Customer Reviews

Definitive Jux Presents 3 [Explicit]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Some of the reviews have said this isnt a very impressive compilation. I would have to disagree. I have followed Def Jux for a long time, and I think this album is quite good. Yes, there are some lackluster tracks on here.. such as: Make News, Homesickness, Aquatic and Jello. Unfortunately these few that I have mentioned are practically unlistenable. But in contrast to these few poor tracks... both Aesop Rock tracks are nice, Rob Sonic's track is nice too. El-p's tracks are dope, Oxycontin 2 is a great concept track. Hangar 18 came off amazing on both songs. For the most part this album is not only good, it is great, but due to the 4 poor songs, I had to give it only 3.5 stars.

The Aesop Rock and RJD2 tracks are really exceptional. I didn't like everything else, but that's really why I bought the album, to find out about good artists. If you're buying this for the same reason, or if you're completely new to the underground, I reccomend the Anticon label sampler as well.

the latest installment of the definitive jux roster is back, and in some regards better than ever. this one is easily better than djxp2...better beats and lyrics. contrary to other reviews...i think el-p did a nice job with his lyrics and beats...but i feel aesop rock has fallen off a bit with his wordplay; although i sense it more in his voice and delivery. gems of the album for myself are tracks 7-9...homesickness is just absolutely ill, with devil in the hole's hook very catchy and nice. i would have given this album a 5 but without cannibal ox i just can't.

i was disappointed by Aesop Rock, El-P and the rest. but Def Jux's new commers make this CD worth its every penny (Hangar 18, Despot)

Sigh, can you really compare El-P's new cd to this release? No, because one's a jazz album, and one's hip hop. Now that that is out of the way, I have to say i think the opposite of "Donn Ronn" the idiot. I've seen almost every def jux artist in concert, new and old, and must say the new artists defenitely aren't bogging this cd down. The tracks from Aesop Rock, Murs, and RJD2 and other def jux vets are awesome, and tracks from rookies like 4th pyramid, and especially hangar 18 are very dope. I think if there is someone bogging the record down it would be el-p himself. some of his lyrics, like the ones on WMR, aren't what you would expect to hear from el-p. Despite the occasionaly dull/cliche lyrics from camu-tao's collab with el-p, or on his joint as SA Smash, all the beats are awesome, and its overall a good taste of what's to come from def jux.

I gotta agree with an earlier reviewer (Donn Ronn I think) from Brooklyn. Def Jux 3 is frighteningly bad. If it wasn't for the Aes Rock track, and the track by Hangar 18, both of which are decent, this album would be f*#king hopeless. The newcomers aren't really showin us nothin. Its just alotta gums bumpin. This must be a throw-away album for El. Thats's the only explaination for the half-bakedness of it. He must have been too focused on High Water to put any real work into DJ3. I'm hoping thats all it is. Because, on the bright side, none of the Def Jux compilations have been that memorable. They've all kind of been these prompters for the solo releases, which are always better, so maybe the wackness of this album isn't anything to be worried over. I'll tell you though, I'm startin to get nervous.

I bought this soley off the reputation of the Def Jux label. For the most part, Def Jux comes through with raw, depth, atmospheric music. Understandably, Def Jux is growing with lots of new various artist, and each artist is trying to develop there own sound. Def Jux, which was once known for kind of a universal sound has vastly changed the past year or so. Def Jux is very diverse now, it's no longer just Lif, Aes, Can 'O and El-P - There's new cats that don't follow the sinister forumula that El-P established with Def Jux. Some consider this good, which it can be, considering it expands there horizans in exploring new sounds, but for long time Jukie fans like me - you kind of sit back and twiddle your thumbs in hope for another Fantastic Damage, or I Phantom, or Cold Vien, the albums that established Def Jux as we known it.

