Haha Da Rah Rah (ft Sean Price) -  Sean Price has slowly become one of my favorite NY emcees and I’ve been wanting to listen to this track as soon as I saw the tracklisting for this album. For the most part it doesn’t disappoint, but at times I found myself way too distracted by the percussion on the beat. It’s interesting…but so damn annoying and ends up dragging the whole track down.

10. For You

The Bad:

6. J Dilla Summer Camp - The beat is just aching to be rhymed over but when the rapping finally does come, it’s over way too shortly and leaves the listener feeling a bit empty.

Final Score: 8.0/7.5

Tame One is an emcee’s emcee, and it shows all throughout the record. The problem is for the most part the beats fell behind and dope rhymes can save the track only so many times. There are still a couple of songs on which the production matches the quality of Tame One’s raps and its those tracks that really save this album. It wasn’t as enjoyable as I remember Spazmatic to be but it’s worth checking out at least once, especially if you’re a fan of the man.

Yesterday I reviewed the first disc of the 2 disc reissue of Freddie Foxxx’s Crazy Like A Foxxx LP. It managed to exceed my expectations and in fact I consider it to be a hair above Industry Shakedown. Now it’s time to see how disc 2, the DITC version holds up.

The Good:

2. Call Of The Wild - The production on this track is a lot more organic than any track on the first disc. I don’t really have a preference either way, but this track sounds pretty damn great.

3. Can’t Break Away

5. 8 Bars To Catch A Body - It’s a great track, but so far a lot of these tracks sound a lot like each other. Since each track still rocks, I can overlook that in this case.

6. Project Mice - I can’t really make up my mind as to which version I enjoy more. Disc 1’s production has a real ominous feeling to it, while this one sounds like nitty gritty mid 90s NY rap. Depends on your mood really.

7. Rev Glock - In this case I prefer disc one’s version to this one. However, that doesn’t mean that this one’s a bad track. It’s actually pretty good.

8. Crazy Like A Foxxx - The strangest thing is hearing Foxxx rap over a beat that most people will associate with Big L’s Da Graveyard. Although this track technically was created first, so it’s not necessarily beat jacking, especially since DITC was involved in both projects. Get over the Big L thing and it’s a great listen.

9. Man Destroys Man

11. Who Is The Middle Man

12. Cook A Nigga’s Ass (ft Kool G Rap) - A simple beat ripped to shreds by one of my favorite rappers of all time is always a win in my book.

The Solid:

1. Intro - Not needed, but it doesn’t hurt the overall experience. It’s just Foxxx explaining what the deal with this album is.

4. Click Click - After a great first two tracks, this track just doesn’t seem that special. Still a solid effort.

10. Pressure On The Brain

The Bad:

Final Score: 9.0

Both discs make for great listens. As for which one is the better of the two, I would say this one but only by the slightest margin. The lack of interludes just makes for a much more focused listen straight through and Kool G Rap’s guest feature is much appreciated. I would buy this double cd set as soon as I can since your getting two great albums for the price of one.

Freddie Foxxx is one of those rappers who nobody really hears about, and yet could probably seriously fuck up your favorite rapper both lyrically and physically. He’s a veteran rapper who just hasn’t really earned the legendary status of colleagues such as Big Daddy Kane and Ice Cube. I for one blame that on his lack of a good ol’ classic album under his belt. His best album was undeniably Industry Shakedown, and while that album was great, to call it classic would be reaching quite a bit. But now, with the release of his long lost 1994 album, Crazy Like A Foxxx, we can see if hip hop history would’ve been changed if it had been released at its proper time. Had it seen its original release date, would the world have regarded Foxxx as a GOAT, or would it have made no difference whatsoever? (Speaking of altered histories, most people don’t know that Freddie Foxxx was originally supposed to be Eric B’s partner instead of Rakim. How different would hip hop be if the world had never received Paid In Full? Just something to think about)

Since the reissue has 2 discs, with each being somewhat separate albums, I’ll review both separately today and tomorrow.

Disc One: Jail House Version

The Good:

1. Can’t Break Away - Listening to this first track makes me feel weird about billing this as a “new album.” This has 90s NY rap written all over it and it’s nostalgic as fuck.

4. So Tough - Great beats, great rhymes and no dance move gimmicks. What more could one ask for in a hip hop track?

5. Daddy Boot Knock

6. Project Mice - I would never call Freddie Foxxx the greatest story teller in all of hip hop, but he’s good enough and with the help of the ominous beat, it makes for a pretty good track.

