Earlier this year, Zion I has returned with their Libations EP, the second installment of a three part series the duo is working on. Libations is the follow up album to Master of Ceremonies, the first installment of their free trilogy, which focuses on high energy music where the listener feels invigorated and can be taken to a different state of mind. Complete with a multitude of artists and debuted by XXL, “Get Urs” is a new visual from the indie hip-hop fusion group. The video features flashy backdrops, iconic photographs and close-ups with each featured guest. The track was produced by Headnodic and features Mr. Lif, Kev Choice, Deuce Eclipse, Opio, and Sadat X spitting their own verses as each rapper stamps their unique brand on the video.

Introduced as part two of their trilogy, Libations is completely different from its predecessor. The album dropped via URB and features more emotion themes, specifically memories and reflection. Zumbi explains, “This project was heavily influenced by one of my best friends passing away suddenly. His death put me in a mood to really analyze my life and how short this existence really can be. It opened my eyes and heart to both the ugliness and beauty of what we experience while alive.” Hence, Libations broods with reflection and deep emotion. “To me, libation is when you honor someone by pouring out your brew before you sip, its a sort of prayer. On this EP, I poured out some liquor for my homie, as well as my family, and myself.” The EP features production from AMP Live, Headnodic, and newcomer Featherload, along with rappers Mr Lif, Sadat X, and Opio of Souls of Mischief.

Directed by Cory Ring. Produced by Headnodic.

After selling out the first three pressings of his vinyl in under 30 days, old soul producer L’Orange has signed a 3 album production deal with Mello Music Group for 2014 & 2015. Slated to create a combination of projects from instrumental, to jazz singers, to alternative edged collaborations with emcees, L’Orange is looking to bring his distinct sound to Mello’s audience, while continuing to push the boundaries of his musical explorations.

L’Orange recently recruited Mr. Lif & John Robinson for his contribution to the MMG compilation “Mandala Vol. 1, Polysonic Flows”. The track, titled “The Lost Nova”, combines jazz rhythms, classic crackle, and intricate drum patterns for the raspy voiced Mr. Lif to tell his tale of verbal kumite (組手) and whirlwind zephyrs, while John Robinson takes listeners to the crystal city via his astro-physical-lyrical gift and extra-galactic tactics.

First leak from Headnodic’s Red Line Radio, due 07-26-11 on Brick Records.

LISTEN: Headnodic – “Turn Your Radio Up” (feat. Mr. Lif, Gift Of Gab, The Grouch)

Headnodic – “Turn Your Radio Up” (feat. Mr. Lif, Gift Of Gab, The Grouch)

Album tracklist below:

1. You Can Call It That (the introduction)
2. Red Line Radio feat. Mission (aka Raashan Ahmad & Moe Pope)
3. Movin’ On Up feat. Latyrx (aka Lateef the Truth Speaker & Lyrics Born) & Kat ((O1O))
4. Surgeon General feat. People Under The Stairs
5. The Mondays feat. Kat ((O1O))
6. Haven’t You Heard? feat. Sadat X, & Scienz of Life (aka John Robinson & ID 4 Winds)
7. These Days Ahead
8. The A.M. feat. Othello, Aima the Dreamer & DJ Vajra
9. Turn Your Radio Up feat. Mr. Lif, Gift of Gab & The Grouch
10. Russian River
11. Cough Drop feat. Raashan Ahmad
12. The Mush feat. Moe Pope & Benzito the Village President
13. Truth feat. Destani Wolf & The Jazz Mafia Horns
14. Durty Diamonds feat. Moe Pope, Bru Lei, Very, Jern Eye, Nightclubber Lang & One.Be.Lo
15. Carpe Noctum
16. Viles feat. Myka 9 & P.E.A.C.E.
17. Mr. Incomplete feat. The Jazz Mafia Horns
18. Pepper’s Lullabye
19. Thanks
20. Red Line Radio – Woodstock Remix feat. Mission & DJ Vajra (Digital Bonus Track)

One year after the earthquake in Haiti, Lif and Akrobatik reunite as the Perceptionists to speak on it. Grab the track or listen below via Bandcamp.

