My Bass Rocks

I was back home in Seattle last weekend, and made a brief stop to the infamous Sonic Boom Records on Capitol Hill.  At that moment, I’d already bought four new albums within two weeks, and had no intention of getting anything at all…But being the musical drug-addict that I am, I went to take a look anyway.

At the moment, the top selling albums at Sonic were Madlib’s WLIB, Raphael Saadiq’s The Way I See It (dope), and this new Jake One…

Long story short, the Seattle in me kept it real.  While I’ve never had the privilege of meeting Jake yet, I can’t help but get a little proud to see local hip-hop make it globally (I see you Blue Scholars).

Continue on for my thoughts…

I’m going to just go out and say it…White Van Music is incredible.  All the way through too.  Oh, and the packaging is real legit as well.  Not only do you get a great track-by-track walk through booklet, but there’s a separate Instrumentals White Van CD in there as well!  Who does that?!?  Way ill…

There are so many standouts throughout the album, that it’s hard to grade the whole project per individual track.  The good songs are great, while the mediocre songs are still solid additions to an LP full of highlights.  Here are some examples of what I’m talking about:

Freeway & Brother Ali: “The Truth”

Hip-hop hasn’t sounded this soulful since the late great Jay-Dee.  “The Truth” should definitely be regarded as one of the best tracks of 2008.

Elzhi & Royce The 5’9″: “Glow”

Whoa.  If you need any proof that Detroit has some of the best lyricists in the universe, “Glow” is proof enough (no pun intended).  How about Royce?

Gets my stray on/ my mistress I spray on/ watchin’ the Pistons on the same floor they play on

Ridiculous…

Bishop LaMont (feat. Busta Rhymes): “Kissin’ the Curb”

This beat is about as raw as it gets, and the game could use a little more of this sound in its diet.  Bishop LaMont seems to be a breath of fresh air in the rap game, and I hope to hear his addition to Detox in the near future…Definitely a noteworthy track.

Also, the featured artist list is pretty surreal.  Freeway & Brother Ali on the same track?  Busta Rhymes and MF Doom on the same album?  Keak Da Sneak and Little Brother?  There aren’t too many producers in music who can take such a diverse group and make them sound as cohesive as this.  He even gives a little shine to some local artists (J. Pinder, GMK, Spaceman, Vitamin D), who seem to step up their game for this special occasion.

Honestly, I can’t name the last time I’ve been this enthusiastic about a new hip-hop album.  Every featured artist plays a big role in this release, from unknown underground Seattle rappers to platinum-selling MC’s…You can tell they had a fun time being apart of this project too.

Also, Jake One has quickly transformed himself from a talented producer lost in the shuffle, to a truly elite artist in the rap world.  I’ve always known of his talent as a musician, but White Van Music stands as proof of his beat-making abilities.  From this release alone (and a little help from De La’s “Roc.Kokane.Flow”), Jake One should be regarded as one of the best in the game…Hands down.

He’s a producers producer, and anyone who loves hip-hop for its art will thoroughly enjoy his debut LP.  If you only buy one album this year, try White Van Music. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.

From the immortal words of MF Doom:

Make no mistakes son/ it’s Jake One/ he makes beats well/ like i likes my steaks done

Enough said…

Overall: 9 out of 10