This album holds it down!
David W. Kincannon II | Denver, CO, USA | 03/09/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"One day about 6 years ago, I was listening to the local hip hop station, KS 107.5. After hearing Country Grammar, It Wasn't Me and Stan 5 times each that day, I stood up in my cubicle and said, to no one in particular, "This sucks!" A friend of mine walked over and asked me what I was talking about. I told him that I couldn't stand listening to the same old rap music over and over anymore. He handed me a two cd set, and told me to listen to it, and see if I didn't think that it was far better than what the radio was playing. That two CD set was this fantastic collection of underground hip hop, which served to introduce me to the artists that would come to be the standards for where I held hip hop to. The set has some great examples of lyricism from such luminaries as Mos Def, Jurassic 5, Talib Kweli, Q-Tip and Bahamadia, plus others who aren't as well known. The CD takes the form of a "live" open mic night, presided over by De La Soul, and their introductions, which are backed by the piano programming of 88 Keys, add to the feeling of the album. If you're interested in underground hip hop, this is a good place to start."