... 12-inch, Vinyl record

Outside of his early singles, this LP features some of our favorite Kurtis Blow tracks. The production is similar to that big beat Linn Drum/DMX style that the 1983-85 Profile artists used. With "8 Million Stories" – featuring Run-DMC, "AJ Scratch"– featuring the oft-sampled "Up in the Bronx where the people are fresh...", "Basketball" – about all the NBA stars of the time, "Ego Trip" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A well-titled set from the lyrical king – the mighty T La Rock, one of the key mid 80s MCs who helped introduce a whole new level of sophistication to hip hop! T La Rock maybe never hit the heights of KRS-One, Rakim, or other contemporaries – but this set has all the sharp fire and intensity that made that moment of new creativity so great – from the edgey production work and scratches by Louie Lou, to the extra help from Mantronik, and even the album's early appearances by Special K and MC Serch – which further the sense of collaboration from the streets that made some of the Fresh Records sets so great. Titles include "Lyrical King", "Back To Burn", "Three Minutes Of Beat Box", "Bust These Lyrics", "This Beat kicks", "Big Beat In London", and "It's Time To Chill". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best debuts in the history of hip hop – and one of the most important albums the genre ever produced! Criminal Minded is a landmark for a number of reasons. Among the biggest is, of course, that it was recorded with the late great DJ Scott La Rock – and he was soon to fall prey to the very street violence that BDP documented with such raw brilliance by KRS-One. Importance aside, Criminal Minded is simply a great, timeless record that no true fan of gritty classic hip hop should be without. The track list alone is a full chapter in the hip hop book of legends – with tunes like "Poetry", "Elementary", "South Bronx", "Super-Hoe", "Bridge is Over", and the "P is Free" remix. Also includes "Criminal Minded", "Dope Beat", and "9mm Goes Bang". LP, Vinyl record album

Just like the title implies, "Toe To Toe" finds Cuban Link trading bars with the late great Big Pun over the Clones and GOD Pt III beats! 12-inch, Vinyl record

Cypress Hill's debut masterpiece – one of the biggest and best first albums in 90s hip hop – in cased here in skull for its 25th Anniversary! There's little we can add to the canon when it comes to describing this album's impact, but it's still pretty revelatory. Like other west coast rap heavies of the time, Cypress Hill documents real world street violence with a darkly comic sensibility, redefined usage of the word "blunt" forever more, and simply delivered one of the most influential rap (or rock. . .considering the astonishing crossover success) albums of the decade. "How I Could Just Kill A Man", "Hand On The Pump", "Hole In The Head", "Real Estate", "Stoned Is The Way Of The Walk", "Phunky Feel One", "Pigs", "Latin Lingo", "Something For The Blunted", "Psychobeatbuckdown" and more. Get On Down's 25th Anniversary is one of the coolest, craziest things we've seen for a commemorative anniversary edition ever – housed in an amazin, hard resin black skull – essentially a 3D physical recreation of the group's 1991 logo – plus a 100 page hardcover book! CD

Dabrye returns with more a richer, fuller set of spacey hip hop than the preceding One/Three – this one with a stellar roster of guests including Jay Dee, MF Doom, Beans, Vast Aire, Waajeed of Platinum Pied Pipers, Big Tone, Phat Kat and more! This one stood out for it's unique mix of straight forward, timeless rhymes from the guests and Dabyre's production – reinterpreting classic headnodding boombap with lean, but prominent beats and spacey synth atmosphere – and it's just as fresh all these years later! 20 tracks in all: "The Stand" feat Wildchild, "Air" feat Doom, "Machines Pt 1", "Encoded Flow" feat Kadence, "That's What's Up" feat Vast Aire, "Tell Dem", "Nite Eats Day" feat Beans, "Jorgy" feat Waajeed, "Bloop", "Piano", "Get It Together" feat Invincible, "My Life" feat AG, "Get Live" feat Big Tone, "Machines Pt 2, "Game Over" feat Jay Dee & Phat Kat and more! CD

The early 90s hip hop masterpiece from Diamond D! Along with Showbiz and AG's first EP, and Lord Finesse's first couple releases, this record helped introduce the world to one of the most solid crews in hip hop, DITC – who reigned supreme for years, making top quality records one after another. The classic and oft-imitated Diamond beats laid the blueprint for so much hip hop to follow – and the titles include "Sally Got A One Track Mind," "Best Kept Secret," "I'm Outta Here," "Check One, Two", "Freestyle (Yo That's The Sh..)" and more! Loads of great guest stars, like Lakim Shabazz, Big L, Fat Joe, and Brand Nubian. LP, Vinyl record album

