Pete Rock and Smif-N-Wessun - Monumental

Maybe it’s just me, maybe it’s my age, maybe it really is because 97% of young artists out these days are rubbish but pretty much all of my high rotation albums are from experienced artists in their 30s and beyond. Guys who earned their dues in the 90s and survived the globalisation of hip hop and their own peaks and troughs to remain not just on the landscape, but relevant. MCs, producers and DJs who pursued the craft with integrity and through the years ended up masters of their fields. Sure, I give the young guys a good listen, a chance to impress. Nine times out of ten they fail. But there are some artists who have been around long enough to learn their lessons and use them to create superior product and they are the guys I choose to listen to daily.

Pete Rock is one of those artists. The Boot Camp Clik is another example. And here with Monumental PR and 90s NYC stalwarts Smif-N-Wessun deliver a solid slab of hip hop music. Whilst not a collaboration high on most wish lists, it seems to work but maybe not in the intended fashion. From first listen and on subsequent plays, this album’s star is Pete Rock. To be honest, it sounds like a PR album with Tek and Steele as the guests that show up the most. In fact the Brooklyn duo seem outshone not just by Pete’s advanced, cinematic production but by almost every guest artist, most notably longtime labelmates Buckshot and Sean Price.

That’s not to say Smif-N-Wessun can’t carry a beat. They perform admirably enough, but possibly aren’t suited to what amounts as some of Pete’s best production work in since the original Soul Survivor. So let’s talk about that board work for a minute. We all know the PR of the 90s and early naughties; the golden years with CL, the untouchable remixes, the mastery of horn samples, the Soul Survivor albums. Much like Premo (please God, give us that PR/Premier album already), with Pete you knew what you were going to get. He had a sound and he owned it. Fair enough to say he lost his prolificacy in later years and even went a little quiet. The odd gem would appear but nothing more.

So then heads heard about the supposed slew of 2011 releases for the Mt Vernon native and went apeshit. I know I did. And here’s the first of those efforts and the beatwork is something to behold. Clearly Pete has honed his already considerable talent into something dominant. The trademark horns are still there, but in subtle amounts. The samples are still flipped, but in a more skillful way. Even the vinyl scratch work and beat snippets at the end of tracks return. But now there are big panoramic strings, rhythmic guitars and creepy synths beefing up a sound that is less sample based and more reliant on musical arrangement. Hell, this is exactly what Pete Rock should (and does) sound like in 2011.

Monumental however, is not a Pete Rock album - it’s a collaboration with Smif-N-Wessun. And this is where it falls down somewhat. On the jazzier, less grimy tracks Tek and Steele just sound lost. They are going through the motions for the most part and whilst delivering solid enough lyrics that rarely depart from the subject matter of the mid-90s, it seems as if they are searching for bottom-heavy Beatminerz tracks to sink into. And that’s the main reason PR’s production just sparkles in comparison.

That said, there are so many guest appearances on this album you could be forgiven thinking it actually is a Pete Rock album. Smif-N-Wessun aside, this release is bursting at the seams with proven artists (and yes, most are in their 30s). Standouts include Raekwon (Prevail), Sean P and Styles P (That’s Hard), Buckshot (Nighttime where even Pete turns a nice phrase), and Rock and Bun B on Feel Me. I couldn’t name a singular stellar track, and Monumental doesn’t really falter significantly anywhere. Maybe some elements are a little stuck in the 90s but you shouldn’t be mad at that.

So is it Monumental? Not quite. Is it solid? Sure. Will I be rushing out for a Smif-N-Wessun album any time soon? Probably not. Does it make me jones for anything else that Pete can serve up this year? Most definitely.


4 outta 5. Mature, stellar production from PR that doesn’t really need the Boot Camp boys for support.

S-killz (Esseven)
03.07.11