Review – Mars ILL ‘Backbreakanomics’

Rapzilla Staff Rating:
Average User Rating:
{mainvote}

Forget what you heard and let Mars ILL enter. The duo of Dust and manCHILD have spent much of their hip hop career in relative obscurity. However, with the release of Backbreakanomics, and the promise of a solid push into the market, now may be the time to change all that. No question, they have the talent to make it, they already have the street credibility. Dust is at the top of production talent. When manCHILD drops a verse, it’s almost always a classic. Together they create captivating tracks that scream underground and still reach the general public. From the liner art to the liner notes to the tracks themselves, Backbreakanomics is a statement. Life is a process. The lyrics touch on themes like the effects others have on our character, finding peace in life, and patiently enduring whatever life throws your way. Even the tracks beneath the lyrical display lend themselves to the statement. As polished as they are, Dust throws in a blaring baritone or a dirty bass strain now and again to announce that nothing in life is perfect or complete. And yet it’s that kind of dissidence that makes life real. That makes progress possible. And it’s that admission, that they’re not perfect, that makes Mars ILL real, accessible, and relevant. “‘Cause if it’s easy it ain’t real, not perfect it could be right, let’s embrace all our flaws here tonight…” Working through the tracks you get a sense of the whole. The picture becomes clearer. Mars ILL has a platform and this is their message. Don’t miss it. Make sure you follow along. The message is solid, the delivery is intense. “Can’t get on the field of play, if you don’t got the right equipment.” With Backbreakanomics, Mars ILL has suited up, jumped on the field and run all over the competition. This is a truly spectacular release and quite possibly the best hip hop has offered thus far this year.

Release Date: August 19, 2003

Label: Gotee Records

Tracklisting:
1. Eighty eight
2. Breathe slow
3. Planes and trains
4. Afterlife
5. Black box artist (boom bap)
6. Inside out
7. Enterchange
8. Let me
9. Alpha male
10. PSA #428
11. Freeze framework
12. Sideline speech
13. Next door
14. Piecemeal
15. Stepson
16. Sunstep
17. Lump sum
18. The calm before
19. He

RELATED ARTICLES

Most Popular