Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Even in the vibrant early-'90s hip-hop scene, A Future Without a Past... emerged as a breath of fresh air, simultaneously presenting a throwback to the old-school rhyme tradeoffs and call-and-response rapping styles of crews like the Furious Five and the Funky Four + One, and vaulting rap headlong into its future. Brash and full of youthful energy and exuberance, Leaders of the New School was the perfect meshing of three distinctly different but entirely complementary personalities whose flows flew in the face of conventional MC etiquette, from Dinco D.'s straightforward, intellectual tongue-twisting to Charlie Brown's zany shrieks to Busta Rhymes' viscous, reggae-inspired toasting -- skirting the line between seriousness and humor -- which, only a few years later, would help him to hit commercial pay dirt as a solo artist. That's not even to mention the DJ and sometime reggae-tinged emcee, DJ Cut Monitor Milo. The result is one of the most infectious rap albums ever created. The songs are, first and foremost, meant to be fun and humorous, and they are certainly that, particularly on Charlie Brown's nonsensical "What's the Pinocchio's Theory," the insistent "Trains, Planes and Automobiles" and "My Ding-A-Ling," and Busta Rhymes' jovial ode to full-figured women, "Feminine Fatt." The cut-and-paste production is expert throughout, packed with fresh samples, thanks to Bomb Squad member Eric "Vietnam" Sadler, the Stimulated Dummies crew, and the Vibe Chemist Backspin, and the group also show themselves to be quite capable with a sampler, particularly Milo's incredible work on "Case of the P.T.A." and "My Ding-A-Ling." But it would be wrong to simply peg this album as a foray into kinder, gentler, more lighthearted and innocent hip-hop. Firstly, the album has the feel and scope of a loose concept album and is separated into three sections, the first two set in school, the final one following the members after school lets out, and that alone points to a group of young men -- mostly still teenagers -- trying to move rap into new dimensions. Secondly, the ambience of New York permeates A Future Without a Past, but it is simply presented from a younger and far less jaded perspective. Songs such as "Just When You Thought It Was Safe" and "Sound of the Zeekers @#^**?!," if not exactly hard-edged and political, offer far more than throwaway sentiment, and lyrically L.O.N.S. never descend into naiveté. The album portrays a group of young men who are fully emerged in the sometimes less-than-innocent urban life that characterizes hip-hop culture, but are also able to transcend the inherent limits and pitfalls to which that life can lead. In that sense, it is a celebration of all the best aspects of hip-hop culture and youth.
© Stanton Swihart /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From kr133.33/month
Trevor Smith, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Sheldon Scott, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
J. Jackson, Writer - B. Higgins, Writer - S. Scott, Writer - T. Smith, Writer - Cut Monitor Milo, Producer - Leaders Of The New School, Rapper Vocals, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
James Jackson, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist - Marlon Maurice King, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist - Marlon Maurice King, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - Eric Sadler, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Sheldon Scott, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
James Jackson, Writer - Sheldon Scott, Writer - D Gordon, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - S. Oliver, Writer - K. Porter, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist - B. Freedom, Writer - E. Romeo, Writer - K. Weed, Writer - Tom Pierce, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Composer, Lyricist - Eric Sadler, Composer, Lyricist - James Jackson, Composer, Lyricist - Chris Shaw, Engineer - Bryan Higgins, Composer, Lyricist - Eric "Vietnam" Sadler, Producer, Mixer - Leaders Of The New School, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist - Marlon Maurice King, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
J. Jackson, Writer - Trevor Smith, Writer - B. Higgins, Writer - J. Gamble, Writer - D. ROSS, Writer - Leader Of The New School, Producer - Leaders Of The New School, MainArtist - J. Dajani, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Sheldon Scott, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist - Marlon Maurice King, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Eric T. Sadler, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - John Dajani, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist - Dante A. Ross, Writer - John F. Gamble, Writer
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - JAMES TAYLOR, Writer - Bryan Higgins, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
J. Jackson, Writer - B. Higgins, Writer - S. Scott, Writer - T. Smith, Writer - Cut Monitor Milo, Producer - Leaders Of The New School, Rapper Vocals, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Trevor Smith, Writer - B. Higgins, Writer - James Jackson, Writer - Sheldon Scott, Writer - Leaders Of The New School, Producer, MainArtist
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Entertainment Group for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Album review
Even in the vibrant early-'90s hip-hop scene, A Future Without a Past... emerged as a breath of fresh air, simultaneously presenting a throwback to the old-school rhyme tradeoffs and call-and-response rapping styles of crews like the Furious Five and the Funky Four + One, and vaulting rap headlong into its future. Brash and full of youthful energy and exuberance, Leaders of the New School was the perfect meshing of three distinctly different but entirely complementary personalities whose flows flew in the face of conventional MC etiquette, from Dinco D.'s straightforward, intellectual tongue-twisting to Charlie Brown's zany shrieks to Busta Rhymes' viscous, reggae-inspired toasting -- skirting the line between seriousness and humor -- which, only a few years later, would help him to hit commercial pay dirt as a solo artist. That's not even to mention the DJ and sometime reggae-tinged emcee, DJ Cut Monitor Milo. The result is one of the most infectious rap albums ever created. The songs are, first and foremost, meant to be fun and humorous, and they are certainly that, particularly on Charlie Brown's nonsensical "What's the Pinocchio's Theory," the insistent "Trains, Planes and Automobiles" and "My Ding-A-Ling," and Busta Rhymes' jovial ode to full-figured women, "Feminine Fatt." The cut-and-paste production is expert throughout, packed with fresh samples, thanks to Bomb Squad member Eric "Vietnam" Sadler, the Stimulated Dummies crew, and the Vibe Chemist Backspin, and the group also show themselves to be quite capable with a sampler, particularly Milo's incredible work on "Case of the P.T.A." and "My Ding-A-Ling." But it would be wrong to simply peg this album as a foray into kinder, gentler, more lighthearted and innocent hip-hop. Firstly, the album has the feel and scope of a loose concept album and is separated into three sections, the first two set in school, the final one following the members after school lets out, and that alone points to a group of young men -- mostly still teenagers -- trying to move rap into new dimensions. Secondly, the ambience of New York permeates A Future Without a Past, but it is simply presented from a younger and far less jaded perspective. Songs such as "Just When You Thought It Was Safe" and "Sound of the Zeekers @#^**?!," if not exactly hard-edged and political, offer far more than throwaway sentiment, and lyrically L.O.N.S. never descend into naiveté. The album portrays a group of young men who are fully emerged in the sometimes less-than-innocent urban life that characterizes hip-hop culture, but are also able to transcend the inherent limits and pitfalls to which that life can lead. In that sense, it is a celebration of all the best aspects of hip-hop culture and youth.
© Stanton Swihart /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 17 track(s)
- Total length: 01:06:06
- Main artists: Leaders Of The New School
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Rhino - Elektra
- Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
© 1991 Elektra Records ℗ 1991 Elektra Records. Marketed by Rhino Entertainment, a Warner Music Group Company.
Distinctions:
Improve album information
Why buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.