Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury

Digging this. It's rap before the crotch centric hip-hop took hold. The collage of samples coupled with the rhythm and lyrics makes for an interesting and thoughtful art piece.

Day 68 Fuck it, I'm introducing 3+ because this doesn't belong on the same tier as Heavy Weather but it's still too flawed for an honest 4. Fav track: Winter of the Long Hot Summer

hiphop guay

I surprisingly enjoyed this, funky, arty, deep. might be 4 soon

I waffled between 3 and 4 on this. I did feel like his cadence became a little monotonous over the course of an hour; however, I was completely engaged by the album and its message. I'm not sure how much relistenability it'll have but I dug it.

4/5

Fine, felt like Chuck D if all his raps or most fell flat 2

Solid

Surprisingly good album. Intelligent lyrics and smooth delivery.

You know what? I like this. Never heard it before. You know what else? It’s sad that what the songs talk about are still issues today.

The lyrics are as relevant today as 1992. Music can be a message. The delivery isn't unique track to track but the message is clearly heard. Not going to jam every day to this, will come back when I need a reminder.

This one got me to look up which hip hop albums are missing from the 1001 albums list and, I'm not gonna lie, I'm heated. There are so many essential hip hop albums missing from this list that take social commentary but have interesting beats or, for fuck's sake, would it kill you to have some flow. Fuck. What are we doin here? 1.5/5

This is stupid. Language of Violence was good, the rest made me lose braincells.

As others have mentioned, there's big Public Enemy energy here. It's quite a chill time. There's nice consistent beats and good rhymes. It does start to feel a bit one-note by the end, and the album IS long.

Amazing record

Fire. Favorite tracks: Satanic Reverses ; Water Pistol

Not particularly subtle lyrically but remarkably prescient. Beats & flows aren't particularly good/unique. Got increasingly tiresome the more I listened. Guaranteed this guy would have been a drag to hang out with. +1 star for something I've never heard of.

715/1001 2026.10.02 🌕🌗🌑🌑🌑

I'm sure it's great but not for me

Pretty powerful. Still hits hard. I'd present this as Exhibit A to those "back in the 90's we never thought about race" crew. Just because you weren't aware doesn't mean it wasn't happening, like it always has and, sadly, seems like always will. Good stuff here.

It’s hip hop - I’m not really moved by it

letras fortíssimas (e tão atuais como nunca), flow impecável e samples muito bem feitos. 3,5.

Shout out c’est lowkey un des meilleur album de rap qu’il ont mis à date. Shout out le genre de cover de uber alies c’est super cool

Very 90s, very long

This was a very good album with a rap style I enjoy. Conceptual songs about the real truth of America.

Not into hip hop. First track was mildly interesting in the beginning, but after that it became a noise. Gave up after half a dozen ‘songs.’

Not my thing.

Nije bas moj ukus muzike. Volim rep, i svidjami se kod ovog albuma što ima dosta različitog stila, nike samo bit i tekst nego ima i malo jazz-a.

I had heard Television The Drug Of A Nation before and the rest of the tracks are more of the same, the social concerns of Gen X. Very earnest and right-on, musically it is not that much but I like and agree with basically everything that's said. Goes to show that what is called wokeness in 2026 has always been around and sadly probably will always have to be. Keep fighting the fight, though.

Some seriously foundational lyrically awesome rap

חופר רצח

Subtlety is not one of this album's strong suits. It's interesting stuff and feel like it's really well put together. I love his singing on Music and Politics. Interesting as a reaction to other things happening in hip hop in 1992. Putting this in context - it came out the same year as the Chronic and the Low End Theory.

Ambitious hip hop still remains hip hop in my ears. Would have been rated higher if it wasn't so long

I have to be in the mood to listen to 90’s rap, but it’s good 90’s rap. The first song is an especially eerie prediction about the future that all turned out to be correct.

No está bueno

7/10 An incredibly political (and wordy) early-90s hip-hop album. It's fascinating how much things have changed yet how much has remained the same since the album's release. I think it drags on a bit too long, but it's pretty good overall.

Truths being spit over subpar music. The message is on point, but the music kinda sucks, man.

A forgotten classic. I'm not sure if I ever listened to this one all the way through and I'm pretty sure I ALMOST bought it several times. I wish I had. It's a little bit over the top but an absolutely wonderful bit of agitprop nostalgia.

The list has gone off the track! An hour of this? No thank you.

