[Best of 2014] MF GRIMM & DRASAR MONUMENTAL - "GMV III: The Phoenix Program"

With thirteen tracks clocking in at roughly forty minutes, I would consider "Good Morning Vietnam III: The Phoenix Program" as a full-length album, at the same time as its the third installment in the series. And as much as I loved the two predecessesors, "The Phoenix Program" is another one of the best albums of 2010s standing on its own but it's when listening to all three EP:s/mini albums as a unit that's the truly incredible ride. With that being said the new Grimm/Drasar project stands both as an excellent release in its own right, as well as being the crowning release of the aforementioned trilogy. Taken as a whole I'd udoubtedly go as far as to say that the well-crafted trilogy stands as the finest project of this deacade so far. As familiar I am with MF Grimm, before I came across the first installment of these projects I had never heard the name Drasar Monumental, but as soon as I let the the needle hit the wax I was immediatly taken back by the rawness and boom baptic sound collages and how well they transpired to Grimm's writing and performances throughout. There's no question that the chemistry is nothing short of AMAZING. And as it was a concept album breaking down the horrors of the Vietnam war and mirroring it with the struggles of America today, The second volume "The Golden Triangle" was even stronger, as the chemistry had evolved into something even more natural ad Grimm's conceptual writing and deliveries had became even stronger while Drasar's production had grown even stronger and the way they know where complimenting each other styles started to grow closer to the best known hip-hop duo's of all time (Gang Starr, Pete Rock & CL Smooth, DIamond Distict, and so on)..

So how does the third and final part of "GMV", subtitled "The Phoenix Program", stack up against the two previous releases that both made it to the top of my best albums in their respective release dates. It's always a gamble for an artist following up  a masterpiece with a sequel, as it's very hard to be able to top the original 15 years larer - as we knw there's plenty of subpar sequels in the world of hip hop. Luckily for all of us, a sub-par follow-up from this duo is a far cry from the truth as it's another purely excellent outing from GRIMM & Drasar and it's evident that they've worked real hard to make sure that fans will get nothing but the pure, unadulteraded hip-hop,with a lot of classic breakbeats and strong street lyrics,  that balances the grooves between classic '90a hardcore bap while still keeping it completely original. The songs on here (all versions of the album only include two long tracks - making the statement that this is something you should listen to from front-to-back. But more fresh and original is the way it is produced and performed - the Vietnam war, like any war was messy, paranoid and filled with emotions, and music, And the music Drasar and MF Grimm cooks up for this 40 minutes outing bring back memories of the last days of the '60's and '70s. .Musically it's concocted from a wide range of samples often listed from '60s and '70s records, mixed in with agressively classic hip-hop samples freom trhe likes of KRS-One. The production style is something out of the ordinary, you won't get any of the repetitive four bars loops over a fu ll song anywhere on this release. Instead Drasar creates a bombastic, EXPLPOSIVE sound collage of intensely mindblowing hardcore piecees, whixh really bring the best out of Cap. The huger amount of beat switches and musical switches just shouldn't work but it sure as hell does all the way. There's really only one song that I'm not crazy about, the laid back cut "SOMETHING SOMETHING", which is not a bad song by any means but compared to the other tracks on the project it's a bit of a let down. But that's a minor complaint for an album this is exttremely dope.

When I interviewed MF Grimm and Drasar I told Grimm how I've been following his career for years but feel that the two "Good Morning Vietnam" projects for me represented his best work yet. He completely agreed with me, and listening to either volume of this series (or all of them as a unit) it's clear that he for one of the first time in his life has found a musical compadre that listens to him and truly brings the best out of him. MF Grimm is by far one of the illest, most thought provoking emcees around and his voice is just on another level, and while I pretty much like all of his previous albums (as he's always been pushing the envelope with every single release of him), no previous LP has grabbed me in the way this trilogy has done. From start to finish he follow the concept of "showing different aspects of the Vietnam war" to a Tee, and much of his writing is as cinematic as it gets. Add to that the many scary interludes from real life war criminals like Henry Kissinger - another song that deserves a lot of props for its writing, not being scared of calling out one of the worst human beings in recent history. It's hard to pick favorites from this album considering it's such a cohessive whole and since I'm still waiting for my physical copies I have mostly played it through my phone in tthe two track version, meaning I don't really know the titles of the song. But that doesn't really matter, as this is definitely an album you put on, press play, close your eyes to and move into the hip-hop version of Vietnam this is a trilogy project that at least I will never forgot. Like I said it's hard for me to pinpoint favorite tracks as this is really something I want to hear from front-to-back, but the first single "Glaciers Of Icex" is simply out of this world, and so is the opening "Birth Of Violence", or the agressive KRS-One sampling "Economics"). With that said I really hope that we will get a whole lot more material from Drasar & MF Grimm as a duo. Be sure to head over to VendettaVinylVietnam to order your copy of "GMV III: The Phoenix Program" on CD or LP, or in the exclusive bundle package containing all three installments in case you missed it. Thanks a lot to Vendetta Vintl and be sure to grab all three versions oif the album at the very last. TURN IT UP!!! 