Peak period DMX – coming pretty quickly on the heels of the breakout It's Dark And Hell Is Hot – and a prime set of rough, raw Ruff Ryder hip hop circa '98! DMX's rhymes are nearly as brutal as that bloody cover photo, but he has such a knack for delivering even the most hardcore rhymes in the form of shout along anthems, he managed to take 'em to the top of the charts. The top notch production is a big part of that, too, plus first rate guests Mary J Blige, Jay Z, Swizz Beats and Lox. Includes "Coming From" featuring Mary J Blige, "Blackout" feat LOX & Jay-Z, "Dogs For Life", "Omen", "Slippin", "Flesh Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood", "Heat", "Keep Your Sh*t The Hardest", "It's All Good", and others. LP, Vinyl record album

The late 90s debut of DMX – a huge hit for Def Jam, the Ruff Ryders camp and especially DMX himself – whose next few albums would top the charts! Rough, raw and hardcore lyrical imagery, and top notch Ruff Ryder production from Swizz Beats and PK, plus Dame Grease on a number of cuts. Still impressive work from one of the most uncomprimising stars to breakout so big in the late 90s/early 00s. Includes "Ruff Ryder's Anthem", "Look Thru My Eyes", "Let Me Fly", "How's It Goin' Down", "Crime Story", "I Can Feel It", "Stop Being Greedy", "Ni**az Done Started Something", "For My Dogs" and more. 19 tracks including skits. LP, Vinyl record album

El Michels return again to the Wu-Tang chambers – and the results this time might even be better than before! Wu-Tang forged their initial sound out of a love of offbeat samples and unusual funk – so it's only fitting that one of the hippest funk groups around strip the music right down to its roots – performing new live interpretations with their wickedly sinister groove – all at a level that makes the whole thing a slow funk masterpiece from start to finish! El Michels has always been one of the few real standouts in the deep funk scene – and it's records like this that keep us loving them so much. And even though the set features vocals from Lee Fields on two tracks, and Lady Wray on one more – the instrumental groove is what dominates and draws our ears, on tracks that include "Tears", "Sipped Up", "Shadow Boxing", "Iron Man", "4th Chamber", "Shaolin Brew", "Drums For Sale", "Verbal Intercourse", "Tearz", and "Wu Tang Clan Ain't Nuthin Ta F Wit". (Deep Funk, Hip Hop) LP, Vinyl record album

Em's fourth album hits many of the same notes as its predecessor, signaling a bit of a comfort zone for the former Slim Shady. The beats largely fall on the darker-toned lilt of the now instantly identifiable sound. Tracks include "Just Lose It", "Mosh", "Evil Deeds", "Never Enough" with Nate Dogg & 50 Cent, "Yellow Brick Road", "Like Toy Soldiers", "Puke", "My 1st Single", "Big Weenie", "Ass Like That", "Spend Some Time" with Obie Trice, Stat Quo & 50, "Mockingbird", "One Shot 2 Shot" with D-12 and "Encore" featuring Dr. Dre. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most unified albums we've ever heard from Greyboy – an excellent little set that perfectly bridges his two loves of funk and hip hop! The core style is in the hip hop-infused mode of earlier years – with lots of programming and scratches by Greyboy himself – but there's also a larger collaborative feel to the record, with plenty of space for guests that include Sharon Jones, Bart Davenport, Quantic, D-Styles, and others. The whole thing's nicely chilled-out – never over the top in the beats and samples – but more kicked back, in a slow funk mode that makes for a rich album of tasty tracks throughout! Titles include "To Know You Is To Love You", "Awright", "Son-Ray", "Bronson", "See My Eyes", "Omega", "Genevieve", "Loggia", "Make Music", "Everyday Problem", "Big Tito", and "Got To Be A Love". (Deep Funk, Hip Hop) CD

