Blues people

WHILE IT'S TRUE that I tend to listen to things that are a bit moodier than the average sing-along ditty, I can get into happy, uplifting sounds, too. Last weekend I bought Alicia Myers's Alicia at the flea market for $2! Myers is the voice behind such dance classics as "I Want to Thank You" and "Don't Stop What You're Doing" – which was sampled by Slum Village on Fantastic Vol. 2. Alicia is very spiritual, a classic '80s soul album that I've been searching out for years.

But hell, this isn't a rare grooves column. So let me direct your attention toward Minneapolis MC Slug and two excellent 12-inch singles. The first, "Modern Man's Hustle" backed with "Onemosphere," "Twomosphere," and "Threemosphere" (Rhymesayers, www.rhymesayers.com), is from Atmosphere, Slug and producer Ant's group. "Modern Man's Hustle," a teaser single for the forthcoming Atmosphere album God Loves Ugly, is another bluesy chapter in Slug's oft-documented adventures with the opposite sex. The second 12-inch is a pairing of Slug and producer El-P, "RPM Revolutions per Minute Pt. 2.1" backed with a remix by Plex of Algorithm and a track with MC Serum and producer Induce, "Afterburner" (Counterflow, www.counterflowrecordings.com). The cut El-P blessed Slug with is a fantastically wild guitar-driven track over which Slug chants, "Pitch control don't work / The needles is dirty!"

El-P is as familiar this year in the column as Madlib was last year, a near-permanent fixture. A few weeks ago he performed at the Great American Music Hall with DJ Abilities, Mr. Lif, Aesop Rock, and DJ-producer RJD2. El-P and company fuckin' rocked it, putting on one of the best concerts I've seen this year. Meanwhile, emboldened by its success with albums by Cannibal Ox and Aesop Rock, El's Def Jux label has been flooding the market with product. One forthcoming addition to its catalog is Mr. Lif's EP Emergency Rations (Definitive Jux, www.definitivejux.net). Scheduled for release June 25, Emergency Rations finds Lif addressing sundry political issues and licking off battle rhymes like "I'm the type of kid who's on the positive tip / But that's because I suppress my urges to slaughter you quick."

Another label worth checking out is Fruitmeat, started by Robert 'Bobbito' Garcia after the demise of his now-legendary Fondle 'Em imprint. Fruitmeat just released two singles for your perusal: Atlanta MC Binkis's "Eyeam" backed with "Bullitt (Silencer)" and Sub-Conscious's "Irreconcilable" backed with "Lyrics Loverz Deluxe" (Fruitmeat, www.somosarte.com/Bobbito). Both 12-inches are typical of the raw, freestyle-oriented production that made Fondle 'Em one of the most important hip-hop labels of the '90s.

I guess if there's one recording this month that satisfies my hunger for somber, gloomy hip-hop, it's Canadian producer Stigg of the Dump's Still Alive at the Veglia Lounge EP (Endemik, www.endemikmusic.com). I picked up this 10-inch record because Buck 65 and Sixtoo of the Sebutones make guest appearances on it, but I was soon enraptured by Stigg of the Dump's gloriously depressing instrumental for "Pointing Fingers." Then there's "Five Dollar Jesus," where Buck 65 raps about a mentally unstable shut-in waiting for a visitor, and "Garbage Rain," on which Sixtoo rhymes, "You don't know me / I change every time I wake up / It's about now / Pack your shit this is a break-up / Floodgates are wide open / Ready for a emotional downfall / Dominoes stacked against brick walls." In other words, have a nice day!

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