Slum Village Fantastic Collection (4-CD)

The contributions of the late Detroit producer James DeWitt Yancey -better known to the world as J Dilla- to the world of hip-hop can't be overstated, and nowhere is his legacy more apparent than his work as a member of Slum Village. A founding member of the trio, (Alongside rappers T3 and Baatin) Dilla provided the group's distinctly esoteric, free-wheeling sound, built around winding basslines, quirky drumbeats, subtle low-end frequencies, and classic jazz & soul samples. Against the backdrop of Dilla's rich production, T3 and Baatin's free-flowing style of rhyming would also earn wide critical praise, leading to comparisons as the successors to A Tribe Called Quest. (A label they themselves have rejected.) Dilla himself went on to earn his own legend of brilliance, inspiring a slew of classic artists like Nas and The Pharcyde, to newcomers like Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar. It would be a gratuitous task to encapsulate the full magnificence of the material Dilla produced with Slum Village, but Ne'Astra Media Group have accomplished such a feat, with the arrival of the Fan-Tas-Tic Collection! A comprehensive overview of the underground group's Dilla-produced tracks across four compact discs. The CD includes the entirety of the namesake albums Fan-Tas-Tic Volumes 1 & 2, instrumental versions, and a bonus fourth collection of remixes and obscurities, featuring collaborations with Madlib & Pete Rock, and select cuts from Best Kept Secret, the group's rare release under the name J-88. The Fan-Tas-Tic Box is a veritable crown jewel for any fan of J Dilla or Slum Village, as well as an outstanding entry-point into the legacy of an underground hip-hop production hero.