Gigan - Gigan EP

http://www.sendspace.com/file/0dtj2r

1. I.S.O. (In Serch Of)
2. Power (Feat.Megalon)
3. Live Wire (Orig Ver)
4. Brooklyn, Brooklyn
5. Queens Day
6. Crazy World

Trying to pick any single member of the massive Monsta Island Czars crew as my favorite has always been near impossible for me, but it's a dilemma I enjoy furrowing my brow over none-the-less. Is it Rodan with his amazingly detailed, over the top visuals? Maybe Megalon with his rapid-fire, machine gun flow? I suppose the most obvious answers would be MF DOOM, who easily has one of the most impressive Discogs in Hip Hop history. Or maybe, just maybe, after only one single EP, from way back in 2002 none the less, it's Gigan. Most MIC/MF DOOM fans are probably familiar with Gigan from his guest appearance on DOOM's King Geedorah album, Take Me To Your Leader. Gigan had, in my humble opinion at least, the absolute best song on the album with "Krazy World". He not only spit some fairly spectacular bars, but he also did something I've yet to hear any other MIC member do to this day (DOOM included) -- he made an honest to goodness brilliant chorus. It still stands as one of the best choruses I've ever heard from an underground mc, and Gigan's half rapping/half singing flow made it clear as day that he was ready to branch out and start a brilliant career, possibly somewhere beyond his humble underground beginnings.

Only his career not only never took off, but Gigan himself seemingly fell off the face of the earth.

Sure, he had a few verse on MIC's debut album, Escape from Monsta Island, and he also turned up a few times on X-Ray's Monsta Mix series, but really after 2003 dude went completely AWOL, and as of 2012, has yet to release anymore music. With "Krazy World" being one of my all-time favorite songs though, I felt like I needed to dig deep and see what else I could unearth from dude. Thankfully I ran across this gem. With less than 50 copies known to exist, and with it being self pressed and sold strictly at shows during the 2001/2002 era, it goes without saying that this probably didn't reach the ears of too many listeners. It really is a shame too, because Gigan more than proves on this that "Krazy World" was no fluke. In fact, the opening track "I.S.O. (In Search Of) easily rivals the greatness of his King Geedorah song, and features another fantastically catchy hook.

In fact, Gigan proves himself to be an absolutely superb mc throughout this EP's short 6 tracks. Effortlessly shifting from female oriented tracks (the aforementioned "I.S.O."). to immediately going in to an absolutely head spinning cypher session with fellow MIC brother Megalon. Lyrically Gigan can be fairly abstract, even by MIC standards, but his more down to earth, easily digestible flow more than make up for it. Production comes courtesy of MF DOOM and X-Ray. DOOM laces "Live Wire" (which would later appear on Monster Mixes Vol. 1), and "Krazy World" (which would also later appear on King Geedorah's Take Me To Your Leader). "Krazy World is far and away the standout as far as production is concerned, not that it's noticeably better than any of the other beats here,  it just sounds so radically different from the utter darkness that the rest of the album is shrouded in. X-Ray laces the rest of the album with some absolutely magical moments. "Power" for example almost brings to mind a ol' fashioned western showdown, which perfectly suits both Gigan and Megalon.

It really is a shame that Gigan vanished shortly after this release, because to be perfectly honest he's probably the most skilled songwriter in the whole MIC camp. Given the right production he could have crafted an absolutely phenomenal album. Thankfully we at least got a glimpse of what could have been. Gigan's sole EP stands neck and neck with any other MIC release, and is an absolute must for hardcore fans.

Hell, even casual listeners might wanna take a shot on this one.

Pro's
-Gigan is a great MC, and his songwriting stands as some of the best the underground has to offer
-He got laced with some really dope beats from X-Ray and MF DOOM
-It's short and sweet. Every track is essential

Con's
-Some of these songs would pop up on later releases, which somewhat lessens the impact

Overall - 4/5

Final Thoughts On: Monsta Island Czars

Ok, it only took months and months but MIC week has officially come to an end. Wanted to take some time to reflect and expand on the MIC legacy.

firstly this is NOT by any stretch all the albums the MIC has to offer, for example

*Ravage the MeccaGodZilla

- Soundclash #1: MeccaGodZilla vs. 007

- Erroars (classic album!)

