It was a pretty slow year for hip hop. There were some gems in Why?, Badu, GZA, and the late, very fine release ending Q-Tips nine-year drought. But nothing that will go down as a classic (though Badu came close). Last year I heard no fewer than three classic records from Wu-Tang, Dalek, and the truly sublime El-P. Which might be why I find myself coming back to those three albums lately. In particular I'm still awed by El-P's I'll Sleep When You're Dead. Over the past year and half it hasn't lost any of its force and now more than ever I consider it the finest hip hop record since Madvillainy. You almost never hear El-P mentioned in "best rapper alive" discussion, but the more I pull that album apart the more I start to think at the very least there isn't anyone better. And unlike Lil' Wayne (why did I buy that entire album when all I wanted was "A Milli"?), El-P has something to say. I never thought I'd say it, but he's better than Ghostface these days and Jay-Z is still saying the same stuff he's always said. So I'm going to go ahead and call El-P the best rapper alive. And while he's at it he gets to call himself a top producer and the owner of the best indie hip hop label around. So if you only buy one rap album this year, make it one from last year.



*WARNING* This video depicts some pretty intense "interrogation"