Let's try something new with this blogging situation of mine, a monthly (maybe weekly?) review of sorts. Each month, I will try and deliver my perspective and little bit of history into specific forms of entertainment through music artists/albums, films, literature, comedy, or television. I believe this is a great way to get my own opinions out on the web and to hopefully inspire some positive connections through these aspects of entertainment. This first installment features the hip-hop artist with outstanding linguistics and five solo albums under his belt spanning from the 1990s. I speak, of course, of Del tha Funkee Homosapien. I've been listening to many of his tracks lately and suppose I just got inspired to share a little bit.
Del delivers vocal performances that will shock and amaze those with an expansive enough vocabulary to process it all! One of his points of emphasis with the battle-styling raps is that skill, which he and other members of his crew have, in the ability to spit rhymes of a higher intellect and, thereby, expand the realm of the genre. Del is the cousin of the famous rapper/actor Ice Cube and hails from Oakland, California. He is a part of the Hieroglyphics Imperium record label, although his latest studio album
Eleventh Hour was released through Definitive Jux. You might also recognize him as an artist behind the pen and vocals of the Gorillaz tracks
Clint Eastwood and
Rock the House off their debut album. I also recognize the beat from the song Re-hash as an older Del beat, but I haven't been able to confirm or deny that speculation. In my opinion, Del is one of the best rappers of all-time, because everything he does is so fluid, and he places so much emphasis on the music
and the words. For those interested in his works, I'll provide the discography as follows:
I Wish My Brother George Was Here (1991)
No Need for Alarm (1993)
Future Development (1998)
Both Sides of the Brain (2000)
Deltron 3030 (2000)*
Eleventh Hour (2008)
*Del was a part of this collaborative, concept album with Dan the Automater (among others) and there is rumored to be a sequel release out before the end of this year!
My favorite album he has put down, by far, is
Both Sides of the Brain. All of the songs are top-notch, although I would like to place emphasis on some of my favorites, Jaw Gymnastics, Press Rewind, Signature Slogans, and Proto Culture. In Jaw Gymnastics, where he teams up with Casual, the hardcore battle style leaves no room for retaliation as the two bust out lyrics in rapid succession to show exactly what rap is made of. Press Rewind just has the funky beat with rhymes to match, and I just personally love the way it was all pieced together. Signature Slogans has even more of an awkward beat, but as the song progresses, you'll see how it all works and you'd better be able to keep up with that brain of yours (or you might just miss the artistry in it all). Lastly, well it's Proto Culture, the rap about old-school video games and the progression over the years. It's a must love song for any avid players out there, especially if you can relate to some of the older consoles and specific games they hype. He varies so much on this album to make it such a hip-hop classic via his mode of delivery, lyrical styles, topical content, beats...everything is flawless. Check this and his other albums out (
hint: Deltron 3030) even if you don't like rap or hip-hop! He might just change your mind about the genre.