El-P -
Cure For Cancer (2012)
I liked this more than I expected to. I've always been pretty lukewarm towards El-P. I am well aware of his triumphs in underground hip hop and becoming a respected artist outside of that community, but
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead and
Fantastic Damage have just never moved me the same way other prominent underground hip hop albums have (same goes for Company Flow).
Cure For Cancer conversely has really made me reconsider my opinion and will probably have me go back and re-listen to the aforementioned albums to make sure some grievous error has not been made.
Killer Mike -
R.A.P. Music (2012)
Focused aggression delivered in a very challenging way that really grabs your attention, despite the fact you may not be agreeing with everything the emcee is saying. Beats were awesome, so full of life and energy and he really does know how to contort himself to captivate you with his lyrics. You may not agree with everything he says, but you're powerless to do anything but listen intently. It'll need a couple more spins for me to fully take everything in, but I can definitely see why it's currently the number 1 album of the year on RYM.
Big K.R.I.T. -
4eva n a Day (2012)
I really like it when albums prove me wrong, or prove my impressions wrong. I come before you just a little bit humbled by my experience with
4eva n a Day because it's a perfectly example of why you shouldn't judge everything by its cover. From the first look of the title I wasn't expecting much, call me a grammar Nazi but I've just never been able to abide deliberate misspellings. Despite the fact I had heard Big K.R.I.T. on a number of albums I enjoyed from the previous year, I was still hesitant to give this one a try. Well better late than never I suppose, I will definitely be checking out his new mixtape as well as last year's albums because I really need some new hip hop.
Perhaps I was speaking a little too soon to say its been an abysmal year for hip hop.