Debut album for Sean Miguel Thompson, born in Palo Alto, California. Raised in a family of musicians in G-Town, East Palo Alto, he made a name for himself as a DJ in the late 1980s, joining, with Top Dog, first the Parts Unknown group, then the Murder One Gangster aka M.O.G., whose 1992 debut album is, in my personal opinion, one of the best hip-hop records of the season.
In the meantime, Thompson also started rap and is known as Sean T. He made his solo debut the following year, with a record of 62 minutes and 14 total cuts, none under 3:40 in execution. The project is entirely personal, with limited guests: Sean T carries out rapping and production, recording and mixing the album, also playing keyboards and piano, aided by G-Man Stan between mixing, production and on guitar.
The tape begins with a tight, skeletal, poor, almost snare drum, followed by a second heavy syncopated slow drum, quick delivery by Sean T, then Mac Dad-E guest uncredited. "Get Gone" has a good melodic sample, tight, unlivable pounding drum machine who recalls a south / miami bass sound, Mona Dotson's simple rnb chorus. The third piece boasts Murder One Gangster's Kaos and Top Dog, but the track features a pounding drum machine and an extremely annoying sample that massacres the track right away.
The fourth song has a better beat, usual two-drum pattern, a mad annoying snare in the background and another midtempo drum above, relaxing g-funk synths, slow delivery by Sean T. The next two choices establish a simple funky boom bap with honest drum and good robust delivery from the performer. "Victim of a Jack" is one of the worst tracks on the tape, made up of an annoying sample, bad drum and slow delivery, it's a weak cut overall. The eighth pick boasts a funky boom bap left to breathe, decent sample, lively drum machine and a light-hearted delivery of Sean T. The qualitative swing of the tape continues in the second part. The title track is an average cut, with mediocre samples, a wobbly drum and slow delivery.
"Murder One Gangsta" celebrates Thompson's group: cut of five minutes, I don't know why but here Sean T has a flow similar to Biggie's, he sounds like that on a funky boom bap with good strings and drum samples faster than usual. MC's dope calm smoothness delivery, simple hook, then Jet kills the cut with a sharp, hardcore delivery; the song is closed by the fast-flowing style of Kaos and Top Dog, which sign one of the rare high points of the edition.
"Can't Be Touched" seems to run in the optimal wake of the previous song: funky boom bap with classic sample from "Sing a Simple Song" by Sly & the Family Stone, lean drum pounding tight, energetic syncopated delivery, dope rhythm. The twelfth song boasts a good rhythm with hard thumping and tight drum machine and a delivery from Sean T, which concludes his magical moment with the last tune. "Only the Strong Survive" features a g-funk synths that squeaky to the point of annoyance, held by the hook, but removed for the smoothly flowing delivery of the MC on slow hard pounding drum, before the final thanks on decent beat.
The Palo Alto hip-hop scene, but more generally that of the Bay Area, has never gotten so much attention, so Sean T's record is mostly unknown to most fans and insiders. His debut is swollen and deeply irregular, going beyond the hour of listening and almost all songs exceed four minutes: the production is at times bad and his rapping is often average, but it's not a bad listen after the first few tracks, hitting some interesting moments towards the end, and presenting some good samples (George Clinton, Led Zeppelin, Sly & the Stone Family, Lyn Collins, Ice Cube and The DOC).
Lyrically, the guy puts in some effort and knocks out socio-conscious and pro-black bars as well as street life, thug and gangsta generic excerpts. The tape is rooted in East Palo Alto, rapper Jet is the only guest to come from outside, Hayward, a city across the bay. Recommended for Bay Area fans.
Rating: 6/10.
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