Stew Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 I came here to say Cannibal Ox's "The Cold Vein" because it's easily my favorite hip-hop record of all-time. Glad someone else mentioned it already. Here's a link to the first track on record entitled "Iron Galaxy" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DVNwyCymUw I HATE pitchfork, but this review is actually pretty decent, this is just the conclusion of the review, click the link to read it in it's entirety : http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/1284-the-cold-vein/ a bit from wiki: and finally the album art and artists themselves the man behind the beats this is a must listen and must own for any fan of hip-hop. it honestly sounds like it was recorded and produced in deep space. i looooooooove love love love it. Wow man, Someone who loved "The Cold Vein" as much as i did. One of the beswt albums put out in the underground if you ask me. El-Producto (El-P) is the DJ who created the "Dark Beats" for this album.. Yeah, it sounds like it was recorded underwater in outerspace, crazy tracks that you just dont hear anywhere else. Its that ish everyone should have been listening to ten years ago. I can pop this album in and listen to it front to back without skipping a track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cooked Crack Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 I think there should be a general hip hop thread. Oh well here's a good hiphop blog. http://poisonousparagraphs.blogspot.com/ This guy has good taste in music and he reviews alot of albums. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 21, 2009 Author Share Posted May 21, 2009 Cunninlynguists "halfanimal"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6k5jwllFfA love the eminem sample...they are up there with the top tier MC's I've seen cunninglynguists getting a lot of love on this board recently, didn't know they were that popular/well-liked... deacon's one of the cats who used to post rhymes and battle on one of the sites I posted on years ago (Hip Hop Infinity though I was mostly posting on UGHH).. think he actually went down in the other semi-final matchup in a tournament I was in... The Goats. Tricks of the Shade and No Goats No Glory. They were compared to acts like Public Enemy and Cypress Hill. Probably why I liked them so much. Too bad they didn't last. Good luck finding a real copy since they've been out of print for over 12 years. Torrents are most likely the best way find these albums.Here some info on them: http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:apftxqt5ld0e~T1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Goats Just found they have a MS page. Kinda surprised since they broke up in 96'. http://www.myspace.com/thegoats1992 Nice mention, albums like this are why I made this post as I had forgotten about the goats and most cats probably haven't heard of them... I plan to check out the albums you mentioned, I only remember hearing them on the zebra head sountrack... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 22, 2009 Author Share Posted May 22, 2009 Been posting mostly old school so far so here's a couple underground albums from this decade: 1.) Non Phixion - The Future is Now For fans of the in your face hardcore lyrics (think MOP, Screwball, etc.) with a bit better vocab and political overtures, this is a good listen. The production, featuring the likes of Pete Rock, Primo, Large Pro, the Beatnuts, and Necro starts off with a bang through the first half of the album though it tails off midway through. Overall, it's a pretty good album with decent replay value. 2.) Styles of Beyond - 2000 Fold Styles of Beyond probably gained the most recognition from their collaborating for a number of songs on the Fort Minor project with Mike Shinoda a few years ago but they've been in the game since the late 90s. 2000 Fold was their debut album and Ryu and Tak's smooth styles and flows complement each other perfectly throughout the album. The production's decent, nothing great but solid beats for the most part with a distinct sound throughout the album. Part II Endangered Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buenosdiaz Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 new guy soulja boy lol umm let me go through my itunes this weekend and i'll hook yall up with some tunes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#98QBKiller Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Do you guys think that Atmosphere is too mainstream to be considered "lesser known?" I haven't been keeping up with underground hip hop for a few years now but I will be checking out a few of these. Some of them I recognize though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warpath11 Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Not sure if he is considered lesser known but I have been a fan of R.A. the Rugged Man for a while now. R.A. is one of the few MC's that you can guarantee his rhymes are real life - as sick as it might sound. When asked about R.A., Biggie Smalls was once quoted as saying "I thought I was the illest." He was banned from performing live in the US for much of the mid 90’s On the Block: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9UUC3R08Xs Uncommon Valor with Jedi Mind Tricks (first verse is Vinnie Paz from JMT) the rest is RA pretty sick flow IMO and it is a true story of his father who was a Vietnam war vet: Rap for Real with Assassin (some french rapper): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMgYMVw0kWg&feature=related Give it Up w/ Wu-Tang: Kills the first verse The Renaissance feat. Hell Razah, Tragedy Khadafi, Timbo King: once again RA destroys the last verse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 22, 2009 Author Share Posted May 22, 2009 Atmosphere and Ra the Rugged Man certainly qualify as lesser known for what I intended for this post... I just didn't want people posting albums like The Chronic, Illmatic, Ready to Die, etc. that everyone knows about... Atmosphere is decent in my book and I own one of their albums (the group is basically just slug and ant, right?) but the cat who I'm digging from their crew is Brother Ali and him and Ant have made a lot of bangers... Ali is one of the nicest mcs in the game the past 5 years that I've heard.