Wes Mingus of The Revelations offers some inside on the unique production process behind 36 Seasons:
From the beginning, it was obvious that 36 Seasons was no ordinary hip-hop project. The initial meeting of the minds was not one that discussed producers, MC's, or beats. Rather, the table was set for the album by Matthew Rosenberg, a comic book writer whose story would become the narrative backdrop of 36 Seasons. The Ghostface Killah had been re-imagined as a sort of hip-hop superhero for the 21st century--a Staten Island vigilante inspired by a quest for personal retribution and bent on saving his community from the grips of crooked authority and urban decay. This story, told in fifteen stanzas, became the lyrical and musical backdrop for the songs on the album.
Musically, it was decided at the beginning that this would be a very non-traditional, more organic hip-hop album-- one where all of the sounds created would be by real players, on real instruments, while still maintaining the spirit and boom-bap purity of classic hip-hop. No digital keyboards or samplers were used. Everything would be analog. All "samples" would be extracted from original music performed by live musicians--Brooklyn soul band The Revelations. While the natural performance and fluidity of a live band is evident on songs like It's A Thin Line Between Love and Hate and the curtain-closing A Love For All Seasons, the beats of the other songs adhere more closely to the traditional sound of producer's machine-derived beat. Only in this case, The Revelations become the beat machine, capable of creating an infinite amount of sounds or "samples" to be used as the sonic tapestry for the song at hand. The result is a unique, organic sound that owes greatly to traditional, sample-based beat making, but with the warmth and humanity of a crack musical, ensemble cast. Just as the rappers play characters in this story, The Revelations set the stage sonically to reflect the given musical journey that is 36 Seasons.
Between the lines, the album also tells the story of The Revelations themselves as a band. Emerging in 2008, the band then featured Tre Williams as lead vocalist, who appears on the opening track of the album. Josh Werner, the group's original bass player, also returned for the project to cover the lion's share of the low-end duties. The Revelations' history of providing hip-hop instrumentals for Wu-Tang, Cormega, M.O.P. and many more is refined and distilled here. And The Revelations' current singer, Rell, who is also featured on the album, brings the story up-to-date, conveying a tale of evolution, not just of the Ghostface Killah, but the band itself.
http://jackthriller.com/ghostfacekillah-album-sampler-mixed-dj-7l-36-seasons-december-9th/
From the beginning, it was obvious that 36 Seasons was no ordinary hip-hop project. The initial meeting of the minds was not one that discussed producers, MC's, or beats. Rather, the table was set for the album by Matthew Rosenberg, a comic book writer whose story would become the narrative backdrop of 36 Seasons. The Ghostface Killah had been re-imagined as a sort of hip-hop superhero for the 21st century--a Staten Island vigilante inspired by a quest for personal retribution and bent on saving his community from the grips of crooked authority and urban decay. This story, told in fifteen stanzas, became the lyrical and musical backdrop for the songs on the album.
Musically, it was decided at the beginning that this would be a very non-traditional, more organic hip-hop album-- one where all of the sounds created would be by real players, on real instruments, while still maintaining the spirit and boom-bap purity of classic hip-hop. No digital keyboards or samplers were used. Everything would be analog. All "samples" would be extracted from original music performed by live musicians--Brooklyn soul band The Revelations. While the natural performance and fluidity of a live band is evident on songs like It's A Thin Line Between Love and Hate and the curtain-closing A Love For All Seasons, the beats of the other songs adhere more closely to the traditional sound of producer's machine-derived beat. Only in this case, The Revelations become the beat machine, capable of creating an infinite amount of sounds or "samples" to be used as the sonic tapestry for the song at hand. The result is a unique, organic sound that owes greatly to traditional, sample-based beat making, but with the warmth and humanity of a crack musical, ensemble cast. Just as the rappers play characters in this story, The Revelations set the stage sonically to reflect the given musical journey that is 36 Seasons.
Between the lines, the album also tells the story of The Revelations themselves as a band. Emerging in 2008, the band then featured Tre Williams as lead vocalist, who appears on the opening track of the album. Josh Werner, the group's original bass player, also returned for the project to cover the lion's share of the low-end duties. The Revelations' history of providing hip-hop instrumentals for Wu-Tang, Cormega, M.O.P. and many more is refined and distilled here. And The Revelations' current singer, Rell, who is also featured on the album, brings the story up-to-date, conveying a tale of evolution, not just of the Ghostface Killah, but the band itself.
http://jackthriller.com/ghostfacekillah-album-sampler-mixed-dj-7l-36-seasons-december-9th/
New Wu & Ghost solo, Gates, Cole, YG, Weezy, E-40, Krayzie, and hopefully that Rich Gang album. I'ma be eating good by Christmas 