*Junclassic aka Gabarah

- 2 Much Aint Enuff

- Overqualified

- Late Nites & Early Mournings EP (free download!)

*MF Bash

- That Floods

*MF MEZ & Self Suffice aka King Orga

- The Manhattanites

*X-Ray

- The Ear Hustler

- The Boot

*Darc Mind (X-Ray produces these albums)

- Bipolar

- Symptomatic of A Greater Ill

So much more from the MIC to be explored so please dont stop digging, hell maybe i'll even do an MIC Week 2 sometime in the future. Also if you like ANYTHING you hear please support the artist by copping the album, true many of these are out of print but you can still show some support and cop the digital release

here's some myspace links, you can cop albums from the artist or find out where you can from there

MIC

http://www.myspace.com/monstaislandczars4life

Kurious

http://www.myspace.com/kjorge10

Junclassic

http://www.myspace.com/junclassic

Kamackeris

http://www.myspace.com/kwitedefakakamackeris

Kong

http://www.myspace.com/kingkongcrete

X-Ray

http://www.myspace.com/xraydamindbenda

Megalon

http://www.myspace.com/tommygunmindbenda

Monster X

http://www.myspace.com/monstax

Mez

http://www.myspace.com/mezmerizer

Ravage

www.myspace.com/meccagodzilla

Also on a final note, some of you may know im an avid cd collector, im looking for Rodan's album, Megalon's The Nickle Bag, and The Manhattanites album, contact me if any of ya'll are interested in selling them and maybe we can make a deal.

Monsta Island Czars - Escape From Monsta Island

http://www.sendspace.com/file/j2fuqg

1. What's The Name Of This Place? 2. M.N.Y.A. (Kamackeris, Rodan, Kong, Megalon) 3. F@#k Y'all Ni@@#s (Kamackeris, Megalon) 4. Witchcraft (Rodan, Megalon, Kong) 5. 1,2 . . .1,2 (Kong, Megalon, Rodan) 6. Scientific Civilization Skit 7. Mic Line (King Ghidra) 8. Poizon Windz (Megalon, Rodan, Gigan) 9. Under Pressure (Spiega, Megalon, Rodan, Kong) 10. Became A Monsta (Spiega) 11. There's A Legend Skit 12. Out My Mind (King Ceasar, Kamackeris) 13. Warning (Kong) 14. Make It Squash! (Kong, Megalon, King Ceasar, Rodan) 15. Gunz N Swordz (Gigan, Megalon) 16. Sumthin' To Prove (Rodan) 17. Live Son of A Bitch Skit 18. Comin' At You (Megalon, Rodan, Kamackeris, Kong) 19. Take Control (Kamackeris) 20. Escape From Monsta Isle (Rodan, Megalon, Kong, Spiega) Here we go folks, this is the big one, the one and only official MIC album. This is the only lp the original lineup (save for MF GRIMM who doesnt appear here) put out together before parting ways. Production is handled by MF DOOM and X-Ray and is easily some of the best beats either has ever turned in (you'll recognize the DOOM beats because they were later re-used by Ghostface on his Fishscale lp). The mc's are all in top form, feeding off the energy of one another and ripping every track to pieces, there isnt a weak verse to be found on the whole lp, each mc just keeps elevating the track until there's simply no more that can be done with it, then the Monsta's move on to the next beat to feast all over again, its the never ending hunger that keeps this album moving and on track. The song 'Under Pressure' sums up the album perfectly, the beat is amazing and the MIC simply destroy the production to the point where no other mc would dare to fuck with it. I could gush for days over how amazing this album is but for the sake of not losing your interest i'll keep it short, simply put this is one of the BEST underground albums ever made, MIC was at its peak when this was put together and it shows, the music is perfection. The one and only fault I can find is the lack of verses from MF GRIMM, I recall reading in a old interview with Grimm that he said he did indeed record on the album but that DOOM had removed his verses while Grimm was in prison, why this was done we may never know and we're left to wonder just how much more amazing this could have been with Grimm on it.