You gotta love the balloons. Definitive Jux celebrates the 4th of July (or not) by teaming up with AmazonMP3 for a free sampler album, featuring new and classic tracks from Cage, El-P, Aesop Rock, Mr. Lif, Chin Chin, Company Flow, Del, Rob Sonic, Hangar 18, Dizzee Rascal, and Murs. Cop that shit. – DJ Pizzo

In anticipation for his new full-length release, Into The Hillside, musical-jack-of-all-trades / Definitive Jux homie Cassettes Won’t Listen has teamed with Wired.Com for this free remix EP, including CWL remixes of tracks by Mr. Lif, The Dears, Bisc1, The Death Set, Christine, and The Faunts. – DJ Pizzo

Download: Cassettes Won’t Listen “(F)remix” EP

This is the first solo album Lif has released outside of Definitive Jux, after the pair of critically acclaimed favorites, I Phantom and Mo’ Mega. Departing from the label (perhaps only a business level, not on a personal level), the heavy production of El-P, which dominated Mo’ Mega and I Phantom is not found this time around, resulting in a somewhat different sound. Also missing this time are longtime Boston collaborators Insight and Fakts One, however resident rap archivist Edan still shows up to the party-for-your-right-to-fight. New to the fold are up and comers, Batsauce, Ray Fernandes, Decaye, Nik Jhatakia, Therapy, Headnodic, and former collaborator Willie Evans Jr. Naturally, with such a different line-up of producers, we get a different sound than found on Lif’s previous two LP’s and subsequent side projects. Remarkably, this team of producers crafts a similar sound of lo-fi boom bap, in a style obvious to Lif’s liking, as the album has a cohesive sound throughout.

Topically, Lif pretty much stays within the realm of attacking the U.S. Government and it’s institutions, despite a “friendlier face” in the White House. His message is clear – can’t truss it. The album opens with a nervous, frustrated Lif on the brink of madness with “Welcome To The World”, locking his doors from the war going on outside, over agro guitar licks. “What About Us” questions the current financial climate and the numerous stimulus packages, lamenting “You say that seven-hundred billion’s to save the children? / Ya’ll motherfuckers about to make a killing.” These ideas come together on the Edan / Cut Chemist produced “Collapse The Walls”, as Lif’s suggests the only way to fix these Governmental problems is to destroy and rebuild; using mind-powers, of course.

Issues that hit closer to home like the self-explanatory “Police Brutality” and “Hatred” echo statements that have been covered in rap music for years, reiterating that obviously this is still a problem. While always politically grounded, Lif does venture off course a bit from time to time, such as on the ode to smoking weed, “Head High”, which seems pretty irrelevant in the context of the rest of the album. The same can be said “The Sun”, a somewhat stream of consciousness track where Lif bounces from topic to topic.

In theory, the blueprint for this album was an ambitious, creative idea, but when you really think about it, there is no way anyone could really turn out a classic album when forced to only write songs about what’s in the news. Do we really want to hear a song about the Obamas’ new dog hunt? No, and thankfully Lif broke the mold a bit, but ultimately this hurts the execution of album’s original intent. More importantly however is the change in production. While we don’t expect Lif to make the same album with the same producers over and over again, it’s hard to live up to the standard set on his first two records with this new team of budding beat-makers. All in all, Lif raises a lot of interesting points and his nasally voice may just be what Chuck D meant when he dubbed rap music “The Black CNN”. However in given the current state of world affairs, Lif’s wise words on I Heard It Today apply to all of  us. – D.T. Swinga

    Given the schizophrenic nature of his now classic debut, at first Mo’ Mega may seem a bit redundant, due to the fact that El has produced much of this effort. But like most projects the producer is involved with, after consecutive listens, you realize where he is going with his beats, the brilliance of his production becomes evident. If Dilla is a “drum god”, then by all means, El is the most evil drum Satanist. 