7. Jailhouse Rock

8. Killer (ft Tupac) - Great track featuring a surprising feature by West Coast’s Tupac (RIP). I never realized it before, but Foxxx actually does remind me a lot of Pac sometimes as far as voice and flow goes.

9. Meet Some Skins

13. Funk In Your Brain - A track like this is going to have a hard time finding an audience in today’s hip hop world but as we all know, popularity has almost nothing to do with overall quality these days anyway.

14. Step (ft Chuck D)

16. Pressure On The Brain

18. Rev Glock - You know that one episode of The Boondocks, when Gangstalicious is telling Riley about his nightmares of Ice Cube? That actually just about sums up what I think about Freddie Foxxx.

19. Crazy Like A Foxxx (alternate mix) - This version is far superior to the Ultramagnetic Dis version found earlier on this disc.

20. Amen

The Solid:

2. Crazy Like A Foxxx (Ultramagnetic Dis) - As far as dis tracks go, it’s pretty average.

3. Interlude

10. Interlude

11. Shotty In The Back

12. Interlude - What the hell is it with all these interludes. They’re not horrible or anything but I’m not for interludes and skits that add nothing to the overall listen.

17. Rev. Glock Skit - Same as above. Just a dressed up interlude.

The Bad:

15. Do What You Gotta Do - No one element here is actually bad in any way but for some reason I can’t seem to get into this track. Doesn’t help that it’s pretty long as well.

Final Score: 9.0

The overall sound really brings you back to the mid 90s, and it sure is great to hear “new” material that sounds like this. Crazy Like a Foxxx is a bit more consistent than Industry Shakedown was and is probably the better album (although RNS kicks the living crap out of any one track on this). However, the number of skits do drag the album down some and most fans of today’s music might have trouble getting into the vibe (what with the outdated beats and actual fucking lyrics). I also don’t think it would’ve placed Foxxx on the legend pedastal even if it had seen a proper release. As for those who feel compelled to argue I can only say this. Illmatic, Ready To Die, Word…Life, and The Sun Rises In The East. I rest my case. Come back tomorrow for the review of Disc 2, The DITC version.

Before I continue, just thought I’d let you know. I added two new pages at the top of the site. The first is just a compilation of best of lists that I’ll do and the second is a timeline of soon to come albums. Just for your convenience.

I’m not gonna lie, I don’t exactly know too much about this guy other than that he was inspired to rap by listening to Ice Cube, KRS One, and Slick Rick (got that from his Myspace), an eclectic group to have affecting your style. So why did I even bother hunting this album down to review it for all of you? Simply put, his 2001 album, Along Came The Chosen, was and is a pretty great album. And now, in 2008 I’m willing to review an album by a rapper about whom I know next to nothing, based on that. Shit, I don’t go blind into albums much, so here’s to hoping for the best.

The Good:

1. Grey Hairs - Anytime a rap album decides to skip the intro and jump straight into an actual song is a good thing as far as I’m concerned. When the song in question is actually pretty good, it’s the most beatifulest thing in the world.

2. The One - The beat fails the track just a bit, but overall it’s an enjoyable song.

3. Say Goodnight - I’m led to believe this is the first single off the album. At least, that’s what I think upon hearing that this track was produced by none other than Primo (all these underground cats heavily advertise any of their shit thats been touched in some way by this man). The beat isn’t touching Premier’s 90’s greatest, but compared to some of the stuff he’s been putting out lately, it’s pretty good. Not to mention, Reks manages to rip it a new asshole or two.

4. How Can It Be

5. Stages - With underground rappers, the biggest problem is usually in the production (hell, even big names like Nas face this problem). That being said, I’m pleasantly surprised at the quality of the beats so far.

6. All In One (5 Mics) (ft Lil Fame) - Basically, they do their best Pac, BIG, Big Pun, and Big L (why do all these dead rappers have the word big in their name?) impersonations and it makes for a pretty darn interesting track. All the impersonations are pretty on the money, with the exception of BIG’s, which could’ve been done a little better.

7. Next 2 Me

9. Black Cream (ft Big Shug) - This actually wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Nas’ Untitled album. Hope that gives you some idea of what to expect with this one.

11. Rise

12. Telescopes (ft John Hope and Lucky Dice) - The piano sample makes for a nice backdrop to a great song. I even love the hook on this despite its being a sung one.

