O.G.C. - Da Storm (October 29, 1996)

Yeah, that album cover is absolutely hilarious.

Jack McNair aka Starang Wondah, Barrett Powell aka Louieville Sluggah and Dashawn Yates aka Top Dog were childhood friends who went through many career choices together. First, they were children, then fuckups, then roadies, then rappers, then cameo professionals. Not the typical career path for a group affiliated with a bona fide legendary hip hop act such as the Boot Camp Clik. Especia-fucking-lly when all your BCC affiliates have hyped you up in every single one of the Clik's previous three projects, so far. And this is how you repay them?! By making the best possible album you can make?! Wait a minute...

OK, I know we started off on the wrong foot here, Messrs Clappaz. I'm only this agitated because of all the BCC, you're the act with the least amount of material. Why must the BCC release a goddamn group album for us to hear the motherfucking Originoo Gunn Clappaz spit verses? Why can't some of y'all release solo projects??!! Louie released two solo projects, you say? Oh.

Whoops.

So after marketing genius Dru-Ha made the genius decision to ingeniously cancel the Fab 5 album Without The Freddy and ingeniously split said Fab 5 back into their original groups, (Do I sound a tad bitter? Because, I fucking am.) Heltah Skeltah took full advantage and relatively hit another home run for the team with their debut Nocturnal, which contains Leflah: Arguably the most popular BCC song, (I'm not calling it by its moronic other name) and kept the momentum going after the underground popularity of Black Moon's Enta Da Stage and especially Smif-N-Wessun's Dah Shinin'. Now, it was up to the youngest trio of the group to step up and show they're cut from the same cloth as their predecessors.

Which should be an easy task, because it's not like these dudes haven't been tested before. As I said, there were numerous moments on the previous albums where various members of O.G.C. were thrust into the spotlight. Take their participations on BCC classics like Cession At Da Doghillee, Headz Ain't Ready, their Fab 5 songs Blah and the aforementioned Leflah for example, all in which they shone brightly. Especially Starang. This dude has spit punchline lava ever since he grabbed the mic with his kin Top Dog on the famed Sound Bwoy Bureill. Not to say Louie and Top Dog were bad by any means, but Starang was the clear star of the group.

I digress, though. Duck Down finally decided to release a Mr. Walt production as the lead single again. Said lead single, No Fear, had a video where the trio infamously dissed late legend The Notorious B.I.G. and his weed carriers Junior M.A.F.I.A. for some utterly stupid shit. This led to the Junior M.A.F.I.A. crew heading to a studio where the BCC were recording. Shit went down, as one would expect. Thankfully, it didn't escalate beyond that and both crews tremendously downplayed the incident ever since.

Anyways, if you think about it, the last Dewgarde bros. production that was used as any type of single was Sound Bwoy Bureill, which was two albums ago. A testament to how fast things were moving in the BCC. So now the team behind Da Storm, O.G.C.'s debut, are stuck between trying to combine the old Beatminer-saturated direction with the new collaborative direction behind the boards. So Team Beatminerz, once again producing the bulk of the album, went with the Dewgarde bros. to take five cuts while Baby Paul, production star of Nocturnal, took a backseat with just two. the rest were outsourced to much of the same people who worked on the Heltah Skeltah debut. That way, everybody was pleased with the resulting balance.

Did O.G.C. survive their proving grounds?

INTRO
This album unfortunately has the most skits out of the BCC four. That is not cool with me at all.

CALM BEFORE DA STORM
Shaleek, who handled Heltah Skeltah's solo joints on Nocturnal, opens the album up for O.G.C. with a fittingly dreary instrumental that our hosts paint their mission statement over. Basically, they're strictly about braggadocio. That's all you're gonna get. Each Clappa sounds off with a verse apiece, with Starang naturally besting his brethren. Not a bad way to set shit off.

NO FEAR
Our lead single. Mr. Walt, once again to be called Mr. fucking Walt, combines John Kaizan Neptune with Lonnie Liston Smith with absolutely unrecognizable results. It's beats like this one that demonstrate why good sampling is not stealing. O.G.C., in turn, come correct with a definite early highlight. All of them. Yes. Even Louie and especially Top Dog, whom I've always considered the weakest of the three. And yet he and Louie share more chemistry together than either of them do with Starang. Anyhow, this shit was awesome.

BOOM...BOOM... PRICK
...

GUNN CLAPP
Mr. fucking Walt keeps things simple this time, by cutting two samples from the same Earth, Wind & Fire record. And he still manages to keep things interesting. Here, our trio sound like a true group as they lyrically try to outdo each other. Starang still wins, but the effort the other two show is truly not to be scoffed at.

EMERGENCY BROADCAST SYSTEM
Big Tigger was a presence before Rap City? Didn't know that. This skit blows, by the way.

HURRICANE STARANG
If there ever was a talent who screamed: "SOLO CAREER!" It was Starang Wondah. This song is currently one of the most infuriating experiences in recent memory. Not because I didn't like it. Far from that, this is by far one of the greatest songs in hip hop history. It's because it led to absolutely nothing for its hero. I truly believe Starang Wondah is the BCC's Killa Sin. I mean, you have guys like Sean Price (RIP) who wasn't pegged out to be the "star" of an overarching hip hop group and was underestimated by everybody. And not only did he manage to shatter all doubters' criticisms, but he scorched way past his most ardent supporters' expectations. While carefully groomed talent like Starang Wondah fall flimsily by the wayside. Truly a shame, as he outright demolishes Mr. fucking Walt's brilliant composition, consisting of a New Spaces loop. Now I am most definitely not aware of what he might've went through these past 20 years, so nobody can really accuse him of negligence except those whom he allows to. Bottom line: This was truly bittersweet.

