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.
After being talked about and awaited for months, Slum Village's Fantastic, Vol. 2 finally reached the public's ears, reinforcing the fact that the group -- and particularly producer Jay Dee -- planned to continue where A Tribe Called Quest left off. Jay Dee's solid production track record for renowned artists such as Common and Q-Tip garnered the majority of the hype for this Detroit trio's second album. He specializes in a clean, musical style of hip-hop beats with an emphasis on crisp acoustic percussion and other classic funk sounds. The synthesizer-based sounds, such as Mannie Fresh's ass-shaking electro beats, Dr. Dre's signature West Coast synth lines, and RZA's hallucinagenic orchestral ambience are nowhere to be found in Jay Dee's production. Similar to how his production looks back to a classic retro style of pre-Bernie Worrell funk, Slum Village's lyrics also have more in common with the past than the present. Gangsta motifs, violence, bling-bling, drugs, misogyny, ice, trash talking, nonsense? These topics are also notably absent here, leaving Jay Dee, T3, and Baatin to rap about less dramatic and more egotistical topics such as their skills. One can't help but notice that Slum Village sounds strikingly similar to A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and Common, which isn't surprising considering the fact that Jay Dee produced all three artists. The problem lies in the fact that Slum Village isn't nearly as interesting as lyricists and their album follows rather than precedes these other groups. If Fantastic, Vol. 2 had hit the streets in the mid to late '90s rather than in 2000, it would have been a landmark album with Jay Dee's signature neo-JB's hip-hop. Unfortunately, his sound isn't new anymore, and though many may like the fact that Slum Village doesn't rap about decadent topics, one often finds Eminem's psychosis, Easy-E's promiscuousness, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's odes to bud, and DMX's inner conflicts more entertaining than Slum Village's mundane topics. In the end, no matter how much one hears Jay Dee's squeaky clean production, it never gets old, justifying the hype surrounding Fantastic, Vol. 2 and making it an exciting record for anyone in love with purist hip-hop.
© Jason Birchmeier /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 $10.83/month
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
DJ Jazzy Jeff, FeaturedArtist - T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Q-Tip, FeaturedArtist - T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - D'Angelo, FeaturedArtist - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Busta Rhymes, FeaturedArtist - T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Kurupt, FeaturedArtist - T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Pete Rock, FeaturedArtist - T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Common, FeaturedArtist - T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
T. Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - Jay Dee, Composer - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Titus Glover, Writer - Slum Village, MainArtist - RL Altman III, Writer - J Yancey , Composer, Writer
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Album review
After being talked about and awaited for months, Slum Village's Fantastic, Vol. 2 finally reached the public's ears, reinforcing the fact that the group -- and particularly producer Jay Dee -- planned to continue where A Tribe Called Quest left off. Jay Dee's solid production track record for renowned artists such as Common and Q-Tip garnered the majority of the hype for this Detroit trio's second album. He specializes in a clean, musical style of hip-hop beats with an emphasis on crisp acoustic percussion and other classic funk sounds. The synthesizer-based sounds, such as Mannie Fresh's ass-shaking electro beats, Dr. Dre's signature West Coast synth lines, and RZA's hallucinagenic orchestral ambience are nowhere to be found in Jay Dee's production. Similar to how his production looks back to a classic retro style of pre-Bernie Worrell funk, Slum Village's lyrics also have more in common with the past than the present. Gangsta motifs, violence, bling-bling, drugs, misogyny, ice, trash talking, nonsense? These topics are also notably absent here, leaving Jay Dee, T3, and Baatin to rap about less dramatic and more egotistical topics such as their skills. One can't help but notice that Slum Village sounds strikingly similar to A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and Common, which isn't surprising considering the fact that Jay Dee produced all three artists. The problem lies in the fact that Slum Village isn't nearly as interesting as lyricists and their album follows rather than precedes these other groups. If Fantastic, Vol. 2 had hit the streets in the mid to late '90s rather than in 2000, it would have been a landmark album with Jay Dee's signature neo-JB's hip-hop. Unfortunately, his sound isn't new anymore, and though many may like the fact that Slum Village doesn't rap about decadent topics, one often finds Eminem's psychosis, Easy-E's promiscuousness, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's odes to bud, and DMX's inner conflicts more entertaining than Slum Village's mundane topics. In the end, no matter how much one hears Jay Dee's squeaky clean production, it never gets old, justifying the hype surrounding Fantastic, Vol. 2 and making it an exciting record for anyone in love with purist hip-hop.
© Jason Birchmeier /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 21 track(s)
- Total length: 01:19:20
- Main artists: Slum Village
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Ne'Astra Music
- Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
© 2023 Ne'astra Music ℗ 2023 Ne'astra Music
Improve album information
Why buy on Qobuz?
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalog 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.