De La Soul – De La Soul Is Dead 2xLP

Chrysalis / AOI  (2023, Reissue) 

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for twenty-five plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

When I wrote about 3 Feet High and Rising, I had mentioned how I had a complicated relationship with De La Soul, never having liked them quite as much as I felt I was supposed to.  With the reissues coming out at affordable prices, I figured I would pick up the important ones and try to give them really, dedicated listens.  I really wanted to figure out if I had been missing something all of these years.  The short version of the story is that I have been missing some things, but others I had pegged from day one.

De La Soul is Dead is a different album than 3 Feet High and Rising.  The beats are less innovative and I think things feel a bit more cohesive to me as a result.  Again, I have a much deeper appreciation for 3 Feet these days and it has some incredible songs on it, but De La Soul is Dead speaks to me more.  The production is a little darker and harder, but in no way is it actually dark or hard, if that makes any sense.  Lyrically, they took a pretty big leap forward and the flows of everyone are more dynamic, while still maintaining that laid back groove that has always been their hallmark.

That said, much like on their debut, the skits on this album drive me crazy.  They are such momentum killers and they unnecessarily drag out the album.  I know they tell a story and I also know a lot of people really love them as they were very inventive at the time.  But I can't think of a single album that was ever made better by one skit, let alone a dozen of them. Cut out the fat and this is a much, much better album, at least when it comes to what I want to hear.  But at the end of the day, the actual songs on here do make this a great album and one that I wish I had spent more time with back in the 90s.

De La Soul – De La Soul Is Dead:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_l3G5nIesO1UwClQQTPHA5U0-50etHChTA

208 - Nearby LP

Big Neck (2023)

As soon as you put the needle on this record, you are immediately blown back by a massive wave of swirling, distorted guitar and screaming vocals.  Typically, if you are me, that's about the time where I am already checking out.  Loud screaming isn't usually my bag, but there's something about 208 that differentiates them from your typical howlers.

Immediately, I'm flashing back to the mid 90s when I was finding my way around the sort of punk and indie rock I wanted to listen to and I stumbled into buying a couple of godheadSilo albums.  That was a band pushing the extreme of decibel containment on a recorded medium, but I was nevertheless drawn to their energy and craziness.  208 has a similar vibe to them, just pushing everything into the red for the sake of it.

The other thing this record has going for it is a propulsive, stumping rhythm.  There's a bluesy undercurrent that reminds me a bit of the first Black-Eyed Snakes album, another band that was able to capture lightning in a bottle.  Combining these elements creates an album that at first brush seems way outside of my wheelhouse, but as you peel back the layers, they're using a lot of the same ingredients that have drawn me to others.

208 - Nearby:
https://bigneckrecords1.bandcamp.com/album/nearby

Brothers Uv Da Blakmarket – Ruff Life LP

Select (1992)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for twenty-five plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

Brothers Uv Da Blakmarket are another one of those groups that I discovered recently just digging around to see what hip hop records were released in the early 90s.  Ruff Life is the groups only album and came out in 1992 on Select records.  They're from Paterson, NJ and have a vague alliance with Naughty By Nature and The Flavor Unit.  They aren't a group I remember hearing about back in 1992.  I don't recall ever seeing them on Yo! MTV Raps and based on the fact that I lived in rural Sussex County, the fact that this group was from New Jersey didn't help elevate their visibility to me.  I only really ever had access to The Source and Yo.

I am glad that I discovered them finally.  Ruff Life is a really strong record.  The production is great, classic early 90s Hip Hop.  It's fit in nicely right next to anything of the era, particularly if you enjoy the sort of production techniques that defined the Flavor Unit.  You can definitely hear Naughty By Nature influence on the beats, though maybe not as much lyrically.

Cool Money Cee may not be as lyrically as intense as Treach, and might not have the most complicated or rapid fire flow, but he holds his own just fine.  He's primarily a storyteller at heart and while he might not be playing off of crazy internal rhyme schemes, he works narratives better than many from that era. 

All in all, it's just a fun, solid record.  Is it going to be your new favorite album?  Probably not, but if you like golden era hip hop, I just cannot fathom anyone not liking this.

Brothers Uv Da Blakmarket – Ruff Life:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-LxPAhIIMcilgvzBA6BnbAPtvkxrw86k

The Drolls - Novelty Rock Monthly Singles Club, Vol. One 7" - Café Au Lait Vinyl (/250)

Snappy Little Numbers (2023)

This 7" is volume number one of a one hundred percent confirmed monthly series where The Drolls are writing songs in the style of other bands.  The first fifty of them come with a nifty, hand crafted Drolls 45 adapter.  Very swank.  On this record itself we have two bands that I'm not sure I envisioned being paired together, but perhaps that's my lack of imagination showing.  MC5 and Guided By Voices are the subjects for volume one and The Drolls have delivered two songs that each band would be proud to call their own.

