Doug E Fresh and the Lost Naughty By Nature Diss

(Youtube version is here.)

Back When Everything Was Alright

In 1992, Father MC returned with his second album, Close To You; and it was heralded by this lead single, "Everything's Gonna Be Alright." This was his big reunion with Jodeci. He made them famous with his (major label) debut single, "Treat Them Like They Want To Be Treated" in 1990. But since then they'd blown up in their own right. This was after "Stay" and Forever My Lady; Jodeci were two of R&B's biggest rising superstars, alongside Mary J. Blige, who'd also blown up by singing on Father's first album.

So when Father returned, everybody was asking if Jodeci and Mary were back, and indeed they were. Father MC released two singles off Close To You, first this one and then "One Nite Stand" with Mary. The downside was that Father was getting eclipsed by his back-up singers; and once he tried releasing an album without them, his career on Uptown/ MCA Records was done. But in 1992, who cared? Everybody was still working together and we were all happy.

"Everything" is produced by Mark Morales and Mark C. Rooney - in other words: Prince Markie Dee and the Soul Convention. This was the heyday for Markie Dee's smooth, R&B-heavy New Jack sounds, and Father MC's albums were the perfect fit. They'd done a big chunk of his debut album, including his three biggest singles, and the majority of Close To You. In fact, separating from the Fat Boy may've been as key to Father's downfall as separating from Mary and Jodeci.

But while the Soul Convention brought a lot of musicality and instrumentation to their records; there's not much to credit them with here, instrumentally, besides the core idea. Because on this record, they're sampling Chic's "Good Times." And they're basically using it exactly the same way The Sugar Hill Band replayed it in 1979, to the point where they could basically just be performing over the instrumental version of "Rapper's Delight" whole hog.

Of course, Mark and Mark also co-wrote the song (along with Hasan, also of the Soul Convention) and Father himself, so they presumably did more than just bring an old Sugarhill Records 45 into the studio. But here's where this record really falls short of their debut success - lyrically, it's not nearly as well written. I've talked about the impressive, even genuinely touching, songwriting show-cased in at least parts of "Treat Them Like They Want To Be Treated." Well, there's just none of that here. There's nothing particularly wrong with Father's rhymes here, mind you - he doesn't say anything stupid or cringe-worthy, which is a lot more than you can say for a lot of rap records today - he's basically just saying a lot of fluffy filler that amounts to nothing. This song isn't about anything except that Father and his boys are here and isn't that nice?

But the upshot is that giving "Rapper's Delight" a 90's new jack spin works wonderfully. It has a whole new life here, sounds great with its old school hand-claps and more modern (though still vintage) syrupy keys, and Jodeci kill it. Revisiting this song over twenty years later, and it's immediately evident why Jodeci were going on to a huge career outside of Father's shadow. They stand out far and above all the generic R&B singers you'd hear providing hooks and bridges on countless other rap songs of the decade.

The 12" single, besides coming in a glossy picture cover; also provides a couple extended mixes. There's your Radio Version, which is basically indistinguishable from the album version, and it's Instrumental. Then there's a Club Joint, which really extends the track, almost doubling its length. There's no new verses from Father, but a lot more of Jodeci and plenty more "Good Times." The Club Version has an Instrumental, too. And then, finally, there's the misleadingly titled Soul Convention Dub Joint. I say it's misleading, because it's really not a Dub Mix, but a full vocal version with all of Father's raps and Jodeci's singing. It's just... even a little bit longer than the Club Joint.

And for my money, The Soul Convention Dub Mix is also the ideal version of the song. It puts more of an emphasis on Jodeci. I mean, obviously they have to sing a lot more just to fill up the extra running time (we've gone from three and a half minutes to six and a half), but they also have a different acapella introduction and perform a few more routines, including some "baby yeah"'s sung in the style of "Treat Them Like They Want To Be Treated." Father's verses sound good just by virtue of them being rap verses that sound good over a track like this; but Jodeci are the absolute stars of this song, so turning this into a Jodeci monster cut that just happens to have some appearances by Father MC works to this record's advantage.

There's nothing especially different here. There's no version with a different sample set or versions by other big name producers. It's just one song spun out to longer versions. But in this case, that's enough. If you wanted to show somebody who'd never heard of Father MC, just what he was about; this encapsulates him perfectly. All of his strengths and why people bought his records back in the day, and his weaknesses and why he hasn't had the longevity of Kane or Biggie. Including the fact that Jodeci are totally stealing his show here.

One Man's Ultramagnetic Treasure...

