▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
████████▀ ▄███████████▀ ▄▄▄██████████▀▀▀ ▄▄███████████████████████████
██████▀ ▄██████████▀▀ ▄██████████▀▀▀ ▄▄████████████████████████▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
█████▌ ▄██████████▀ ▄▄█████████▀ ▄▄███████████████████▀▀▀
████▌ ██████████▀ ▄█████████▀ ▄████████████████▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▄▄███████████
████ ██████████▌ █████████▀ ▄██████████████▀▀▀ ▄▄▄███████████████████
███▌ ██████████▌ ▓████████ ▄████████████▀▀ ▄▄█████████████████████████
███▌ ▐█████████▓ ▓████████ ███████████▀▀ ▄▄████████████▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀████
███ ▓█████████▌ ▐████████ ██████████▀ ▄▄█████████▀▀
███ ██████████ ▓███████ █████████▀ ▄███████▀▀ ▄▄▄██████████████▄▄▄▄
███░ ██████████ ███████ █████████ ▄██████▀ ▄▄████████████████████████
███▌ ██████████ ██████▌ ▐███████▀ ▄████▀ ▄█████████████████████████████
███▌ ▐█████████ ██████▌ ▓██████▀ ████▀ ▄████████████████████████████████
████ ▐█████████▌ ▓█████▌ ██████▌ ███▀ ▄██████████████████████████████████
████░ █████████▌ ▐██████ ██████ ███ ▄███████████████▓▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▓█
█████ █████████ ██████ ▐████▌ ▐██ ██████████▓▀▀▀
██████ █████████ ░▓████▌ ▐████▌ ██▌ ████████▀▀ ▄▄▄▄▄█████▄▄▄▄▄
███████ █████████ ░█████ ████ ▐█▌ ██████▀ ▄▄▄█████████████████████▓▓▄
████████ ▀████████ ▀█████ ███▌▐█ ▐████▀ ▄▓▓████████████████████████████
█████████▄ ████████▄ ▀████ ███ █ ███▌ ▄█████████▓▓▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▓▓█████████████
▓▓█████████▄ ▀████████▄ ▀▀██ ███ ███▌ ▄██████▀▀ ▀▀▀▀██████
░███████████▄ ▀▓████████▄▄ ▀▀█ ▀████▓ ▄████▀▀ ▄▄▄███████████▓▓▄▄▄▄ ▀██
▌ ░████████████▄▄ ▀▀██████████▄▄▄▄█▀█▓███▀ ▄▄▄▄███████████████████████▓▄▄▄
█ ▀██████████████▄▄ ▀▀▀▓▓███████▀████████████████████████████████████████▓▄
██▄ ▀▀▓██████████████▄▄▄ ▀▄▄▄█▓███▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▓▓██████████████████████
████░ ▀▓██████████████████████ ▄▓███▀█▀█▀██████▄▄▄ ▀▀██████████████████
██████▓▄ ▀▀▀▓███████████▓▀▀ ▄▓███▌█▌████ █▀▀███████▄▄▄ ▀▀▓█████████████
█████████▓▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▓███▀█▌█▌█▌███▄ ▀█▄▀▀████████▄▄ ▀░██████████
▀▓███████████▓▄▄▄ ▄ ▀▀▐█ ████ ▓██▓▄ ▀█▄ ▀▀████████▄ ▀▓███████
▀▓████████████████████▀ ▄█████▄ ▐▌▐██ █▌ ▓▀▀▀ ▀█▄ ▀████████▄▄ ▀▓█████
▄ ▀▀▓██████████████▓▓▌ ███▀▀▀▀▀█ ██▀▀ ▄▄▄███▄▄▄ ▀█████████▄ ▀▓███
█▓▄ ▀▀▓███████▓▓▓▒▒ ███ ▐█ ▄▄▄▀██████ █▀█▀ █▄ ▀▓███████▓▄ ▀██
████▓▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▀░░░ ▄ ██▄ ▄▄█▀▀▀ ███▀ ██▌▐████▀ ▄███▓ ▓████████▄ ▓
████████▓▄▄▄ ▄ ████ ▄▄█▀█▄ ▀██▄▄█▄▀▀▀ ▄░ ▐██████ ▓█████████
██████████████▓▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▀███ ▄▄ ▀██▄█▀▄██▄ ▀▀▀ ▄▄▄███▓▌ ▓█████▓ ▓█████████
████████████████████▓▀ ▄▄████▄ ▀▄▀▀▀▄▄▀▀ █▄ ▀ ▐▓██████ ▐███████ ▓█████████
▀▀▓██████████████▓▀▀ ▄ ▀████████▄ █▐▀ ▄▄█████▄ ▀▓████▌ ▓██████▓ ▐██████████
▄ ▀▀▀▓███████▀ ▄▄████▄████▀▀███▄▄███▀▀▄▄█████ ▀▓██▌ ▐███████ ██████████▌
██▓▄▄▄ ▀ ▀▀███████▄▀▀ ▄█▄ ███▀▀▄███▀▀█▄▄▄█▄ ▀█▓ ▐███████▌ ▓██████████
█████████▓▄▄ ████ ▀███▀▀ ▄ ▀██▄▀▀███▀▄▄█████████▄ ▀ ▐███████▌ ▐██████████
████████████ ████▀█ ▀▀ ░▄███▄ ██▄▀██ ██▀█▄███████▀▌▄▄ ▀██████▓ ▐██████████
████████████ ▀███ ▄▄▄██████▓▀ ▀█▀ ▀██▀██████ ▀█▄█████▄ ▀███▌ ▐██████████
█████████████▄ ▓██████▓▀▀ ▄ ▄ ▀█▐███████▄ ▀▀██▀▄▄███▄ ██▌ ███████████
▀▀▀▓▓████████████▓▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▓█████░ ▀ ███▀▄████▀ ▀███████▌ ▓ ███████████
░▄▄▄▓██▀ █████▓▄ ▀▐████▀ ▄███▄▀██████ ░ ▓███████████
