BYHH GW1: Group D - 1995 vs. 2006

[LedZep]

[kokkinos]

Yeah, the lyrics/rapping distinction is an interesting point of discussion. The correlation between them is self explanatory. The question is at what degree you can evaluate them independently - that's where relativity comes into play. It seems a bit easier with the lyrics (just read them from a piece of paper or a screen), though in that case we are dealing with poetry, it's a different ball game. In rapping it's trickier. You can include various factors, the two most essential would be the flow (closely related to the lyrics, not so much content-wise, but in terms of structure, how many syllabi/words you fit in a line, plus it's heavily dependent on production, too), using it as an umbrella term which can be further broken down to more aspects (be it technical/aesthetical, etc.), but let's keep it simple, and secondly the ability to connect with the audience and convey the message (even closer tied to the lyrics, no matter if it's about telling a story or evoking an emotion or whatever). So, it's easy to tell that their connection is very strong.
Taking the above into account, I would say there are two ways to attempt judging rapping separately. One would be by trying to answer the question "can you imagine another rapper being better/worse in the same environment?" (with the term environment accounting for both lyrics and production). This method compares someone's rapping to someone else's rapping and it would lead to the conclusion "person A is better at rapping than person B", which is far from the point I intended to make. The second would compare the rapping to the two other aspects (lyrics and production) and the criteria are definitely less straightforward, as it's rather vague where you draw the line between them. It's not obvious what question you're trying to answer. In this specific case, I think it's clear I was going for the second one. Overall, it's pretty complicated stuff, we're barely scratching the surface.

[kokkinos]

The Roots - Game Theory is probably the first album so far that I thought I was reasonably familiar with it and still managed to surprise me. Maybe it's because The Roots have so many albums that range from very good to great ("It's a new bad moon on the rise, who feelin it New true skill in it y'all, The Roots still in it") , but in no way did I remember it being as good as it actually turned out to be. Apart from their 2004 album (The Tipping Point) that I recently checked for my team, I can't say I am really fresh on the rest of their discography, but I can easily picture this building a strong case for being near the very top of their catalogue. So, what makes this so good? If I had to describe it with one word, I would say it is "full". You couldn't have guessed it by the short and sweet intro, but it soon proves to be the calm before the storm. Not only is every song different from the previous and the next, but each song by itself is taking various (subtle and not so subtle) twists and turns. The most impressive is that their songs aren't that long, they achieve this majestic outcome in the space of 3-4 minutes. Even the songs that consist of only one verse ( those would be False Media and Livin’ in a New World) are so rich. The use of live instrumentation is obviously the main factor responsible for this success - not that the samples are bad, who would expect Radiohead. Another thing this album has going for it is the plethora of guests with each of them adding to the variety with a substantial contribution. The lyrics provide some ever so timely socio-political commentary with a touch of irony and many memorable lines ("Keep the bright lights out of our faces You can't shake it; it ain't no way to swallow the hatred Aim, fire, holler 'bout a dollar, nothing is sacred We gon' pimp the shit out of nature Send our troops to get my paper Tell 'em, "Stay away from them skyscrapers Ain't long 'fore you get y'all acres" I'ma show 'em who the glo-bal gangster Sentence me to four more years, thank you I'ma make you feel a little bit safer, because it ain't over— See, that's how we get your fear to control you But ain't nobody under more control than the soldier", or "Your ma don't like to jitterbug, said this unholy music Hip hop just so ridiculous, everything sounds so confusing Nowadays ain't nothing like it was, one thing that showed the blues Is this system so mysterious, can't let that stop the movement Can't get no satisfaction, they all laughing, glad it's happening All ringside for the main attraction Acting a fool with a lust for action Young girl caught in a crime of passion Sitting there crying in designer fashion Didn't blow, didn't have time for asking "Somebody call for the ambulances", girl",or "A celebration of the loss of your innocence To your old self, you've lost any resemblance They say the city make a dark impression The youth just lost and they want direction But they don't get the police, they get the protection And walk around with heat like Charlton Heston, man"). Also, I view this as very accessible, but at the same time I suspect it is gonna be a grower (not many albums share these two qualities). An album I'm definitely gonna give more listens when the tournament is over. Many candidates for highlight of the album, but it has to be Can't Stop This, the touching J Dilla tribute ("Happy he's no longer in the pain he'd been Recently feelin', I'm crushed by the pain of His absence. Name's Dilla Dog and I can only Rep the real and raw. My man, Dilla, rest in Peace.").
To sum it up, one of my favorites of the first round, so I rank this a bit ahead of both the 1995 albums, but of course it's still far from being irreversible.
Next one is gonna be Gucci Mane - Chicken Talk.