13. Day 2

14. Premonition (ft Termanology and Consequence) - With Termanology and ‘quence on the feature, I was expecting something hard hitting, and in your face. What I got was the complete opposite, but I’m not disappointed in any way.

16. Cry Baby

17. Long While - I’m not sure I’m completely on board with what they did with the beat on this one but in the long run, I don’t think I care if I am or not.

18. Big Dreamers (Lawtown Remix) (ft Termanology and Krumbsnatcha)

19. Isiah - A pretty damn near perfect marriage of rhymes and beat. It’s not that either one is necessarily the best I’ve heard, but they match each other in such a way, it’s better to just listen to it.

20. Hidden Bonus Track - I’m a sucker for Jay-Z vocal samples. Somehow or another, I think they add flavor to even the blandest of tracks. Not that this track needs the Jay sample in the beginning to be hot, it’s a sick track in it’s own right.

The Solid:

8. Money On The Ave (ft Skyzoo) - I never understood the hype surrounding Skyzoo and thought he was average at best. This track doesn’t do much to convince me otherwise.

10. Love Sweet Misery - I could care less for the beat, but the lyrics on this hit the heart. All in all, I’m very conflicted on where to place this track.

15. My Life (ft Paula Campell)

The Bad:

Final Score: 9.5/9.0

Quite possibly the best album I’ve heard all year. I’m being 100% serious too. This just may be this year’s Below The Heavens. Reks has improved his rap since Along Came The Chosen, and he’s managed to somehow garner a bunch of great beats to match. It may be a bit too early to be talking about best ofs, but this album is a strong contender. Besides, Blu and Exile dropped in mid July last year as well, and I knew almost right away that that shit was something different.

O and let me link you guys to a couple of bonus tracks that are going around the internet.

http://rapidshare.com/files/131729802/Reks-Grey_Hairs__Bonus_Tracks_-2008.rar

Skillz is a rapper that many people now know more for his end of the year Rap Ups than anything (or that video of him at Best Buy handing out free copies of Rising Down). Honestly, who here has a copy of his debut album? Well, I do, but then again, that doesn’t really count. Anyways, if you’ve been listening to his rap ups for the past couple of years, you might’ve thought to yourself that you should pick up an actual album by him as soon as possible only to discover that his debut album is now out of print and that his sophomore Confessions of A Ghostwriter isn’t really worth it. Well now your prayers have been answered, and Skillz has finally dropped his long awaited new full length. In actuality, even if you hadn’t been praying for a new Skillz album, you should be interested because the man is a pretty damn good rapper. Let’s see how this one holds up to his last two.

The Good:

1. The Million Dollar Backpack Intro - Maybe it’s because it’s produced by Jazzy Jeff, but this intro is a head above your average rap intro. The muffled voice effect could’ve been done without though.

2. Where I Been

3. Don’t Act Like You Don’t Know (ft Freeway) - I think Freeway is a very underrated rapper due to his affiliation with Rocafella Records, which isn’t exactly famous for producing any real lyrical emcees. As such Free and Skillz have a pretty good chemistry together and it makes for a great song.

4. So Far So Good (ft Common) - If you’ve been a fan of Skillz before today, no doubt you’ve been bumping this song since it leaked months ago. It’s a good listen even if Common doesn’t sound very inspired in some parts.

8. Yea Ya Know It

9. Hold Tight (ft Black Thought) - Great freaking track. Seriously, just Skillz alone on this track would’ve been enough for me to like this. Black Thought’s appearance raises its status to greatness. With all the mutual friendship between Skillz and the Roots, I wonder how long why he’s never been featured on a Roots album?

13. Hip Hop Died - Despite the track name, Skillz is not arguing that point at all and instead makes a case for how hip hop’s been exploited and raped for profit, but it’s still around as long as there are emcees who are around to fight that. It’s a nice track and for the record, hip hop ISN’T dead.

14. Preachin To The Choir

The Solid:

7. My Phone - It’s a decent track, but I can’t really see myself listening to it again and again. Still, you shouldn’t skip it the first time around.

11. I’m Gon’ Make It

12. Be Alright

The Bad:

5. Sick - Skillz comes off nice enough, but the beat is horrible. I’m not one that asks for overproduced glitter, and I love simple beats as much as the next man, but this is just bad.

6. (For Real) He Don’t Own Me - The beaten to death “I like you, you like me, but we can’t be together because of your man” track. It’s whatever and to be completely honest, I actually liked Nelly and Kelly Rowland’s Dilemma better. Shit, there goes all my blog credibility, I guess huh?