[2014 in Review] FLYING LOTUS - "You're Dead"

I can't understand those people who basically only listen to strictly hip-hop music. Music as a whole is my number one love, and though hip-hop is by far my favorite genre but how someone can be musically satisfied by only listening to rap music is for me absolutely mind boggling when there's so much great music from a wide range of genres out there - jazz in all it's incarnations, blues, rock, heavy metal and industrial, and even some classical music. As a true music lover I am mad happy that we got artists like Flying Lotus and the artists on his Brainfeeder label pushing the boundaries of modern electronic music by taking a page from the past and moving forward into new terrority. As for FlyLo I've had my eyes on him since his "Cosmogramma" album in 2010, but it was when  the grandson of legendary jazz pianist Alice Coltrane dropped his tripped out "Until the Quiet Comes" in 2012 that I truly fell in love with his music. After letting the 2xLP set live on my turntables and on my Android phone for a long time, I was soon after starting to fiending for new music by the DMT fanatic. For me the release of the follow-up to "Quiet", beautifully titled "You're Dead". FlyLo has more than repated that same feat of greatness  again, without repeating himself. "Until the Quiet Comes" is pretty close to a perfect album, and i strongly feel that this new LP is it's sister album as it shares many similarities yet it's evolved and features a lot of new tracks. 

Now in 2014, Steven Ellison, also known a Flying Lotus, returns with his sixth album, tenth if we're counting Extended Plays, "You're Dead" on October 7, via Warp Records. While "Until The Quiet Comes" was a laid back, psychadelic journey into the mind with high free jazz, jazz fusion and electronic hip-hop overtones, "You're Dead" pretty much continues where its predecessesor left off. The 20 track collection plays out more like a suite than the type of albums we are used to hear these days, be they instrumental or not. Many of the songs are only one or two minutes and throughout the whole 40 minutes LP almost every feeling is represented in the most beautiful way - whether it be straight up disonant hardcore shit (the powerful "Tesla"), laid-back  music of extreme longing like one of my personal favorites "Coronus, The Terminator", heavy free jazz bangers ("Cold Dead"), the percussion and Rhodes brilliance of "Moment of Hesitation". Pointing out each song is definitely pointless as the entire album revels in front-to-back brilliance and personally I would say that this is FlyLo's finest full-length album to date. One of the main reasons for this, is that FlyLo is here taking his production to the next level - while previous albums has mainly been mainly sample based, "You're Dead" is a mixture of Lotus' sample wizardry and a host of live musicians that he has invited to the sessions. The 19/20 tracks suite (depending on which version you have) clearly has a sonic thread running throuhgout them, wihtout ever coming off as monotone. The jazz elements are way more pronounced here than on the previous FlyLo albums - so much that in fact this is the first album of his that I would feel comfortable putting in my jazz album collection. He has here gathered the usual suspects like bassist/vocalist Thundercat, sweet voiced Nikki Randa, string conductor Miguel Atwood-Fergusson, but there's also a host of legendary jazz artists adding color to the album. All these artists appeared on the previous LP as well, though not to the same extent, but on "You're Dead", Ellison takes the jazz and hip-hop approach a step further. One of my all time-favorite artists of all time, pianist/keyboardist Herbie Hancock adds his magical Rhodes touch on the hauntingly beautiful "Tesla" and "Madness Of Hesitation". while jazz guiartist/bassist and keyboardist Jeff Lynn add some color to "Stirring" to great effect. These legendary artists appears simultaneously in FlyLo's world with rising stars like superb sax player Kamsai Washington who really add a lot of jazz texture to standouts such as "Moment Of Hesitation", "Cold World", "Turkey Dog Come", and "Moment of Hesitation". 

Production is absolutely flawless throughout, the way Flying Lotus uses samples and live instruments of abstract melodies, disonant studio trickery, distorted vocals, melodic basslines, Rhodes, agressive saxophones and of course the slamming drums. As I stated before this abum really defies labeling, but might be closest to free jazz, jazz fusion or experimental electronic music. But hip-hop heads will definitely not be dissapointed either, as FlyLo creates some abstract but very dope hip-hop joints. The  first single "Never Catch Me" featuring an outstanding verse from Kendrick Lamar, while Lotus' Quasimoto like alter-ego Captain Murphy gets busy on a couple of tracks and even Snoop Dogg makes an apperance on the absolutely brilliant "Dead Man's Tetris". Whatever you do don't sleep on this album!

