Well the year is already halfway over. What are your favorite albums/mixtapes from 2013 so far?
Here are a few of mine.
4.5 / 5
Big K.R.I.T. - King Remembered In Time - After a somewhat disappointing studio album, Big K.R.I.T returned to drop another banging mixtape that is as good as his other free mixtapes in my opinion. The self-produced beats are beautiful and Big K.R.I.T. comes correct lyrically on almost every track. He has definitely cemented himself as one of the best hip-hop artists in the rap industry in the past few years. This mixtape is fire.
Dirt Platoon and Kyo Itachi - War Face - Dirt Platoon and Kyo Itachi teamed up to drop an absolute banger. The beats are slammin and the lyrics are aggressive and hardcore. Fans of Wu-Tang Clan and Killarmy should eat this album up. Too bad this was slept on by most people because its one of the years best.
El-P and Killer Mike - Run The Jewels - The second collaboration album between Killer Mike and El-P was just as good as their first. El-P's production was pretty much flawless and both Killer Mike and El-P ripped it lyrically. To make the package even better, the album was released for free via the Fools Gold website. Nothing is better than free hip-hop music when it is this good.
Epidemic - Somethin' For Tha Listeners - Epidemic dropped their latest project just a few days ago and its crazy. The beats, by Esco, are consistently dope and both Hex One and Tek-Nition rip every verse on the album. If you are looking for that ill 90s hip-hop sound, look no further. This album bangs.
Ghostface Killah and Adrian Younge - Twelve Reasons to Die - 2013 has been hailed as the "Year of the Wu-Tang." It's a bold claim, but it seems to be true based off the strong releases they dropped in the first half of the year. On this LP, Ghostface Killah teamed up with producer Adrian Younge to drop a gritty conceptual album with strong Italian Opera/Horror themes. Very ill.
Inspectah Deck with 7L & Esoteric - CZARFACE - Another Wu-banger. Inspectah Deck collabs with 7L & Esoteric and dropped a dope, comic book inspired hip-hop album. The beats are fire and Inspectah Deck sounds better than he has in years. Combined a reinvigorated Deck with beats by 7L and an impressive performance by Esoteric and you have a banger.
John Robinson and Kyo Itachi - The Path of Mastery - Another album that is highly slept on. The production by Kyo Itachi is lush and beautiful and perfectly compliments John Robinson's laid back delivery. Its definitely one of my most played albums of 2013. Absolute fire.
Killah Priest - The Psychic World of Walter Reed (Disc 1) - I broke up my reviews for double albums into two parts because I rated each disc separately and then combined them for a total at the end. The first disc on P.W.O.W.R. is definitely a banger and quite easily Killah Priest's best work since "The Offering". The beats are really dope and Killah Priest's lyrics are top notch, as always. Add to that a crisp, mastered sound that has been lacking from Priests recent works and you have a banger.
Killah Priest - The Psychic World of Walter Reed (Disc 2) - The second disc on P.W.O.W.R. is not as consistent as the first disc, but it's still really good. Priest was definitely in the zone when he made this album because he provided us with two full discs of great music. As on the first disc, the beats are slammin and Killah Priest rips it lyrically. Dude is a beast on the mic.
4.25 / 5
Prodigy and The Alchemist - Albert Einstein - This the best best Mobb Deep related product to drop in years. The beats are crazy and Prodigy sounds reinvigorated. As usual with Mobb Deep records, the subject matter is dark and violent, but the beats provided by The Alchemist match the tone perfectly. I'd almost want to bump this up to a 4.5/5 since it hasn't left my playlist since it dropped.
Wale - The Gifted - So Wale just dropped a really ill album this year. The live instrumentation and Wale's carefree flow meshed really well together and made almost every track distinct from the others. Even the radio friendly tracks are really dope. There are a few filler songs, but not many. Very good album.
Check out the rest with full track-by-track reviews at The Essence of Rap and Hip-Hop: The Best Rap Albums of 2013 (So Far)
Here are a few of mine.