I shouldn't have to tell you how amped I was when I first saw this pre-order pop up online. Black Pegasus was finally(!) releasing a real, vintage unreleased Ultramagnetic MCs recording on vinyl Limited to just 200 copies, this is a never-heard-before Paul C mix and edit of the great "Ain't It Good To You." As you can see, it comes in a nice looking picture cover, it has the instrumental on the flip, and at $35 a piece, sold out pretty quickly through Black Pegasus's bigcartel store.

So this is a new mix and edit; but there's a reason it's being phrased like that. This isn't a "remix" in the popular sense people think of remixes today, where it's been given a whole new instrumental with different samples and instrumentation. It's just been mixed differently. The biggest difference you'll notice instantly is that a very subtle percussion line on the album version (that rapidly and repeatedly goes "thudda thudda DUM!") has been super deepened. It's now like a big phat bassline. It also has a new intro, playing in with more of the softer sounds from the original sample's context. And the other elements have been pieced together a little differently. For instance, there's a part now on Ced's verse where all the music cuts out except for that one "DUM!" down beat at the end of each bar, like a Miami bass mega-drop, giving a cool emphasis to his delivery.

And just to be clear, this is not at all the "Ain't It Good To You" remix that was included as the B-side to "Simple Metaphor" on that mysterious bootleg release. That version is totally different.

Unfortunately, this release loses a lot of its luster once you actually put it on your turntable and get to listening. Not that I dislike this version, not at all. This new mix is dope, however the sound quality is pretty poor. The bass is all broken up. You know when you turn the bass up on your stereo to where the meters are in the red and everything sounds staticy and fuzzy? That's this. It sounds better if you turn your bass down so it doesn't totally blow out; but even then it's still not great because it's blown out in the recording itself. But if you don't lessen it, it blows out a lot worse.

More problematic still, the record plays too fast. It's a 45, but when you bump it up from 33, it's too much of a jump forward. The good thing is that you can correct this if you have a turntable with pitch control. I found somewhere around 4.5% to be the sweet spot to take it down to. I mean, you might be tempted to argue that it's meant to be a faster remix - in their description, Black Pegasus writes that this mix is sped up as if that's a good, intentional thing - but you'd only say that if you hadn't actually heard the record. It's just off, the vocals sound rushed and trashy; and once you slow it down, it sounds good and natural. That's the silver lining here. If you do have a turntable with pitch control (and many don't), you can correct this problem to the point where it's not a problem at all.

Unfortunately, that still leaves you with the muddy sound from the previous paragraph. And yes, the instrumental has the same issues.

I'm not really sure what the deal is here. The label credits "additional edits" to DJ Ves 120, who's down with Black Pegasus. So is this just some contemporary reworking of the original? Ves 120 couldn't have been working with Paul back in 1988, right? Is this another faux-vintage thing?* Or perhaps they did find a vintage re-edit, but because they thought it might not be different enough to capture fans' interest, they decided to mess with it more to distance it from the original? Or maybe the speed-up is a result of Paul just experimenting with the track for fun, never intending for audiences to hear his tinkering. But then that still leaves open the question of what Ves 120's additional edits actually are. ...Either way, I'm not mad at this edit (minus the fixable speed up); I just wish it was a better quality master of it.

So, anyway, this record is supposedly the first in an "Ultra 7" series from Black Pegasus. $35 was already excessively pricey for a 7" before we knew what the quality was like, and now I'm really wary of what the future volumes will be like. As it is, I can't recommend this to anybody except those of you who read all of this and are thinking "I don't care, I need it anyway!" I see you out there; I feel you guys. Hell, I might still pick up the next one. But I have to stress that, unlike some other records I write about here that more casual listeners might want to try dipping their toes into, this is for very seriously hooked Ultra collector fans only. Everybody else can just feel relieved that they're not missing out on much at all this time.


*TR Love specifically explains that this is vintage in their promo video, though.

Previously Unreleased Lakim Shabazz?

In the last couple years, Tuff City has released "Rare and Unreleased" compilation albums from several of their signature hip-hop artists including Priority One, Grandmaster Caz, The Undefeated 3 and this one right here by Lakim Shabazz. As you might expect, the records lean pretty heavily on the "rare" half of that promise, but there are still some genuine, sweet unreleased tracks to be heard, so let's have a look.

The Ol' Skool Flavor Of... Lakim Shabazz dropped in 2006 as a single LP only (i.e. no CD counterpart, although it is on ITunes). According to the label's website, "Tuff City delves into its vaults to come up with some rare and unreleased recordings." It comes in a nice picture cover which handily labels exactly which of the tracks are "PU" (Previously Unreleased). Specifically, there are three. But before we get into those, let's look at what else is on here.

