Escape 1984 Album

Whodini

I only listened to this because I was looking at some samples and I realised that 'Friends' was sampled by Nas on 'If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)' among a plethora of other artists since 1984. I am usually not a massive fan of '80s hip hop production, but the beats on this are fresh. The opener 'Five Minutes of Funk' is a strong cut, 'Freaks Come Out at Night' is enjoyable as well, but it probably goes 30 seconds too long. The DJ cut/instrumental 'Featuring Grandmaster Dee' on the other hand goes way too long and doesn't maintain my interest. It's a strong beat, but it needs a bit more variety to be an effective six-minute track. 'Big Mouth' features the '80s minimalist production that I referred to earlier. It gets boring. The next two songs return to some electro-funk and are the best songs on the album. The penultimate 'Out of Control' has some vocals, but it's pretty much another DJ Cut. The album closer 'We Are Whodini' then reminds me somewhat of Newcleus, who were also doing some nice electro hip hop beats in 1984. Overall, Jalil Hutchins was a good rapper, and I like the beats more than I normally would on an early/mid-1980s rap album. Some good stuff. Best Tracks: Five Minutes of Funk, Escape (I Need a Break), Friends