X-Ray - Monsta Mixes Vol. 2

http://www.mediafire.com/?22x9p1n7a6yfehh

1. X-Ray - The Beginning Of Space (Intro)

2. Monsta Island Czars - Witchcraft (Remix)

3. Kong - Get Your Money Right

4. B-Wyze - It's Like That

5. X-Ray - A Monsta (Skit)

6. MF Doom - My Favorite Ladies (Remix)

7. Megalon - Hell Razor

8. Ray Long - Smash This

9. X-Ray - Monstaball

10. Gigan - In Search Of (I.S.O.)

11. Monsta Island Czars - Evacuate The Club

12. Dirt Nation - Mocknecks

13. Rodan - One Week

14. Kamackeris - Live Life

15. Spiga & King Ceasar - Ride The Arrow

16. X-Ray - A Giant Grave (Skit)

17. Spiga - Now That's Sweet

18. MF Doom - Go With The Flow (Live)

19. X-Ray - Wavelengths (Skit)

20. Darc Mind - Covert Op

Vol. 2 of X-Rays Monsta Mixes series tops the first in just about every way, more original tracks, less music we've heard before on other projects, and an overall more polished feel. true it does have some remix's, but they're limited to only 2 songs, the rest is pretty much fresh MIC material. To be honest the album is so well put together and diverse that it almost feel more like an official MIC album rather then a mixtape style format album. True it doesnt have many tracks with ALL the Monsta's on it at once but each mc gets time to shine on solo joints and links up for features and MIC tracks when needed, as a whole it doesnt feel like a bunch of mc's forced together and trying to fight for mic time, it has a much more natural and each mc gets plenty of room to breath and flex their creative muscles.

The production is, once again classic MIC styled beats (tired of reading that yet?), you know what to expect, X-Ray isnt pushing any boundaries as far as the MIC sound go's, but when compared to other production out there its absolutely on another planet. Simply put there isnt a weak beat in the bunch and they all offer a different sound to keep the album from feeling boring or uninspired. The songwriting is great, the mc's all turn in solid performances and the production is spot on, the perfect mix to throw on and vibe out to. Hopefully we get a Vol. 3 soon
Overall - 4/5

X-Ray - Monsta Mixes Vol. 1

http://www.mediafire.com/?yg4w538dwwx6tzi

1. Monsta Island Czars - Run The Sphere (Remix)

2. Gigan - Live Wirez

3. Kurious - Fast Lane

4. Megalon & Kong - Gorilla Warfare

5. Monsta Island Czars - Blindfold

6. Kong - Broken Nose Flow

7. Darc - You Da One

8. King Ghidra - Mic Line

9. Spiega - I Seen It All

10. Quiz - New York, New York

11. MF Grimm - The Original (Fakts One Remix)

12. Megalon - Feel It (Hitlist)

13. Ray Long - We Got Beef With Da Cops

14. Kamackeris - Untouchable

15. Rodan & Megalon - Century 21

16. MF Doom - Doomsday (Remix)

By now im sure we're all very familiar with X-Ray, the man has single handedly produced the bulk of the MIC's albums, his quality and output is almost comparable to the RZA's in the early 90's, its simply staggering. This was his first volume of his Monsta Mixes series, it features remix's from some of the best MIC cuts, then un-released tracks, live cuts, lost classics and more. the albums production is superb with very little to complain about, if you're a fan of the MIC's production then you're going to love this, the mc's featured are from the original lineup so expect to see such talent as MF DOOM, Kong, Rodan, Gigan(!!!) and more.

This album walks a very fine line between mixtape and lp, but it has enough fresh material that im going to label it under lp and give it a proper score. As ive said if you're an MIC fan then you're going to eat this up, but there are faults, mainly that by now we've heard a good chunk of these songs on other MIC projects, now can I fault an album that was released in the past for having cuts that would be later used? no rightfully I dont think I could, it is something to keep in mind though and with the power of retrospect, keeps this from reaching the greatness that Vol. 2 would eventually obtain. 

