Able to hold down the mic, man the tables and also produce a hot track, Scram Jones is a hip-hop anomaly.  Hailing from the Bronx by way of New Rochelle, New York, Scram has been steadily carving himself out a place in hip-hop over the last few years.  Working with legions of underground and well-known artists, Scram has put them all together mixtape style on his first release entitled Loose Cannons.

    Primarily showcasing his talent behind the boards, Scram produces every track on the album.  Leaving most of the rhyming to his counterparts, Scram still squeezes in a few 16′s on “What More Can I Say,” featuring his High Society click member Marvalous.  Over a punishing bass line and some nimble scratches, Scram rhymes “Still busy tryin’ to get these dues paid/cause like a man’s wig dude’s is gettin’ toupee’d (too paid).”  But sticking to producing becomes more sensible when up and comer Jae Millz steps up to the mic on “Born and Raised.”  Throwing rocking electric guitar licks alongside high-pitched notes, Scram provides an ample backdrop for Jae’s carnage.

    Running just over seventy-five minutes long, Scram runs into the same problem many of today’s mixtape dj’s encounter- a lot of songs aren’t worth a listen.  Compressing some of his material wouldn’t have done any harm.  But the bland freestyles from Sean Price and Jae Hood aren’t enough to ruin Scram’s talents.  The sample laden “Oughta Know”, featuring Marvalous and the reggae cover “No, No, No (remix)” featuring Jae Millz, Cam?ron and T.I. are both precursors to what’s to come from Mr. Jones.

    Overall this is a solid debut from a talented producer, dj and rapper.  With many featured guests and a display of solid unsigned talent, one must
wonder what Scram has in store for us, as with “Loose Cannons” shows he’s well on his way to becoming a driving force in the hip-hop world.