Cool, not my style tho

Somehow still relevant

You know what? Hell yeah. Gem in the rough Fave track: Television the Drug of the Nation

Political, conscious rap that I've never heard of. Fine with me. 3/5

4.4. Solid B+ socially conscious lyrics without being pandering and great beats

This album feels right on goal for exactly what it was going for. Yes, it feels dated, but it also just feels "out of time" in that there wasn't a lot of other artists that did anything quite like this. There are other "conscious" rappers and hip hop, but the style of this MC and the music is very unique, and the messages are still as strong and clear as ever. I don't this it is a flawless album, as it outstays its welcome and could have used some more rhythms and breaks in the vocal flow, but it is very good still.

Olipas jännä levy. Musisointi ja räptääminen oli just semmosen tyylistä mistä ite tykkään. Lisäksi ei mitään bitches n hos niga niga juttua vaan aika erikoisia aihepiirejä räptilevylle

Melko painavaa sanaa, eioo Ameriikka tai maailman tila lopulta hirveesti muuttunu vaikka ennen oli asiat paremmin. Musiikkina tosi perus ysärin alun hiphoppia/räppiä, aivan menevää, muttei mitään sen ihmeempää, että olis mieleen jäänyt, tai tarvetta jäänyt lisää makustella.

You know that when the first lyric that hits is about OPEC it's gonna be a good album. There's a shocking amount of good politics in here, and I have no idea how you could even learn about most of this stuff in the early 90s like that. Information wasn't as easy to get as it is now. Even pushing back against homophobia. I was a 90s kid and that was not a popular position! The music itself isn't amazing, but it felt pretty affirming and engaging to listen to. It's good as entertainment but I have to dock a star for not being amazing as music.

It is disappointing to hear that the same problems that existed 34 years ago are still the same problems that exist today. Not my type of music or rather rap poetry, it is an interesting look back.

Listened before? No Familiar with the artist? No - going in to this one completely blind! Thoughts: - I've definitely said this before about albums on the list, and I'm sure I'll say it again: it's depressing how relevant this entire thing still is. I actually had to double check that it was released in 1992. - Lyrically great, but musically not all that interesting to me. It also feels pretty long. Favorite track(s): Hipocricy is the Greatest Luxury

This was a hard listen for me. The similarities in his voice to Chuck D was very distracting. There's a level of conscious hip-hop that is hard for me to listen to, and this album definitely fits into that classification. This is like if a slam poetry artist decided to make an album, and not in a good way. Everything was far too preachy for my liking. His delivery felt the same for most of the songs - I really wish he had switched his flow up more.

Che cagata

A little long and preachy, but I do enjoy some righteously angry Public Enemy-style rap. (Just in smaller doses!)

was kind of enjoying this at first but then started to feel like i was being lectured. as others have said here it's just way way too on the nose. 10/10 name though. also yeah, v sobering that lyrically, so much of this could've been released in recent years.

It's a real shame that this is the only album these guys ever made, they could have gone so far. I don't think that this is anything too special, but it's a damn good start to what could have been an amazing discography. The lyrics are definitely the highlight here, and it's almost scary how the political commentary actually feels even more relevant now, which for an album that's over 30 years old is insane. I do love this style of lyricism, no sugarcoating, no metaphors, just pure political criticisms presented in the most harsh and direct way there is. But beyond how great this album is for its lyrics, the music is the part that they really still needed to improve on. On the whole I find this to be dull, monotonous, and repetitive. The actual music itself barely held my attention, and I was only pulled back into being invested in the album when I started hearing him talk about political issues I care about. With more refining and a more captivating sound all around, we could have had one of the greatest hip hop acts of the 90s. But unfortunately, all we are left with is the blueprints for a fantastic album, and a group that broke up too soon.

Interesting stuff, had heard that one song before. Tracks are too slow and too long. Oddly quaint and 90s of course. Who would have thought things would get so much worse. 2.5 rounded up Heard before? No Owned: No, 106/410 (25%) Will I get: No

Theoretically this should be directly in my wheelhouse, but it just didn’t connect with me

Political speeches spoken slowly over old hip hip beats. Title of each track is repeated about 200 times per song

I’d rather be listening to Public Enemy.

Solid stuff, great beats

Early 90s moody hip hop, excellent

Man, this album is hard to rate. He is absolutely speaking facts I will not deny that, but his delivery comes off a bit cringe in 2026. For 92 he was absolutely ahead of the times. For that I cannot give it less than a 3 but the production and mixing is quite bad, also the writing isn’t particularly good or clever, just facts. If this album was produced like a public enemy album which is what it almost sounds like it wants to be, it would have been significantly better.

Very poignant writing, even almost a quarter century later. Unfortunately it’s hindered by its mediocre production and boring delivery.

Something of a combination between Gil Scott-Heron and Public Enemy. Not quite as explosive as PE. Favorites were Television The Drug Of The Nation, Music And Politics, and California Uber Alles

Chuck D just phoned, he wants his style back

Music and politics. I loved listening to this.