The MC5 inspired song is "Kick Out The Jammies," a profanity laced ode to not going out, staying home and being comfortable.  It's remarkable how The Drolls captured the spirit of those old MC5 songs on this.  There's the same sort of heavy, garage-influenced guitar riffing, a pounding, propulsive rhythm section and an appropriately screeching guitar solo tightly packaged into a sub-three minute song.  Oh, and it's about pajamas and not wanting to leave the house. Perfect.

On the B side we have "I am a Data Scientist," which is meant to evoke the feelings of listening to a Guided By Voices song.  Now, there are approximately five hundred thousand Guided By Voices songs I have not heard, so I'm not exactly sure where in the catalog they are pulling this particular influence from, but this does sound closer to a traditional Drolls song.  It's on the slower side of the spectrum, with maybe "Before The Fall" being the song I could come the closest to comparing it with, but "I am a Data Scientist" is still has a unique enough sound that you can tell the band is attempting something different. Of the two songs, this is the one I personally like the best.

This was a fun record and luckily the band and label have made it very clear that this is the first of many years worth of 7"s paying homage to various bands.  There's absolutely no ambiguity whatsoever that every single month for the foreseeable future there will definitely be a new Drolls 7" released in this same vein.  There is no chance whatsoever that this is a one time release.  Promise.  While no one has told me personally, I assume that June's volume two will feature songs in the style of Boston and Gorilla Biscuits.  I'm also fairly certain that July will pay tribute to the musical stylings of The Locust and Wang Chung.  I don't know about you, but I'm counting the seconds until those records are released.  I've started counting now.

The Drolls - Novelty Rock Monthly Singles Club, Vol. One:
https://snappylittlenumbers.bandcamp.com/album/novelty-rock-monthly-singles-club-vol-one

Record Store Day Haul #2: The Dismemberment Plan - Change LP - Blue Vinyl (/2100)

Partisan (2023, Reissue)

The second and final Record Store Day release I picked up this year was The Dismemberment Plan's fourth album, change.  This one wasn't available in-store the day I went, so I had to pick it up online when leftovers were put up for sale the next day.  I don't even remember what store I picked it up from.  Port of Sound, I think?  Anyway, it wasn't tough to track down and I ended up seeing it for sale on multiple sites that day.

After the tour de force that was Emergency & I, folks were understandably pretty psyched for the follow up.  I've always liked Change and thought it was a good record, but it kind of isn't able to hold a candle to Emergency & I.  The songs are all good, if not a bit mellower than the ones on their previous outing in general.  For me, "Pay For The Piano" is the standout as it gets the most raucous of the bunch, but again, every song is good.

I do find it kind of off that the first two Dismemberment Plan records have never been released on vinyl.  Even change had previously been released in 2014, I just hadn't picked it up at the time.  I'd like to see the other ones get the treatment, even though, much like Change, they can't really compare to Emergency & I either.  Sometimes it's tough when a band has a true classic in their catalog like that.

The Dismemberment Plan - Change:

 

Record Store Day Haul #1: K-Solo - Tell The World My Name LP - Yellow Vinyl (/1800)

Real Gone Music/Atlantic (2023, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for twenty-five plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

Calling anything Record Store Day related a 'haul' this year is a pretty misleading.  I only added two new records to my collection this year and only got one of them in a store.  The one I'll post about on Friday had to be mail ordered the day after.  But this K-Solo record is the one I wanted the most and was the one I was able to pick up at Factory Records in Dover on the big day.

When I was younger, I only had K-Solo's second record, Time's Up.  It wasn't until many years later that I was able to backtrack and pick up a copy of his debut.  And I'll be honest, the copy that I picked up wasn't in the best condition in the world, so it was nice to see that it would finally be reissued.  It's definitely a fun record to listen to, especially as the bulk of the production was handled by Parrish from EPMD, aside from a song handled by Erick, so it was an all Hit Squad affair. For 1990, the beats are great and doesn't sound old the way some other records of that era do.

K-Solo can also handle his own on the microphone.  If anything, I think the main issue is he's in a crew with some pretty incredible MCs.  EPMD are great, Das EFX are completely insane and few can hold their own with Redman, so K-Solo probably was going top be a little overshadowed being surrounded by talent like that.  So maybe this isn't a must hear classic in comparison, but it's still a great listen that can hang with all but the most elite hip hop albums that came out in 1990.

