Felt 3: A Tribute to Rosie Perez

by Slug and Murs (with Aesop Rock)

I could have sworn that I reviewed this album months ago, but apparently not.  The second Felt album was a huge favourite of mine, it having come out right around the same time that I'd discovered Atmosphere.  There's a different chemistry at play when Slug collaborates with Murs; they both become more playful and light-hearted.

This time around, the pair are joined by Aesop Rock on the beats (and he appears on one song).  If I had my choice, I'd prefer to see Ant handling the production, but this does work out pretty well, even if a couple of songs sound like they belong on None Shall Pass. 

The album starts off just fine, but really picks up steam in the middle through to about the seventeenth track (this is a long one folks).  There are a couple of truly annoying songs on here - 'Get Cake' and 'We Have You Surrounded', but the rest of the album is quite decent.

Aside from the rather infectious 'Henrietta Longbottom', there aren't too many memorable tracks on this album.  I blame the consistent sameness of AR's production.  At the same time, it's still a quality album.

Crate Digging: None Shall Pass

by Aesop Rock

I remember picking this up at Fat Beats on a trip to NYC two summers ago, along with a ton of other albums. After I got back home, it took me a couple of days to make my way through all of my purchases, and I think some albums got a little less play than others. Due to this, I didn't really think of this as a terribly memorable album, and thought it was time to give it another spin and see what the deal was.

Truthfully, it's a little disappointing, and I'm not sure why. It's good - all of the individual tracks stand on their own, and blend well into a cohesive whole. The only problem is, they don't stand out.

Most of the production is by Blockhead, with the remaining tracks mostly handled by Aesop himself, although there is an El-P track, and another provided by Rob Sonic. The overall sound is reserved and chill, although it is still very much a Def Jux album.

Aesop Rock's wordplay is clever and masterful, but he is, in my opinion, showed up by Tha Jugganaut's Breezly Brewin on 'Getaway Car', my favourite track on this album.

The packaging for this disk is fantastic, and I like the costume party cartoon by Jeremy Fish.

This album does have a place in my collection, and it's very nice to groove to, but it still isn't standing out in my mind as a classic or a must-have.