10. Crazy World

Final Score: 8.5/8.0

It’s a pretty good album, but honestly I’m a bit disappointed. Skillz’ lyrical skills (no pun intended..really I just couldn’t think of another word) haven’t fallen off one bit and actually they’ve gotten a bit better (no more sounding like a southern Big L clone) , but he does seem to suffer from the dreaded Ras Kass syndrome as far as beats go. His debut album was littered with solid beats by the likes of Large Professor and Jay Dee, and as such the beats here just fall flat. Still, there are enough good tracks on here to warrant a purchase, or at the very least, your time.

I decided to change my scoring system a bit to factor in the goodness of the good tracks and the badness of the bad tracks. So I went back to my previous entries and fixed the ratings as to have them all on the same standard.

Jean Grae and 9th Wonder - Jeanius: 8.5/8.0
Beastie Boys - Licensed To Ill: 9.0/8.5
Afrika Bambaataa - Planet Rock: 9.0
Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III: 7.0
Little Brother - And Justice For All: 8.5/8.0
N.E.R.D. - Seeing Sounds: 8.0
KRS One - Maximum Strength: 7.5
Craig G and Marley Marl - Operation Take Back Hip Hop: 8.0
Run DMC - Raising Hell: 9.5/9.0
Eric B and Rakim - Paid In Full: 10.0/9.5
Vast Aire - Deuces Wild: 8.0
Immortal Technique - The Third World: 9.0/8.5
Three 6 Mafia - Last 2 Walk: 7.5/7.0
G-Unit - Terminate On Sight: 7.0/6.5
Common Market - Common Market: 9.0
Gorillaz - Demon Days: 9.5
Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded: 10.0
Killer Mike - I Pledge Allegiance To The Grind II: 8.5/8.0
Mc Shan - Down By Law: 9.0/8.5
The Roots - Game Theory: 9.5/9.0
Kanye West - College Theory: 9.0
Pharoahe Monch - Internal Affairs: 9.5/9.0
Nas - Untitled: 9.0
Pete Philly and Perquisite - Mind State: 9.0/8.5
Kong - Shackles Off: 8.5
Opio - Vultures Wisdom Vol 1: 8.5
Murs and 9th Wonder - Murs 3:16: 9.0
Fakts One - Long Range: 9.0/8.5
Murs and 9th Wonder - Sweet Lord: 8.5

So as I said in an entry about a month ago, Fakts One’s Long Range is technically not a new album, but a long lost, never released one ala Jean Grae’s Jeanius. For those who don’t know, DJ Fakts One is a member of the Perceptionists, along with rappers Mr. Lif and Akrobatik. Strangely enough, I was never a fan of Mr. Lif, but Akrobatik and the production by Fakts One helped me to appreciate their debut effort, Black Dialogue. Shortly after their debut was released in 2005, Fakts One’s solo effort was supposed to see the day of light. However, due to unknown reasons, this never happened. Until today that is. A couple of months ago, fellow groupmate Akrobatik released an absolutely great album to loads of blog acclaim. So how will Fakts One’s solo hold up? Will it be disappointing after the long ass wait we’ve been put through? God I hope not.

The Good:

1. Ridin’ Dirty - Don’t worry, it’s not that ridiculous Chamillionare song. It’s the intro to this album, and I’ve put it under the good section, because I happen to enjoy the simple beauty of scratching over drums.

2. Grown Folks (ft. Little Brother) - I put this track up as a promotional leak for you guys a while ago. The song was great then, and it still rocks today. Little Brother over great production = win every single time.

5. Born For This (ft Chan) - I actually got to see this dude at my school a couple of years ago. He just may be the only Asian rapper not named Kero One that I think has actual potential. He’s at least miles ahead of a certain other Asian rapper who released a ridiculous single about learning Chinese a while back.

6. Don’t Stop (ft Boot Camp Clik) - I thought that there was no way this track would meet my unreasonably high expectations for it, but somehow someway it did. Hip Hop needs another solid BCC group album. In the meantime, I guess we’ll make do with Jesus Price Superstar and The Formula. Although I do hear that there’s another Heltah Skeltah album in the make.

7. The Showstarter (ft The Perceptionists) - AK and Mr Lif spit nicely over a beat that somehow works despite being chaotic as hell. Nice to see Fakts One working with his bandmates again. Would be nicer if we could see a new full length release by these guys soon.

