Let\u2019s get one thing straight: Aquemini <\/i>is Outkast\u2019s best album. Sure, Stankonia <\/i>is great; a high point in hip-hop even, but it doesn\u2019t hold a candle to this crowning masterpiece. In the hip-hop genre it has only gotten better than this once, maybe twice.<\/p>\n
Yes, the lyrics are incredible, and the beats are near-perfect. But it\u2019s not only about that. It\u2019s the way that they craft the songs. There are little details on this album that you don\u2019t see on other hip-hop records. Take \u201cRosa Parks,\u201d for example, one of the best tracks on the album. The two-minute cut to a hip-hop version of boogie music isn\u2019t awkward or ambitious. It fits perfectly with the track, showcasing Outkast\u2019s southern roots. <\/p>\n
On the title track, after Andre and Big Boi\u2019s first two verses, the song seems to come to a close and the beat drops, only to hit you a few seconds later in full force accompanied by a low-toned verse from Big Boi. It\u2019s one of those moments in a song that you just keep rewinding and playing over and over because it\u2019s so powerful.<\/p>\n
Outkast still shines on the beats and lyrics. I could go on all day citing tight verses that Andre and Big Boi drop, but there is one simple opening line that really gets to me. On \u201cSkew It On The Bar-B\u201d Andre opens up with, \u201cThe common denominator, the nigga numerator \/ Never know who the hater, niggaz cater to your ego.\u201d In just one line Andre showcases his awareness by referencing to the worth America declared many years ago to all black peoples over all peoples\u2019 \u201ccommon denominator (the 3\/5 law),\u201d and how in subsequent years blacks \u201ccatered\u201d to the white race. Think about the power of those lyrics. What line could better draw someone into the song?<\/p>\n
And let\u2019s not forget Organized Noise. All hail Organized Noise. There is so much creativity here that makes this set of songs special. The attention to details on songs likes \u201cRosa Parks,\u201d \u201cChonkyfire\u201d and \u201cSpottieottiedogaliscious\u201d is unforgettable. You hear the basic beat and you think, yeah this is pretty good. And then on songs like \u201cSpottieottiedogaliscious\u201d the horns come in and it just blows you away. Production flourishes like that distinguish this from regular hip-hop discs. <\/p>\n
One of the best hip-hop albums ever created, Aquemini<\/i> may be one of the best albums of the 90s. This isn\u2019t just hip-hop, this is songcraft. A must <\/i>have.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":27362,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[6468],"rating":[5646],"class_list":["post-39953","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-outkast","rating-rating-a"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/39953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39953"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/39953\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=39953"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=39953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}