What comes before

Now to some people it may seem something of a heresy, but I have never been particularly big on Slum Village, either pre or post Jay Dee. There is much to commend them when Dilla was behind the boards of course, and much of note since, but they group just never really grabbed them in the way I hoped they might. Always a case of the sum total not seeming to be equal to the constituent parts. But now here I am, as is often the case with musical oscillations, being forced to reconsider my position. And the reason for this reappraisal is none other than the work of one of these constituent elements, to my mind the most under-valued cog in the SV wheel, the criminally slept on Elzhi.

Now I have always come to Elzhi more through his collaboration work, notably with the mighty Little Brother, but who can forget also his stellar contribution to the Jay Dee collection “Welcome 2Detroit”, with the brilliant “Come Get It”. Even one of my favourite SV tracks with Elzhi on the mic is “Selfish” from 2004’s “Detroit Deli” album, and that was a Kanye/John Legend production and guest slot. And then there is his solo work, and this is where it begins to get really interesting.

The two unofficial mixtape releases, “Witness the Growth” and “Europass” are interesting works for a number of reasons, not least of all the varied production and trove of Dilla beats. But they also show a lyricist who is inventive beyond belief, with a killer swagger, wordplay so thick you could mistake it for treacle, and a growing confidence in delivery. And all of this now comes together in a perfectly suited union with the official debut solo release of 2008’s “The Preface”, surely a certain contender for hip-hop album of the year.

Just like it is difficult to pinpoint why Slum Village have often whizzed over my head in a wind of indifference, it is tricky to say exactly why “the Preface” is so good, but it really is an instant classic. With strong production from fellow Detroit and SV alumni Black Milk and DJ Dez, the album is simply a breath of fresh air in a seemingly endless hurricane of mediocrity that much of commercial rap has become. From concept tracks such as “Guessing Game” and “Colors”, to lyrical workouts like “Save Ya” and “Hands Up”, the album is like DHL on speed, it just keeps on delivering. Banger “Motown 25” featuring the similarly under-appreciated Royce Da 5”9 is battle-rhyming at its best.

In fact every track is worthy of attention for one reason or another, and today it is all too rare to get a long player that calls for no skipping and i-pod selecting, it is good enough listen after listen to keep providing something new and refreshing. You might recognise a couple of the tracks from the afore-mentioned “Europass” release, but consider that as a reprimand for sleeping on Elzhi for so long. This album is never going to go platinum of course, it may even struggle to go aluminium, but that is rap’s problem not yours.

If you want an example of why you love this music in the first place, and a reminder of how good it can be, grab “The Preface” and get ready for a blinding reintroduction. I just hope the chapters that follow can keep up the good work.