Juno Recommends Hip Hop / R&B: Best of 2022

Review: Madvillain is the collaboration of the most dynamic duo from today's hip-hop underground, MF Doom and Madlib. "Madvillainy" has witty, mental lyrics combined with rugged beats fashioned from every possible source material, resulting in a truly unique album pointing the way to hip-hop's future.

Review: The first missive from the reissue-focused Throwdown imprint takes a deep dive into the bulging back catalogue of West Coast hip-hop legend Ice Cube. Side A offers us another chance to own 1992 hit "It Was A Good Day" a languid, sun-kissed Golden Era jam crafted from elements of a familiar slab of laidback jazz-funk. Over on side B you'll find 1999's "You Can Do It", another once high-profile single featuring additional verses and vocal contributions from Mack 10 and Ms Toi. For those who've forgotten it, the track is a punchier and heavy club cut that utilizes all three rappers' distinctive flows to ratchet up the intensity throughout.

Review: Taking the reins for a repress, Jive Records have taken the important step of revisiting KRS One's rap classic 'Sound Of Da Police'. Besides the popularity of its uniquely catchy 'woop woop' refrain, this early 90s gem was the second and final single from KRS One's debut album Return Of The Boom Bap, and importantly criticizes the hypocrisies of the American justice system, as well as the horrors of racial profiling and police brutality. Besides the events of 2021 making this year the most appropriate time yet in which to re-release such a song, the funk heads at Juno will be keen to spot this classic's sampling of several greats, including licks by Grand Funk Railroad and Sly And The Family Stone.

Review: We're big fans of these educational 7"s that often crop up, with a legendary hip hop jam on one side and the source of some its samples appearing on the flip. This time out we get A Tribe Called Quest's deep cut 'Sucka N***a' - which is taken from their legendary Midnight Marauders album - with its buttery rhymes and funky bass buried deep within. Jack Wilkins's 'Red Clay' on the flip isn't that much of a deviation. Though it's slower and free from the rhymes, it is a brilliantly effective and emotive cut. More like this please.

Review: When it comes to West Coast hip-hop classics, there are few more stone cold than N.W.A's Dr Dre-produced 1988 anthem "Straight Outta Compton". Here it gets the Ronnie Razzle re-edit treatment, though the producer has wisely chosen not to tamper with it too much. As with the original version, the beats are fat, the bass fatter and the collective's rap flows delightfully in-your face. Over on side B Above The Law's 1994 gem "Black Superman" gets a similar treatment. Deeper, groovier and more indebted to Los Angeles' rap's G-funk heritage, the track offers a nice counterpoint to the full-throttle dancefloor insanity of NWA's all-time classic.

Review: Yezzir! Home Hitters deliver a cheeky 45 and we let it past our floodgates for the sole reason that it's a KW reissue. This one consists of two tunes from the self-proclaimed god's backlog that we didn't think were very likely to be found together on a singular slice of wax. Estelle's 'American Boy' occupies the A side .Meanwhile, 'Stronger' backs up the B, reinforcing it with its instantly-recognizable Daft Punk sample and crude pop drum beats.

Review: Heat Rock Records's ongoing series hits a superb 11th volume with another crucial pair of floor-filling tunes from the worlds of funk, hip & r&b. It is a return to the golden age and flower power ear of hip hop on the opener by Trew. 'Kamaal & The Gang' (take A Break remix) is led by a mystical flute line and back with stylish horns as well as buttery rhymes. The beats cut deep and then on the flip it is Double A who serve up the hard-hitting b-boy breaks and angular rock licks of 'Can You Hear Me Now?' (The Source Is Yours edit).

Review: Omar S sets his considerable dancefloor skills to something a little different on a new 7" featuring the vocal talents of TroiAlexis. A young talented Detroit female songwriter who was discovered by Omar S at the Conant Gardens Party Store when she sung acapella to him at a Hi Tech party, TroiAlexis lends an air of soulful class to Omar's trademark electro-slanted electronics on both sides of this single. There's a stripped down - and we mean stripped right down - bass heavy R&B mix on the A-side, while the flip has a sturdier house mix that still gives her voice room to soar.

Review: The Weeknd's latest album takes the form of a concept about a radio station that is listened to on a car journey towards the end of days. It features a number of guests such as Tyler & The Creator, Jim Carrey and Lil Wayne as well as production from Calvin Harris. The album's standout single is 'I Heard You're Married' which is a gloriously catchy disco-dance beat with singable choruses and epic synth lines. The whole thing is a mix of dance, electro and pop with more wax and textural beats next to the sentimental songs. It's one of his most adventurous and a real return form.