DANJER
I was pleasantly surprised with how Louie and Top Dog carried this Baby Paul production (which also samples the same New Spaces record as Hurricane Starang) effortlessly, bouncing off each other as if they were brothers, or cousins and shit. They might actually be cousins, you say? That explains a lot. Like why these two sound almost exactly like each other. It would also explain why, once again, these two have more chemistry with each other than either of them do with Starang. On that note: Imagine if Starang Wondah, instead of hooking up with these two, hooked up with Ruck & Rock. I'm sure they would've obviously been an unstoppable punchline trio but, alas, you can't have everything.

ELEMENTS OF DA STORM
Over a very intruding Steele beat, some dude called Yuwee rambles incoherently in extremely broken Arabic. Trust me. Anyone who reads this site frequently knows that I'm a longtime resident of the Arab world, (read: 20 years) and as such, I speak perfect Arabic. (Disagree? Leave something in the comments section. Lord knows there's plenty of room since nobody who comes to this friggin' site bothers to leave any feedback.)

DA STORM
Evil D returns, toting a very prevalent Moody sample, and crafts a loop that plods along in all the right ways. On this record, Top Dog interpolates Deborahe Glasgow's hook on Shabba Ranks' Don't Test Me. O.G.C. would then perform Da Storm in some club where Biggie (RIP) and his Junior M.A.F.I.A. were in attendance. And before you can say 'Shabba', out comes Junior M.A.F.I.A. with the abysmal Get Money Remix with the Big One belting out Deborahe's hook within the very first minute. May I present the aforementioned utterly stupid shit that got Starang beat the fuck up. And while I couldn't give less of a fuck about Junior M.A.F.I.A., O.G.C. were totally in the wrong here. Anyways, Da Storm by itself is pretty goddamn awesome. All three Clappaz carefully thought out their 16s and delivered, with Starang obviously being the best of the bunch again.

WILD COWBOYS IN BUCKTOWN (FEATURING SADAT X & SEAN BLACK)
DJ Ogee, longtime affiliate of the Diggin' In The Crates Crew, gives our trio one of his hand-crafted beats. The result? Not as good as one would expect when looking at the ingredients present. A kickass Quincy Jones record? Check. A bunch of MCs spitting for their life? Check. Well, except for Sean Black whose rhymes I never want to hear ever again. Whether on this album or otherwise. Which shows you that the producer is the one with the most heavy-lifting to do, and this particular tidbit surprises me since Ogee has done some brilliant work with DITC's OC on Word..Life and would continue to do so on OC's 1997 opus Jewelz. It should be noted, however, that Louieville spits some of the best shit I've ever heard from him throughout his entire career. In case you were wondering: Yes, his bars are better than any of of his fellow collaborators on this song. Sadat X aka Derek X aka Mr. Murphy. neither drags this song down nor elevates it. Shame, that.

GOD DON'T LIKE UGLY
You'd think that Mr. Murphy would appear on his fellow Brand Nubian Lord Jamar's production. Oh well. Lord Jamar, enemy of the politically correct, co-produces this song with Buckshot. Their beat is infinitely better than the last time they hooked up on Heltah Skeltah's Intro (Here We Come), with smart use of the Green-Eyed Bandit's sampled lyrics from EPMD's classic song Strictly Business throughout this cut. Our trio once again bounce verses off each other effortlessly, as if these types of grim beats are an unspoken factor to their chemistry. Starang tones down his voice just enough to make his punchlines much more direct, which was a deft touch.

ELITE FLEET (FEATURING M.S., THE REPRESENTATIVZ & BAD VYBES)
Baby Paul returns with his tried-&-true formula of sampling the first few seconds of a record, this time a John Payne Band song, and delivers his best motherfucking beat ever. No bullshitting here. I keep rewinding this track endlessly every time it plays across my iPod. Such a beat can only be complemented by a balls-out perfomance or an expertly-done posse cut. O.G.C. go with the latter, and while the guests are nowhere in the vicinity of the BCC's skills, they do just fine. Credit to Louie's closing verse, where he comes with enough energy that sells his admittedly above-average boasts.

FLAPPIN
For the album's final record, O.G.C. were blessed to gain the services of not one, but two of the absolute best producers this industry has ever seen. And they just so happened to be Alkaholiks family, who were predominantly from the West Coast. E-Swift just so happened to find himself in NewYork and specifically in front of our trio's recording studio. Oh, and future bloggerland darling Madlib came along lest you think E-Swift would be half-assing it. Which was preposterous, for his previous work with the BCC on Heltah Skeltah's Operation Lock Down resulted in an unadulterated classic hip hop song. This time, he does an even better job with the help of his wizard of a protege when they combine two loops from The Everly Bros. and Galt McDermot, respectively, with mind-blowing results. Our trio choose this very fitting beat to provide their balls-out performance that I stated earlier to be necessary for converting beats like this into classic songs, with Starang shooting to the cosmos of legendary punchliners once again. Their magic inside the booth obviously excited some of their fellow BCC brethren, as you can distinctly hear Tek ad-libbing excitedly in the background. A perfect end to the album.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
I'm surprised I'm writing this, but song-for-song: This album is a tad more successful than Nocturnal. Hell, were it not for the painfully-awful skits, this might've given Enta Da Stage and even Dah Shinin' a run for their money. Proof that O.G.C. were, for a brief period of time, worthy of standing alongside their brethren as the mighty Boot Camp Clik. Sadly, the entire act would experience backlash when they made the genius decision to distance themselves from production team Da Beatminerz' trademark dusty & dreary sound. No doubt, Dru-Ha's idea. The entire BCC would find some mild success with their followup albums before plummeting hard into irrelevancy for three years until their revival with the marvelous Triple Threat campaign that showed a renewed focus from all parties involved.

