ACE TRACKS: March-July 2020

So I have shingles.

At least it's not COVID-19, right? And I don't feel sick, just frequent hot spikes of pain around my shoulder-blade (imagine a heated cactus ball rolling about) as my latent chicken-pox virus does its damage to all those tender nerve membranes. And you may be thinking, “wait, Sykonee can't be that old such that he'd get shingles?”, and you'd be right. Yet here we are. I already knew all the stress I've put upon myself this year wasn't doing me many favours, but the fact it suppressed my immune system enough such that the ol' varicella-zoster could act up again should have me rethinking the way I'm doing things.

And what's 'funny' about all this is, until it flared up, I thought I was doing fine, life-wise. Yeah, there were still things and stuffs lingering in the back of my mind, but I still had a good groove about doing it. I can only hope my stubbornness hasn't done permanent damage because dear God, this would suck to have to deal with for the rest of my life. Or get myself in on that all-encompassing opiod market America is known for.

That all said, I realized it's been five months since I last did an ACE TRACKS playlist. Figured after all that time, I'd amassed enough of a backlog to make one. Little did I realize the final list would be over 10 hours long! Gander, at the ACE TRACKS from March through July:


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Various - Bedrock: Jimmy Van M
Various - Better Living Through Circuitry
Various - Beyond The Machines
Cryostasis - Between Static And Distance
Coma Eye - Insufflated Brine Shrimp
Astral Engineering - Chronoglide

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 3%
Percentage Of Rock: 19%
Most “WTF?” Track: Neo-Adventures - Whaaaauuu (because “whaaaaaauuuuu TF?”)

Okay, so I cheated a little in the length, in that I included the entirety of L.S.G.'s The Singles: Reworked at the end. Plus some of the all-time longest recorded pieces of music by both Banco de Gaia and Creedence Clearwater Revival ever committed to master tapes (ten minutes of CCR may as well be a prog-rock opus).

Even with those caveats though, the fact this playlist ended up as long as it did just goes to show I've been busier than I gave myself credit for. And diverse too, a little something for anyone's interest making its way into here, providing a surprisingly smooth listening experience compared to many playlists past. Of course, if no one wants to listen to it, because it'll remind you of *gestures wildly*, I wouldn't blame ya'. Heck, maybe it's why I put off on doing this for so long in the first place. It's been a Hell of a five months, it has.

Oh, and some may have noticed I've skipped ahead on my reviewing order. The 'B' section of my collection is too big for one sitting, so decided to split that up while dealing with a pile of other items I've had gathering in that time. Will probably resume with the 'B's in, oh, a year, at my current rate

GZA/Genius - Beneath The Surface

MCA Records: 1999

It was an impossible task. Like, has anyone in the history of hip-hop managed it? I won't deny I haven't heard every rap album ever, with some acts and artists glaring (deliberate?) holes in my accumulated knowledge of that scene. If the self-proclaimed 'Genius' couldn't make the transition from underground critical darling to the mainstream however, what hope have any other, I ask thee? Even the full might of the Wu-Tang Clan had a shaky crossover with Wu-Tang Forever, while only Method Man managed anything considered a successful solo career by that point (maybe ODB too, though more for features). And now the Wu member most known for having the deepest, thought-provoking lyrics was having a stab at commercial success too? Oh dear, this won't go well, will it?

Not that it was a deliberate attempt at crossover success on Mr. Grice's part. Indeed, the very title of GZA's third second album is a not-so subtle analogy at looking for the depth of lyrical content beneath a shiny surface. Unfortunately, the presentation of this album comes off rather muddled, such that the shiny surface is too reflective and distracting. You feel like you should be getting some deeper content out of it, but who can tell when the production is this crisp and clean compared to Liquid Swords. And if we wanted music like that, the 'Puff' Daddy Era was still burning hot (though just about exhausting the last of its fuel). Throw in oddly placed 'skits' of benign-sounding but insidiously predatory corporate ads, and the resultant album is one with good tracks but no flow, ruining much replay value. Despite the title's implication, what you hear is really all you get.

Beneath The Surface provides a perfect example in its opening salvo. Amplified Sample is a solid club banger to kick things off, followed by the moodier, street-tales titular cut featuring string loops right out of a 'Shaolin' slums scene. Then, two skits, followed by another club banger in Crash Your Crew. Rinse, repeat, and it doesn't feel like I'm getting the same deep insights and clever wordplay as Liquid Swords anymore. Much less the classic RZA production either, mostly stepping back while his assortment of proteges take over the console (Mathematics, Arabian Knight, Inspectah Deck, others). Nor are there many members and affiliates of the Wu making guest spots either (Masta Killa, Method Man, and Killah Priest the most prominent of the bunch). All par for the course when it comes to this era of Wu-Tang solo projects, true, but all reasons folks consider these years the start of the Clan's decline.

If anything, Beneath The Surface cemented those hushed whispers into general discourse, what with it failing to fulfill the hype expected of it. And despite multiple tries at hearing more beneath its surface, my impression of the album hasn't changed in two decades. Maybe I'm just too dumb, but my thoughts aren't uncommon. Still, d'at building bass in High Price, Small Reward tho'!

Swollen Members - Balance

Battle Axe Records: 1999

I don't always look back on my time working a little music shop in the hinterlands of British Columbia in the best of lights (so bored, so little pay...), but I do appreciate it expanding my pre-Audio Galaxy music consumption. Ordering in all the electronic music I wanted was no small thing, and it wasn't long before my peers came to me with requests as well. This eventually drew the attention of connoisseurs of other genres, particularly underground hip-hop. For sure they helped me clue into Wu-Tang Clan and OutKast, but without these folks asking for acts like Hieroglyphics or Jurassic 5, where would my rap knowledge be? Not terribly good, I wager.

Swollen Members was another such unknown entity. I'm sure a number of my Canadian brethren are wondering, how can that be? For a time, the group helmed by Mad Child and Prevail was one of the biggest rap acts in the country, only ceding their time at the top when Drake came along as the New Canadian Hotness. This is true, but before their big break with the album Bad Dreams, they debuted with this record, Balance. And as the current Top Canadian Rap Act was then Rascalz, Swollen Members had to bide their time in the underground. For there can be only one Canadian Rap Act in the public eye at any given time. I honestly have no idea how or why this is so, I just know it to be so.

