Currently (March 19th, 2025) It's Rock week! Deftone’s “Around The Fur” is our album for this week, starting March 18th and ending March 25th. The following will be Pop week. Put your nominations/votes out there! Eventually, I hope we can try the formula I’ll outline below. I'll continue to try to clarify and update it until we find the pattern that works. Until then, we’ll continue loosely. Introduction Welcome to the Linkin Park Association Album Club. Our objective here is to get together and experience full albums together once a week. My primary goal for this OP is to try and help make rotation week-to-week, (meaning genre-to-genre and album-to-album), painless. Hopefully, seamless, even. Currently, I'm assuming that narrowing our nominations per week down to a single genre is the popular choice. It doesn't have to be that way, but I think it's a good standard to operate by. What We Need There's no wrong way to discuss, but if you would like to participate in making the club work 1:1, this is my suggestion. Once an album cycle, include these two things in any post. One album nomination/vote for next week related to the genre that won the most votes from the previous week. Try to sell it to us, maybe. One genre vote for 2 weeks from the current week. That's it! I think. That's all the club needs to function seamlessly. You don't even have to review or discuss to vote if you do not want to. The hope is just that we will be discussing the current album week, nominating/voting on albums for next week, and agreeing on the genre of the following week after that... on a smooth loop. Until we settle into a pattern, I'll be asking about votes here and there. What follows is how we kicked off discussing week one. - It's been a chilly week on the Gulf of A Tribe Called Quest. Yes, it's been one of those weeks chillin' with some of the best Music Y'know, I didn't choose it. But now I can't refuse it. This shit is great. I could go on inspired by this smooth-ass record. So. We opened up this new idea with Hip-Hop week and A Tribe Called Quest's "The Low End Theory" and what a quintessential album it was. Personally, this was the first time I've heard of the group and this platinum album. After listening to it for a whole week, I feel like I've been living under a rock. I give it a 9/10. No skips. The highlights for me had to be "Buggin' Out", "Show Business", "Check The Rhime", into "Everything is Fair" at that, and "Scenario". "What?" was fun, too. All in all, a very powerful trip back to the '90s with very clear roots showing on vocabulary/slang, flow and... honestly, that's the oldest record scratch on "Jazz" that I've (personally) heard. I heard that and took note, hah. What do you guys think? Let us know! New listeners and familiar alike. There's no wrong way to post here in the LPAAC. As for what's next, we need nominations for this week, (I'll add a poll to THIS thread when we get them), and genre votes for next. Please include those two things if you like what we're doing here. Going by the pilot thread's genre poll, this week is METAL week! ...Is that okay?
Super glad the record was a hit for you This album has it all : super smooth atmosphere, jazz all over the place, street vibes, and even humorous takes and wordplays. It transports you back to the early 90's for sure, great time capsule effect. I think it's also an album that inspired a whole branch of hip hop, paving the way for the like of The Roots, Outkast, and more recently, Kendrick Lamar. And let's not forget the appearance of a young Busta Rhymes in "The Scenario". I'm good with Metal next. As stated in the other thread, my suggestion for this one is Mastodon - Leviathan
Diving into The Low End Theory – A Smooth Jazz-Hip Hop Masterpiece My journey into A Tribe Called Quest has been a little by little travel back in time. The first time I heard Q-Tip was on Galvanize by The Chemical Brothers (oompphhh). His flow and delivery immediately caught my attention, making me wonder, "Who is this guy with the nasal voice?" Later, I saw him with the Black Eyed Peas on "Like That" (amaaaazing track with constant throwbacks) and had another realization: "Hey, THAT'S the guy!" That moment set me on a path to discover A Tribe Called Quest. Fast forward, and I've just completed a lot of full listens of The Low End Theory, and I can confidently say—it’s a masterpiece. This album is more than just hip-hop; it’s a deep dive into jazz, blending smooth basslines, live instrumentation, and impeccable lyricism. Tracks like Jazz (We’ve Got) and What? stood out to me for their effortless groove, and the interplay between Q-Tip and Phife Dawg on Check the Rhime is pure magic (you on point Tip? All the time Phife). The use of instrumentation in tracks like Butter is phenomenal. The smooth jazz elements, coupled with Phife Dawg’s storytelling, create an experience that feels both laid-back and masterfully crafted. The album transitions seamlessly from deep introspective moments to high-energy party chaos, best exemplified by Scenario, which introduces Busta Rhymes in an explosive fashion. The contrast between Scenario’s wild energy and the album’s opening track, Excursions, which sets the tone with its deep, philosophical musings, is incredible. One of the things that fascinate me about Q-Tip is his deep-rooted connections in hip-hop. Before diving into A Tribe Called Quest, I had already encountered his work with the Jungle Brothers (on their Black is black) and influenced later on Breathe Don’t Stop. Q-Tip isn’t just a key figure in ATCQ—he’s a fundamental piece of the Native Tongues movement, bridging acts like Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, and even collaborating with Beastie Boys. His influence stretches far beyond this album, shaping the sound of an entire era, heeeeyyy even with Korn in End of time. ExploringThe Low End Theory has been an eye-opening experience, revealing layers of complexity that go far beyond its smooth, laid-back surface. It’s jazz. It’s hip-hop. It’s a perfect fusion of both. And I can't wait to spin this on vinyl and experience it through a proper sound system. Also, I'm super cool with going on with Metal , my suggestion is Korn - Korn.
