This was a sad follow up to Check Your Head, which in my opinion is their best album followed by Paul’s Boutique. There are a few standout tracks here but most of them are instrumentals which can also be found on other releases. For example, Heart Attack Man is on Some Old Bullshit, Eugene’s Lament, Shambala and Ricky's Theme is on The In Sound From Way Out, tho that was released after Ill Communication. (The repackaging here is bold and annoying). Futterman's Rule, to some extent is the combination of both the old punk bits and Bossa Nova inspired stuff like Ricky's. But the ‘rapping’ if you call it that is pretty terrible. The best things that the BBoys do are instrumentals and make fun of themselves. Spike Jonze's video for Sabotage was the mainstream saving grace for this Ill Communication. Before theatrical releases of Starsky & Hutch, Anchor Man, Charlie's Angels, and all the other spoof-y movies, it was novel to parody vintage TV and the video was a hit on MTV. But that video represented a flash in time. What’s truly novel about Ill Communication are the lines by MCA on the first track of this album, Sureshot. "I want to say a little something that's long overdue The disrespect to women has got to be through To all the mothers and the sisters and the wives and friends I want to offer my love and respect to the end" This attitude, flew in direct contrast to the lyrics contained on License To Ill and unlike fun music videos like Sabotage. The shift provided the band staying power and longevity regardless of what they sounded like. So, Ill Communication was the turning point, they released Hello Nasty, 5 Boroughs and others, made more funny music videos (Intergalactic, anyone?) and called out bad behavior aimed at Woodstock 99 on the MTV VMA’s. I don’t think they truly redeemed themselves for License to Ill, but they did represent self-awareness and positive change. I like the BB, I’m not a super fan of this album, but I respect what they started with it. https://katefustich.medium.com/the-beastie-boys-feminist-evolution-34d371071663