Digital Underground "Sex Packets" (March, 1990)

"We were serious act at first, trying to be this techno, pro-struggle-oriented civil-rights movement type of thing," says Digital Underground's main man Shock G from a hotel room in Oakland. Of course, for those who remember the first time they heard D.U., serious wasn't a word you would use to describe them. The group, consisting of rapper and producer Shock, rapper Money-B, DJ Fuse, singer Schmoovy Schmoov and drummer/producer Chopmaster J, was constantly morphing, and that was what always kept their fans guessing, laughing and shaking their asses. Party fun via musical lessons studiously gleaned from George Clinton's P-Funk mothership was most definitely what Digital Underground was known for, with rolling, juiced-up hit singles (and groundbreakingly popular MTV videos) like "Doowutchalike" and "The Humpty Dance." Ironically, Digital was very serious about the album's original main concept: Sex Packets. An idea developed by Shock's roommate Earl Cook (a.k.a. group vocalist Schmoovy Schmoov), Sex Packets were pills that would control the mental images that gave men and women wet dreams. Shock laughs: "Schmoov actually had, in his briefcase, the plans to create and get study and research going for these things. He was trying to get a grant from the government to develop them." Shock admits "we made up a lot of shit surrounding the album," including his aliases Humpty Hump, The Piano Man and MC Blowfish. "We were deliberately throwing out all the hip-hop rules, trying to break them," Shock remembers. "I always wanted Digital Underground to be this big supergroup, but we didn't have all the true characters yet. If I had a vision of a kind of guy we needed, I'd just be that guy." They brought it all in and let it all hang out. "We were like Fuck it, we're gonna be on some Funkadelic shit, and do all kinds of different songs and wear all kinds of different hats," he says. "All of us tugging in different directions made it a really rich gumbo album." Surely a great time in hip-hop, revisit the LP below...

Shock G humps his way through their funky classics below...

Wu-Tang Clan "Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers" (11/9/93)

"There have been many impressive collectives in the history of hip-hop, but none can compare to the impact, the illness, the innovation and the size of the mighty Wu-Tang Clan. The Staten Island-based lifeforce boasted nine members, all of whom could melt a mic at the drop of a dime: the RZA, the GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Raekwon The Chef, Ghostface Killah, Masta Killa and Method Man. At the epicenter of the group was producer/MC RZA, who in 1992 was fresh off a soured record deal with Tommy Boy Records. Eldest Clan member GZA was also on the rebound in '92, after releasing a full-length (as the Genius) on Cold Chillin' that he claims wasn't properly promoted. GZA, RZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard had been in a Brooklyn/Staten trio called All In Together back in the late '80s, and were well aware of each other's abilities. RZA had turned to producing his own music, and had a swarm of MCs coming through his Staten Island studio. "I had done different demos and worked with everyone in the Clan before 36 Chambers," he recalls. "My apartment was always the spot to come and rhyme." With a plan in place to form an MC army, RZA brought seven MCs (all but Masta Killa) together for a soon-to-be monumental self-released single in 1992, "Protect Ya Neck." After it jumped off, labels came calling and the Wu-Tang landed on Loud. Although their incredible debut wasn't an instant smash, it slowly built to an undeniable roar." Cont'd below...

"The album helped bring NYC hip-hop back to the forefront, momentarily stealing the spot away from Dre's left coast revolution. Boasting multiple singles, like "C.R.E.A.M." and "Can It All Be So Simple," 36 Chambers comprised a never-ending array of verbal styles and Kung Fu motifs. Says Raekwon, "It was like being in the Superfriends. You don't have the same power as the next n!gga, but you're all amazingly strong. That's what we was." RZA's tracks were also a revolution of their own, frequently pitting penitentiary-steel beats against mournful piano samples and itchy-fingered bass lines. "When we finished that album I thought it was the illest hip-hop record ever made," RZA beams. "I played that record as much as a person who had bought it." - Brian Coleman (More below).

Postcard + RZA and GZA chop through Wu-Tang's first classics below...