Woah... lets get a new review please. I think this reviewer's head is preoccupied with commercial hip hop, and comparing it to underground hip hop. I doubt this reviewer listened to this album more than once.

"Featuring The Grouch, of Living Legends, "Real Estate" is backed by driving beats and almost Busta-style vocals and is one of the most standout tracks on this album. It flows well enough but grit is left out of the equation and I'm left wanting. "

WTF?? Busta style vocals???? um, not quite. Again, preoccupied with commercial hip hop a bit? It sounds like good ole american underground hip hop to me!!! They are rapping a bit fast, maybe this is what you confuse with busta. Grit is left out?? The bass line is NOTHING if not gritty!!! That was the first thing i thought when I heard this song!

""Sandman" listens like a Northwest (read: watered down) version of dirty south screw,"

Again, your preoccupation with commercial rap influences your listening. Just take it for what it is! It might be a slower song (and I'll admit, it was the first song that I skipped over on the cd, BUT i DID come back and listen to it closely many times and have come to appreciate it with the same value as the rest of the gems on this album.) There is no "chopping" , only ONE slowed down vocal saying "sandman". Its supposed to be a dark and introspective song. Not a dirty south rip off.

"While "Lose It" seems to be reaching for more of the Kanye style of catchy self-indulgent lyrics over bare beats."

Ok, ill give you catchy, but "Kayne"???? come on. DO you really listen to ANY underground hip hop??? Im not trying to flame you here, but, COME ON!!! And self indulgent? Its just another song venting frustrations!!! I guess you could label it self indulgent if you labeled every song self indulgent in the sense that people write music for themselves...... They talk about how they don't want to sell out, and other real life things, very UN-Kayne like if you ask me.....

Group Home is more self indulgent than the last song.......

My final thought is that Honest Racket contains quite a few finely polished gems, dope production, smooth and conscious lyrics, all around a great album. If you like underground hip hop that is. hah....

Thank you for your well thought out and carefully articulated comment. I appreciate your breakdown criticism of my review, but I just called it like I saw it. With hundreds of listens the album never got better than the first time I heard it.

All I have left to say is "Whut it dew?", RIP DJ Screw.

IGshr*e

Agreed with Zoro 6000 wholeheartedly.

This reviewer obviously doesn't listen to much underground hip hop which is why he has trouble making accurate comparisons between similar artists and instead mentions commercial rappers who may as well be Sandpeople's polar opposites. Real Estate/Just Lose It have NOTHING in common with Busta Rhymes/Kanye West.

I agree that Group Home is one of the best tracks on the album.

The fact you mention "chopping and screwing" in a review of a SANDPEOPLE album just shows how far your head is up your own ass.

I'm getting so sick of people who dismiss SP as being average then proceed to talk about rappers who really ARE average as if they're something special. I think the problem is both commercial hip hop fans who are just ignorant AND so called underground hip hop fans who dismiss anything that actually IS underground. They talk about Joe Budden etc. like they're the be all and end all of underground hip hop then dismiss groups like Sandpeople who are on a whole other level than anything they've ever supported/had the capacity to appreciate.

/crazy rant about sandpeople's greatness.

@Mark: I do in fact listen to A LOT of underground hip hop. The above review was based on my opinion of the album, as are most music reviews. I appreciate your criticism though.

@Chris: I did indeed listen to it! Thanks for asking. I wouldn't have spent the time and effort to write this review if I didn't listen to it, and hadn't liked it. There are some criticism of tracks on this album, as it was definitely not perfect. That does not mean, however, that I didn't enjoy it.