    The album begins with “Collapse”, the perfect reintroduction to the duo, as Lif delivers a lyrical nervous breakdown, struggling between career and family, while El provides a heavy, building backdrop that animates what Lif is saying perfectly. This seamlessly leads into “Ultra-Mega”, a virtual competition for the spotlight between the two, where Lif delivers a barrage of sociopolitical and economic commentary, while El goes nutzoid on the drum machine, employing kicks and snares of all kinds. This follows right into “Brothaz”, as the two come off like a millennial Public Enemy, lambasting the U.S. Government for Iraq, Katrina, and Rwanda, over a busy Bomb Squad-esque beat. This leads into the two-part “The Fries”, a disturbingly humorous portrait of the McDonaldsization of American society: “a new disease you caught at Mickey D’s / in your Quarter Pounder with Cheese / order with ease / super size please / can you believe? / people even survived through the drive-thru?” “Take, Hold, Fire” follows, finding Lif, Aesop Rock, and El each spitting a verse built around each word of the song title. 

    The second act of the album travels in a slightly different direction yet doesn’t miss a beat. Guest producer Edan steps in on “Murs Is My Manager”, providing a funky backdrop for this hilarious mic session between Mr. Lif and Murray. “Washitup” follows, finding Lif reaching back into his Caribbean roots, delivering a self-produced dancehall track about the fundamentals of good hygiene, once again tapping into his humorous side.  

    The last act of the album gets more personal, beginning with “The Come Up”, an excellent posse cut with fellow emcees Akrobatik and Blueprint, where each of them tell a tale of an aspiring emcee (which may or may not be autobiographical). Things get more personal on “Lookin’ In”, where Lif pens verses to his estranged father, but Lif makes good on his dad’s mistakes with the closer, “For You”, a thoughtful dedication to his daughter.

     While I Phantom might be a better album than Mo’ Mega, this record should not be taken for granted. People will probably not be able to grasp the sheer magnitude of what El is doing here with his production, and the same can be said for Lif’s rhymes, to some extent. Regardless, Mo’ Mega presents a refreshing brand of smart, inspiring, and well-produced hip-hop in an age when everything else has to be dumbed-down for mass consumption.

Akrobatik:  Definitely doing good man, we just on the second leg of the 6 week tour the never-ending leg of the tour.

HHS:   Go ahead and introduce yourselves to those who don’t know who you are

Akrobatik:  We are The Perceptionists and my name is Akrobatik

Fakts One:  Fakts One

Mr Lif:  Mr Lif, and we represent Boston (laughter)

HHS:  That’s how it should be representing where you’re from, I’m going to talk to everybody.  So Mr Lif, How long have you been in the game and who would you say are your major influences?

Mr Lif:  I can speak for myself we all been in it different amounts of time.  I started writing in ’93 then recorded my first song at the end of ’94 doing in to ’95.  Influences I think I can almost speak collectively but everybody will have something different to add, you know?  BDP, Public Enemy, Ultramagnetic MCs.  Ask Fakts.

HHS:  Fakts how about you?

Fakts One:  Umm..I’ve been djing for way to long, I would say this is maybe my 10th year of professionally djing and going on the 11th.  I’ve been making beats for like 4 or 5 years.  But, as far as influences go, Gangstarr is probably the main one because they are from where I’m from, Edo G.   Umm….I would say for me growing up my biggest influence was the radio, you know not so much any one individual group but rap on the radio period, like I would just sit there and record and have tapes and tapes and tapes of shows.

HHS:  Akrobatik?

