Thursday, August 23, 2007

Now Hear This

In my humble opinion, indie hip hop really took off at the dawn of the new millennium (Jurassic 5, Dilated Peoples, Atmosphere, Aesop Rock, Slum Village, Reflections Eternal just too name a few). The Unspoken Heard released their debut LP Soon Come... in 2001 on 7Heads recording label (also home of J-Live) to much critical acclaim.

Asheru and Blue Black are two very educated rappers who have a fond love of hip hop. Blue Black produces most of the record with lots of chopped piano samples and groovy beats. Asheru has a solid delivery that never bores. You can definitely hear similarities to Pete Rock's sound on this record, which is probably why I like it so much :)

Truly Unique
Theme Music
Elevator Music

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Lost And Found

After Pete Rock parted ways with CL Smooth in 1994, he jumped back on the boards and created a project with his brother Rob-O and rappers Grap Luva and Marco Polo. Leading with the single, "Fakin' Jax", INI: Center of Attention was supposed to be released by his label Elektra but was shelved for 7 years until BBE repackaged it into a double CD along with another project entitled Deda: Original Baby Pa.

Center of Attention is a little more laid back and underproduced than his previous productions with CL Smooth, but that is what gives it its charm. The lyrical vibe is very calm and mellowed-out, not very complex, but on point nonetheless. Similar to Digable Planets and Gangstarr, I would place this in the genre of elevator hip hop music.

The Life I Live
Fakin' Jax
Grown Man Sport