4.5 / 5
Big K.R.I.T. - King Remembered In Time - After a somewhat disappointing studio album, Big K.R.I.T returned to drop another banging mixtape that is as good as his other free mixtapes in my opinion. The self-produced beats are beautiful and Big K.R.I.T. comes correct lyrically on almost every track. He has definitely cemented himself as one of the best hip-hop artists in the rap industry in the past few years. This mixtape is fire.
Dirt Platoon and Kyo Itachi - War Face - Dirt Platoon and Kyo Itachi teamed up to drop an absolute banger. The beats are slammin and the lyrics are aggressive and hardcore. Fans of Wu-Tang Clan and Killarmy should eat this album up. Too bad this was slept on by most people because its one of the years best.
El-P and Killer Mike - Run The Jewels - The second collaboration album between Killer Mike and El-P was just as good as their first. El-P's production was pretty much flawless and both Killer Mike and El-P ripped it lyrically. To make the package even better, the album was released for free via the Fools Gold website. Nothing is better than free hip-hop music when it is this good.
Epidemic - Somethin' For Tha Listeners - Epidemic dropped their latest project just a few days ago and its crazy. The beats, by Esco, are consistently dope and both Hex One and Tek-Nition rip every verse on the album. If you are looking for that ill 90s hip-hop sound, look no further. This album bangs.
Ghostface Killah and Adrian Younge - Twelve Reasons to Die - 2013 has been hailed as the "Year of the Wu-Tang." It's a bold claim, but it seems to be true based off the strong releases they dropped in the first half of the year. On this LP, Ghostface Killah teamed up with producer Adrian Younge to drop a gritty conceptual album with strong Italian Opera/Horror themes. Very ill.
Inspectah Deck with 7L & Esoteric - CZARFACE - Another Wu-banger. Inspectah Deck collabs with 7L & Esoteric and dropped a dope, comic book inspired hip-hop album. The beats are fire and Inspectah Deck sounds better than he has in years. Combined a reinvigorated Deck with beats by 7L and an impressive performance by Esoteric and you have a banger.
John Robinson and Kyo Itachi - The Path of Mastery - Another album that is highly slept on. The production by Kyo Itachi is lush and beautiful and perfectly compliments John Robinson's laid back delivery. Its definitely one of my most played albums of 2013. Absolute fire.
Killah Priest - The Psychic World of Walter Reed (Disc 1) - I broke up my reviews for double albums into two parts because I rated each disc separately and then combined them for a total at the end. The first disc on P.W.O.W.R. is definitely a banger and quite easily Killah Priest's best work since "The Offering". The beats are really dope and Killah Priest's lyrics are top notch, as always. Add to that a crisp, mastered sound that has been lacking from Priests recent works and you have a banger.
Killah Priest - The Psychic World of Walter Reed (Disc 2) - The second disc on P.W.O.W.R. is not as consistent as the first disc, but it's still really good. Priest was definitely in the zone when he made this album because he provided us with two full discs of great music. As on the first disc, the beats are slammin and Killah Priest rips it lyrically. Dude is a beast on the mic.
4.25 / 5
Prodigy and The Alchemist - Albert Einstein - This the best best Mobb Deep related product to drop in years. The beats are crazy and Prodigy sounds reinvigorated. As usual with Mobb Deep records, the subject matter is dark and violent, but the beats provided by The Alchemist match the tone perfectly. I'd almost want to bump this up to a 4.5/5 since it hasn't left my playlist since it dropped.
Wale - The Gifted - So Wale just dropped a really ill album this year. The live instrumentation and Wale's carefree flow meshed really well together and made almost every track distinct from the others. Even the radio friendly tracks are really dope. There are a few filler songs, but not many. Very good album.
Check out the rest with full track-by-track reviews at The Essence of Rap and Hip-Hop: The Best Rap Albums of 2013 (So Far)
