Pete Rock and Smif n' Wessun - Monumental

Anticipation was higher than a Duck Down tour bus when word came down through the interwebs that Pete Rock was pairing with the newly re-dubbed Smif and Wessun for an entire record. Mysterious machinations had allowed the Brownsville duo to return under their original moniker and most hoped this meant a return to heights of their classic early 90s material. Most will be pleased, I'd say.

A gang of guests spice up the proceedings on Monumental. The Duck Down OGC crew reps hard, with Buckshot, Sean P and Rock as well as new signing Black Rob making appearances, with Raekwon and Bun B and a mob of other hard rhymers. I wouldn't go so far as to call the record monumental, but Monumental definitely evokes a great time in hip hop that this crew can hopefully bring back into vogue.

Get Monumental here from Duck Down.

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Random Axe

In this post-Wu epoch, rappers have to make the most of their situation. Unless you are Jay-Z, it's pretty tough to be a solo artist and keep the lights on, so diversifying is the way of the walk. As such, Random Axe is a new project featuring Mr. Sean Price, Guilty Simpson and Black Milk. Black Milk handles the Pro-Tools duties.

Evidently the impetus for this was Sean P guesting on a track Milk produced from Guilty's last record that was pretty bananas and the crew decided to make a record. Of course that was like three years ago now, but it's no less of a good idea in 2011, and definitely another reason why Duck Down might be the best hip-hop label out there today.

Random Axe doesn't sport too much in the way of guest spots, save for Roc Marciano on the first single Chewbacca and Trick Trick and Rock from Heltah Skeltah on another track. A couple other newcomers get some shine as well, but it's mostly the three RA proprietors steady wrecking mics for the duration. Probably not the best choice for the backpacker set, but then again do we really need to humor the likes of MC Jansport and his ilk? I'd say no.

Get Random Axe here from Duck Down.

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Marco Polo and Ruste Juxx - The Exxecution

I've been a Duck Down guy since Black Moon jumped off. The house that Dru Ha and Buck built went through a bit of a fallow phase in the aftermath of their ill-fated union with Nervous, but have rallied hard since the turn of the century. Black Moon are in some semblance of an active period, as are Smif N' Wessum and Heltah Skeltah and new jacks like Kidz In The Hall and Torae have shown the new generation of Duck Down can hold their own. The standout of the crew in recent years has been Sean Price, who has essentially started over as an artist using his government.

P has championed Crown Heights' own Ruste Juxx in recent years, co-signing his debut release Indestructible and appearing often on the road with the gent. Your boy Vic Flair is back with a new one cosigned by Marco Polo and know that it is no less a banger. Canadian ex-pat Polo got major props for his Port and NewPort Authority releases, and he won't lose any fans with The Exxecution, especially with Juxx on the mike. Polo has a slick Primo vibe about his tracks and Juxx is just plain nasty, cutting most of today's rappers off within his first four bars. He's not fucking around with the collabos, either. Sean Price and fellow x-ophile Freddie Foxxx weigh in with typically solid verses. There is also the small matter of the Black Moon collabo. Oh, yes. You read correctly. That should be enough of a cosign to seal the deal for you lot, but if you have to investigate further, use this link to go on over to Duck Down. Tell them JS-NYC sent you.

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And Still You Question!!?!

Sean Price and Duck Down are the fucking best.

Peep it

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Sean Price presents Kimbo Price: The Prelude To Mic Tyson

Read the title. Kimbo Price? Come on, you can't front: admit the title is pretty brilliant, especially as a mixtape precursor to a full-length entitled Mic Tyson. I guess that you might be all souped up on the new Jay-Z or Rick Ross records to the point that you might doubt this record's awesomeness, but anyone with even a passing ownership of a set of ears would be an idiot to deny how good this. Interspersed with sound clips from the aforementioned pugilists, Sean gets ridiculous on 23 tracks, mostly for delf but sometimes with the help of old comrades like Ruck, Buckshot and Rusty Juxx but also with newcomers like Flood Diesel, Skyzoo and Torae. If you like hip-hop, you should be picking Kimbo Price up immediately from Duck Down. Here's a link.

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The Price Is Right

So your man Sean P has got a new mixtape dropping. It's called Kimbo Price and is the precursor to the new full-length (on Duck Down, of course) called Mic Tyson. While Sean comes hard body with it, he still keeps it real on the family and shopping tip. See it firsthand via The Price Is Right, video that may very well be the best thing on the interwebs. Here's a link. Thanks to the mighty Unkut for hipping me to this and big up Dallas Penn for digitizing. Look for a review of Kimbo Price tomorrow.

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B Real - Smoke & Mirrors

Cypress Hill have been off my radar for a while now. I'd heard the recent singles and solo stuff, but nothing really stuck in my mind as being all that remarkable, so when I heard that B Real was dropping a solo record on Duck Down, I was a little taken aback.  They are definitely OG West Coast by this point and probably sell more records than I would expect, but with all apologies and respect due to the Duck Down and Soul Assassin cliques, I wouldn't put much stock in a B Real solo record in 2009.

Well, wrong again for this asshole. Smoke & Mirrors is pretty decent. Unlike a lot of older rhymers, B has kept his flow and his choice of beats relevant while neatly avoiding sounding like an out-of-touch old-timer. He produces a couple of the tracks here, spreading the rest amongst Soopafly, Scoop Deville, and his old buddy The Alchemist, among others. There are a good number from someone called J. Turner, too, if you keep track of such things. Smoke & Mirrors features a healthy amount of guest shots from Snoop, Too Short, Xzibit and others, including new boss Buckshot and Damien Marley. The Marley collabo is a no-brainer, not surprisingly a reggae-driven number, but one that is notable for featuring B's Spanish flow.  Everything here is well-produced, most of the beats are pretty banging and B. Real comes with the fire most of the time. And smoke, I'd assume. 

Keep track on B Real's day to day (including the weed smoking competition that seems to be brewing amongst the Soul Assassins/Snoop/DipSet camps) here. Smoke & Mirrors is out tomorrow. Pick from the good folk of Duck Down here.

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Heltah Skeltah - D.I.R.T

On the heels of what was undoubtably Sean Price's phoenix year comes the return of his partnership with Rock and his original franchise: Heltah Skeltah. I really can't believe how little I liked Sean Price, or in this environment Ruck, on the past HS recordings. Maybe it was the dreads, or the fact that he was skinny, but even after busting out Magnum Force ten years on from its debut I still can't see the appeal. Give me any of the Sean P material any day, please.

Time has prompted both parties to shed their locks, but not their Boot Camp or Decept affiliations. Both are shouted out at some length all over D.I.R.T (Da Incredible Rap Team) . As if they needed to. Both Rock and Ruck have a flow that is Boot Camp to the core. The rhymes come fast and furious and from the intro you'll realize that you would not do well to relegate this dynamic duo to old school status.

Or do. It's your ass that will catch the beatdown and not me. I will say that the old-school Pen and Pixel cover might be a bit of a misstep, as are the costumes, but the rhymes more than speak for themselves. Their partners in grime from Smif and Wessum and Black Moon make their obligatory appearances, as does the Prince Of Crown Heights, Rusty Juxx. It's all better than your favorite record, so reallocate a $20 from your weed budget and pick up D.I.R.T here. Support independent hip-hop. Duck Down has been around forever and have essentially same roster. Name another roster that's stayed that consistent. I thought so. Buy the record and check out Boot Camp TV on public access.

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