Customer Reviews

Take Two

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

THIS RECORD IS UNIQUE, CREATIVE, AND INTELLIGENT. YOU HAVEN'T HEARD HIP-HOP LIKE THIS BEFORE.

Don't listen when a Norwegian criticizes this album. You have to have a handle on the English language before you can appreciate the different levels of meaning in the lyrics. I've listened to this record more than I care to estimate, and I still hear new things or lyrics that I didn't catch before.

The whole album is brilliant; some lyrics border on creative genius. The beats are killer. Everytime I listen to it I wish that I knew how to play the drums. The other instrumentation is what really makes this album unique though. It's got some Spanish style and jazzy stuff that really sets it apart from the crowd. If you're looking for the very best in hip-hop (Christian or otherwise), you're going to want to buy this one.

...I am always afriad Christian artists will deteriorate or won't improve upon their previous albumns. Ill harmonics gave me hope! The albumn is awesome and you really need to buy the CD to get the full impact of how good their tunes are on the new cut. You can tell these guys have spent some serious time in the studio. Once again, I am very impressed and really look forward to getting my hands on anything Blake or Plato put out in the future; look for the solos also coming soon. ----->lAtE

I have to say that this band is amazing. I was very skeptical to listen to a Christian hip-hop band but these guys blew me away. My church had them come for a concert and when they took the stage I was amazed. Their style reminds me of The Roots and Black Eyed Peas put together. They are clearly one of the better hip-hop acts out today, Christian or not. More people need to know about these guys so they keep putting out records.

This is a great album. Easily the best Christian hiphop album, and one of the best hiphop albums ever. There are so many great songs, but every song is good. My favorite tracks are: Take Two, The Crowd is Standing, Cats Like these, Gypsy Kind, & What We Do, although I love every song. The lyrics, beats, rapping, & instrumentals are all excellent. The lyrics are outstanding, a lot more than your average "Yo yo clubbin with shorty and my homeboyz" crap. This album is a lot better than their first album, although it was good. Ill Harmonics keep it real yet funky. Playdough is a sweet emcee and Blake Knight is good too. Blake Knight actually sounds alot like Guru from Gang Starr. Take Two is an excellent LP that every hiphop fan should own.

This Album is quite a listening. Many songs i liked at first listen and there are only a couple of songs that arent as -quality- as the others. Dont Worry bout what Hans Ivar Stordal said. I agree about what he said about Blake Knight, he isnt the best Emcee but he isnt the worst either. Playdough is a champion, an awesome Emcee who really rocks his own style which suits his voice. They have improved alot from their first album and i would recommend this to anyone. As to their first album they use alot of guitar which is different to your usual. As people in Australia like myself, who cant get the album of the shelf, if you like playda, its a diffenite buy off amazon[.com] or off http://www.uprokrecords.com

Take it easy

I first noticed this albulm while breezing through the rap section at my local Christian bookstore. The design on the cover, coupled with the very familiar sounding name, pulled me in more than anything. After giving a quick listen to the first 30 seconds or so of every song, I immediately purchased it.

Being the victim of so many poorly produced and talent-lacking Christian rap CDs, I can't tell you how impressed I am with this CD. The production and mixing abilities of Blake Knight, combined with the unbeatable, smooth-flowing lyrical skills of PlayDough make for a ear-tickling, mouth-watering delight of an album. My favorites tracks include: Take Two, The Crowd is Standing, Destiny, and Gypsy Kind. That is not to say that the rest of the tracks are no good; on the contrary, every track on this album is unique and stylish from the rest.

The reason I give this album only four stars is the fact that Blake Knight is very lacking as an emcee. Granted, he has some of the finest writing abilities one could ask for. He does a tremendous job putting the music together on this CD. However, I think this album would have been so much better if he would have stuck to the writing and music, and left the rapping to PlayDough. Another downside is the lack of spanish guitar work by PlayDough. There are only two songs on the album where PlayDough includes his excellent spanish guitar playing, and those two songs are my favorite. Hopefully PlayDough's solo album will have a lot more spanish guitar than this one.

Overall, this album is a great addition to the rap industry. I look forward to anything Blake Knight and PlayDough put out in the future. If you haven't heard this album, listen to some of the samples and check this CD out. I guarentee it will be in your CD player for months at a time. 4 out of 5 stars.

- Trisk

Ill Harmonics * Take Two (Uprok Records, 2002) Produced by Ill Harmonics

For fans of: DC Talk/ BK& Associates/ E-Roc/ Rhymes Monumental/ EMINEM

Ill Harmonics is the kind of group that you can auto- matically like. Maybe its the rhyme ability. Maybe its the Jazzy melodies. The only thing is, the way they craft their lyrics, its hard to get the message on some of the songs right away. Which is okay, because the more you play them, the more you'll like them.

Pick hits: Bowtie Jerks/ Must Be Crazy


Positive Beat Magazine
LaZeric Freeman

I was first exposed to Ill Harmonics totally by accident at Cornerstone, before they had even released their EP (which, IMO, is the best thing they ever produced!). Easily my favorite show of the weekend, and I became a big fan that day. I was also struck by their affinity for acoustic tracks (they had a live band at Cornerstone), which is something they have largely kept to during each of their albums.

Unfortunately, they are not as good on their albums as they are live, but this album is some pretty good stuff. I will echo the sentiments of some of the other reviewers that Blake Knight leaves much desired in the emcee department, but Playdough is one of the finest white guys in the industry =]

This album has got a nice polish on it, especially with "The Crowd Is Standing" and "San Jose."

My best friend is the new third member.
These guys are blow'n up all over currently working with Sonny of P.O.D. Keep an eye out for the new album "Monkey Business" dropping in Feb. 2004!!!

Check out the new website!

www.illharmonics.biz

A low-key, laid back rap album with typically up-front Christian messages in the raps. The dominant musical instrument is acoustic guitar, sometimes done with a reverb to give one type of flavor, other times done in Spanish guitar flavor. The song "San Jose" even has a bossa nova feel to it. Overall, the album's flavor reminds me of Southern California or elsewhere in the Southwest. One song whose message I particularly like, "Mr. Chris T. Ian," is a strong statement against hypocrisy among Christians.