Just when you thought Prince Paul and Cat Power would never make a record together PRESTO – it's the new Handsome Boy album! HBMS takes a bit more of a chillout tack with this long overdue second opus – with lots of laidback beats and samples, and a surprising amount of live instrumentation! The gleeful, sarcastic comedy of the stellar first album remains intact, with some genuinely amusing skits (including one with Jay Z appearing under the pseudonym Hines Buchanan), and the deep range of guest vocalists isn't as surprising as how strong their work is in the best tunes. It would have been pretty easy for Prince Paul and Automator to find a bunch of interesting names to flesh out their big pop culture frappe, but something else altogether to make trippy hip hop tracks featuring Cat Power and the Hieroglyphics make sense on the same record. A pretty solid set from the most adventurous pseudo duo in the game! Guests include Del The Funky Homosapien, De La Soul, RZA, Lord Finesse, AG, Rahzel, Jazzy Jay, Qbert, Mike Patton, Casual, Hieroglyphics, Grand Wizard Theodore, El-P, John Oates, Pharrell, Kid Koala, and George W. Bush (just kidding). Tracks include "If It Wasn't For You" with De La, "Are You Down With It" with Mike Patton, "The World's Gone Mad" with Del and others, "It's Like That" with Casual, "I've Been Thinking" with Cat Power, "Rock And Roll (Could Never Hip Hop Like This) Pt 2" featuring Lord Finesse, Qbert and others,"First. . .And Then" featuring Dres from Black Sheep, "A Day In The Life" featuring RZA, AZ and others and more, plus intro/outro by Father Guido Sarducci. LP, Vinyl record album

Dilla beats and an allstar roster of guest Detroit MCs – and a strong debut full length from Ruff Draft Records! Posthumous releases by favorite departed figures can be a dicey proposition – and much to our relief, Rebirth Of Detroit delivers – with both high quality beats & rhymes, and positive mojo! Dilla didn't cop to current trends in his time on earth (except for the ones he started in the first place) so it stands to reason that the beats he had in the can before he departed would hold up strongly years later – and they do! The guests here bring their A-games, plus full respect and admiration for Dilla. Includes "The New Installment", "Detroit Madness" with Phat Kat, "Big Things" with Esham, "Let's Pray Together" with Amp Fiddler, "Requiem" with Allan Barnes of The Blackbyrds, "My Victory" with Boldy James, "Do It For Dilla Dog" with Illa J and Frank Nitt, "Jay Dee's Revenge" with Danny Brown and cuts by DJ Dez, "Houseshoes Was Spinnin'" with Quelle Chris and more. CD

Quite possibly our favorite installment so far in the Madlib Medicine Show series – as the set's a treasure trove of rare work from the many-faceted Yesterday's New Quintet combo – that genius funky jazz ensemble headed by Madlib! According to the notes, some of these cuts are from rare small-batch releases (although we're not even sure those exist) – and others are previously unreleased numbers that are finally seeing the light of day – all together a brilliant illustration of the sorts of sounds that Madlib's pulled up from the American underground of the 60s and 70s – weird space jazz, offbeat funk, modal moments, and more – played with completely amazing rhythms, and production that really lives up to the spirit of the inspirations! There's plenty of great keyboards, and all tracks are instrumentals – with titles that include "High Jazz" by The Kenny Cook Octet, "Pretty Eyes" by Jahari Massamba Unit, "Electronic Dimensions" by Generation Match, "Funky Butt (part 1)" by Poyser Riggins & Jackson, "Space & Time" by RMC, "Conquistador" by Yesterday's New Quintet, "Tarzan's Theme" by Big Black Foot Band, and "Kimo" by Joe McDuphrey Experience. CD

Aesop Rock teams up with producer Tobacco as Malibu Ken – and one the best Aesop projects in years! There's a sly humor to Malibu Ken that doesn't play quite as cynical as at can on some the more dystopian sci-fi sounding production Aesop Rock has rhymed over going all the back to the Def Jux days. There's still nicely futuristic vibe, courtesy Tobacco with squalling synth sounds and beats like a digital engine revving up, but there's a more playful kind of vibe, too. Here's hoping this is only the first Malibu Ken LP! Includes "Corn Maze", "Tuesday", "Save Our Ship", "Sword Box", "Dog Years", "Acid King", ""Suicide Big Gulp", "Churro", "1+1=13" and "Purple Moss". LP, Vinyl record album