"Arms Too Short" - This is an abridged retitling of "Your Arms Too Short To Box With God," the then B-side exclusive to Lakim's greatest single, "Black Is Back" from 1989. This is a great song and saves somebody who owns both of Lakim's albums the trouble of needing the 12" single as well. Nice one.

"Smash Him" - This is an abridged retitling of "When You See a Devil Smash Him" from Lakim's second album. Nothing particularly rare about this one.

"Need Some Lovin (Lakim Remix)" - This is one out of a couple remixes featured on the "Need Some Lovin'" 12" single from 1990. Dope, though completists will still need the 12" for Anttex's remix.

"Notes Of Def" - Is another one from the second album.

"Style Wars" - Is... another one from the second album.

"No Justice No Peace" - Is another one from the second album, and worse yet, it was the other single from that album.

"Style Is Free" - Is actually not from the second album, but The 45 King & Louie Louie's 1990 album, Rhythmical Madness. A final welcome addition.

Seriously, what the hell is going on here? Why is half the album just a solid chunk of Lakim Shabazz's second LP, Lost Tribe Of Shabazz? Anyone familiar with Lakim Shabazz knows the dude has a huge list of genuinely rare songs that have been peppered on other peoples' albums (mainly the 45 King's) over the years. He's an artist just dying for a compilation of this nature; but they totally fuck it up by just repressing half of his second album. And what's more, the overwhelming majority of these rare, uncollected tracks are on Tuff City records!  It's not like anybody actually expects them to incur licensing fees making the perfect Lakim collection.  But if they'd just filled it with cuts like "Raw Dope Rhyme," "Master Of the Game," "Hands Of Fate," "Horns Are Horny" or so many others, it would've been a much more worthwhile collection. And even a better listening experience. How utterly stupid.

But, whatever. A better compilation may've been better, but we're all here for the PUs anyway, so let's get to the important stuff.

"Africa" - This is... so god damn good. How had this gone unreleased all these years? It's obviously vintage, has a dope bassline and classic 45 King horns, and a great sampled hook. Then add the fact that it's a serious song with something to say on top of all that.

"Swiftness (Instrumental)" - A short but dope instrumental. Not sure why it's on here as opposed to one of the King's infinite breakbeat albums. Lakim has never released a song called "Swiftness" before, but alright. Kind of disappointing that this eats into our count of 3 PU's, though.

"Love Spell" - What the fuck? This is just "Need Some Lovin'!" This was one of his biggest singles, and yes... from the second album. Pretty much the least "rare" song in his entire recording career, and certainly not "PU." What kind of bullshit is this? They got the title "Love Spell" from the Fatback vocal sample that plays during the hook, which at least suggests this happened due to complete incompetence... as opposed to outright, unadulterated dishonesty.

Fuck you, Tuff City. This isn't exactly the first time we've seen a cheap cash-in from them, but that "Love Spell" shit is the worst. I didn't cover this years ago because I didn't want to support this. But at the same time... "Africa" is pretty essential for any Lakim fan. Please, somebody comment and tell me that it's really just a mis-titling of something that is legitimately available somewhere else so I can just write this LP off entirely. But I'm pretty confident that it's not. I have all those scattered Lakim songs I was saying would've made far superior compilation fodder, and "Africa" ain't one of them. So you're basically just buying the whole LP to add one song to your vinyl collection.  But, damn it, it's worth it.

The Original Hick-Hop Record

(Youtube version is here.)

Frankenstein Unbound

In the 90s, Frankenstein came out of Nowhere, Canada to win the hearts of the underground. He was that guy who get rave reviews in Rap Sheet, Vinyl Exchange and the emo Anticon forums all in the same month. He crossed all these borders and then kind of quietly faded away; and you could just tell as a fan that he'd never really unleashed the full fury of his catalog on us. He just hit us off with a few little tastes of what he was capable of, and then left us wondering.

But thankfully Ill Adrenaline Records have unburied his lost creations and are bringing them back to life. This right here is The Ill Laboratory EP, by Frankenstein and AZ, together known as Delphi Oracle. No, not Nas's famous compatriot from Queens, and not the AZ from Mobstyle either. This is the AZ that, well, pretty much only appeared on Frankenstein's earliest singles. See, because Frankenstein rose up so unexpectedly on the scene, most heads missed out on the first 12" or two, and most people weren't fully up to speed until "Frankenstein's Pain" or "the Pain Remixxx," and just sort of hearing that there had been past bangers like "Peace and Quiet." Consequently, many may still not be aware that his first release was actually as part of the duo Delphi Oracle, where AZ was his partner both on the mic and in production credit.