In any event, I doubt Swollen Members could have become an overnight sensation even if they wanted to. Their style was always heavy on themes of the occult, not exactly mainstream friendly, and rather fringe even back in the '90s. It honestly still boggles my mind that an act that had Mad Child rapping about witches and demons would go on to have any radio play, but then I suppose Rascalz weren't doing so hot, and Canada needed something to fill their One (1) Popular Rap Act quota. Balance generated more than enough buzz to get record execs looking.

For a young white dude with some dorky traits, hearing another white dude rap about dorky things while in the presence of dope-as-fuck rappers like Del Tha Funkee Homosapein, Everlast, and Dilated Peoples, producers like The Alchemist, plus scratch masters like Mix Master Mike and Kut Masta Kurt, you bet this was right up my alley! Not that this is some horrorcore schlock, Swollen Members sticking to most traditional 'backpacker' rap topics about how lyrically dope they are and all good stuff. They just use unconventional metaphors, is all, with moody, minimalist beats, pianos, guitars, strings, and chants to back them up. The only time this album gets 'fun' is on the Del cut Left Field, which sounds like a tune from one of his own albums, Swollen Members guesting.

And yet, despite quite liking Balance, I never followed this group after. Sadly, Canadian over-hype has a way of sullying a good thing.

ACE TRACKS: August 2019

Yeah, that happened. Got a lot more attention than expected too. Sure, we knew many were anticipating it in select circles of the interweb, and might even get a few shares on third string 'EDM' news outlets. Heck, even DJMag sharing it didn't phase me, though I couldn't help but feel a little amused in their praise, despite the drubbing we've given them over the years (probably because even they know they deserve it for how their popularity poll's perverted a once pure scene). Nay, the only share (thus far) that's given me pause was Billboard's.

Wait, the Billboard, as in the conglomerate that tracks music sales? How did they come across the Guide? Hell, for that matter, how were they even aware of the original, must less feel this was a newsworthy event for them to share? For sure, this was a major undertaking that took years to complete, and we're mighty proud of the resulting effort, but surely it isn't such a big deal that we're getting blurbs in a media outlet who's sole role is continuous hype of mainstream success. Wonders never cease. Nor do ACE TRACK playlists, so here's August 2019!


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Josh Christie - Stuck On A Space Trip
Anduin - Stolen Years
The Gentle People - Soundtracks For Living
Ken Ishii - Sleeping Madness
Kwook - Skywave
Speedy J - Ginger

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 11%
Percentage Of Rock: 11%
Most “WTF?” Track: Anything from The Gentle People, when you realize it was released on Rephlex.

Never a good thing for these playlists when nearly half the albums aren't on Spotify. Some I can understand, being so utterly obscure and all, but Speedy J? Ken Ishii? The Gentle People?? How are those records from them not on there? Weirdly, the remix album of Soundtracks For Living is, but probably because there's a lot of Very Important IDM and techno artists doing remixes there, so are likely of higher interest for those wandering in. And I shouldn't worry much about what currently is or isn't on Spotify, as plenty do eventually find their way there. Why, I just discovered Felix Da Houscat's back catalogue is now available. Sweet, I can finally see if all those post Devin Dazzle albums were as bad as the critics made them out to be! (oh, and Tool too, I guess)

Raekwon - Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang

Ice H2o Records: 2011

Sometime last year, I stumbled upon a YouTube video where Raekwon was tasked with ranking all of his albums. What a wonderful concept, thinks I! Sure, you could argue an artist will unequivocally praise everything they release, but if put to the grinder with some proper self-critical honesty, surely some interesting results may come about. Like, how would someone like Neil Young, with his extensive discography, rank his albums? Even he's admitted when some records don't turn out as well as hoped though, so what about a producer who only knows how to blow smoke up their own ass? You know, the Armins and Tiestos of the world.

Anyhow, Raekwon's self-summary didn't reveal that many surprises (even he thinks Immobilarity was a disappointment), but it did clue me into a bunch of his records I had totally forgotten. Yes, even with all the entries at Lord Discogs. Too many mixtapes among the official albums, see, making me wonder what is what and all that rot. His ranking video at least parred things some, with this particular Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang coming in high near the top of his picks (nothing was gonna' dethrone Only Built For Cuban Linx).

I do recall seeing some stuff about this album, but figured it just another in an endless stream of mixtapes the Chef was cooking up around the time. Rather, this was his attempt to bring the classic, gritty Wu-Tang street style back to the fore', as he believed RZA had led the group too far astray with his musical indulgences. Bold moves, but at some point even the disciples must challenge The Abbot, and with the blessings of RZA's many producing proteges (Alchemist, Mathematics, Bronze Nazareth) plus seasoned vets of hip-hop (Erick Sermon, Scram Jones, DJ Khalil, many others...), this looked to be a dope round of vintage Wu bangers indeed.

And the titular opener starts with those classic chop-sockey samples setting the theme, then urgent strings with thumping beats hit as Rae's flow is focused and commanding. Why does it sound like he's skipping a word or two like he's catching his breath though? It continues into Every Soldier In The Hood, and when Method Man's verse comes in with a third of the words snuffed out, a cold realization hits me: I've ended up with a busted-ass 'clean' version of this album! Bloody Hell, no wonder it was so cheap on Amazon.

Well, that's a bummer. How can I enjoy an album with so many missing lyrics? Why make such a version? Seriously, who's gonna' buy any edited version of a slummy hip-hop album, especially one with hardly a hope of crossover appeal? At least there's an uncensored Spotify option, but man, Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang had no hope of making a solid first impression upon me because of this. Even more damning is, as a long time Wu-Tang fan, there's a lot to like here, but my CD copy will never get another spin. Denied a proper play-through on my proper sound-system, forever.