Overall - 3/5

RAVAGE the MeccaGodZilla & Jaysage - Mike Marvelous

http://www.mediafire.com/?e7ue8d8ju6htdl6

1. Gone
2. Dont Stop
3. Oh oh oh
4. What goes Around
5. 78 Ben Interlude
6. Rain
7. So Fly
8. 83 Ben Interlude
9. Ben
10. Why

Rav is back at it again, this time paying tribute to none other then the king of pop, Micheal Jackson. RAVAGE and Jaysage take the late King of pops classic tracks, cut them up, and pay tribute like any true hip hop head would...by creating new masterpieces out of old ones. What the two producers have done here is remarkable, its hard enough to get by on an MJ sample without it being terribly obvious, but to flat out tell us up front what they're doing and then to STILL have it sound fresh is flat out amazing. check the highlight track 'Gone' for further proof. This was an album that was made by fans, for fans and it really shows, the music has been sampled and crafted with love and thought and as an end result its one of the best MJ tribute albums to ever be produced. Wisely this is kept a strictly instrumental affair, meaning there is no vocals to distract from the star of the show, this truly is about MJ in every way.

I cant say enough about how dope this is, plus it was free!!! wow, hopefully Rav will get some hard copies of this produced cause I NEED this tucked away in my archive, its simply fantastic.

Overall - 4/5

RAVAGE the MeccaGodZilla - American Monsta

http://www.zshare.net/download/712261515cb8b979/ 

1. Into
2. Pray
3. American Dreamin
4. Hello Brooklyn
5. No HOok
6. Roc Boys
7. Sweet
8. I know
9. Party LIfe
10. Ignorant Sh*t
11. Say Hello
12. Success
13. Fallin
14. Blue Magic Ravage
15. American Monster
16. Mecca "Nas"Zilla (Nas' Hope remix)
17. WVFS 89.7 FM (OUTRO) w/Amond Jackson 

Ravage the MeccaGodZilla aka the secret Weapon of the MIC, beat maker, mc, artist, and an amazingly creative person in general. Fans such as myself have been waiting years for some fully produced Ravage albums, little did we know we would be getting one in the form of a Jigga remix but its dope all the same. Ravage takes the vocals from Jay-Z's 'American Gangster' album and combines them with his own masterful production to great effect, Ravage gives these songs a new life and truly makes them his own. Rav's productions style is very much his own, he doesnt sound like X-Ray or DOOM and his beats as a whole have a much wider range of sound then the other MIC producers, Rav's beats can swing from dark and ominous to light hearted and playful all the while banging hard enough to make you wish he had released an instrumental version of this. The only true fault I can find with this lp was 'Hello Brooklyn feat Lil Wayne' where the vocals seemed to be synced up wrong, thankfully this is the only time on the 17 tracks that this happens and the rest of the album bangs.

Really not a whole lot to say about this, its a remix album, the beats are often times better then the originals were, the songs have new life breathed in to them, and best of all it was free (although you can, like me, cop a copy from Rav himself). Make sure not to sleep on this, very creative and dope album and one of the better remix joints ive heard 

Overall - 4/5

Rodan - Theophany: The Book of Elevations

http://www.mediafire.com/?nunbpqeb6za51t1

1. Intro
2. The Conqueror
3. F.E.D.'s
4. No Snakes Alive Pt. II featuring Shaman
5. Roll Call featuring Kong, Kamackeris and Gigan
6. War In Heaven Pt 2
7. Erotic Peaks
8. Flight Lessons
9. Sumthin To Prove (Remix)
10. No Degrees
11. War In Heaven Prt. II
12. The Wilderness
13. G.O.D.
14. Human Inquisition
15. Outro
16. Century 21 featuring Megalon
17. Run the Sphere v.2.3 featuring Kong, Loch Ness, Megalon, King Ceasar, Kamackeris, MF Doom and MF Grimm
18. Ability to Speak

Easily one of the best MIC albums to ever be created, and indeed one of the best underground albums to ever come out of New York City. Rodan was one of the first MIC members I recall hearing, and with the exception of DOOM and Grimm's album it was actually the first MIC album I heard, period. For those unfamiliar with Rodan let me try to explain what to expect, his style is almost like a force of nature, its unrelenting and never seems to let up, its here one second ripping every fucking thing it can out of the ground and hurling it across the city then gone in the very next second. His flow could be compared to Megalon's in its non-stop, rapid fire approach only I find Rodan's to be even more fierce and focused, literally any track he touches its almost guaranteed he's going to be stealing the show. This album is no different, its 18 tracks of Rodan showing every other mc out there how to put it down properly.