K-Solo - Tell The World My Name:

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lW2MJ0vsQ5lEIIkCkqqDcxg5CK-K1vD34

Pollen - Chip LP - Silver Vinyl (/200)

President Gator (2022, Reissue)

Originally released in 1999, Chip was the final full length released by Pollen, a band that I really dug at the time.  This album came out a couple of years after Peach Tree, which was (and is) my favorite album of theirs.  By the time Chip came out, the band was no longer on Wind-Up and had relocated to Fueled By Ramen records.  I do remember being quite excited that the record was coming out, but when I did pick it up, it didn't really do anything for me.  I likely listened to it a few times and just filed it away, preferring to listen to Peach Tree again if I needed a Pollen fix.

Looking back on it many years later, I have no idea why I didn't listen to Chip all that much.  When it was announced that Pollen was reissuing this record, I figured I should pick it up.  After all, I still had the CD and did want to put together a complete Pollen collection on vinyl if possible (Still waiting on their first album Bluette).  When I listened to this album again for the first time in decades, the only thing I could really think was that it sounds pretty great.  

It is a strong record that isn't all that dissimilar from Peach Tree at the end of the day.  The songs on here are just as catchy, with lots of great hooks and the sort of big, fat guitar sound that I went crazy for in the late 90s.  It's honestly kind of perplexing that I didn't really get it at the time and I'm glad I ended up grabbing this as it's allowed me to reconnect with an album that I very unfairly didn't give the time that it deserved.

Pollen - Chip:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kV-E6l0K8evh69GlUz0LgQbLB2EwoJZKw

Eazy-E - Eazy-Duz-It / 5150 Home 4 Tha Sick 2xLP

Priority / Ruthless (2002, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for twenty-five plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

While I have always enjoyed NWA, the various members solo work has been a mixed bag.  Of course, Ice Cube wins that contest hands down as he has three incredible LPs and a great EP.  MC Ren put out an EP that I really liked, but then I never got into any of his full lengths.  I bought The Chronic by Dr. Dre the week it came out (in a CD longbox) and while I can't say I thought it was bad, I lost interest in it very quickly and I grew to resent it as I tend to think that's the record that ended up killing the Golden Era of hip hop (it's a long story, but I have my reasons).

Eazy-E was my least favorite member of NWA, plus he ended up being the punching bag of Cube and Dre as they left the group.  I never had Eazy-Duz-It when it originally came out, but I did have the 5150 Home 4 Tha Sick EP, based on the strength of seeing the video for "Only If You Want It."  I ended up getting the CD of Eazy-Duz-It for free at some point during my tenure in the music biz.  It made the most sense to just grab this version of the vinyl as it had both in one convenient place.

That said, I have no idea how often I'll actually listen to it.  Eazy-Duz-It sounds about ten thousand years old.  It's crazy how primitive the beats sound, even compared to Straight Outta Compton.  Eazy was never the most gifted on the microphone, but luckily Ren shows up on three of the tracks to save the day.  It's still 5150 that's the real draw for me, mostly because of the production.  Apparently Naughty By Nature actually produced "Only If You Want It," which is something I didn't realize back then and it's the best non-NWA song Eazy ever did.  It takes advantage of his cadence better than most songs, but even then, it can come close to being annoying by the end of the song.

As I write this, I'm trying to figure out why I bought it.  I think it was mostly just because I had the CD and wanted to replace it with the vinyl.  These releases haven't aged that well, but I still think it's better to have the vinyl than a promo CD from twenty years ago.

Eazy-E

Eazy-Duz-It: 

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_njH2ZYth0IslcKXXYFG3bXrx7HPkfaP2E

5150 Home 4 Tha Sick:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mngg7-H53TKleIfIIPvqKku4D6Knv9PgA

Replica City - Last Rights Flexi 7"

Snappy Little Numbers (2023)

When I first saw the artwork for this flexi 7", coupled with the name of the song, I have to admit that I did sort of anticipate some yelling, hooting and hollering.  What I'm getting at is I expected it to lean on the hardcore side of things, but I'm happy to report, I was wrong.

I feel like I haven't heard something like this in a few decades.  From the moment the one and only song, "Last Rights" starts playing, I'm instantly transported back to the mid 90s, when I started to discover bands like Boys Life and Blueprint.  Melancholy rock.  Emo? Maybe, though I always felt that term was thrown around a little cavalierly in the 90s (and thrown around with blatant disregard after that).  But for me, Replica City have thread the needle perfectly, combining the nostalgic feeling I have for a band like Boys Life with a hint of a band like The Estranged thrown in for good measure.

"Last Rights" is the song on the flexi, but over on ye olde Bandcamp, there's two more songs that are every bit as good.  Had these two songs been added and a vinyl 7" been released with all three, that would have been a lovely moment that transported me right back to 1995.  But even as is, "Last Rights" is the best song of the three and is absolutely worth picking up in its current, flexible format.  I hope to hear more from these guys.