Glad you like it @Qwerty19 and glad to have discovered this for @ScatterMatter. I want to discover more and more Guys, I forgot to mention something in my post, I had it jotted down. AAAAAllll of the references to that one Arsenio (and Don Trump! in "positive" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯). I did my research and (of course) it's referencing Arsenio Hall and his show, a staple in black culture in the late 80's and early 90's. This had me thinking: Wow, how far away I was in age and culture from black people. With more time and perspective I understand A LOT MORE of their idiosyncrasy, the fight, the struggle and situation. I never understood (well, I do, but I hate to do it) the mistreatment, the seggregation and hate they (and every other not white) have received over time. (mic drop)
I can tell this is one that really resonates with you. I did a little reading, mainly of what their Spotify had to say. I was surprised to see all the associated names and projects. I feel like I should have added “Excursions” to my highlights now that you mention it, here, too. Part of me wanted to go the full 16 lines but it was getting late. Maybe I’ll get better at having fun with these like that as we go. I feel all that. I remember getting the impression history had ended in school. Growing up has been slowly realizing this wasn’t the case and that for whatever reason I had been sheltered by design, and that’s just what it is to be born onto an avalanche of societal issues. Hearing how much things haven’t changed at all in ways is sobering.
There's a lot in The Low End Theory that has clearly impacted hip-hop at large since it came out. I've heard a lot of production, arrangement and performance approaches (not to mention outright samples and quotes straight from the album) that I can now tell were born from this album's influence. For that reason, I'm glad this is the album we did. First off, it sounds fantastic, even before you consider that it's from 1991. This is a timeless and enduring sound, one that was perhaps an innovation at the time. The breaks, the basslines, everything in the instrumentation is just quality. I love the way the jazz elements are integrated, and how they're made to dovetail with the drum programming. I like how it's all purpose-built to have rapping and storytelling fit neatly over the top. I don't have to say a lot more, this aspect of the album is basically flawless to me Q-Tip and Phife are so clearly in their element here, with an easy, natural chemistry that is still resonating and inspiring today. I love the energy in all of the performances, and how they use their contrast as vocalists and rappers to maintain it while trading verses throughout the songs. I was definitely really put off by what I felt were dated flows all throughout the album upon my first listen (listening to more current hip-hop afterwards felt like a breath of fresh air), but that has faded a bit with subsequent re-listens that were more casual and less forced. Along with that, in every song, there is so much packed into this lyricism, but they still managed to make it so accessible and approachable, instead of feeling too dense and overwhelming. I appreciate the variety of topics touched on in the songs, something which I wish was the case in more of in the hip-hop albums I find today. There are actually moments where Q-Tip and Phife touch on some serious topics, even dark territory, and they just click within the context of the whole work because they explore that subject matter in a way that's theirs, not needing to make a jarring shift away from the personalities and dynamic they establish. There are also guest rappers on the album, and they hold it down admirably too - Lord Jamar's verse on "Show Business" is probably my favourite of them - but I never felt any of them outshined the true stars. As someone not from the U.S., I still know of things like The Arsenio Hall Show and Soul Train, but I really have no idea where from so those references weren't lost on me
Damn you guys, your reviews make me super happy this initiative was started, super insightful and fun to read!
Agreed! Thank you for your input, guys. @minuteforce @juancpin. And @Qwerty19, too, I forgot to reply to yours. I was on the same page about Busta Rhymes, very cool feature to find on this trip back in time! Two updates, I may push the timeframe for week 2 a bit in the interest of letting nominations come through. If 3 others voted for Metal on the last thread, it’d be cool to hear their ideas. If not and they just want to see where that leads in hands-off fashion, that’s cool too. And I suggested a genre vote for next week, too. Coming back to that, I forgot that using the rankings from the pilot thread was a thing so we can just assume Rock is next week. Suggesting a metal album is hard for me right now for some reason, I’ll come back asap.
A double post ping, in the interest of an update. I added the poll. I figure enough time has passed. My nomination is System of a Down’s Self-titled debut.
Thx @ScatterMatter!! I’ll go with Mastodon! So intrigued!! Never heard anything from them. I’d love to be taught about!
Me neither. I might go vote for them too. This is a tough week for me. Not a lot of metal grabs me. What does really does, though. Edit; Yeah, I think that’s my vote too because it’s the one I’m curious about yet I’m sure I wouldn’t listen to normally.
I don't want to say much about the Mastodon album, but if that's the pick, that's for sure one that should take a few spins to get around it. I'm super extra eager to hear your reactions in a few days I would say one album per iteration is the most optimal to me, to keep the focus clear (and also due to time being scarce ^^)
@ScatterMatter I'd also go with one album per week, my kids and chores won't let me dive into more hahhahahha
Understandable! Yeah, looks like Mastadon is the winner this week. I can adjust the timeframe or if you guys think the current is okay we can stick to it.
Yeah, it’s official. Week 2 will be Mastadon’s “Leviathan”. Weighing the pros and cons of adjusting the timeframe or keeping it 3/7-3/14. Again, wanted to thank those who have been curious enough to dabble so far. I’m committed to the idea and hearing ideas on it, even during slow points on LPA. If it gets too sparse, hiatuses are fine, too!