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 | AtmosphereSeven's Travels2003 Epitaph/Rhymesayers 
  Review by: radiokillsremix See others by this writer Rhymesayers' Official Website (link) Only registered users can post comments 
 
Published on February 6th 2004
What the fuck is punk rock anyway? Out of nowhere last year, Epitaph embraced indie-hip-hop like it was the cure to SARS. Not only did they sign a distribution deal with Rhymesayers Entertainment, they also signed whom some have called “the poster boy of emo-rap,” Sage Francis. I don’t believe in any of the hype surrounding the emo-rap messiahs because of the bullshit label, I believe in the hype surrounding them because they are just too goddamn good to ignore. It seems that the most original and fresh music is coming out of underground hip hop labels, and not the most often considered former pioneers in the punk rock movement labels (ie: Fat Wreck Chords.) People who liked this also liked:           Please login or register to post comments. What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?
Yo yo, 139 and Lennox is the Danger Zone.... Yo Ramo, good to see you know what's up on the Gang Starr tip, MOT is only slightly ahead of HTE in my book. Both are incredible.... And Sickbwoy, I used to think Bumpy Knucks was the shit too, until the Konexxion LP he just put out. It was almost complete garbage, save for the Premo track and a couple others. He's made plenty of wack shit too before Gang Starr put him back on the map. His verse on "The Militia" is one of the best bragadaccio rhymes in hip-hop history, though. He fuckin' KILLED it. I have nothing against this group or whatever they are, but this is supposed to be punknews. But then again its not the first non punk news i.e. simple plan, blink, etc. news they have on here. So since there's a review of an Atmosphere album on www.punknews.org, I'm assuming that you will post reviews by Wu-tang Clan, Outkast, Eminem, A Tribe Called Quest, etc.? "God Loves Ugly" ts a better record. So is sage franci's "Personal Journals" and the last Hieroglyphics album. Big L put out one of the best and most underrated/overlooked hip-hop albums, in my opinion. 'Lifestylez Ov the Poor and Dangerous' is what defines hip-hop for me. 139 and Lennox, what? RIP kool keith is allowed to thump his chest, unlike 90% of the whack rappers out there. If you ask me.. those lyrics you put up are the same as all rap. Just a bunch of chest thumping. While Slug does that once in a while, he just doesn't dwell on it as much as all of the other stuff out there. While some of his Rhymesayers mates are close.. i still don't think anyone is as poignant as Slug. "i like all kinds of music except for rap and country" If you want people to listen to music similar to Atmosphere without them bitching about it not being punk, review some Lifter Puller. Or you bitches should just listen to Lifter Puller. "Soft Rock" is the best purchase your dumb asses could make. Get on that shit, now. Plus, Slug makes frequent cameos on and references to their shit. Craig Finn's got better phrasing, anyways. Here's another one by the unparalleled Kool Keith, called leave me alone, the closer to "first come, first server," recorded as dr dooom and released on threshold records in 1999. ah yes the rap side of things.....who ever dropped the deltron side of things is all over the rap one of the best rap albums i have ever bought...as for necro well check out std and really anything off the i need drugs cd......krs-1 is the best ever forget 2pac and biggie(cause i still thin that bigs was overated) krs-1 could tell you a story like a book on a cd.....check out del both sides of the brain if you want a pretty tight rap cd....and pretty much any cd that dan the atomater touches cause he knows what he is doing....and pretty much anything the beasties touch up to Your rhyme touch is soft kid i saw atmosphere last night at the fillmore. this score is for the show, it was everything i hoped it would be. mix of tracks from all the albums except overcast. slug is a great entertainer. mr dibbs is a good dj. even if you don't like the new album (i do), you'll love the live show. Listen to "Gross Domestic Product" for some good shiznit...or the old wu-tang album. atmosphere isnt bad.. old Jedi Mind Tricks albums are so much better than any other rap ive ever heard in terms of original lyrics and beats Rhymesayers Enterpainment. Get it right... I prefer Warsawpack, but that's just me. Stop, collaborate and listen... If you're looking for good rap, look