Anthony Cruz is a member of one of the most indefinable and amazing hip-hop groups of all time, Natural Elements. Also known as A-Butta, Anthony is 1/4th of this group, which also consists of L-Swift AKA Swigga, Mr. Voodoo and Charlemagne. Coming out of West Harlem, A-Butta began showing up on radio shows and open mics with some of the most vicious and intricate rhymes ever heard. (more…)

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Funk Your Head Up has already been talked about on this site in great detail, and thanks to Ultra associate Marc Davis, it was revealed that Mercury records had refused to release the original version of the album for being “too hardcore” as far as the production was concerned. This further illustrates just how clueless many A&R people can be, raising the question “why would you sign a hardcore group like Ultramagnetic if you wanted a crossover act?”. So as it turned out, the label insisited that the group record a couple of “smoove” radio-friendly tracks such as “I Like Your Style” and then got some foreign producers called Solid Productions to remix many of the original beats. (more…)

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One of rap’s greatest trash talkin’ tough guys is back with some new music… the one and only Tim Dog. While he cermented his place in hip-hop history with “Fuck Compton” (and the less aggressive although still effective radio version known as “Forget Compton”), his second album had some great tracks on it as well. When Penicillin On Wax was released in ‘91, I couldn’t get my hands on a copy quick enough, although that was largely due to the fact that I’d been starved of any new Ultramagnetic material for over two years. The Dog proved to be an entertaining character, and tracks like the anti-Happy Rap “I Ain’t Takin’ No Shorts” with Kool Keith, “Secret Fantasies”, “Bronx Nigga” and the “DJ Quik Beatdown” skit sealed the deal. (more…)

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It’s almost that time of year again… a new Ghostface album is on the horizon. After checking out the “Be Easy” single with Pete Rock and the addictive “Kilos” (thanks to Soul Sides), I’m predicting Supreme Clientele quality from Starks. In the meantime, here’s a couple of essential J-Love produced white labels featuring the Ironman. (more…)

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1993 was not a good year for rap. Shitty Onyx and Das-Efx clones clogged record shelves, and major labels began their attempt to kill off vinyl by limiting many albums to small promotional runs on wax. Sure, we had quality releases such as Midnight Marauders, Enter The 36 Chambers and Enter The Stage to keep us entertained, but they were the exception rather than the rule. (more…)

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The original version of Pimp My Ride is the most predictable MTV show since Room Raiders (and just about every other show in the current schedule), but provided host Xzibit the chance to get some extra screen time for one of his shitty new albums that nobody buys. The basic concept at least made sense, since people in LA loves them some cars with “hot graphics”. For some strange reason (i.e. a lack of original ideas), MTV UK decided to launch a local version of the show, but instead of tailoring the format to British viewers, they’ve ripped-off the US version, shot for shot. (more…)

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The b-side to the forgettable “Back To Reality” single (which, as previously mentioned, featured a large chunk of Soul II Soul as payback for Jazzie B’s bite) featured an ill cut that teamed-up Tragedy with Craig G, for what turned-out to be one of the most under-appreciated team-ups amongst Marley’s stable of vocal talent. Over the loop that was later flipped by Biz Markie for Granddaddy I.U.’s “Something New”, the fellas drop lines over a perfect soul clap tempo and proceed to “killing off all the false prophets/who took the rap industry and tried to hold it hostage”. (more…)

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As far as album promotions are concerned, Matador know what the fuck they’re doin’. When the artist once known as Paul Juice finally released his solo album, the bonus free shit flew thick and fast. This should have tipped me off that Large Professor’s 1st Class wasn’t going to be that great, so the label figured they could distract us with a bunch of extras. The point being, my $14 got me a t-shirt (with the now laughable Midnight Maurauders quote on the front: “Buy the album when I drop it” – Large Pro, 1992), a “Stay Chisel” promo 12″, a good quality CD copy of The LP and Large Pro 2002 Mix CD taken from a Mista Sinista and DJ Crossphader radio set!
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