DITC — Rare & Unreleased

In 2007, DITC Records releases this compilation. The production is handled by Showbiz, Diamond D, Buckwild, Amed and Lord Finesse. The tape includes performances from DITC, the crew affiliates A Bless, The Ghetto Dwellas and Milano Constantine, and the external guests Big Pun, Remy Martin, Brand Nubian.

The first part is pretty solid, after a brief intro by Lord Finesse, "Day One" opens the album with a Diggin' in the Crates Crew posse, beat realized by Diamond D, rap provided by the same Diamond D, Big L, AG, Lord Finesse and OC. The track is taken from the album published in 2000 and is one of the highlights of the tape. The next choice is a Buckwild's remix of "You Know Now", where the beatmaker gives a pearl to Show & AG: beautiful remix from 1995, on what will be the same rhythm as one of the remixes of Buckwild for Big L's iconic "MVP". Here, the music painting sounds great for Show and Andre the Giant, but not like that one with Corleone.

"Time to Get This Money" is the first of a long series of mediocre cuts in this poorly composed record: AG, OC and Diamond D reel in an economic, essential, poor funky rhythm made by Amed, despite they trying to save the savable. This rhythm is an infected grasshopper that passes everywhere, eats and gathers everything. Hook scratched with sample, rare decency in this song. The Showbiz remix of "Dignified Soldiers" isn't much better, it even makes the delivery of Big L suffer (here with Finesse, AG and Omar Credle).

"Bad Rep" is a big misstep: OC has to juggle Party Arty (completely unfit here) and A Bless, not inspired by a cheap and wack funky essential rhythm. The Terror Squad shows up in "Best Behavior", Big Pun pulls out his dope verse on this slow and bouncy hardcore boom bap of Showbiz, Fat Joe watering the cut. Another sharp blow to the disc follows: "D-Flow Dirt", solo of the half Ghetto Dwellas on a dark, simple and skeletal jazzy production of Show, which places a sinister piano on it, D-Flow sucks less than usual. Milano goes a little better in the next one, another Showbiz rhythm, simplistic and bouncy this time, Milano delivers cautiously.

The comp recovers with the arrival of the rhythms of Finesse, who does well in "Do You Thing" with Diamond D (boom bap jazzy funky, skeletal, essential, with Christmas bells in the background, good delivery; the tune is supported by a skeletal beat accessible and with a successful functional hook), then still Milano, still well above the essential and skeletal jazzy of "Drama", then Party Arty and A Bless return, this time it's up to AG to drag them through another Showbiz remix (splendid light and skeletal jazzy rhythm). Brand Nubian corroborate soulful, essential, skeletal and ethereal jazzy provided by Diamond D in "The Flip Styles". "Spit" is an honest piece that maintains a light, skeletal and jazzy rhythm of Showbiz. Aggressive delivery by Remy Ma closes the product on a bouncy, cheap and skeletal rhythm of Amed, trivially simple, less well Fat Joe.

Rating: 6/10.