North & South Carolina Underground Part 2

This collection of tracks is sort of a reprise to 'North Vs South Carolina'. For those who slept, here is a link to that post if you want to go back and check it out again.

http://philaflava.blogspot.com/2009/01/north-vs-south-carolina-1994-2001.html

In the meantime, let's dig into the meat and potatos of today's course. The breadth and depth of hip hop from the Carolinas is mind boggling. Sure some of the lyrical styles found on these tracks are influenced by the tri-state area, but both North and South Carolina have their own well deserved reputations. The whole compilation is pretty obscure so if you're looking for that rare ish dig in and hold on tight.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=J8N0FV9U

01 (4:09) black mel - vibin' along (south carolina 1994)
02 (3:55) kb dub - life's a bitch (north carolina 1994)
03 (3:57) demico - contagious (south carolina 1997)
04 (3:53) south click - first blow (south carolina 1998)
05 (3:46) grime the ming dynasty - golden octagon (south carolina 1997)
06 (4:21) unit embassy - hunting you down (north carolina 1998)
07 (5:03) mental dimension - represent your residence (north carolina 1996)
08 (4:05) mike city - break you off (north carolina 1998)
09 (3:43) l.o.c. - u either wit me (south carolina 1998)
10 (5:10) kojak & the blakk dynasty - mysterious ways (north carolina 1997)

This mix will be on repeat, I guarantee it. Enjoy!

--Schenectadyfan

Nobodies - Fables (North Carolina 1997)

In 1997, I inexplicably dropped out of hip hop for awhile. Not that I stopped listening to hip hop, but I was branching out. No excuses! 1997 was a year for much classic hip hop and this is really solid too. It's a dope east coast album I came across recently. Top tracks on this would have to be Hands To The Sky and Greatest MC's in my humble opinion. Found this review recently and I thought it was pretty fair. Will share it here:

" The Nobodies are a North Carolina duo consisting of MC's Equinox and Apocalypse... this is DIY rap for those hungry to hear cats making music THEY actually would want to hear rather than what could get them a big record deal. The beats here are gritty and feature a nice use of samples from Nas, Mobb Deep, KRS and more laced throughout to give it a classic feel. Only one R & B chorus shows up on the album but even it's forgivable due to the strong balance of lyrical content. As far as the actual rhyming goes, Apocalypse and Equinox are both well above average MC's with distinct voices and delivieries(plus a guest spot by Esau on track 2... CHECK HIS ALBUM, you'll thank me later!) and spit on a few different topics but mostly about how underappreciated they are and how hard it is to make it (basically being "nobodies" in the world of rap). This is one of those albums that you like to pop in once in awhile but it never leaves any real distinct impression on you... it's just good solid beats and rhymes(and that's all you can ask for sometimes). They followed this up with an even better album called "Now Culture" in 2003 but haven't been seen anywhere except on a milk carton since? Fingers crossed for something new in the future. "

Here's a link and the tracklist--

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=R5VSE0V0

01. Intro
02. Off the Block
03. Get What I'm Saying
04. Fables
05. Hands to the Sky
06. You Don't Know Me
07. Suicidal Tendencies
08. Ag Intro
09. Do What I Gotta Do
10. Peter Parker
11. Every Bit of You
12. Destiny
13. Check It Out
14. Greatest MC's
15. Forever Raw
16. Song 15
17. Apocrates Outro

If you like this one as much as I do, leave some comments. What are your fav tracks ? Which ones strike out ? Would you live on a desert island for 1 year with only this cd to listen to ?

--Schenectadyfan