What would you need to travel back to a time before hip-hop was littered with bling bling, high priced cars, and half-naked women? When hip-hop was fun? The Answer: A time machine! Unfortunately those things only exist in Michael J. Fox movies and H.G. Wells novels, but the next best thing is the aptly titled group with that very title. Time Machine, made up of emcees Jaysonic and Comel (who doubles behind the boards), takes you on a ride to the early 90′s, when hip-hop was whimsical and clever, minus the clothing name drops and throwback jerseys. Time Machine’s debut, Slow Your Roll, represents everything that groups like The Pharcyde and Digital Underground were. Slow Your Roll is an album complete with all the elements that made those groups popular during the early 90′s, but while the 90′s are long gone, we can only reminisce about those days. So while this critic reviews Time Machine’s debut, let’s take a trip back to those days and let us reflect…..

     Remember when albums weren’t so serious, containing elements of comedic and whimsical fun? Slow Your Roll embodies those same elements that made hip-hop the ever-evolving art form it is today. Subject matter gets tossed around like a game of hot potato. From the clever play on words of “Spelling Bee” to giving hard rocks the gas face on the Edan assisted @$$hole”, Time Machine demonstrates their ability to not give the listener 60 minutes of tough talk battle rap or the cookie cutter format of bankrolls, hoes and clothes that many label shaped emcees openly exhibit today.  Even the run of the mill subject of females gets an appealing new spin on joints like “Reststop Sweetheart” where the duo lament on the subject of meeting chicks at the last place many would even think of running into the woman of their dreams. One can attempt to argue that Jaysonic and Comel aren’t the greatest emcees, but you can’t deny that their merry go round of subjects does definitely keep the album fresh.

     Remember when beats were really dope? Not to say that many of the beatsmiths that gather at the gates of hip hop today don’t have good production, but Time Machine’s producer, Comel, takes you back to the early 90′s with the greatest of ease. While Time Machine doesn’t have a signature sound you can put a finger on, it does make the album unique in its own special way. The reggae bounce of “Mind In A Spin” features a noteworthy performance from Edo. G, amongst its subsonic soundscapes. The smooth groove of “Personal Ads” sways along with a vocal sample that assists the emcees splendidly along their escapades of finding the perfect lady. Even the smacking drums of “The Way Things Are” swaggers at an irresistible rate, amidst a stirring female vocal sample. The beats are so good in fact that Time Machine drops “Water In Your Cereal”, an instrumental that doesn’t disturb the progress of the album.

     Remember when finding a good album wasn’t a difficult feat? Nowadays it’s the exact opposite, as many albums contain only one or two good songs, meaning you’ve wasted 15 dollars on a single or two. Slow Your Roll contains moments that hip-hop heads who yearn for a solid album can appreciate. After breezing effortlessly through 60 minutes of good clean hip-hop, each listener will be able to pick out his/her favorite tracks, and at the end of the day no answer is wrong. While a Time Machine may be needed to revisit hip hop during its glory days, no individual can argue with a group who takes it upon themselves to give the listener a nostalgic taste of fun loving hip hop.