Akrobatik:   I’ve rhymed pretty much forever man, since like 4th grade 5th grade something like that.  I picked up on it real early but as far as in the game, quote quote in the game, I put out my first record in ’98 and started recording stuff for that in like ’96-’97.  I’ve been in it a better half of a decade so as far as influences go, I would probably say like KRS is definitely the first person to come to mind, umm Q-Tip, Jungle Brothers, Rakim, LL Cool J…just like….Kane definitely, of course.  Cats just all seem to be in their prime all at the same time man, you know what I’m saying?  Public Enemy I can’t leave them out neither.  The golden age, it sounds like a  cliché but it is really true if you look back at hip-hop to where it is now the time where there was the most dope artists all consistently putting out all hot shit was between ’88 and ’92

Mr Lif:  I just want to give a shout out to Run DMC in there too, cause that’s the first tape I ever had.

HHS:  Akrobatik, you and Mr Lif have put out numerous 12″s on different labels.  Meaning some projects you guys have put out are on different labels, explain that?

Mr Lif:  In short….labels are not usually good enough or worth to handle multiple projects.  For instance the reason I did like 3 solo 12″s and like 10 guest appearances before I even released an EP was because I knew I needed to find a good home for my records before I started releasing actual projects that had more than 3 cuts on them.  Because the worst thing is like, make and album or an EP and have a label not know how to put it out and have it flop, labels have to be able to reflect the effort of the artist, if they can’t match you with a business scheme that has the same intensity as what you put into the music you know what I’m saying.  Then, you don’t need to mess with them.  Most labels early in our career where only worth of getting a single from us here and there.

HHS:   The “Show Starter” 12″ was my first dealings with the Perceptionists, I know there were early projects, what were they and what label were they released under?

Fakts One:  I would say “Inhuman Capabilities” naw not really, I would say the “Show Starter” is the first legitimately Perceptionists project.

Mr Lif:  “Avengers” on Enter the Colossus

Fakts One:  Yeah, but before that we were always on records together in some sort of configuration, usually two out of three you know like it will be Ak and Lif on a song or it will be a beat I did for Ak or a beat I did for Lif or cuts I did for someone, but “Avengers” was the only song where it was all 3 of us.  But, from my first single for my album I wanted to really put the crew forward you know, just kind of set it off because we made a conscious decision to start doing things as a group so I wanted that to be known just put it out there like ok this is how it’s going down, you know?

HHS:  Now you are signed to Def Jux has a group, or they just decided to put out this 12″?

Fakts One:  We are in the process of being signed to Def Jux, the 12″ is something we did for DJ X3, kind of like a little teaser you know?  We are in negotiations for that right now, as we speak.

HHS:  But, Def Jux is the label that the album will be dropping on?

Akrobatik:  We are pretty much verbally committed we just haven’t inked the dotted line yet.  They’ve shown that they want put the record out, and by us being on this tour and holding down the entire tour we have pretty much shown our commitment to label too.  So you know it’s pretty much a go so you know?

HHS:   There is a Perceptionists Album coming, can you tell us a little about that?   Will there be any other producers other than Fakts and who are the guests?

Fakts One:  I will of course be doing some tracks, we have some tracks by Cyrus, El-P but you know it’s a work in progress.  We are literally doing songs on the tour bus, coming up with concepts and what not.

HHS:  Guest appearances?

Akrobatik:  Well, should I just let the cat out of the bag?

Fakts and Lif:  Naw, Naw they’ll have to wait and see.

HHS:  Ok Ok, I’m interested but I understand you guys wanted to keep that under wraps.

Akrobatik:  We’ll tell you off the record.

HHS:  As far as the album goes, it’s not done, but how many tracks would you say you have finished?

Akrobatik:  Here’s the thing, because we are not recording on the bus, we still have to go back home and record the album, but the album is more than half done in terms of conceptualization and it’s almost half done in terms of being written.  So we are getting there we have like 8 or 9 beats and the concepts.

