May 24, 2012
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Reviews

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Killer Mike


R.A.P. Music
Williams Street Records
91

The duo of Killer Mike and El-P may not seem like a likely combination. In one corner you have an ATLien MC who has spent the last several years breaking out of the OutKast shadow with powerful, socially-conscious music.  And in the other, you have a Brooklyn-bred beatsmith with distorted basslines and out-of-this-world samples and synths. In the interest of time, however, I’ll let you know right from the jump that, Yes, this hip-hop odd couple does work to make one of 2012’s best albums. I’ll also spare you the obvious Ice Cube and Bomb Squad comparisons because even T.I. drops a subtle reference to it in his verse on the lead single and album opener, “Big Beast.” But almost exactly a year after his Pl3dge album, which was hailed as one of the best albums of 2011, Killer Mike released “R.A.P. Music” the most focused opus of his career. (It was also released almost exactly 22 years after “AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted”, but who’s counting?)

If I had one gripe about Pl3dge, which I also had the opportunity to review last year, it was this: although the album consisted of brilliant tracks like “Burn” and “American Dream,” it was also bogged down with club-friendly tracks that didn’t fit. Not to say that “Go Out on the Town” and “Ready, Set, Go” weren’t good songs (they were actually bangers), I just wanted to hear more songs like “That’s Life II.” With “R.A.P. Music” (which stands for Rebellious African People), my wish has been granted.

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Sonnymoon


Sonnymoon
Plug Research
89

Boston bred duo Sonnymoon, made up of Anna and Dane, are drifters on Earth, but their sound  is from another planet.  The duo’s bio alludes to the fact that they are here to fulfill some type of prophecy by combining their masculine and feminine energies.  Using that reference as a guide helps Sonnymoon’s self-titled LP make a lot more sense.

Sonnymoon created a considerable buzz for themselves with their two EP’s Golden Age, and 2012.  The two also gained a following for their covers of Beyonce’s “Yes,” from her solo debut Dangerously In Love, and Drake’s “Houstonlantavegas,” from his mixtape So Far Gone.  What differs with this project is growth and a more cohesive and progressive sound.

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Stretch Money


25 Miles Per Hour
Hot Lava Records
81

As far as rap names go, the name Stretch Money, doesn’t exactly scream depth or lyrical substance.  Surprisingly enough, Detroit MC Stretch Money is anything but your typical superthug, slang poppin’ street rapper.  Although you do get glimpses of hustler-isms and hood montages on his sophomore effort 25 Miles Per Hour (see “Damn” featuring T-Dot) it is packaged in neat, finely-tuned lyrical odes about rap dreams, life struggles, and the cycle of the street grind.

Stretch’s lyrical prowess is evident from jump on the first track “Work Of Art” where he flows effortlessly from his hunger to make it to depictions of his hometown.  And Stretch has no problem revealing the obstacles that are in his way as he uses his piecing rhyme skills to address and expose fake rappers and being an overlooked artist on “What’s Hapnin”–basically a venting session about the current state of rap.  There’s more venting on “They Ain’t Listenin’” on which Stretch gets down right to the point with rhymes like “It’s about time that we unveil the covers on these fake punk pussy-made motherfuckers.”

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Billy Danze


Rap United Nations
First Wave
79

“As an artist I understand the frustration.  There are so many artists out there that possess the talent of being able to produce and record good music,” says hip-hop vet Billy Danze (of M.O.P fame), continuing: “My aim is to get every talented artist a deal.  Support on a globalized scale is all an artist really needs or can ask for.”

Danze, who was a member of the duo M.O.P, understands the concept of artists needing exposure.  In a world where illegal downloads, the blogosphere and iTunes control the wave of music, there exists a huge segment of artists who despite being talented, will never get the exposure they need. For the project, First Wave, Danze allowed interested artists to be featured by visiting the official website www.rapunitednations.com.  What listeners get from the project are over 30 tracks featuring mainly unfamiliar artists as well as some well known artists like XL, Haasan Mackey, Rapper Big Pooh, Torae, Skyzoo and Serius Jones to just name a few.

