man, I forgot how much I liked his "first" album (meaning Popular Demand + the better tracks from Sound of the City)
I'd rate Popular Demand as a 3.7 out of 5. almost a 4, but I think it lacks a true hip hop classic--although Action feat. Slum Village is a classic for Detroit and Dilla fans
his beats were the main attraction and he spit just good enough to keep you interested and make you laugh a few times and, thankfully, didn't try to prove his lyrics were on the same level. I also feel like you can tell he truly loves music by dropping those crazy instrumentals on his album w/ no one rapping over it
1. "Had the same experience a few weeks back" In response to Reply # 0
>man, I forgot how much I liked his "first" album (meaning >Popular Demand + the better tracks from Sound of the City)
I'm still in the middle of gradually having stuffed shipped from VA to AZ so whenever another box of cd's arrives it's a constant barrage of "wow, forgot about this!/haven't heard this in awhile!".
His Sound of the City/Popular Demand era is my favorite of his, although he's been consistently good to great since then as well. Unless I've missed something, he's been kinda quiet as of late. Last stuff I have from him is the "Black and Brown" joint with Danny Brown and the Random Axe album.
__ I don't like the beat anymore because its just a loop. ALC didn't FLIP IT ENOUGH!
Flip it enough? Flip these. Flip off. Go flip some f*cking burgers.(c)Kno
Allied State of the National Electric Beat Treaty Organization (NEBTO)
3. "RE: Black Milk appreciation post" In response to Reply # 0
>what's he been up to since?
Elec: 4 out of 5 mixtape Tronic: 4 - 4.5 out of 5 solo album AOTY (365): 3.5 - 4 out of 5 solo album Caltroit: 3.5 - 4 collab album and mixtape The Preface: 4 - 4.5 fully produced album for Elzhi Random Axe: 3 - 3.5 out of 5 group album
He also released a single on Jack White's record label..
Dj Joey Joe Member since Sep 01st 2007 13770 posts
Tue Mar-05-13 01:32 PM
4. ""Sound Of Detroit" Will Always Be My Favorite From Black Milk" In response to Reply # 0
"Popular Demand" was good but maybe I was kind of pissed that he took a songs from "SOD" and put them on it instead of coming with an all new album but it was 70% new material though.
Anyway I've always dug his beats & even rhyming but after his third album and all the collaboration albums I kind of lost interest when I see his name on production credits or as a feature rapper; but he's still better than a lot of other kats who basically slowed down to making weak tracks or just stopped altogether.
--------- "We in here talking about later career Prince records & your fool ass is cruising around in a time machine trying to collect props for a couple of sociopathic degenerates" - s.blak
5. "i can't believe tronic dropped 5 years ago..cot damn time flies" In response to Reply # 0 Tue Mar-05-13 02:41 PM by Hellyeah
btw if you ask me he kinda dropped the ball right after AOTY..since then he has been hit or miss at best...in 2007-2010 he had detroit hip hop in a chokehold..hell i'd even argue he had underground hip hop in a chokehold.....what happened???
...I felt while his drums got better/more bangin and his mixing improved, the samples/keys/instrumentation became a little bland. The drums would bang, but everything else would be so-so.
However, I really liked "Black and Brown" and Random Axe was solid, too, so I'm looking forward to whatever he has next. __ I don't like the beat anymore because its just a loop. ALC didn't FLIP IT ENOUGH!
Flip it enough? Flip these. Flip off. Go flip some f*cking burgers.(c)Kno
Allied State of the National Electric Beat Treaty Organization (NEBTO)
HHNM: I notice that you really like to play around with a track either in the beginning of it or at the end and infuse some instrumental interludes every now & then. That’s particularly the case on ‘Popular Demand’ and ‘Tronic’. Sounds great but a listener has to play the album at least twice to really understand the concept. Do you make a deliberate effort to do that? I love it by the way.
Black Milk: I like to leave a special stamp on my larger bodies of work by attaching those rare “magical moments” to the beginning or ending of a song, and also in between tracks. They give the album or song a certain feel and force the listener to rewind. The influence for me to do that comes from listening to albums like Pete Rock’s “Soul Survivor” or Dilla’s interludes in between songs. They add replay value.
7. "AOTY was a massive letdown for me." In response to Reply # 0
He did some great work on the Random Axe and Black & Brown records though, so I can't be too mad.
Tronic is currently his apex.
I also remember this board hating on Popular Demand when it came out. In hindsight, it's easily one of the better records in his catalogue.
I want to hear this Lo-Fi Are & Bees tape so I can hear what he's been up to lately. Anybody feeling generous - feel free to hit the inbox. It won't be leaving my hard drive.