Mr Lif:  I’ll say it is a new experience for me, I don’t know about Ak and Fakts but we are writing the songs then performing them before we record them.  I’ve always recorded then performed, so it is giving us a whole different slant on how the project is going, and letting us know the intensity that we need to approach our songs with in the lab and give it the overall live feel that we are going to want.  Because we intend to tour consistently for our records, that’s the thing we intend on being a touring animal and performing the songs before we record them gives the idea of how to make it translate well into the live show.

HHS:  That’s dope because in independent hip-hop you have to tour, you can’t live on trying to sell 12″s and LPs.   So Fakts what advice do you have for up and coming producers, how did you get your production heard.

Fakts One:  I actually learned to make beats from a friend, that wasn’t a part of the game I wasn’t actually exploring that part of the game in any way, shape or form it kind of stumbled on me by accident.  I just happen to know emcees some emcees, for instant I was playing a beat in my dorm room and Ak came in like “That’s kinda dope”, next thing I know I have a beat on a 12″ man, you know.  I would say take your time to hone your craft, like I’m just now starting to feel confident in the stuff that I do.  Don’t rush into like you got some joints, when you know you only have a couple of hot joints and listen to your stuff with an unbiased ear, that’s the hardest part.   Be open to hear other peoples unbiased opinions, play it for you mom who doesn’t really like hip-hop then play it for somebody who loves hip-hop and take their feedback into account.

HHS:  Lif and Akro, you guys have been doing this for sometime where do you see hip-hop going?

Mr Lif:  No Comment  (Laughing)

Akrobatik:  I would say there is not much to say about that, because I can’t predict the future.  But, I will say whatever is going to happen we are going to be there and hopefully we won’t be the only ones out that are talking some sense on some records.

HHS:  So you would say hip-hop is on a downward slide?

Akrobatik:  I would say it has leveled off at a low point, it’s not like it’s on a downward slide, and it’s not getting worse and worse.  It’s gotten about as bad as and it’s staying there.  Now, does that mean that everybody out sucks….no, because there are a lot of dope artists out there, but as far as what is being mass produced and what is being seen….I mean I saw some BET today and it made me like seriously want to gag.

Mr Lif:  Makes you angry

Akrobatik:  Yeah, it makes you violent and angry because it’s just so bad because it is hard to believe that people take it seriously and support it.  In a real sense that isn’t even really hip-hop, that is really just TV and marketing and advertising for pop music.  As far as hip-hop, I would like to see it revert back to the dope dope live show, like Freshfest, Public Enemy back then was playing stadiums, Run DMC stadiums, Beastie Boys stadiums.  We want people start to believing in the real shit again so we can start putting together those types of shows and everybody can have some fun.

     Lif’s legacy begins back in 95, when he was considered a “battle emcee” so it’s only right that Sleepyheads jumps off with the joint that made heads turn “Madness In A Cup”. Lif also serves up another hot joint that unfortunately didn’t make the final cut of the Emergency Rations EP, the neck snapping “Day of Power”, as Lif displays his more political side within the walls of the reggae tinged production. Sleepyheads presents both sides of the emcee, from the battle loaded joints “Target: Gristle” and “Be Out”  to the more conscious efforts such as “Because they Made It That Way” which is incredibly dope and thought provoking: “The only place I can find justice is deep inside of these lines/That I designed to explain situations of the times/People in general are targets of big money markets/And are all disposable unless you come ready to work/Fully posable with suit and tie/Ready to buy into the bullshit images/ Of people claiming that money is what there religion is/ Filthy females that are visionless/ And foes that are precision less/ Let me be your mind’s eye and vision this.) Both sides of Lif are effortlessly executed with the greatest of ease showcasing Lif’s staggering abilities.”
  
