Sensational - Loaded With Power

1997 debut album by this very idiosyncratic rapper, on the Wordsound label. This may be the most mashed hip-hop album ever recorded, from his superb, lurching, deranged rapping style, to the ultra low fi beats. The vocals on this album were recorded through headphones, and the music with a four track and not much else. Whatever was used - it usually sounds like it's malfunctioning, with stumbling beats and massively overdriven bass. It's an album full of wrongness and experiment, but works brilliantly. It does sound like the product of a demented brain, and I remember reading in The Wire that later in his career he sold his equipment to buy crack, although I should add that he sorted himself out again and has continued to record.

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El-P - Fantastic Damage

This is one of my all time favourite albums. It's about as heavy and psychedelic as hip hop can get without imploding, and is definitely not one for hip-hop conservatives, seeing as very little of the instrumentation is made from soul/funk samples, but instead is created by El-p with synths, samples and drum machines. It's the arrangements and mix that make this so excellent, and such a head trip. The opening line sets the scene: a distorted synth, with a slightly chipmunked voice reciting some cheesy but somehow ominous lines of poetry. The remainder of this track is pretty sparse, martial distorted beats and scratches allow the lyrical manifesto to be promulgated with little audio interference, and it's only as it fades into 'Squeegee Man Shooting' that the musical blueprint for the rest of the album is revealed - a tapestry of wah-scratching that peaks almost into a 303 line halfway through; piano arpeggios; driving bass; searing phased synth drones - all backing a relentless stream of vocal which is often cut up, overlaid and delayed. It's definitely a heady and intense mix, one that doesn't let up. The listeners brain is equally divided between the rapping and the music, and the weird pitched-down vocal echoes that weave around the mix fall halfway between the two, making fora disorientating but hugely satisfying listen. This is taken to extremes on what is probably my favourite track, the very weird and fabulous 'Dead Disnee', which is a real brain odyssey. The density of this music means these tracks still blow me away many many listens down the line; the apocalyptic, claustrophobic vibe, and exhilarating swarms of noise and clusters of words that drift in and out of my conscious hearing...makes my sentence construction deteriorate.

An awesome album.

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Evolution Control Committee - The Whipped Cream Mixes

Classic mash up action, in which ECC concatenate Herb Alpert and Public Enemy to fantastic effect. Masterfully edited, this inspired combination works like a dream - the key changes/bridges etc in Alpert's E-Z horn jaunts perfectly matching the phrasing of the rapping. Public Enemy should sound a bit silly after this treatment, but the mis-match is such a triumph that they actually sound cool.
Ripped from 7", this is pretty short, so I've included the WAVs and mp3s created by itunes in one folder (36mb), so you can do what you want with them.

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Gonzales - The Entertainist

Aptly titled album by the chameleon-like Chilly Gonzales. Ridiculously entertaining, this album finds him in hip hop mode. Other albums have seen him do post rock and neo classical solo piano. Brilliant lyrics, delivered with aplomb, over beats which venture from trad hip-hop territory to electronica (no beats, which has no beats). The music is provided by a range of collaborators including Peaches, Digital Hardcore chaps Bomb 20, Patric Catani and Paul PM, who also provides vocals on the brilliant mogadon-hop 'Meditation'. This crew also provide little snippets of background vocals, and little intentionally dumb interjections. Personally I think this all hangs together beautifully, and I can't believe how obscure this gem has become.
I should also note that when he played live to promote this album, it was easily the funniest gig I've ever been to, at the sadly defunct Spitz in London. I would say you had to be there, as a mere description wouldn't do justice to the hilarity of the evening. It's just occured to me to Googe this event. Here is a high-handed NME review, written by someone on their high horse, who obviously wasn't high.
After reading that review, I feel I should point out that this album isn't a joke - it's just funny. It's not some ironic statement, it's serious.

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