Lyrically Rodan's words are every bit as powerful as his flow, his metaphors are damn near unmatched and the imagery he invokes with his rhymes is staggering, when he says "I cut the head off the devil and throw it at you" you wont doubt for a second that son really will live up to his word. His vocals are deep and powerful, spitting every rhyme with an urgent like nature, like he simply HAS to get this off of his chest. the production backing him is just as stellar as his performance, X-Ray handles the bulk of the beats with RAVAGE also contributing and true to form they're just as dark and gritty as you would expect, making Rodan sound all the more threatening over them.

Guest come in the form of pretty much every MIC member up to that time, they all hold it down wonderfully but none of them ever steal the show from Rodan, this is mos def his album and he wants the world to know. As far as faults, Rodan is a hate him or love him mc, some will find his never ending barrage of words fairly annoying, its not a style thats meant for everyone and im sure its going to turn a lot of people away. Also worth noting that while the song writing isnt bad by any means, Rodan's style doesnt lend itself well to catchy hooks, this is sure to bug some people as well. As for me though? this is classic MIC and underground at its finest and I love every second of it

Overall - 4/5

Megalon & Ray Long - The Nickel Bag

http://www.mediafire.com/?1t56hubp8c36dw9

1. Burn it Down
2. Death Before Dishonor
3. The Art of Flowing
4. Back to NY
5. Im Counting on You
6. Where it at?
7. You Was My Son
8. You fuckin Up My high
9. Yakoo Pt 2
10. Everyday Thug
11. $5 in Change
12. 12 Pounds and Ounces
13. Free Ray Long

Megalon is back at it again, riding again with the homie X-Ray who produces all of the album. Sadly X-Ray's production is much less effective here then it was on his past work with Mega, the beats dont really fit Mega's style in my opinion, that and to be completely honest I just flat out dont like the production on this that much, thats not to say its bad by any means, just somthing about it rubs me the wrong way.

Megalon is still nasty, his flow and lyrics are razor sharp and the album as a whole is put together much better, you'll notice it clocks in at a lean 13 tracks and doesnt overstay its welcome. The songwriting as a whole is strong and the concepts are what we've come to expect from him, his style is firmly grounded in the streets and his rapid-fire flow hasnt slowed a bit. Mega keeps things interesting on this by trying many different styles and rhythms, there's actually many times on the album where you're going to have trouble telling if its Tommy Gunn or not, it keeps things fresh and really sets it apart from his past works.

The only problem I have with this album is, as ive said before, the production does very little for me. The beats are solid, mega is fantastic, but the two just dont mesh as well as they should have. Had Mega had some better beats this could have easily been on par with his debut, as it is though its a step below, still worth checking though. 

Overall - 3/5

Megalon - A Penny for Your Thoughts

http://www.mediafire.com/?w69qi94hj2sjsxo

1. Sons of Sarah Connors
2. Death B4 Dishonor
3. The Soul of Jah
4. Street Souljahz
5. Keep Gettin Money
6. Got My Wings
7. 12 Deciplez
8. Black Jesus
9. Yahkoo
10. Feel It (Hitlist)
11. No Pain
12. Thugs Cry
13. Thief in the Night
14. No! Just Us
15. Feel Gods Pain
16. Rainblood
17. They Dont Make Em Like Me No More
18. Raise Hell
19. Hell Razor
20. Revelations
21. What A Bum
22. When I Go Out 

My first encounter with Megalon was on MF DOOM's classic album 'Operation Doomsday', Mega first appeared as Tommy Gunn on 'The Finest' and again ripped it as Megalon on 'Greenbacks', instantly creating a huge buzz for himself in the underground. It would be a full 5 years though before Mega blesses us with this gem, and luckily for the fans it lives up to everything we could have wanted. 