[2014 in Review] NEHRUVIANDOOM - "Nehruviandoom"

Despite being a huge fan of MF DOOM I can't say I had that high hopes for his collaboration with Nehru Bishop. I wasn't all that familiar with Bishop and the few tracks I had heard didn't exactly kill me. However it was to be released on LEX Records, a record label that always has treated hip-hop records with respect, letting the artists have complete creative control. And with both Nas and MF co-signing this young kid Bishop Nehru, who I believe is only 19 years old on this album, he can't be that bad right? Either way you know I had to check it out as soon as it dropped and I was definitely pleasantly suprised. While Bishop is no virtuos lyricist he's got a pretty cool voice and he's a good writer, touching upon topics that a lot of young people easily can relate too, including young love, loneliness, street stories, maintaining and putting your best in whatever you do.. There's of course also a couple of more typical braggadocio type battle rhhymes which are also welcome, but mainly this is a thematic record focusing on the lifes and times of Bishop Nehru set over the one-of-a-kind soundscapes of Metal Fingerz. Listening to this, there's no question that the combination between DOOM and Bishop are actually a brilliant combination, and there's no song on here I would skip.  DOOM himself has a bunch of verses as well, about three or four that are all classic Metal Fingerz ish, and one of the most interesting things of all is the inclusion of a new Madvillain joint if you will. Madlib produces the final song "Disastrous" where both NehruvianDOOM members goes in.

"NehruvianDOOM" starts off in typical DOOM fashion with a low-key beat with a muffled guitar and bass melody, a hypnotic female vocal sample and tight drum programming. Over this the Villain places his classic audio excerpts of weirdness from various films and TV-shows that all together really sets off the piece lovely. An audio excerpt on meditation segues right into the first single, "OM", which is classic DOOM all the way. Contrasting the laidback intro it's a powerhouse performance by both MF and Bishop set over a high-energy beat based around two different keyboard samples (one of them being an electric organ). Another of my favorite joints is the jazz-infused "Mean The Most" where Bishop gives a beautiful dedication to that special girl while MF DOOM prepares an extraordinary beat that's heavily influenced by jazz music, yet done in such a way as only the Villain can. With a heavy bass and a repeating trombone hook, various percussive instruments and smacking drums, With an addictive beat like this Bishop is given a perfect platform to express his love - "I still think about being with a being of your caliber/ You hold your own down/ My queen with a gold crown/ Your leaving the whole town astounded". The jazz element is strong on this mini album, and no one does jazzy hip-hop like DOOM because he uses the sampled instruments in such an unorthodox and unexpected way. There's a number of small musical interludes tying the songs together (man I love that), including the outro to "Casket" which features booming drum programming underlining a hypnotic accoustic jazz piano sampled from a classic early number by Miles Davis and Charlie Parker. As a vocal album this is probably one of the most interesting pieces of DOOM productions I've heard in several years - there's so many different sounds and combinations of instruments that it never get the least repetitive despite the sound always being 100 percent Metal Fingerz. The music in itself is experimental, crafting beats from a wide range of different and rare sources, but the pairing of NehruvianDOOM is quite epxerimental in itself as Bishop isn't the type of emcee you'd expect to hear an entire album together with MF with. But that's the beauty of it, Bishop's style is realatively scaled down, simple or rather straight forward if you willl while the beats are way out there, and it's exactly that contrast that makes it work so beautifully, 

I'm not that familiar with the "Special Hebs" series and I'm not sure whether or not the production on this is all new beats or lifted from the aforementioned volumes, but to my ears everything on here are brand new beats. Clocking in at just over thirty minutes I've found this to be an extremely rewind worthy LP and the chemistry displayed between the emcee and producer makes me fiend for another project from these two gentlemen. It's by no means a perfect record though, I have a feeling that Bishop is not fully molded as an emcee but he got a dope voice and plenty of sick, if simple, lines. Another thing that bugs me is with such a short running time and a total track number of 9 songs, iTunes customers actually get an extra song. That track, "They Say Bishy Bish", is hardly a throwaway  cut either although it's not as strong as the rest of the material but it would be a decent bonus cut to have on the physical copies as well. Overall the debut offering from NehruvianDOOM is an interesting album , that though not mindblowing is a great front-to-back listen created by two different artists with a great chemistry.

[2014 Review] GHOSTFACE KILLAH - "36 Seasons"

There's no question in my mind anymore that Ghostface Killah isn't one of the absolutely greatest emcees alive. The criteria for that for me is a guy who has a rhyme style that has inspired loads of others emcees styles, is mad charismatic, has something that sets him apart like being a great storyteller, is great at picking beats, has a flow and delivery out of this world annd last but definitely not least their catalouge. Ghost without a doubt fills all that criteria without a doubt, and with each album he has released I'm constantly amazed that he managed to do it again. Sure there were "Bulletproof Wallets", but if you listen to the "original" version of that album you'll realize it's pretty much a lost classic. 

