Stones Throw Records does it again with their solid release of Homeboy Sandman‘s album, First of a Living Breed. After two dope EP’s, Homeboy finally got his debut Stones Throw project out. If you have never heard Homeboy Sandman, you need to tune in because he is one crazy rapper. His rapping style is easily comparable to the tone that Madlib has on records; he’s got a monotone and eclectic, sometimes offbeat, yet natural essence to his style, and it works. The Queens rhymer definitely deviates from the norm when it comes to his music. As a very anti-mainstream artist, Homeboy Sandman rhymes over some booming, yet spacey beats. He tells stories about encounters with women and he talks about his life in QB. A lot of topics are covered on this record. It is Homeboy Sandman’s originality and underground aura that is so enjoyable; on the opener, “Rain,” Sandman raps his intro over a deep, warm instrumental that sounds like it has a video game sample or two. The hook is hypnotic and leads easily into the next track, “Watchu Want from Me.” Looking at the title of the track, you would think that this is a very street-like track. But no, this sing-songy, piano-heavy song features Sandman singing a hook and rhyming quick over the upbeat instrumental about his early days in hip hop. The song is so catchy and definitely personifies Homeboy Sandman’s unique style. Tracks like “Illuminati,” “4 Corners,” and “Not Really” all stand out to me. The production is supersonic and the raps are just so abstract and different, you can’t help but to acknowledge their power. I doubt you can not give this album a full listen and not enjoy at least three-quarters of it; it’s a fantastic album, and Homeboy Sandman is a very talented emcee. As a special gift, Homeboy released an FREE bonus track via Soundcloud – be sure to grab that (which you can download after the bump.) So, my rating…
8.5/10
I recommend this album to any fan of Madlib, MF DOOM, Aesop Rock, Oh No, MED and pretty much any artist on the Stones Throw label.
Tracklisting:
1) Rain
2) Watchu Want from Me
3) Couple Bars (Honey, Sugar, Darling, Sweetie, Baby & Boo)
4) Sputnik
5) Illuminati
6) 4 Corner
7) For the Kids
8) Cedar and Sedgwick
9) Mine All Mine
10) Not Really
11) The Ancient
12) Eclipsed
13) First of a Living Breed
14) Let’s Get ‘Em
***Notable Mentions:
Nutso: Behind These Bars
DJ K.O.: EMPBeTheTeam
Brother Ali: Mourning In America and Dreaming In Color
Moka Only: Airport 6
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