So this EP - which, at 9 full-length tracks, they could've gotten away with labeling an LP - collects all of the Delphi Oracle material... both tracks off the debut 12", the remix that was the B-side to Frankenstein's first solo 12", and most excitingly, six never before heard unreleased tracks from '93-'94. And it's interesting to note that while they Frankenstein and AZ constantly share the mic and writing credits, only Frankenstein has production credit here, even for the previously released songs. So I guess Frankenstein was always the sole producer, and he was just generous in sharing the credit originally as Delphi Oracle? That's what we're left to assume, and anyway it makes sense as Frankenstein went on to produce on his own making instrumentals similar in style (albeit with a usually darker tone) and quality to what we hear here.

Anyway, the thing to know here is that the unreleased material sounds great. Not only is the sound quality top notch (a thing to check for in the case of unearthed demos like these), but the music is every bit as good as the ones we all know. Like I said, the tone is a bit lighter than his later stuff, but otherwise the production sound and the vocal stylings are right alongside their best work. It's a bit more light-hearted, and Frankenstein trading verses back and forth with AZ only enhances that more fun aspect, compared to Frankenstein's later stuff. Admittedly, lyrically it's not much to write home about; but they're all about just making their verses sound good and fun to listen to, and that they pull off without a hitch. There's even a song ("Sympozium") with a sampled hook as catchy and engaging as "Peace and Quiet."

This is a great release at a great price, and if you copped one of the first 100 copies, you got it pressed on opaque violet vinyl. And it's just the beginning. Ill Adrenaline has also released a CD called The Science of Sound, which compiles all of the material from Frankenstein's various 12" singles over the years, including two of the unreleased tracks from this EP. Handy if you don't already have his past singles, but otherwise Ill Laboratories is the one to pick up between the two. But even that's not all, Ill Adrenaline has also announced plans to release Agony To Ecstasy, Frankenstein's shelved album from the mid 90s. So 2014's shaping up to be a banner year for Frankenstein fans; but even if you only pick up one of his this year, this should probably be it.

A Shaped Slice of Real Live

(Youtube version is here.)

Return Of the Veteranz

I called my last post a "later release for somebody like DJ Hollywood," but you could still consider that the first round of musical recordings for somebody who just happened to manage to have a long run.  This on the other hand, is a straight-up comeback record by some of the oldest school artists our genre's got. The Veteranz is kind of 1997 "super group," consisting of DJ Hollywood, Lovebug Starski (here spelling it Luvbug Starski) and The World Famous Brucie B. And they've come back out on the strength and production of "The Original 'Shake Dat Ass' Man" DJ Mister Cee. It seemed to be largely compelled by the attention Doug E Fresh got for his song "The Original Old School" featuring Hollywood and Lovebut Starski alongside members of The Furious Five and The Cold Crush; but of course there were a lot of instances of hip-hop's original forefathers getting put on records throughout the 90s.

This was pretty much just a one-off single inspired recording session rather than an earnest attempt by The Veteranz to sign a deal and start re-enter the music industry as a consistent group. But it was released twice, with an all-new remix retitled and kinda packaged as if they'd come back again with a second song. So let's start with the first release.

"Da Medicine" was originally released on Tape Kingz with two versions - not including the Instrumental and Accapella - the Party Version and the Regular Version. The difference is pretty simple: they're exactly the same song except the Party Version features additional "party voices" added throughout the track, just like many of the classic disco-era rap records used to have. To me this adds to the fun adn effect of the record and detracts nothing, so while it's not a huge difference (they're mixed pretty low anyway), it's the definitive version and you can pretty much forget about the Regular Version as more of just an incomplete bonus mix to pad out the 12".

But here's the thing about The Veteranz. All three of these guys are more like DJs and party rockers and strictly lyrical MCs. You know, it's not like we have Melle Mel, Grandmaster Caz and Kool Moe Dee here. I mean, at least Hollywood and Starski were experienced recording artists, but Brucie never even made records. And they definitely opted to play it safe here, because theyr eally don't rap at all. I mean Hollywood and Starski did rap on their old records, so it's not like they didn't know how. But they just don't here. I mean, there's a bit in the middle I guess you'd consider more traditional rapping, but the way they keep going back and forth and shouting, it doesn't much feel like it. They just do a succession of hooks and chants over a blend of hot and ever changing breakbeats by Mister Cee. In fact, this almost feels like a completed Mister Cee party record - you know, those instrumental 12" singles just bl;ending a mix of the latest and old school breaks for a couple minutes that all the NY DJs used to press up in small runs? It's like Mister Cee had made this record and then just had these guys talk over it as an after-thought.