no further than Non-Prophet's "Hope" LP. It's fuckin sick. Sage Francis is the best rapper in the business and Joe Beats is a grade-A producer. Together they make the best shit out there... The only thing that comes close is Def Jux (especially El-P and Aesop Rock, but also Mr. Lif). I love Kool Keith, but Bumpy Knuckles (Freddie Foxx) is fucking where its at. This is one of his weaker efforts. Godlovesugly had some impressive tracks. This record sounds like the scraps and bad ideas that were tossed away after the last recording session. I don't think Slug can hold a listener's attention for a whole record. He's better off when he's with others. I could listen to Deep Puddle Dynamics every day. I yeah forgot to change the score haha ;) Worst album cover...ever...haha no seriously this score is for rap / hip-hop...god I hate it. Sorry for those of you who enjoy it...I, however can't stand it nor the assholes in this town who listen to it..jerks. 8 Pm: "Let's go smoke this low quality weed in my ugly ass boosted car" 9pm: "Let's go to Mcdonalds" 10pm: "zzzzz"...wow what a life. i think we need to fire bomb Spin's offices for putting the "emo-" hyphenation on everything. Hey fuckers, just because he's white and from the midwest doesn't make him an emo act. Grow the fuck up. 'even though this is released by epitaph, should it really be reviewed here? ' this is hands down atmosphere's worst album. if you want the good stuff, go back in the catalogue. i'm glad that hip hop has become accessible to punk kids now that some white rappers have gotten bigger. even though this is released by epitaph, should it really be reviewed here? should i start submitting reviews of air supply albums? kool keith is the best rapper, ever. Emo rap? Couldn't just call it Rap? Or, god forbid, "good music". def jux has a lot of great shit on it, that's right... Check it, I'm not a dumbfuck, I've been following Slug for quite some time now, seeing how Chicago is one of the cities he plays at most frequently. I own all releases leading up to Seven's Travels. Because of the sentence structure, it may seem like I had no idea what I was talking about, saying that Atmos had their OVERALL DEBUT ALBUM, but the truth is, I refer to older Atmosphere styles and albums during the review. Sorry for the confusion. Peace. Too bad two sentences later he refers to their last album... to that guy that said i don't know how to read ... Atmosphere released their debut album on Epitaph/Rhyme Sayers ... read that. if it had said 'atmosphere released their debut album FOR epitaph blah blah blah, you'd be right. but they didn't. the way the sentence is constructed, it implies that the epitaph release was their debut. "I think if you dig this stuff it's worth looking into a couple other Rhymesayers or Def Jux releases like Aesop Rock, Eyedea or Brother Ali." No, "Moment of Truth" by Gang Starr is the best hip-hop record ever. Also, Atmosphere did not sign to Epitaph...it's distro deal that Epitaph has with them, kinda like what they do with Burning Heart. Eyedea and Abilities, another act on Rhymesayers is having their next release distro'd by Epitaph, as well. But this doesn't mean that they are on Epitaph. I think if you dig this stuff it's worth looking into a couple other Rhymesayers or Def Jux releases like Aesop Rock, Eyedea or Brother Ali. All pretty good, progressive hip hop. I think you might be surprised at how good some of the independent hip hop out there is. But there is a lot of garbage, too.... i liked the album but was disappointed by atmosphere. godlovesugly was great, in my opinion. i hope ant can stop making garbage beats (cats van bags) and slug write better than mediocre rhymes for their next album. i agree with the review here but i'd give it a higher rating than what was given. yeah, God forbid someone on a punk site listen to anything else. punks trying to comment on hip hop. thats seems pretty cool. but their are no punks on this site. this place should be called: newlisteningfads.org Del Tha Funkee Homosapien > Atmosphere Atmosphere is about the only rap I can get into. I should start by saying; I abhore rap. Or at least I did until I was exposed to Atmosphere/Slug. One could get me to listen to The Roots due to them playing their own instruments, and various songs which held a slight inkling of the amounts of intelligence found on albums by the likes of KRS-1. I was just really sick of the repetitive gangster with nothing to say styles which had been the norm in rap, and therefore had no respect for the entire genre. Then, I was