I'm A Slacker

In the words of Tecca Nina, I'm a slacker. I recently realized that I haven't posted on this blog since February 24th, and although I've been busy as fuck, I still feel guilty. Since starting the new Uni year I've had no time to keep up with the important things in life like buying beats and posting blog articles. Although I haven't been able to go out hunting for discs myself in a while, Bullant has been making sure the flow hasn't dried up for me. So, for this post I'll just pick 5 of the latest CD's I've got my hands on, give my 2 cents on each and upload a track for you all to check out, if you're interested.

Tech N9ne - Anghellic First up, I finally got round to picking up a copy of the self proclaimed Kansas City king's 'Anghellic' album that dropped in 2002 on Strange Music. As anyone who's familar with Tech N9ne's work would already know, listening to a Tecca Nina album is a unique experience, and not one that I recommend to anyone who finds it hard to get into music that's straight out of left field. With one of the dopest flow's known to man and incredible production backing him up, I'm yet to hear a Tech N9ne album I haven't loved, and this release is no different. The album kicks off with a bang in the form of 'Devil Boy', then just a few tracks later listeners are greeted by the Halloween theme song that Nina utilises well in 'Psycho Bitch', a sick track that is all about exactly what the title claims- a psycho bitch. Other stand out tracks include 'It's Alive', 'Who You Came To See', 'F.T.I', 'God Complex' and the the cult classic 'Einstein, Tech N9ne'. Although I still prefer 'Absolute Power' and Tech's latest effort 'EverReady', this was still money well spent.


187 Fac - Fac Not Fiction In 1997, under the watchful eye of Bay Area hip hop legend Spice 1, the duo consisting of G-Nut and Den-Fenn (187 Fac) dropped their 'Fac Not Fiction' album on Penalty Recordings. This gangsta duo have free flowing rhymes and have appeared on albums such as the 'America Is Dying Slowly ' compilation, Mac Dre's 'The Rompilation' and the SCC presents 'Murder Squad' album, amongst others. With funky production from the likes of Mike Mosely and Ant Banks, and with Spice 1 overlooking the project, there was never going to be any doubt in terms of what listeners could expect with this album, good ol' fashioned funky gangsta rap. As I previously mentioned in my dope duo's post, one of the keys to making dope combo's is the rappers' abilities to switch in and out of each others verses at ease - a quality that these Bay area gangstas have no problem with. Although there are a whole bunch of tracks I could of uploaded, I went with 'All Head No Body' on the strength of it featuring B-Legit, Spice 1, Vidal, Gangsta P and the now incarcerated Big Lurch.


Funky Aztecs - Chicano Blues Hailing from the Northern California hip hop heartland of Vallejo, Funky Aztecs dropped their debut album, 'Chicano Blues', in 1992 on TNT/Par Records. Led by frontman, the Oakland born Merciless, this pioneering chicano hip hop group deliver hard hitting political and gangsta rhymes throughout their work, both in Spanish and in English. Some of the stand out tracks on this album include 'Straight Up Loco', 'Muthafucka', 'Nothing Else Matters' and 'Salsa Con Soulfood' featuring Digital Underground's Money B and Tupac Shakur. After this album came out, the group went on to drop 'Day Of The Dead' in 1996, 'Addicted' in 1999, 'Real Tales of Funky Aztecs' in 2000 and then they released a greatest hits album and a re-issue of their debut, both on 40 Ounce Records. Merciless has gone on to being a member of Dope House Records' Lone Star Ridaz that has released 3 albums, Merciless also took a forefront role on Baby Beesh's 'Ultimate Cartel', while at the same time working hard as a solo artist.


Ganksta Gank - Me And My Killaz A while ago I picked up an album called 'Come Into My World' by a Detroit gangster group called Gank Move, at the time of ordering it I knew nothing about them, but I was happy with what I heard once the CD came in. I hadn't put much thought into the group in a while but recently Bullant picked up a disc for me by Ganksta Gank, album title being 'Me And My Killaz', I honestly totally forgot he was from Gank Move, but all that changed with one of the first lines dropped on the album - I rolls with the click G-A-N-K M-O-V-E. This album dropped in 1999 on Skully Records, and looking at the title and the cover, what you see is what you get. Notably this album only goes eight tracks deep but talking in terms of quality over quantity, this release is worth picking up for the right price, although, on first impressions it doesn't grab me as much as the old Gank Move album did. The track I've put up for your listening pleasure is 'Murder Aint No Game'.

Capital Punishment - Living On The Edge Of A Razor Last up is the 1991 Wrap Records/Ichiban release 'Living On The Edge Of A Razor' by Capital Punishment out of Dallas, Texas. The group cosists of Lil C, B Insane & The Aggravated MC, with production from Rickey Ricardo. I first came aware of them thanks to a track of their's ('Murder') that featured on the Dutch bootleg vinyl 'Check Out The Flavour' that Bullant posted about not too long ago, and on hearing that track alone I knew I had to get this album. My first impression of this album is that it has the same raw feel to it as the old PKO albums and some of the very early Rap-A-Lot releases. This release dropped back when the south hadn't yet pidgeon holed itself as having it's own particular style, but still sounded a little different to what was coming out of the east and west coasts. With quality sample-based production throughout and emcee's who can hold their own, this album is a definite must have for any old school Texas hip hop enthusiasts.


MP3's:
Tech N9ne - Devil Boy
187 Fac - All Head No Body
Funky Aztecs - Salsa Con Soulfood
Ganksta Gank - Murder Aint No Game
Capital Punishment - Death Sentence
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