“Talk To Me” - Review Of Statik Selektah’s Spell My Name Right (The Album)
ALBUM REVIEWS By TC on November 28, 2007 at 9:31 am
The South’s domineering stronghold on mainstream Hip-Hop has caused some of the East Coast rappers to do the darnedest things. Unwarranted disses stemming from frustration have hampered the image of some, while others hang with a crowd so country, the younger generation probably doesn’t even know their origin. And it doesn’t help how everyone is talking about New York losing its luster.
Enter Statik Selektah.
Mostly known for his mixtape collaborations with heavyweights such as Wu-Tang Clan and Nas, the up and coming DJ shows and proves his clout on his first full length album Spell My Name Right (The Album), which boasts a multitude of blue collar MC’s from the East such as Talib Kweli, Termanology, Joell Ortiz, and the entire Lox.
Produced entirely by himself, the Boston born DJ crafts several solid tracks which allow the various collaborations to turn into a rhyme festival while simultaneously unifying the now underdog East Coast. On “What Would You Do?!”, former rivals Freeway and Cassidy rep Philly to fullest with no shortage of clever metaphors. The banging “6 In The Morning” finds Joell Ortiz, Kool G Rap, and Sheek Louch flowing effortlessly about their past street life while its polar opposite “Got Me Goin’ (Hip-Hop)” features Slum Village and Granite Strate praising their love for the music with equal flavor. And skill knows no age on the excellent finale “Did What We Had To Do” where KRS-One, L Da Headtoucha, and Large Professor all deliver exceptional verses.
While East Coast rappers may be wittier with their lyrics than their Southern counterparts, that doesn’t exactly make them more creative. Basically every song featured on the compilation is filled with “hot 16’s” without any real depth behind them with the occasional MC dropping a dud (i.e. Cormega on “Back Against The Wall”). On the other hand, Statik’s scratches on the turntables are rather impressive but the inclusion of some fairly overused samples such as “Bam Bam”, “Talk To Me”, and “Hardcore (So You Wanna Be)”, make the album lose some of its freshness. Sometimes you gotta dig a little deeper for inspiration.
Spell My Name… won’t bring the East back to the limelight, but what it does accomplish is how it highlights some of the talent that’s brewing up in New York, and set the anticipation for any future projects from Termanology because he seems to appear on every song. Still Statik gets the nod for creating an album packed full of music that’s considered sacred to many. But when the segregation barriers plaguing the culture are broken down, even more people will be satisfied.
Statik Selektah - Spell My Name Right (The Album)
Posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, GENERAL, REVIEWS
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15 Comments
Great review TC, not since the good ‘ol days at the Source have I been able to read honest, concise, and more importantly un-biased opinions. The East never fell off, the only people who say that are the dumb-asses who monitor record sales. True fans (such as those in the TSS community) know tha deal, the East is still in the house though it may just not be New York but the WHOLE East-coast. But let’s not forget our West-coast underground bretheren too, they got some heat over there.
Let’s take it back a bit:
J-Love Presents: Biz Markie, Legends Volume 6
http://www.sendspace.com/file/z1oqcw
Styles P - Super Gangster (Extraordinary Gentleman)
01. Intro 00:42
02. Blow Ya Mind (feat. Swizz Beatz) 03:34
03. Let’s Go (feat. Ray J) 03:46
04. Alone In The Streets 03:43
05. In It To Win It (feat. Bully) 04:30
06. All I Know Is Pain (feat. The Alchemist) 03:44
07. Got My Eyes On You (feat. Akon) 03:53
08. Green Piece Of Paper 03:39
09. Holiday (feat. Max B) 02:57
10. Look @ Her 02:47
11. Da 80’s 02:38
12. Inerlude 1 (feat. Comedian Tony Roberts) 01:06
13. Shoot Niggas (feat. Raw Buck) 03:44
14. Super Gangster 02:53
15. Star Of The State (feat. Ghostface Killah) 03:28
16. U Ain’t Ready (feat. Beanie Sigel) 03:01
17. Interlude 2 (feat. Comedian Tony Roberts) 00:38
18. Gangster, Gangster (feat. Jadakiss & Sheek Louch) 04:04
19. Cause I’m Black (feat. Black Thought) 03:06
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This was a solid album. I agree some samples were old. The “Bam Bam” sample needs to be retired. “Stop, Look, & Listen” is a banger, Q-Tip goes hard. “6 in the morning” is tight, but Sheek brings it down. This is one of the best DJ albums out this year. With time his production will get tighter.
Scarface - Made
01. Intro 01:08
02. Never 03:00
03. Bigg Dogg Status (feat. Wacko) 04:41
04. Girl You Know 04:14
05. Burn (feat. Z-Ro) 03:54
06. Go (feat. Nina) 03:40
07. Dollar 04:26
08. Boy Meets Girl (feat. Tanya Herron) 03:59
09. Who Do You Believe In 04:47
10. Git Out My Face 03:23
11. The Suicide Note 04:08
12. Outro 01:17
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I doff my sombrero to you my good sir, Wit-E
i got the same feelings from listening to it. glad to see Term get a lot of shine on the album. not the greatest but better than most DJ records (ie Khaled). trust.
I thought it was a fkn incredible full length debut for Statik on the boards. I agree with Bam Bam”, Talk To Me, and Hardcore making this tape a little weary… but definately not a bad verse from Mega!? That track is my fave of the album, but I guess I am a crazy Cormega & Royce fan n to hear them both on a dope beat made waiting most the year for a good record like this to drop well worth it.
Stop Look Listen slams aswell, and the No Mistakes Allowed! great collabo with DJ’s and MC’s alike to give it that real hip hop flavour.
The east never left and never will as long as albums like this come out…. and as long as Premo lives….GOAT.
Good looking out on that Biz Markie, Flea
Nobody beats the Bizzzzz!
Classic
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Good album…He’s a bit of a fat chump though
Granite State :)
I thought this album was bangin, deff. above average. The beats were on point and he did well in making a nice laid back feel throughout the whole album. The “Hardcore” sample is overused but I thought it was still a great track. The album keeps gettin better every time I listen to it. Good review tho…Oh, and was I the only one that though Term was shinin on every track he was on? Even his little intro verse was hot…
Now you weren’t dizastix. Term was putting it down.
Very interesting post you wrote. Glad I have stumbled upon it. Cheers!