The Best of the Best ’04 Edition -- The Top Twelve Hip-Hop Albums of 2004!
Feb 04 '05
The Bottom Line What albums should you have been checking for in the ‘04? I’ve got you covered with the The Top Twelve Hip-Hop Albums of 2004. One for each month, son.
With 2004 finally over and done with, its time once again to take a look back and assess another year of Hip-hop music gone by. While it would be easy to say that it was been another horrible year for Hip-Hop music, one thing does give me hope for the future: a lot of high profile rap acts got caught blatantly sucking in public.
Eminem tried to float a stinker on MTV and failed. G-Unit took a stab at pretending as if their fame didn’t wholly depend on the number of slugs that penetrated 50 Cent and couldn’t pull it off. Nelly dropped two coasters back to back, and pretty much every new rap act who had a high-charting single sandwiched a crappy album around it and tossed it off onto a public already inundated with half-a**ed LPs. As a result, many rap fans went looking for the good stuff outside of the mass media, and were pleasantly surprised with what they found.
Thus, this gives me hope that fans of quality music will continue to seek out and support the good stuff in the future.
So what albums should you have been checking for in the '04? I’ve got you covered with the The Top Twelve Hip-Hop Albums of 2004. One for each month, son.
12. College Dropout - Kanye West
Standout tracks: “All Falls Down,” “Jesus Walks”
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While certainly not deserving of all the critical acclaim being heaped upon this debut album by Hip-Hop’s “hottest” hot-for-the-moment producer, there’s no denying the universal appeal of Kanye West’s debut album. Utilizing a firm foundation of soulful, sample-driven beats and infrequent witty punch lines, Kanye’s music was a breath of fresh air to a music scene inundated with Triton-mashing producers and thug posturing. If you can overlook the overabundance of filler, frequent and inane anti-college sentiment, and Kanye’s oft-questionable mic ability, College Dropout is an LP that you’ll want to add to your collection.
11. A Long Hot Summer - Masta Ace
Standout tracks: “Big City,” “The Ways”
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Album of the Year contender Disposable Arts may have caught heads sleeping when it dropped in 2001, but they were not about to let Masta Ace sneak another near-classic by them again this year. A Long Hot Summer proved that Masta Ace could repeat his previous successes, although this follow up is a little too similar to DA for comfort. Built on a solid foundation of original concepts, clever lyrics, and rich beats, this latest joint from the esteemed veteran proved that old-school sensibility is definitely not yet dead in Hip-Hop.
10. No Said Date - Masta Killa
Standout tracks: “Digi Warfare,” “Silverbacks”
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Though the Wu-Tang Clan dynasty is long past its prime, this is only the beginning for Wu alum Masta Killa. While the rest of the Clan has run through three or four solo efforts of varying quality since the collective’s 1994 debut, MK is just now getting his chance to shine on his own. Brimming with ominous anthems, hard beats, creative concepts, and rugged lyrics, No Said Date hearkens back to what the Wu were before the fame and fortune hit – hungry with something to prove. The Wu as we knew them may be dead, but this Masta Killa outing proves that there are still quite a few gems still hidden in the 36 Chambers.
09. The Grind Date - De La Soul
Standout tracks: “Shopping Bags,” “Rock Co.Kane Flow”
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Not so much “old-schoolers” as forerunners of the late eighties “new school,” De La Soul officially shakes off the unwarranted criticism that attached itself to their previous AOI releases with the outstanding The Grind Date. A decade and a half in the game and Dave and Posdanous are still two of the best emcees in the game, their always-relevant raps making you wonder just how exactly some of the more popular rappers keep getting away with their nursery school rhymes. The music is on point as well, De La making use of diverse beats that range from classic East Coast stomp to 9th Wonder-style soul grooves. The Daisy Age is long gone, but the Plugs are definitely still plugging away on the Grind.
08. This Week - Jean Grae
Standout tracks: “Whatever,” “Don’t Rush Me”
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Undoubtedly fans of true underground Hip-Hop were glad to see one of Hip-Hop’s finest and most slept on emcees finally get a smidgen of the props she deserves. With This Week, Jean Grae smacks up the heads who said her previous jawns were too gloomy and lackluster beatwise. The new album abounds with lively ‘middle ground’ music that yields mainstream appeal without sacrificing too much of Grae’s complex and cognizant underground sensibilities. And the best thing about this is that there’s more to come.