introduced to what has recently become termed "emo-rap", because of the open honesty with which these artists are expressing themselves. Sure, maybe they're not expressing some really thought provoking political feelings, but a far too large percent of current punk music also has nothing to say politically. yo atmosphere is pretty rad, but just because he dresses like he's in thursday, did warped tour, and put out his record on epitaph doesn't mean that its punk, its still hip-hop the best hip-hop/rap record ever made IMO was Paul's Boutique by The Beastie Boys. Judge it in its correct time period, 1988-89. This album is shit compared to the entire Lucy Ford ep collection. I love that cd, with all my heart, and still listen to it on a regular basis. This album has a lot of bad filler songs that I skip over to get to the good songs. I don't skip any tracks on the Lucy Ford EP collection cd. Whoops. Never realize how big my responses have been. Just proving my point extensively. First off, for those who don't know, Atmosphere was being courted around by all major labels to sign to them. He despised them since they weren't in line with his ethics and...who did he choose? Epitaph. Good choice. why is hip hop on a punk site shut up dolemite. No, "Moment of Truth" by Gang Starr is the best hip-hop record ever. This shit's just OK. 'Have you heard that song "I get on my knees" (I think) by Necro? That is some of the funniest shit I have ever heard. ' "Let's Get Free" by Dead Prez is the greatest rap record ever. the term "emo rap" is getting dropped everywhere from Billboard to Canadian Music weekly. Emo-Rap? The Lucy Ford E.P.s will always be my favorite release. It was a pinnacle for Slug's rhymes and Ant's beats. Overcast rules, and whomever posted below, about the "it's the," the song you're looking for is Scapegoat, and it features some of the most intellignet, witty rhymes I've ever heard in a song. God Loves Ugly is definately not a good album. I haven't heard this CD yet. This score is for Lucy Ford E.P.s. This album was brilliant. One of the best rap albums to come out in recent years. Fuck You to the reviewer suffers from the same inconsistency as godlovesugly (probably to an even greater degree), but the great songs on here (cats van bags, trying to find a balance, always coming home to you/say shhhh) are so freaking great that i can't hate the album. the truth is, i play it a lot and just skip the filler. i think they've been going downhill since lucy ford, but they can still write great songs and i still have love for them. and i'm seeing them tomorrow. I actually really like this album from start to finish. There are some weak tracks, but taken as a whole it's a great "road" album - I mean, I feel like I'm going someplace when I listen to it. Also, some of the songs really stand out as exceptional (at least in my book). Regardless - this may be the best hip hop album since 'Blazing Arrow.' God I love when shit-talkers get burned. debut ON EPITAPH. as in FIRST ALBUM ON EPITAPH. Soulbleed, did someone shove a parking cone or something up your ass today? Christ. i heard one song by this guy and he kept repeating "its the..." "its the...." "its the...." you know, people bashed me for my movielife review, and i understand. i mixed up the order of albums, but at least i -acknowledged- that they were made. you, mr. reviewer, failed to realize that this isn't their debut album -- they released two albums on Rhymesayers before this one. One in 1997, and the other in 2002. In 2000, a collection of their EP's was also released. Atmosphere are not new to the hip-hop scene, but you obviously are. This album might not be the greatest way of showing their talents, but it's still pretty good. "God Loves Ugly" is a great place to start if you're just getting into hip-hop -- and just because this group signed to Epitaph doesn't mean anything. Music is music. Shut up, or else know your shit. Great review of an incredibly uneven album. "Say Shh" is better than every other song on the record; why hide it? Have you heard that song "I get on my knees" (I think) by Necro? That is some of the funniest shit I have ever heard. Emo-rap? That term is so laughable.. Atmosphere is ok, but if you haven't picked up Non-Prophets yet, I suggest you do. Sage and Joe Beats can do no wrong.. Slug is alright, but if Brett wants to sign some real undergound shit, sign Necro (sp?), that shit is fucking dope. The video for "Trying to Find a Balance" makes me laugh. The first time I saw it I thought it was the Vanilla Ice comeback. |
