Anyways, The Pharcyde is a California hip hop group notoriously known for their ability to spell titles incorrectly but still have them sound the same. Affiliates and weed carriers aside, the core group consist of four rappers: Slimkid3, Imani, Bootie Brown, and Fatlip. 1992 was an important year for hip hop, as more and more artist tested the experimental waters and alternative hip hop became more acceptable. The catch was that these cats were out of the west coast, where that type of shit wasn't allowed. No, all the weird, alternative music was rooting from the east coast and was still a foreign subject to the good folks of California. The Pharcyde was just about the farthest thing from gangsta rap that you could get. No guns would be toted, instead the group opted for odd lyrics, lighthearted story telling, hilarious profanity, and even a little bit of social commentary. The only similar topic would be that weed is still good.
I'd feel like I'd be cheating you all if I forgot to remind you how fly that cover art is. Take another gander at that this and then get back to the review...
Anyways, they somehow managed to get signed to a record deal at Delicious Vinyl. Please remember that as well. I wasn't aware of that during my first couple listens, which resulted in a terrible whirlwind of confusion. I consider myself to be well educated in hip hop slang, but talk of delicious vinyls caught me off guard. After dropping, Bizarre Ride II was meet with overwhelmingly positive reviews, receiving praise for jazz, R&B, and soul influences (all provided by J-Swift, who produces all put one song) scattered across the tape, while still keeping a funny and uptempo vibe. Perhaps the most shocking statistic is that this album managed to move over half a million units, a number the the group never eclipsed with their future work. A big single (Passing Me By) helps, but I have no explanation as to why sales were so high.
I was late on The Pharcyde and wasn't aware they existed up until a couple years ago. Of all the places in the fucking world, I came across this via ITunes, in the suggestions category. I've never actually intensely searched through there in hopes of uncovering a lost gem, but I'll give them credit on this one. Still, digital copies aren't really my thing and I fully endorse buying physical copies of albums. Guess I'm old school, but doesn't it just feel better to actually have something in your hands whenever you buy something? But yes, I eventually gave into the temptation of picking up a digital copy, although I'd still appreciate finding a real copy. Also, for anyone who feels up to some research, was Bizarre Ride I a thing, and if not, why do we feel the need to name this as the sequel. I know that's my job, but I don't feel like looking right now.
But on to the real question: does the music come close to matching the cover?
1. 4 Better Or 4 Worse (Interlude)
A quick instrumental is not a good way to start off a classic album but I guess this is decent enough. Not like I was expecting anything else. *Sigh*
2. Oh Shit
Meh, this songs decent enough but I was looking for more out of a song that was is supposed to start a classic album. As you can probably tell by the title, this is silly as hell and should not be taken seriously. Fatlip's crazy third verse is actually based on a true story, but he leaves out the part about getting a blow job from the tranny. The video of him talking about this is almost too weird to believe, but this comedy saves this song from being bad. Other than that, this song gets old very quickly.
3. It's Jiggaboo Time (Skit)
Well, this is pretty damn racist. Jiggaboo isn't exactly a word used in today's world, but it can still come off as a sensitive subject when presented to the wrong people. Its a pretty useless skit anyways, so there's no reason for it to enter your speakers more than once. Unless this is your type of thing, of course.
4. 4 Better Or 4 Worse
Another fairly boring song that I forgot about seconds after it was over. If anything, you will remember an incredibly disturbing and flat out frightening verse courtesy of Fatlip. It starts off as a prank call, but quickly takes a dark ass turn as he touches on the subject of rape and cutting off fingers. The best thing I've gotten from this album so far is that all the tracks seem to have held up very well. They haven't necessarily been great, but I can definitely imagine something like this being pumped out by today's artist. Overall, I still wasn't completely digging this song.
5. I'm That Type Of Nigga (Feat. Buckwheat)
We're finally introduced to one of the groups weed carriers, but thankfully, at least for this verse, he turns in a really nice performance. Along with Buckwheat, all of the groups four members tag along for the fun and drop some heat over J-Swift's beat, which is the best of the album so far. Different types of sampling will always come and go, but blaring horns always sound nice. Anyways, the overall sound of this song is much better than the previous songs and puts the album on the right track. That's awesome because if this album suddenly sucked my mind would have been nailed with an atom bomb of sadness. No, don't even act like that's an overstatement.
6. If I Were President (Skit)
Well it does say that this is a skit, but its more of a one verse wonder that should have been expanded into a longer track. By me complaining that the song is too short, I'm sure you can tell that this song is pretty good. Kind of reminds me of those couple of tracks on Magna Carta... Holy Grail. Just, you know, a little better.
7. Soul Flower (Remix)
Ok, now we're really getting somewhere, as the production damn near outshines the rappers. That's still an almost, though. No one really talks about anything meaningful, but the groups goofiness makes for an awfully entertaining listen. Imani's annoying ass voice is the carrier of one of the albums best verses saying, "I go from skip skop to hip hop to be bop to p funk cutting enough bullshit to turn a tree into a tree trunk". I don't know, I though that shit was pretty dope. If its killing you as much as it is me, the original version of this song appears on Heavy Rhyme Experience Vol. 1, a collaboration album made up of anyone who wanted to show up to the studio. This was nice as hell.
