LMNO
JAMES KELLY 10-Pack
Looking for those last minute items but aren’t sure exactly what to gift? Well, look no further—Long Beach based emcee LMNO of the Visionaries has made decision-making this holiday season a no-brainer. Having released an epic ten (yes, 10) albums to commemorate 2010, you can purchase any of his ten records, gift wrap them and put them under the tree for all the music lovers in your family. The albums are: Push That Work, fOnk garden, Next in Line, Selective Hearing Part 2, Determined to Fly, Banger Management, Tripping on this Journey, Blessing in Disguise, No Apologies, and finally, LMNO is Dead. These records, which unlike you might expect, are consistent throughout and demonstrate LMNO’s versatility as a lyricist and performer. Or you can purchase the dynamic and monolithic James Kelly LMNO 10-Pack Limited Edition Collection, which includes all of the albums in tight commemorative packaging. Releasing 10 albums in one year is unheard of, especially when achieving it with a diverse cast of collaborators ranging from the heavenly Georgia Anne Muldrow, Visionaries members KeyKool and 2Mex to the almighty producers Kev Brown and DJ Babu. With this star-studded cast there is very little reason to doubt the quality output of the music in question. Check out my review here to the masterful Selective Hearing Part 2, which is perhaps my favorite of the bunch.
While I had initially conceived to write this piece as a comprehensive review of every single record in the collection, that task (due to time constraints) proved to daunting to undertake. However, my busy holiday season has been well spent and productive as scored by the sounds of LMNO’s 10 records. Interestingly, one of my favorite LMNO albums, created in collaboration with French producer Yann Kesz, Devilish Dandruff with Holy Shampoo, is absent from this collection (you should pick it up nevertheless!). You can find my review of that impressive LMNO release here. With an organic, non-synthetic, acrobatic and rhythmic intelligent lyrical design, LMNO methodically travels through the various landscapes created by his producers through this record collection. Connected by the life-experience of LMNO and James Kelly, the albums are interconnected in interesting ways, while, however, conceived uniquely as their own show the fluctuation, change, and metamorphosis of a gifted emcee. Featuring guest spots from hip-hop notables Luckyiam, MED, Wildchild, Hasaan Mackey, Chali 2Na, Evidence and others, the collection is sprinkled with highlights that underscore the quality of creation present throughout LMNO’s year (and overall body) of work.
The albums showcase a rigorous understanding of musicianship through provocative rhyming, emotion, fantastic storytelling, and on-point production. The collection is organized by LMNO’s name “James Kelly” which breaks down as follows:
Disc J: Push The Work (Produced and scratches by LD)
Disc A: fOnk Garden (Produced by Georgia Anne Muldrow)
Disc M: Next in Line (Produced by Dert)
Disc E: Selective Hearing Part 2 (with Kev Brown)
Disc S: Determined to Fly (with Theory Hazit)
Disc K: Banger Management (with Mr. Brady)
Disc E: Tripping on this Journey (Produced by Astronote)
Disc L: Blessing in Disguise (with 2Mex and KeyKool)
Disc L: No Apologies (Produced by DJ Babu)
Disc Y: LMNO is Dead (Produced by KeyKool)
The collection retails for a little over 50 dollars over at the Up Above Records website. If you do the cost analysis of high quality music for your money, it doesn’t get any better than this. Seeing as we all have to be frugal and be intelligent consumers, LMNO and Up Above’s 10-pack collection fits the bill, literally. Check out LMNO’s “10-Pack Commandments” music video commemorating the 10 LP’s put out in 2010, it contextualizes a bit of LMNO’s work ethic in an manageable (and physical!) form. While a humble LMNO says, “Work ethic is the move, I do what I say without anything to prove.” His work stands alone and will stand the test of time, it proves that LMNO, as far as the history of West Coast hip-hop goes, as far as bumping California lyricism goes, stands strong with the rest of them. The perfect blend of complexity and clarity in the lyrics of LMNO are a point of distinction that makes his music (time and time again) thoroughly enjoyable. With hot production on the regular, LMNO is in a class of his own with the introduction of the 10-Pack. As far as I know, this might be the first time a West Coast rapper has output 10 records in a single year. Showing that he can take his rhymes and distinct style and adapt it to various environments and situations by working with different producers and artists, LMNO has achieved legendary status with a brilliant collection of amazing tracks. While the records stand alone, together, they contribute a sizable weight to LMNO’s artistic credentials and is something that should not be missed.
If you’re a hip-hop fan and have never heard of LMNO, this is the most ideal way to enter into the realm of LMNO’s audible constructions. The magnitude of this collection will prove its worth over and over again and will give you months of sonic pleasure for months to come (if not years). As a proud owner of the collection, you will also receive Blessing in Disguise, No Apologies and LMNO is Dead before they are released in single-album format come 2011. Those albums in themselves constitute the collection as a worthy purchase and something worth buying for you (or for some other grateful member in your family). LMNO did very well this year and has already cemented his place as a creative, prolific emcee and humble artist—for me, and you will agree once you peep this collection: LMNO is hip-hop’s modern day Renaissance man.
Leave A Comment!