Sixtoo - Jackals And Vipers In Envy Of Man

Ninja Tune: 2007

It must be difficult holding out on chasing trends. The music rags rave on about what's 'cutting edge' and 'fresh hotness', your peers can't help but dabble in new tricks and toys, and all the while a burgeoning audience emerges from corners long thought untappable. Sure, you have your loyal, dependable, old-school followers, but surely the temptation lurks to explore a little, just a little. A peak around the corner, a glance over the hill, a click of a link from a somewhat trusted source. It didn't look like Robert Squire was in any rush to do so though. Even as his brand of scratch-heavy trip-hop continuously lost ground to the incoming wave of grime and dubstep, his Sixtoo project kept the faith for much of the '00s. Yeah, he found a couple toys to tinker with (sample pad!), but it never compromised his style.

After eking out a career in Eastern Canada, Sixtoo got picked up by Ninja Tune, and it looked like things were flying breezy for Mr. Squire. After the release of this particular album though, his studio suffered a break-in, with everything involving his Sixtoo project pilfered. Not just the material for a new album, but all his years of back-ups, archives, samples, and the works. Everything! Sensing it a sign to move on in his music career, Rob shuttered the Sixtoo alias, switched cities to the West coast of Canada, and started making deep acid house as Prison Garde. Because they all turn to house eventually (sometimes techno too).

Before that though, he released Jackals And Vipers In Envy Of Man, which looks to be the final Sixtoo record. Unless he starts feeling nostalgic for his hip-hop roots, which could happen, maybe, possibly. Hard to start from scratch like he'd have to though. Makes better sense starting a whole different project, maybe with some 'support from Sixtoo', if you catch my drift. Why am I rambling like this? Damn Raptors victories, distracting my thoughts so easily.

Like many of his previous works (Boxcutter Emporium, Duration Project), Jackals And Vipers is essentially an extended music session exploring similar sounds and samples, giving each 'part' a live turntable vibe. Except this isn't all live turntables, but mixing and matching drum breaks and samples with some effects fun thrown in. Take those sessions, refine them in post-production, and voila, thirteen tracks of various non-rapping hip-hop business. Some parts last less than a minute, but most reaching the three-to-five minute range.

And there's not much else to say about Jackals And Vipers, if I'm honest. As mentioned, Sixtoo brings an unfussy, uncomplicated style to the music, riding rhythms as he feels them out, never gunking things up with superfluous effects and nonsense glitchiness. I wouldn't have minded some rappity-raps over a few of these, but they're fine without vocals too. It's a vintage Ninja Tune sound, which again was kinda' surprising to hear in the year 2007, what with The Bug's London Zoo just around the corner.

DJ Shadow - The Outsider

Universal Records: 2006

(a Patreon Request)

Above all else, you could not mistake DJ Shadow's third album as being released at any point other than 2006. There's a line about Dick Cheney shooting a guy! That's, like, soooo 2006, man! I guess all the hyphy tracks kinda' date this album too. Yeah, the Bay Area sound massively caught on the following decade, which some may argue is in favour of The Outsider for being that ahead of the game, but let's be real here. No one was turning to DJ Shadow for hot new sounds of San-Fran hip-hop in the year 2006, nor any time before or after. They were turning to DJ Shadow for his unique, seminal take on sampling, turntablism, and trip-hop, somehow expecting he'd ride that Endtroducing..... style forever after. Mr. Davis knew what was what though, hangin' out with dudes like Turf Talk and E-40, and was more than willing to gamble on their sounds, needing something new and fresh lest he grow stale as an artist.

It could have worked. As mentioned, hyphy was blossoming in the world of hip-hop, riding the same wave of frenetic, synth-heavy, party rockin' rap that had turned crunk and grime into huge movements in their regions. It would have been a shock to the DJ Shadow faithful, no doubt, but at least they would understand the abrupt change of sound, and maybe even vibe on it based on the genre's own merits. Unfortunately, DJ Shadow didn't commit to it, instead book-ending The Outsider with a half-dozen hyphy tracks, creating a drastic tonal clash with all the far more musical efforts within the record's creamy centre.

Even without the hyphy, The Outsider could generously be considered overly eclectic. Let's assume you skipped all the way past the David Banner featuring Seein Thangs (whoa, David Banner feature; it's 2006 alright), instead kicking things off with Broken Levee Blues. Cool, some guitar jamming and little spoken-word dialog. Nice an' chill, yo', still capturing that vintage DJ Shadow smooth downtempo- HOLY SHIT! How did we smash right into thrashy speed-punk from that? I'm spazzin' out here! Gotta' love it, and it looks like we're getting into some freaky psychedelic jazz-funk action in Backstage Girl after. So it's gonna' be this kinda' album then.

Nope! A little score work in Triplicate / Something Happened That Day, and suddenly we're into the domain of indie rock, complete with a Brit warbler who's not Chris Martin, but sure sounds like him. And let's not forget the psychedelic folk from Christina Carter in What Have I Done, because Joanna Newsom was a thing in 2006, I guess? Is this even a DJ Shadow album anymore? What is this album? Oh yeah, that one with the hyphy in it. I'd forgotten it started that way, but here's a couple such closers as reminders.

No wonder Mr. Davis called this album The Outsider. It sounds like an artist trying to fit in various musical scenes with nothing in common other than having an interloper playing in their respective sandboxes.

ACE TRACKS: March 2019

I feel like I'm gonna' be taking more of those 'week long' breaks in the future. Not so much to stave of potential burn-out, but with a regular work schedule that's pushed my 'wake-up' time to no later than 3am now, it makes finding prime writing time tricky. Wasn't so bad when it was still dark out at 6pm, and I could hit the hay plenty early, thus waking up super-duper earlier to write before work. Now that the days grow longer though, and our government has forced an extra hour of evening daylight upon us (still working on my “Keep Noon Sun At Noon Position” protest sign), I'm finding getting that Prime Writing Time ever more elusive. Sometimes I can do it late afternoon, but not too late, otherwise the sun hits my pad on the downswing, and the mugginess makes thinking words difficult as all hell. And I can't just go to bed early 'cause, well, too bright out. It's taking some adjusting to find the right groove again, but it shall be done, oh yes, it shall be done. I hope.

That ramble out of the way, here's some ACE TRACKS for the month of March in this cold year of Two Thousand Nineteen.


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Axs - Arctic Circle
Autumn Of Communion - Autumn Of Communion 5
Autumn Of Communion - Autumn Of Communion 6
Various - Audioworks Various Artists V1
Various - Fade Records Presents: Audiotour - Chris Fortier

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 15%
Percentage Of Rock: 0%
Most “WTF?” Track: Any of the Tristan tracks, but only if you glance at the cover art.

