Soul Position, 8 Million Stories - I remember how pumped I was about this album. I think it lived up to the hype. I wasn't so excited about Things Go Better With RJ and Al, but Blueprint was once one of my favorite lyricists and RJD2 was really sick (before he did the jump to pop music).
Deep Puddle Dynamics - The Taste of Rain....Why Kneel? - This album was soooo sick when I first heard it. It was Slug and the dudes from Anticon. I will always be thankful to JJ for putting me on to this.
Anticon - Music for the Advancement of Hip Hop - In retrospect this was the dumbest possible title that a group could have come up with. But listening to Anticon will always distinctly remind me of some of the Bay Area's finest independent hip hop. Anticon really changed up their sound after time, but this album was one of their collective (and weird) best.
Atmosphere - God Loves Ugly - I remember driving to SF to try and see them perform on a whim. It was coincidentally the same night this album dropped. Unfortunately, Slims was sold out, but I drove up to Ameoba and copped the album. I remember listening to it all of the way home. I haven't felt that same excitement of tearing open the packaging of a CD, excited beyond belief to listen to it in a long while.
Aesop Rock - Labor Days - Another big ups to JJ (along with Atmosphere) for putting me onto Aesop. The dude was so good. This, to me, will always be his crowning achievement. I hold onto this album dearly, and absolutely love it.
RJD2 - Dead Ringer - this album was super hyped. This guy was supposed to be the next DJ Shadow. He wasn't, but he did a great job impersonating him with a bit of a spin. I still love hearing this album, and I'll never forget seeing him in SF. He put on a super dope live show. Fortunate to see him in a rare appearance where he actually used the records from his album as opposed to scratching over a CD pre-playing the tracks.
Sage Francis - Personal Journals - Another good JJ recommendation. Sage was so sick to me. A big fat white dude who won the Scribble Jam MC battles but actually could put together a good album (J.U.I.C.E., I'm looking at you). Not all punchlines, but really introspective.
This whole period of my life is a blur. I've been fortunate to see all of these guys live. The shows, the dates, mostly blurry, but this was the era when I would hunt these CDs down, trip to SF and Berkeley just to find a rare album or count the days till the albums dropped and I could go online and buy tickets to the show. Oh youth, I miss you. These are fond memories I recollect. Crashing on JJ's futon and feeling so free in the bay. These days will always be missed.
JJ has since moved to NYC and it's been a long time since I've seen him. He makes his own music and it's dope. These influences have progressed into many different avenues of musical interest. But I'll always keep these albums relatively close.
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