Potholes Picks
Nosaj Thing – Home
Nosaj Thing - Home Innovative Leisure: 2013 It’s been over three years since Nosaj Thing (real name: Jason Chung) released his stunning debut Drift. In that part of Nosaj’s career it was easy to pin him running with the LA beat scene crew,…
Action Bronson & Alchemist – Rare Chandeliers
Action Bronson & Alchemist - Rare Chandeliers Self-released: 2012 The original draft for Rare Chandeliers was being formed around the time I wrote our piece on Pharcyde’s Bizarre Ride II… While reflecting on that album two things dawned on me: one,…
Captain Murphy – Duality
Captain Murphy - Duality Self-released: 2012 In writing about the Weeknd recently, I got all angsty about how he began his career as a mysterious artist, though he was clearly poised to blow up. While it’s true that good art will…
Roc Marciano – Reloaded
Roc Marciano - Reloaded Decon: 2012 Street rap is the heart and guts of this rap shit. Even as it continues to occupy a very precarious space in the critical and popular imagination, street rap smirks and stands its ground. Even…
Karriem Riggins – Alone Together
Karriem Riggins - Alone Together Stones Throw: 2012 Much has been written of the spiritual connections between hip-hop and jazz music over the years, and though hardly a household name even in the rap world, few could hope to embody this…
Kendrick Lamar – good kid, m.A.A.d. city
Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d. city Interscope Records/Aftermath Entertainment: 2012 First things first: good kid, m.A.A.d. city, Kendrick Lamar’s debut album on Aftermath/Interscope records, is unequivocally awesome. But you already knew that. Since the MC’s unconventionally great Section.80 (2011), Kendrick has become the…
Flying Lotus – Until the Quiet Comes
Flying Lotus - Until The Quiet Comes Warp: 2012 Flying Lotus is part of a new generation of artists that can gain a lot of critical attention through crossover novelty. Once relegated to the mildly silly likes of Run DMC and…
The Gaslamp Killer – Breakthrough
The Gaslamp Killer - Breakthrough Brainfeeder: 2012 It’s almost hard to believe that Breakthrough, The Gaslamp Killer’s latest release on Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder imprint, is his debut solo full-length. It’s hard to believe because his smoke obscured, heavy-lidded presence has loomed…
Brother Ali – Mourning In America and Dreaming In Color
Brother Ali - Mourning In America and Dreaming In Color Rhymesayers: 2012 During my morning commute the other day, some tool in a Baby Momma Benz cut me off. The license plate read: CPTLIST. After letting them know that I thought…
Rapsody – The Idea Of Beautiful
Rapsody - The Idea Of Beautiful IWWMG: 2012 For those of you who were sleeping: “You need to wake your ass up!” Hip-hop has long survived as an acronym, courtesy of Common, and even as the “Olympic sponsor of the black glock,”…