So, as a result, it's okay... the beat selection is solid and the added layer of the Veteranz does help. But ultimately, it's boring. It's like you're just waiting and waiting for the song to start, right up until it ends. It's fine, for one of those generic party records, but it needed actual verses to feel like a proper, finished song. The Veteranz names' carry a lot of weight, but that's about the only weight they bring to the record. Their voices are pleasantly recognizable and there are references to their past work to catch; but talent-wise, any three guys you pulled off the street could've recorded these vocals.

But their name value at the time was strong. This collaboration was getting write-ups in music mags and press well beyond what any of these other party records got. The rest of the world wanted to hear it, and so Select Records picked it up and reissued it.

This time you got "Da Medicine" in Party, Regular and Instrumental versions just like the Tape Kingz single. But then, on the flip, you had "Da Remedy (Da Medicine Remix)" also in Party, Regular and Instrumental versions. Like I said earlier, it's the same vocal recoding, but the original instrumental has been switched out for an entirely new one. Here, Starski, Brucie and Mister Cee (no, not Hollywood) share production credit. It's a pretty cool, alternate version, which feels a bit more like a consistent song than a party mix, with a more old school feel thanks to some big programmed beats and conspicuous hand claps.

It's hard to pick a favorite between "Da Medicine" and "Da Remedy," but thankfully with the Select single, you don't have to. You only miss out on the Accapella. So it's a fun record, but it still doesn't have any real rapping. So it winds up feeling like a lot of Miami bass or indie NY party records. Listenable but nothing you'd really keep going back to.

And It's interesting to note that The Veteranz reunited in 1998. On the Flip Squad All Stars album, the final track is by DJ Mister Cee featuring Brucie B, Hollywood and Lovebug Starski. "How Ya Like Us Now" is a straight-up second Veteranz song. I mean, I'd consider any modern pairing of Brucie, Hollywood and Starski a Veteranz song, but with Mister Cee still on the boards? It's incontrovertible. They even refer to themselves as The Veteranz, even though they're not credited that way on the label. And, yes, it features all new vocals - albeit in the same, "many choruses and no verses" style, as well as a new instrumental. And party vocals. :)

Too Hot To Handle, Too Cold To Hold

DJ Hollywood's "To Whoever It May Concern" was the biggest record Posse Records ever put out. That's according to Van Silk's introduction on the 1988 compilation album Posse All-Stars Rap Classics. That fact is made all the more interesting when you remember that DJ Hollywood's "To Whoever It May Concern," nor any other DJ Hollywood record for that matter, was ever released on Posse Records. It was first released on World To World Records, and then reissued on Spring Records for broader distribution, both in 1986. Well, the connection must be between Posse and Spring, since the same compilation features a couple other Spring singles sprinkled throughout the actual Posse releases as well.

So 1986 is a later release for somebody like DJ Hollywood, but this is a solid record. It's produced by Donald D... not The Syndicate Sniper, but the guy who made "Don's Groove" and produced those old school cats like B-Fats and Cheryl the Pearl. It's got big, bombastic horns, a funky electro-style keyboard riff, and a super funky bassline. Especially on this Spring Records version. Because the Spring Records release is actually an uncredited remix of the first version put out on World To World. It's basically more of a re-record, where they take another pass at recording the same basic track. But it all sounds more professional and, frankly, catchier. It's just better, plus over a minute longer. The older version is interesting as a historic alternative (and if you're curious, you can hear it on the Tuff City album Rarities from 1995, where it's been retitled "To Whom It May Concern"), but the Spring version is the definitive version. It's actually my favorite Hollywood record.

Have you ever heard the Busy Bee song "Poon Tang?" It's really an extended tribute to a routine Hollywood did during his live sets and in this record, sort of like Biz Markie's "Let me Turn You On."  Where he goes, "poon tang, oon tang, I don't wanna go, slept all night with my honey bun. Give me some of that yummy yum yum before I go to bed. Of all the animals in the world, I'd rather be a squirrel - climb up on the highest tree and do it all over the wor-orld." Of course, you can bet Hollywood didn't say "do it" live in the clubs.  Here's a great clip of Hollywood performing it in 2008 in Central Park.