WORTH IT? Would you rather proclaim your love for "tha coco" to the heavens? Because it's totally cool if you prefer that rotting piece of filth to a bonafide classic album. It's also totally cool to get your OT Genasis on somewhere away from this blog. If you'd rather not do that, then acquire this album yesterday.

TRACKS TO TRACK DOWN:
HARD TO THE CORE
This is another one of those tracks that the internet apparently doesn't know who its producer is. Well, whoever it was, he/she/they must've been working on this track before Da Storm's release. That, and the obvious 1995 shoutout by our trio. I will give them this, though: If he/she/they aren't Da Beatminerz or part of their team, he/she/they sure nailed their sound. I mean, this could've fit snugly on Da Storm. And all three Gunn Clappaz come fucking correct with their boasts-n-bullshit. Really top notch chemistry between them on display here. You should really check this out as soon as possible, especially if you loved Da Storm.

For those who crave more BCC.

Heltah Skeltah - Nocturnal (June 18, 1996)

This post is especially painful.

The world lost a fucking legendary human being. Kind. Giving. Funny. Talented. Opinionated. Tough. Badass. Underrated. Underestimated. All these and so many more are barely enough to describe a man like Husayn Sayyid, known to world by his birth name Sean Price, also known by his many self-styled nicknames: Tawl Sean aka Ruckus Da Irrational aka Dutch aka Da Inflixta aka The Brokest Rapper You Know aka Kimbo Price aka Mic Tyson aka Gray Hulk (His final tag name on Twitter). All these are the tip of the iceberg, believe me. He was a genuine person who had his priorities sorted out right, evidenced by the way he turned his life around from a violent adolescence to a positive life as an adult. He always put his family and loved ones above all else. I have said before that I wish I could've grabbed a bite with him. Why? Because I'm not one to dehumanize someone by putting them on a fucking pedestal the way celebrity culture demands from various people, such as taking photos, autographs or the like. I believe that to be one of the most disrespectful things you can do to a person, simply for the fact that you'd be tremendously isolating said person when all he wants is some genuine human interaction. No, I wish I could've known this person. This gem of a human being. And sadly, he's no longer with us. I pray for him to be in a better place now. My sincere thoughts & condolences go out to Husayn's family & loved ones.

Of course, I can't talk about this man on a hip hop review site without mentioning his significant role in it. And nowhere is said role more apparent to me than in his body of work with longtime cohort Jamal Bush, who also assigned himself a slew of nicknames such as Da Rockness Monsta aka Da Flipsta aka Sparsky aka Grand Son of Sam aka Military Punisher aka Bummy Jab, as rap duo Heltah Skeltah of the Boot Camp Clik, in which Sean inexplicably singled his teammate out as the "better" rapper. Of course, as a person who studied these two meticulously and thereby came to the conclusion that choosing one of them over the other is impossible, I find that claim to be absolute nonsense. My opinion goes that Sean Price cannot go into my MC Hall Of Fame without Rock. Bottom line. I don't care if Sean has a better solo career. They're both essential inductees.

Anyway, in 1995 the Boot Camp Clik was firing on all cylinders following the relative success of Dah Shinin', co-founders Smif-N-Wessun's debut, and the Clik's subsequent credited debut on the song Headz Ain't Ready on the second New Jersey Drive OST. Now if you know the lineup of this merry band of men, you are surely familiar with the rest of the group: trio O.G.C. and our two hosts. What some might not have known was that a very interesting project almost came to fruition following Smif-N-Wessun's magnum opus. You see, Heltah Skeltah and O.G.C. briefly combined forces to form a supergroup within the BCC called the Fab 5. They even recorded a single as such. This single, Blah, was supposed to be newly-formed label Duck Down's trump card. But it was the b-side, Leflah, that blew the fuck up. Similar to what Cypress Hill went through with The Phuncky Feel One/How I Could Just Kill A Man. Matter of fact, it's exactly that. Only without all the mainstream success.

So now that Leflah became a relative critical hit, the way is paved for the following album, right? WRONG. Some airhead decided the album was a bad business move and the Fab 5 would be better off separate & in their original lineups. You say it was Dru-Ha? Well, he might not be an airhead but that was still a dumb decision. One Dru himself admitted as such recently saying that you just can't manufacture the type of buzz Leflah stirred up. No shit, sherlock! So everybody chugged along with that stupid-ass decision with a quick shift of plans, with Heltah Skeltah slated up next. Our duo benefitted from this move greatly, however, by having Leflah added to their debut. I'm sure O.G.C. were thrilled for their brethren, team players that they were. Just ask Diddy.

The addition of Leflah, now insipidly rebranded as Leflaur Leflah Eshkoshka, really boosted the promotion for our duo's debut LP, Nocturnal. So Duck Down followed up with Nocturnal's true lead single, Operation Lock Down, which had one of the most visual hip hop music videos ever made. Trust me, it's something you need to see. Hell, the original video was an even more impressive accomplishment, given their obvious financial limitations at the time of its making. Operation Lock Down only added to the critical acclaim Leflah garnered while also helping to establish Heltah Skeltah as their own entity. More importantly, Operation Lock Down along with the earlier Blah were the very first singles from the BCC not to involve anyone from Da Beatminerz team and yet they still retained the dark Beatminerz sound which most BCC fans fell in love with. Indeed, there was a new production movement in motion to coincide with Duck Down's launch as they looked to expand their reach, which made for some interesting choices behind the boards.

