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2LP
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MF 2001LP
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2022 repress. Second and final studio album by KMD (a rap trio featuring an early alias of MF Doom). "Bl_ck B_st_rds was voted in Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists as the most notable rap album of all time that was never released commercially, and with good reason. The fact that this excellent album, slated for a 1994 release, did not seen the light of day until 2001 (its first issue - now out of print) testifies to a time when shortsighted industry backlashes against records that inflamed middle America were in vogue. Elektra Records higher-ups canned the project due to its controversial cover art, which shows a Sambo figure being lynched. This must-purchase concept album is worth the wait. From the jazzy, hypnotic samples on the title cut to 'Sweet Premium Wine,' a farcical ode to swigging 40-ounce bottles of brew (remember when drinking St. Ides and Old English was trendy?), you know you've found rap heaven. Classic headbanger 'What a Nigga Know?' (and the remix featuring partner-in-rhyme MF Grimm) is equally off the chain. 'Constipated Monkey' and weed anthem 'Suspended Animation' are testaments to a time in Rap music when experimental beats and obscure sampling ruled the roost. Bl_ck B_st_rds is where Brand Nubian meets De La Soul at the local bodega, heads wear Muslim kufis for kicks, and 'word to the mutha' actually refers to themes of pan-Africanism, repatriation, and reparations. It's a place where Sambo-ism doesn't sell. Features artwork and track listing from the original Ready Rock issue."
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2LP Pic.
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MF 2004LP
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"MF Doom's first group and their controversial sophmore release Bl_ck B_st_ards is now available in a deluxe double vinyl pressing. One of the LPs is a red vinyl pressing with the second LP being a picture disc featuring the group's longstanding mascot. The gatefold jacket includes a pop featuring the KMD mascot and the set is rounded out with the inclusion of full liner notes by Brian Coleman. The words 'lost classic' get thrown around from time to time, but KMD's sophomore album, Black Bastards, truly fits the bill. Originally scheduled for release in the spring of 1994, their label unceremoniously shelved it at the eleventh hour due to controversy over the provocative cover art. Surviving group member MF Doom (then known as Zev Love X) -- as fans know, his younger brother Subroc was killed in 1993 -- tried to release the album on other labels, but met more dead ends. Sadly, it languished in hip-hop purgatory until six years later. Even then, the album had only a limited release via small indie labels. Beyond the fact that the controversy surrounding the cover -- featuring the group's long-standing mascot being hanged by a makeshift gallows -- was unfair, the group's fans being denied access to this album only compounded the injustice. Because musically and lyrically, it was a truly amazing record, full of youthful creativity, tinged with the stress of growing up as black men in urban America. Unlike on the group's 1991 debut, Mr. Hood, Subroc had fully come into his own as both a producer and an MC on Black Bastards, and his untimely death made the album's shelving that much more tragic."
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2CD
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MF 2002CD
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2002 repress. "MF Doom's first group and their controversial sophomore release Bl_ck B_st_rds now available as a double CD containing the full the album with a second disc of bonus material including rare cuts, remixes and instrumentals, and a 32-page booklet of liner notes and rare photos compiled by Brian Coleman, featuring interviews with MF DOOM, Pete Nice, Dante Ross and Bobbito Garcia. The words 'lost classic' get thrown around from time to time, but KMD's sophomore album, Black Bastards, truly fits the bill. Originally scheduled for release in the spring of 1994, their label unceremoniously shelved it at the eleventh hour due to controversy over the provocative cover art. Surviving group member MF Doom (then known as Zev Love X) -- as fans know, his younger brother Subroc was killed in 1993 -- tried to release the album on other labels, but met more dead ends. Sadly, it languished in hip-hop purgatory until six years later. Even then, the album had only a limited release via small indie labels. Beyond the fact that the controversy surrounding the cover -- featuring the group's long-standing mascot being hanged by a makeshift gallows -- was unfair, the group's fans being denied access to this album only compounded the injustice. Because musically and lyrically, it was a truly amazing record, full of youthful creativity, tinged with the stress of growing up as black men in urban America. Unlike on the group's 1991 debut, Mr. Hood, Subroc had fully come into his own as both a producer and an MC on Black Bastards, and his untimely death made the album's shelving that much more tragic."
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2LP
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TEG 75504LP
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2016 repress; 2004 release. "KMD (Kausing Much Damage, or a positive Kause in a Much Damaged society) was a hip hop group in the early 90s perhaps best known for launching the career of acclaimed MC/Producer MF Doom (known during his KMD tenure as Zev Love X). After guesting on 3rd Bass' 'The Gas Face,' the trio (Zev, brother Subroc, and Onyx) released the acclaimed and overlooked Mr. Hood full-length. Their political outlook was similar to the group Brand Nubian, who guested on Hood; however, the style was more comical and included a great deal of clips from old children's recordings, mostly notably a sample of the Sesame Street character Bert on the single 'Who Me?' This is the official Elektra Records/Traffic Entertainment Group re-release with original artwork and track listing in its entirety. Cutting edge, ahead of its time production and skits from KMD and Stimulated Dummies (John Gamble and Mr. Dante Ross). Features the singles 'Peachfuzz', 'Who Me?' and 'Nitty Gritty' (feat. Brand Nubian). This is one rap album that is not to be missed."
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