▄▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▓▓███████▀▀ ███████▀ ▀▓██ ███████ ████▀ ███████████▌
▐█▓▄ ███████████████████▓▀ ▄▄ ████▓█ ▓▄ ▓████████▓ ▀▀ ▄ ▓███████████
▀█▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▄███ ████░ ▄███▄ ▀▓█████▓ ▄▄▄█▓ ▓███████████▌
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄██▀ █ ▓██▀ ▄█████▓▄ ▀▀▀ ▓████ ▓████████████ ▐
█░█ █▓█▄ ▄▄▄ █▓█ ▄▄ ███▀█ ░█ ░▀ ▄▓████████▓▀ ▄▄▄▓████▓ ▄▓████████████ █
█ █ █░█▀██ █ █▒█ █▒█ ▀▄ █ ░█ ▀▀▀ ██
█ █ █ █ █░█ █░█ █░█ █ ▓█ ░░█ ██████ ▄██▀███████▐████████████████▄▄▄ ▀██
█░█ █░█ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █░▄ █░░░█ █ █ █▀ █▀ █ █ █ █ ▀▀▄ ▀█ ▐█
▀█▓█ █▓█ ▀▀▀ █▓█ █▓█ █▓█ █░░░█ █ ░█ ▐▌ ▐▌ █ ░█ █ ░█ ██▄▄▄ ▐█ ░░█
▀█ █▀▀ ▄█ ███ ▀▀▀▀▀ █░░▒█ █ ░░█ █ ░█ █ ░░█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█▌▐█
█▄ ▄▄███ ▄▄██▀▀▀▀ █░░▒█ █░░░█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█▌
█ ▄▄▄▄▄█▄▓█ ███▄▄▄▄▄▄▄█▌ █░▒▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░░░█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█▌
█ ▌ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █▓█ █░█ █░▒▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█▌
█▄▄▄ █░█ █░█ █░█ █░█ ▀▀ █▒▒▓█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█▌
████ █ █ █ █▀█ █ █ █▀▀ ▄▄ █▒▒▓█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▓▓▓█▌
████ █ █ █░█ █░█ █░█ ███▌ █▒▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █████▌▄▄
██▀▀ █░█ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▓▓██ █▓▓▓█ █████
▀█▓█ ██ █▓█ █▓█ █░█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▓▓▓▀ ▄█████ █▓▓▓██████▀▀
███▄ ▀█▄ ███▀▀▀▀▀█▄█ █▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓█▄▄▄██▀ ██▀▀▀▀▀
▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀▀ █████ █▓▓▓█ ███▀▀▀▀▀ ▀ DRIFT INTO THE VOID
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █████▄▄████▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
██████▀▀
┌────────┐ ██▀▀
────┤ Info ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
Artist | Gangrene: The Alchemist + Oh No
Title | Gutter Water
Genre | Hip-Hop Format | Album
Source | CD Time | 48:48
Label | Decon Store | 2010
Catalog | DCN101 Rip | 2021
Bitrate | 938 kbps Size | 345.56 MB
Freq | 44.1 kHz Encoder | FLAC 1.3.1
┌────────┐
────┤ Tracks ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
01. Intro (Prod. Dr. No) 1:03
02. Boss Shit (Prod. Dr. No) 2:32
03. Not High Enough (Prod. The Alchemist) 3:19
04. Gutter Water (Feat. Raekwon) (Prod. The Alchemist & DJ 3:16
Muro)
05. Get Into Some Gangster Shit (Feat. Planet Asia) (Prod. The 3:47
Alchemist)
06. Take Drugs (Prod. Dr. No) 3:51
07. Chain Swinging (Prod. The Alchemist) 2:44
08. Wassup Wassup (Feat. Fashawn & Evidence) (Prod. Dr. No) 2:29
09. All Bad (Prod. Dr. No) 4:54
10. Breathing Down Yo Neck (Feat. MED) (Prod. The Alchemist) 3:12
11. From Another Orbit (Feat. Roc C) (Prod. The Alchemist) 3:43
12. Ransom (Prod. Dr. No) 3:19
13. Standing In The Shadows (Prod. The Alchemist) 2:37
14. Brass Knuckle Rap (Feat. Guilty Simpson) (Prod. The 4:37
Alchemist)
15. Not Leaving (Feat. Big Twins) (Prod. Dr. No) 3:25
┌────────┐
────┤ Notes ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
About four years ago, I sat down with two big rap producers, Just Blaze and
the Alchemist, at Baseline Studios, the old Roc-a-Fella stomping grounds, a
since-shuttered hive of mainstream rap dominance. At the time, the two
producers were lamenting the decline of the cinematic NYC rap they'd both
