Quick Hitters:: Louwop's Great Escape

The hip hop biz, especially in Canada, doesn't seem like the most rewarding or fulfilling line of work. Well, that's assuming you're even one of the handful of folks in this country that make hip hop for a living. For the rest, it's a hobby, a labour of love. An endeavour undertaken because the beats and rhymes that hypnotized you as a youth still retain their hold. Believe me, I understand it - albeit to a lesser extent. I mean there's no logical reason that a 33 year old man should still have a stash of 300-some rap tapes in his basement. But I do.

The point I'm taking an unnecessarily long time to make here is that putting out hip hop albums is hard. The rap people like, and buy, right now is mostly kind of awful. The "smart" people you would like to peddle your rap wares to are too busy mumbling "hip hop is dead" to realize that you actually have a really good album on your hands. So it isn't surprising when someone like Toronto's Louwop decides that making music isn't worth his time anymore. It's a shame, but it isn't surprising.

I'm not in the best position to preach, as I hadn't heard of Louwop until he sent us his debut, The Spic Who Sat By The Door, but I was happy to remedy that by posting on his album. I was a big fan of it, so I was sad to hear that Lou is hanging up his mic. It's not all doom and gloom though, as he's leaving us with a fine farewell: The Great Escape. If you enjoy smart, soulful hip hop that hearkens back to that Native Tongue essence we're all missing today, you should give this a listen.

Seriously, the Great Escape has the elements one should look for in a good, modern hip hop album. The production is thick and jazzy, it never leaves you wanting. Louwop is also able to mix his song style, classic bangers like Journey, One 2 Check (which features hill favorite Shad), and Yes Y'All are mixed with soulful efforts like Stay Building and For The Love, but nothing sounds forced. And there's substance to the songs, which is refreshing.

But I'm going to leave it right there, wish Lou good luck in his future endeavours, and encourage you fine folks to buy The Great Escape. Who knows, perhaps it'll convince him to turn it into a Jigga retirement and we'll get more music from him. Either way, you'll have yourself a fine album.