A nice mix of music on here. Some uptempo stuff, some downtempo stuff, some leftfield stuff, and some conventional stuff. Only thing really missing is the rock representation, but glancing at my current queue, it's gonna' be a long while indeed before the ol' six-stringer makes a prominent appearance again.

Czarface & MF Doom - Czarface Meets Metal Face

Silver Age: 2018

It wasn't the hip-hop team-up *I* was hoping for, but Deltron can't be everywhere. Still, this probably makes the most sense of any collaboration with Czarface, the comic book inspired creation of Inspectah Deck, Esoteric and 7L. For sure there's been plenty of rappers who've taken cues from comics, but not many adopted it into a lasting persona. One other such dude is MF Doom, a remarkable two-decade feat with seemingly little Marvel/Disney threatening glances over his shoulder. Like, is the mask just different enough that copyright claims haven't buried him these past two decades? MF Doom is also a dude I probably should have digested far more of than I have to this date (re: barely at all). In due time, I'm sure I will; maybe after I've exhausted every and all Wu-Tang explorations.

First off, how are Deck 'n Eso'? Still in that comfortable flow they've been in since Every Hero Needs A Villain? You bet they are, while 7L's production retains the ol' school funkadelic sample-heavy hip-hop flavour I've come to appreciate out of this group. Hell, as 'mumble rap' and its cheap-ass sounds have come to dominate, this stuff remains a wonderful renaissance of when hip-hop was dynamic and vitalic. Whether with twitchy paranoid pianos (Badness Of Madness), street-hustlin' bass boogie (Astral Traveling, Forever People), or grimy soul-sludge (MF Czar, Phantoms), there's plenty here for the old heads and the new heads who like what the old heads like. Methinks that's a demographic that could use a little more of a boost.

As for them rappers then, what are you in for? Czar-Deck is his usual lyrical form, even calling out his detractors for being too lyrical at times (th' fuck kinda' criticism is that? Rebel INS always uses just the right amount of words in his rappity-raps ...kids these days). MF Doom sounds cool, in a rugged, low-key menacing sort of way. Not as lyrical as Deck, but they are rather different MCs, and make for a good contrast against each other. As for how he sounds compared to other projects, I honestly can't say – this is my first extended exposure to MF Doom (gasp!). As for Esoteric, I was worried he might get outshone by Deck and Doom, in that Eso's style is so similar to INS, he'd come off like a spare wheel to Deck and Doom's interplay (plus, y'know, just not as famous as the other too). He holds his own just fine though, and even has some of the funniest lines here, especially if you know your wrestling references (hehe, “stick out like Kurt Angle's temple vein”).

Beyond that, this is just a solid collection of hip-hop. Nods to the 'comic book team-up' aspect is played out in skits as knowing winks, but they never go much beyond that. Which is a little disappointing for yours truly, as I'm still waiting on a proper Czarface narrative album. Who knows though, maybe that Ghostface collab' will finally see the deed done.

OutKast - ATLiens

LaFace Records: 1996

Now this one, I was under no delusion it'd sound like Stankonia. No one in hip-hop sounded like Stankonia in the mid-'90s – heck, very few sounded like Stankonia when that album dropped, though I'm sure there's an outlier or two that could be pointed out as the true originator of 'southern trap-rap crunk-jungle soul'. Point being, though Stankonia kinda' numbed the enjoyment I should have had with Aquemini, I knew fully well ATLiens would be its own beast, meaning I could take it in under its own terms, expectant hype be damned.

No, wait, that's not entirely true. I knew ATLiens had its own high amount of praise, though for different reasons. An album that showed there was something creative and ingenious brewing in the lands of Georgia. An album that proved southern rap could be more than a bunch of booty bass and ghetto-cheap beats. That Wu-Tang Clan didn't have a monopoly on comic book iconography. Okay, maybe not so much that last one, but man, doesn't Big Boi look like he'd fit right in with a team-up with Method Man or Ghostface Killah? Right, they settled on Raekwon in Aquemini, but for sure the seeds of a major coastal crossover event were planted here. Also, Andre 3000 as a genie, but there were wacky sorts in hip-hop before him. He just started flying his own freak flag for ATLiens.

So if there's any disappointment to be had from my end regarding OutKast's sophomore album, it's that they didn't push the envelop quite as far as I was led to believe. The package screams ultra nerdcore concept outing, and given the general plaudits heaped upon it, I figured it a game-changer not just in the lexicon of southern rap, but all of rap. Nay, it's instead treading ground already being charted by the likes of the Hieroglyphics crew and other 'backpack rappers' of the time. And hey, totally a departure of what was expected from the south, so that's good enough, right?

Right. I don't need to hear Boi and 3000 rapping about their intergalactic escapades as portrayed in the booklet's comic. Hearing them waxing tales about living in Atlanta is good enough when the flows are this dope and the beats are this fine. ATLiens is best served as a deep southern fried slice of chilled-out vibes, perfect cruising material for hot 'n muggy days just trying to get by. There are moments of introspection, moments of booty chasin', and moments of good ol' simple head-boppin' – all under a thick THC haze as imported from somewhere beyond the outer reaches of your being. Or something.

It's a strange journey I've taken in exploring OutKast's discography. I came in when they were crossing over, but before they'd truly broken through the mainstream. The further back I dug, the simpler they seemed, but somehow more interesting too. Still, not sure I'm up for Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik. That one seems too straight-forward, and I need my OutKast a little askew.

ACE TRACKS: February 2019

So this past month, I've had to do something for work that I haven't had to do in a very long time. It's something I've dreaded could come about again, the nature of my work somewhat fickle in where I must go for periods of time. See, the nature of living in Vancouver is you should never, ever commute over a bridge or through a tunnel. Unfortunately, the expense of living in Vancouver often means one must find residence out in the 'burbs, across the bridges and through the tunnels. I have not done this, as my means of living has left enough financial fluency such that I can live within Vancouver-proper, where my work has been for the past decade.