    But the bona fide gem on this collection of unreleased and rarely heard material is the now classic “Farm Hand”. Produced by Lif himself, the track embodies a country twang with an undeniable head nodding resonance. Teetering back and forth from the battle emcee to the more politically charged persona, Lif simply kills the track which alone is worth the price of acquisition as his well-defined defined flow sounds off “You step to the stage Cause you think that you’re fresh/ But I’ll burn off your flesh Like David Coresh/ Skin sizzlin’, now your frame is a scab/ Let’s play a fucking game of virtual stab…” and flips it around to his more political side on the second verse “Funny how a politician runs and shits his suit/ That he bought with money from selling guns to loot/ perhaps Came from makin’ more pollutes your lungs and gave ya a glance of cancer, add a 21 salute/ You were just another recruit that got shitted on in life’s crap chute/ The government gave you the boot But now I’m in cahoots with alternative routes.” The perfect example of what the Lif is all about.

     Mr. Lif fans can rejoice for the simple fact that Lif has provided an album chock full of his earlier work. Spanning from 1995 all the way to 2002, fans are granted the opportunity to witness Mr. Lif grow as an artist. What also is a souvenir is contained in the linear notes which, though brief, explain what each song means to Lif and grants the listener a pass into
the mind of the B-Boy. All supporters of Mr. Lif now have something else to add to their collection and with the release of Sleepyheads, Lif comes full circle making available a musical timeline of where he came from and potentially what to hope for in the future.

Almost picking up where the EP left off, a disgruntled Lif adopts a “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” attitude, running with the local hoods with dreams of being a stick-up kid, only to meet his demise a bit too early on “Glimpse Of The Struggle”. Amazingly, in death, hip-hop itself realizes what a valuable asset it has lost and resurrects him on “Return Of The B-Boy” a wonderful El-P concoction that celebrates our music wonderfully, and symbolically represents a rebirth of this art form through the underground hip-hop movement. But it was all a dream…

Thrust back into reality, Mr. Lif’s metaphoric death/rebirth begins to take toll on his character, as he begins to resent his funky bald-ass boss on “Live From The Plantation”, as he takes matters into his own hands “Office Space” style, with Edan  animating this cartoon caper in his trademark 80′s throwback beats. His character celebrates his newfound freedom on “New Mans Theme”, only to be put in his place by Insight on “Status”, who humorously deflates any notions that Mr. Lif may have ever had of being a flossy rap bastard, over a $20 beat (one that actually ain’t half bad).

Back to the grind, in the three-part El-P extravaganza that begins on “Success”, where Lif’s character gets a reality check that he can’t feed his family without a job, yet when he goes back to work, Aesop Rock plays the neglected child with a brilliant hook “Daddy had a name-tag that said busy-working / mommy had a milk-carton that said missing person / and I had baseball glove with nobody to learn with / and that’s oil and water trying to mix on the same surface”. Things turn even worse when families start dividing and new-ones begin forming, as Lif breaks the door down on taking Aesop’s place as the abandoned youth on “The Now” (an uncharacteristically funky El-Producto track): “Daddy’s got a new wife now, a new man child, a new swagger with a new style!”

How does all this lead to a nuclear war? Well, it gets a little less cohesive here, but Lif’s paranoia links the events up to “Earthcrusher”, which is even better animated on “Post Mortem “, as El-P rings the alarm of an international warhead exchange, while he, Lif, Jean Grae, and Akrobatik share their final thoughts as they examine their last moments on earth. A brilliantly depressing track, over one of his best beats yet (think Cold Vein).

Mr. Lif’s I Phantom is a stream-of-consciousness film that examines it’s own paranoia with a nervous smile never leaving it’s face. He speaks of these events not in a grim tone, but almost a celebratory one, parodying what’s fucked up about America, not in a political sense, but more as how we are cogs stuck in the machine. While it sounds like a lot of work to take in, thankfully the album comes with “The I Phantom Key”, in the liner notes, which breaks it all down. While this kind of thing isn’t typically successful (because listening to hip-hop should never be more work than the music itself is worth), for once it works, for if anything, the top-notch production alone will pull you back for multiple listens. Best of all, each episode can be enjoyed individually, as the entire album isn’t required listening to understand each song. Check it off as another winner from the Def Jux stable – it’s quite possible that in time we may even praise this album as a classic.

