Company Flow Funcrusher Plus Remastered Raritan
Maybe the best comment on 1998 underground hip-hop classic Funcrusher Plus comes after Company Flow’s Bigg Juss spouts a stream of seemingly random letters and. Funcrusher Plus, an Album by Company Flow. Funcrusher Plus Remastered. Funcrusher Plus is way too long for a new style that turns out to be very shallow.
Although I am leaning heavily towards electronic music, this release, along with the Cannibal Ox album, the trilogy by Organized Konfusion and the Ras Kass debut album are in my book the cornerstones of hip hop. Mind you, I am not the expert though. Sure, I just made a complete list without mentioning the 'golden age' pioneers. See, Funcrusherplus will never reach the sales of 'Doggystyle', will never get its own UNI poetry class that the likes of the demised 2pac had, and will never even be considered for winning an award.
Like it needs any of the above. This album is like a master of oddity.
What you did not expect of a hip hop album, you received here. Not only is it awkward, it's that the weirdness is pulled off to perfection. Some make it strange for the sake getting the 'mischief' tag. Company Flow nailed the true to form B Boy aesthetic with a far-out, unpredictable approach to the genre, combining sci-fi beats (something EL-P would build upon later in his career) and a layered lyrical delivery, which was seldom discernible upon listening sessions. In my ears, this is a front to back great album, that excels on every conceivable level.
The production is a foray into the future that never was, the lyrical department is chock full of themes and metaphors that it'll take more listens than you'll be aware of to fully absorb it all. Although I do like dusty samples, jazzy tendencies in US hip-hop, this record delivers a robotic vision of the B-boy stance, and goes left just when the entire scene headed right. This record is closing in on perfection. Just revisited it today. These guys knew what they were doing. Not many others did. Even less followed.
Play this, and then The Cold Vein next. Highly abstract awesomeness for the ones willing to provide the patience infrastructure.
At $60 for a new copy on Amazon, its about damn time! Definitive Jux will be reissuing Company Flow's seminal 1997 full length debut, Funcrusher Plus. Free Ex4 To Mq4 Decompiler Software Testing on this page. Out of print since 2006, this certified classic album has been remastered and will be available worldwide on May 5th, 2009 on CD, vinyl, and digital formats. The digital release of Funcrusher Plus will include the rare pre-1995 tracks 'Juvenile Techniques' and 'Corners 94', as well as the last post-Funcrusher Plus songs 'Simple', 'DPA', and 'Simian Drugs'. It will be presented in its original artwork both by the late great Matt Do and the now legendary artist EWOK. Already ahead of its time when originally released in 1997, Funcrusher Plus is widely recognized as one the most influential hip hop albums ever, shattering conventions with its musical complexity and uncompromising lyricism.
Comprised of producer/MC El-P, MC Bigg Jus and DJ Mr. Len, Company Flow's music rejected the conventional hooks and jazz/funk samples favored at the time, opting instead for jagged, lo-fi and punishing sonics crowned with confrontational and highly literate word-play and rhyme patterns. The group's musical approach and legendary D-I-Y ethic went on to influence an entire genre for the past decade. Originally appearing as a self-released vinyl-only EP in 1995, their music caught the attention of underground hip hop and alternative music scenes worldwide, eventually landing them a deal with then unknown NYC hip hop label Rawkus Records.
The release of the full length on Rawkus signified a new era in hip hop, and soon after the likes of Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch and others followed suit. Company Flow's attitude and urgent approach gave birth to a movement that defined a new era within the hip hop world. Beyond amassing legions of fans across the globe, few independent releases in recent memory have received the level of accolades and kudos from journalists, critics, and artists of all strata as this landmark album. Now a new generation of music fans will have a chance to hear what the fuss was all about. 'A straight razor to hip-pop's gilded visage.' VILLAGE VOICE 'The defining document of '90s hip-hop dissent' VIBE MAGAZINE '8 Steps To Perfection' Video.