At the start of February, however, I was 'loaned out' to another place to work. A place that's on the other side of a bridge. One that I must commute to in an opposite direction. Actually, the commute there is pretty easy, as I leave rather early in the morning and is a breeze, the time just a shade longer than the time it takes me to get to my regular working area. That commute back, on the other hand. Dear God, it'd almost be just as fast for me to walk the distance, the traffic so congested. Of course, if I had my own vehicle, this wouldn't be such an issue, but if I don't cheap out with transit, how can I continue living in my Vancouver paradise? Oh well, what's an extra 45 minutes home from work, when you got a fresh ACE TRACKS playlist to jive on?


Full track list here.

MISSING ALBUMS:
Motorbass - Pansoul
Paul Oakenfold - Perfecto Presents Another World
Bandulu - Antimatters
Pitch Black - Ape To Angel
The Angling Loser - Arena Of Apprehension
Morgan - Arrakis

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 11%
Percentage Of Rock: 26%
Most “WTF?” Track: any of the Asia songs (whoa, they were actually good!)

Yep, that's another pile o' tune missing from another playlist. Ahh, just like old times, eh? Getting down to the final stretch of 'A' album though, which means we're in for another massive backlog of newer music to get through. Don't worry though, that Viking Metal I've hinted at is put off for much further down the road.

OutKast - Aquemini

LaFace Records: 1998

Like many, this was my first introduction to OutKast. Unlike many, I didn't actually hear this until well after I'd heard their follow-up album Stankonia, the first OutKast record I listened to. The logic in this admission is Aquemini had been a major hit in the little corner of Canadian hinterland I lived, the local populace quite enamoured over that Rosa Parks jam.

Upon returning to the music shop I worked at after a year away in The Big City, that snappy Aquemini cover art was there to greet me, one of the store's hottest items at the time. Interesting, thinks I, in that when I'd left the year before, it was Puff Daddy's tribute to the dead Biggy that was our hottest item. I was curious what could have supplanted that gargantuan single, but didn't throw it on before we sold through our stock, and forgot about it. Then I heard Stankonia, my head a'sploded from its awesomeness, and I remembered, oh yeah, they had that Aquemini album a couple years back too. I should check that out, if I ever find it again.

I bring all this up because context is key in how one forms an opinion on something, and because of my ass-backwards journey into OutKast's discography, my initial impressions of Aquemini wasn't so high. For sure I eventually dug what I heard, but it wasn't what I was expecting. Stankonia's wild genre fusion had me thinking the Atlantian duo were always doing such stuff, and instead I got a solid rap album with some southern soul and a smattering of dalliances outside the norm. Man, how I envy those who were listening to OutKast from the beginning, hearing Aquemini proper-like as yet another bold step forward in their musical evolution.

Honestly though, I don't have much to gripe with this album. I feel it drags a bit too long, my attention drifting after the two-parter Da Art Of Storytellin', but that was a complaint of almost ever hip-hop album in the late '90s: too much bloat. Still, it's hard denying Aquemini winds significantly down in the back-half. Prior to that, you have the aforementioned club hit Rosa Parks, the Raekwon guesting Skew It On The Bar-B (a big deal, considering few from the East Coast felt Southern rap had much legitimacy), the ultra-psychedelic titular cut, and the electro-leaning Synthesizer (George Clinton, yo'!). Damn, even without comparing to Stankonia, that's still a hot opening salvo of songs! Slump and West Savannah take things back to the easy-vibin' groove, while Da Art Of Storytellin' Parts 1 & 2 have some of the catchiest production on the whole damn album (the rappity-rap parts are pretty dope too).

What I'm trying to say is, Aquemini was a real slow burn for yours truly. It didn't mesmerize me like Stankonia did because how could it? I had to take it on its own terms, which I stubbornly did after too many years. My brain did a bad on this one.

Death Grips - The Powers That B

Third Worlds: 2015

(a Patreon Request)

Impossible to ignore Death Grips, isn't it? They were among the heaviest hyped acts to emerge this past decade, in no small part due to their on-again, off-again disbanding antics; y'all better get this latest album of theirs, 'cause it might be their last! While I wasn't in a rush to check them out, I figured they were worth a scoping if most of the talking heads I trust with musical opinions were showing interest. Like, if savvy folks were going on about how that one Kanye album was essentially style-biting Death Grips, then there had to be something to this Oakland trio. I've heard all their albums are quite unique from one another though, so where to start, where to start? (Note: this Patreon Request left it to me with which album I'll review)

Most professional reviews recommend all their albums, though for differing reason, while fan lists have them arranged in all manner of random order. The Money Store seems easiest to get, but also feels kinda' wrong, being on a major label and all. Not so sure about that No Love Deep Web cover art being on my blog either. Their latest? How can I critique it without proper background comparison? Fine, I'll go with this double-disc one – should be a good sampling of their stuff.

The Powers That B is essentially two albums, each disc radically unique from its companion. The first, Niggers On The Moon, came out early as a download, and had the gimmick of featuring Björk samples throughout. Eh, I only really hear one, a consistent “ah ah-a” chopped and screwed with over digital hardcore beats (reminds me of Chemical Brothers' Song To The Siren). As for the beats, yeah, they're frenetic and spastic and experimental and Kaos Pad'd to the nth degree, but it all sounds kinda' samey throughout too. Without watching the tracks play through, I honestly couldn't tell when one ended and another began. It's an interesting listen, for sure, but strikes me as something only the dedicated Death Grips fans will get much out of.

As for Jenny Death on CD2, hole Lee bovine...! Now this, this is worth the hype. Just viscera, balls-to-the-wall thrash-punk bedlam, squalling guitars and chaotic drums over forceful, pissed-off shout-rapping from MC Ride. This is the music Liam Howlett probably wanted to take The Prodigy, before all that commercial success neutered his rebellious streak. I know Jenny Death is no more indicative of Death Grips' style than Niggers On The Moon is, but I've no doubt this is as solid an introduction to the group if you're itching to expose them to the undecided.

Hell, even the obligatory 'RnB tune', Pss Pss, is like some crazy psychedelic romp about a dirty festival. And that insane digital hardcore closer of Death Grips 2.0 is greater than anything on CD1. Okay, that Say Hey Kid was amusing, in that it reminded me of another long-since forgotten California rave-rap genre-fusion act: The Movement! (don't O.D., yo').

