Hip-hop Goliath falls short

Producer Pete Rock, an undisputed legend of hip-hop, has released his first album in four years. His first classic album, Mecca and The Soul Brother, was released in 1992, so his high reputation within the protective confines of the genre is old news. Though words can barely begin to describe his influence within hip-hop, strangely, he’s hardly known outside it.

His chief innovation was discovering how to “orchestrate” samples. In layman’s terms, Rock was perhaps the most instrumental figure in the layering of hip-hop. He took the spare, embryonic sound of old-school hip-hop (usually a drum machine, scattered samples, monotone rapping and scratching) and led the way in transforming it into the richer, thicker, genre-bending, multi-instrumental, ear-massaging beast it is today.

His productions are among the most purely musical in all of hip-hop, and NY’s Finest unsurprisingly manages to retain the extraordinary musicality we’ve come to expect of him (“That’s What I’m Talking About”). In another era, Rock could have been a great bassist or drummer, and this sets him apart from nonmusician producer contemporaries.

Furthermore, his mixes consistently sound two years ahead of, and twice as full as, almost everything else in hip-hop. A single listen to this album’s “Questions” makes NY’s Finest no exception. Compared to the dystopian landscape of swing-less, mechanistic and overcompressed rap music on the radio, Pete Rock’s retention of humanity in his music is an enduring symbol of hip-hop resilience – a flower growing from a crack in the concrete.

One doesn’t sense, however, that Rock is trying to achieve something great with this album. NY’s Finest’s songs lack good hooks, development and a certain charisma whose absence is only felt in comparison to his past work. These songs don’t make a point of moving forward and evolving. For hip-hop to rise above carnal or violent background music for dancing, songs need distinct, compelling, evolving parts. As in any kind of music, the listener must be taken somewhere for a connection to be made.

Michael Jordan logging a triple-double was never front-page-worthy. NY’s Finest is certainly worth a listen, but it’s hardly a milestone in the career of this hip-hop Goliath.