The Likwit Junkies Likwit Junkies LP
It was bound to happen like the Pope taking his last breath. Long time California MC and member of the Likwit Crew Defari has teamed up with world famous DJ, turntablist and Beat Junkie Babu to form the (some may say lazily titled) Likwit Junkies. Following collaborations going back to the late 90s, and their teaming up for a single remix of Defari’s ‘Behold my Life’, Babu and Defari convinced ABB to sign them up for a self titled LP release which sees them embark on a celebration of Californian life and soulful hip hop.
With Babu on the production and Defari on the mic this reads like a solid collaboration project on paper, and frankly delivers pretty well in actuality too. Serving up different beats and styles for Defari to get his rhyming on, Babu really shows how underrated a producer he sometimes is. From raggae to soul via funk and darker moods Babu serves up some excellent beats, with tints of Kanye West in places yet still firmly stamping his style all over the album. Definite highlights include ‘6 in the morning’, ‘The Good Green’, ‘Dark Ends’ and ‘Brother’. All of which showcase different vibes yet stay coherent within the frame of the album. Babu was obviously keen to show a wide range of styles here and comes out looking strong, with quality sampling and some lovely drums. And as you’d expect the cuts are on point, even complimenting Defari’s rhyming in a lot of places, as Babu talks with his hands and Defari answers with his voice. Without becoming boring, Defari fits his rhymes and vocals over each beat with ease, never making you tire or lose interest. While some of the singing arrangements do sound out of place in time, such as on ‘6 in the morning’, the overall vocal performance is on par with the production. This is definitely some soulful shit that needs bumping in the club, car or the garden. Featurings come from Rakaa, Planet Asia, Krondon and vocalists Noelle and Dodee Westbeach. All of which add the perfect amount of variety and flavour to the album, especially Noelle’s singing on the ‘LJ Anthem’, which just drips of soul. So in conclusion this is a strong first album for the LJs and another quality offering from the ABB stable. It’s got soul, it’s got rhythm and most importantly it’s got your head nodding and feet stomping like all good music should.
- Kper
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