Dr. Octagon - Moosebumps: An Exploration Into Modern Day Horripilation

Bulk Recordings: 2018

And I thought the wait for a Deltron 3030 sequel took forever. Right, Dr. Octagon has popped up here and there throughout Kool Keith's career, but what folks truly clamoured for was Dan The Automator getting back in the studio with him, rekindling the same twisted synergy that made Dr. Octagonecologyst the cult classic it remains to this day. The concept is just so strange, that all the weirdo conceptual rappers ever since haven't quite matched the bizarro sci-fi horrorcore porn world that Dr. Octagon inhabits. And those who do almost inevitably sound like they're trying too hard to be shocking and twisted for its own sake, never finding the effortless cool that Kool Keith brings to the project.

Somehow though, the stars, planets, stethoscopes and Venus mounds all aligned once more to bring Keith and Dan back together for the follow-up album every was hoping to hear... oh, around twenty years ago, if we're being honest. Yeah, fans of Dr. Octagon are happy they've gotten anything at this point, but they'd also long made their peace that odds were slim it would happen at all. Keith had moved onto plenty other things, Dan had moved onto plenty other things (with some unexpected commercial success along the way), and even DJ Q-Bert was having a successful solo career, with little need to be The DJ in an antiquated notion of what constitutes a 'rap group' these days. Heck, all you need is a bunch of mumbling autotune and some bare-bones 808 drum synths for a hit these days. Who's got time for cryptic lewd lyrics about... y'know, I couldn't explain what Dr. Octagon's going on about even if I tried.

What I can tell you, however, is this new album of Moosebumps: An Exploration Into Modern Day Horripilation, is just about everything I could have hoped for in a proper follow-up of the project. I've never met an Automator beat I didn't like, and though Dan could have gone overboard on production as he did in the Deltron sequel, he keeps things mostly on that classic boom-bap simplicity, throwing in mint break samples, orchestral swells, twitchy violin touches (one of the first album's defining characteristics), aggressive guitar licks (care of Gary Holt), and quirky sci-fi clips as needed. Though filled with vividly weird imagery and off-kilter wordplay, Keith doesn't have quite the same level of instantly memorable “WTF?” lines in this outing. Still, he rides Dan's beats with trademark effortless cool, making you wonder why the Hell they didn't reconvene sooner. Meanwhile, Q-Bert does his usual scratch trickery, and even gets another extended solo showcase in Bear Witness IV.

You know what I always hoped to hear though? A back-and-forth between Automator's two famed cult classic projects, Dr. Octagon and Deltron 3030. And holy shit, we get it in 3030 Meets The Doc, Keith and Del delivering all that I could have wished for! And wait... is that...? Is that!? Oh my, a scratch battle between Q-Bert and Kid Koala! Nnnnggyyaaaahhh!!!

Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded

B-Boy Records/Traffic Entertainment Group: 1987/2016

Can't be a hip-hop completist without having Boogie Down Productions in your collection. Not that I'm under any delusion I'm a completist - I'm in no hurry to add Biggie, Jay-Z, or Lil' Wayne to my rap shelf (far right, lower third). Just saying, if you want hip-hop heads taking you seriously, the group KRS-One built is required study material, this debut album from the BDP posse a Very Important rap album from the '80s. A remarkable feat, considering there's no Rick Rubin or Def Jam association with Criminal Minded. Can't escape the influence of an AC/DC sample in Dope Beat though. But hey, a ton of hip-hop culture cribbed from Boogie Down Productions after, so fair play.

Like gangsta' rap! Only, Criminal Minded isn't gangsta' rap at all, at least not in the way N.W.A. would define it. No doubt KRS-One gets into some gritty street tales, like resorting to gun violence to save his ass from home invaders in 9mm Goes Bang, or dealing with a crack whore in Remix For P Is Free. That's only two tracks out of ten though, hardly enough material to consider this album gangsta' rap through and through. Hell, such tracks aren't even playing up the 'gangsta' lifestyle, no more than Grandmaster Flash's The Message does (and it doesn't). It's that cover art, isn't it, KRS and DJ Scott La Rock all decked out in a small arsenal. Definitely a first of its kind, rappers showing off their guns and ammo rather than their sneakers and jewellery, though seems overplayed for the sake of marketing here. Gotta' draw attention from that crashed jet on License To Ill somehow.

Beyond all that though, Criminal Minded still has its feet within the realm of old-school hip-hop. The beats are simple boom-bap and quick-cut sampling (rock and James Brown, naturally), with Scott La Rock scratching between KRS-One's verses. Meanwhile, Mr. Parker goes off on a variety of topics, mostly showing off his lyrical prowess (Poetry, Word From Our Sponser, Elementary, Criminal Minded) while going after lesser MC – truly, the essence of vintage street battle-rap. In fact, this album was also among the first in bringing crew feuds into the spotlight, KRS-One singling out the Queens rapper MC Shan of the Juice Crew for being a style-biter and “sucker MC” compared to talents from the other Boroughs of New York City. South Bronx and The Bridge Is Over are often name-dropped as seminal classics of 'diss rap', and hearing them even this far out of context, I can't help but lean back and proclaim, “Daaa-yuum!”

And there's more! KRS-One switching between Jamaican toasting and his Bronx flow, properly bringing the two styles together. The tragic fact this was the only material we'd hear from Scott La Rock, murdered later that year. The album's underground status cemented due to years of being out of print from label mismanagement. Me finally knowing where Method Man got that 'super sperm' line from. It's all here! Completist material indeed.

ACE TRACKS: May 2018

It's been a strange feeling, this past month of writing. More relaxed, not as much pressure to keep pressing on to an end goal. Like, there still is an end goal, in that there has to come a point where my infinity project comes to fruition (receiving another twenty albums in the mail this past week alone sure makes it difficult tho'). Yet if I'm not feeling the free-flow of creative juice, I'm perfectly fine taking a step back for a day, regather my thoughts, come at better, stronger, though not necessarily harder or faster. There's no denying a few efforts from the past five years could have been better if I'd given them a little more care.