On December 9, The Masked Assassin returned with his tenth solo album (not counting Wu-Tang Clan, Theodore Unit projects, etc - damn this guy is hardworking), "36 Seasons". It is somewhat of a spiritual successor to his colaboration with Adrian Younge ("12 Reasons to Die") which I labeled as the best album of 2013 with its immaculate production that mixed the vibes spagetthi western soundtracks by Ennio Morricone and vintage RZA productions with a well-crafted story from Ghost that ran throughout the whole album. And just like that album, "36 Seasons", got a lot of similarities right off the bat. Tony Starks brings out another strong concept album with a sonic tour de force of ghetto life, set over nothing but live instrumentation. There's a lot of differences between the two albums as well though, but in a way it does feel like a spiritual successor. And what's even iller is that this will be sort of a unconnected trilogy as Ghost is currently working with the great jazz trio BadBadNotGood in the creation of an album called "Sour Soul", set for early 2015. It's easy to see that the once masked Wu-Tang member is willing to take a lot more risk once he went independent and left Def Jam.

"36 Seasons" is a very pleasant suprise, and one of Ghost's most coherrent projects in many years, and the main reasons for that is the story that runs throughout the entire album as well as the soulful backdrops produced and performed by the superb The Revelations. The live band, consisting of bassist Josh Werner, Wes Mingus on guitar, Borahm Lee on keys, drummer Gintas Janusonis, and vocalists Tre Williams and Rell, has already made contributions to two Wu-Tang compilations ("Legendary Weapons", "Chamber Music"), a remix album by Cormega, and several projects under their own name. I think their work with Ghostface here might be their finest and most refined work yet. As Starks always been a soulman, creating incredible hip-hop from classics by the likes of Delphonics, The Sylvers, Willie Hutch, and Otis Redding, The Revelations has long been terrific at playing soul with a hip-hop vibe, as evident by songs like their rendition of "I Forgot to be Your Lover" on "The Man With The Iron Fists" and their solo projects with Tre Williams and Rell. For Ghost they cook up a batch of tracks that packs plenty of that '70s soul shit, yet always infused with a raw hip-hop beat - agressive guitar, Rhodes, hard drums, and melodic basslines forms the center of this experience on a strictly musical level. The main thing is that it always sounds like a Ghostface record, even on the two songs that our main artist isn't even featured, and having worked with The Wu before The Revelations has really found their way into the Wu sound.

The story as plotted out here by GFK is the variation of a quite simple ghetto story that's been told many times before in both movies and on rap songs, but there's a bunch of interesting twists and turns in the story that keeps the listener on his toes throughout. Every guest apperance is focused and has a meaning, and every guest emcee and singer fills a purpose in playing a role in the story. I'm not gonna break down the entire narrative, but a quick overlook reveals that Ghostface plays a former hood star that's been on iron vacation for nine years and come backs to his neighborhood only to find that a new boss, played by Kool G Rap, has taken over the block and is involved in a lot of foul play like selling drugs to kids. Ghost's childhood friend, played by AZ, is now a crooked cop playing both sides of the fence, who still looks out for Starks. Other supporting players include Pharoahe Monch as somewhat of a mad scientist, Shawn Wigs and NEMS as members of Ghost and G Rap's posses, respectively, and singer Rell. In other words it's very much put together like a movie, both with the cinematic score, the main star, a supporting cast, a action-packed narrative and even the romantic interlude of the incredible The Revelations solo track "It's A Thin Line" that chills things down for a moment.

Ghost has always been revered as one of the greatest story tellers of rap, so it's extremely interesting to see him take on an entire concept album based on one idea, and he does so with energy and verses that always comes off as gripping. However as he is constantly tied to follow the narrative, you miss the old Starks that dropped verses filled with more slang than is humanily comprehensible. He's constantly solid though, although the best verses on the album undoubtedly belong to AZ who not only has the most interesting role but attacks it with such raw intensity, mad flows and unbelivably well written verses. Whenever "Doe Or Die II" finally drops, the rap game should definitely take cover. Talking about specific songs seems redudant as this undoubtedly is a project you listen to from start to finnish, but I do want to mention the agressive opening track "The Battlefield" which sets up the story by introducing each of its three major players - having AZ, Kool G Rap and Ghostface Killah on a concept track.. And on a ridiciously raw beat nontheless? Forget about it!

Undoubtedly one of the best albums of the year, and Ghostface continues to be the reigning champ of hip-hop catalouges. Salute!