G Lampa
Wiz put a lot of work into this record, and it shows. It's a virtual embarrassment of hip hop riches, truthfully. Dense with crunchy drums, it's on par with productions by legends like Prince Paul or Dust Brothers, in terms of its complexity and jazzy feel. He has a real knack for layering disparate samples into unique, poly-rhythmic grooves. Wiz's rhyme style is clever, organic and abstract, and it melds perfectly w/ the beats. BLESS!
Favorite track: Rock Tha Casbah (feat. Leland Jones).
All tracks written, produced, mixed and mastered by WIZDUMB. Guests appear courtesy of Glow In The Dark Records,
ThubbaThubba, All Flags Burn, and URBnet. Recorded in Seattle Washington @ Lo-Flydelity Studios in the historic Bemis
Building over the span of two and a half years. Scratches on tracks 8 & 12 by Able Fader. Scratches on track 3 by Zac Hendrix.
Peace to: Specswizard, Moka Only, Comel15 of Time Machine, Zac Hendrix, Leland Jones, Able Fader, Tuesday Velasco, Papa Smurf, John Behr, Silas Blak, Michael Doucett, Vermillion, the lovely Dingus D, Brian Clayton, Grey Fox, New Mystics, NKO, Juicy, Baldmanwatching, NoTouchingGround, Harpo, Baso Fibonacci, Dee Rock, Dickie Pan, Don Wallingford, Lo-Flydelity, Deeplemon, Hash Adams, Grief78, Bemis Arts, David Huchthausen, Steve Steele, Kerner, Sean O'Heir, Dan Mehlhoff, Mom, Dad, Sis, Bledsoe, Aylia, Lil Winston, Soapbox Melodics, Pacoe, Dirty Nate, Gabre Meden, Skram Baritone, Onoe Caponoe, Shape Zilla, Matt Gamin, KLTZ, LO-Fi, Stop Biting Crew, Introcut, Magic Sean, AC Lewis, Madman, Sutikeeree, Rob, Ear Dr. Umz, Bishop, WD4D, Rainwater Conglomerate, Drewmin, Joe Mousepad, Miek Sniek, Asonic Garcia, Denly, Citizen Ten, Smartbomb Oakland, NorthernDraw, Thirsty City PDX, KBOO radio, King Tim, Future Shock PDX, Vendetta Vinyl crew, Drasar Monumental, MF GRIMM, Ayatollah, FDRZ, PEZO, Kenrick, Wiginomix, Architect, Count Bass D, Dax, BMN, Madshroom, Vaughnilla, Akira, Madmax, Dick Furari, Julie C, Asun, Korvus, Nice Nate, G Lampa, Marcus D, Kel, Jola, Banittles, Shocky, John Juan, Cynthia, Qyn, Big Certs, Emily Pomeroy, Daicia, Helen Moga, Elhuana, AC the PD, Hiphopphilosophy, Mojo Barnes, Blue Cone Studios, Carolyn Hitt, K-Rad, The Stranger, Charles Mudede, Dave Segal, Supreme, Francois, David James, DJ Christian Science, Greise, Morningremorse, Ohmega Watts, True Believers, George, Petey, Patrick, Brian, Shelly, Terra Byte, Everyday music, Spin Cycle, Cousin Chuck, Kenny, Ramon jr., Betty, Barry, Lenny, Beluga, Stinkito, Ham Grier and anyone else I forgot, you know who you are. This album is dedicated to each & every person who never believed in me or this rap shit, look at me now...
Dusted beats and super-evocative rhymes from the lowkey brilliant rap renaissance man. Specs' beats are always on some conjurational magic - gliding, droning, bumping, incorporating environmental noises, etc. Rhymes are most powerful here on The Question - a beautifully melancholy memory drift through old Seattle in the face of the city's gentrification - "First avenue used to smell like Afrosheen". Add his casual-precise delivery and great voice and The Question thumps me hard in the soul. beforeihadapager
"Cool Mike" is a celebration of vintage gear: Each song formed from a single intriguing, sample loop, then pulling in snippets of dialogue, environment sounds, even the clicks and clacks of the sampling machinery. "Sheets" has a beat moving at odds with verses that talk about the daily grind of excellence, while on "NHB," he's on a beach, drinking a Mai Tai, laughing in a flow that feels effortless, at the rest of us and our silly, quantized, auto-tuned computers. Gary Campbell
"The Wizard" has an easy-speaking, back-to-basics delivery and a smoldering voice, covering topics from the fallacy of success, dissing fakers, and comic books. (All three coming together in "Giant Man vs Ant Man") The beats recall Bomb Squad production, combining wide-ranging musical sample textures and dialogue with sirens and harsher sounds. Gary Campbell