Review: US3's debut album Hand On The Torch was a landmark record when it dropped back in 1993. At a time when the world was getting to grips with sample culture, Blue Note reached out to the London-based crew and gave them access to the archives. With such a rich pool of source material, they got busy strapping iconic breaks and licks from one of the great jazz stables to crisp beats. There's a lot of ground covered, with hip-hop jams sidling up alongside funky beatdowns and plenty more besides. It's a stone cold classic given the reissue treatment, bringing the likes of 'Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)' back to life for a new generation.

Review: The brilliant DJ Bacon is back with another of his hard hitting mega mixes, two years after his much loved 2018 opus "Back In Hell". This one serves up two 10 minute-plus sides of thrilling new remixes of Beastie Boys and Pink Floyd. Some of the restive groups biggest and most well known material is pulled apart then reworked into new forms before being put into mega mixes that bang together rock and rap in electric fashion. This is another bold and ambitious project with cues and borrowings from both iconic bands in equal measure.

Review: It's been 17 years since Danger Mouse's last hip-hop album - the epic collaboration with the late great MF Doom. For the first time since 2005, we have a new one, Cheat Codes, to get stuck into following collabs with Daniele Lupi and Karen O and some production work with Gnarls Barkley and Gorillaz. It is a triumph, too, with tough beats uplifting while the rapper lays down endless bars that are free for choruses. It is a mix of the new school and the old school that is utterly, typically, intoxicating.

Review: Grammy and Latin Grammy-nominated artist Kali Uchis was raised between Virginia and Colombia. She's a revered voice in the contemporary world of hip hop, neo soul and r&b. Her 2018 album Isolation truly proved that to the world while Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) marked a second album and first Spanish-language project from the great singer. It comes with plenty of re-sung but previously released tracks that explore dreamy latin grooves with mid tempo rhythms and sun kissed pads, as well as new cuts and a collaboration with PartyNextDoor, 'la luna enamorada'

Review: Doja Cat went big on her recent album Planet Her, which was the qui follow up to 2019's well received Hot Pink. It came on Ministry of Sound and saw the American singer, rapper, producer and songwriter collaborate with superstars such as The Weeknd, Ariana Grande, Young Thug, SZA and others. This 19 track deluxe version has them all and made for a thrilling ride that showcased her eclectic style, chaotic nature and kaleidoscope take on pop. Across the record Doja raps with flair, switches up her style along the way and manages to range from anguish to soul and back.

Review: Steve Lacy is an LA-based songwriter best known as guitarist for The Internet as well as producing for Kendrick Lamar amongst others. After releasing his debut solo album Apollo XXI in 2019, he returns with a sophomore effort which expands on his broad-reaching vision of psychedelic soul. Like a modern day Shuggie Otis he knows how to bridge the gap between disparate musical camps, displaying a powerful pop instinct while keeping things kinked and quirky throughout. Lead single 'Bad Habit' is a sweet, sentimental anthem that should appeal to all and sundry, and it's a perfect gateway into an album brimming with future classics.

Review: Touching Bass is a vital force within London's jazz-adjacent scene, prioritising and incubating new Black talent and giving a voice to artists who might not have been heard otherwise. Now we're being given an authoritative view into the label's world with this expansive compilation, Soon Come. It's a double-disc affair with some serious flair from the get-go thanks to the incredible beats of 10.4 ROG behind Brother Portrait's eloquent flow on 'The Lighthouse'. From Clever Austin to KeiyaA, AshTreJenkins to Molinaro, the heat is undeniable whether it's stone cold jazz, red-eyed neo soul or some other cosmic contemporary fusion your ears are getting treated to.

Review: Flying Dog Records are on a winning streak, reissuing a number of original soundtrack cuts from the classic anime series Samurai Champloo, famous for its hip hop instrumentals. 'Departure', originally released in 2004, is the second of four soundtrack albums from the show, and was produced by none other than instrumental jazz-hop martyr Nujabes. Also making appearances are Japanese rapper Shing02 and singer-songwriter MINMI, bookending the album on rare vocal apeparances. Perk up your ears for this katana-swinging, emotive tour of lo-fi Edo period wonk.

Review: Dilla Time features 18 unreleased J Dilla tracks (21 tracks total).