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CopperWire


Earthbound
Portofranco Records
73

Get ready for lift-off. Earthbound, the ‘Ethiopian hip-hopera’ with an Afro-futurist twist, takes us on an interplanetary journey that escapes the gravitational pull of any single genre, opting instead for a blend of hip-hop, R&B, drum ‘n’ bass, and general club-friendly madness. At its best, the album seamlessly combines the thoughtful rhymes of emcee Gabriel Teodros, the down-tempo beats of producer Burntface, and the ethereal vocals of Meklit Hadero.

At other moments, the record can sound like a piecemeal creation. The numerous abrupt shifts from ‘radio-friendly-rapper-guest-verse’ sounding rhymes to soothing, pensive vocal breaks, seem formulaic and expected. The record can almost feel like a radio programmed to switch between two different stations at one-minute intervals.

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Jaecyn Bayne


Audio Therapy
Owl Studios
65

If you aren’t familiar with the South Carolina Hip-Hop scene, you may not be familiar with emcee Jaecyn Bayne. Hailing from Charleston, South Carolina, Bayne hopes to be a beacon of hope for a state that isn’t exactly known for its contributions to rap. His debut album, Audio Therapy, displays the uneven quality that many artists do when first entering the rap game; some decent beats–some hot beats–and some less than spectacular lyrics. Audio Therapy has its moments, but there is a glaring lack of consistency.

This isn’t to say that Mr. Bayne is a horrible rapper, however…the album definitely has its moments. On “It Ain’t All Bad”, Jaecyn explores the upside of life’s trials and tribulations, such as losing friends and loved ones and is a pleasure to listen to in terms of both the production and lyrical content. “Mic Check” is another standout, a nice summertime cut to be listened to while riding around town with the top down, if you are privy to such a luxury.

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Reks


Straight, No Chaser
Brick Records
88

How is success defined in hip-hop?  It’s a question that has been debated on the message boards of this very site, at least once a week at exhausting length.  For those in the “doin’ numbers” camp, Reks is not considered a success but to the other school of thought, he’s a champion.  Straight No Chaser, Reks’ new LP with longtime collaborator DJ Statik Selektah, is the coronation of an emcee at his peak level of skills and maturity.  If there was ever a blueprint for new hip hop that pays homage to the Golden Age without sounding dated, this is it.  Reks and Statik Selektah combine to make soulful, honest, no-nonsense hip-hop in the classic mold.

Reks and his DJ start things off in sound fashion with “Autographs,” Reks bringing his signature precise lyricism and in-the-pocket cadence and Selektah on the boards with a beat that sounds like the bastard child of Pete Rock and DJ Premier.  While Reks definitely killed shit (and killed it again as a zombie) Statik Selektah put his foot in this one harder than Bruce Lee.  “Such A Showoff” featuring  Kalil, JFK, and Termanology has got sick punchline upon sick punchline over a piano-laden, African drum-heavy banger that perfectly exemplifies why Statik Selektah is one of those cats you should be up on.  He’s got a recognizable sound but every now and again he’ll throw something at you unexpected.  Reks manages the almost obligatory double-time title track “Straight No Chaser” and excels; spitting with passion, irony, and engaging narrative.  The last cut, “730”, is vintage Reks and Statik Selektah–they’ve worked together on virtually every project of Reks’ career so longtime fans will knowingly nod in recognition.

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Santigold


Master of My Make-Believe
Atlantic Records
86

In 2008, Santigold lit up the alt-pop world with an electric debut. In hindsight, Santogold served as a sonic pre-cursor to the cultural upheaval that would mark the subsequent months and years. As governments were overthrown, city streets were occupied, and Navy SEALs shot it out with pirates in the deep sea, the defiant eclecticism, unbridled energy and aural dissonance that characterized the Philly-born singer’s musical screeds made them feel suddenly anthemic. Four years later, Santigold returns with Master of My Make-Believe, an equally diverse, if more subdued, collection that feels like a reflection on the era of controlled chaos that her debut foreshadowed.

While the opener, “Go!” is vintage Santigold, complete with chanted vocals atop double-time percussion and sci-fi chase synths, “Disparate Youth” is the project’s true tone-setter. With jittery keys and drums belying a mid-tempo trance groove, lyrics of rebellion are delivered with world weary resolution as opposed to reckless abandon, as if sombered by a newfound awareness of the struggle that will come after the uprising. The same feeling is captured more explicitly on the album’s centerpiece, “The Riot’s Gone,” where the singer laments of “trying to loose the world inside, but it’s got no place to go,” atop a pensive track that gradually builds to ethereal falsetto catharsis.