Of course, none of this talk of production and sounds really matters if the MCs weren't dope. And as previously stated, both halves of Heltah Skeltah were ridiculously good. While they both focused on punchlines, the sheer difference in their lyrical approach allowed them to compliment each other very well. You see, the late Husayn Sayyid aka Ruck was effortlessly calculating with his punchlines. And you had to hear them in order to get them, not read them off a piece of paper or a Rap Genius page. On the other hand, Rock was clearly the outlandish half as he was the one who came with lines that instantly jumped out of the speakers at you, while his image being colorful enough to immediately create a lasting impression, and his voice forever being an enemy to monotone. Also, it should be noted that they both shared a distinction with Steele from Smif-N-Wessun  and Black Moon's Buckshot in that they are able to generate incredible chemistry with whoever they step in the booth with.

Let's dig in to Nocturnal, shall we?

INTRO (HERE WE COME)
Heltah Skeltah reach out to the recently-infamous Lord Jamar, who's actually an accomplished producer, along with BCC bandmate Buckshot to immediately set the pace for this entry into BCC lore with a fittingly-dark instrumental. Needless to say, it almost veers into the useless-crap territory that is populated by oh so many rap album intros. But once OGC's Starang Wondah finishes his very essential rambling, Rock swoops in with a one-verse wonder that basically lists the albums tracks for you by borrowing an element from each song whether it be its name, its hook or so on. I dunno, I'm not feeling it but it could've been much worse.

LETHA BRAINZ BLO
Let's get something straight here folks: Mr. Walt and Evil D are barely on this album. Hell, Evil D has only one production on the entire LP. So, the original Beatminerz influence was already waning from Dah Shinin'. Instead, it's teammate Baby Paul who's picking up the pace with the most productions out of any producer on the album with five credits. His first here shows him to be a true student of the Dewgarde brothers as he takes the first few seconds from a Johnny Pate record and crafts a banging beat for Ruck and Rock to tear apart. And do they ever. This duo establishes itself as a tag team worthy of mention alongside legends such as EPMD, Method Man & Redman, Organized Konfusion and their own BCC family Smif-N-Wessun. This track is simply punchlines galore: Rock's "You're sweet as muffins, that mom dukes bake I break/Yeah my Timberlands make everything from your head to your North Lake ache" versus Ruck's "First of all, n****s don't know jack, my flow's fat/So fat, my gat splat at n****s who claim that my shit's wack" Take your goddamn pick. This shit was awesome.

UNDASTAND
To be honest, this song is the first song I gravitated to when I heard Nocturnal in its entirety for the first time. I know, I listened to the full album. Who does that nowadays, right? So, Baby Paul's kind of on a banging run here. This time, he brilliantly chooses Soledad De Murcia, a ripping jazz classic, and samples the first few seconds again. This guy must have a penchant for finding these types of samples. For their part, our duo switch to the '16-16-8-8' formula with each MC once again making it very hard to choose a favorite. A damn fine one-two combo from all parties involved.

WHO DAT?
Buckshot is daringly going for dolo behind the boards on this one. The beat's surprisingly mellow and allows Husayn and Jamal to rip shop with a short eight bars each. This was not bad in the least.

SEAN PRICE (FEATURING ILLA NOYZ)
I know Illa Noyz is Sean's brother and he spits crazy bars on this, but I still can't help but think of this song as a Sean Price solo. The man simply owns the track. He makes the track his personal property. He can sue you for everything you're worth if you trespass on this track or even think of insinuating such a thing. This song marks a first in BCC lore, where a member from an established duo creates an entire market for a solo career with one song, and he's not even alone on the damn thing. Props to Shaleek for one of the most inventive instrumentals of 1996, no exaggeration.

CLAN'S, POSSE'S, CREW'S & CLIK'S
A Beatminer produced this song? A real Beatminer?! I must say that I expected more out of Evil D's beat, but it does its job. Rock and Ruck bring more truckloads of punchlines like rapid fire. Seriously, check these out: Ruck: 'Some may wonder, the evil these two men do/Torment you, lyrical landlord, your fucking rent due' Rock: 'Suplexed your grandpops then like corn I pop shit/You can't flush, fucking with us you're smacked with hock spit'

THERAPY (FEATURING VINIA MOJICA)

I love punchlines. I really do. I mean, just look at the paragraphs above. But one thing about a punchline rapper that might cause him trouble is when he decides to be 'artsy'. Granted, some are more capable than others. For example, with all due respect to dudes like Akinyele. But they haven't shown signs of having an Uncommon Valor performance in them the way RA The Rugged Man (Another punchline hall-of-famer) did. Even if it did come out of fucking nowhere. This is where songs like Therapy come in. Heltah Skeltah have crafted an undeniable classic with a full-blown thesis of ghetto troubles for young males while still retaining their trademark punchlines. This interesting concept is backed with an awesome Baby Paul sampling of Milt Jackson and The Ray Brown Big Band. Two seconds. That's all it took for Baby Paul, in his third outing on the album, to create one of his best beats. I will say that Vinia Mojica's hook is technically proficient if a bit unnecessary. All in all, one of the best things Sean Price has ever done in this game, if not the best.