Well, Busy Bee adds more animal rhymes to his song, but otherwise he's just doing the same routine that Hollywood does here. It's a pretty memorable segment, especially if you were hearing it for this first time on this record - in fact, the song is even titled "Um Tang, Um Tang (To Whoever It May Concern)" in other parts of the world. But while that routine makes up the entirety of "Poon Tang," it's just one part of "To Whoever It May Concern," which has Hollywood rapping multiple verses and singing multiple fun hooks and choruses.And yes, the "too hot to handle" line appeared in this song long before Bobby Brown got to it for his Ghostbusters song.

The Posse All-Stars Rap Classics album only features the Short Vocal Version that's on the B-side of this 12". It basically fades the song out super early, cutting in into less than half. The proper A-side version is a full seven minutes long, and the seven minute Instrumental Version is also included. And perhaps the best thing is neither version of this record is rare or hard to find. So if you're a serious head, you can get them both super cheap and easy. But you should at least have this one in your crates; it's a damn good time.

Jevin the Dude

Okay, here's an interesting EP by somebody entirely new. "Entirely new" meaning none of the other blogs have even discovered this guy yet. And sure, usually when I find myself checking out an artist none of the other blogs have ever featured, it's because they're terrible and I've gone far too deep down the rabbit hole of the internet. But no no, this guy hasn't been discovered yet, and his EP is actually pretty good. I mean, I'm not predicting he's gonna blow up and be huge... Because if I was going to seriously predict who's going to blow up, I'd put on my cynical hat and guess that, now that Kreayshawn's pregnant, her team's just going to take that girl who looked exactly like her in that music video and slide her into her spot like they're interchangeable mannequins.* But I at least expect to see this guy on NahRight, 2DopeBoyz and more of my Feedly list in future.

I'm talking about There Can Only Be One, the debut EP from Front Ground Entertainment by Jevin June, produced by somebody named Mad Knocks. Mad Knocks isn't credited anywhere on here; I had to do some internet sleuthing to figure out who actually made these beats. But he definitely recognition for this, since it's really the pairing that makes this EP work. Their styles really fit together.

It opens with "The One," which isn't the strongest song, but makes for a good intro with its big, royal horn sounds. I'm a sucker for those lush openers, going all the way back to "The Ruler's Back." Sure it's over-selling, but it's a lot of fun. "The Theory" hits the chipmunk soul button a little hard, but I can't deny that it sounds good. A couple of the other songs don't work quite as well, but everything here is at least interesting. The stand out track is "Knights With the King," and clearly Jevin realized this as well, as it's the one he shot a video for. 

And Jevin's got one of those flows that just makes everything sound easy, sounding very natural on the track like he belongs there. And lyrically, he's got a nice rhyme pattern. But here's where the road gets bumpy. He's got the voice, the structure, the flow - especially for a young cat - but the actual content of his lyrics are kind of a mess. And that might be fine for him, career-wise, since pop audiences clearly don't pay any attention into what's being said in the music they listen to anyway. But discriminating listeners are going to have some questions.

I mean, it's mostly just a lot of cliches strung together. He's "far from pop," "ran through your bitch," "so clairvoyant I can see you haters comin'," "pops champagne," "walked on the sun," "needs more money to cop these black Porches," etc etc. And I just took those all from the first song. There's never any clever lines, which is actually fine; because I think punchline rappers have worn out their welcome anyway. But there's nothing else interesting to take its place either. And it sounds alright because he has some nice multiple rhymes; but in terms substance, it's like you could write these songs with a randomizing computer program.

And sometimes it gets more awkward, like where he says, "Notorious, see me: the illest since B.I.G. No disrespect to the late great Wallace." Like why are you even bringing his name up if you're just going to put yourself on his level and then immediately backpedal? Just cut the line. And he constantly makes these non-sequitur sex references. "I need some bad brain," is a line from the first song. "I need me a freak, I need me a freak, some thorough bitches that suck vicious, that's addicted to fellatio feelings," is from his second. "My thoughts spillin', I so want you: sexy beast in high heels," is from his third - although to be fair, it actually fits the theme and context of the rest of the song in that case.  On four he says, "I need an orgy, sexual exploratory, got some stallions waitin' for me," And in the fifth, he says he needs, "a thick chick who takes a slow ride on the P. When she's done, she smiles and calls me God." That's every single song on this EP; and does anyone really want to hear that? Maybe save this stuff for your PlentyOfFish profile. They just sound like thoughts he should've kept in his subconscious. And you could argue that that's a potentially good way for a rapper to go, voicing the ideas that most people are afraid to; the unspoken, suppressed truths of the id. But there's nothing "Fight the Power" about throwing in an uncomfortable remark about who he wants to have touch his penis on every song.

