Reks is the rapper's rapper. That's the best way to describe him.
R.hythmatic E.ternal K.ing S.upreme marks the perfect follow-up to Reks' Grey Hairs, a record widly praised as being one of the best in 2008. And if you're going to follow up accolades of that magnitude on your next record, how else can you do it but to have Primo supply the boom bap from the start? That's what we have here. No self-indulgent intro, no filler. Just Hip Hop. And that Primo beat for "25th Hour"? Goddamn!! That's what Hip Hop is supposed to sound like.
Reks has lyrics and he's also supplied with the ability to deliver those lyrics with an unmatched flow. He rides over beats. And when you've got names like the aforementioned DJ Premier along with Pete Rock, The Alchemist, Statik Selektah and more, you're pretty much set.
The only drawback to this record is that it STARTS with "25th Hour", arguably the best track on the record. It's not that the other songs on R.E.K.S. are bad, it's simply that old adage "how do you top greatness?". Statik Selektah gives Reks some fire on "This or That" allowing Reks to rhyme furiously about his disgust with the state of Hip Hop. Reks gets introspective on "This Is Me" and "Mr. Nobody" while "Mascara (The Truth)" is an opportunity for the MC to speak on the state of black culture.
With this fire, there is inevitably going to be moments of cooling down, albeit very few on this record. "Limelight" is an interesting take on trying to achieve fame but the beat for the track doesn't seem to mesh well with Reks style. Hi-Tek's production does a similar thing on "The Wonder Years". Not that it's a terrible beat, but it almost feels like Reks has to alter his delivery to make it fit on the track. Of course, despite some of these small discretions, the record, as a whole, has massive replay potential. Go grab it ASAP.
Strong Arm Steady
Feb 23 2011 3:48PM
Posted 348 days 2 hrs 1 min ago
February Twenty Third Two Thousand and Eleven
It's heresy that a great underground/indie hip hop record has to stem from any one particular coast or another. That being said, there is a large contingent of underground hip hop heads who rarely look to the Left Coast to find hidden gems.
Yes, we all know the West has given way to N.W.A. (and subsequently Dre, Eazy E, Ice Cube, etc...), Snoop, The Game, as well as many other mainstream acts but if you look deep enough, you'll find some records worth getting hyped about. Arms & Hammers is one of those records.
While SAS' last record, In Search of Stoney Jackson, received critical acclaim in underground circles (due in no small part to production being handled solely by Madlib), Arms & Hammers is not a follow-up to sneeze at or to be shunned. Yes, the West Coast trio have recruited several different producers for this record, but those producers have laced SAS with some of the dopest Left Side beats this side of Andre Young.
"Trunk Music" featuring the aforementioned The Game hearkens back to the G Funk era where the system you had in your ride was made to blow out the neighborhood windows.
"Gangstas" is Strong Arm Steady's critique of faux-Gangster individuals who falsely try to spit about the very circumstances and situations that the trio grew up in.
Phil Da Agony (1/3 of SAS) described In Search of Stoney Jackson as the light and the goodness of everything around you and Arms & Hammers as the antithesis of that. Enjoy getting grimey on the Left Coast.
Passalacqua
Feb 8 2011 4:19PM
Posted 363 days 1 hr 30 mins ago
February Eighth Two Thousand and Eleven
Detroit meets England in this six song E.P. Fully produced by Dr. B and featuring two MCs: Mister and Blaksmith, Passalacqua brings smooth to another level.
Jazz, soul and harmony. Just a few of the words to describe what's encapsulated in these six tracks. Mister and Blaksmith know how to work these beats correct, riding them like lyrical longboards down a long hill of musicality.
My personal favorite is the title track, "Passalacqua". The beat has that real boom bap sound and some real smooth flute work. Mister opens up the track commenting on the irony of a rapper talking before spitting when an MCs job is to just spit. Cue Blaksmith to start rhyming in a double time not heard on any other track on this release. Mister follows suit in the second verse.
Of course, respect has to be paid to Dr. B. It's crazy to hear a dude able to craft quality boom bap type records when he lives across the Atlantic Ocean, thousands of miles from where Hip Hop was created. That just points to the type of artist the Doc is: one with great repsect for the art of Hip Hop.
The BEST part of this album? You can get it for free. Right now! Right here!
Reks is the rapper's rapper. That's the best way to describe him.
It's heresy that a great underground/indie hip hop record has to stem from any one particular coast or another. That being said, there is a large contingent of underground hip hop heads who rarely look to the Left Coast to find hidden gems.
Detroit meets England in this six song E.P. Fully produced by Dr. B and featuring two MCs: Mister and Blaksmith, Passalacqua brings smooth to another level.