Talib is one of my favorite MCs. I don't talk about too much hip hop these days, but Kweli is always worth talking about and checking out live in concert. Tonight he will be at The Scoot Inn over on the Eastside. I hope he does his old Black Star verses. It is one of my all time favorite albums, any genre. Check out Kweli with Mos Def from back in the day.
I can't believe I am having to blog about this, but I have been finding too many people either don't know about this album or haven't heard of Blakroc. I find this to be both absurd and disheartening. This was the best album of 2009, although many may have missed it initially because it was released late in the year. Still, I had a hard time finding a physical copy in town until I went to Waterloo. I even scored the vinyl. God bless Waterloo.
So all that being said, let me briefly enlighten those in the dark. This is yet another brilliant Black Keys project, the same Black Keys out of Ohio fronted by Dan Auerbach. Known for their mix of '70s style rock and blues, The Black Keys were a favorite of so many subgroups, from hipsters to bikers and everyone in between. Auerbach had an impressive solo album, Keep It Hid, which was more mellow but still with the bluesy Black Keys vibe.
Now imagine that with some of hip hop's most lyrical MCs like Mos Def and Jim Jones. I know what you're thinking..it's rap-rock. Well it is indeed rap-rock, but no that cheesy stuff form the late '90s or the early 2000s. Think rap-rock that was of Rage Against The Machine like quality. Unlike my beloved RATM, this Blakroc album is more bluesy than metal. It's also more hip hop than blues given the talent of the MCs involved. This is the one album to bring together musical fans from all walks of life. In fact, it saved hip hop for me in 2009.
With all the God awful, samesy radio rap minus maybe Kanye, only Mos Def's latest album did anything for me. It's sad to admit too because I grew up listening to a lot of hip hop, but to me it went down in quality after 2000. Not since Enter the 36 Chambers have I been this passionate and excited about a hip hop album. There is even a hint of R&B to it with the ressurection of Nicole Wray. Remember her one hit, "Make It Hot"?
Alright I'm done ranting now. I could go on all day on all sorts of tangents. Seriously though, Blakroc is the Bees Knees. Instant classic. Give this video for "Ain't Nothing Like You" a look and listen.
Ian is a graduate of Round Rock High School and attended St Edward’s University in Austin, Texas. In 2008 he joined the team at Double Stereo (formerly CD Fuse) as their Blog editor where he reviewed concerts, albums, and did interviews for the popular music site.In January 2009, he became the Editor in Chief for Austin Vida. In 2010, with the help of some of his most talented friends, he launched Red River Noise. "Ian's Music Blog" is also one of the few blogs selected to be a Do512 All-Star.
On any given night of the week he can be found in downtown Austin on 6th Street and the Red River live music district.
