EDITOR'S NOTE: All of the reviews found in 'The Singles File' are being presented WITHOUT scores. You are left to interpret the dopeness/wackness of the single on the words of the writer alone. If you have any questions about this format, please e-mail the editor for more information.

Artist: Anonms Emcee
Title:  Uh-Oh b/w The Globe 12"
Label:  Mindshift Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

Some producers can bend unharmonious piano chords and water dripping on pipes into tracks, while others like DJ Journee can be applauded for their willingness to experiment and that's about it. "Uh-Oh" would probably sound perfect if you were walking through a crowded arcade full of video games, but Journee's alter-ego Anonms Emcee fails to impress musically or lyrically. The track is as noisy as possible to make up for his lackluster performance, yet succeeds only at being annoying. The somewhat more traditional beats of "The Globe" come as relief to the listener, but Anonms has the vocal enthusiasm of a Group Home rapper drinking cough syrup. Pass on this one.

Artist: Belles in Monica
Title:  What D'Ya Need 12"
Label:  New Dawn Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

Straight outta Glasgow (Scotland that is) rapper/producer Kruze has formed a hip-hop group called Belles in Monica and released the single "What D'Ya Need" with a special Unsung Heroes remix to introduce him to American audiences. You might expect thick accents and incomprehensible lyrics from this single, but you'd only be half right. There's no thick accent as such, but with a breakneck flow like El-Producto and intentional vocal distortion in the recorded vocals, the listener is hard-pressed to peep what Kruze is saying. The B-Side "Skitzophnoetic" is more clear, but the presentation on the whole is clearly aimed at a Def Jux audience and for most of them it will be a natural match.

Artist: Dudley Perkins
Title:  Washedbrainsyndrome b/w Momma 12"
Label:  Stones Throw Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

Although his claim to fame thus far came as Declaime, vis-a-vis his work with Tha Alkaholiks and the Lootpack, Dudley Perkins is on his own shit. Literally. Over a Madlib track with plenty of West coast symphony and bass, Perkins randomly switches up from rap to a singing on "Washedbrainsyndrome." The end result is that Perkins sounds like a lost member of the Pharcyde who was too high and bugged out for even THEM, and it works to a certain degree. While not exactly a quotable MC, Perkins music is like Wesley Willis - entertaining when given in limited doses.

Artist: Madvillain
Title:  All Caps b/w Curls 12"
Label:  Stones Throw Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

The most bugged tandem in rap right now is MF Doom and Madlib. With the strong popularity of their Madvillain release, they could easily coast through a single like this - and they do. The album version of "All Caps" includes an instrumental on one side, and "Curls" is the same on the flip. Each side is padded out with "Villain" skits but what you see is basically what you get. The tracks are butter to be sure, but with two producers this hot at least ONE remix would have been nice.

Artist: Snuff
Title:  Countdown 12"
Label:  KRU Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

The self-produced Snuff continues a tradition of quality releases from Karma Response Unit with his "Countdown" twelve inch. Vocally reminiscent of Tame One with a dash of J-Zone thrown in, he flows nicely on "Countdown" while providing a beat with layered drums and bass that's good enough to listen to on it's own. The Chuck D sample, whistle sound, and overall nod to the old school while maintaining a modern era "boom bap" make this one a standout. Snuff says it himself on the B-Side "Good vs. Evil": "My music's real, but still you don't know me." That will change soon enough.

Artist: Stezo
Title:  Piece of the Pie b/w Gangsta Groove 12"
Label:  Stones Throw Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

Despite blowing up songs like "It's My Turn" and "Freak the Funk" for Sleeping Bag Records and being family with EPMD, the latter went on to hip-hop fame while Stezo plays the role of forgotten rapper from the 1980's. Solid Records gave his cousin Dooley-O a second chance at missed fame though, so Stezo's now getting a similar break from Stones Throw. "Piece of the Pie" is ironic though since it lashes out at Parrish Smith while simultaneously rapping over the same loop from EPMD's "Brothers on My Jock" track. Or maybe that's no coincidence. Either way Dooley-O produced the beat, and uses the bonus beats on the A-Side as an opportunity to talk even more smack about EPMD. This and the fact he says "1990 is OURS!" as the beat fades out means this record is DEFINITELY dated. That's not a bad thing really, since between "Piece of the Pie" and the "Gangsta Groove" this record will take you back to the day of fat gold chains and Kangol hats. With so much of today's rap being overproduced commercial pap, a twelve inch of vintage quality "golden era" beats and rhymes is a nice change of pace.

Artist: Underground Cartel
Title:  Dropzone EP
Label:  New Dawn Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

Organized by New Dawn Records chief producer Kruze, the Underground Cartel is a self-described "rotating cast of members" that will change from one release to the next. On the upside this means like "Seconds Out" can feature dope indie rappers like like Mindbender from the Nextraterrestrials. On the downside it's hard to pin any one sound or style to a crew whose line-up changes track to track. Only the group Raw Dialects has consistant representation, with Tone Rome appearing on two tracks and his partner Danjah MC on the aforementioned "Seconds Out." Kruze's beat on "Whatta Good Thing" is fresh, but the Musik G remix that follows is thinner than a sheet of newspaper. Conceptually the Cartel has potential, but this EP is too chaotic.

Artist: Wildchild
Title:  Wonder Years 12"
Label:  Stones Throw Records
Writer: Steve 'Flash' Juon

Wildchild continues to be the Lootpack's standard bearer on the excellent "Wonder Years" single. Eschewing the extremely busy Madlib for Oh No on the beats is far from a mistake - the latter turns in a shuffle step laced with guitar strumming, old school samples and some fine scratching. Child normally drops so many bombs even Kaboom! players couldn't catch them all, but here he's hoping for knowledge even he doesn't have: "I wish I knew the cure for the diseases and next week's lotto numbers/terrorist acts before they planned and who they planned 'em under." Don't we all.

Originally posted: June 1, 2004
source: www.RapReviews.com