Taken from The Chain Gang Vol. This song feels like Noyd is looking out from a balcony in a newly-purchased apartment in NYC that is high enough he can see his old hood in the distance. The beat feels like a victorious reflection. But its production gives off a superior ethereal quality. Here, you can hear Al exploring a new style, where his drums become less of the core of his beats, and more of a compliment to his loop collaging. The pitching up, speeding up, and rearranging of what existed before is akin to a chemist splitting a water molecule and repurposing its components for renewable energy.
Paired with the pungent braggadocio of Domo Genesis and Smoke DZA, the beat is made even more satisfying than it already is on its own. Make funky rap beats for Cypress Hill and smoke mad weed. It was fun.
He used to pay me in cash and we'd to go to Benihana. Muggs does it his way. And if you don't do it that way then get the fuck out of the room. And don't take that the wrong way, he knows how to vibe with people. But I learned how to man the ship, run your own show. Yeah it seems like you've carved out a very specific lane for yourself in the past few years especially.
That's a good thing right? I'm comfortable, nice and comfortable. I'm gonna take my shoes off. I have some theme music. Can I answer the next question with some theme music in the background? Are you still actively shopping for records? Love me some plates. I just like the smell of dust. Do you like dust? I love dust. What kind of gear are you working with? Play a little Fender Stratosphere, aww yeah, you hear that?
That's not me playing… that's not me… but I like that…. What producers did you look up to growing up? So funky, so funky. Like a street junkie. So when you sit down and make a beat how do you decide if you're going to use it for a solo project or if you're going to shop it to different artists? I probably think of somebody who can rap first. I like to keep accapellas around and shit like that, play them over the beat and get all excited.
Like, "Wooh! Billy Danz is rapping on my beat! I could probably just call him and ask him for an acapella. I should probably do that. You've gotten to work with a pretty broad spectrum of artists over the years. Yeah it's fun. I just work with who I think is dope. I'm in the lab with my man Domo [Genesis] from Odd Future right now, we're working on some shit, coming out of left field. He got some shit. I'm giving you exclusive information! I should've put a fucking theme song behind that one.
What kind of records are you drawing samples from these days? That evolution did not happen overnight. So if it was Large Professor, he had some shit that sounded like Large Professor. Pete Rock, same.
What was so dope was how good he could do that. Eventually Alchemist broke through. It was still directly influenced by his inspirations, but it no longer had that emulation feel. It moved more into innovation. He had to put himself in the center of it all. Alchemist thinks fondly of his early days in New York, a time when he came into his own. He walked the streets charged up, ready to put his foot into the production world.
Premier was my idol. Muggs was my teacher. I had so much shit that once I got out there I really felt anointed. This is the sound. Al never chased the trends. All of the above traits — following your gut, refusing to sell out, and patiently waiting for a time to shine are also all core tenets of Hip-Hop.
Since the day he discovered and dove into Hip-Hop, Al has also lived by its codes. The two feed off each other, creating a project that is truly greater than the sum of its parts. Coming in at 23 minutes in length, LULU packs a lot of substance into its small package. The instrumentals are dramatic and cinematic throughout, elevating the Griselda template through clever samples that accentuate the themes of their music.
I got to rap the best. The Alchemist commented on their artistic affinity saying it was surprisingly easy to make Alfredo.
0コメント