11. "yeah. it's interesting listening to the lyrics on his first 2 albums" In response to Reply # 10
because he was clearly trying to craft a persona
e.g.
you can be the best lyrical, lyricist but without these type of beats you can cancel Christmas yeah I know that sounds cocky, but yo y'all won't take me serious if I don't give a cocky approach
>He doesn't have anything to his Black Milk rapping persona >that keeps my attention.
12. "Oddly enough that's my favorite lyric from him." In response to Reply # 11
>because he was clearly trying to craft a persona > >e.g. > >you can be the best lyrical, lyricist >but without these type of beats you can cancel Christmas >yeah I know that sounds cocky, but yo >y'all won't take me serious if I don't give a cocky approach > > > >>He doesn't have anything to his Black Milk rapping persona >>that keeps my attention. >
Around the time when guys like Elzhi and Royce were getting re-energized Black's rapping started to sound pretty mundane. _________________________________________ The Combat Jack Show is the best hip-hop related internet radio show http://thecombatjackshow.com/
14. "One of my favorite producers ever since Popular Demand." In response to Reply # 0 Tue Mar-05-13 06:55 PM by Ketchums
I've got a soft spot for Popular Demand too, but Tronic blows me away every time I listen to it. The way he was able to mesh his usual sample-based production with electronic elements so well was incredible to me, made him my favorite producer of the time period.
I liked Album of the Year too, though I was moreso impressed by his lyrics on that record. People hate me for it, but I thought that he somehow outshined Elzhi and Royce on "Deadly Medley" by taking the best of both of them in his verse with nods to Elzhi's lyricism and Royce's style. I also thought he performed well on "Distortion." But lyrics aside, that's an album that I gained a new appreciation for when I saw him perform it live at the release party.
Black and Brown is really slept on, just revisited that recently. I enjoyed Random Axe, The Preface and Caltroit a lot too (purchased them all), but after what he did with Tronic and AOTY, I'm always looking to see how he pushes shit with his solo records.
I've heard a few joints from his record with Melanie Rutherford, and those are really dope. I'm interested to see where this instrumental album goes, too.
--------- "We in here talking about later career Prince records & your fool ass is cruising around in a time machine trying to collect props for a couple of sociopathic degenerates" - s.blak
19. "RE: Black Milk appreciation post" In response to Reply # 0
I have to say I've been missing his music for a while now, he's made some of my favourite beats of the last 5 years. Dude's drum patterns on the last album were pretty damn incredible (although they did sometimes threaten to overwhelm the track). I particularly loved his work on the tronic though which if you ask me is one of the best produced albums of recent years, the beat for the matrix is crazy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7Osqr0BFUg
He seems to been fairly quiet recently, looking forward to what his next works will sound like, as the production has been really different from album to album.
20. "I feel like AOTY is his best work & showed progression" In response to Reply # 0
As much as I dig Popular Demand and some of the little freebie joints he did in between, I really enjoyed where he took his sound. I still haven't played the Purple Beat Tape joint with the Prince samples (that I hear Big Pooh rapped over) but I still played Tronic and AOTY
********************* www.dumhi.com -- We are ALL dumhi
25. "RE: I feel like AOTY is his best work & showed progression" In response to Reply # 20
>As much as I dig Popular Demand and some of the little >freebie joints he did in between, I really enjoyed where he >took his sound. I still haven't played the Purple Beat Tape >joint with the Prince samples (that I hear Big Pooh rapped >over) but I still played Tronic and AOTY
I'm with you on this. I think the reason folks don't like AOTY as much as his previous joints is because he sound got considerably more polished and his overall songwriting and arrangement of his tracks got more of a commercial slant.
If AOTY was his underground album and Tronic was the synth/electro album, then AOTY is his rock album. The live drums just really gave a very hype feel to many of the tracks on the album that just isn't there on his tracks with programmed drums.
I always believed that, if that album had come out on a major label he could have at least sold 300,00 if they had pushed "Oh Girl" and "Over Again" as the radio singles and "Black and Brown" as the street single. I probably would have gotten a bigger named R&B artist to sing on "Over Again", but that would have been it.
Lastly, I still don't see how Black didn't become an in-demand producer after Caltroit. HIs beats on there, to me, are some of the BEST I've ever heard from him. And, getting to work with that caliber of emcees should have automatically have given him a chance to get placements on some of their albums. Regrettably, that didn't happen.
Come to grips with the fact that most OKP's are of the Nut Hugger lineage, so, if you' re not part of the little cliques that exist 'round here, your posts will probably tank like Souljaboy's album sales.
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