[kokkinos]

The last album (not sure if it's proper to call it an album or mixtape or whatever, never been into these classifications, I 'm gonna call it an album for this review's sake anyway) of this matchup is Gucci Mane - Chicken Talk. When I found out that there are 25 tracks in it, I thought "oh, man, here we go again". But it actually turned out much better than my initial reaction would suggest. Gucci Mane has been involved in so many projects that you never know what to expect, but this has to be one of his best - not that I know all of them inside out, more in the lines of making an educated guess based on what I've heard from him so far and some reviews I checked about his stuff I am not familiar with. Keeping the listener's attention for 100 minutes is no small feat. This doesn't mean that it couldn't be shorter, though (nothing crazy, maybe omitting five or six tracks and it would be huge). It's not clear if the production or Gucci Mane's performance is the deciding factor, as both reach absurd levels of greatness. The production is as innovative and genre-defining as it gets in 21st century, combining variety and cohesion. How many modern albums -hip hop or anything else, doesn't really matter - can claim to have been so influential? Gucci Mane also manages to sound fresh and comes with a style of his own, while showcasing great flexibility and adapting ideally to the different directions the beats take. The lyrics have many great rhymes ("Every time my phone ring, dog, it's eighteen-five Only problem that I have is what car I'm gon' drive Im a real street nigga, I ain't never had shit Man, this chain 'round my neck cost four or five bricks", or "I can't neva count my stash 'cause I always loose count I can't neva keep no bitch 'cause I put them hoes out I was corner store and in the motel in it, selling it You can check my rap sheet, its numerous felonies I took twenty-three stacks, and bought some jet skis") that provide tons of fun, but I 'd say they are not the strongest part of the album -continuing in the spirit of comparing the aspects of an album between them and taking into account all the reservations that have been expressed about this comparison which is vague to say the least. Regarding the standout moments, except for the last part of the album, where I admittedly did lose focus, everything else is a highlight, my favorite would be the three songs sequence of Alligators, Iced Up and Swing My Door.
To sum it up, I would rank this as the fourth album of the matchup, but every album here was highly enjoyable and all of them landed really close(in most -if not all- other matchups it would rank higher). So, 2006 has the 1st and 4th album, 1995 the 2nd and 3rd, it's gonna come down to the wire the singles.

[kokkinos]

My ranking for the singles (all of them great choices:
1st: Gravediggaz - 1-800 Suicide
As you might have guessed from my team, I value team chemistry. This and Blackout - Dreamworld is a match made in heaven.
T-2nd: Skee-Lo - I Wish
A lovely little song that still sounds so refreshing.
T-2nd: Madvillain - Monkey Suite
Typical Madvillain stuff, not much to be said.
4th: Rich Boy - Throw Some D's (ft. Polow da Don)
By no means bad (actually quite above average), it's just that I prefer the other three.
So, leaning a bit towards 1995, but it's one of those matchups where I'd like to find some time for relistening.

[babyBlueSedan]

Most of these matches have been super close for me, and this one is the closest yet.

The Infamous has always been an album I've appreciated more than I've enjoyed. I still really like it, and - like Fantastic Damage - it's an album I'll always listen to once a year in the winter because it fits the atmosphere so well. But I do admit that despite the rapping being impeccable and the production being unsettlingly hypnotic, the lack of variety or risks makes it an album I don't turn too often. It's impressive more than it is entertaining.

For the other albums: Game Theory is probably by favorite Roots album, and likely my favorite album of this bunch. The Blackout album was a great find, and though a few of the songs get a bit too repetitive it has a terrific atmosphere. I already knew this, but this tournament is reinforcing the fact that southern hip hop / Memphis rap is my biggest hip hop blindspot. Perhaps the biggest strength of that album is its length, as its too short for the sound to wear out its welcome. I feared that would not be the case with Chicken Talk, and I split those 100 minutes into two listening sessions to compensate. Despite there being so many tracks they pretty much all hit, and while it's pretty comfortable my least favorite of these four albums I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would, which is what makes this match closer than I thought it would.

All four singles are terrific, with my favorite being the Madvillain one, which I hadn't actually heard before. That "You could find him in a pub" line is just insane, and the beat is tremendous. After that come the two 1995 singles, and then "Throw Some D's."

So I think 1995 is a bit more consistent but 2006 has my favorite song and album. I thought about going 1995 for aesthetics since Blackout / Mobb Deep / Gravediggaz is a pretty good Halloweeny vibe, but "I Wish" doesn't fit in well enough to make that my deciding factor. I've been trying to go on gut feel rather than ratings when voting, but I resorted to ratings and ended up with this:

Blackout: 3.5
Mobb Deep: 3.75
Gravediggaz: 4
Skee-Lo: 4

Roots: 4
Gucci Mane: 3.25
Rich Boy: 3.5
Madvillain: 4.5

Aaaand those both add up to 15.25. Gonna have to do a bit of relistening before I can decide on my vote.
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And it's hard to be a human being. And it's harder as anything else.

[Repo]

These albums were a wash for us so it came down to the singles. "I Wish" being our favorite. A 1995 cut that takes us back to that time & place perfectly. Our least favorite was "Throw some Ds" which we had to look up in Urban Dictionary. lol. At first it seemed pretty profane. Turns out it's as innocent as a Beach Boys song from 1964! LOLZ!


So anyways, 1995 wins for us!

One more match to go.

[babyBlueSedan]

I ended up voting for 2006 because it has the highest highs. Still really like the 1995 team and if The Infamous was an album I got more personal enjoyment out of it would have been an easy vote for '95.
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And it's hard to be a human being. And it's harder as anything else.

[Skinny]

[Mercury]

Well, shit. This is close. I gotta say I am surprised by the somewhat lukewarm love or liking of 1-800 Suicide. That song blew my mind and is one of my fave songs of 1995. But the general consensus is it’s cool but not like great. (And I’ll grant you it’s not as great as that Madvillain track, but I at least see it on the same tier).
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-Ryan

ONLY 4% of people can understand this chart! Come try!

My Fave Metal - you won't believe #5!!!