De La Soul - The Grind Date

The only reason that I know about De La Soul is because of Dave Chappelle. In all honesty the only reason I know about most of the hip-hop artists I do know about (all 5 of them) is because of Dave Chappelle. That being said, I don’t really know how to compare The Grind Date to any of their previous ones or the works of any other rappers (unless it’s one of the other 5). So I am going to have to give you the sheltered, white-Midwesterners take on this. The beats are experimental. Often times you may find yourself bobbing along only to release you’ve screwed up and are way off beat. However this is a good thing. While not instantly accessible, they have a way of growing on you. Like trying to figure out the New York City subway system, what you used to think was impossible, you now realize you can’t live with out. The beats are also musical, taking traditional instrumentation and mish-mashing it in with effects, the record keeps a genuine sentiment throughout its play/ The lyrics prove complimentary to the beats. Intelligent rhymes with an untraditional flow bounce back and forth over top. Guest spots by Flava Flav, Common, and MF Doom (to list a few) are complimentary and stay with the vibe of the album, exemplifying but blending tracks to give you a feeling of completeness, something of a whole thought. This album might not be the album you had expected, but fortunately I had no expectations about this album, so I was pleasantly surprised. Solid beats, solid lyrics, and a solid album. [www.sanctuaryrecords.de]