PLACE TO BE
And now it's back to business as usual. Quick note: Sean/Shawn J. Period impressed the hell out of me with his work on fellow Virginian Skillz' debut From Where??? Dude provided the best beats on that album, which is especially hard when you're up against the likes of Large Professor, J Dilla, Buckwild and the fucking Beatnuts. So anytime I find his name on something again, I immediately check it out. That's how I got into the Artifacts in the first place. Anyway, his work here is more of the same brilliance, providing the perfect backdrop for Husayn and Jamal to spit a 16 each. By now, their wittiness has become a standard that each of them is held at. To clarify, this was deliciously good.

SOLDIERS GONE PSYCO
Baby Paul's back at it once again with the sampling of a certain record's first few seconds. It's Wade Marcus' turn this time. Let me remind you that this is simply not possible if the producer doesn't have a background in DJing. It is what it is. The beat, of course, is fuel enough for Mr. Inflixta and Mr. Flipsta to come correct with yet another '16-16-8-8' punchline display. Good shit here,folks.

THE SQUARE (TRIPLE R) (FEATURING THE REPRESENTATIVZ)
Heltah Skeltah engage in a tag team match with the Representativz, one of which is Rock's younger brother Lidu Rock. (Horrible choice of nickname. Just horrible.) The lyrics by all involved are good, but the beat by the other Representativ Supreme is a steaming barrel of sewage. So much so that it threatens to make me regret ever listening to Nocturnal. It's that bad.

DA WIGGY
Mr. Walt debuts his first of two productions on Nocturnal by combining a menacing Meters bass loop with the famed Strange Games & Things' first three guitar notes. It's wizardry, really. Rock and Ruck cleverly split lyrical duties in a rare structure where first Ruck spits his 16 bars then Rock spits an 8 and they go to hook duties, following it up by Ruck spitting an 8 and Rock ending it with his 16. And the rhymes are fucking good. This is a definite highlight.

GETTIN ASS GETTIN ASS
That is almost ruined by this goddamn skit. I hate to speak less of the dead but Sean already showed us his Dr. Killpatient character on Therapy and it was funnier then. Hell, his motherfucking ad-libs on that song were funnier than this entire skit. That's all I have to say about this particular waste of space. How about we move on, eh?

LEFLAUR LEFLAH ESHKOSHKA (FEATURING O.G.C.)
Ah yes, the famed Fab 5 joint. Baby Paul signs off for the night by looping a Catalyst record. And, you guessed it: He loops the first few seconds. And I wouldn't have it any other way. The Fab 5 effectively remind you of the incredible chemistry between the entire BCC on posse cuts such as this one. Allow me to state that Starang's opening verse is one of the very best in hip hop history. But don't worry, though. The remaining 4 rip shit up just as hard. This might probably be the most famous BCC song, and it would be worthy of such a title. I'm a Headz Ain't Ready type of cat, myself. It's all good, though.

PROWL (FEATURING LOUIEVILLE SLUGGAH)
Mr. fucking Walt is back with a menacing page out of Baby Paul's book by sampling the first few seconds of a Lalo Schifrin record. Now since Starang Wondah and especially Top Dog got some shine on preceding joint Dah Shinin', it's only right that this album dedicates a slot to Barrett Powell bka Louieville Sluggah on their album. Even though it's an incredibly short slot. I'll credit Rock, though, for sounding genuinely thrilled when introducing Louie, who spits only 8 bars. Somehow, these 8 bars do the job and have you wanting to hear more from him. After which Ruck & Rock gallop ahead with the rest of the track, of course. When the dust settled, I ended up loving this song.

GRATE UNKNOWN
Shaleek's back. And I find it interesting that he's in charge of both rappers' solo showcases on the album. Of course, Illa Noyz' verse needs to erase its existence in order for that fact to be 100% accurate but, hey, nobody's complaining. What do you mean, it couldn't even if it wanted to?! Slapstick aside, Shaleek sprinkles a sample from an unknown cover of I Cover The Waterfront by Johnny Green and Edward Heyman to impressive effect on a magnificently weird beat for Rock to spit his solo game. And, just in case anyone had any doubts, he comes correct. It's a damn shame his solo career went nowhere, because he had that charisma that's impossible to fake about him, and he was good at flaunting it.

OPERATION LOCK DOWN
The lead single is the last track on the album? This is some Illmatic type of fuckery right here. So, E-Swift from Tha Alkaholiks is the producer of this song and, by God, was that an inspired choice. His George Benson loop is flawless, and it gives Ruck & Rock enough energy to deliver an equally-flawless tag team performance. The punchlines are a quote a second and the flow is just breathtaking. When you finish this song, you'll feel as if you just finished listening to a prog rock concert. I don't care if I'm pushing it, that is how I feel.

OUTRO

Looks like someone's not quite over that beat yet, as this outro is basically a skit over the Operation Lock Down instrumental. Which is absolutely lame as all fuck. Shame. This album deserved a better ending than this.

FINAL THOUGHTS: What can I say about Sean Price's lyrical talents that hasn't been said already? Especially in the past month. It's so sad that somebody from the underground has to die in order to get coverage and people trying to cash in on his success, so thank God he passed in the midst of family, physically and legally so no one can exploit his immense remaining body of work for their own profit. Every single collaboration Duck Down cook up featuring Husayn later has to pay for his wife and kids' well-being. I have a feeling he would've wanted it that way. I'm also attempting to give his partner Rock his just due, as even in BCC fan circles, he gets slept on heavy. In closing, these two are the perfect punchline tag team and deserves their place in history. Baby Paul, Da Beatminerz and the remaining producers also deserve heavy praise for their accomplishments on this gem of a debut. Especially Baby Paul.

