1001 Albums Summary

This is essential listening for any Rap or Rock enthusiast, especially for anyone interested in the history of the genres. One could argue that Rap music may have not survived past the 80's boom and into the 90s without bands like PE bridging the gap from the hip-hop community to the mainstream rock world. The 'noise', anger, intensity, and directness of PE's sonic output really demands attention, and this was the first real display of the new dynamic of the Prophet-and-Joker interplay between a front man and his hype man that PE pioneered. To this day, there's not another act in any musical genre that broke out with flavor of an musical alarm, and the standout tracks still stand out as a fresh listen. I consider Fear of a Black Planet a touch better, but I couldn't give this a 4 start in relation. 4.5 rounded up.