Notes & Personnel Info |  | Personnel includes: Alchemist, Lloyd Banks, Cypress Hill, Havoc & Prodigy, Dilated Peoples, Jadakiss, Sheek & J-Hood, Devin The Dude, Nappy Roots, Stat Quo, Game. | | Although 2004's 1ST INFANTRY was his first solo album, even the most casual follower of hardcore rap is familiar with the Alchemist. He supplies some of the strongest, hardest beats for everyone from Nas to Cypress Hill, and has years of experience on the underground hip-hop scene. There's a reason that the best in the rap game seek the Alchemist out--few can match him when it comes to providing immediately captivating, instantly identifiable tracks. | | On 1st INFANTRY, the Alchemist's MC friends turn the favor around on an all-star gathering, which features a collection of previously unreleased cuts. Mobb Deep provided some of the Alchemist's best moments (and vice versa) as both were rising to glory, and here the duo of Havoc & Prodigy contribute to another classic with the menacing beauty of "It's a Craze." Prodigy teams with rap's premier lyricist, Nas, on another standout track, "Tick Tock." The Alchemist was doing amazing work with the West Coast crew Dilated Peoples long before they broke out, so it's no surprise they provide a powerful moment on the quirky, funky "For the Record." A bold debut, 1st INFANTRY stands as a piece of hip-hop art by one of its best craftsmen. | | Although 2004's 1ST INFANTRY was his first solo album, even the most casual follower of hardcore rap is familiar with the Alchemist. He supplies some of the strongest, hardest beats for everyone from Nas to Cypress Hill, and has years of experience on the underground hip-hop scene. There's a reason that the best in the rap game seek the Alchemist out--few can match him when it comes to providing immediately captivating, instantly tantalizing tracks, and this release of 1st INFANTRY's instrumental tracks proves the point. Even without the guest vocals of friends and associates like Prodigy, The Game, and Dilated Peoples, this powerful collection carries a momentum all its own. | | If you're well versed in East Coast hardcore rap of the late '90s and early 2000s (Nas, Mobb Deep, the LOX, etc.), chances are you're familiar with the Alchemist, even if you've never heard of him until now. Know first, if you don't already, he's no rapper. He's a fairly quiet guy, in fact, a hard-working producer who lets his beat-making speak for him -- dark, forceful productions for some of the best dark, forceful rappers in New York and beyond. Roughly ten years after he broke into the game big time with Queensbridge rappers Infamous Mobb and, in turn, Mobb Deep, he unleashed his debut album, 1st Infantry. It's a godsend for fans of his productions. Up until this point, you've had to gather up his work one production at a time -- for instance, a track or two from the latest Nas album, a couple from the recent Mobb Deep album, and so on. No more need to scavenge, however, as 1st Infantry is somewhat of an Alchemist mixtape, rounding up 19 different productions, all of them exclusive to this album and each boasting a brand-name rapper. Some of the featured rappers here include Nas (the top active rapper in New York circa late 2004); Prodigy and Havoc (of Mobb Deep); Styles, Sheek, and J-Hood (of the LOX); the Game and Lloyd Banks (of G-Unit); Dilated Peoples (a top Left Coast hip-hop group that is a bit of a wonderful surprise here); and others including M.O.P., Devin the Dude, Chinky, B Real, and T.I. Believe it or not, everything here is first-rate -- the beats especially. You really have to wonder whether or not the Alchemist had been saving some of his best beats for himself! The raps are a bit off the cuff -- freestyle-like, actually -- which is precisely what you'd expect from a mixtape-style album like this. Hooks are minimal, if existent at all, but that's just fine for an album like this. This is no commercial effort. It's not targeted at radio or MTV or anything like that. Rather, it's a fairly underground effort, emphasizing beats and rhymes -- not pop hooks and the latest trends. One for the true hip-hop heads this is, and further proof that the Alchemist is one of the top producers in the game circa 2004. So forget about Kayslay, Whookid, Green Lantern, and all those dudes. Sure, they put out some tight mixtapes, but can they craft beats like these? Those guys are just the medium -- Alchemist is the source. ~ Jason Birchmeier | | Although he had not released a solo album before 2004's 1st INFANTRY, even the most casual follower of hardcore rap was familiar with the Alchemist. He's provided some of the strongest, hardest beats for everyone from Nas to Cypress Hill, and has years of experience on the underground hip-hop scene. There's a reason that the best in the rap game seek the Alchemist out--few can match him when it comes to providing immediately captivating, instantly tantalizing tracks. | | On 1st INFANTRY, the Alchemist's MC friends turn the favor around on an all-star gathering, which features a collection of previously unreleased cuts. Mobb Deep provided some of the Alchemist's best moments (and vice versa) as both were rising to glory, and here the duo of Havoc & Prodigy contribute to another classic with the menacing beauty of "It's a Craze." Prodigy teams with rap's premier lyricist, Nas, on another standout track "Tick Tock." The Alchemist was doing amazing work with the West Coast crew Dilated Peoples long before they broke out, so it's no surprise they provide a powerful moment on the quirky, funky "For the Record." A bold debut, 1st INFANTRY stands as a piece of hip-hop art by one of its best craftsmen. |
Musical Guests | | Nina Sky | | Mobb Deep | | Dilated Peoples | | Lloyd Banks | | Jadakiss | | Nas | | Styles | | T.I. | | Sheek | | Stat Quo | | The Lox | | Prodigy | | M.O.P. | | Devin | | The Game | | Illa Ghee | | Havoc | | J-Hood | | Styles P. | | Devin The Dude | | Chinky | | B Real | | Twin |
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