Grouch & Eligh - Say G&E!

**DirtMcgehrk** · 07-27-2009, 09:37 PM

01. Intro (feat. Mystic)
02. Say G&E
03. Push On (Push Up)
04. Old Souls (feat. Blu)
05. Boom! (feat. Slug)
06. Denial
07. I Know You Wanna Feel
08. Teach Me The Way
09. Do It Again (feat. DJ Fresh)
10. Rivers Run Dry
11. No Flowers (feat. Paris Hayes)
12. Comin' Up (feat. Mistah F.A.B.)
13. Worried About The World (feat. Mike Marshall and Sage Francis)
14. Sign Of The Times (feat. Mark Bell)

**DirtMcgehrk** · 07-27-2009, 09:43 PM

Over the past few years, the Oakland/LA based Living Legends crew has been focusing their efforts on side projects, with not much other than a mediocre group EP (The Gathering) since their last full length release, Classic in 2005. Judging from the sub-standard quality of Classic and The Gathering, it seems that the decision to put the Legends on hiatus may have been a good one indeed, as their solo attempts have been much more focused and tight, production-wise and lyrically.

Grouch & Eligh set the standard high with their first comprehensive release (technically G & E Music Vol. 1 and 2 were their firsts), No More Greener Grasses. The album was a great mixture of potent lyricism and exciting, guitar-heavy production that recalled classic funk and jazz. Their delivery played off of each other perfectly, with Grouch's strangely aggressive voice intertwining with Elighs staccato rhyming.

Say G&E! improves on everything that made No More Greener Grasses so good. It also manages to update the sound in a way that keeps it feeling fresh and new. You've got all the familiar guest spots (Pigeon John, Mistah F.A.B., Slug) along with some new, slightly unexpected ones (Blu, Sage Francis, Gift of Gab). You've got the tried and true synergy between Grouch and Eligh, and you've got the great production from Eligh that brings it all together. Besides that, there's also production duties handled by L.A. sensation Flying Lotus, as well as Rick Rock, Amp Live and DJ Fresh.

The album starts out with the title track "Say G&E!". The song is the epitome of perfection. Grouch gauges his lyrics steadily and provides the set up for Eligh to rip up the track with his rapid fire delivery. All of this is capped off with a science fiction style production effort that features a sample from The Flaming Lip's "Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots". Although it's hard to match the opening track in it's greatness, the rest of the album comes damn close. "Old Souls" features Flying Lotus's trademark disjointed production style, and creates an atmosphere quite different from anything else on the record. The best way to describe it would be Grouch and Eligh over a Dilla beat on acid. Blu makes an appearance on the track as well, showing why he's being hailed as the undergrounds' next big thing. The next track "Boom!", is probably going to be hated on because of it's sparse, light-hearted, cheapo beat and guest appearance by Slug. It happened to be one of the stand out tracks on the album for me. Slug sounds good over the production, which is the polar opposite of what you usually hear him on, and displays his diversity as an emcee well (considering that most people think all he can rap about is love and depression). "All In", the lead single off Say G&E! is another highlight of the album, featuring some unforgettable verses by Gift of Gab and an ever so cheesy chorus contribution by Pigeon John. If there were a song to represent the overall feel of the album, this would be it. Lyrically complex, positive lyrics with precise, clean production. At the same time, it also represents one of the downfalls of the album, which are the sometimes overdone, annoyingly R&B heavy choruses that pop up on a few tracks. My personal favorite from Grouch and Eligh's latest is "Comin' Up", featuring bay area mainstay Mistah F.A.B. A haunting background chorus plays behind a looped guitar sample and provides a perfect beat for all of the emcees to deliver in their own unique styles on a track which also contains some of the strongest lyrical content on the already impressive album.

Say G&E! is an excellent rebound for the Legends crew. Grouch and Eligh have managed to keep up with the times and remain relevant, addressing diversity, global awareness and personal struggle. Thumbs up on the cover art as well!

Score: 4.2/5

Key Tracks:
Say G&E!
Old Souls feat. Blu
Boom! feat. Slug
Denial
Comin' Up feat. Mistah F.A.B.

**RynMur** · 07-29-2009, 05:16 PM

Damn dirt, I'm feelin your reviews.

Although some people may scratch their heads, I say this is the best album of the year so far. Grouch & Eligh's flow fit perfectly with eachother. The production is mostly handled by Eligh who I think extended his production skills to another level. Nothing is overproduced like he has done in the past. On a lyrical note, Grouch holds the mic well, and Eligh absolutely rips some tracks. Maybe not as good as No More Greener Grasses yet, but a must have album.

On a side note, I've seen them twice this year, and they put on a really good show. The song "by and by" performed with Jo Wilkinson is one of the best live songs i've seen.

Top 5: Say G&E!, Teach Me The Way, All In, Do It Again, Comin' Up

Grade: (4.5/5) A

**crds** · 07-29-2009, 10:22 PM

This album was alright, nothing great to me, I felt that it was a bit over rated, I wouldn't consider it one of the albums of 2009, but that's just me.