8. Audiovisual (ft J-Live) - J-Live deserves a whole lot more attention than he gets. Dude has never released a wack album, and he does the job right on this track.

10. Set The Mood (ft Grayskul)

13. Longevity (ft Rasco, Planet Asia and Da Mayor)

14. The Showstarter (Walkman Remix) (ft The Perceptionists) - A very nice end to the album. I highly prefer it when the last track on the album is an actual track, and not some really long, often boring outro.

The Solid:

3. Life Music (ft Rocklyn and Maya Azucena) - Long Range provides a wide range of guest artists, ranging from veteran rappers, to underground rappers, to way deep deep down underground artists whom I’ve never even heard of before. Rocklyn falls into the third category for me, and this track doesn’t do much to make me want to hear more. It’s decent enough to listen to once or twice through though.

4. OK (ft Kingsyze and Outerspace)

9. U From The Q (ft Universal)

12. Selfish (Akrobatik and Iyadonna) - The song is actually pretty good. It does feel a bit long though, and starts to get a boring towards the middle.

The Bad:

11. Moments Later (ft Tajai) - The beat sounds like a it’s straight off a really bad 8-bit video game soundtrack, and Tajai’s guest appearance is pretty damn disappointing.

Final Score: 9.0/8.5

When all is said and done, we’re left with a very well made album by Fakts One. Was it worth the wait? Maybe. It isn’t anything mindblowing, but it is entertaining enough to warrant a bit of heavy rotation for a little while after you get it. As for how it holds up to Akrobatik’s Shock Value, I think it’s too close to call. Both albums are great, and both deserved to be picked up by readers like you.

Shit…I hate people messing with my stuff. I’m still not sure whether it was a password breach, or if the guy I upped the picture from changed the url every single freaking hour for the heck of it. But either way, I’m fucking paranoid as fuck now.

Anyways, on a brighter note, today’s album should be a blast to review. Opio is an emcee from the Hieroglyphics crew and has steadily been rising up to my number one spot in aforementioned crew (although Pep Love is still the man). His last solo effort, Triangulation Station was a pretty damn good album, and I have no reason to suspect otherwise with this one. O, other than the fact that the previous Hiero release of the year Del’s Eleventh Hour kinda sounded like pure garbage, I guess. But, Del is Del and Opio is Opio, so with that horrible album out of my mind, let’s begin.

The Good:

1. Guilty As Charged - Despite not being labeled as such, it’s really just an intro. Although there is actual rapping to be found so overall I would bill it as being better than your average rap intro.

2. On The Outside Looking In - Opio may be one of the only rappers who I’ve actually enjoyed after his voice changed since his early appearances (as opposed to Q-Tip, G Rap, Del, and the like). He always had the flow and the rhymes, but damn his voice used to be annoying as hell. And now, even that’s not an issue. Amazing.

4. Chaotic Erotic - It’s basically a reinterpretation of Gang Starr’s Soliloquy of Chaos. That being said, it’s pretty good and deserves to avoid comparison to a classic track.

5. About Love

6. Don Julio - The dark, creepy sound seems a bit out of place with the rest of the album, but the track is good enough to overlook this little fact. Besides, I love dark beats.

8. To The People

10. Original Lyricist - This track shows that Opio can more than hold a mic to Del, Pep Love and Casual any day. It’s kinda unfair, then that he almost never seems to get any props in Hieroglyphics discussions.

13. The Prize - I can’t exactly place my finger on what it is about the beat that makes it so appealing to me, but I think it’s great. Opio’s raps do their job as well, and makes for one sick track.

14. With Or Without You - I wish they would’ve somehow sampled the U2 song for this track, but then again, that song wouldn’t exactly make for the best rap track I guess. Besides, the song works as it is and I see no reason to tamper with something that doesn’t need to be.

15. Superfly Remix (ft Del Tha Funkee Homosapien and Guilty Simpson) - Del doesn’t make up for the entirety of the mistake that was the Eleventh Hour, but he at least makes up for a couple of tracks with his verse.

The Solid:

3. Some Superfly Shit - The beat ends up dragging the whole song down.

9. Vice Versa - It’s interesting what they tried to do with the song, but it ends up making for a confusing and unfocused listen.

12. I Need A Money Tree

The Bad:

7. Stop The Press - Combined with the beat and Opio’s slow, lifeless flow on this, it’s just not a good track. The random instrumental skit at the end doesn’t do much to save it either.