Replica City - Last Rights Flexi 7":
https://snappylittlenumbers.bandcamp.com/album/last-rites

The Karl Hendricks Trio - Declare Your Weapons LP

Merge (1998)

Here it is, the last Karl Hendricks full length that I needed to pick up on vinyl.  Sadly, 2003's The Jerks Win Again and 2007's The World Says only came out on CD, so until someone decides to press them, I'm all caught up on Karl Hendricks vinyl aside from a split 7" that I've been lazy about picking up.  And it feels good to have all of these records finally.  While I have had the CDs for ages, there's just something different about being able to listen to them on a turntable.

If there's one thing that you can say about Karl and company is that they are nothing if not incredibly consistent.  Their records mostly sound the same from album to album, and in this case I mean that as a huge compliment.  They were never a group that worked well within a 'recommended if you like' culture.  They always just made the sort of music they wanted to make and didn't ever really fit in with the popular sounds of any era that they put out an album during.  But while they may not have had the largest fanbase or the flashiest sound, they just cranked out album after album after album of incredible songs.  Declare Your Weapons is no exception.

As with most Karl records, I tend to favor the faster songs like "A Letter To The Coach," "The Policeman's Not Your Friend" and "The Smile That Made You Give Up."  That said, when Mr. Hendricks is feeling melancholy there are few songwriters that can hit you right in the guts the same way he can.  Sound-wsie, there's nothing 'emo' about The Karl Hendricks Trio, but if you're looking that can weave real emotion and pain into their songs, Karl is better at it than most.

Another great record by one of my favorite, if not somewhat overlooked, bands.  People really need to have more Karl Hendricks Trio records in their collection, and while I don't know that I'd recommend Declare Your Weapons as the first one they should pick up, it should definitely end up on their shelf after grabbing a few of the others.

The Karl Hendricks Trio - Declare Your Weapons:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_muZUn-k3iX-FJwIE2fkbDbXH_hO2Z_PO0

OFTB - Straight Up Watts LP

Big Beat (1992)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for twenty-five plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

Operation From The Bottom, or OFTB, were a gangster rap group from Watts, CA.  Straight Up Watts was their only full length album in the 90s, though they put out a few singles and made some compilation appearances before the decade was over.  I had never heard of these guys until somewhat recently when I was digging around for something new (but old) to listen to.  It's a solid record, but it's difficult to listen to without making comparisons to other West Coast hip hop that was coming out at the same time.

The easiest one to make is to NWA.  Subject matter is similar, beats are not too different from what NWA was working with on Straight Outta Compton, but are a little more advanced, from a technology perspective anyway.  The beats sound less old, but I couldn't call them better, if that makes any sense.  On top of that one of the guys in the group sounds just like MC Ren.  Not at the same lyrical level or anything, but the tone of his voice and inflections are eerily similar to Ren.

Ultimately, this is a fun listen.  It captures West Coast hip hop before it was completely transformed into g funk land.  I like this sort of thing way more than I like The Chronic or any of the soundalikes that spawned in its wake.  This feels more like the path that Ice Cube was forging with Da Lench Mob.  I can't say this is elite, but it's pretty good and was worth it to me to add to the collection.

OFTB - Straight Up Watts:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF-JoktnEEaXNFtdL8nMlNdC

Samiam - Stowaway - Sea Blue And Aqua Blue With Bone And Yellow Splatter Vinyl (/300)

Pure Noise (2023)

First of all, things are starting to get a little out of hand naming these vinyl variants.  Bone splatter?  It looks like white to me.  I mean, it barely looks like white if you look really close.  This particular variant was limited to 300 copies and was one of several variants released.  By the time I went to buy, this was the best looking one left, but I'm not getting any others.  As I've mentioned, with a few exceptions, I'm really trying to not own multiple copies of the same record, so this one will do.

Samiam is a band that I got into later than most people, but are a band I really ended up enjoying.  This is their first full length since Trips came out in 2011 and it's lovely.  The first few times I listened to it, I wasn't sure that I liked it.  But that was primarily because I was listening to it while I was working and was being too strongly influenced by the first song, "Lake Speed."  It's too fast and shouty and lacks the melodic vibe that makes Samiam such a great band.  There's something to be said about picking the right opening track, and I'm not sure this was the correct choice.

The rest of the album is quite nice.  Catchy songs, with Sergie's excellent guitar work topped with lots of melodic vocal harmonies.  It's really a perfect blend of the sort of thing that I tend to like to listen to.  I can't say that 2023 has been knocking my socks off with new releases so far this year, but Stowaway breaks through.  It might not sound like anything fresh, new or exciting, but that's not what I want from this band.  I want Samiam to sound like Samiam, and thankfully, they still do.

Samiam - Stowaway:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nQtTTe2Kied8o4B4e6M8bu2h7FLTqUYhU