One of the most forgotten pages of the underground part of hip-hop is the Eastern Conference All-Stars. A Band of very talented emcees, eminating from New York and areas around it. They have created one hell of a buzz down there, specially with their beefs and fist-fights with fellow emcees The Demigodz. The most recognizable face of the Eastern Conference is emcee Cage. His amazing lyricism, flow, clever punchlines, metaphors, and similes have dropped countless jaws of hip-hop heads. He released "Agent Orange", the one track that got him an amazing amount of fame in the underground, and fans awaited his full-length LP. At last, released Movies for the Blind, the definition of hardcore, yet intelligent lyricism...



Track List & Rating

1. Morning Dips (NOT RATED)
2. Escape To '88 (***)
3. Down The Left Hand Path (****)
4. Teenage Death (*****)
5. Too Much (*****)
6. In Stoney Lodge (*****)
7. Probably Causes Paranoia (NOT RATED)
8. The Soundtrack (****)
9. Among The Sleep (*****)
10. Agent Orange (*****)
11. A Suicidal Failure (*****)
12. Ck Won (**)
13. Unlike Tower 1 f/ Copyright, Mr. Eon (****)
14. Under Satan's Authority (NOT RATED)
15. A Crowd Killer (***)
16. The Right Out (NOT RATED)
17. Holding A Jar 2 (****)
18. P*ssy, Money, and War (*****)



After the funny intro "Morning Dips" we get to the first real track, "Escape to 88". On this track, he lays down tight lyrics in braggadiocio style, rapping about his skills, humorous looks at his life, and he lays down some disses towards Eminem, Mainstream Hip-Hop, and MTV. The production is a nice assortment of hard hitting guitars, scratching, and synthesizers. Its a relatively good track, but it gets much better than this. "Down the Left Path" is in my opinion, the first near-classic from Movies for the Blind. Giving us a mainly synthesized, Dr. Dre-sounding beat produced by Rush, Cage gives us an awesome flow and humorous subject matter about drugs, and comes off sounding a lot like Eminem in his humorous delivery and smile. His rhymes are well-written and delivered perfectly on-beat.

The first real classic from Movies for the Blind comes in "Teen Age Death". The subject matter is a bit different than what we have heard in the last couple of tracks. Cage covers money, suicide, violence, and drugs in this country. He successfully adops a multi-syllable flow for this track, it is loaded with nice, descriptive narratives, and a great vocabulary. The production is low and melancholy, yet beautiful. We get a nice mix of low-key xylophone, synthesized guitar, and a nice assortment of hard drum and bass. Cage combines the three elements of subject matter, lyrics, and production for a perfect track... the first of many on this album. "Too Much" is the next classic, very similar to the last track. The subject matter is relevent, yet is taken to a humorous edge as Cage raps about drug abuse and how it affects one's judgement, ultimately changing someone's life. The beat is ultimately beautiful, with some synthesizers, clapping drums, thumping drums, with very very low bass.

"In Stoney Lodge" is Cage's ode to being in a mental asylum. Cage gives us a descriptive and creative track with awesome lyrics about being trapped in a mental institution, giving us a great first-person point of view and narrative description of how he got there, how is inside, and his frustration of losing his freedom. This is similar to something Eminem would touch. The production is another masterpiece, with a nice assortment of drums, bass, and some keyboard. "Among the Sleep" is a must-listen, as it has supreme apocalyptic lyricism over some haunting production.

"Agent Orange" is the track that got Cage a cult following. Produced by Necro, we get a haunting beat with a hard bassline, creepy violins, and drums, with a very deep deep feel to it. The track is an absolute classic, but not because of the beat, but due to the lyrics, which is some of Cage's best and well-written rhymes ever. Cage gives us a mix of pure evil lyricism, as he raps as if his "brain was infected by devils". We get humorous, yet dark and evil, sort of lyrics, and an angry-tone of voice for his delivery. The track is a must-listen for all underground hip-hop fans.

Cage attempts storytelling with "Suicidal Failure", and succeeds. Cage raps about a variety of ways to kill himself after his girl leaves him. He gives us some gritty and grimy lyrics, as well as a great attempt at shock-horror, all hidden behind great lyrics and delivery. Cage talks about how the break-up occured, and gives us tons of ways he tried to kill himself. The beat is perfect, as we get a dark, melancholy beat with keyboard assortments, drums, claps, thumping bass, and some violins for the hook. This is my personal favorite track off this album.

When everybody says "CK Won" sucks, i didnt believe them. Sadly, i was wrong. Its not bad, but the production and lyrics are just too thuggish and gangsta and dont belong on this album at all. Besides the fact, the beat and lyrics suck. Skip it and go to "Unlike Tower 1", as Cage rips apart commercial hip-hop with his humorous lyrics. He isn't alone on this track, as underground emcees Copyright and Mr. Eon join Cage to hit us with two awesome verses, ripping apart commercial hip-hop. The beat features a mix of great orchestra, with violins, trumpets, synthesizers, and hard drums. A very nice track, and another one of my favorites.

"Crowd Killer" is a great lyrical track, but the production is mediocre in my opinion. We also hear more disses towards Eminem. "Holdin a Jar 2" is excellent however. The beat is apocalyptic and noise filled, as Cage raps in a similar style to Eminem. He rips apart corporate america on this track, as well as sometimes even goes against violence, sort of in a street poetic style. The beat's thumping drums and synthesizers match nicely, as it is produced by Def Jux founder El-P. "P*ssy, Money, and War" closes the album out perfectly. The track is pure synthesizers, with trumpets, violins, and drums, all mixed together. The title of the track says it all, as Cage gives us his humorous opinion on the three subjects and how each has affected his life. The delivery and beat are light-hearted, offering a great finish to the album...

Movies for the Blind is a great underground album. Cage's subject matter and lyrics are stand-out, even though he sounds a lot like his rival Eminem. The production is handled by a variety of great, yet somewhat unknown producers like Necro, El-P, RJD2, DJ Mighty Mi, Ghetto Pros, J-Zone, and Rush. They each bring something new and refreshing to the table for Cage to rap over. This album guarantees laughs and lyrical moments like very few albums. By taking away a few tracks, this album could've been a 5 star wonder, but i'll leave it with a 4 Star stamp, making it a great introduction to the sick mind of Cage. Pick it up...

4 Stars



Recommended: Yes