with too much free time on my hands right now... things were a bit dull this year, i guess thats why i bought so much hip hop... the following are somewhat in order, the top ten are atleast... 25:::THE RAPTURE "mirror" 24:::RED STARS THEORY "life in a bubble can be beautiful" 23:::PAPA M "live from a shark cage" 22:::MOBY "play" 21:::QUANNUM MCs "spectrum" 20:::SWOLLEN MEMBERS "balance" 19:::PHAROAHE MONCH "internal affairs" 18:::DEFARI "focused daily" 17:::SMOG "knock knock" 16:::YIND "the yind cd" 15:::MACHA "see it another way" 14:::KOOL KEITH "black elvis/lost in space" 13:::ARSONISTS "as the world burns" 12:::HIGH & MIGHTY "home field advantage" 11:::FLAMING LIPS "the soft bulletin" 10:::RASCO "the birth" can you say 'the late nineties, west coast version of rakim?' this is his second record, and only an ep, but damn this motherfucker is good at what he does...skills professin' battle type rhymes, ala rakim. this man is gonna be around for a long time. hes also featured on peanut butter wolf's album. 9:::MOGWAI "come on die young" probably the epitome of good instrumental(tho not fully instrumental) music today(of the guitar/bass/drums type). either you love this or hate this, as proven on this very list. i cant deny its sheer power though. 8:::THE ROOTS "things fall apart" by far their best album yet. perfect organic hip hop, that id like to see any group even come close to. so deliciously smooth, yet raw. if that makes any sense. black thought, malik b, dice raw, mos def, and common...can this album really be bad?! 7:::BUILT TO SPILL "keep it like a secret" sure its no "perfect from now on". i like to think of it as a nice cross between "theres nothing wrong with love" and "perfect..." this definately has some of their best songs on it. its all just good clean fun...with a playful punch in the gut here or a minor toe stub there, and sometimes your ball gets stuck in the tree. 6:::PEANUT BUTTER WOLF "my vinyl weighs a ton" one of the most innovative beat makers out there teams up with some of the west coasts best emcees and deejays. the result is straight up raw underground hip hop. prince paul and the automator(handsome boy modeling school) wish that this is the album they made, but didnt even come close. 5:::GODSPEED YOU BLACK EMPEROR "slow riot for new zero kanada" this record is pretty much perfect. some emotions are best left unexplained, or unexplainable. those emotions equal the dynamics and beauty of this record. 4:::BLACK HEART PROCESSION "2" simply put: beautiful, haunting, heartbraking. 3:::MOS DEF "black on both sides" dante bize can do it all, play drums, bass, keyboards, and even sing with a ton of soul. oh yeah, he can rhyme too, but is there really anyone that hasnt heard him do that? i read awhile back...Q:"sum up hip hop in 1998?", A:"mos def." this record has everything from straight up hip hop to mellower, smooth type stuff. from jazz to early 80's d.c. style hardcore! if you dont listen to hip hop in any way, shape or form, please atleast try to pick this record up. its very mature, and pretty universal, ala the miseducation of lauryn hill. 2:::STYLES OF BEYOND "2000 fold" some of the best production out there, and two emcees with some of the nicest flows you'll ever hear. why are these guys so overlooked. fun hop hop, that doesnt take itself too seriously, yet is very professional. lots of integrity i guess im trying to say. essential hip hop for 1999. 1:::DR. DOOOM "first come, first served" wasnt too thrilled with it at first, but it gets better every time i listen to it. keith is crazy(clinically insane, in fact), and it really, really shows here. and hes pissed off at the state of hip hop today, and everyone biting off what he invents. some choice lines: "put that spring water down man, you aint sweatin. you muthafuckas did a ten minute weak show, and you jettin. your fans are mad, your performance was garbage bag. look at these videotapes, walkin back n forth, grabbin your nuts like the planet of the apes!" it doesnt get any better than that. and the entire song "leave me alone", is straight up record industry shit talkin. kool keith, the madonna of hip hop! kool keith, the sun ra of hip hop! kool keith, the most original and ever changing creative genius of hip hop. honorable mention: you can tell i have a tough time deciding... underworld. company flow. dj vadim. lungfish. satisfact. tom waits. pinback. mercury rev. blur. gangstarr, for the three new songs, and all the b sides, and because its fucking gangstarr! biggest disappointments: beatnuts (getting old?) eminem (maybe he should stick to the numerous, amazing guest spots he does so well. or he shouldve gotten dr dre to do the beats.) handsome boy modeling school (this is no '6 feet deep', 'buhloone mindstate' or 'prince among thieves' and certainly no 'dr.octagonacologyst'. there are some good songs, but the truth is theres really nothing special, or innovative going on here. and wheres the concept thats supposed so prevalant? its only heard on, the(admittedly hilarious) stuff where chris elliot is sampled. and making el-p's lyrics unrecognizable, what the fuck is up with that? and sean lennon's voice is fucking irritatingly horrible. i could go on and on. i like it but ya know... anyone who digs this, go pick up something like [my choice #6]) peace xo BP