I had mixed feelings with this album, which is a first for me with Def Jux. Normally, anything I buy from this guys is dope - and im not talking 1 or 2 songs dope; im talking the ENTIRE album dope. But this is first album iv'e bought (off the def jux label) where I have to say that this album has its fair share of hit and misses.

The veteran Jukies came through exceptionally well. As usual, Aesop comes with straight fire in "All in All", the hard bassline beat is done well, with the occasional space sounds creeping through the beat. C-Ray-Walz comes through with a song that sounds similiar to his last effort, Ravipops - except with a more cleaner beat. "The Perceptionist" come through ok, Mr. Lif saves the track in my opinion, the beat is ok - they bite the Digitial Underground "Freak of the Industries" bassline; but thats ok, they actually make it sound better. Murs is having a great year so far - His "9th edition" CD has become an underground hit, and he comes really hard with "You're Dead To Me" - talking about fake artists, and whatnot. RJD2 comes through with a dope instrumental for the last track of the album. Surprisingly, El-P came weak in this album. He's on 2 tracks on this album, and both of them are the worst tracks on the CD. "WMR" is an extremly dull, looped beat, and no one really comes with dope rhymes. "Oxycontin Part 2" is another weak effort in my opinion - the song is not bad, but you'd expect much more from El-P then this.

On the other hand, some of the newer members come really nice. "DYLSeXIA" is one of my favoriate tracks. Simple melody, with guitar build-ups throughout the song. "HomeSickness" is another one of my favorites. The beat is absolutely devastating - exactly what I was looking for. Despot comes tight, and hard. S.A Smash come good, except there beat never drops, which is a shame. "Take No Chances" is an average track, good beat, exceptional rhymes.

Overall, the newer members of Def Jux really come hard in this album, while the older members seem to took the weaker beats, maybe to let the newer members shine more. Who knows. It's a shame there is no Vast Aire or Vurdal anywhere on this CD - which wouldv'e been nice, considering those 2 MC's drop nice rhymes.

The Jukie jury has been silent for too long... The new acts on Def Jux are just not in the same class as El-P (whose phenomenal jazz album "High Water" dropped the same day), Aesop Rock, Can Ox, MURS, and RjD2, and the album suffers immensely because of it. I will not name names but there are some incredibly awful tracks on this one, the kind that grow irritating after thirty seconds and cannot even be listened to in their entirety. Nothing on here comes close to matching any of the label's earlier output.
This is not a diss from a fickle fan, this is a plea to the greatest hip hop label of all time to continue producing what they're known for: QUALITY ART.
I suppose it is obvious that one cannot expect a "Fantastic Damage", "Bazooka Tooth", "I Phantom", or "Cold Vein", every release... and yes this is a compilation, not an album, but this is weak. Come on. Honestly. Even the cover art (merely a replica of the website homepage) is uninteresting and (gulp) commercial.
I'm sorry but I have to be honest, and I'm not trying to hurt sales with my opinions- in fact, buy it and form your own judgement. Buy it if only for the reason that this label should be supported. I am simply a concerned fan, and I think I speak for a lot of people who absolutely love this label and would faithfully stand behind anything it produces- This one hurts.

To start, EL-P aka EL Producto deserves alot more respect for his work on this record.
Unlike the vast majority of reveiws, I rate this album.
Its not just the efforts of 1 or 2 MC's that make it dope, its a good sample of quality jux as a label,and after a few spins you'll see why. I give it the 4 stars solely on the fact that it could have been compiled in a better order or maybe a couple of other tracks added to the mix. Overall its a must have for any indie hip-hop fan.

Well the wait is finally over, this joint dropped on the 9th of this month i just got my copy last night. Good lord this album is hot. solid s%^t from veteran jukies like Ace Rock (who also did the production on MURS's contribution to this effort), Perceptionist, & RJD2 to name a few, but what i found suprising is that the newcomers like 4th Pyramid, and Hangar 18 had the strongest tracks by far. 2004 looks to be a good year for Def Jux, as long as they keep droppin fresh material like this.