gast!’s HipHop Classics (no.3)

August 31st, 2006 by gast!

Dressed in and protected by the now infamous Red, Black and Green, The X-Clan waltzed through the HipHop scene of 1990 with their debut album To the East, Blackwards.

Everything about this group seemed to be over the top: the dress code, the Afrocentrism, the George Clinton samples and yes, even their Pink Caddy. However, there’s no evidence to the contrary that this Afrocentric group released one of the best rap records of that year and of many years thereafter.

Plenty of groups had already swiped liberally from Funkadelic, and true, “Grand Verbalizer“’s instrumental backdrop is nearly identical to “Microphone Fiend,” but there’s an infectious vigor with the way each track is fired off that makes those points idle. Brother J’s bookish, caramel-smooth delivery is like no other, and Professor X’s appearances after nearly every verse (”This is protected by the red, the black, and the green — with a key! Sissy!“) add even more character to the album. X-Clan relentlessly pushes its pro-black motives and beliefs, and though the points are vague at times, at no point does it ever grow tiring. This isn’t just a testament to the skills of the MC’s – it also stands as a testament to the group members as producers.

Prelisten

Demonoid | Torrentspy

Tracklist:
1 Funkin’ Lesson (4:05)
2 Grand Verbalizer, What Time Is It? (4:45)
3 Tribal Jam (4:51)
4 Day of Outrage, Operation Snatchback (3:18)
5 Verbal Milk (4:33)
6 Earth Bound (4:29)
7 Shaft’s Big Score (5:04)
8 Raise the Flag (4:03)
9 Heed the Word of the Brother (3:39)
10 Verbs of Power (4:16)
11 In the Ways of the Scales (4:15)