515 Crew

Beneath the thump of the slightly affected kick drums, the click and slap of the percussion, and the bass lines that are tucked around the edges but still manage to knock out a fully-formed groove, you'll find the icing on the cake: some great lyricists. This is a thick hip hop record, one that doesn't subscribe to a discernible formula, but that also makes perfect sense when you hear it. The raps are quick and spot-on, rattling through thoughts so rapidly that the double-tracked back-ups are almost providing color commentary. The beats are on point as well, not afraid to take some chances and never riding the same feel for too long. "Quiet Hour" is a hard-hitter with dark orchestral hits forming its backbone; "Iron Landscapes" flips it, working in some lighter R&B. They both succeed, and together they pack a wallop of a 1-2 punch. If you like the more abstract side of hip hop (El-P, etc.), you'll be wantin' to try this on for size.