But I'ma stop because I'm zeroing in on all the weakest points here. Honestly, most of his verses are just fine. Unremarkable, but also nothing wrong with them. And when combined with all of the other elements that he's got mastered, it still makes for a good listen. Especially if you don't pay super close attention.

I've got a CD here, but I'm not sure where any of you reading this could get a copy outside of probably a merch table at one of his shows. The push here seems to be to send you to just download this for free (it's available here), which is about right. Because I don't recommend this for a purchase, but I do for a free listen online. Especially since then you can just focus on the best songs, and those really do sound good. Honestly, that "Knights With the King" video should really get some blog attention, and I think both Jevin and Mad have the potential to advance a lot further in the industry. Especially if Jevin is willing to start going through his rhyme books for one last editorial pass.


*Oops, too late. That already happened.

RumpleTwoSkinz

Today I'm going to take a long-deserved look at (the only) two singles by The Rumpletilskinz. To put it dismissively, The Rumpletilskinz were The Leaders Of the New School protege "weed carrier" group. They made their first appearance on LONS's debut album, and came back again on their second. In between that time they were signed - let's face it - largely off the Leaders' buzz and released one album, What Is a Rumpletilskin?, which had these two singles. When the Leaders split, they 'Skinz were dropped and they were never heard from again. Well, collectively. There were a couple indie solo 12"s.

[Note: for the following five paragraphs - the indented blue ones - I go on kind of a rant on their name. It makes this post pretty long and is probably a little self-indulgent. So, it's up to you; but if you're not feeling it, you might want to skip down to where the formatting returns to normal for a more concise, solid read.]

I always thought these guys - Jeranimo, LS, Sha-Now and RPM - had one of the dumber group names in rap history.  I mean, first of all taking the name from a children's fairy tale character Rumpelstiltskin to a group whose angle seemed to be that they were the harder, "realer" version of LONS, which was more mainstream with their more fun and cartoonish personalities. Dinco was more upbeat, Busta was wild and eccentric and Charlie Brown was Charlie Fuckin' Brown. These guys brought more of a darker, slightly Onyx-ier tone to the music. And again, continuing with what's becoming the theme of the week for me: purer journeymen rap artists as opposed to their more colorful, media playing counterparts.

I mean, it always kinda made me wince when hip-hop groups started getting marketed to kids like Ninja Turtle toys, where each member has one defining, identifiable personality trait each. Genius is the leader, like Leonardo, Method Man is the angry one, like Raphael, ODB is Michelangelo, and so on. Then, they'd take on new personas when the first ones had already sold through... Meth became "Johnny Blaze," RZA became "Bobby Digital." Just like when the original wave of Batman figures had gotten old, so they'd release a second line with "Winter Knight Batman" in a white suit with skis or "Deep Sea Batman" with a Blue Suit and scuba gear. I'm going off on a real tanget here, so I'll reel it back in and get back to the Skinz. But you know what I mean, right? You've seen it. That's rap marketing, and it was at its worst, I think, in the 90s.

So, first of all, it's already hard trying to explain to your friends that you're buying a tape buy a crew named after Rumpelstiltskin because they're hard and real. Plus, there's the whole weak, lack of originality in modern hip-hoppers' penchant for taking their names from pop culture... I'm a fan of the Cella Dwellas, but I've always had to admit it was cheesy that they took their name from a silly Charles Band flick about a killer comic book and their individual names from another 70s horror flick and the silly bounty hunter from space in the Critters movies. What? What? was a silly name, and I can understand her impulse to change it as she got a little older, but Jean Grae naming herself after an X-Men comic is actually a slight step down in my opinion. And taking your name from drug dealers and foreign dictators isn't much better. I mean, what happened to naming yourself based on some aspect of yourself? And HOLY CRAP, I'm even further off on another tangent. So, reeling it back in again, because I really do have a lot to get to about The 'Skinz still.

So, okay, they're named after who they're named after, no more about that. But then on top of that, they're applying the "intentional misspelling" schtick to it, where you can't be sure they're doing it because they're just trying to show you how hip-hop they are, or if they just didn't know the proper spelling. And this was in '91/'93, you can't argue that they were doing it for SEO. But no, it didn't really get dumb until you heard their explanation for the name (thought up by Busta Rhymes, apparently). It might've been a bit clever if they were saying that they spun gold out of their lyrical wordplay, just like their namesake from the fairy tale. But no, according to their interview in The Source magazine (October '93 issue), it's actually meant to be read as a three word phrase. LS explained, "The beats are 'rump.' They're chunk fat 'rump.' It won't stop 'til' death. It's definitely deeper than the 'skin,' and the z makes it plural." Then Jeranimo (also a poor name choice) elaborated, "Everybody wants to be 'rump,' you know what I'm sayin'? Rump is a form of ghetto terminology for being the best at what you can do. 'Til death' means I love my music and I'm striving for longevity. 'Skin deep' because it's in the heart. It's sacred." See how the logo on the cover above helpfully separates the "Til" so you can see it as three words?

