Man, talking about taking a trip down memory lane. We are going all the way back to 2018, and on this special review, we are talking about one of my favourite rap albums by my favourite rapper of all time, ‘Jay-Z’, and his ‘Black Album’.
An album that is engraved in the fabric of Hip Hop and changed the landscape as we know it today. But as fantastic as that album is, we have produced ‘BigGhostLtD’, a man who, to say it lightly, has created a new wave of standards and quality in this modern era with countless present-day classics that just can’t be matched.
But on this day in 2018, he decided to take on a mammoth of a task and make a near-perfect album even more so! So let’s talk about it!
First of all, it seems like Big Ghost has brought a new level of ‘bombastic’ that wasn’t originally there.
His level of unparalleled production and masterful attention to details is clear on this one. With tracks like ‘Encore’, for example, a track with the original having a dare, I say, ‘flat’, and not as exciting instrumentals in the album, especially after the refreshed Linkin Park X Jay Metal edition took over everyone’s attention regarding this song.
But Big Ghost adding slowed reverb beats with heightened bass and a more snappy drum pattern to finally make this track feel ‘alive’ compared to the original. Not to mention the classical instrumentation that runs through the song gives it that ‘theatrical’ flavour it didn’t have normally.
If I had to choose the most interesting spin on the album, it would have to be ‘Dirt Off Your Shoulder’, which arguably had the hardest beat on the original, but on this re imagined version, Big has added an almost 80’s ‘surf rock’ flavour to the track. Making this track feel like a montage song they might have used in an offshoot grease film or some movie with a beach scene with some wild teens. I’d have to sit on this one for a few days, but I can’t decide if I enjoy this beat over the original, but regardless, it’s fresh and definitely interesting!
On the flip side of things. The track 99 Problems, which to me (the original) always had a bit over-the-top chaotic energy to it as far as the production has. But on this one, Big Ghost gives it a more relaxed, smooth rendering with big guitar notes on loop and some kind of flute sound, but still, I think this version suits the song more!
The song ‘Lucifer,’ which again had one of the best beats on the whole tape with that pseudo-reggae atmosphere to it by Kanye West, but on this version, while maintaining the reggae theme, Big adds a more slower, deeper, rich production with a more ambient tone to the track, and I gotta say I fuck with it!
As far as a re imagining goes, this one is as legit as it gets. Such fresh, crisp, and versatile experimentations that I can’t help but respect the vision Big Ghost was trying to convey over this one, and I feel everyone should give it a listen at least once!
https://bigghostlimited.bandcamp.com/album/the-black-album-revisited
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