A track from the Damian Marley and Nasir Jones collaboration has recently been absolutely dominating the internet, turning heads and ears in all sorts of nooks and crannies of the information super highway. The track, “As We Enter,” has an undeniable bump to it, a reggae vibe with a Oh No/Madlib-ish hip hop beat that dares you not to groove along.
The tune reminds me of Mos Def’s solid The Ecstatic from last year, a middle-eastern infused, Oh No aided album that had a great world rap feel to it. “As We Enter” is the continuation of those ideas (not sure who produced the track, but I would not be at all surprised to find out it’s Oh No), challenging hip hop listeners to expand their horizons and cross some borders. I’m absolutely on board. Word is out, in stereo, you heard about.
Also surfacing recently is a cut floor track from The Ecstatic sessions, called “The Tournament.” It’s cool little track, built on a familiar beat (It’s killing me that I can’t quite place where I’ve heard this beat before. Lyrics in the other: “We gonna get that money, no matter what you do, so play it cool,” or something like that. Anyone?) Mos Def’s lazy flow works well, and he adds some distantly crackling fireworks to give an otherwise overly smooth track some cool texture. Mos also plays with that off-chord singing that he experiments a little bit with on The Ecstatic, which gets a little old sometimes. If you’re looking for a cool “We just had a shootout in the dusty desert, let’s relax” sort of tune, this is the one.
Finally, another reggae-tinged hip hop track, from a dude by the name of Blockhead. It’s largely an instrumental track, with a couple vocal riffs thrown in, and it’s pretty damn dope. Like the Mos Def tune, it’s a slow burner – if you’re looking to bang heads, turn your attention elsewhere. For a hip hop nightcap, though, it’s a great smooth finisher.
Damian Marley and Nasir Jones – As We Enter (YSI)
Mos Def – The Tournament (YSI)
Blockhead – It’s Raining Clouds (YSI)
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