I'll admit, I've only Pharoahe Monch work I've really really listened to before Desire is The Extinction Agenda, but fucking hot damn. I just snagged that self-titled joint and Internal Affairs off of the albumbase, and will probably take a trip to the record store when I get out of this sweltering paradise called Oáhu.
Desire is the return of the heart and soul to hip-hop. It's funky, fresh, original, and damn refreshing. I didn't even know I was waiting for anything, but this is what I've been waiting for. The album is chock full of lyrical genius ("I'm the poetical pastor/ Slave to a label, but I own my masters", etc). I've been doing some reading, and dude's taken 8 years, either brainstorming or working at a steady pace (or waiting for labels to figure their shit out). Regardless, the time and effort certainly shows.
Desire is well put together, sonicly cohesive, and just generally well-produced. Only three of the joints are labeled as containing samples, and even those do well to keep the sample as just another voice in the mix (complementing original drums, bass, and other voices). Not to say that sample based composition is is any less work or less artistic, but you can almost feel the days they spent in the studio working on this shit.
I read the allmusic review, saw that Ryan Schreiber gave it a "best new fad" tag, --- ok, --- I just paused and read the review. They quoted the same line as me (except they misquoted it, adding a "still", ha) -- Anyways, Brian Howe gave the new !!! album an 8.0 and this shit a 7.9, which is so fucking arbitrary, but it still means I can't take him seriously. In a nutshell, if you're into hip hop, you'll probably dig this album. If not, it may turn you on to some new shit. I think it's the best release of the year so far.
Get commenty with the shit, allmusic and Howe aren't down with the Public Enemy cover, but I think it's pretty dope. Sure, Monch isn't Chuck D, but the instrumental is fresh, and he added a verse. So say what's on your mind... or does nobody read this shit yet?
2 comments:
Get your hands on a track called "The Truth" featuring Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli and Common. One of my bedrocks, it's a dope-ass cut.
yeah, that's a sick track. i've been listening to Internal Affairs quite a bit lately too. Preeetttty tight.
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