20/20 Hindsight

Last year, Jamille Records reissued a rare, old school single by Milwaukee's 20/20 Boys  (or two thirds of it, anyway). That was a really fun, if sort of rudimentary single, and you can go back and read about it in an earlier post. But it's not the whole 20/20 Boys story. The Boys returned as simply 20/20 a couple years later to release one more single. I don't know whose decision it was to print pale gold writing on an even paler gold background; but if you can't read the label there, it reads: "Underground Railroad," on SOTS Productions.

SOTS is an acronym for Students Of The Struggle, and the label gives thanks to Southern University, so I think it's safe to assume that at this point in 20/20's career, the Boys were college students. And clearly, they were looking to do something more mature and higher minded than "My Position" for their second outing... likely also why they dropped the "Boys" from their name. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a historical diatribe about the struggles of Harriet Tubman. The "underground" of the title refers to their status in the music industry. But they're definitely looking at it from a sociopolitical - and dare I say "collegiate?" stand-point than their first outing. I mean, no one was warning the listener about the dangers of "wind[ing] up in a racist jail cell" on "Burger Bounce."

The production sound has also changed in tone along with the subject matter. The instrumental's funkier in a way, but more subdued, almost west coast sounding. It's got a familiar bassline and some samples we've heard before (and a tried and true "Funky President" vocal sample for the hook); but I've never heard them fused together the same way they are here. And the MC's vocals have an echo effect, which definitely brings to mind Chuck D. This doesn't have the wild fervor of a PE record, though... but would fit in nicely alongside their second string acts like Chief Groovy Loo and the Chosen Tribe or Prince Akeem 

Does it work? Yes and no. It does sound like they've progressed, both lyrically and production-wise. They've not only changed with the times, but have mastered new techniques to make more "advanced" hip-hop records. But there's also sort of a muddiness to the whole thing. Part of that might boil down to just low budget mastering; but it's more than that. It lacks the vitality of their earlier work. It's a cool record, I like it; but despite its raw, amateur vibe, there's just something compelling about "My Position." You can see why Jamille brought it back. Somehow I doubt Jamille will give this one the same treatment.

This actually reminds me of Success N Effect. Remember them? Their first album was like a straight-up Miami bass album, with silly songs about girls and "Cruisin." Good times. Then their second album slowed it down, and stripped away all the light-hearted stuff to deliver anti-drug messages and stuff. Finally, they came back with their third album, Drive By Of Uh Revolutionist with Chuck D, a hard, militant, banging album. So,applying that story to the 20/20 Boys, this is like their awkward, growing pains middle record... not bad - hey, I'll still revisit Back-N-Effect. But I'm saying, if they had only stuck it out for one more record, they probably would've come up with their best music of their careers. And it would've had Chuck on it.

The Burger Bounce

Who knew Milwaukee had such a vibrant hip-hop scene back in the 80's, with such a deep well of smashing records to continuously draw from?  It turns out Jamille Records is the answer. They know, and they're back with another impressive repress of another funky dope group you've probably never heard of: the 20/20 Boys.

"Burger Bounce" was originally released on VU Records, the same label A-Tak debuted on. And indeed, their entire record was produced by Speech (in fact, I think he either owned or co-owned that label).  But these guys are nowhere near the Arrested Development lane; they have much more in common with groups like The Showboys or Worse 'Em. They're a four-man crew consisting of Jimmy "C," "D" Griff, Will Kill and D.J. Mad Dog, and they pack a lot of energy into pair of short songs.

Interestingly, Jamille has decided to make the original 12"s B-side their A-side.  Probably because it's the best song.  "My Position" is hard, LL-inspired, yelling over big echoey drums, rhythm scratches and catchy keyboard riffs. It's a lot of fun; one of them even starts singing "Why Have I Lost You" on the break. It has more of a low budget sound than its more professionally mastered Def Jam contemporaries, but in some ways that works in its favor, feeling even rawer and edgier. This is the kind of songs heads who spend big money on "random rap" are hoping to find.

Then we come to the eponymous dance theme, the "Burger Bounce." It's lighter, sloppily cuts up a healthy dose of "Atomic Dog" and features much more relaxed, bemused flows from the MCs explaining the graphic nature of their three-person dance. It's enjoyable, and it's easy to imagine this was the song that they would've gotten all the attention for on the local scene back in 1987.  It's still a good time if you're an aficionado of rap music's bygone eras; but "My Position" is the track that holds up (despite sounding equally, or even more, old school) and will impress heads to this day.

This is Jamille's tenth record, and the ninth in their series of colorful Milwaukee old school 7"s, making some practically impossible to find material available to own on wax. This one's pressed on white (white) vinyl and limited to 100 hand-numbered copies (mine's #36). And it doesn't intrude on the original VU 12"s collectability, since that features a third song, not included here, titled "Killer Will." Jamille is like the underdog in this limited game. Everything they put out is more than worth your time, so don't sleep. And unlike many limited labels, their releases are quite reasonably priced  If you think you don't care about Milwaukee rap, you probably just don't know what you're missing.