First things first, Mega is as sharp as he's ever been, his rapid-fire. non-stop flow is hate it or love it but fans of Tommy's machine gun flow will be in heaven when hearing this very talented mc rip through this 22 track album without missing a breath. His lyrics are deep and complex, taking multiple listens to fully decipher and become more rewarding with each listen. Production is handled of course by X-Ray who laces the album with beats that fit tommy perfectly, DOOM also contributes a beat in the form of the classic 'Rainblood' which finds Tommy hitting the streets full force. The album is very much a Tommy Gunn affair, with very few guest verses (from Ray Long) its pretty much Megalon all the way through, this also leads to the albums only real fault as well though, 22 tracks of Mega's style can be somewhat hard to swollow, the lp would have been much better served had it been cut down to 16 tracks or so. Still an amazing listen and a classic NY underground album, a must check for MIC fans 

Overall - 4/5

Kong - Shackles Off

http://www.mediafire.com/?vq4mm3ijm2cddy3

1. Intro
2. Pure Poetry feat. Kandee, Ikon 
3. Babylon feat. Megalon, Spiega, 5th Element 
4. Broken Safety feat. Spiega, Ikon 
5. Weasal feat. Spiega 
6. It's Official feat. M.F. Grimm, Gabarah, Spiega, Ikon, Monsta X 
7. Shackles Off feat. Nhguav Rotkiv, Spiega 
8. Who 
9. Lifted feat. Gabarah, Monsta X 
10. Brown Eyes (Skit) 
11. Endless Nights feat. Gabarah, Monsta X, Ikon
12. What Had Happened Was
13. Ultimate Sacrifice
14. Slumz (Skit)
15. War feat. 5th Element, Spiega
16. Hated feat. Gabarah, Monsta X, RAVAGE
17. Blood feat. 5th Element
18. Red Tears feat. Spiega, Delilah

Kong, the rapid-fire, multi-syllable master of the MIC dropped his first solo album in 08 and was criminally slept on. the production is again classic NY underground, the always amazing Ravage the MeccaGodZilla handles 8 of the 18 tracks with the rest of the beats being done by various producers ive never really heard of (with the exception of Gabarah and Kong himself), I found it odd that X-Ray didnt contribute any beats but he does drop a few verses so its all good. Kong holds the album down wonderfully with his complicated verses but it is worth noting that at times he seems to lack energy and charisma, his rhymes would look very impressive on paper but he sometimes loses focus on some of his bars.

Along for the ride is partner in rhyme Spiega (my favorite MIC mc!) who contributes his vocals to 7 tracks essentially making this the MIC version of Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cubin Linx with Kong playing the part of Rae while Spi rides shotgun as his Ghostface counterpart. The rest of the guest features are the usual suspects and they all turn in fantastic performances, Gabarah especially seems to be begging for a Ravage produced album... 

One of the major faults of this album would have to be the songwriting itself, while Kong is an amazingly talented mc he's somewhat of a sub-par song writer, many of the hooks seem tacked on and honestly just are not all that engaging. Still fans of lyricism are sure to be impressed, Kong and his MIC brothers rip verse after verse with the technical skills that are sorely missed from hip hop right now, had the songwriting been a bit better this would have easily ranked among the best of the MIC releases. 

Overall 3/5

Kamackeris & King Ceaser - Artz and Craftz

http://www.sendspace.com/file/f7vndz

1. All is Fair 

2. Keep Smoking 

3. Killed or be Killed 

4. fyi 

5. Mocknecks 

6. Khadijah 

7. Bitches Aint Shit 

8. You Aint No Soldier 

9. Check the Jewlz 

10. Live Life 

11. You Ill 

12. Just One

You may know Kamackeris as the mc on the MIC album that vocally sounded very much like Freeway, his raw flow and lyricism were the perfect fit for the Monsta's and his semi unique voice made him stand out. This album finds Kamackeris aka Kwite Def stepping out in to the spotlight to get his shine on, and shine he does. I didnt really know what to expect when I first went in to this album, I was only familiar with Kwite based on his performance on the MIC album, he was dope but I never really got a feel for him as a person, this album though changes all of that. Kwite turns out to be a very charismatic and captivating mc, his raw flow and voice are counterbalanced by his strong song writing and ear for production. 

Speaking of which the production is handled masterfully by King Ceaser aka X-Ray, the beats all vary in sound but at the same time are all grounded in the dark and gritty new york production that MIC fans have come to expect. Kwite and X-Ray have fantastic chemistry together and vibe perfectly throughout the album, fellow MIC mc Spiga also stops through to contribute his unique presence to the album. Overall the album is everything an MIC fan could hope for, with the exception of maybe 1 or 2 weaker hooks the whole album is fire, Kamackeris dropped what was honestly the most surprising albums of 07 that still gets play today. 