made their names cranking out. But Alchemist talked with a sense of genuine
excitement and wonder about a backpack-rap universe that still sounded
pretty new to him: "Not to dis them, but a lot of that shit is kind of
weird. But the world that they're repping, that's the world that I want to
be a part of." These days, Alc still has a foot in whatever's left of the
mainstream rap world; he produced "You Ain't Got Nuthin", probably the
hardest track on Lil Wayne's gazillion-selling Tha Carter III, and he DJed
a recent run of Eminem stadium shows. But he's also very much a part of
that underground world he was talking about. And now he's teamed up with
the stalwart Stones Throw rapper/producer Oh No to form the duo Gangrene
and crank out a decidedly weird little record.
Alchemist is probably still best-known for crafting gutpunch street-rap
anthems for guys like Mobb Deep and Jadakiss, but his early-decade
aesthetic is almost entirely gone from Gutter Water. Instead, he's launched
himself into the ADD crate-digging style best exemplified by Oh No's older
brother Madlib. The tracks on Gutter Water sputter and crackle and warp,
rarely settling into a comfortable thump. Horns and strings and harps-- all
seemingly drawn from moldy thrift-shop muzak platters-- always circle
whatever groove the drums conjure, but the two producers rarely let them
fall into the pocket. Tracks rarely come with choruses, and when those
choruses are there, they're awkward enough that you wish they weren't. This
is a mood piece. There's a lot of texture at work here, and there would be
more if the duo didn't end nearly every track by dissolving into a
sample-collage of cheesed-out film dialogue and disembodied news-anchor
voices.
Even if they're hell on the album's sustained momentum, those collages do
pound home the album's theme: disease, squalor, infection. (One news report
about people swimming in open sewage makes me want to gag every time.) But
this isn't an album about the need for global health reform; the thematic
stuff is there to remind you that you're dealing with two people totally
uninterested in meeting you halfway. Alchemist even takes the time to
remind us that he's not a "ringtone rapper," a term I haven't heard in a
while. (Alc must not have got the memo that skinny-jeans rappers are
everyone's favorite threat to hip-hop culture these days.)
As rappers, Alc and Oh are both perfectly decent but never transcendent. Oh
has a solidly loping delivery, and Alc has a raspy off-beat thing that's
less technically sound but more distinctive. And Alc has a way with
perfectly ridiculous, kind of dumb punchlines that nonetheless lodge
themselves in your memory: "Speed on and get peed on," "Hopping out the
trashcan like Oscar the Grouch," "I stay high like pussy on a giraffe is."
Plenty of guests stop by, but Raekwon notwithstanding, most of them sit
firmly in a willfully hardheaded West Coast underground scene: Planet Asia,
Evidence, Roc C. Some of them, like Guilty Simpson, work great with the
kinds of beats they're given, but nobody dazzles.
But the rapping on Gutter Water is almost beside the point. Oh and Alc are
producers first, and Gutter Water would work nearly as well as an
instrumental album. And together, they've created a messy, impressive
pile-up of half-broken piano loops and dense, clattery drum programming.
It's a hazy, stoned piece of work, an expansive extended head-nod,
everything it sets out to be.
┌────────┐
────┤░░░░░░░░├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