Hip Hop / R&B Recommendations June 2011

Review: Something of a treat here for hip-hop heads, as the ever-reliable Madlib teams up with Detroit MC Frank Nitt for the latest edition in the Madlib Medicine Show series. As the pre-release hype pointed out, Nittyville is the most straight-up of the series so far, with Nitt and, it should be pointed out, an uncredited gang of extras spitting rhymes, old skool style, over Madlib's unusually straightforward beats. Fans of the Stones Throw veteran will be in their element; as usual, the sample sources are obscure, the beats heavy and the vibe crackly, far-sighted and cosmic. There are, as you'd expect, some forays into eccentric jazz and dub territory amongst the head-nodding vibes, making this a "proper" Madlib album in all but name.