Prefuse 73 - Surrounded By Silence (2005)

I think we can all agree on one thing: the state of mainstream hip-hop in 2005 is shaky at best, unlistenable at worst. I don't want to name check any of the main offenders -mostly through fear of retaliatory shootings - however, it is safe to say that the time has come for us to look for good hip-hop outside of the mainstream. One player who has been making waves in the underground scene in the USA, is a gentleman by the name of Prefuse 73 (a/k/a Guillermo Scott Herren). Surrounded By Silence is an awesome - if not always easily accessible - album. If you are a fan of DJ Shadow's Endtroducing, then chances are you will like this album. The beats are chopped up all over the place, the cut and paste sampling is on point, and a good deal of the production work is quite mind-blowing. The album is a mix of instrumental and vocal tracks - probably the coolest thing about the album is the line-up of MCs that put down rhymes. Prefuse 73 has pulled together some of the best known names in hip-hop (Wu-Tang Clan's Ghostface Killa, GZA & Masta Killa) and paired them with today's underground heroes (El-P, Aesop Rock - both from the Definitive Jux label). The combination works extraordinarily well. The highlight track for me is Hide Ya Face, which features both Ghostface and El-P throwing down. With 21 tracks in all, Surrounded By Silence is not always an easy listen - if you want verse-verse-chorus-verse, look elsewhere - but it is some of the most imaginative and forwarding thinking music put to wax recently, and is ultimately a rewarding listen.

Check out: www.prefuse73.com