Still applies today honestly

I thought i would enjoy this and the music makes a promising start, but it’s all a bit samey. The delivery being deep and rhythmic felt like something that would showcase the aware lyrics, but by ‘Language of violence’ nothing really registered as it feels like rap to fall to sleep to. Perhaps the intention is for the messaging to subconsciously enter your mind, but awake its just not happening. The length of the tracks dont help either. ‘ The Winter of the long hot summer’ tips the eight minute mark and is just dull. ‘Hypocrisy is the greatest luxury’ at last finally injects some life into proceedings, both in teems of music and musically delivery. This is continued through the next track, but comes to an abrupt end after that. ‘Financial leprosy’ and ‘California uber ales’ are probably the most explicit attempt to occupy Public Enemy territory, but they just deliver with far greater urgency and energy….and my god the repetition grates. Is the messaging on this album worthy of attention, undoubtedly but that doesn’t make it a good or enjoyable listen. Would bet served to just read the lyrics.

I have no idea who this is, but I quite liked it - I liked the music, I liked his voice, and the lyrics absolutely are worth paying attention to. Undoubtedly there were other artists saying the same thing - and saying it better - at the time, but this is decent. It’s probably a 2.5 for me, and I considered rounding up, but it’s not quite strong enough for a 3.

I listened to this after waking up at 4am and being unable to get back to sleep. I went to sleep while listening to it. Now, I think it was lack of sleep as an issue, rather that the quality of the album, because I didn't entirely hate it. Satanic Reverses did feel a bit like a lecture (despite my politics meaning I agree with the sentiment) but it was ok musically, if too long. And that was a bit of a theme: alright but almost every track was too long, mostly because of the skit-adjacent intros. It all feels a bit preachy/worthy, rather than empowering, in terms of its politics and I'm not sure why I felt that way to be honest given I like a lot of other 'political' artists. It's sort of disturbing how similar the themes are from this 1992 album to current events though. I have to admit, the Dead Kennedys track turning up was a surprise to say the least. I would absolutely prefer the original. 2/5

First listen Saved 3/13

Pretty good rapping. Overall a decent album. I wouldn't have guessed it was Industrial Hip-hop. Most of the instrumentation was alright.

Arresting, tell-it-like-it-is, personal and political, in your face, feels very timely still. The only Cola I support is a C-O-L-A union cost of living adjustment!

Another California Uber Alles has hit the 1001 albums listening list

That was a lot

Really hits all of the topics. Great beats

I wish this wasn't still so freaking relevant.

Some hard hitting lyrics

It’s not bad, but a lot of these rhymes and awkward puns feel like first drafts Chuck D or ZDLR would discard and improve upon. Ultimately, despite sharing some common cause with Franti’s politics (which...are a bit of a grab gag), the failings here are songs that are incredibly long, a preachiness that lacks a gift for sweet (which Franti later tried to correct), and a flow that needed some polish.

I like this

This is a spoken word album, not a hip hop album. But hats off to the anger and rage at this fucking shit state of a planet. 30 years old and we are no better, most likely worse than the world inhabited and raged against when this album was released. Sigh.

5 keepers in 13 (38%). The California Uber Alles cover/mashup is pretty sweet. 2 stars.

Good songs good mix between hiphop and jazz

Probably the hip hop album that has appealed most so far. I like the lyrics and the vocal style, could have been a 4 but for the turntable noises which continue to be aversive. 3.5

This is fairly good conscious rap for its time. Musically, its pretty good, but not overwhelming, but lyrically, I feel torn. Part of me thinks that Michael Franti's on-the-nose style is needed, to not mince words and say exactly what is wrong in all these complicated issues. Another part of me wishes there was a bit more artistry or metaphor in his lyrical style, because sometimes it ends up sounding clunky. There's also some oddly tacky lyrics here sprinkled throughout. There's good ideas here that are done okay, and it's obvious there's still power in the message (and how little has changed!), but it's not as compelling as it could be because of the lyrical style.

Interesting album. I didn't think I'd care much for it after an initial listen, but somehow it grew and mostly works.

