 | Tracklist:
1. Crack Pipes
2. Different
3. Personal Journalist
4. Inherited Scars
5. Climb Trees
6. Broken Wings
7. The Strange Famous Mullet Remover
8. Smoke & Mirrors
9. Message Sent
10. Eviction Notice
11. Pitchers Of Silence
12. Specialist
13. Hopeless
14. Kill ya' Momz
15. Black Sweatshirt
16. Cup of Tea
17. My Name Is Strange
18. Runaways
| Ranking: #131 for 2002 | |
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On 28 Lists
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| Summary: A journey into the mind of a Sage |
4 of 5 thought this review was well written
Sage Francis released Personal Journals in 2002 and pretty much revolutionized the indie hip-hop scene. Until then the scene had been somewhat of a counter-culture to mainstream hip-hop in the way it discussed social issues and sometimes found itself attacking mainstream distributors (major labels, MTV, etc). On Personal Journals, Sage Francis discusses himself but he does it without ever sounding boastful or self-centered. He lays his life, his experiences and his emotions bare on a slate for the listener to pick at and dissect and in the process creates a musical journey unlike any other.
With roots laying in spoken word (slam poetry) it isn’t hard to see where Sage gets his ease with words. But these influences aren’t only seen in his ingenious lyricism but also in the way he uses his beats. A song will often start with a calm, almost minimalist beat that gives the front stage to Sage’s poetry and will slowly build alongside Sage’s enthusiasm and ferocity on the mic. But even at his fiercest, Sage delivers every syllable clearly, articulating his intricate verses with steady flow and raw emotional strain that adds only more sting to his often provocative content.
Crack Pipes, an interesting piece about addiction and rehabilitation flows right into the song Different that can be considered Sage’s invitation to the listener to enter his mind. It can be describe quite literally as a very condensed autobiography and features some almost quirky passages like: “I'm a real vegetarian: No chicken...not even fish; I'm a real underground rapper; My tape quality sucks, my records are warped and my CD skips” next to more thought provoking passages like: “I talk with authority while I question it; When I ask, "Who am I?" I'm left guessing; But if you're a poor man's version of ANYTHING
It is your self-perception” and is the perfect way to introduce what is to follow. Sage flows from song to song, exploring news aspects of his life with each, exorcising his demons one at a time and telling the stories in an almost narrative way that can make it easy to forget that he is even rapping. From the heart wrenching Inherited Scars that deals with his sister’s self mutilation, to the darkness of Eviction Notice that paints a picture of succumbing to drug abuse and relationships crumbling, Sage crafts deep portraits of life without censoring the “gory” details.
Personal Journals is quite literally an experience in itself. The themes are presented intelligently and are the type of troubles that can be related to by many. Truly taking in the album can be a draining experience but a satisfying one at the same time. While Sage exorcises his own demons, he has a similar effect on the listener, an almost therapeutic effect of calming and reassuring. This is the album where Sage Francis made a name for himself, a name he has been able to keep for years although his quality has gone way down since. Just because this album is that ***ing powerful.
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| Recent reviews by this author | | | |
Album Rating: 4.5
been meaning to try my hand at hip-hop reviewing for a while. Hope this turned out decent
Digging: Eluveitie - Helvetios Digging: Eluveitie - Helvetios | | | Album Rating: 4
nice review man, this album is so much better than anything else he ever did
also, 'recommended by reviewer' album is sex
Digging: Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music Digging: Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music | | | Album Rating: 4.5
youve heard the prolyphic & reanimator one? I never hear anyone talking about it here but its so great
| | | Album Rating: 4
oh no haha I left "album" singular because I was only referring to OG 11:11
I'll have to look into the other album, I've never even heard of it
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Ive been trying to rec it around on hip hop lists but it always ends up getting lost in the sea of recs. Def look into it, i think it would be up your alley
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Good one, probably not gonna check this out anytime soon though.
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rules
Digging: Candlemass - Psalms For The Dead Digging: Candlemass - Psalms For The Dead
| | | Album Rating: 4
Album kills, Crack Pipes, Broken Wings, and Inherited Scars ftmfw
Digging: Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction | | | Album Rating: 4.5
here i go
my name is straaaaaaaaaaaaaange
| | | Album Rating: 4
just checked Butler's review of Prolyphic & Reanimator, sounds dope. can't believe I haven't listened to them before, seeing as I've been fairly familiar with Reanimator's stuff over the years
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xogbZTzapCg
| | | Album Rating: 4
damn, will have to watch after I get home tonight
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Sweet review. One of my favourite hip-hip albums.
Digging: Joy Division - Closer Digging: Joy Division - Closer
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Good review Simon, though I think something's not quite right with your opening sentence. Either way, pos'd
Digging: Rosetta - The Galilean Satellites Digging: Rosetta - The Galilean Satellites
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
good call on the first sentence. added the and in there
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haha, maybe you should test the waters more often, as I think this is a lot better than your last review was. In fact, I think this is one of your best yet.
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Good review, Simon.
Digging: Between the Buried and Me - Colors Digging: Between the Buried and Me - Colors
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Nice review dude
Digging: Amon Tobin - Amon Tobin Digging: Amon Tobin - Amon Tobin
| | | Album Rating: 5
this album deserves all the hype it gets, nice review
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