Tag Archives: De La Soul

“You’re the Best, Around…” (El Keter’s Favorite Albums of 2008, Day One)

Out of all the records I enjoyed during 2008 I chose twenty of them as my favorites.  I put them all in alphabetical order and wrote about them.  Here are the first five… In 1988 poet, teacher, philosopher and metaphysician Lawrence Krisna Parker described Hip-Hop’s talent pool as “a lot of suckers with colorful names.” He […]

No Refund, Exchange Only

I confess, I’m confused as to the current status of Carolinian Hip-Hop crew Little Brother. They’re a group I’ve long championed. Me and Emeyesi broke their first single in our region via mixtape and late-night radio spins. And we burned the shit out of their debut LP, giving it extra-special attention after […]

Mixtapes I Don’t Hate: 100dBs and DJ Mekalek

Yeah, it’s another one. And no, when I started this “Mixtapes I Don’t Hate” shit I never thought it would become this regular of a feature. But the sheer profuseness of original, diverse “mixtape” projects hitting the scene seems to me like a fantastic indicator of just how healthy Hip-Hop is as an […]

Records at Random Vol. 61 - Raekwon Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

Aside from all those mixtapes I’ve been blabbing about, a good portion of my Summer so far was spent revisiting old Hip-Hop albums. Having access to excessive amounts of digital storage and portable media players inspired me to replace the collection of cassette tapes languishing in a duffle bag in my bedroom with a […]

What’s More Expensive, a Laser, Life, a Time Machine, Or a Panda?

The term “throwback Rap” has become something of a byword, associated with brightly-colored hipster fashion, tight pants, retro-futuristic graphic tees and a couple of oft-profiled rappers fond of drum-machine beats and synthesizers. Being a fan of 808 kicks and stuttery sampled vocal hooks myself I really don’t have any sort of beef with that. […]