Overall - 4/5

King Geedorah - Take Me to Your Leader

http://www.mediafire.com/?ozmzgrye1wsa0b6

1. Fazers (King Geedorah)

2. Fastlane (Biolante aka Kurious)

3. Krazy World (Gigan)

4. The final Hour (MF DOOM)

5. Monster Zero (skit)

6. Next Level (Lil' Sci, ID 4 Winds & Stahhr)

7. No Snakes Alive (King Geedorah, Jet-Jaguar aka MF GRIMM & Rodan)

8. Anti Matter (MF DOOM & Mr. Fantastik

9. Take Me To Your Leader (skit)

10. Lockjaw (Trunks)

11. I Wonder ( Hassan Chop)

12. One Smart Nigger

13. The Fine Print (King Geedorah)

I was thinking of saving this album for the occasion that I decide to do an MF DOOM themed drop, in the end though I felt it only right to include it with the rest of the MIC releases since this is probably the best example of what the group was and is capable of.

King Geedorah is of course the MIC alter ego of the one and only MF DOOM, this album finds DOOM producing all of the 13 cuts and lending his vocals to 5 songs. The rest of the album is composed of skits and features from the other members of MIC. Firstly the production, all top notch and classic DOOM, out of all of his work I would have to say this is probably my favorite, the beats are out of this world, smooth Jazz samples mix with bugged out space sounds and old cartoon samples to create an amazing atmosphere for the MIC to lace. DOOM himself spit as dope as he ever has, under his Geedorah alter ego he sounds even more off his rocker then normal and it works perfectly here, DOOM has managed to truly separate his Geedorah persona from his DOOM alias and create a living and breathing character to rock the mic and boards.

The guest features are just as good, if not better. Kurious stops by as Biolante and vibes perfectly with Geedorah's production, Trunks stops in for a face melter of a verse, Grimm and Rodan kick mind bending flows along side one another and Gigan steals the show, turning in what is easily the best song of the album in the form of 'Krazy World', he effortlessly creates a catchy sing song hook and spits some jaw dropping verses, a true masterpiece of a track.

The only faults one can find with this album is the skits, you either love DOOM's skits or you dont, personally im a huge fan of them, I love hearing him chop up vocal samples over his signature production to create a story, I can easily see why someone would be put off of it though, especially here when the skits can reach up to 5 minutes in length (no that wasnt a typo...5 minutes...). As ive said though im a huge fan of everything thats been done on this album, I think its a masterpiece and easily the best example of the early MIC lineup at its absolute best. Sadly many of these artist have split from one another and no longer work together, luckily though we'll always have this joint as a reminder of what could have been...now someone get Gigan back in the booth to drop a solo! 

Overall - 5/5

MF GRIMM - Story by MF GRIMM

http://www.mediafire.com/?n1iw6y9m05lc0iz

1. TMX

2. Processio

3. One Love

4. Everyday

5. Slow - Original

6. The Words of Hazel

7. How the Hell Do You Do That

8. Days Selling Rock

9. Any Bloody Use For It

Im somewhat at a loss as to how to review this album. On one hand its only 9 tracks long, it opens with 2 skits that do nothing to add to the ep, the third track clocks in at under a minute, the fifth and sixth track both clock in at under 2 minutes, track 7 is a 2 minute skit, and finally the album ends with yet another skit....so out of 9 tracks we have 2 full length songs, 3 shorter almost freestyle tracks, and a handful of skits that honestly add very little to the overall experience. But on the other hand it IS a free download, and the tracks Grimm does spit on are jaw dropping, the track 'Everyday' for example finds Grimm spitting better then ive heard him do it in years

Many drown while trying to entertain
they say dont hold ya breath but I hold it like David Blaine

the production is solid as well but again we come to the problem that...there just isnt much of it there. Im going to try to keep this review a bit shorter and simply say this, its hard to be disappointed by a free album, you have literally paid nothing for it and what music is here is amazingly dope, but the filler crammed in here really hurts it...so im torn. Do I give the album a 2/5 based on its weaknesses as an actual ep or do I score it a 3/5 for its strengths as a freebie? Think I may go the cheap way here and simply not score this one, treating it as a mixtape. Still check it out though, def makes me look forward to the projects Grimm has planned for 2010 

Overall - N/A