Search - Freestyle Fellowship :: Innercity Griots

Review

Karlis Neihofere | USA | 07/16/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"all the hype you'll read here, about how great 'innercity griots' is, and the surprisingly tight live instrumentation (still a rarity in hip hop when 'griots' was released...sorry, stetsasonic), are all well deserved. trust me. you need two hands to count all the MCs on this album. even daddy-o of stet makes an appearance. you can be forgiven if it takes a while to distinguish who's who. you probably won't care who's saying what. you'll just know it's unparalleled by any artist eating off the billboard 100 then or today!i scarcely remember a video from 'griots', bullies of the block i think. it played bet for about one day and the mainstream never heard from them again. at least not in the east.f.f. displays lyrical range that is staggering. from 'bullies on the block' (battle rap) to the spoken word self-help motivational for black men 'tolerate', the group shows emotion almost unheard of in the harder-than-you b-boy mindstate so popular through the 90s and up until aught-1. there is the obligatory ode to smoking urb, 'mary', which has become such a staple of rap albums that it is now passe'. but f.f's free-floating, dreamy sonics do the topic as much good as dre's 'chronic' of the same time. another link to dre and cali is in 'six-tray', about...yeap, a fine antique car to cruise in. and my favorite on the album (although there is very little filler, play it straight through) is 'heavyweights', where acey, mikah 9, P.E.A.C.E., and selfjupiter take turns destroying the listeners with style after original style. mikah 9 especially will wreck anyone who tries to recite along with him. this album is incredible! dig this gem up if you really love hip hop's foundation: this has inventive beats out the yang, and educated lyrics so clever you'll have to dissect them over many listenings. i've had mixed results giving copies of this CD as gifts to self-proclaimed 'hip hop fans'. but, to paraphrase angelo of fishbone, do you really love hip hop? lots of people say they do. but...do you REALLY love it? 'innercity griots' separates the true love from the pretenders.WARNING: those of you infatuated with rappers who repeatedly channel mafia/mob motifs, or the tupac/thug life legacy, will NOT like this."

Dope

Karlis Neihofere | 08/10/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Freestyle Fellowship distributes the true essence of emcees, and adds what is lost most in hip hop today..KNOWLEDGE"

Get Ready For The Super Rap Battle Tag Tournament Champs

Alan Pounds | Minneapolis, MN | 03/10/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Freestyle Fellowship is made up of an unprecedented amount of talent. Crew members Aceyalone, Mikah 9, Self-Jupiter, J-Sumbi, and P.E.A.C.E. completely revitalized the Los Angeles underground hip-hop scene in the early 90s. The signature element of the collective is their bafflingly speedy flows. In addition, they bring a whole new set of fresh ideas to the table. Even in the early stages of their career, every emcee is on the top of their game. The production, if unspectacular, is a vast improvement from "To Whom It May Concern..." (1991). That really doesn't hurt the album in the least. Their flow and rhythms dictate the production's breaks and cuts. At times, their flows are so fast, it's nearly impossible to follow. Much of their flows are undoubtedly freestyles, which gives the album a certain charm and freshness that many rap crews could never attain. "Inner City Boundaries" featuring Stetsasonic's Daddy-O and "Shammy's" are fine examples of their impenetrable tag-team rap battle styles. The street-smart "Everything's Everything" and the untouchable "Way Cool" rank among my favorites. The posse cut "Heavyweights" features a slew of quality guest emcees including Spoon (of Iodine), Archie, Cockney "O" Dire, Ganjah K, and Volume 10. Each track emulates originality.



It may take a few spins to fully digest the material. At first I thought it was a bit unorganized and kind of spotty. But like most good albums that emulate any sense of complexity, further listening will prove you wrong. Overall, this is a cornerstone album of the West Coast underground hip-hop scene. It's so good, that it will have you buying up their solo works. Just excellent!

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