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Kutmah Presents


Worldwide Family 2
Brownswood
85

Kutmah. Brownswood. Two names that guarantee something different in the music world, something cutting edge and, most importantly of all, something good. For the last couple of years Brownswood has been hipping people to what’s hot in the worldwide electronic scene in its Electr*c series while Kutmah established himself as a Don of the L.A. beat scene–before his forced relocation to England, where he’s become a highly respected DJ, producer and artist.

In a recent interview, Kutmah rather disarmingly said that to establish himself as a DJ, he had to play stuff that nobody else was playing (“you’re not going to be J Rocc, simple as that.”) That admirable philosophy runs through this collection, which is impeccably curated as you’d expect. Some of the names that Kutmah has championed in the past are now reassuringly familiar – Flying Lotus, Hudson Mohawke – but most of the names here are reassuringly unfamiliar.

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Various Artists


Listen Whitey! The Sounds of Black Power
Light In The Attic
85

Politically, Listen Whitey! The Sounds of Black Power is a powerful reminder of our ugly and not-so-distant past but also that the American Civil Rights movement was one that relied on a multitude of crucial figures, not just the names that get bandied about every February. Musically, the album recalls a time when some of the most radical, intelligent and courageous musicians and activists in the country were elevated to iconic status in popular culture. Somewhere along the way, things done changed.

This is far from a slapdash collection of well-known protest songs. On the contrary, archivist Pat Thomas painstakingly assembled the pieces of this puzzle. Along the way he  “befriended key leaders of the seminal Black Power Movement, dug through Huey Newton’s archives at Stanford University, spent countless hours and thousands of dollars on eBay, and talked to rank and file Black Panther Party members, uncovering dozens of obscure albums, singles, and stray tapes.” The effort was not in vain. Some of these recordings have never been released on CD before, while others recall obscure samples from the golden-era of hip-hop whose origins may have been mysteries to many listeners until now.

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Sene


Brooklyknight
Plug Research
79

Sene is a bit of anomaly amongst the younger generation of rappers. He is not the most dexterous MC nor is he swag-oriented like say his NYC counterpart, A$AP Rocky. His elocution is more subtle, with lines that speak to an articulate grasp of today’s universal frustrations.

His new project Brooklyknight showcases Sene as a hybrid of Digable Planets, Justin Warfield and pre-Yasiin Bey. The type of left-leaning album you wish you could dig on more in an era of conformity. The mercurial production flickers between the straight-ahead (“Backboards,” featuring regular collaborator Blu) to the experimental (the mind-melting “The Feel Real”). Many of the sung hooks are distracting, but there is something in the dissonance that supports the overall tone and push of the set.

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Odd Future


The OF Tape Vol. 2
Odd Future Records
72

To set things straight: The reasons for Odd Future’s breakthrough success are obviously deeper than their oft-discussed shock value. Sure, they took the willfully offensive rudeness of a young Eminem to a level befitting a generation whose sex-ed classes had been outsourced to Limewire. But the reason music listeners are still checking for Odd Future 2 1/2 years after Tyler’s Bastard mixtape made the first widely-recognized splash for the camp is that the crew hosts a remarkable amount of musical talent beyond the unholy trinity of Tyler, Earl and Frank. Having reached a head-count of 11–all of whom are featured on The OF Tape Vol. 2, the Wolf Gang’s problem is not one of lack but of overload.

Many of the individual members have gradually been developing their distinct artistic personas, shedding some of the immaturity that made their early group efforts both memorable and assailable. This maturiation is reflected on The OF Tape Vol. 2: Left Brain handles just as much of the production as Tyler and demonstrates an enhanced palette of sounds. Domo Genesis and Hodgy Beats both flow with unprecedented focus, most notably on “Bitches” and “Hcapd.”  Tyler dependably delivers like a superstar. Mike G goes from being a fifth wheel to contributing a standout track. Frank Ocean needs only one 2-minute solo-cut to underline his status as today’s most naturally gifted R&B artist – but it feels as though there are just too many aspiring chefs in the kitchen.

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