producer: happ g, snuff, supreme, dr. noh

With all these flashy trends in hip hop nowadays, you almost forget what it used to be about. Like back then, when your goal was to have a hard hitting beat, coupled with clever battle rhymes. Throw in some good time verses about chicks, brew, smoke sticks and other pleasantries, and you got all that you need. Enough too? Well, not according to some, that's why they strayed away from this formula. Also not enough due to this style making it harder to truly add something new, instead of just repeating previously done steez.

However, the 40 Dimension is content with this way of doing hip hop. Hence that's what they did on this 16 track deep album, that is called "The Crop Report", what then obviously means that they are sampling that Eddie Murphy movie (what is it called, 'Trading Places' or something??). And so it's a moment from that flick that opens this here, followed by "Let's Get It On", that was previously released on the 12", and we liked it there, so we'll still like it here, what can also be said about another 12" cut "Zip It". Moments from that movie can also be found on the title cut, with "The Crop Report" ending the album. The singing by Catface is kinda 'eeh', the beat is cool though. We are also cool with "We Do It Like This" featuring Starvin Marvin and Greedy Gretch, as well as with the straight up dissing "Disswon", that appears with a darker Happ G beat, while "The Session" feat. Shiz The Park Ranger, Jake Lefco sounds just a tid bit too hard.

Flipping things to more grooving chapters is "Eat My Gun", one of the few tracks not produced by Happ, but in this case by the also featured Snuff of Media 101, who does something that allows yourself to move whatever you got available along to the track. The dub influence on "What It Is" can also get you about, while Scandal talks about what gets him going, tick, continue, well, you know. "Stop Frontin'" is getting your neck in instant up and down movement, with Luce Leif and Snuff helping out on this cut, that's everything but hesitating to tell everyone about these folks niceness.

Flipping the content a little, "Too Many Movies" is giving away in the title what this is about, as Scandal is getting at us with verses that are intertwining movie titles. On "Open Minded" the lyrics are actually flipping things fully, as this is discussing the intolerant and ignorant, that manifests in a understandable frustration. Even "Lose Your Mind" is somewhat standing out in the number of braggadocios tracks, with this going for a more 'simply flowing for the sake of flowing' style, that however still sticks with the mentioned way to do things.

Looking for the tracks that we are not keen on, then there's "Till I Die" featuring Greedy Gretch. The beat is trying to do something "P.S.K." styled, and the emcee sound only half hearted. There's also "I Don't Care", that features okay strings, but is mainly appearing as a run of the mill cut. Finally The bare "Ahead Of Time" featuring Jake Lefco is struggling to get our attention. What then allows us to go full circle and repeat what we previously mentioned: if you go for the boom bap style, it will be harder to stand out. The 40D are able to at least give the album a distinctive flavor, that has the cuts connect and be recognizable as belonging to this album. That's cool, as is the majority of the cuts, in a elementary, bare, solid, simple kind of hip hop way.