WORTH IT? You goddamn right it is. Go get yourself a slice of punchline wizardry. This remains the finest Sean Price material out there, in my humble opinion.

TRACKS TO TRACK DOWN:
BLAH (FAB 5 SONG)
The originally-planned hit which wasn't really a hit. Some dude called Tony Moore produced this gem, where he succeeded in capturing all five members' chemistry together in a brilliant whirlwind of threats, punchlines and thuggery. This is a worthy addition to your BCC collection.

Finally and most importantly, don't ever forget to donate to this link. Support Husayn Sayyid's family, for they are in a desperate time right now. riP!

Explore more from the BCC.

Smif-N-Wessun - Dah Shinin' (January 10, 1995)

In 1993, a certain MC spit the following line: 'These type of tunes got me consumed in a rubber room.'

Ever since the very first time I heard Enta Da Stage by Black Moon: MC's 5ft, Buckshot and DJ Evil D,  I've always found a way to replay many Beatminerz-produced songs again and again. Trust me, my wife's sick to death of it. I might've denied them being the powerful production force that they are at first, because believe it or not, Enta Da Stage was not my first exposure to Da Beatminerz, consisting of real-life brothers Evil D and Mr. Walt. No, I first heard their work on OC's Dangerous, a flossy duet he did with late punchline juggernaut Big L. Back then, I dismissed them as yet another Trackmasters-esque team, and no one has the right to blame me for that misjudgment. Especially if you heard that song. Anyway, I neglected to notice that they had an entire sound prior. A sound that stretched out over the course of four albums prior to Dangerous, specifically 93-96 and beginning with, of course, Enta Da Stage.  And after I'd listened to that album, I was instantly fiending for more.

Now, this time I had already done my research regarding what the Boot Camp Clik actually planned next. And from Da Beatminerz' side, it was very obvious that Evil D and Mr. Walt were gearing up for big things production-wise. For in 1994, Black Moon remixed two of the more popular tracks from their album, Buck Em Down and I Got Cha Opin, while releasing all-new songs, Reality (Killing Every...) and Murder MC's, as b-sides to said remixes. There was something different to their approach this time round. Both brothers were more serious about coming off as professionals, and it truly shows in their work. From samples to cutting to mixing, everything sounded crisper and more refined, contrasting with the uniquely-raw sound of Enta Da Stage. I wanted more. Little did I know I had so much more coming when I figured out that they had planned to make their next project as directors of a hip hop album. The results became Smif-N-Wessun's debut album. This album.

Smif-N-Wessun, Darrell Yates and Tekomin Williams aka General Steele and Tek Smokee Lah respectively aka Mr. Vicksta and Mr. Rippa respectively aka Dred and Bal-head respectively aka Steele and Tek for short, were lifelong friends along with the rest of the Boot Camp. However, their bond to each other as friends transcends your average lifelong friendship in the industry. So much so that according to Tek, Steele taught him how to rhyme, starting with writing his first rhyme. Many respected duos experienced break-ups, beefs, falling-outs and so on, but not these two. Together, they debuted on Enta Da Stage on two songs, both were highlights of the entire album: Black Smif-N-Wessun and U Da Man. Lyrically, the two complimented Buckshot very well with these guest appearances, both even upstaging him on Black Smif-N-Wessun. Of course, given the limited lyrical subject matter prevalent on the rest of the album, that wasn't very hard to do, but still. So, when those three formed the rest of the BCC as a rap collective, it made sense that Smif-N-Wessun would be the next act out the gate. Buckshot called on the service of Team Beatminerz, who've since added two members, Babee Pall & Rich Blak, to their roster, and it was on. Releasing the first single, Bucktown/Let's Git It On, the two patois-obsessed weedheads had a relatively modest underground hit on their hands, so production continued full-speed ahead... And they succeeded in building the very first shitting robot. Think about it. A robot who shits. Brilliant.

All silliness aside, Dah Shinin' rarely gets talked about in hip hop circles anymore. Fuck, it rarely gets talked about in BCC fan circles anymore. Unless it so happens to be the 20th anniversary of said Shinin'. Meanwhile, every once in a while you find a tribute to the Illmatics, the Ready To Dies & especially the Reasonable Doubts of the world. Now, while in no way am I trying to imply that these were even remotely bad albums, I am calling out those fuckers who barrage the internet with absurd, even obscene, claims like, such and such album is "teh goatz". Ditto with rappers, producers & songs. I will always have an issue with this line of thought. Because whether you like it or not, boldly making such statements harms each and every act who put their blood, sweat and tears into their product yet for some reason never reached a wide-enough audience. Bottom fucking line: Grow the FUCK up.

On to the review:

TIMZ N HOOD CHEK
I love that fact that Dah Shinin' mirrors Enta Da Stage in not including an intro. However, my issues with the tracklisting on Enta Da Stage also continue here: The fuckheads at Nervous should've placed the lead single and its b-side as the opening two tracks. Other than that, I'm surprised that Evil D went with such a minimalist approach. I mean, as always, the beat is meticulously crafted from Galt MacDermot source material, but the result almost falls flat on its face. Almost. Steele sets shit off in a manner that forces you to pay attention, with each and every one of his boasts hitting you square in the chest, and you realize you're dealing with a different animal than Buckshot. These dudes are both very big on imagery amid their threat-filled verses. Especially General Steele. He's not my preferred MC out the BCC for nothing.

