abrisskull

Originally, I was excited to get Snoop Dogg's debut album at some point on this journey, especially since earlier this year I enjoyed Snoop's featuring on Dr. Dre's solo debut, The Chronic. But I'll admit my overall enjoyment of Snoop has waned in the past couple of months with the antics he's gotten himself into, to the point where he put out a surprise album last week that delves into a defense for his recent actions. I'm not going to say any further on this matter, as it should not be relevant to the discussion around his debut from over twenty years ago. If anything, I will try and do my best to meet the man where he was back in the day.

With all that said, let's spin it back to the beginning. Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. grew up in Long Beach, California, with a Baptist background. He started rapping as early as sixth grade, frequently doing it at school. It wouldn't be long though before Calvin got caught in the middle of Cali's persistent gang violence environment, ending up as a member of the Crips. He was incarcerated for a few years for cocaine possession, but once out was able to put that life to the side and rekindle his joy of rapping. He ended up recording mixtapes with his cousins, Nate Dogg and Lil' 1/2 Dead, and his friend Warren G. The tapes were sent out to labels, and one in particular caught the interest of Dr. Dre. He was so impressed that he called for Calvin to audition for his label, Future Shock, which would later become Death Row Records. Through Dr. Dre's opening the door, and N.W.A. affiliate The D.O.C.'s lecturing on lyrical structure and theming, Calvin began his rapping career under the stage name of Snoop Doggy Dogg.

Snoop got quick to work with Dr. Dre, first for the theme song for the film Deep Cover, then featuring on The Chronic, as I mentioned earlier. The intense exposure in such a short window paved the way for interest in Snoop recording his solo debut. Thus, Doggystyle was born.

Now, it makes sense that Doggystyle and The Chronic go hand-in-hand when discussing the former. After all, both albums feature Snoop, were produced by Dr. Dre, follow the newfound G-funk styling that would help reshape West Coast hip hop to be more melodious with groovin' beats, and lyrically deal with the gang violence and harsh reality that persisted in California at the time. As I've established, Snoop was a Crip, and as such, he's been in some shit with the street life. He certainly ain't praising that lifestyle if the lyrics to "Murder Was the Case" and "Serial Killa" are to go by, but rather offering cautious tales to sway young kids in the ghettos away from that grift. In that regard, Snoop's pretty effective in that lane with his laid-back cadence that emphasizes pronunciation so the listener understands every word he's saying. Of course, there are plenty of other bangers throughout this record, and not always about gang violence, as Snoop also shares his love for his vices on "Gin and Juice", and establishing his identity on "Who Am I (What's My Name)?" over phat beats and layered arrangements. Not to mention, the amount of talent that Snoop and Dre brought into the fold, including the furious bars of The Lady of Rage opposite George Clinton on "G Funk Intro", Jewell's infectious hook on "Who Am I (What's My Name)?", and the posse cut run from "For All My N----z and Bitches" through "Doggy Dogg World".

My one gripe with this album is simply how dated it all feels. Much like with The Chronic, there's a certain attitude toward women for sex that left a sour taste for me. The "bitches" and "hoes" get bragged about a lot through this record, to the point where the skit at the beginning of closer "Pump Pump" involves a woman ditching her man for Snoop. I don't consider it as bad as The Chronic was, as Snoop's cadence allows for a more sensual nature that can be carried effectively on cuts like "Lodi Dodi" and "Ain't No Fun (If the Homies Can't Have None)". But it is a persistent subject matter that's hard to ignore. At least the skits are shorter and better integrated into their respective songs, which is also an improvement from The Chronic.

Overall, Doggystyle is a solid debut for Snoop. Even if I am currently experiencing a fallout in interest with the man, he has already established himself decades ago, with a record that is fundamental in the evolution of West Coast hip hop.

After getting Music for the Jilted Generation as album #11 on my journey, I was curious about the follow-up, The Fat of the Land. After listening to it, I'd say they're about the same quality.

There are notable differences between both albums. In the case of Fat of the Land, it's brighter in tone such that more of the songs are danceable in structure. From the get-go with "Smack My Bitch Up" into "Breathe" the rave party vibe is very much present. Adding to that atmosphere is a more varied vocal presence. Whereas before Jilted had the one song "Poison" with vocal contributions, now nearly every track has a notable performer behind the mic, with the big presences here being the returning Maxim Reality and Keith Flint. Both the vocals and the tone contribute to a more palatable experience for newcomers to the big beat scene, compared to the darker and manic nature of Jilted.