Of course, another thing is this past month's been a rather distracting affair, all 'round. So many movies (damn you, Marvel!), so many sicknesses (had to take two sick days – I seldom even take one per year!), plus that looming, work-related uncertainty that just won't be settled anytime soon. Okay, within the month for sure, then I'll finally know just how gainfully employed I'll still be. If not though... well, I guess I'll have more time to write. Plus there's that Patreon thing too. Can't forget to plug that every chance I get – the service tells me it's in my best interest to do so, no matter how much of a whore you end up feeling.

On those cheering thoughts, here's the ACE TRACKS for the Month Of May, of the year Twenty-Eighteen!


Full track list here.

MISSING ALBUMS:
Various - 10 Years Of Drum&BassArena: Mixed By Andy C & Grooverider
Wu-Tang Clan - 8 Diagrams
Gravediggaz - 6 Feet Deep
Euphoria - 2 Days Away

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 25%
Percentage Of Rock: 6%
Most “WTF?” Track: Anything Gravediggaz ...but in a good way!

So strange that 8 Diagrams isn't on Spotify. Like, I get that the album was released on a short-lived label, and it's current status is probably still in legal limbo, but surely RZA would have found a new home for it a decade after the fact. AND Gravediggaz too, for that matter. Is Gee Street just being tight in its licensing with that one?

So I did something I haven't done in a long time with these playlists: sequence the tracks into a proper mixtape or set. I do this not because of nostalgia or a need for creative outbursts, but because my old alphabetical stand-by resulted in an incredibly wack order of tunes. Seriously, it was just... painful, the transitions I was hearing, over and over and over. I've had some 'eclectic' playlists in the past, but man, nothing like what this was turning out as. You just can't go from Global Communication to Canibus to Ladytron. You just can't. Hopefully this arrangement makes listening through this more tolerable. Well, for me, anyway.

Dr. Dre - 2001

Interscope Records: 1999

A Very Important record, this, accomplishing many things all at once (hay, guys, remember all those G-funk rappers!?), forming ripples in the world of hip-hop still in effect. For sure it brought Dr. Dre back to the forefront of rap discourse, a strange achievement when you reflect on what he'd accomplished as a producer throughout the '90s: popularizing G-funk, discovering Snoop Dogg, crafting some of the biggest hits Tupac and Blackstreet put out. Hip-hop is fickle though, eager to flock to the next big hype as established vets start piling on the years. Following the flop that was The Firm, with Southern rap making huge commercial inroads (never mind its quality, No Limit Records was a marketing juggernaut), and you can understand why folks figured a guy who made his name ten years prior would have been regarded as old-hat.

Then along came a white saviour, and suddenly everyone was talking about Dre again. Eminem must have done more than given the good Doctor a new protégé though, as Mr. Young hit the studio again for a new album of his own. Not that he needed to prove he could still drop rhymes as he did with The Chronic, but hey, when you want to emphatically put to rest whether you 'still got it', you go at it with all you got. And he sure done did that, folks still holding out against hope that he'll release a way-overdue follow-up to this album. Man, just let it go already. Dre's got headphones to sell, yo'.

Right, Dre's not much a lyricist, and the truth is 2001: The Nu Chronic doesn't do much to dispel that fact. When he's poppin' off about his past successes, reflecting on changes in the rap game, taking down his doubters (The Watcher, Still D.R.E., What's The Difference, Forgot About Dre), or even offering a heartfelt tribute to his dead brother in The Message, the Doctor easily holds his own among the plethora of guest spots. Half this album goes on about fucking women though, topics far more capably handled by smooth cats like Snoop Dogg and Nate Dogg (and outright douches like Kurupt). Anytime Dre goes on about “fucking bad bitches”, he almost sounds apologetic to his wife in doing so. Sorry, hun, but the boys need their strip club anthems.

Whatever your thoughts on lyrical content, no one denies that 2001: A Chronic Odyssey is all about the beats Dre and Mel-Man crafted here. No matter how tuned out I get hearing about 'guns, blunts, 40s, and bitches', each G-funk cut on here keeps me coming back for more, rhythms packing trunk-rattling punch with twitchy keyboards, plucky strings, and triumphant horns. And with so many of Dre's big rap friends on hand dropping rhymes (Snoop! Em'! X'! Dogg Pound! Devin! Roq! ... Hittman? Who that? And why's he all over this album?), 2001 comes off like a big ol' Westcoast gangsta' party that you're invited to. Yes, even you suburban white kids in middle-America.

Canibus - 2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus)

Universal Music: 2000

For a very brief window, I was listening to every new hip-hop album that entered my little hinterlandian music shop. I didn't actually buy every new item, oh no; this one though, 2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus). I didn't know who Canibus was, but he was dropping bars with an intensity that properly drew me into the artform: battle-rap. Dudes like Del and Deck, firing off fiery metaphors and similes with such complexity and ferocity, few could stand toe-to-toe in the arena. And now here's a guy who's entire deal is doing such a thing, a full album's worth of such bars (and some other nonsense).

Jamaican born, commanding the microphone must have been in Mr. Germaine Williams' blood from the start, making a name for himself throughout the underground freestyle circuit in New York City. It got him noticed by some Very Important Persons in the hip-hop community, including LL Cool J and Wyclef Jean, the latter even producing Canibus' debut album. That... didn't turn out as his fans expected, Wyclef trying to mould Canibus into a commercial star. The album sold well enough, mind you, but heads wanted the real battling 'Bus. Thus for his follow-up 2000 B.C., Canibus throws down as hard as everyone hoped he would.

The album opens with a heavy boom-bap beat while various former bars are stitched together, eventually erupting with a triumphant fanfare as Canibus declares it's The C-Quel. And if that doesn't get you fired up, then the titular cut damn sure well, all apocalyptic choirs as dude doesn't hold back on proclaiming his lyrical greatness (while throwing a couple barbs at Wyclef in the process). The rest of the album pretty much plays out like that, Canibus coming in with a solid Eastcoast beat, going off on how great he is in a myriad of creative ways. Sometimes he brings in other famed lyricists like Rakim, Killah Priest, Rass Kass, and Kurupt, other times he goes off for an unprecedented one-hundred bars (100 Bars). Gander at one of my favourite verses from Doomsday News, for obvious reasons: “If I had half as many bars in gold as I had in lyrics when I flowed; I'd be the richest man on the globe; Niggas wanna know is Canibus gold? That's a stupid-ass question motherfucker, is Canada cold? 'Bout a thousand degrees lower than liquid nitro is.”