WREKTIME
Allow me to applaud Da Beatminerz for once again delivering an audio painting of beautiful contrast. You see, by now this team has really come into its own with regards to its unique sound. Mr. Walt's composition on this track demonstrates just that with a very mellow Barbara & Ernie bass loop meshed with incredibly hard Mad Lads drums. The Eric Gale saxophone sample scattered around the track is the icing on the cake. This is not lost on Steele-N-Tek, as they turn in a brilliant verse each, punctuated by an insanely-annoying hook that threatens to blow this song's momentum out the sky with an anime-style laser beam. one of those always depicted to destroy planets and shit. They choose the third verse to debut their twist on the famed back-n-forth style of MCing on the album, pioneered by Run-DMC & perfected by certified legends such as EPMD, Raekwon & Ghostface (RAGU for short) and many others. Of course they had already debuted this style in 1994 on the b-side Let's Git It On, but it's nice that they followed up and stuck to what works here. And I must say, this duo holds up where many similarly-skilled duos failed in that they just sound natural using this style. The first real hit on the album with me.

WONTIME (FEATURING HELTAH SKELTAH)
I take that back. Wrektime is absolute trash compared to this. Mr. Walt, whom from here on out in this review shall be known as Mr. fucking Walt, collaborates with Rich Blak on, by far, the grimiest and most demented beat on this album. Fuck that: It's, by far, the grimiest and most demented beat in the entire BCC's catalog. There is no room for melody here, and Rock delivers a fucking masterpiece of a hook, with Sean Price (RIP) chiming in with one ad-lib: 'One time!' I swear, that ad-lib sounded like one of those voices you saw in a horror cartoon as a child and proceeded to have nightmares about for your entire prepubescent life. However, even with all that, the true centerpiece of this track will always be our two hosts. Both of them. See, very much like other famed hip hop MC duos, one of the members outdoes the other, being the workman of the act, while the other's performances act as somewhat secondary and supporting to the first, even if they both had equal mic time. But, when both MCs fire on all cylinders and throw everything they know about rapping into the song, the result is nothing short of grandiose, and that's precisely what happens here. Steele & Tek launch into a violent, hardcore-imagery-filled performance with the middle verse in particular stealing the show, as it describes some of the more violent aspects of life in jail from the first person. What I loved most about their contribution was how much Tek stepped up and matched Steele blow for blow, which is no easy feat, trust me. This is a damn highlight.

WREKONIZE
Babee Pall's debut, my fellow lonely soul. He too chooses a minimalist approach for this track, although his results fare much better than Evil D's last offering, with his clever looping of a New York Port Authority bass sample. The future Cocoa Brovaz spit a verse apiece filled with descriptive images of stature and loyalty. Nothing could've possibly followed Wontime successfully, but this here makes do with what it has.

SOUND BWOY BUREILL (FEATURING TOP DOG & STARANG WONDAH)

Apparently, people who aren't fans of reggae hate this song and vice versa. I fall in neither category, seeing as I don't listen to reggae all that much and yet I fucking love this song. The whole instrumetal screams dancehall and you really had to see the accompanying video to get a feel of why this song is so loved. Both Beatminerz make it their mission to keep things as simple as possible with their original composition. Our hosts debut two of the three Originoo Gunn Clappaz to assist them, so of course one of them had to be Steele's brother Top Dog. However, it would be Starang Wondah who would turn heads the most, as his punchlines are already at mastery-level with his very first recorded appearance. The lyrics are mostly braggadocious, which fits the dancehall vibe like a glove.

K.I.M.
Mr. fucking Walt is back with another booming production, effectively looping Paul McCartney this time. Our duo launch into another imagery-filled tale of violence. Steele barely edged out his partner, even though Tek came with a dope-ass line about police brutality. Hey, you know who Steele's closest competition from other acts around that time would be? Prodigy from Mobb Deep. The two are so similar in many ways. Both had an incredible talent for descriptive rhymes. Both were clearly the superior MCs in their respective duos. Both dropped early albums in the highly-revered year of 1995, although this is fairly minor. Only difference they have now is the fact that P fell off hard, while Steele somewhat maintains his lyrical sharpness to a degree.

BUCKTOWN (FEATURING TOP DOG)
The debut single. Both Beatminerz produce this classic tune, brilliantly utilizing a four-second Jack Bruce loop. Darrell & Tekomin respectively spit one verse each and combine eight bars each for the final third verse with the now-classic hook following each contribution. This is the only song off this album to carry on the shouting hooks from Enta Da Stage. Speaking of the chorus, I must add that Da Beatminerz directed its performance very impressively indeed. And yes, that's actually Top Dog chanting the final 'Home of the Original Gun Clappers'. It even shows so in the video. Which fits oh so perfectly, as Dashawn just so happens to be an Original Gun Clapper himself. Fancy that.

STAND STRONG
Evil D brings out the big guns by sampling that Isaac Hayes record. Yes, The Look Of Love is upon us. You might even prefer calling it Da Look Uv Luv by this point. Anyways, Steele outclasses Tek by a fairly considerable margin this time, even though Tek wasn't bad at all. There's something to be said about a dude who can effortlessly spit rhymes like: "Will your boys leave you stranded in the midst/Of a battle where you get that ass shattered at your own risk?" and make them connect hard.  Too dope.

SHININ...NEXT SHIT
Evil D brings us a short instrumental, Pete Rock-style, before Mr. fucking Walt comes in and obliterates whatever memory you had of said instrumental with a gorgeous Roland Hanna Trio piano loop. I've heard the original sample and trust me, friend: Mr. fucking Walt elevates that hit to mythical heights. Of course, none of this means anything if the lyrics aren't any good. And, thank God, they are very good. In fact, I'd argue that Steele delivered a career-high performance again. Tek can only do so much. Seriously, Steele blacked out on both verses in an awesome manner. Evil D, you better step up your game heavy.