Lif’s latest metamorphosis doesn’t focus on “transform(ing) into a pager, to vibrate a chip the bone in your hip”, as he put so eloquently on “Front On This”, but instead to resurrect hip-hop’s conscious and political agendas that seem to have been left in the 1900′s. And taking it back to hip-hop’s outspoken era, Lif also does so with the production, and creates an EP for heads that were raised on hip-hop in the 1980′s (sorry, Jukies). Sandwiched in-between more modern tracks (“Jugular Vein”, “The Unorthadox”), the true meat of this album lies within the it’s core, taking it back to the classic sounds of rap’s golden age.

Perhaps inspired by Edan’s recent throwback masterpiece Primitive Plus, Lif takes a similar route with this EP, with much of it not only paying homage to the artists of the era, but in fact specific sounds of it. Lif taps his fellow Bostonian partner Edan once again for two excellent tracks, both “Heavy Artillery” and the duet “Get Wise ’91″, with his trademark un-retro style, which helps re-establish him as one of the best producers of the moment (youngsters, do your homework), flawlessly channeling the classic sounds of acts like Eric B. & Rakim and Ultramagnetic MC’s. Meanwhile, the DJ Hype produced “Pull Out Your Cut” sounds like classic ’91 style Preemo, as Lif reminds us by quoting Gang Starr’s “Flip The Script”, while the self produced “Home Of The Brave” does the same for that era’s Boogie Down Productions, both lyrically and in terms of production style.

Lif won’t disappoint his younger fanbase either, especially with the modern day choppy production steez of “The Unorthodox”, not to mention El-P’s wonderful teaser, “I Phantom”, taken from the forthcoming album of the same name. But again, what makes this EP such a gem is that it does take things back to the classic era of hip-hop, with the production style and strong political ideals of the time, only relevant to today’s issues. For older fans that feel hip-hop has abandon them, Mr. Lif’s Emergency Rations are just what they (we) need.

Many will classify Mr. Lif as a battle rhymer, but unlike many others in his class, he also serves as a storyteller. Like last year’s classic, “Farmhand”, (which unfortunately remains absent), Lif spits amusing threats on “Enters The Colossus”, told in past tense. His stream-of-consciousness rhyme patterns are unpredictable, and on tracks like “Front On This”, you can feel him breathlessly building his mental matrix, as he evolves with the track. “If you punks wanna / ball then I’ma have to 720 dunk on ya / and during my revolutions / I undergo evolution / then I emerge superhuman / due to this / metamorphosis / ability to morph is just / second nature / so I turn into a pager / vibrate and chip / the bone in your hip / become a blade / a slip in your midsection / when I’m wreckin’.” Do lyrics get more fun than this?

The album’s opener, “Datablend” is equally as entertaining, where Lif kicks in the door with a non-stop verse that will have listeners laughing out loud. As the KRS-ONE sample pushes Lif to “come again” after he finishes the first verse, he gets even sicker with it as the beat changes up for verse two. Meanwhile, “Pulse Cannon” (featuring T-Ruckus and Insight along with Lif to form “Knights Of The Round Table”), shows interesting chemistry, but may scare some heads off, with it’s strange style of production. The album’s other collaboration, “Avengers”, which features fellow Perceptionist, Akrobatik, comes off much better, as the two Boston emcees preview what could be an interesting full-length collaboration project. Finally, Lif gets more serious on “Arise”, featuring the train-wreck sounds of El-Producto, which, like usual, in all of it’s chaos somehow seems to work, closing the album out.

While only his first EP, it shows lots of potential for his future. Despite that “Farmhand” was missing and some of the production here seems a little strange, a more finely tuned full-length release could really help Mr. Lif achieve success and status he strives for.