A new track I honest to God enjoyed

Oct 03, 2006

A new track I honest to God enjoyed · by Sach O

Life’s a bitch and then you sign to Koch

My bold predictions of a dismal fourth quarter apparently shocked and awed a fair amount of people into believing that I’m a hater in the third degree and that my cynicism is a force for evil that must be stopped before it engulfs the world in a tide of…umm…negative rap reviews. Far from harboring any inherent dislike for Hip-Hop however, I’m actually just one of those people who are nostalgic for the kind of music that initially got me interested in the first place. There’s nothing wrong with Hyphy, Houston, Def Jux and Virginian space-pop per say, but it’ll never give me the same feeling as a classic Premier or Rza track.

Naturally, when I hear one of the rare tracks that bring me back to that era, I tend to go ape shit and bug out. It’s been happening far less frequently than before in recent years, but thankfully Az recently dropped one of those “pump up the volume” moments. I Am the Truth produced by Fizzy Womack of MOP fame (terrible pun I know) is one of those real New York bangers, blissfully unaware of any musical innovations brought on by rap’s great expansion and pop takeover of the past ten years. Mining the best loops in a classic soul song and lacing them with gritty drums, the beat knocks with the kind of force and timelessness absent from the unfortunate chipmunk soul experiments of recent years that went so horribly wrong. And that’s before the beat change. AZ meanwhile does what he does best, dropping a steady stream of knowledge with at least one use of the verb “visualize”. No corny punch-lines, just smooth emceeing about life in the city. The only thing that could have made this any iller was having the Mash Out Posse drop some verses, but considering Az dissed Fiddy, I’m surprised Fame could even sell him the beat.

Sadly, this song will probably go over the heads of the mainstream-underground music sites that’ll pass on it in order to review Hilary Duff, Yin Yang Twinz and Hold Steady’s singles. For shame.

Comments for "A new track I honest to God enjoyed"

i dont really understand why anyone WOULDNT like an az track.

— arlene Oct 4, 03:22 AM
good stuff

— sankofa Oct 4, 07:53 AM
one of the best tracks i have heard recently.

— hugo Oct 4, 10:11 AM
“i dont really understand why anyone WOULDNT like an az track.”

the LP he dropped last year was doodoo.

— khal Oct 4, 10:23 AM
Wow – I actually didn’t expect this track to be this good. Quarter-note hi-hats always make for a tasty banger.

— Floodwatch Oct 4, 10:51 AM
Why did Nas blow, but AZ didnt?

— BKbomber Oct 4, 11:10 AM
“Why did Nas blow, but AZ didnt?”

AZ never got the success he deserved, he’s still hungry. Nas got complacent.

— R-Lex Oct 4, 12:36 PM
Nas had more hype/buzz. He was supposed to be the 2nd coming.

I would say that Nas has more natural talent by far: AZ will never be as good as Nas at his best; AZ has definitely been more consistent, though. I can’t think of one lyrical brick he’s laid on par with Nas’ worst.

Nas and AZ would have made a great group (not the Firm), as long as Nas didn’t pick the beats.

The track is very dope, by the way.

— eauhellzgnaw Oct 4, 02:10 PM
dig it, not amazing by any means, but soild. what was that last track he and nas were on together like 2 years ago? i remember that being nuts…

— *midnightheory* Oct 4, 03:08 PM
that would be “Serious”. Also a great track.

Az’s biggest fault, like Nas is that he usually has some truly terrible crossover attempts that interrupt the flow of his albums. Hopefully this new one bucks the trend. Last year it was something like 60/40.

— Sach Oct 4, 03:46 PM
Man, I dunno about the rest of you but for the past five years or so I think AZ’s delivery has been (for lack of a better word) mushmouthed… His voice on this (and “Serious,” and “Flyest Gangsters,” etc.) sounds a lot different from Doe Or Die. To me, the rhythmic precision that makes that Kool G Rap style of rapping work is not there on the newer AZ shit. This beat is good though.

— Nikhil P. Yerawadekar Oct 5, 03:15 PM
AZ never blew ‘cos of a bad choice with joining Motown who didn’t know how to market rap.

That plus AZ’s style is just flat..like I feel when I’ve heard one verse I’ve heard it all..the mid 90’s street/smooth hustler won’t crossover with everyone esp. now in today’s climate..

His 1st album to me was just more interesting. He’s at his best doing narratives imo..

— esbee Oct 9, 07:00 PM
I know what you’re talking about. AZ’s delivery sounds different for 2 reasons: he started using fewer words, and his lisp became more pronounced.

I wouldn’t quite call his new delivery “mushmouthed” and I don’t think he’s imprecise in terms of rhythm, he’s just not G Rap-esque anymore.

— eauhellzgnaw Oct 9, 08:38 PM