Hopefully everyone's grown tired of the constant drama surrounding the hip-hop community. The Ja Rule and 50 Cent beef was just straight lame, no matter how talented you find either one. And bad blood between Benzino and Eminem was entertaining until the magazine impresario decided to go overboard and exploit his magazine for self-promotion. If I wanted beef, I'd go to McDonalds. I don't need to hear herbs constantly attacking each other from behind a mic in the safety of their home studios. While these feuds have helped take hip-hop to a new low, there actually is some "Crappy Old Sh*t" still worth checking out.
While any crew mostly known only by its cult following in the dwellings of the underground probably could have come up with a more marketable title for their latest LP than "Crappy Old Sh*t," the title is not indicative of the contents of the music.
The West coast super-group known as the Living Legends have been producing genuine hip-hop since the early 1990s, beginning with Oakland's Mystik Journeyman, which was composed of BFAP (now known as Sunspot Jonz) and PSC. Murs, Scarub, and Eligh were part of the 3 Melancholy Gypsys -- the 3MG -- and the Log Cabin Crew. When the Log Cabin Crew parted ways, the 3MG and Mystik Journeyman formed Living Legends, while expanding the group with Asop, the Grouch, Bicasso and Arata.
After a slew of releases, the Living Legends has garnered a huge following in the underground while mainstream radio has avoided them like Fat Joe avoiding a treadmill. While the Living Legends emcees all have recorded successful solo efforts, the group comes together best on its collaborative efforts, as is proven on classics like "Almost Famous" and "Unsigned and Hella Broke 5," one of its live show releases.
"Crappy Old Sh*t" doesn't showcase any new songs. Instead it's a collection of odds-and-ends recorded from 1995 to 1998, "when we used to live together and music recording was happening all the time." The music may sound rough at times, but this ruggedness is emblematic of a raw talent and depth that most projects recorded in the best studios by the highest-paid professionals only can fake. While the remix compilation boomed last year, and Nas scored with the "Lost Tapes," "Crappy Old Sh*t" falls somewhere around the two genres because the majority of songs didn't have the circulation the "Lost Tapes" did prior to its release.
Murs, who's been on a recording tear lately, releasing the "Felt" EP with Slug and the solo EP "Varsity Blues" while working on "The End of the Beginning," his upcoming Def Jux debut, has the thunder of self-consciously rising star. "No one wants us our props/ Passin' all stops," he boasts with typical lyrical flair on "Speed Bumps." "Murs Act a Fool!!!" showcases Murs ripping a Grouch beat combined with scratches from Bicasso.
"Black Sands" a Sunspot, Jonz and PSC collaboration, addresses fake emcees inspired by a buster named Ned with lyrics by Sunspot. "As you tackle the stage, you should be under / Observing my crew / Water bottle in hand grabbing your crotch / With a towel over your eyes / To hide the lies," he bitterly raps. PSC drops Ned as well with little effort, as it seems hip-hop has more Ned's than the Flanders residence.
Recorded at the Grouch's house, the 17 minute long "Vital" uncovers freestyles from various Legends going off over a drum beat or sometimes a capella. This simple offering may not be appreciated by all people, but for LL the pure craft of their free-styling must be exalted.
Eligh crafts heated beats like "GO" and "Cliff Notes," but the M.V.P. -- Most Valuable Producer -- of the album goes to the Grouch, for his variety of intriguing instrumentals from "Tom Bass" to "Speed Bumps." The Grouch recently released "Crusader for Justice," which could go down as one of the most slept-on hip-hop albums ever.
While the sound may be a little too underdeveloped at times, remember their monetary restrictions and the fact that most of these recordings were made for their own amusement. If you can ignore the sound quality, most of these songs glimmer like diamonds in the rough.
But if you're not feeling this older offering, don't give up on the Legends -- there's plenty of regular releases worth the extra effort to track down. Besides Murs' upcoming release, the crew soon will be releasing "Creative Differences" and Eligh's "Poltergeist." As long as Shaolin's Wu-Tang stays on a recording hiatus, those looking for a new collective should check the Living Legends crew.
If you're not a Hip-Hop fan and criticize the genre's limitation without having actually listened to any Legends material, then you should either check 'em out or retire your headphones and start a stamp collection.
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