it was okay I guess but nothing I would save

I will do my homework, dad. You don't need to keep lecturing me. This album reminded me of a friend I knew in college, who was very serious about letting everyone know what a serious person he is. On this album, every song is a lecture and he's most interested in giving you the opportunity to hear him talk. And boy, does he talk. 6 of the 13 songs crack the 5-minute mark. Michael Franti has read a few books, and you won't even need the CliffNotes to know what happened in the books, because he is going to share all that he learned with you. Because see, he's educated and reads books. You should read books like he reads books. You should be smart like he is smart. You should read the books and then maybe then you can be on his educational level and talk about the very serious things that he reads about. Did you know corporations try to make money and they are very good at it? Our public schools are failing our children. Did you know that? Homophobia exists. Were you aware of that? Michael Franti is aware of that because he reads books. He's educated. Television is not good for children and it's making us all dumber. Michael Franti does not watch television, which means he is smart. In the year 1992, he is aware of all social issues and wars going on, and yes, he watched television to hear about all of this, but the difference is Michael Franti is smart and watches television to be smart, while all the others watch television to be stupid because they are stupid and he's educated. We have the luxury to be hypocrites because we are from America and America is definitely bad because they start wars. Did you know about wars? Have you heard of these wars that occur? Probably not, because you don't read the books and watch television TO BE SMARTER like Michael Franti watches television to be smart. And as we learned on the title track, Franti doesn't have a massive audience because he makes socially conscious music and everyone is a hypocrite because not everyone bought his album of very socially conscious and INTELLIGENT rap music. The music is fine, but this whole project is like attending a lecture from the world's most smug professor.

The story and context behind this album is what lifts it up. I love getting to listen to something that is a time capsule. Especially when the messages spoken are still relevant decades later. That being said, I found the music to be a little boring. There were a couple of instances where I was taken out of the album because of an awkward flow or a too-wordy verse. I like what this album was trying to do, but I would not listen to this again.

Breeding Ignorance And Feeding Radiation 1001 Albums Generator 331 (8/19/2026) Although I've never heard of this album, I have listened to Michael Franti's previous group, The Beatnigs, and it was much more interesting than this. While that album was industrial, punk, jazz, rock, and hiphop mixed together, Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury is definitely more streamlined. Some people may think that's a good thing, but I think that this album just doesn't have enough going on. Some of the lyrics are so cringe (we live in a society, man, have you noticed?), but some of them are alright (Television The Drug Of The Nation). Also, even the songs I enjoy are way too long. There's not enough meat in these beats for 5, 6, 7 minutes of monotone rapping. Also, his flow is really awkward at points. I think I prefer frantic Michael Franti over this; if you're in the mood for some real weird, forward-thinking stuff, check out The Beatnigs. 1.5/5, rounded up to 2. Favs: Famous And Dandy Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury Everyday Life Has Become A Health Risk Least Fav: INS Greencard A-19 191 500

Liked the old-school sound, 3.25/5

It was interesting that so many of the political statements in this are still very relevant now. The three is mainly for the absolute dedication to highlight injustices. Musically, it was okay but, after a reasonably strong start, it got repetitive.

Sounds ominously prescient compared to modern day politics and society. Enjoyable enough but the public enemy style delivery isn’t quite to my liking and the messaging was often just a little too on the nose. A bit of cleverer wordplay or metaphor might have helped. Enjoyable enough though and one whose lyrics might be worth reading as it was quite dense to parse otherwise.

𝘏𝘺𝘱𝘰𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘺 𝘐𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘓𝘶𝘹𝘶𝘳𝘺 is more interesting for what it has to say than for how it sounds. Musically, it is not one of the strongest hip-hop records of the early 1990s, although its dense, confrontational production occasionally brings Public Enemy to mind. Michael Franti has a powerful, commanding voice, but over a full album his delivery can become a little too monotonous. What holds my attention more is the subject matter. The record is deeply political and very much rooted in 1992, yet some of its criticism has aged remarkably well. Its focus on television as a force shaping public opinion may sound tied to its era, but replace television with social media, algorithms, and online platforms, and much of the argument still feels relevant today. I respect the album’s intelligence and ambition, but I find its ideas more memorable than the music itself.

Today was my official introduction to The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, and I immediately loved it. Take spoken word flow, similar to Chuck D, and then add it to experimental hip hop beats. The end result is a truly unique time capsule of what was affecting the lives of the normal people. The production is absolutely flawless, making it almost impossible to be a release from 1992. I will be spinning this frequently going forward.

Nice one.

7/10 My favourite hip-hop album do far. Probably not something I'd listen to a lot, but when you rap about stuff that matters and not the terrible mysiogny of mist of the genre's garbage I've been served up on this journey, it can be an interesting and enjoyable experience. Gets a bonus point

American hip hop style music. Not really aimed at my style but it wasn’t bad. Average 5/10

Maso

Wow is this ham handed. It's socially conscious rap, from the era when gangsta rap made everyone think the genre was just sex and violence, but my word does he ever lean into it - but that's not necessarily a bad thing, sometimes you need to be direct to get your point across. At times heavy, sometimes dated but at others eerily prescient, the owner likely hits closer to home now than it did when it was released. And to be honest, a lot of the tracks are actual bangers. Just, you know, sometimes an allegory or allusion can work as well buddy