But apparently everybody loved this concept and was fully on board with using it as their name. I mean, they didn't even just use the name and move forward, they made it a huge issue. Their album was titled What Is a Rumpletilskin? and it opened with a minute long skit talking about the meaning of their name. Look at that 12" cover again. A big question mark is popping out of his cup thing because you're supposed to be wondering about the mystery of their name. It's one thing to have kind of a hokey name and keep it moving, but they're trying really hard to make you think about it constantly. That had to have worked against them, career-wise.

But moving past the questionable nature of their name, I actually think these guys deserved more, because they did some really nice work here. "Attitudes" is my favorite of the two. The production is pitch perfect, dark but not too moody, jazzy but not too fancy, with varying riffs from horns that sound like they've been stepped on and flattened. It's subtle and just sounds really good.  And they just landed on a really good concept for a song, with the hook that simply repeats, "My attitude is fucked up ...and real shitty!" I mean, I don't quite understand why it's titled "Attitudes" rather than "My Attitude," but whatever. It just captures that raw, rebellious attitude of youth music by ironically quoting what's surely been repeated to them their whole adolescent lives and turning it into an anthem. Everyone can relate to that... it just works perfectly as a hook. And while lyrically, their goal seems to be to pack their verses with as little substance as possible - I think they idea is that they're displaying their bad attitudes, but it doesn't really come off as much more than random rhyming words loosely strung together - it's refreshing to hear a more straight-forward, rugged alternative version of the LONS style.

The only disappointing aspect of this single is that there's not much to it. You get the Original Mix, a Clean Version and the Instrumental; and that's it. On the one hand, it does come in a pretty cool picture cover, but then again the comic book-style monster drawing gives the whole thing a high school horrorcore vibe that really doesn't fit the song at all.

Their second single I only have on CD-single, as you can see; but whichever version you get, it increases its value by having an exclusive remix not featured on the album. But, on the other hand, it's not as good a song. This one is called "Is It Alright?" It features the same kind of strained jazzy production, which, like all their other material, is handled but the 'Skinz own RPM. I'm surprised he didn't continue on after the group died, because I would've loved to hear more production like this behind other artists. Not that it was particularly original, but he was damn sure expert at it.

But this time they're going for a slightly softer feel - not actually soft, mind you, but less hard than "Attitudes." And this time the hook and song concept just doesn't stand out like their last single. It all sounds too generic. I know I was just kind of praising "generic" as a positive quality earlier, but it can definitely go too far. There's just nothing to really latch on to here. It reminds me of the disappointment I felt when I first What Is a Rumpletilskin? and I realized the reggae guy from the Leaders' songs wasn't actually a member of the group or featured here.

The remix helps a bit. It's better. It's a bit tougher and doesn't lean on a keyboard riff underlying the album version. Both versions are fine, though, and neither is amazing. But between the two, I give it to the remix, which also supplies a bit more energy. Considering these guys' style consists of shouting and twisting their voices constantly, you wouldn't think energy would be a problem for these guys, but it is. That's where they come up shorter than LONS, and it shows here more now that they don't have a phat hook and concept. Now you really feel how it's just a bunch of young guys with nto much to say.  Don't get me wrong... it's still pretty good. When you hear it, you'll say it's dope for sure. But then you probably won't bother to go back and relisten to it for a long time.

This single also includes both Instrumentals, an A Capella, as well as another album track called "Hudz," This one has a cooler, ever-changing production style that's really interesting. Overall, you can see why it wasn't chosen to be a single itself, but it's a pretty compelling listen instrumentally, and work to distinguish themselves more as individual stylists, compared to their other songs where they can sound like just an indeterminate number of guys. It actually makes a pretty good advertisement for the album if all you'd gotten was the single. Again, it's disappointing that RPM never broke out of confines of his group, because I feel like his work had a real future to it, even if their MCing didn't.

But either way, if you're a 90s head, these guys are going to be right up your alley. And their flows and production combined should make these must-haves, even if they were a little lyrically light. While their LONS connection certainly got them through the door, it's a shame they couldn't get out from under their protective wing fast enough to survive after it collapsed. Not that I could see a group like this surviving on to today (and again, I don't think their name did them any favors), but at least a little more from these guys would've been very welcome.