I've come full circle to the album I originally thought I was reviewing back in April -- Deep (of the
2 Hungry Bros.) and his
"Bushwick Beatfeed" album. As with the last project this is an entirely
instrumental album dedicated solely to showing off what Deep can do as a
producer. Come to think of it that may be overstepping the bounds in terms
of describing this project. It's not SOLELY dedicated to Deep showing
off his skills. There's some genuine headnod to be had just from listening
to quality hip-hop instrumentals, and if you're the kind of person who is
inclined to freestyle when you hear a dope beat ("I got a DOPE BEAT!") then
Deep has given you nearly an hour's worth of Christmas come early.
One thing that should make it abundantly clear Deep is not just another
bedroom wizard cranking out beats with a sampler, a laptop and a few keyboards
is the fact there are MUSIC VIDEOS for some of these songs. Ordinarily
that wouldn't make sense right? Where's the emcee to wander around in front of
the camera lens, telling you his/her story in a visual portrayal of what was
previously the audio narrative? If you'll pardon the pun though Deep is trying
to dig a little deeper than that. Instrumentals are storytellers too, and the
great ones tell stories even without an emcee - "They Reminisce Over You,"
"Concerto of the Desperado," "Passin' Me By" just to name a few. By creating
visuals for tracks like "Breakers Yard" we get to see Deep's story too.
Okay so we know that like Kool Keith he'll get in shape and do his physical
fitness -- that's important when you're a hungry brother who likes to eat.
What about the other end of the spectrum though -- when you're done with a
long day of work (or working out) and you just want to kick back and chill?
Then take a once in a blue moon break with "Bluemoon Dog Rex" and get together
with all of his peoples at the cafe, before stepping back into the lab to
get back to work on more hits.
That's the type of s--t he's on, word is bond. Deep wants to create instrumentals
that play in your head like music videos. The weight of "Gravitas" strikes me
immediately. This would be a somber scene - it's like Timberland boots stomping
through a graveyard on their way to a fistfight. It's dark and foreboding and it
puts you RIGHT THERE in that moment. It's like a classic Mobb Deep track
in that it's beautiful in its brutality.
The whole gamut of feelings and emotions is covered. "Mak Magic" is so bouncy and
uptempo I feel like it could spin off my headphones at any moment and whirl into its
own vortex - until about a minute in when Deep "makes magic" and completely breaks it
down - then he lets it fly off the handle again. "Pasteles Grind" gives you that
feeling it's on in the background as a family prepares dozens of pasteles at a time
for everybody to eat on a major holiday. It's a beat to put you to work. And though
the title might make you think it's "heavy metal for the black people" and more of
that Mobb Deep steelo, "Sabbath Alarm" is more literal than that - it's a song to
wake yo' ass up and get you to put on your church clothes.
This is the reason why Deep is a brother to keep your eyes on. He could make
throwaway beats for emcees to blow up the charts with, but here he is carving out
his own identity with virtually no help, establishing moods and telling stories
with his tracks all on his own. From "Beaver Park" to the "Block of Ages" he's
taking you on a journey through Bushwick all on his own.
Music Vibes: 8 of 10
Lyric Vibes: n/a of 10TOTAL Vibes: 8 of 10
![[Bushwick Beatfeed]](../coverart/deep-Bushwick.jpg)
I've come full circle to the album I originally thought I was reviewing back in April -- Deep (of the
2 Hungry Bros.) and his
"Bushwick Beatfeed" album. As with the last project this is an entirely
instrumental album dedicated solely to showing off what Deep can do as a
producer. Come to think of it that may be overstepping the bounds in terms
of describing this project. It's not SOLELY dedicated to Deep showing
off his skills. There's some genuine headnod to be had just from listening
to quality hip-hop instrumentals, and if you're the kind of person who is
inclined to freestyle when you hear a dope beat ("I got a DOPE BEAT!") then
Deep has given you nearly an hour's worth of Christmas come early.