Apr 24, 2016

@Meero @Perry The Platypus @Mike Tyson @Pablo @Nuredin B @Squid @Fire Squad @Michael Myers @Ordinary Joel @Deadpool @MTY @Jakey @Jordan @Serg @Eyjafjallajokull @FlawlessT @Sav @swr @Enigma @Loyalty @Pato v2 @YDB @Iceman @Narsh @Radeem @Rodamon @Groovy Tony @Jerome @Maad City @Flacko @Mow @Daniel Shaw @art @Jehovah @Soldier @Koolo

Spoiler: #7

7. Mobb Deep - The Infamous (1995)

If I recall correctly, I don’t think anyone has guessed this so far. I had a feeling this might be one of the more surprising ones, as I feel like it usually gets passed over in favor of other phenomenal NY classics like Illmatic, Enter the Wu-Tang, and Ready to Die. Speaking of the latter, what I’ve always appreciated about The Infamous is that it feels timeless to me in the same way that Ready to Die does. While an album like Illmatic is an absolute classic, its sound feels a little “dustier” than Infamous or Ready to Die. I know the term “dusty” has a negative connotation these days, but I don’t think it’s always a bad thing. Madlib’s beats feel “dusty” in a lot of cases, but that’s part of the charm. Illmatic transports you back to 1994 and makes you feel like you’re right there shooting dice and drinking E&J with Nas in Queensbridge, and while The Infamous is certainly a product of the 90s, it’s not as explicit as Illmatic to me. Though it still boasts those sparse drums that characterized NY at the time, everything feels a little bit crisper, and songs like “Temperature’s Rising” and “Drink Away the Pain” help curb the sparseness. For that reason, I feel like it’s one of the more accessible 90s NY albums after Ready to Die and Reasonable Doubt.

Anyway, Mobb Deep makes pretty bad music now and have for quite some time (remember when they were in G-Unit? lol), but this and h--- on Earth are both classics in my eyes. The only song harder than “Shook Ones Pt. II” I can think of off the top of my head is “Ante Up,” and even so, I feel like “Rock you in your face, stab your brain with your nose bone” has a special place in every rap fan’s heart. “Drink Away the Pain” is probably in my top 25 favorite rap songs of all time as well. Also, Prodigy’s reaction to getting a 4.9 on Pitchfork is a 10.0:

 

Apr 24, 2016

Q-Tip is the GOAT. This is also one of the first rap albums Wu-Tang f----- with outside of their own crew's.

 

Apr 24, 2016

Finishing up #6 right now.

 

Apr 24, 2016

@Meero @Perry The Platypus @Mike Tyson @Pablo @Nuredin B @Squid @Fire Squad @Michael Myers @Ordinary Joel @Deadpool @MTY @Jakey @Jordan @Serg @Eyjafjallajokull @FlawlessT @Sav @swr @Enigma @Loyalty @Pato v2 @YDB @Iceman @Narsh @Radeem @Rodamon @Groovy Tony @Jerome @Maad City @Flacko @Mow @Daniel Shaw @art @Jehovah @Soldier @Koolo

Spoiler: #6

6. Kendrick Lamar - section.80 (2011)

Sorry @Koolo, but section.80 is, and always has been my favorite Kendrick album. Props to @Maad City for guessing this right (I feel like @JFK would have guessed this right as well), cuz everyone else who guessed Kendrick guessed good kid, m.A.A.d city.

Don’t get me wrong: good kid is Kendrick’s best album and I completely understand why most would pick it as their favorite. However, there’s a certain intrigue to section.80 that I don’t think Kendrick has captured since. I thought To p---- a Butterfly was going to have it, but it became less interesting upon each listen while section.80 gets more rewarding upon subsequent listens. Despite the somewhat botched ending, good kid is a great album I can throw on anytime as well, but I find section.80 to be a lot more fascinating in terms of its structure and more abstract nature. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: GKMC follows a very simple narrative, but there’s nothing wrong wth that because it executes that simple narrative extremely, extremely well. At the same time, having a more abstract narrative doesn’t necessarily make section.80 the better album either (if only TPAB stans could learn that).

Only a handful of albums have captivated me upon first listen as much as section.80, so much so that I listened to it something like 16 times the first few days after I downloaded it (and no, not because something something jazz something something 2pac, I just personally find this album really interesting and also sonically pleasing). Each song feels kind of like a vignette that tangentially relates to the overall story and themes of the album, but they aren’t fully and concretely connected to one another like on GKMC. 2016 Kendrick could not flip a p---- C sample and make it work to the degree “Blow My High Does” (this honestly might be my favorite Kendrick song on a good day). “ADHD” is obviously great. “f--- Your Ethnicity” remains by far my favorite Kendrick album opener. Despite somewhat of an awkward chorus, “Hol’ Up” gets stuck in my head forever and the beat is godly. Though the highs might be higher on good kid, section.80 remains my favorite front-to-back Kendrick listen.