| 5.0 classic |
| A Tribe Called Quest The Low End Theory |
| A Tribe Called Quest was one of the four big native tongues hiphop-groups from the early 90s (the others being De La Soul, Black Sheep and Jungle Brothers). Although their first album is very enjoyable, it had it's flaws. ATCQ made up for that completely on this album. This album has everything you'd expect from an early 90s hiphop-album; grooving basslines and big sounding drum breaks spiced up with some jazzy samples. Lyrically this album is great, Q-Tip and Phife Dawg serve as each other's yin and yang, although Tip sometimes outshines Phife. The real star of the album however is Busta Rhymes with his killer verse on Scenario. A definitive hiphop-classic. |
| A Tribe Called Quest Midnight Marauders |
| And just when I thought they couldn't do better, they just did. Midnight Marauders is the logical progression from The Low End Theory. Although still keeping the minimalist build-up of bass, drums and samples, everything comes to it's right much more than on the previous album. Especially the samples get more attention on this album, which makes it a more diverse and maybe also more interesting album than is precedessor. When you're just getting into ATCQ I'd recommend this album first, but be sure to check out The Low End Theory as well. |
| Black Moon Enta Da Stage |
| This album was released in the golden age of hiphop (mid-90s) and is also one of the most interesting albums from that era. Representing the grimey New York gangsta rap that was fronted by such artists as Mobb Deep and the Boot Camp Click (of which Black Moon is a part). This is not a fun album, it's dead serious, but nonetheless it's highly enjoyable. Providing the standard jazzy beats that were all around in the mid-90s and lacing it with very clever rhyming, this album is definitely one of the most important (though often forgotten) albums coming out of New York during the 90s. |
| Charles Mingus The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady |
| Though I listen to a lot of jazz, I don't know a lot about it. I'm familiar with the bigger artists and I know some smaller ones, but overall I must say I'm still a beginner in jazz. That being said, I know my classics, and this is without a doubt one of them. A lot of early jazz albums tend to be rather incohesive sounding, but this one isn't. At all. The album races through various themes that all have something in common with each other (a lot of the themes return in different tracks in different forms as well, delivering a sense of continuity) while never running out of ideas or just simply recycling. Pair this with nothing short of impressive musicianship and great composiotion and you have one of the greatest albums of all time. |
| De La Soul 3 Feet High And Rising |
| Another hiphop-classic. This one is pretty much the most famous album out of all the albums made in the native tongues-family. It features the hit "Me, Myself and I" which has been heard by everyone and their mother. This album is however not to be taken seriously in any case, it's basically three rappers and a producer (Prince Paul) having fun and with that making some great music. The overall tone of the album is very lighthearted and up-beat and is just hilarious throughout. |
| DJ Shadow Endtroducing..... |
| Ah, DJ Shadow! This man is a legend, although he has only released a handful of albums in the more than 10 years that he's been doing music now. Why he is a legend is simply because of this album, probably the greatest ever made in the genre of instrumental hiphop/triphop, although it's far more than that. Shadow samples everything from rock to jazz to any other genre that has been released on vinyl on this album, which also makes it a very diverse album, although never losing that typical feeling. Absolute highlights are"Midnight in a Perfect World" and "Stem/Long Stem". |
| Godspeed You! Black Emperor Slow Riot For New Zero Kanada |
| GY!BE, while one of the greatest bands in the post-rock genre, tend to get boring from time to time. This EP however, is not boring at all, there's not too much ambient noodling or floating soundscapes on here, it's just to the point (albeit still with loooong tracks). The album has only 2 tracks but runs for almost a half an hour. BBF III just might be my favourite Godspeed-track and Moya is nothing short of perfect either. I'd recommend this album to newcomers to post-rock, it was the first thing I heard in the genre. |
| Mike Oldfield Tubular Bells |
| Only one track (in two parts, but still)?!!!?!! Some might think that's just going over the top, but Mike Oldfield sure knows how to keep things interesting. Changing themes fluently every 5 minutes or so, this album/song floats along without every really changing abrupt (besides the ending maybe). Oldfield plays most of the instruments on this album himself, making him one of the most prominent multi-instrumentalists in pop culture. Yes, pop culture, because this album is one of the best sold albums of all time. Not bad for an album with only one (or two, depends on how you look at it) track eh? |
| Mike Oldfield Ommadawn |
| Following the tradition of his first two albums, Oldfield decided to make one long track for an entire album yet again. Here too, Oldfield plays a bunch of different and sometimes obscure instruments (like the bodhran for instance). Ommadawn keeps the folky atmosphere heard on his first two albums but ventures into a more dark sounding soundscape. Personally, I find this to be Mike Oldfield's greatest albums. So great that I even own two vinyl copies of it (though they are actually different, one has the Horse Song and the other one In Dulce Jubile as extra track). |
| Mobb Deep The Infamous |
| Although I might actually like Hell on Earth more than this album, it cannnot be denied that this album was probably more important for the hiphop world in general. HoE is actually just more a continuation of the sound brought forth on The Infamous than anything else. This sound was incredibly grimey and dark, displaying the fact that Prodigy and Havoc were not to be messed with. Heavy drumbeats, simple (but effective) basslines and threatening keyboard atmospheres dominate the beat-side of this album. Lyrically this just might be one of the best in the gangsta rap genre. The best example of this is "Shook Ones Pt. II", an incredible dark threatening song with some not-so-friendly rhyming by the group's two MC's. Another hiphop-classic. |
| Nas Illmatic |
| Some people call this the best album of all time. I can't blame them, I myself used to claim the same thing, and it's still one of my favourites. It really is one of the best albums ever released in and out of the hiphop-genre. The album is pretty much the perfect combination of lyrics and extremely clever rhymes depicting tales of life in the ghetto's. All the producers who worked on this album were in their prime at the time, and Nas still hasn't topped his debut. Despite it's short length (some 40 minutes), this is one of the most cohesive albums in the hiphop-genre, and a definitive classic. |
| Sigur Ros Takk... |
| If I had to describe the sound of hope and just overall happiness, I would probably say that Sigur Ros found that sound on Takk, their latest album. And though it's maybe a bit early to call an album classic just a year after it's release date, I just can't get it over my heart to give this album anything less than a perfect rating, simply because it doesn't have any flaw. The atmospheric sound that was already prominent on their first two albums has been perfected here, and just gives the perfect relaxing vibe. Nonetheless the album is incredibly powerful and it has already gotten me out of depressions (unlike most other post-rock). Standout tracks are Saeglopur and Gong. |
| Talk Talk Laughing Stock |
| The Pharcyde Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde |
| These days it's hard to imagine that rappers actually have fun while recording their albums. But there was a time when there were bands who just made albums to amuse themselves and the crowd and where making money out of it wasn't the primary objective. The best example of this style of hiphop, is definitely The Pharcyde's debut, which combines typical mid-90s jazzy production with hilarious lyrics and some of the best interaction between the members of a rap-group I have ever heard. The most famous and hilarious track of this album is Ya Mama, with some classic Mama-jokes, makes me cringe every time again. |
