Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Yeah, you gets PROPS over HERE!", July 25, 2007
After releasing their EP Intoxicated Demons in 1993, the Beatnuts' debut full length "Street Level" arrived at the height of east coast hip hop's golden era, 1994. While this album isn't spectacular as a piece of hip hop in its own right, "Street Level" works as a very consistent piece that mostly reflects what a great time 1994 was for hip hop. At this time, creative and appealing production was valued highly, and raw lyrics that stayed true to hip hop were embraced by a wider audience. "Street Level" is a product of all of these factors, and it's really a very fun album. While JuJu, Les, and Fashion aren't great rappers, they're tons of fun to listen to, again reflecting the best styles of the era. They rap about drugs, women, partying, and the classic boom-bap type of toasts. There's hooks ripe with yelling and chants, and lyrically it's fun without being deep. But the true draw for any Beatnuts album is obviously the production. The beats on this album are somewhere between Cypress Hill's claustrophobic funk and The Artifacts' upbeat old school style. The beats are quite simple, but they are clever and very appealing. Usually anchored by a nice bassline and some light instrumentals, they have a light, easy, and laidback feel for the most part. The album relies on consistency, no songs stand out and none would really be too memorable on their own, but as an album it's extremely fluid. The songs all sound fairly similar, and they flow seamlessly from one into the next. You can just put this album in the player and let it roll, without ever wanting to skip a track. Overall, "Street Level" is a really fun party album from a very underappreciated group.
Following the intro, the album begins with "Ya Don't Stop," a winding and solid opener. "Props Over Here" is the first great song, with a great laidback and catchy beat and nice hook. "Hellraiser" is also really nice, with a beat built around a cool keyboard line and the chorus here is awesome. After the appealingly uneasy Grand Puba collabo "Are You Ready" is the excellent "Superbad," both a musical and lyrical highlight. "Straight Jacket" is upbeat and vibesy, and it is followed by the short "Let Off a Couple." I really like this song, this track is only a minute and a half long, but at the end the full version is curiously included as a bonus track. "Rik's Joint" is a very smooth head-nodder, with some nice female vocals on the hook. The loopy "Fried Chicken" and okay "Yeah You Get Props," which is very similar to "Props Over Here," precede the nicely produced "Get Funky." "Hit Me With That" is another solid late-album track, as is "2-3 Break," which has multiple nice beats on it. I love the production on "Lick the P...," a laidback, slow-rolling sex song. The brief "Sandwiches" and funny, entertaining "Psycho Dwarf" close the tracklist.
Being the incredible year that 1994 was for hip hop, the Beatnuts' debut LP went a little under the radar, but it has definitely stood the test of time and remains a great album thirteen years later. This album is the kind of fun, light, and laidback hip hop that's perfect for the car or just chilling to. Fans of this early-90s east coast sound should definitely make this purchase. The Beatnuts have a huge discography that includes numerous quality and underrated albums, and this is certainly among the best, I would recommend it as a starting point for new Beatnuts listeners. I highly recommend "Street Level."
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Diabolical Sound Comin' Through Your Speaker, June 27, 2001
This is Beatnuts at their prime. The skills are there, and the beats are infectious. Fashion, JuJu, and Les form like Voltron on this LP. Tracks like "Straight Jacket", "2-3-Break", "Rik's Joint", "Hellraiser", "Get Funky", and "Are you Ready", with Grand Puba, are just some of the prime examples of why these cats are so highly regarded by their true fans. They are influenced and inspired by the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, Brand Nubian, Cypress Hill etc. Jazzy loops, breaks, and on point scratching and hooks are plentiful on this 1994 release. Highly recommended for the first time listener. The "Intoxicated Demons EP" will also do a fine job of getting you hooked on this crew. Get Funky. Peace.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
...phat sh!t..., September 30, 2001
...i done wore thru 2 cassette tapes and all of the silver from the cd playin this! this is a favorite and the best album they've put out. critics useta complain that their rhyme style was to simplistic, but they aint twista or bone-thugs...their delivery here was perfect for the sound and content they were creating. they done lost somethin now...i cant put my finger on it...but their two latest releases cant compare to this. the level of fun, atmosphere and braggadocio here is what true hip hop was all about.
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by The Beatnuts 
