God Loves Ugly [PA]

CMJ (6/17/02, p.5) - "...Falling in between IDM-inspired starkness and the more elaborate musicality of mainstream hip-hop...this album surpasses any so-called mainstream hip-hop album with its eclectic assemblage of samples..."

Coming straight outta the rough'n'tumble surroundings of Minneapolis/St. Paul, the Rhymesayers clique is slowly but surely putting Minnesota on the hip-hop map. OK, so the frozen lands that gave listeners Prince and Morris Day & the Time may seem like a fairly unlikely setting for the next hip-hop hotbed, but you can't deny the talent the area's been bringing to the table. First, Eyedea won the country's biggest MC battle with a brilliant display of freestyle ability, now Atmosphere's latest album states the case that there are some serious skills in the Great White North. The group is fronted by Slug, whose densely packed rhymes on the opening "Onemosphere" and "The Bass & the Movement" showcase a clever lyrical flow that recalls early De La Soul if they'd been produced by El-P. On "Hair" and the title track, the MC exposes a refreshing sense of self-deprecating realism all too often lacking among the current hip-hop scene's posturing poseurs. Though the lo-fi D.I.Y. production slows the momentum on a handful of tracks, when Slug's rhymes and producer Ant's beats click, the results are as good as underground hip-hop gets. ~ Bret Love

アンチコンやリヴィング・レジェンズとの共演で多くのファンを獲得したMCスラッグは、いまやアングラ界ではもっとも神に近い?　彼率いるアトモスフィアの新作は、神へさらに一歩近づく感性豊かな一枚。聴覚をスッ飛ばして直接心に訴えかけてくるような情感溢れるライムは、ちょっと病的な危険さを持っている。トラックがまた繊細でユーモラス、ピュアな子供の心を表現してるようでなんとも切ない。もう泣き泣きの嵐!
bounce (C)沢村太一郎