CESSION AT DA DOGHILLEE (FEATURING BOOT CAMP CLIK)
Which is precisely what Evil D does from hereon with that sweet Bobbi Humphrey flute sample.  This is the BCC's official debut on wax, and one of my favorite things about them is their undeniable chemistry on posse cuts, very similar to a certain Wu-Tang Clan. Every one in the crew who isn't Buckshot spits a verse to claim the title of 'best verse on the shit'. Yeah, that's what it's actually called. What did Buck do in the meantime? Oh, just hook duties. Even if he is the co-founder of the fucking group. Naturally, Steele's final verse outclasses them all but on a more serious note: It has become very painful to listen to Sean set the song off. We truly lost a punchline legend.

HELLUCINATION
Evil D really stepped it up after Mr. fucking Walt's challenging feats on Next Shit. This Minnie Riperton audio note is a fucking masterclass in sampling, as D lays the foundation for the duo's attempt at story time. I haven't noticed this until recently, but Tek-N-Steele weave a detailed plot-driven story on wax. It has it all: Moods swinging, violent imagery, and the whole. I guess the lyrics were alright but the beat was what carried me through, no question.

HOME SWEET HOME
Babee Pall is back after a lengthy absence. His Roy Ayers sample is interesting in many ways, as for some reason I get the feeling that this song was the blueprint for everything else on the album.  Maybe I'm wrong, who knows? Anyways, the resulting beat is appropriately dark and our duo come up with a pretty good ode to their hometown, one filled with death left & right.

WIPE YA MOUF (FEATURING BUCKSHOT)
Our final Babee Pall composition for the album is unfortunately utilized the worst, as our two hosts pick this song to dis the shit out of the 'dickriders' of the world. You would think that this would be conducted in a manner that would command respect, but they come off ignorant as shit. The whole concept of 'dickrider' is me as a fan gobbling up everything you do and not calling you out on your bullshit, right, Smif-N-Wessun? Well, I am not one of those fuckers. I will tell you what it is if I ain't feeling it. And this shit should've been left on the cutting room floor. Matter of fact, it shouldn't have ever left either one of your minds. I feel sorry for Babee Pall's wasted effort in piecing together the Ahmad Jamal beat. It deserved more.

LET'S GIT IT ON
Thankfully, the next song on the list is the b-side to the 1994 lead single. This shit right here, again, should've followed Bucktown as the opening two tracks of the album. Anyways, this marks another Beatminerz tag team, and the results are absolutely glorious. These two turn an extremely upbeat Mandrill sample into the most sinister theme your nightmares ever heard. And the fucking flute and keyboard samples amplify the sense of dread that creeps over you just before Smif-N-Wessun step to the mic and spit their shit. And I said Smif-N-Wessun for a damn reason. This is the aforementioned real debut of the duo's back-n-forth style, and it sounds even better here. They just descend from that cloth of versatile MCs who respect the fucking craft and it shows, believe me. Another smash hit.

P.N.C. INTRO
Really, guys? You'll throw an intro in now?!

P.N.C.
Evil D goes for delf on the final cut, preceded by a useless intro where Steele spits a rhyme that he would later use on the same goddamn song. I mean, why? Anyway for the swan song of this monolithic album, D loops a very fitting One Way sample that set the somber mood just right. Steele shines brightly here, outclassing his still-impressive P.N.C. to the degree that I guarantee his voice being the one you remember the most when thinking about this album. There was no way to end this album better than this.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Something has to be said about Da Beatminerz dictating the creative direction of this album. Today, both brothers will tell that out of the first four out the gate, this album was the most difficult of the bunch. But boy, did it pay off. Tek and especially Steele grow out of Black Moon's shadow very early on while slipping up only twice. Granted, they were a skit and a horrible, awkward fucking song but still. Dah Shinin' set off a definite landmark year in hip hop's history, and I'm proud to say they did it with class. Except when they recorded Wipe Ya Mouf.

WORTH IT? Anybody who loves the BCC, or good-ass hip hop for that matter, and knows this album yet thinks lesser of it should kick themselves in the nuts. Right now, please. What if you don't have nuts, you ask? You'll figure something out. For those who're exposed to this musical oddyssey for the first time: This album's essential status cannot be contested.

TRACKS TO TRACK DOWN:
WREKONIZE (REMIX)
Apparently the internet is confused as to who actually produced this shit, whether Babee Pall or Steele. The Grover Washington source material is so unorthodox for these two that it surprisingly works very well, coupled with the duo giving eight bars each in the first two sixteens, with the final verse being that tag-team flow they've perfected by now. Their subject matter is basically their tribute to the Native Tongues messages. And I must say that I am all for that type of music in my collection.

HEADZ AIN'T READY
The credited debut of the Boot Camp Clik. Produced by both Beatminerz, this first appeared on the New Jersey Drive Vol. 2. Its remix popped up on the unofficial 1996 Black Moon compilation Diggin' In Dah Vaults and, again, the internet can't seem to make up its mind whether Buckshot or Da Beatminerz made the beat. I personally prefer the earlier version, even though the latter has like two extra bars each from Starang and Louie. This is unquestionably my favorite BCC song for the simple fact that it's the only song released during the period where the Clik relied heavily on Da Beatminerz to provide that dark sound, and the BCC simply shined the most when combined with that special sound. Again, their chemistry as a group here is only rivaled by the best Wu posse cuts. This is another song you simply must acquire. That's a wrap.

I got some more BCC fo' yo' ass.