24 Years Later...
label: birthwrite

producers: flesh one, overflo, yoda, pns, bob, others.
guests: prime, psalm one.
year of release: 2002
contact: pugsport@blackplanet.com
 
A couple of years back, Chicago was the North American Mecca. You wanted to move there, flee there, live there. But at one point even Wright's 'Outsider' fled to New York. Now in the hip hop world, Chicago is on the map, but it's one of the b-list cities including Atlanta, New Orleans, Philadelphia. However suddenly it seems like there are dopness rations dropped over the Windy City, as the last couple of releases that found their way to our shores, were good, heck even better. And the Pugslee Atomz album "24 Years Later…" is one of those records on that list of excellence, with two others having been released on the same Birthwrite label (the Infinito album "Music With Sound Right Reasoning" and the "Six Shades Of The Same Color" compilation, the latter reviewed here).
As always there's a lyrical part to the record and a beat half. The vibes are carried much by the boom bap, and in this case here they are not just various, they are also continuously good. With there being highlights among the Himalayan peaks. There's for one to mention the rather big number of different producers that worked on here: Flesh One, Overflo, Yoda, PNS, Bob, Atari Logic, to not even mention all of 'em. And looking up this list, apart from Overflo and PNS, these cats haven't yet produced themselves into our consciousness.

tracklisting
1. 7/31/77 (24 Years...)
2. Unfinished Business feat. Prime
3. 3 Senses (Remix)
4. N.O.S.talgia
5. Red Tape
6. Right We Tight feat. Psalm One
7. 7/31/89 (J.Atomz vs. J.Brown)
8. If (Simple And Plain)
9. Liven
10. Food Chain
11. Preservation
12. On The Rocks
13. Stabs
14. 7/31/98 (Daley)
15. Basics (Pt. 2)
16. Pennies
17. Corners
If there's a common vibe to the project, then it's a 2002 progression of the spirit that made the early 90s vibe. What means this doesn't copy the styles of back then, but it's somewhat where the progress led to. That allows a "Red Tape" produced by Overflo and you can hear the cheesy 80s pop tune "All By Myself" in the back, with the other sample having been used by Emanon before. As bad as this sounds, the song is actually cool, with it having a rolling feel to it. And the slowness might not get you to dance wildly, but you can groove to this. On "If (Simple And Plain)" (produced by Yoda) it's also the sample that immediately catches us, as it's some singing, that's progressed by the guitar. Then there's the smooth "Liven", the big and made by an old soul sample "On The Rocks" (produced by Bob) as well as the simply effective "Stabs" by Yoda. Larry Pickett of Wexl offers the enormously jazzy "Basics (Pt. 2)", while PNS pitches "Pennies" and comes through with something not bouncy, but moving. And finally the hidden track (we'd like to call "Mission Statement") produced by Rob is slow but in all its drama also very good.
Lyrically this project also succeeds in Pugslee speaking on a host of different things, with the focus mainly being on conscious topics though. What does not prevent songs like "Right We Tight" featuring Psalm One, where the two go for more beefy braggadocios rhymes. Conceptually "7/31/89 (J.Atomz vs. J.Brown)" plays out a trial, that's just as visual as Court TV. Here the case is about graffiti with Pugslee stepping to the floor to declare a strong pro-message. What we also appreciate about the lyrics is that they are not just well delivered, but they don't dangle in weird poeticism that only makes sense to the artist himself, and maybe the odd one or two interpreting cat that loathes Cliff Notes.
What wraps up a review of an excellent album, where the beats and the rhymes are good at the same time, coming together with a person that has enough to say to keep us interested and listening. Hence everything is good on here, hence this album is good.
review: tadah
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