Nearly perfect
One of the most amazing albums I have ever heard! I've been a fan of DJ Shadow for ages and when I heard Quannum's "Spectrum" I loved Gift's rapping and had to buy the A to G EP and this. Its one of the most diverse sounding albums out there and the tracks could stand alone even without the Gift of Gabs often outstanding lyrics. The music is amazing, the rapping is incredible. DJ Shadow and the almost as amazing Latryx make guest apppearances - stand out tracks "If I may", "Smithzonian Institute..", "Do this my way" and " You didnt know that know". DJ Shadow is as inventive as always with the bizarre "Cliffhanger". With 19 tracks, none any worse than great, it'd be a shame to miss out on this accomplished, groundbreaking album. If you know anyone that refuses to listen to Hip Hop, introduce them via "Nia" - and they'll see the light.
Perhaps the best on the Left.
Gift of Gab's interesting, harmonic flow is the highlight of this excellent example of what hip hop could be. If only other hip hop artists could take the example set by Blackilicious, J5 and DJ Shadow, and actually add artistic creativity to their work, the world would be a better place. It's true that a few of the tracks found here are on the A2G EP, but the album still works as a coherent work. And as I said earlier, Gift of Gab tops it off as the most interesting MC to come out of the west coast since the heyday of g-funk. The highlights on this album are "Deception" with its infectiously catch hook, "Do this My Way" with Gift of Gab's exploration of flow, and "AtoG" with it's lyrical workout. If you're just getting into Blackilicious, get this album first. Wait, screw that, buy both this and the EP, cause you're gonna want to hear "Alphabet Aerobics" to hear the completion of the expansion of the AtoG workout.
Awesome
This album would be complete Fire this thing is absolutely sick there are some very awesome beats and equally if not more sick raps expecially on A to G where he is spitting many words out.They are one of the top groups in rap these days and we can only hope to here more from them in the Future this is great
Lyrics 10/10 Production 10/10 X Factor 9/10 Classic 10/10 Me 10
Overall=49/50 This album gets a rating of 5 MicsAlso recommended by Chris Guide:Freestyle Fellowship,J-5
Yet another 5 star review to convince and get your attention
When you listen to this CD, you seriously think a rapper and a producer have finally done it. Like, they've done it. What is "it" you asked? Make the future of hip-hop ahead of its time. This is predicting the future of underground hip-hop as the Beastie Boys did with Paul's Boutique in 1989...just brilliant.
The reason this CD is brilliant is because its an underground album with a semi-mainstream marketing image. Every single track is a classic because Chief Xcel produces how he wants, so all tracks sound smooth and not overproduced. Speaking of overproduce, there is no A&R direction to force making or conforming to a certain sound...they just "did it," which makes this a classic. And then there's the Gift of Gab. He's a true lyrical genius when he expresses it thoughts, and in every track it shows. Just take a listen. He tells the abosolute truth about the state of hip-hop, adding his own creativity and lyrical genuis inbetween. If you are listening to 50 cent in your CD player right now, put this CD in, listen to it in its whole, and I guarantee you it will convice you that compared to Blackalicous, 50 Cent has a musical IQ of less than 30. This CD will really get your creative juices in your brain going, and exposes you to the underground flawlessly.
This is ridiculous!
This is album is near flawless, maybe one of the best hip-hop albums ever, certainly one of the best of the year. It is just about as skip-proof as can be. The first song say it all, Blackalicious are fabolous! Songs like Deception, Trouble and If I May will keep you in a trance as you listen to Gab insightful flow over Xcel's smooth beats. Gab flow on this is at the top of his game, which is already at the top of just about all of hip-hop. If you like hip-hop that makes sense, and makes you think, NIA is where its at.
With each release, Blackalicious expand the definition of hip-hop to suit themselves. In the capable hands of MC Gift of Gab, one of the best in the business, a rhyme can be personal, like a whisper from a close friend. Or it can be a searing battle rap. On Nia, producer Chief Xcel creates rhythms that burst with life: everything from snaky Middle Eastern beats to thundering bass lines. --Lizz Mendez Berry
With Nia, Blackalicious hit their stride as leaders of the hip-hop true school. The Sacramento-based duo of producer/DJ Chief Xcel and lyricist The Gift of Gab has been creating luscious, intelligent music since they started out in 1994, and Nia shows them at their best. Gab's rhyming skills are supreme, ranging from evocative storytelling about fame and misfortune ("Deception") to rapped reflections on the state of his art ("Shallow Days") and scathing straight spitting ("Trouble"). A true master of ceremonies, Gab keeps it right by grounding his lyrics in his own experience, preventing his antiestablishment message from getting boring. On the musical front, Xcel's beats fit Gab's wordplay like a glove. They range from the funky, caffeinated drum stutters of "Fabulous Ones," to knowing piano-laced patterns (on the genius "Deception") and slinky, serpentine, Middle Eastern styles ("Smithzonian Institute of Rhyme"). Nia is honest music: from Xcel's carefully stitched-together, relentlessly inventive beats, to Gab's personal poetics. This is soul food for your ears. --Lizz Mendez Berry
First full length album from hip-hop supergroup featuring Lateef, Lyrics Born of Latyrx and DJ Shadow. 19 tracks. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.
