Not only have I never heard the first two albums, I’m not sure I’d even heard anything by RTJ before listening to this. I knew very little about them, save for maybe one member’s name.
Tag: Experimental Hip Hop
The Life of Pablo (2016) by Kanye West
What am I doing listening to Kanye West’s seventh album before any other album of his? There’s a reason, I swear, but it definitely feels weird and like I am lacking just an absolute ton of context.
Kamasi Washington at HISTORY Tuesday May 7, 2024
If I knew who saxophonist Kamasi Washington was before last night, I didn’t have a very good idea. I might have heard his name here and there but I absolutely did not know much at all about him and had to ask someone who he was. The show changed that. I will absolutely be seeking …
Stankonia (2000) by Outkast
In first year university I lived a few doors down from a girl who played “So Fresh and So Clean” and “Ms. Jackson” on repeat for what felt like weeks. (There were probably other songs in between but I don’t remember them. I certainly don’t remember a single other track from this album.) That, combined …
Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version (1995) by Ol’ Dirty Bastard
Paul’s Boutique (1989) by Beastie Boys
My understanding is that this is the Beastie Boys’ best record. But I have come at it a super weird way, having heard three other records of theirs first, completely out of chronological order. So whatever awe I might have experienced hearing this immediately after Licensed to Ill is just not happening because of this, …
Aquemini (1998) by OutKast
When I was in first year university Stankonia was everywhere. I would walk down the hall and hear it. It was blaring so loud in my neighbour’s room that first semester I couldn’t escape it. Worse, it wasn’t really Stankonia, it was just the hits: “So Fresh, So Clean,” “Ms. Jackson” and “B.O.B.” just playing …
Angels with Dirty Faces (1998) by Tricky
Note: For reasons I can only guess at, the version of this record I streamed on Google Play was missing the first two tracks but I didn’t notice until my final listen. Oops! (Maybe this is the google equivalent of when you were ripping a CD and the ripping program didn’t communicate with your disc …
Fear of a Black Planet (1990) by Public Enemy
This is the first Hip Hop album I have ever given my requisite 3 listens to. I am 33 years old. There have been a number of R&B (or “urban”) albums containing raps and Hip Hop that I have listened to, and I listened to an EP recently that might have sort of qualified, but …