8. On The DL (Feat. Buckwheat)
And we're back again with Buckwheat who continues to not be bad. He must have some issues of some sort with the group because he's better than a couple members in the crew and I can't think of a logical reason as to why he wasn't just added as an official member. Think of him as a Cappadonna, but to a slightly lesser extent. The instrumental is boring as hell, but the real entertainment comes from a verse strictly about one guys experience of masturbation. I find that funny and if you don't, we'll you probably need to loosen up a bit and enjoy comedic gold. Even if you are up tight as hell, you have to acknowledge the originality in the topic of masturbation, at least in the rap universe.
9. Pack The Pipe (Interlude)
A short, jazzy interlude that doesn't even give enough credit to the word "useless". I don't know if this was supposed to be some way of hyping up the actual song, but I wasn't feeling it.
10. Officer
The interlude seems to have rejuvenated the young fellas, as everyone again seems happy to be rhyming. Kicking off the song, its basically a Public Enemy spoof that even includes the voice of Flava Flav. The group quickly turns the song into their own, but keeps the Public Enemy feel. You see, that's how you pay homage to your favorite group, make one singular song, not make a whole album bitting their shit. (Looking at you Mr. West) Slimkid3 lays the most memorable verse, as he is more worried about his record deal if he gets arrested than anything else. Can't imagine anything too drastic would happen. Rappers get arrested all the time and we never even hear about it, let alone them getting dropped by their labor. Never mind, this songs dope and you should enjoy it for what it is.
11. Ya Mama
The fact that they even had the audacity to release a song based purely around the "yo mama" joke should warrant a purchase from you, but it also shows the first sign that the album was actually recorded in 1992. Don't act like you don't find this shit funny, either. You're never too old to enjoy some lighthearted humor. Just another great song in the midst of a wave of total awesomeness (please excuse my third grade level praise)
12. Passing Me By
This song was popular enough for me to expect to to already know what the hell I'm talking about. For such an unknown group, I'm still amazed that this topped the hip hop billboard. For the song, its a love song that's sadder than I remember, but its still great. You may even know some of the lyrics from the Joe song "Stutter (Remix)" that literally borrowed an entire line from the song. I'd call him out for that but then I remembered how frequently the entire version of Slick Rick's "La Di Da Di" is used. Miley Cyrus fan? Search that shit and learn how to spell the name of the hook. This song is still amazing, though.
13. Otha Fish
The choice of having Slim having the solo track seems questionable on the surface but he delivers a more than admirable song, displaying the changing emotions of a relationship. Probably the closest thing to a relatable track on this entire album, besides "On The DL". L.A. Jay takes on the production here, making for the only non-J Swift produced track, but there's no let down, as it sets the tone nicely. I'm confused at the thought process of literally repeating the hook twenty times at the end, even though its only a single line. On another interesting note, this song was actually added on after the album had been recorded, serving as a companion to "Passing Me By". J-Swift had actually been fired at this point (sheeeesh, I've been loving these beats, must have been a terrible guy), which is why he doesn't produce it, but the song still fits in perfectly.
14. Quintin's On The Way (Skit)
Shamefully, I laugh at this skit every single fucking time, which is a first for any skit, but I can't see too many people sharing my joy so you might want to give this one a skip.
15. Pack The Pipe (Feat. Quinton)
You didn't really think they'd forget a weed song, did you? I was reading the lyrics to the song the other day and the second verse was beyond confusing. Not that there was any groundbreaking and complex lyrics, but rather there are two people rapping at the same time. Normally, that would be annoying as hell, but I still loved this song. That's right, I'm actually enjoying a stoner song. What can I say, its simply hilarious, which is always a good recipe for entertainment.
16. Return Of The B-Boy
Yeeees, the groups final song may very well be my favorite on the album. A general tribute to old school hip hop, everything about the music is happy and makes you want to dance. That's not just me, either. All the member seem to get in on the action and deliver energy filled verses, none more impressive than Imani. Can't close your album much better than that.
Rating:4.5/5
Whenever I rate an album this highly, I always take into consideration what the album has done for the genre, whether good or bad. Depending on that, I'll decide whether nor not to add on the extra half star. In this case, that parts covered, as Bizarre Ride II opened up all kinds of door for west coast alternative hip hop. The only things holding this album back from a classic rating is the fairly slow start and number of skit. After track four, though, we are nailed with a shit storm of greatness. I mean that in the best way conceivably possible. After it finally picks up steam, it never slows down, making for one of the more entertaining albums you'll ever hear. All four rappers sound great rhyming next to each other, resulting in some truly amazing songs. A lot of this may come off as insane on the surface, but the groups can get serious and make a socially conscience song or even veer off into the love song category. Like I stated earlier, all the songs hold up surprisingly well and sound like they could have just recently been made. Absolutely a must hear for any hip hop fan, just trust me on this one. If you don't like it, I'll personally apologize, but I won't give you any money back. I'm not forcing you to get it, only strongly, strongly, recommending it. Now its up to you to put that recommendation to good use.