I can't say it's all gold, though. Life Liquid has Canibus spitting over-the-top ultra-violence and homophobia to show how 'street hard' he is (Watch Who U Beef Wit's a far better grimdark street cut – message!). A few beef jabs are fine, but Canibus does overplay it with Die Slow and Phuk U. Odd having Pharoahe Monch featuring solo on a pure freestyle in Horsemen. And no matter how creative he does get, hearing Canibus constantly telling you how awesome he is does wear thin by album's end. Beyond those quibbles though, 2000 B.C.'s a dope record for folks who dig rap's true lyrical potential.

Wu-Tang Clan - 8 Diagrams

Universal Motown: 2007

RZA was scoring movies. GZA was rapping about cars. Method Man was more interested in acting. Raekwon was holding out on the album everyone wanted from him. Masta Killa had a surprisingly solid debut though, and Ghostface was flying high, but overall, things weren't looking so hot for the Wu-Tang Clan. Then ODB died, and folks wondered if that would be the final wound that would end the hip-hop juggernaut. Fools. This, above all else, was the rallying cry to bring the Clan back together, in honour of their fallen brother. Proving all their doubters wrong that their time had passed probably wasn't a bad motivator either.

They had to find themselves in a bit of a pickle though. Hip-hop was a far different beast in the year 2007 compared to their '90s heyday. Crunk was now the hottest shit on the market. Meanwhile, Kanye West had almost single-handily put gangsta' rap to rest after beating 50 Cent in their duel of market supremacy (the infamous Graduation - Curtis showdown). Did the Wu have anything fresh on offer in this new world?

The RZA certainly did, in that he'd amassed an arsenal of instruments, offering more creative freedom than he'd ever had before. There's still funk and soul samples throughout 8 Diagrams, but unlike days of old where they'd be looped over a twitchy beat, there's more freeform funk going on here as instruments strut their stuff. It was a significant step forward in RZA's songcraft, though not everyone was entirely on board with it, Ghostface and Raekwon especially vocal about their concern over this change of musical direction for the Clan.

I can understand why. Musically, 8 Diagrams is a creative album, with plenty of strange, warped twists and turns of funk and soul coming at you. Unfortunately, it kinda' overshadows what the actual MCs of Wu-Tang bring to the table. Everyone sounds fine and all, some members more fired than their solo stuff (Method Man, Deck), though lacking much evolution in their usual topics of street tales, battle-raps, and livin' large. Plus, the bangers on this album don't go as hard as some of their classic material, tracks like Rushing Elephants and Wolves oddly muted for the energy they're trying to generate. The only time things get proper-Wu hard is Stick Me For My Riches, where Mathematics brings southern bounce to the party. Also, with so much musical exploration on RZA's part, the album doesn't really coalesce into anything more than an assemblage of tracks for their own sake. Aside from proving they were still kicking it, there's no real 'statement' being made about hip-hop at large by the Wu-Tang Clan here, as so many had expected

Ultimately though, 8 Diagrams is worth having just for the final track, Life Changes. Here, the Wu offer their final farewell to the deceased Russel Jones, one of the most heartbreaking pieces of hip-hop I've ever heard. You just ain't human if you don't feel something welling up from this song.

Gravediggaz - 6 Feet Deep

Gee Street: 1994/1997

It was the late '90s that I got into hip-hop proper-like, Wu-Tang Clan leading the way. Little did I realize that a seed had been planted for that interest a few years prior, with the Gravediggaz debut, the second rap album I ever bought. I wasn't after anything deep or conscious, y'see, but all the crazy, humorous, horror lyricism and super-funky beats of 1-800-Suicide and Defective Trip caught my ear like little other hip-hop music at the time. That's probably how most 'non rap-fans' buy their first rapping records, something that's more a novelty than anything reflective of the culture. Like Beastie Boys doing the cock-rock fusion thing, or blatant smut-rap like 2 Live Crew, or a 'nerdcore' outing from MC Frontalot, or a comedy offering from Lonely Island. Some may dig deeper from those entry points, but for most such 'themed rap' allows folks to dig on hip-hop without getting caught up in the scene's broader topics.

That's all I really cared about going into Gravediggaz. I had no clue that the group contained two of the biggest producers residing on the Eastcoast at the height of their creative powers: Prince Paul and The RZA. Hell, I didn't even know who these guys were when I bought 6 Feet Deep, much less the legacy they'd created in but a few short years. I only clued in to the Wu-Tang connection after listening through The RZA Hits, and realized “Oh! The RZArector. I thought he sounded familiar.” Also, how was Diary Of Madman not on The RZA Hits? Yeah, that compilation was mostly about Wu-Tang highlights, but damn if that single doesn't deserve being considered in conversation of all-time classic, creepy RZA productions.

To this day, it boggles my mind that Paul and RZA not only teamed up so early in their careers, added another pair of relatively unknown MCs in Poetic (The Grym Reaper) and Arnold Hamilton (The Gatekeeper) to the project, but that they'd indulge in the ultra-niche 'horrorcore' genre in doing so. Aside from Bushwick Bill's 'Chuckwick' alias, no one was doing this kind of stuff. RZA's movie influences though, they must have extended beyond old-timey chop-socky kung-fu flicks. Maybe a little Tales From The Crypt comics on the side.

And if the topics of bad ghetto trips, ultra-violent demonic possessions, hanging tabernacles from testicles, and suggesting various methods of suicide are just a tad too out there for your sensibilities, you cannot deny the music on hand is top-grade shit. Prince Paul handles most of the beats in 6 Feet Deep, running through sample-heavy funk, off-kilter soul, and headbangin' boom-bap (Bang Your Head, appropriately enough). Meanwhile, RZA's shouty maniacal rapping, Grym's smooth flow, and Gatekeeper's gruff voice all play wonderfully off each other (Paul mostly sticks to the producer's roll). This album is equal parts grim-dark and hilarious as fuck, without ever falling into parody like so much 'horrorcore' often does. Only a right prude couldn't get into this album on some level.