The huge creative leap forward for Outkast – and one of the greatest hip hop albums ever! The duo laid some incredible groundwork with the debut Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, but this one is really their first (and stunningly, not their last) masterpiece. Timeless and soulful outer space grooves lace teh production and beats behind crazy good, free flowing, inventive rhymes that still manage to stay grounded enough to aptly reflect the darker realities of the ATL of the time. Most tracks have a laid back southern fried groove, and Dre and Big Boi's rhymes are as great as ever here. Essential! Tracks include "ATLiens", "Two Dope Boyz (In A Cadillac)", "Wheelz Of Steel", "Jazzy Belle", "Babylon", "Millennium", and "13th Floor/Growing Old". 14 cuts in all. LP, Vinyl record album

Montreal's never predictable Ghislain Poirier's first full length for the venerable Ninja Tune – with beats that cover diverse territory while still holding together as a tightly spun sound – from tight, hard hitting club bounce, to stuttering synth hop – with guest vocals from Fave-T, Abdominal, Omnicrom and others. We remember a more chill vibe on his earlier LPs, and grew to expected the unexpected with subsequent singles and remix work – here he is as extroverted and club floor ready as ever – with dancehall heaviness, big bass grooves, and trippiness in the outer edges. Titles include "Courto", "Blazin" feat Face-T, "Jusquy'en Haut" feat Omnikron, "Hit & Red", "No More Blood" feat Face-T, "Go Ballistic" feat Zulu, "One Hand Can't Clap", "City Walking" feat Abdominal, "It's A War War War", "Exils" feat Abdelhak Rahal, "Dem Nah Like M" feat Mr Lee G, "Mangnen L'Boule" feat Nik Myo and more. (New Grooves, Hip Hop) CD

Laidback beats with plenty of boom – just the right sort of mellow setting to allow the rhymes to flow in the best way possible – core lyrics from Emcee Sick, with contributions from Cudtry Cadillac, Dheema, and Jon Blazini! There's a nicely jazzy current – almost in an early 90s Tribe Called Quest style, but more individual, as the best instrumental touches are live, and less tied to the historical references that samples might provide. Both the rhythms and lyrics are nicely straightforward – again a nice sort of throwback, but hardly retro at all – on titles that include "Pstabull", "Finesseful", "Basso", "Indestructible 92", "Big Bad Signal", "Anotha Monday Nite", and "Wanderverse". LP, Vinyl record album

Bloody knuckles rap from the late Sean Price and starkly furnished, hard hitting funk beats from Lil Fame – surprisingly strong unreleased rhymes from SP given the number of years that had passed since he departed this realm – with appearances by MOP, Tek, Rockness Monsta, Illa Ghee, Guilty Simpson and more, none of home divert from the prominence of Mr. Price. Includes "Big Gun Vs Lil Gun" feat MOP,, "Center Stage", "Boston George" feat Tek, "Pigs" feat Steele, "They Ain't F***ing With Is" feat Rockness Monsta, ""Remember The Time" feat Illa Ghee, "Peter Pop Off" feat Rim, Teflon & I-Fresh and "Enemy Of The State" feat Conway The Machine and Guilty Simpson. LP, Vinyl record album

A really great Stones Throw debut from Twilite Tone – a Chicago beatmaker who's been one of our local heroes for years, and who finally gets the wider exposure he's deserved for way too long! Tone's done some big name work for Common, Kanye, and others – but here, he's very much at home inside his wonderful little shell – creating these endlessly creative sounds that really move past the obvious, and which showcase the kind of richer sonic palette we would have guessed from his record shopping habits over the years! There's a few 80s electro modes that come as a great surprise, mixed with harder core elements too – and there's occasional moments of sweetness, too – a emotional range that comes across nicely, on titles that include "N'Loveagain", "Tuff Love", "The Sound", "Do It Properly", "Taxi Cab Confessions", "The Lite", "Baby Steps", and "Ancestors & Angels". CD

A really great Stones Throw debut from Twilite Tone – a Chicago beatmaker who's been one of our local heroes for years, and who finally gets the wider exposure he's deserved for way too long! Tone's done some big name work for Common, Kanye, and others – but here, he's very much at home inside his wonderful little shell – creating these endlessly creative sounds that really move past the obvious, and which showcase the kind of richer sonic palette we would have guessed from his record shopping habits over the years! There's a few 80s electro modes that come as a great surprise, mixed with harder core elements too – and there's occasional moments of sweetness, too – a emotional range that comes across nicely, on titles that include "N'Loveagain", "Tuff Love", "The Sound", "Do It Properly", "Taxi Cab Confessions", "The Lite", "Baby Steps", and "Ancestors & Angels". LP, Vinyl record album