Mid-Term Music Report

Inspired by blog master Mister JT's 10 After 6 and Amazon.com's The Best Music of the Year . . . So Far list, below is my Best Negro Music of the Year . . . So Far list. It's not a definitive list and it's primarily rap music. But I also listed some honorable mentions, as well.

I didn't have a lot of time to write about a bunch of different CDs, but below are some joints that caught my ears in 2004. I'll revamp the list in the weeks or months to come with other noteworthy releases when I get the chance.

The Roots
The Tipping Point
(Geffen)

The Roots's seventh CD The Tipping Point is a more spontaneous effort for the Illadelph crew with back-to-basic jamming and less experimentation than their previous recordings. This time the Roots embraced the hip-hop fundamentals: boom-bap beats, Black Thought's verbal dexterities (check out "Web" and his lyrical impressions of Big Daddy Kane and Kool G. Rap on "Boom") and sampling -- which, the group had always previously shunned. The Tipping Point is arguably one of the finer hip-hop releases of the year, although it doesn't hold up to the Roots' 2002 effort, their misunderstood masterpiece, Phrenology.

Murs/9th Wonder
3:16 -- 9th Edition
(Def Jux)

Much like Kanye West, producer 9th Wonder (of the beloved indie-rap stalwarts Little Brother) also is the most-watched beatmaker of the moment. And much like Kanye, 9th employs sped-up '70s soul samples and strong beats and injects them into contemporary hip-hop. Los Angeles rhyme-spitter Murs is a veteran underground-rap performer with a lyrical flow that is dangerously tight. Together, 9th and Murs blessed the 10-track opus 3:16 -- 9th Edition with soulful beats and literate rhymes, respectively, making it the best hip-hop effort in the '04. Murs is a great storyteller as evident on "Walk Like A Man," a somber track on the death of his close friend by gun violence. And he's lyrically glib on "Bad Man!" To peep the hilrarious video for "Bad Man!," click HERE.

Kanye West
College Dropout
(Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)

Kanye West is indeed a Hip-Hop Savior. What is he saving hip-hop from? Kanye is saving hip-hop from its doldrums. While most of the rhyme-spitters today adopt fake personas: the wannabe thug, the wannabe pimp or the wannabe billionaire rapper, Kanye is the average Joe who puts on his Roc-A-Wear denim jeans one pants leg at a time. His brilliant CD College Dropout is higher learning for hip-hop heads. Kanye recently released three different music videos for his spiritual anthem "Jesus Walks." Each visionary clip brims with personal inspiration and dogmatic urgency. It makes you wondered where this soulful hip-hopper plans to go next with his fervent vision.

Van Hunt
Self-Titled
(Capitol)

Van Hunt's musical muse was his father -- a part-time painter and pimp. As evident on his very soulful self-titled debut CD, Van Hunt knows how to paint love songs with his seductive vocal styling and he's pimping the R&B game lovely. Van's disc is a smooth and engaging affair, with a consistently strong performance (he wrote all the songs and plays every instrument) from this young soulster. Among the standout cuts include the strings-filled love ode "Precious," the confessional "What Can I Say" and the funky "Out of the Sky. " Unlike Usher's Confessions, Van Hunt's collection is more classy than brashy.

Ghostface
The Pretty Toney Album
(Def Jam)

Masta Killa
No Said Date
(Nature Sounds)

Those of you who thought that the Wu-Tang Clan lost its musical glory, well you're right. But Wu refugees Ghostface and Masta Killa are keeping the Wu spirit alive with their new CDs -- The Pretty Toney Album and No Said Date, respectively. TPTA is aural "hood" vérité -- vividly gutter and symphonically street -- and Ghostface is Quentin Tarantino. The Pretty Toney Album is not rap, it's street-hop. Meanwhile, Masta Killa's No Said Date is the "Most-Slept On" CD of 2004. It's an impressive disc that embodies early Wu-Tang Clan aesthetics: braggadocios lyrics, groove-laden soul loops and those basement beats (Peep "Old Man" (Featuring ODB and RZA) . Hey, I'm ready for another Wu-Tang Clan album, how about you?

Honorable Mentions:

TY -- Upwards
Madvillain -- Madvillainy
Amp Fiddler -- Waltz Of A Ghetto Fly
Usher -- Confessions
Maroon 5 -- Song About Jane

So what are your favorite music (albums) of the year, so far?

Holla!

Comments

[METALFACE]

Madvilliany is at the tops for me. I love that whole muddy sound. Also, I'm digging The Roots but I'm still undecided on that one. Dissappointed with Ghostface and quite frankly couldn't get into Amp Fiddler. When I get my ipod back to the shop I'll give it a better listen. I'm dying to check MURS.

[lynne]

i'm totally with you on that amp fiddler joint. i'll never get to do a list - i can't even think of what i'll do come end of year when it's time to get it together.

[j. brotherlove]

I still haven't finished my list. I don't know why this is so hard for me to do.