11. Cali Girls

Final Score: 9.0/8.5

Although I would’ve liked to see a couple more of Opio’s Hiero mates on some tracks, there’s something refreshing these days about an album that’s able to be carried out without an excess of guest artists. Sure there’s a couple of missteps here and there, like damn friggin Cali Girls, but Opio shows that he’s more than capable of handling things by himself. Pep Love you better watch yourself.

Edit : What the hell…the batman picture changes every freaking time I log back on. Changed my password so hopefully that fixed it.

Today’s album didn’t actually come out this week, but I haven’t been able to listen to it until now. Kong, or Kongcrete (not to be confused with the rock group of the same name) is a member of the Monsta Island Czars, which is a group of emcees who must watch way too many Japanese kaiju movies. Truthfully, I haven’t followed them too much aside from the MF Doom’s King Geedorah album and Megalon’s A Penny For Your Thoughts. However, what I’ve heard from those two albums were superb and after reading a blurb about Kong in hiphopdx a while back, I decided that I had to review this album. Like I said, M.I.C. is not a group that I usually listen to, so if today’s review seems a bit less detailed than usual, apologies in advance, come back tomorrow for a more detailed one.

The Good:

3.Babylon (ft Megalon, Spiega, and 5th Element) - The Mission Impossible sample here works surprisingly well. The one thing I hate about listening to a crew that I haven’t had much experience listening to is that I have almost no idea who’s who.

4. Broken Safety (Spiega and Ikon) - Monsta Island is a group that is gonna be an acquired taste. They have a very no nonsense, rhyme centered lyrical approach and that actually may turn a lot of people off in today’s world.

6. It’s Official (ft MF Grimm, Gabarah, Spiega, Ikon, Monster X) - I was about to designate this track to the bad section because the first minute and a half was just a bunch of hard to hear rhyming over no beat. Then the beat kicked in and the rest of the track kicked my ass soundly for thinking about such a thing.

7. Shackles Off (ft Nhguav Ratkiv and Spiega)

8. Who - Finally a track with Kong by himself. Dude shows that he’s a pretty damn capable emcee and that he doesn’t need all of his crew on a track to make it enjoyable.

9. Lifted (ft Gabarah and Monsta)

12. What Had Happened Was

13. Ultimate Sacrifice - The Kong solo tracks are way too short. All great tracks, but I do wish they were longer.

15. War (ft 5th Element and Spiega) - Spiega seems to be way too average of an emcee to be featured as much as he is. However, the tracks do work, so I guess they knew what they were doing.

16. Hated (ft Gabarah, Monsta X, and Ravage)

17. Black Blood (ft 5th Element)

The Solid:

1. Intro - Features samples from the movies. If you have to ask which movies, well….

2. Pure Poetry (ft Kandee and Ikon) - Doesn’t feature Kong on the track but it’s decent. Wouldn’t listen twice though.

5. Weasel (ft Spiega) - Their beats are also a bit unorthodox, which may make it even harder for the average listener to get into.

11. Endless Nights (ft Gabarah, Monsta X and Ikon) - Eh, Monsta Island doing tracks for the ladies is just alright at best.

14. Slumz Skit

18. Red Tears (ft Spiega and Delilah) - The lyrics are all on point, but the song is just so boring at some points.

The Bad:

10. Brown Eyes Skit

Final Score: 8.5
Kong and the rest of the Monsta Island Czars all seem to suffer from Talib Kweli syndrome, in that they try to fit way to many syllables into a bar and it comes off as making for an awkward flow at times. However, like Talib, they’re saved by the quality of the lyrics they’re trying to jam pack into that bar. As such, the album, while pretty great in my eyes, may not be taken so easily by the casual listener. If you don’t really consider hip hop your genre of choice but something you listen to on the side, you may or may not like it. It’s just a different animal than what you’re used to and if you think you’ll be fine with that, go right ahead. If you’re a hip hop fanatic, give it a chance, you’ll probably dig it. It’s raw and different from most of today’s material. O and.

See it. Even though Batman’s dark, deep voice is still ridiculously corny, it’s a great freaking movie. Heath Ledger’s (RIP) Joker will most definitely go down in the history of excellent movie villains. Two Face not so much, but the Joker is gonna give Darth Vader, Hannibal Lecter, the Wicked Witch of the West, Scar and the like a good run for their money.

And if you consider my mentioning Two Face’s appearance in this movie as a spoiler, you really gotta catch up on your comics. Harvey Dent = 2 Face = Basic comic knowledge. Simple as that.