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#98QBKiller Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Atmosphere and Ra the Rugged Man certainly qualify as lesser known for what I intended for this post... I just didn't want people posting albums like The Chronic, Illmatic, Ready to Die, etc. that everyone knows about...Atmosphere is decent in my book and I own one of their albums (the group is basically just slug and ant, right?) but the cat who I'm digging from their crew is Brother Ali and him and Ant have made a lot of bangers... Ali is one of the nicest mcs in the game the past 5 years that I've heard.. Yep Atmosphere is considered to be mainly just Slug and Ant. I haven't heard any of Ali's solo stuff, I might have to check that out. Another artist I forgot to mention is Talib Kweli, he was scheduled to play here this week with Dead Prez but I didn't get to see him because I had family in town...I heard someone say that the date was moved but I'll need to look into that. I know Talib is kind of in the mainstream a little more now (although his stuff is lesser known that real mainstream/some of the classic albums) but his music is real. I'm also a big fan of Def Poetry and Talib (and Mos Def of course) are big in the poetry slam circuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 22, 2009 Author Share Posted May 22, 2009 Yep Atmosphere is considered to be mainly just Slug and Ant. I haven't heard any of Ali's solo stuff, I might have to check that out. Definitely worth checking out. I own 2 Ali releases (Shadows on the Sun and the Champion EP) and would recommend both, especially the champion joint. He's also got another EP length CD he put out recently that sounded dope from what I heard as well as another solo album that I wasn't feeling as much upon first listen. Some Ali songs: (from the Champion CD) Sleepwalker (from Shadows on the Sun) Song with slug (from his newest full-length solo album) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cooked Crack Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 new guy soulja boy Gucci bandana is the true essence of hip hop. I think it's hard to put up lesser know albums on the internet. All the albums here I've heard about. I have yet to see something that I aint never checked. If you've dugg to find these artist chances are you found others in your process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 25, 2009 Author Share Posted May 25, 2009 Count Bass D - Dwight Spitz Not your conventional hip hop album, this album features about 24 mostly short tracks, a handful without lyrics, that blend well for the most part from one track to the next. The raps are decent and don't detract from the album, but the smooth production is what carries it, making it a solid listen, with some skippable tracks scattered throughout. Dwight Spitz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sir Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 I second a lot of the ones that have already been mentioned. Here's a few that some of you may not have heard. Louis Logic - Sin-A-Matic Masta Killa - No Said Date Last Emperor - Music, Magic, Myth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sir Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 J-Live - All of the Above J-Live - The Best Part Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skin Deep Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 Some interesting English hip-hop. The Streets first album 'Original Pirate Material' was pretty unique when it came out in '02. It almost sounds funny, but his confident lyricism shows he's for real, he just has a sense of humor. Has It Come To This? Geezers Need Excitement Lets Push Things Forward Dont Mug Yourself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Sassy Molassy Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 Atmosphere and Ra the Rugged Man certainly qualify as lesser known for what I intended for this post... I just didn't want people posting albums like The Chronic, Illmatic, Ready to Die, etc. that everyone knows about...Atmosphere is decent in my book and I own one of their albums (the group is basically just slug and ant, right?) but the cat who I'm digging from their crew is Brother Ali and him and Ant have made a lot of bangers... Ali is one of the nicest mcs in the game the past 5 years that I've heard.. Atmosphere is dope. I love Headshots: Se7en. One of my favorite hip-hop albums ever. Also Ali is pretty awesome, big fan of his. Count Bass D - Dwight SpitzNot your conventional hip hop album, this album features about 24 mostly short tracks, a handful without lyrics, that blend well for the most part from one track to the next. The raps are decent and don't detract from the album, but the smooth production is what carries it, making it a solid listen, with some skippable tracks scattered throughout. Dwight Spitz :applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause: Thank you for posting Dwight Spitz! Count Bass-D is way underrated. Anyway, my list would be: Binary Star - Masters of the Universe Blu & Exile - Below The Heavens Since Deltron 3030 was already mention, let me also mention: Del The Funky Homosapien - 11th Hour. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AYtqQefozA Felt - A Tribute To Lisa Bonet Handsome Boy Modeling School - White People, and So...How's your Girl? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6oa8RV7c5g&feature=related Hieroglyphics - Full Circle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2qh4gxv5m8 Josh Martinez - Midfriff Music MF DOOM - MM...Food? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcRmRkcMlkw Mr. Lif - Mo' Mega http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5PElv46G1E Local Cats here, Panacea - Scenic Route Sorry, I gave a pretty long list. But I can't mention one without mentioning some of the others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 26, 2009 Author Share Posted May 26, 2009 Some good suggestions recently. I like J-live and Last Emp though I don't think either has made quite as good an album as they're capable of (though the best part is pretty good). I definitely agree with the binary star mention as well and think one be lo has been one of the better mcs over the past 10 years. As for the English hip hop, I'll have to check it out when I get a few minutes. I used to know a bunch of cats overseas, mainly Sweden, who were recording and some were pretty talented including the one producer. I'm gonna throw up another personal favorite: Beatnuts - Beatnuts (aka Street Level) Best album I've heard from the beatnuts, this full length CD was released in 94 and is a great listen from start to finish. The production carries the album with the tracks meshing well together. The flows and lyrics are decent as well with Juju in particular contributing some solid verses and most of the hooks are done well, adding to the replay value for this album. If you're looking for a good party and do whatever type album to throw in, this should do the trick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegionOfDoom Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 Hey guys have any of you heard of this guy? I saw him live last week and he was on point. So I looked around and only saw a few you tube links. Shawn Struggle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 Artist's dont tell the whole tale though. Much like Guru has Premier, a lot of other artist's have quality dj's and there are a buch of quality Dj's in the underground that shine as well without lyricist's. El Producto was already mentioned... one of my personal favorates, and Ive already said RJD2, who honestly has fallen off a little in his more recent indi attempts, but others like Blockhead, DJ Shadow (love the track organ doner), Wax Tailor, Quazimoto, MF when he produces his own beats like in "Monkey Suit" or "Accordian". Again, Im at work so I wont be able to throw up links right now, if anyone reads this and can lend a hand that would be a up. Some others real quick are Omega One, Quantic, Bonobo, The Nucc, ect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sir Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 Anyone listen to Sage Francis at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurseReversed Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 I like the boot camp click but my favorite album out of that group has always been: OGC - Da Storm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 Skin Deep, I just quickly checked out the joints you posted from that English group but wasn't feeling them upon a quick listen. As for overseas hip hop, here's some cats I used to know that are pretty good and probably would have more crossover appeal into US hip hop. The one cat V-Zilla's from Houston but the rest are from Sweden. I think this should also satisfy Cooked Crack's stipulation of truly lesser known artists. The Narcs featuring V-Zilla - From Houston to Stocktown some more joints from V-Zilla aka VG Skillz: Hot Rhymes Do do da da Anyone listen to Sage Francis at all? I don't listen to Sage but have heard some of his stuff years ago and have a song of his on an old mixtape. IIRC, he's one of the Boston area (including CT and RI) cats. He was aight, certainly much better than most of the Anticon stuff I think he sometimes got lumped in with due to somewhat similar styles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#98QBKiller Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Definitely worth checking out. I own 2 Ali releases (Shadows on the Sun and the Champion EP) and would recommend both, especially the champion joint. He's also got another EP length CD he put out recently that sounded dope from what I heard as well as another solo album that I wasn't feeling as much upon first listen.Some Ali songs: (from the Champion CD) Sleepwalker (from Shadows on the Sun) Song with slug (from his newest full-length solo album) Those songs on Champion are the **** man. I might have to check that out. I'll give the others a listen a little later. Thanks for hooking me up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Villi Phanatic Posted May 31, 2009 Author Share Posted May 31, 2009 A couple more albums from the 90s: Artifacts - Between A Rock And A Hard Place A classic from the early to mid 90s golden era of hip hop, this album is the debut for the Artifacts group consisting of rappers Tame One and El Da Sensai. The production is very good throughout with few skippable tracks and lots of head nodding beats. Tame and El complement the beats nicely making for a good listen with good replay value. "Wrong Side of the Tracks" Saukrates - The Underground Tapes This album is a collection of tracks featuring varying styles from Saukrates as well as him flipping on different topics including storytelling and braggadocios rhyming. The album also features a number of talented guests (Common, Masta Ace, Heltah Skeltah, Pharaoh Monche, and OC). Overall, it's a solid listen with decent production and showcasing pretty good lyrics and skills on the mic from Saukrates. "Money or Love" "Check for Me" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abdcskins Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 I prefer "That's Them" over "Between A Rock and a Hard Place." Both are excellent albums though. I wish I had more time to post songs and stuff but I see some excellent picks in here. Count Bass D- Dwight Spitz is nice, was bumping that the other day. Binary Star- Masters of the Universe is a classic to me. The Cold Vein, epic, I dig El-P's abrasive and distorted sound, have ever since Funcrusher Plus. My picks of the day: Planet Asia & DJ Muggs- Pain Language Elzhi- The Preface Madlib and J Dilla- Jaylib(excellent production on this) All Natural- Second Nature L'Roneous da Versifier- Imaginarium(spectacular lyricism on this) And my diggin in the crates pick of the day: Prophetix- High Risk. Group from Atlanta, beats are funky and kinda jazzy. Solid emceeing. A nice gem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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