Send "The Gift Of Gab " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Rapreviews |
 It's no secret that the RapReviews.com crew are huge advocates for and supporters of Blackalicious, and that undying affection is well earned and deserved. Few things in life not to mention hip-hop are as enjoyable as hearing the loquacious lyricism that Gift of Gab drops over outstanding beats banged out by Chief Xcel. While it was a bit surprising that Gab would break from his vaunted group in 2004 on "4th Dimensional Rocketships Going Up," the results were no less stellar musically. In fact they were SO good that my review back then pose this thought/concern: "By releasing this album Gab proves he can be just as dope with any other man behind the boards as he can with Xcel. [...] If I had to chose between Gift of Gab making solo albums or not making anything at all, you know I'm going to want the sequel." In the five years since that solo debut, we've gotten only one new Blackalicious release, but that doesn't mean Gab has been keeping silent - in fact he formed a NEW group called The Mighty Underdogs that was also lauded by critics and music aficionados alike. Where is Chief Xcel? Good question. You can find one or two references to him having made "special guest appearances" with the Underdogs while they were on tour, but for the most part Xavier Mosley is missing in action. The fact they would appear together in concert as recently as 2008 suggests there's no animosity between the former partners, but "Escape 2 Mars" suggests both musically and metaphorically that Gab has left Xcel behind and gone on to new heights. The only producers of record on this record are DNAEBEATS and Underdogs maestro extraordinaire Headnodic. For better or worse it seems likely now we'll never see another Blackalicious album. It's hard to say "for worse" though when listening to "Escape 2 Mars." On his last solo album Gift of Gab implied a TARDIS like approach to hip-hop with a musical journey through space and time, creating an album that was bigger on the inside than the outside. Gab's newest album is the next logical step in that journey, and the album artwork visualizes that step for us. It's not hard to imagine The Doctor stepping out of a police box to the sight of ancient Martian pyramids, drawing in solar energy at their apex, illuminating the dusty red soil of the fourth planet from the Sun. The planet has long loomed large in the imagination of humanity, thought of by some as a God of War, though of by others as the only likely candidate for extra-terrestrial life in our solar system. Who wouldn't want to take a fourth dimensional rocketship there for a visit? Gab visualizes his limitless rhyming ability in galactic terms, which is precisely why he needs to "escape" from the confines of Earth and its gravity to be able to flow freely. There's no question that "Light Years" is an apt way to describe how far ahead of other MC's he is: "The epitome of energy enhanced, centering Mentally, beginning at the end, remembering Entering the gates of the Temples of Infinity Riveting innate sensibilities, epiphanies Levitating thoughts from the Earth to begin to see When the trees underneath my feet then begin to shrink Eye level bird's eye view where the buildings be Tendency to find my alignment, it renders me helpless, submit to the force that is lifting me Instantly the planet looks small, but my senses freefall should I say rise, seems like I'm in too deep Whole life flash by my eyes in like 23 seconds" We're traveling far beyond the speed of thought here, and we may have even passed the magnificent speeds predicted by Rakim. The wailing guitars set us perfectly for Gab to soar through the cosmos, but when our narrator touches down on terra firma again he's got a big surprise in store: "Woke up in my room, it was all in my mind." Therein lies the true beauty of Gab's rocketship journeys - he can get as far as Mars from the comfort of his own home and has no intention of stopping there. If you're willing to go "Dreamin'" along with him you too can take this journey, and so can his rhyming cohorts Del and Brother Ali on the track:...full text |
| Urb |
| Gift of Gab (the rapping half of Blackalicious) drops dizzying rhymes on Escape 2 Mars, the Bay Area MC’s second solo album. The 11 tracks cover three main themes: travel, futurism, and a mindfulness of our planet. Gab isn’t preachy at all, instead using the solo spotlight to showcase various cadences and subject matter that transcend typical battle raps. Everything here–like his entire songbook pretty much–is delivered with presence and vigor. The production, helmed by Hednodic and DNAEBEATS, uses more effects and keyboards than what you’d usually find Gab on as part of Blackalicious. For every song, Gab switches his flow, rhyming at light speed (“Rhyme Travel”), sagging his stanzas to match the beat (“Spotlight”), or just shoving multi-syllabic lines into bouncy bars (“Light Years”). Guest spots by Del The Funky Homosapien and Brother Ali on “Dreamin’” don’t add much—especially Del’s hollow verse—but serves to show Gab’s dominance when compared to otherwise good rappers. The release is far from perfect, mainly real tepid hooks (“El Gifto Magnifico” and “Electric Waterfalls”) and unneeded vocal effects that distract more than enhance. Furthermore, not all the songs are particulalry catchy nor will cats be reciting quotables from the album (not to say it lacks sharp lines, but nothing sticks out). In fact, there isn’t a song on here that has potential for “classic status”....full text |
| Allmusic |
| Gift of Gab, the verbally adept (as his name rightfully implies) MC and one half of the seminal indie hip-hop group Blackalicious, has certainly been busy since the last Blackalicious album, The Craft, came out in 2005. It's been more than a while, though, since he's sounded as quick and witty and fun as he did on either of his group's first two albums (2002's Blazing Arrow and 2000's phenomenal Nia). Gab's 2005 solo debut felt unfocused and spacy, his mixtapes not much better, and while his work as part of the Mighty Underdogs (with fellow Quammie Lateef and Crown City Rockers producer Headnodic) had moments that reaffirmed why he's been such a lauded rapper, it didn't quite connect the way his earlier efforts did. Thankfully, Gab seems to have found himself again on Escape 2 Mars, his second official full-length. Much of this is due to the production (by DNAE BEATS and Headnodic), which is full and melodic and very, dare it be said, Chief Xcel-esque. Though the record has the initial trappings of a concept album gone awry (humans have destroyed Earth, and therefore have to move to Mars), the MC mercifully keeps these ideas to just a couple of songs, both of which are good: the eerie "Electric Waterfalls" (which features vocals from Joyo Velarde and Lateef), and the title track, which has a vocal bit seemingly taken from the 2006 Stern Review and finds Gab bringing eighth notes in to his preferred triplets, and rhyming, rather adeptly "Two zero one two party over oops/out of sight, time, mind, illuminati deathtrap/blind, deaf and dumb, crazy bent eighty percent/wiped out, sniped out, burn, baby, burn get/hit when we coulda been turning the cell phones off...," a kind of reprise to Blazing Arrow's "Sky Is Falling," that somehow, given contemporary circumstances, feels much more menacing and real. Themes may be revisited ("Richman, Poorman" is reminiscent of "Deception," "El Gifto" is a quirky boast on his skills, kind of like "A to G," but without the alliteration), but Escape 2 Mars stills comes across as fresh and meaningful and fun. The excellent verses from fellow underground heroes Del and Brother Ali on "Dreamin'" help this, of course, but the album is a success because Gab himself come across as confident and focused. He knows what he wants to say and how to say it, and doesn't beat around the bush. That is to say, it's exactly what you would want from him: all meat and wit and amazingly nimble rhymes, no filler. And that, if nothing else, is something to celebrate....full text |
The Gift Of Gab lyrics
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