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Avg: 3.5 (14 ratings)
- Date Released: October 27, 2009
- Genre: Hip-Hop/R&B
- Style: Hip-Hop, Rap
- Label: Mello Music Group / IODA
A raw and rugged paean to the golden era of mid-'90s East Coast hip hop
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We Say...
In a year that's seen no shortage of attempts to revive the golden era East Coast hip-hop sound, Washington D.C.'s Diamond District has their work cut out for them. As revivalists go, they don't make any secrets of their affinities: In the Ruff even opens with producer/MC Oddissee admitting to being envious of all the NYC-representing greatness he grew up listening to. So it's no surprise that the album is essentially an hour-long love letter to the early-mid '90s. Nods to the titans of that era abound, to the point where "I Mean Business" actually extends its Gang Starr namedrops to a beat that lifts the fusion-jazz organ loop from "Mass Appeal" itself.
But if Diamond District are retro-minded, they do it with a raw sonic verisimilitude and drums that flat-out knock, and Oddissee's pulled off the admirable feat of being able to approach the choicest moments of Diamond D, Pete Rock and DJ Premier's production alchemy without sounding like a faded imitation. And the group's lyrics are throwbacks in a similar sense — Oddissee, XO and yU drop everyman street knowledge with more emphasis on survival than swagger, staying approachable without sounding vulnerable.
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| 01. |  |
Intro |
1:03 |
|
| 02. | |
Streets Won't Let Me Chill |
4:04 |
|
| 03. | |
Who I Be |
3:31 |
|
| 04. | |
Back 2 Basics |
4:38 |
|
| 05. | |
I Mean Business |
3:43 |
|
| 06. | |
Get in Line |
3:41 |
|
| 07. | |
In the Ruff |
4:05 |
|
| 08. | |
The Shining (prod. Dunc) |
5:08 |
|
| 09. | |
The District |
3:44 |
|
| 10. | |
Make It Clear |
3:58 |
|
| 11. | |
First Time (feat. Steve Smith) |
3:52 |
|
| 12. | |
Let Me Explain |
3:40 |
|
| 13. | |
Off the Late Night (prod. SlimKat78) |
5:12 |
|
| 14. | |
Something for Y'all (prod. Kev Brown) |
3:44 |
|
| 15. | |
Hologram |
3:55 |
|
15 Total Tracks, 57:58 Total Length
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