That said, Fat of the Land is still longer than it should be. For sure, it's less than the runtime of Jilted, but the pacing bogs down toward the middle with the nine-minute "Narayan". That song tried to add ambiance with the drone and chants but was hampered by its drawn-out buildup and Crispian Mills' flimsy vocal presence. Also not helping matters is that this album ends on a cover song, in this case, a techno version of L7's "Fuel My Fire". It's not bad, but "Climbatize" felt like the proper ending in focusing on Liam Howlett's programming chops.

Overall, I still had a good enough time with Fat of the Land. Between this and Jilted, The Prodigy cemented themselves in the pantheon of 90s electronic music, that much is evident.

I will base my review on the track list of the original release of this album. Normally, I make a statement like this for an album review on this journey without any hesitation. The problem here is that I am excluding what could be considered the gateway track for this particular band.

I heard about the Lemonheads because of their cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson", which was added to subsequent re-releases of their breakthrough record, It's a Shame About Ray. I can imagine that for many people, this is the one song they will recognize from the group, much to the chagrin of frontman Evan Dando and original songwriter Paul Simon. It's a shame, pun intended, because the album this cover is retroactively associated with is pretty solid.

This is an intriguing blend of jangle pop and grunge, where the guitar tones are bright and crunchy at the same time, as Evan and company blaze through a rich slice of bouncing tunes about finding bliss that ebb from character stories to strifes for bliss amidst the drug-riddled reckless abandon. There's a lot of Evan's personality that shined through in his performance and abstract lyrics, as bassist Juliana Hatfield and drummer David Ryan provided a strong foundation for these songs to be built upon. Opener "Rockin' Stroll", the title track, "Rudderless", and "Alison's Starting to Happen" were personal highlights that showcased the cheery angst this record employed throughout.

If anything, my only complaint is that this record is rather short. Clocking in at under a half-hour, there were multiple instances where songs could have been expanded. I can see why people would favor inclusion of the "Mrs. Robinson" cover in later releases, yet I feel that "Frank Mills" still works as a closer. Perhaps more time in the studio would have helped in fleshing out some of these tracks.

Still, I consider It's a Shame About Ray to be quite a pleasant outing for The Lemonheads. It's good to know that they are worth more than the one cover song.

Here's a fun story: I took a "coding music" class during my senior year of college, where I learned how to make my own electronic music and the history of the genre. One of the artists talked about in that class was Kraftwerk, and I heard "The Robots" off this album, The Man Machine. I enjoy that song for its driving beat, the minimalist vocoder vocals, and the mixture of synthesizer loops and electronic keyboard strokes that interweave to create a mechanical atmosphere indicative of the titular robots.

That sentiment of the electronically driven atmosphere is carried throughout the rest of the album. The song compositions expand upon various loops and rhythms to generate a sound and style that invokes the given lyrical theme, oft divided between the advancement of machinery on the title track and "Spacelab" and the glitz and glamour of city life on "Metropolis", "The Model" and "Neon Lights".

I don't think I have much to complain about with The Man Machine. It's well-produced and well-executed in its intent like you would expect a machine to do, and it does not overstay its welcome at 36 minutes of runtime. Perhaps not everyone is on board with the minimalist nature of this album and electronic music in general, but I cannot deny the enjoyment I have in what it accomplishes with so little.

Okay, here’s the thing - I anticipated that there were going to be a few Rolling Stones albums on this list. With this debut album, each member is technically efficient in their respective right from the get-go, and on some level as a Stones fan it was cool to hear the humble beginnings of this group.

But that leads us to an undeniable truth - that this is a debut album consisting mostly of cover songs of the blues artists they were influenced by early on in their career, broken up by two original songs that admittedly aren’t well remembered. Technically good and flattering, but not something worth listening to before you die given what the Stones have accomplished in the latter half of the 60s onward.

I’d say this album is definitely for the diehard Stones fans - the ones who know what this band are capable of and want to further explore their roots. I know we got some true classics from them coming up on this journey, and this debut unfortunately doesn’t hold a candle to them.