07. Mirror Music - Wordsworth
Standout tracks: “Shoulder,” “Fast Lane”
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One of the mainstays of the Lyricist Lounge underground emcee venue and one of the driving forces behind the short-lived MTV sketch comedy/freestyle show of the same name, Words has proven time and time again that there is no better place for a microphone to be than in his capable hands. Impossibly, Mirror Music sees the wordsmith elevating his art again, using his intricate prose, witty punchlines, and unfaltering flow to create insightful and introspective verses that are leaps and bounds beyond the typical battle rhyme. For most heads, Wordsworth’s solo debut was probably not the most anticipated album to drop last year, but it certainly should have been.
06. Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition - Murs/9th Wonder
Standout tracks: “Bad Man,” “And This is For”
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Without a doubt, 2004 was the year for “you’ve got your chocolate in my peanut butter” Hip-Hop collaborations – hell, Jay-Z dropped about 50 of them himself. One of the alliances that undeservedly fell beneath most people’s radar is the union between Def Jux emcee Murs and Little Brother producer 9th Wonder for the stellar Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition. Murs’ skill with the mic is self-evident; his fluid delivery, clever wordplay mingles exceptionally with 9th’s soul-saturated production that sounds far too robust for the likes of Fruity Loops. Jukie “nerd rap” will never be the same.
05. Joyful Rebellion - K-os
Standout tracks: “The Love Song,” “Emcee Murdah”
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This year, Canadian Kevin Brereton a.k.a. K-os returned to prove to the masses that his highly praised 2002 debut Exit was no fluke. Almost impossibly, Joyful Rebellion was even more musical than its predecessor, K-os and crew using an assortment of live instruments and arrangements to merge soulful, spiritually and politically minded Hip-Hop with rock, reggae, folk, and jazz music. With the artist himself managing the majority of the production in addition to all the singing and emceeing, K-os should unquestionably be regarded as one of the most versatile Hip-Hop artists of our time.
04. The Tipping Point - The Roots
Standout tracks: “Star,” “Stay Cool”
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The Roots just can’t come wack. They don’t have it in them. Compose a song called “Wack” and they won’t know how to play it. Once again the perpetually touring P5D returns to the set with an album full of flames, the group taking The Tipping Point in the exact opposite direction of their critic-lauded Phrenology, and still pulling off another successful outing. While some lament the loss of some “musicianship” on some of the tracks, Black Thought’s added dynamism and more substantive subject matter makes up for any alleged musical deficiency.
03. The New Danger - Mos Def
Standout tracks: “Ghetto Rock,” “Modern Marvel”
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This is perhaps one of the most controversial selections on this list, but once you listen to Brooklynite Mos Def’s atypical sophomore effort – really listen to it – then you’ll understand why The New Danger was easily one of the best Hip-Hop joints to drop in 2004. Mos Def’s rock/experimental leanings have always been a thorn in the side to those who have spent the last five years waiting for him to reproduce his landmark 1999 solo debut Black On Both Sides. However, the ingenious melding of rock, Hip-Hop, soul, and blues that comprises this LP definitely makes Danger more fragrant flower than barb.
02. Madvillainy - Madvillain
Standout tracks: “America’s Most Blunted,” “Strange Ways”
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If there is a hero capable of taking down Madvillain, then crime as we know it is about to come to a screeching halt. In the year of the Hip-Hop collabo, the union of producer Madlib and emcee MF Doom is perhaps the most logical joining of all. Both artists are renown for their ability to produce highly conceptual avant-garde rap music deeply rooted in eccentricity and rare wax. Putting them together on an album is like a Super Saiyan Fusion – a little strange at first, but a 100% guaranteed a** whuppin’ when its all over.
01. Connected - The Foreign Exchange
Standout tracks: “Let’s Move,” “Be Alright”
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One of the more unusual “getting together” stories, The Foreign Exchange was born when Netherlands-based producer Nicolay and Phonte of Little Brother began instant messaging songs and vocals to each other over the internet. Nic’s 9th Wonder-style production naturally meshes well with the diverse styles of the Justus League crew, and Phonte has yet to run into any track that his clever lyrics and undeniable presence couldn’t make better. Connected serves as irrefutable proof that the internet does actually serve a useful purpose outside of being a bottomless reservoir of porn. Simply put, any “Best of 2004” list you see without a mention of The Foreign Exchange is woefully incomplete.
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