AltWeeklies Wire
R&B Hasn't Only Gone Soft, It's Become Downright Bullshitnew
The watering-down of the genre is one reason R&B has been disparaged as "Rap & Bullshit" by everyone from RZA of Wu-Tang Clan to rap bloggers at Cocaine Blunts to the now-defunct music site Stylus. Another is because it's artistically moribund.
Seattle Weekly |
Ben Westhoff |
12-29-2008 |
Music
One Day As A Lion Rages Against Change
Zack De La Rocha returns from exile, a little changed but no worse for wear.
Q-Tip Goes Back to (Old) School
Former Tribe Called Quest leader is is classic form on his first solo album in eight years.
Kanye West Flips the Script with a Bold Attempt at a Pop Record
On 808s and Heartbreak, his fourth album in five years, West has made something close to an anti-hip-hop record.
E-40's Latest Already Sounds Like an Anachronismnew
A self-anointed hip-hop "ambassador" who's made most of his fortune in other industries, 40 takes few risks with his music. When he finds a successful formula, like the "hyphy" style that shaped his 2006 album My Ghetto Report Card, he'll beat it past the point of death.
East Bay Express |
Rachel Swan |
12-10-2008 |
Reviews
'Digging for Dirt' is a Testament to Ol' Dirty Bastard's Whole Beingnew
Pharrell Williams put it best when he said Ol' Dirty Bastard was "insanely genius, geniusly insane." But Jaime Lowe's new biography offers a more complete history of a man spiraling down a rabbit hole of drug addiction and fame.
Charleston City Paper |
Mark Glenn |
12-10-2008 |
Nonfiction
Q-Tip Beats 'Democracy' to the Punch with 'The Renaissance'new
All this talk of Chinese Democracy finally seeing the light of day has overshadowed another album many of us -- at least those in the hip-hop community -- thought would never come to be: Q-Tip's second album, The Renaissance.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Craig D. Lindsey |
12-08-2008 |
Reviews
Hip-Hop Ex-Pat Wafeek Celebrates Paradoxes with New Albumnew
How does he reconcile the fact that he's backhanding the hype machine with one hand while hitting up one of the best-known hip-hop blogs for some cross-promotional buzz with the other?
Riverfront Times |
Keegan Hamilton |
12-05-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Life's Not Fair: Kanye West 2.0new
A post-grad Kanye finally leaves his boastful, aggressive comfort zone in 808s and Heartbreak.
North Bay Bohemian |
David Sason |
12-04-2008 |
Reviews
Wu-Tang's Raekwon Discusses Reuniting and Reconnecting with Fansnew
The individual members of Wu-Tang are involved in so many projects, some of them might not even be aware of each other's work. For instance, Raekwon said he wasn't aware of the latest album billed to Wu-Tang: Soundtracks From the Shaolin Temple, which was released Oct. 7, even though he appears on it.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
12-04-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'War Child' is Too Self-Congratulatory to Truly Engagenew
C. Karim Chrobog's debut feature documentary follows Emmanuel Jal, now based in London, as he travels to the United States to lecture and perform -- mostly for young international audiences with more liberal guilt than rhythm -- and later returns to Sudan for the first time in 18 years.
Washington City Paper |
Tricia Olszewski |
12-04-2008 |
Reviews
Minneapolis Hip-Hop Heavies Heiruspecs End Their Hiatusnew
Just four years ago, riding high on the national release of A Tiger Dancing, Heiruspecs were on the fast track to being the biggest band to come out of Minneapolis in the new millennium. By the end of 2005, however, it all came crashing down -- literally.
City Pages (Twin Cities) |
Andrea Swensson |
12-03-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Kanye's Latest is a Singular Testament to Indescribable Sufferingnew
Thematically, 808s and Heartbreak plunges deeper into West's usual neuroses (insecurity, spiritual unease, and the difficulties of celebrity). The death of his mother and a relationship fissure have brought these concerns into sharper focus.
Exit the 36 Chambers: Choose Your Own Wu-Tang Clan Adventurenew
Something happened on the way to becoming untouchable hip-hop legends. At best, they've reached an artistic cul de sac with their last album, 2007's 8 Diagrams. At worst, they're irrelevant. To find out why, you'll have to choose your own adventure.
San Diego CityBeat |
Nathan Dinsdale |
12-03-2008 |
Music
Kanye West Experiences '808s and Heartbreak'new
West's major achievement here is not in the moments of significant pop-song creativity, but rather the response he's able to get from his listener, the lasting effect that, if previously pondered, seemed a substantially distant possibility.
Chicago Newcity |
Tom Lynch |
12-03-2008 |
Reviews
